Training like Mishima for 7 Days

oh today we're doing another book review it's one that I've already discussed which is sun and Steel by Yuki Mishima I adore mishima's novels this is no secret but the author is controversial so I just want to be clear I want to discuss the book and that's it for me the main appeal has always been How Deeply introspective his work is this is something that I find so fascinating and immersive it almost feels like the author is trying to understand himself through his novels but in Sun and steel Mishima speaks to us directly about his philosophy instead and we learn why this novelist in 1960s Jaan decided to one day just pick up bodybuilding this book combines building muscle with philosophy and topics that you would normally wouldn't see together Sun still is unique to say the least but I read this years ago and I realized just how much it helped me form my own ideas so I wanted to break this down the same way this novel was built which is through sun and steel so I'll be doing my weekly workout and you guys can come along training the mind isn't so different from training the body through challenges and practic this we eventually advance and can move on to even harder problem but often for many people at least they see the mind and body as very separate while one is pursued the other one is often left neglected I'm working out outside today because be sleeps on the room next to me and I thought it made sense as well and there's something uh really nice about being outside it's a luring wanting to reach higher when you look up on the blue sky so it sort of fits for today as well Mishima thought there was too much emphasis on intellectuality in society and I think there's something interesting about a Nobel prew worthy novelist coming to this thought as an author he felt his words were corrosive thoughts on their own are just that they're abstract while in contrast the physical has actual grounds in reality so he believed that the body and mind when trained together they complement each other and that leads to a higher form of self-improvement Miss I believe true wisdom and fulfillment came from this interplay of thinking and doing just thinking on its own or night thinking as he coined it was something going downwards if your words should have any value you must live them yourself all true philosophers understand and live this so Mishima as a writer for him words had come first and now he likened this new found wisdom as a new language the language of the flesh he called it and in his Pursuit he chose and still to hate him one two three that concludes today's exercise I just showed pieces of it but body and mind I think is it's essential I just need it to ground me with with my thoughts I overthink I become anxious and I just can't I can't imagine my life without one or another at least in Sun and steel we're read of a secret Energy Formula that brought Mishima to a hidden state of physique and focused mind today we know of course that he was talking about G fuel's caffeine-free hydration flavors listen it's summer we need to hydrate more than ever g- fuel's caffeine-free flavors is a great way to motivate you to drink more because of the delicious g- fuel flavors you can stay hydrated and not infringe on your daily caffeine intake they're literally zero everything Zero caffeine zero sugar zero calories seral depths with 5% muscle increase guaranteed I think maybe I know this is a bit out of place but it also is a perfect fit because this drink is vitamin fortified which means it supports healthy brain functionality mind and body combined right now if you use code PewDiePie in the next 48 hours only you will save 30% off so definitely take advantage of that code PewDiePie uh there's a bunch of new flavors and new arrivals that you can check out as well it's a great way to support the channel and you guys can save 30% off so appreciate it Mishima thought the body might be capable of its own logic and thought kind of a bold statement he engaged in martial arts K though and he believed physical activities like sports can provide us with a certain knowledge so this is an embodied knowledge which teaches us our limits strengths weaknesses they also make us understand our bodies coordination balance endurance resistance resilience to pain and this is knowledge that is purely felt and therefore grasped unconsciously in a sense you feel the sweat that runs down your forehead and and you feel the strain in your muscle when they reach their capacity and this is a reminder of our body's capabilities and responses physique is often overlooked for many it's a second thought at best but missiona points out that those who have gained muscle and physical strength rarely or if ever argue that their efforts are useless they recognize their efforts as something worthwhile and beneficial and this is a conclusion they come to often without even giving any conscious thought to it just like embodied wisdom it's felt with this embodied knowledge we gain a practical wisdom that we can apply to real life situations and this is a deep intuitive understanding of what works and what doesn't that was hard I think what with sports or bouldering in particular that taught me is that you're always more capable than you think you are and I think gaining that confidence it kind of applies to anything really and it's such a valuable thing to teach yourself and I'm really grateful for it's a good embodied knowledge the sun is obviously a central theme in Mishima sun and steel it represents life and strength and Mishima believed that the exposure to Sun was necessary for his mind and body so he let the sun color his skin as a way of branding him in a sense it represented his dedication to this philosophy and choosing pain over comfort as a reminder that he's actively living his thought and I quite like this it reminds me of when Greek philosophers would rather have their heads cut off than to lose their beards it's just another way of reminding yourself and displaying that you're living your philosophy because just like muscles are fluid and requires constant maintenance as so there's our commitment to our ideas pain is necessary it should not be feared or try to be avoided this goes both mentally and physically anyone who reached a certain level in strength training will have learned to love the pain in brains when feeling this sensation it tests our endurance resistance and willpower and this is how we can push Beyond and reach new levels of physical but also mental strength missa thought pain was valuable because it reveals our vulnerabilities and weaknesses it forces us to understand ourself because it reveals the core of our characters anyone can save phas until they've truly suffered pain thus forces us into self-awareness and introspection we can also transform through pain mentally and physically we become stronger and if we choose the opposite which is Comfort it would instead lead to mediocracy and stagnation so much of mishima's ideas in Sun and seal feels like intuitively grasp ideas of what signs now tell us how some stress is actually more beneficial than none people often look at me as someone who's achieved a certain amount of success so why not just kick my feet back and relax fully and while my priorities have changed in the process of pain I find fulfillment there's a poem at the end of sun and steel called Icarus where Mishima splits his two contrasting thoughts uh in the poem this idea of descend ascending and still remaining grounded why still should the Lust For Ascension seem in itself so close to Madness I just felt so much comfort breeding that reflecting on this week where I tried to train like Mishima I felt a Solitude in my efforts and I think that's why I got weirdly emotional here I didn't expect it I gained an improved grasp on the balance between body and mind and it started as a nice refresher I hope if you were inspired you will embrace the Sun and reach higher but also ground yourself through the steel