3 LIFE LESSONS FROM ZEN SAMURAIS THAT WILL GIVE YOU STRENGTH DURING TOUGH TIMES

When you read about Zen samurais, you would expect to learn about fighting, swords and strategy. But
when I researched Samurai texts, this surprisingly wasn’t the case. Actually, it was quite the opposite.
Instead, almost all of them emphasize that being calm and focused is the key to success.
Here are some quotes from Zen samurai masters that show you what I mean: “When you manage to
overcome your own mind, you overcome myriad concerns, rise above all things, and are free. When you
are overcome by your own mind, you are burdened by myriad concerns, subordinate to things, unable to
rise above. “Mind your mind; guard it resolutely. Since it is the mind that confuses the mind, don’t let your
mind give in to your mind.” – Suzuki Shosan
“A noble man controls frivolity with gravity, awaits action in a state of calm. It is important for the spirit to
be whole, the mood steady, and the mind unmoving.” – Kaibara Ekken
“The imperturbable mind is the secret of warfare.” – Adachi Masahiro
There’s obvious value in staying calm. We don’t need to be told. It helps us think clearly and logically. But
modern society isn’t exactly the calmest environment. I mean, look at Facebook. The amount of content
consuming the platform is astounding. It’s relentless. So the real question is, how you get and stay calm?
The Zen samurai’s guide to staying chill to survive the tough times
1) Be prepared.
You probably already guessed, but samurais trained vigorously and consistently. They firmly believed that
one should always be prepared.
Considering that samurai battles could happen anywhere, anytime, being prepared was essential.
Research shows that preparation reduces fear because when things get tense, you don’t have to think. You
know what you need to do.
And those who survive catastrophic scenarios are those that are prepared.

2) Think of the worst.

Samurais thought about death a lot. Death was pretty much in their job description, right? However,
thinking about the awful things can actually make you realize that they’re not that bad.
Philosopher Oliver Burkeman describes this well: “It’s what the Stoics call, “the premeditation” – that
there’s actually a lot of peace of mind to be gained in thinking carefully and in detail and consciously about
how badly things could go. In most situations you’re going to discover that your anxiety or your fears about
those situations were exaggerated.” However, you don’t want to think about death all day. So, if something
is making you stressed, just think of the worst that could logically happen. Accepting and acknowledging
this will reduce your fear and anxiety.

3) Be in control
Samurai’s relied on control when they are fighting, and visualizing the worst that could happen gave them a
feeling of control in battle. Without a feeling of control, when stress gets high, we find it hard to stay
focused. Research shows that one of the best ways to reduce anxiety is to have feelings of control.
According to this book on scientific ways to gain focus, it says: “Amy Arnsten studies the effects of limbic
system arousal on prefrontal cortex functioning. She summarized the importance of a sense of control for
the brain during an interview filmed at her lab at Yale. “The loss of prefrontal function only occurs when we
feel out of control. It’s the prefrontal cortex itself that is determining if we are in control or not. Even if we
have the illusion that we are in control, our cognitive functions are preserved.” This perception of being in
control is a major driver of behavior.”
So, what helps you feel in control? More knowledge? Practice? Support from others? It can be anything,
even a good luck charm. Research shows that just having a good luck charm helps one feel in more control.
Via The Courage Quotient: How Science Can Make You Braver: “…people with a lucky charm performed
significantly better than did the people who had none. That’s right, having a lucky charm will make you a
better golfer, should you care about such things, and improve your cognitive performance on tasks such as
memory games.”
In conclusion
The samurai were great warriors, and understood the importance of being calm.
However, while the above strategies will help you experience calm and focus, the most important battle is
to overcome yourself.
According to Musashi in The Book of Five Rings. “Today is victory over yourself of yesterday; tomorrow is
your victory over lesser men.”
The discourses of Yojo (looking after one's health) in Japan from the eighteenth century to the middle of
the nineteenth century often required having one's "Yoku" (desire) under control.
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the episteme of the body in the discourses of Yojo, from the Kaibara
Ekken Yojokun (1713) to Mizuno Takusai Yojoben Kohen (1851), examining the concept of "Yoku".
The episteme of the body in this paper was the mechanism of perception and idea of the body. Three
procedures were employed for the purpose of this paper.
The first was to confirm the relation between "Qi" (substance or energy) and body, and to examine the
growth of the concept of "Qi" in the discourses of Yojo.
The second was to clarify the relation between economic activity in urban society in that era and having
one's Yoku under control in Yojo.
The last was to clarify the relation of the concept of "Yoku" and the inside of the body and
selfconsciousness. The main results can be summarized as follows.
The main points of Yojo were filling and surrounding the body with "Qi". Yojo, considered that "Yoku" and
"Gaija" (the course of a disease) reduced and congested "Qi", which existed in the body. The increase of
having one's "Yoku" under control in the discourses of Yojo from the eighteenth century to the middle of
the nineteenth century strengthened the connection between "Qi" and "Yoku".
This brought about the importance of the control of one's "Yoku". The background to this increasing
tendency toward having one's "Yoku" under control was the development of the urban monetary economy.
A consumption-based, affluent culture had been found desirable, and Yojo claimed control over it. In the
discourses of Yojo, there was "Yoku" within one's own body. Self-consciousness was the result of having
one's "Yoku" under control. "Yoku" in the discourses of Yojo was a conceptual apparatus that established
the connection between "Qi" and moral acts, and a continual care of oneself as a practical moral being.