Miyamoto Musashi

Miyamoto Musashi (c. 1584–1645) was a Japanese swordsman, rōnin, and strategist, remembered as one of Japan’s most famous duelists. Active during the late Sengoku and early Edo periods, he developed a distinctive two-sword method of fighting and taught martial principles grounded in timing, distance, and adaptability. Musashi also worked as an artist, producing ink paintings and calligraphy. Near the end of his life he wrote *Go Rin no Sho* (*The Book of Five Rings*), a concise treatise on strategy that draws lessons from swordsmanship for broader conflict and decision-making. He died in 1645.