See this book? This is one of the greatest treatise on the behaviour and manner of the samurai of feudal Japan that was ever written, even though it was written after the dissolution of the samurai. But, enough if the history lesson. The reason I've mentioned it (and even put up a handy photo of anyone wants to buy it!) Is because it contains a passage which helped me immensely today, against the gremlins in my head. It goes like this:
"There is one transcending level, and this is the most excellent of all. The person is aware of the endlessness of entering deeply into a certain way and never thinks of himself of having finished. He truly knows his own insufficiencies and never in his whole life thinks that he has succeeded. He has no thoughts of pride but with self abasement knows the Way to the end. It is said that master Yagyū once remarked "I do not know the way to defeat others, but the way to defeat myself."
Thought your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today. This is never ending."
This really struck me because I simply need to be better than i was on my last run. To keep improving, getting better.
Oh, and I managed my first 8k in 1hr 3minutes. I'll write about it later.
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Jundal
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It's one of the better, yet more convoluted books out there on the samurai Way. Some of it can be light reading, some not. Interesting though. What's better, I got my copy for 50p from a charity shop! 😂
Oh, and I tend to find when I'm in 'the zone' it's simply the Way of Sen Sen no Sen. (Unfinished body.) It's a time when you simply exist, gliding along in perfect serenity everything moving like a well oiled machine designed for he purpose it's carrying out. It's quite blissful. Doesn't happen often, but when it does, I come home on cloud nine for at least a day after!
"Living as if you are already dead" or being willing to die as a bushido samurai warrior code could have some parallels in running endurance or being in the "zone" ? It can't get any worse so live with it/transend it? I know I've sometimes felt like I've died on really long runs! The book quote is an eloquent "Suck it up!" ?
I prefer to think that it refers to our journey to be the best we can be. We polish our souls (direct reference to the hagakure) with everything we do, following our Way, and in this case it's the way if the runner. Each run is further, or faster, or harder. We simply improve, and we wear that improvement like an invisible shroud at all times. It changes who we are.
To put it simply: we are forged on he anvil of our own hard work.
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week3run1 ✅. 3 x 17 mins with 1 min walks. 
How did your parkrun or (not)parkrun go?
