Ash Lad

“Take this single tree. They could cut it down and make half of it into an incense tray, decorate it with lacquer set with gold or silver filigree, and set it in an alcove of an aristocrat or man of high rank as a tasteful ornament. The other half they could make into wooden clogs for stepping through the mud. When you look at the two different shapes, one is admired while the other is considered mean, but they’re the same in terms of the cutting down of a living tree.”
― Issai Chozanshi, The Demon's Sermon on the Martial Arts: A Graphic Novel

“and a person who worries over something he can do nothing about is an extraordinary fool.”
― Issai Chozanshi, The Demon's Sermon on the Martial Arts: A Graphic Novel

“Nowadays, people are shallow and their resolution is not in earnest. They dislike the strenuous and love the easy from the time they are young. When they see something vaguely clever, they want to learn it right away; but if taught in the manner of the old ways, they think it not worth learning. Nowadays, the way is revealed by the instructor, the deepest principles are taught even to beginners, the end result is set right out in front, and the student is led along by the hand.”
― Issai Chozanshi, The Demon's Sermon on the Martial Arts: A Graphic Novel

“Happy is the man who is nothing.”
― Jiddu Krishnamurti