Agger Spaulding > Agger's Quotes

“There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the present moment. A man's whole life is a succession of moment after moment. There will be nothing else to do, and nothing else to pursue. Live being true to the single purpose of the moment.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you will still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, The Hagakure: A code to the way of samurai

“Even if it seems certain that you will lose, retaliate. Neither wisdom nor technique has a place in this. A real man does not think of victory or defeat. He plunges recklessly towards an irrational death. By doing this, you will awaken from your dreams.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“To give a person an opinion one must first judge well whether that person is of the disposition to receive it or not.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Be true to the thought of the moment and avoid distraction. Other than continuing to exert yourself, enter into nothing else, but go to the extent of living single thought by single thought.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“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.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“When one is writing a letter, he should think that the recipient will make it into a hanging scroll.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“There is nothing we should be quite so grateful for as the last line of the poem that goes, 'When your own heart asks.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Bushido is realized in the presence of death. This means choosing death whenever there is a choice between life and death. There is no other reasoning.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“In the Kamigata area, they have a sort of tiered lunchbox they use for a single day when flower viewing. Upon returning, they throw them away, trampling them underfoot. The end is important in all things.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“If a warrior is not unattached to life and death, he will be of no use whatsoever. The saying that “All abilities come from one mind” sounds as though it has to do with sentient matters, but it is in fact a matter of being unattached to life and death. With such non-attachment one can accomplish any feat.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Respect, Honesty, Courage, Rectitude, Loyalty, Honour, Benevolence”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“If one is but secure at the foundation, he will not be pained by departure from minor details or affairs that are contrary to expectation. But in the end, the details of a matter are important. The right and wrong of one's way of doing things are found in trivial matters.”
― Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“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, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“in china there was once a man who liked pictures of dragons, and his clothing and furnishings were all designed accordingly. his deep affections for dragons was brought to the attention of the dragon god, and one day a real dragon appeared before his window. it is said that he died of fright. he was probably a man who always spoke big words but acted differently when facing the real thing.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Practice in letter writing goes to the extent of taking care in even one-line letters. It is good if all the above contain a quiet strength. Moreover, according to what the priest Ryōzan heard when he was in the Kamigata area, when one is writing a letter, he should think that the recipient will make it into a hanging scroll.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Even if it seems certain that you will lose, retaliate.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“No matter if the enemy has thousands of men, there is fulfillment in simply standing them off and being determined to cut them all down, starting from one end.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“In the highest level a man has the look of knowing nothing .”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

“Misfortune nobly born is good fortune.”
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations