Love this video. Miyamoto Musashi was a legendary Samurai swordsman, but here he’s using a short staff–what we call the flute.

And here’s a cool documentary on the Samurai by Mark Dacascos (about an hour and forty-five minutes long, on YouTube).

My interest is Tai Chi, which is Chinese, whereas the Samurai are Japanese. And although Tai Chi is a martial art, my interest is more in the art than the marital part, more about health than fighting. But this is pretty exciting stuff.

Also, in the short clip, I recognize some of the moves we practice in flute form, including two-handed poke at the end of the form, which he is about to execute below.

If you haven’t read Shinju, by Laura Jo Rowland, I recommend it. It’s a satisfying nail-biter of a detective story, set in 17th century Tokyo. The main character, Sano Ichiro, is a Samurai and the most admirable protagonist ever. Here’s a lovely old Japanese woodblock of Musashi from Wikipedia:

Samurai Miyamoto Musashi