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The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master
 
 
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The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master (Paperback)

by Takuan Soho (Author) "The term ignorance means the absence of enlightenment..." (more)
Key Phrases: immovable wisdom, own martial art, mysterious ability, Latent Cause, External Cause, Manifest Effect (more...)
4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)

List Price: $9.00
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Frequently Bought Together

The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master + The Book of Five Rings (Bushido--The Way of the Warrior) + Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
Price For All Three: $35.49

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  • This item: The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master by Takuan Soho

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  • The Book of Five Rings (Bushido--The Way of the Warrior) by Miyamoto Musashi

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  • Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai by Yamamoto Tsunetomo

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"All of the essays aim at helping the individual know himself and in helping him to embrace the art of life." -The Japan Times
"Takuan's writing is light on sword-handling and heavy on the spiritual side." -Asahi Evening News


Product Description
So succinct are the author's insights that these writings have outlasted the dissolution of the samurai class to come down to the present and be read for guidance and inspiration by the captains of business and industry, as well as those devoted to the practice of the martial arts in their modern form.

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Product Details

  • Paperback: 104 pages
  • Publisher: Kodansha International (March 15, 1988)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 087011851X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0870118517
  • Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.3 x 0.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #251,107 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category: (What's this?)

    #75 in  Books > Nonfiction > Foreign Language Nonfiction > Japanese

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The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master
68% buy the item featured on this page:
The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master 4.5 out of 5 stars (19)
$9.00
The Book of Five Rings (Bushido--The Way of the Warrior)
14% buy
The Book of Five Rings (Bushido--The Way of the Warrior) 4.3 out of 5 stars (137)
$12.92
The Book of Five Rings
7% buy
The Book of Five Rings 4.9 out of 5 stars (18)
$6.99
Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai
7% buy
Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai 4.4 out of 5 stars (53)
$13.57

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Customer Reviews

19 Reviews
5 star:
 (14)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
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Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
67 of 68 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars For those seeking The Way, this book is great, July 10, 2001
If you are a martial artist or Zen student seeking new ways of understanding the "enlightenment" of mastering an art, then this book can offer different angles from which to think about your practice. It can help you acknowledge the frustrations you feel as you reach that plateau where the harder you try the worse you perform, and it can give you the encouragement to get beyond that.

If, on the other hand, you're not into Zen texts, this book will bore you into a coma.

I found most enlightening Takuan's remarks on the stages of learning a skill, each with its own challenges; from the beginner struggling to teach his muscles the postures and movements, through the sophomore trying to "unstick" his mind from such details and focus on strategy, to the master who gives his actions no more thought than an adult gives standing up and walking across the room. These apply not only to martial arts, but to any activity that requires both physical skill and tactical thinking, from swordfighting to tennis, judo to golf.

The book is in three sections, which are actually translations of three letters written by Takuan to Yagyu Munenori. If you read this book, you should also read The Sword and the Mind, by Yagyu Munenori; they could almost be considered companion texts. Both have their interesting sections and their obtuse, no-longer-apparently relevant sections; and both at their most helpful address how to approach your practice and therefore your life.

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34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT, July 11, 1998
By dino99@prodigy.net (New York City) - See all my reviews
I have been involved with the martial arts for over 25 years. Student, instructor, swordsman. I consider this book a reference tool and a source of inspiritation. My copy is worn and tattered, what more can I say.

I am sure that Musashi valued his friendship with the author. The insights into human nature and self improvement are timeless.

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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An unexplicated work of profound simplicity, June 16, 1999
By A Customer
Takuan's voice in this work provides resonance for scholars and martial artists alike. For avid readers of the Zen tradition, this book offers both contrast and compliment to Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki. Most intersting I thought was his disticntion between the "mind of principle" and the "mind of technique". It stimulates meditation on our own day-to-day quality of thought and action.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Work of a Genius
Takuan is one of my sources for inspiration, and I value this work. He was born during the Warring States period in 1573 into a Samurai family of the Miura clan, and entered a... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ronin

5.0 out of 5 stars Insight into Zen mind
I found this text to be a complex, informative glimpse into the Zen mindset towards swordsmanship, yet general enough to be applicable to other martial arts. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Demitri Pevzner

5.0 out of 5 stars Takuan, more than just a tasty pickle!
This text, which includes the elusive "Taia-ki" or Sword of Taia is not for the casual reader. It requires study and serious thought to approach it's lessons. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Victor Brisbin

2.0 out of 5 stars Complicated
I enjoyed reading this book although I can't really say what I got out of it. The philosophies were difficult for me to grasp and I really did not come away understanding more... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Mark L. Tomcho

5.0 out of 5 stars unfettered mind----zen answers
This is it; skip all the rest; "the unfettered mind" tells the master
swordsman, right off the bat, how to stay cool enough to survive. Do I have to say more?
Published 10 months ago by F. Simpson

4.0 out of 5 stars Mind over matter?
You might be someone who's down to earth, just like, figuring out how in someone's name some Japanese sword fighter is going to help you out in your daily life. Read more
Published 16 months ago by P. V. de Metter

5.0 out of 5 stars Takuan Soho's Legacy
This is a legacy of Takuan Soho, a Zen monk from medieval Japan who live in the same period with Minamoto Mushasi, author of The Book of Five Rings. Read more
Published 21 months ago by T. Sutanto

5.0 out of 5 stars A spiritual book for the swordsman.
I would suggest this book for Kendo and Kenjutsu practitioners for spiritual reasons.

Soho was the spiritual teacher of a famous Swordsman Yagyu Munenori. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Edunpanna

5.0 out of 5 stars I like Takuan's Zen...
...I'd like to meet him. But not in a duel. The title of the book is appropriate. Do not park your mind. Zen is a no-parking zone. Read more
Published on November 4, 2005 by Wyndwalkyr

5.0 out of 5 stars the unfettered pickle
i know this is completely unhelpful and i'm going to be berated for this review, but i think it's funny. in japan there's a kind of pickle named after takuan. Read more
Published on October 30, 2005 by Phinaes

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