Musashi

[BowenStargazer]

I just received The Lone Samurai book from Amazon. Has anyone read it?

 

[BrendanF]

yes. good book.

 

[Oily Dragon]

I just received The Lone Samurai book from Amazon. Has anyone read it?

The author (Will Wilson) is probably the top non-Japanese expert on all things Japanese martial art. He is Kyokujitsu-sho, Order of the Rising Sun.

This was his first book. He just finished a book on Zen poetry I've been meaning to pick up. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[Chris Parker]

The author (Will Wilson) is probably the top non-Japanese expert on all things Japanese martial art.

No, he is not. At all. In any way or measure.

William Scott Wilson is a translator who specialises in Ancient Asian texts, commonly revolving around spiritual and occasionally martial study. He is a historian, however he is not a martial scholar, martial artist, or anything similar. His translations do suffer from the lack of martial knowledge he has, as he emphasises the religious and spiritual concepts he is more familiar with, and lessens the military/martial context and influence on the tomes.

There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of people who are much more expert on "all things Japanese martial art" as non-Japanese people... to begin with, Karl Friday, Ellis Amdur, Meik Skoss, Dianne Skoss, David Hall, Dave Lowry, Wayne Muramoto, Steve Delaney, Toby Threadgill, and far more. These are simply some of the most accessible.

He is Kyokujitsu-sho, Order of the Rising Sun.

Which is simply an award from the Japanese government for promotion of international interest in Japan. His particular form was awarded in 2015, and is one of the lower-to-mid tier forms fo the Kyokujitsu-Sho.

This was his first book. He just finished a book on Zen poetry I've been meaning to pick up. Thanks for the reminder.

I have all the time in the world for Wilson and his work, one of my go-to translations of Gorin no Sho is one of his (it contains the original Japanese, modern Japanese, and his translation, so I can compare and contrast his work with the actual Japanese text), along with Alex Bennetts (probably the best English translation currently available) and others, so this is not me putting him down... but it does help to temper appreciation of his work with a realistic appraisal of his genuine expertise... which is absolutely not as "the top non-Japanese expert on all things Japanese martial art."