If by setting one’s heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he gains freedom in the Way. - Yamamoto Tsunetomo

Purity is something that cannot be attained except by piling effort upon effort.

There is a saying of the elders' that goes, "Step from under the eaves and you're a dead man. Leave the gate and the enemy is waiting." This is not a matter of being careful. It is to consider oneself as dead beforehand.

"It is said that what is called "the spirit of an age" is something to which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is due to the world's coming to an end. For this reason, although one would like to change today's world back to the spirit of one hundred years or more ago, it cannot be done. Thus it is important to make the best out of every generation."