"A stroke of the sword that does not hit its target is the sword stroke of death; you reach over it to strike the winning blow. Your adversary's initiative having missed its mark, you turn the tables around and get the jump on your adversary." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"Conquering evil, not the opponent, is the essence of swordsmanship." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"If you gaze at a single leaf on a single tree, you do not see the other leaves. If you face the tree with no intention and do not fix your eyes on a single leaf, then you will see all the many leaves. If your mind is preoccupied with one leaf, you do not see the others, if you do not set your attention on one; you will see hundreds and thousands of leaves." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"Once a fight has started, if you get involved in thinking about what to do, you will be cut down by your opponent with the very next blow." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"There may be a hundred stances and sword positions, but you win with just one." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"When you strike a blow, do not let your mind dally on it, not concerning yourself with whether or not it is a telling blow; you should strike again and again, over and over, even four or five times. The thing is not to let your opponent even raise his head." (Yagyū Munenori, "A Hereditary Book on the Art of War", 1632)
"It is because a mirror has no commitment to any image that it can clearly and accurately reflect any image before it. The mind of a warrior is like a mirror in that it has no commitment to any outcome and is free to let form and purpose result on the spot, according to the situation." (Yagyu Munenori)
"It is bias to think that the art of war is just for killing people. It is not to kill people, it is to kill evil. It is a strategem to give life to many people by killing the evil of one person." (Yagyū Munenori)
"See first with your mind, then with your eyes, and finally with your body." (Yagyū Munenori)
"The archer should forget about shooting the arrow, and shoot as he would doing nothing special. Then the shot will be smooth. When wielding the long sword, or riding a horse, do it as though you would not wield a sword or ride a horse [...] Stop doing everything, have an empty, everyday's mind, even when you have lots of things to do, do it easily, smoothly. The man who has nothing on his heart is the man of the Way." (Yagyu Munenori)
"Throwing down your own sword is also an art of war. If you have attained mastery of swordlessness, you will never lack for a sword. The opponent's sword is your sword. This is acting at the vanguard of the moment." (Yagyū Munenori)
"When you practice archery, if your mind is occupied with shooting the arrow, the shot will be disturbed, and will not be settled (smooth). If you are wielding the long sword, and your mind is fixed on wielding the sword, the sword will not move smoothly." (Yagyu Munenori)
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