Musashi: An Epic Novel of the Samurai Era

by Eiji Yoshikawa

But even as he knelt, different thoughts came rushing into his mind. What had made him think man was small? Wasn’t nature itself big only when it was reflected in human eyes? Didn’t the gods themselves come into existence only when they communicated with the hearts of mortals? Men—living spirits, not dead rock—performed the greatest actions of all.

“Do not attempt to oppose the way of the universe. But first make sure you know the way of the universe.”