Musashi's Dokkodo (The Way of Walking Alone)

Warrior:
This is a fitting precept to end with, and one that I and every warrior
will agree with. I have the audacity to state that all warriors will agree
with me and Musashi because I believe that true warriors have
something inside that draws them to the way of the warrior. It doesn’t
matter if you believe in David Grossman’s “Sheepdog” analogy or
Dan Millman’s “Way of the Peaceful Warrior,” the simple fact is that
some individuals have something inside that draws them toward
warriorship.
[38]
This may materialize in different ways, and the
individuals may sometimes appear to be as different as day and
night. But deep inside, they will have a commonality, and that will be
the way of the warrior.
When Musashi wrote about the Way, I don’t believe he was referring
only to his methods of swordsmanship or personal combat. I believe
he referred to the Way as a way of life in which every action
embodied the physicality and philosophy of warriorship. This
includes the arduous physical training a warrior must endure in
practice to be able to become victorious on the battlefield, as well as
the adherence to the moral codes found in all warrior classes from
ancient societies to the creeds found within our modern militaries.
The warrior not only must master the technical proficiency of armed
and unarmed combat, but the ethical principles taught with the
physical techniques to keep one from becoming nothing more than a
murdering thug. And, once saturated with both, this “warriorship”
then permeates every living fiber down to the warrior’s core. It truly is
a comprehensive way of life. And in my best Bruce Lee
impersonation, it is something you have to “feeeel.” To bring up

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Grossman’s analogy again, his “sheep” just won’t get it. Even if they
can academically understand what I’m talking about, they won’t
“feeeel” it.
And once you really “feeeel” it, the way becomes a part of you and
everything you do. And at that point, it is easy to agree with
Musashi’s precept that you should never stray from the way. I’d like
to share a personal example that illustrates how the way becomes a