From the desk of Victor Pride
Subj: 21 life lessons from an old samurai
—
A long time ago there was a great samurai who was cast out, doomed to wander the earth in search of the truth.
This man was a ronin, a former slave without a master.
In his travels he built a reputation as the greatest swordsman of the time.
Great swordsmen tend to also be great wordsmen. This swordsman was no exception.
His name was Musashi and he wrote the Book of Five Rings, which we still study to this day.
His masterpiece, however, was a list of 21 rules he wrote on a scroll before he died in the mountains.
He called this last work Dokkodo. It means … The Way of Walking Alone.
The Dokkodo is Musashi's 21 rules of life. He wrote these rules for his greatest student.
Victor Pride, a great student of the game, took these rules to heart. Musashi's 21 rules formed the basis of New World Ronin, whose inside title is … The Way of Working Alone.
In Musashi's time, a ronin was cursed to wander the earth without purpose.
Today, a ronin is blessed to wander the earth in search of truth, justice and getting paid. He can walk his own path and work his own way and make it pay.
Thanks to the magic of the internet, you can do anything you want today. Anyone can not only make good money today, anyone can make a million dollars seemingly out of nowhere.
You can commit corporate seppuku, create your own business and live your own reality. To do it, all you need is your code, your way, your core values, your rules.
These are them…
21 RULES OF THE RONIN
These rules are for the greatest students of Victor Pride's New World Ronin.
(Musashi's Dokkodo in bold, Pride in standard text.)
1. Accept everything just the way it is.
The world is as it is, not as we wish it to be.
Understand the world works in this way, not in the way it should, but in the way it is actually.
You must work in this paradigm or you will find nothing but disappointment.
2. Do not seek pleasure for its own sake.
Gluttony is gross. Keep your body and mind sharp.
Too much pleasure dulls the senses.
Your senses must be sharp because you have only yourself to rely on.
Drill sergeant and soldier all in one.
3. Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling.
Unsure actions produce unsure results.
Always be sure of victory in your mind before you set to achieve it in reality.
4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.
You cannot fool people today. The world is too smart thanks to the Internet.
Never try to be too clever for your audience, instead, be genuine.
Genuine men and women develop true followings, in-genuine men and women develop followings based only on favors.
Make them feel good, they're yours. Do them a phony favor, they'll forget as soon as the next snake offers new phony favors.
5. Be detached from desire your whole life long.
The journey is the reward. Being too attached to desire is a mental prison.
Detachment from desire keeps you calm, cool and collected.
6. Do not regret what you have done.
What's done is done. Regret is a wasted emotion. The past cannot be undone.
The only thing you can get from lamenting the past is self-doubt.
It is outlawed for New World Ronin to reflect and ponder.
7. Never be jealous.
Jealousy clouds the brain and stops you from learning.
You could only be jealous for one reason: you want whatever it is you're jealous of.
Jealousy is anger and anger turns off the part of the brain that thinks.
Don't be jealous, be curious.
Curiosity will make you reverse engineer whatever it is you want and then you will understand how to accomplish it.
But only if you let go of the choice of Jealousy and adopt curiosity.
8. Never have a mind of adherence and attachment to all things
Like Victor Pride once said, “stuff doesn't matter.”
9. Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself or others.
Complaints and resentment are nothing but negative energy.
Negative energy is worse than useless, it is harmful for you.
Negative energy produces the fight or flight response which is responsible for stress.
Living well is hard enough before you make it more complicated with complaints.
Save yourself some hassle and never complain.
Remember rule #1? Accept everything just the way it is.
Accept the things you cannot change,
Change the things you cannot accept.” -New World Ronin
10. Do not let yourself be guided by the feeling of lust or love.
“A good girlfriend is a good little soldier.” -New World Ronin
11. In all things have no preferences.
It is what it is. Work with what you've got.
If you've got nothing, work with your brain.
The mind is where choices and preferences are made.
The choice to have no preference is exactly that - a choice.
“Be like water.” -Bruce Lee
12. Be indifferent to where you live.
Too much preference in where you live is limiting.
When it comes time to die and you're allowed to reflect, you will find that the worst accommodations you had were the best accommodations you ever had.
That's where you felt the fire and the drive to do great work.
13. Do not pursue the taste of good food.
Over-eating is bad for the brain. You need your brain to work.
Do not slow the brain down with grease, extra fat, sugar and too many calories.
Eat enough to live with energy. Do not eat so much that it robs your energy.
Food is energy, if it doesn't energize you, you ate too much or too little. Eat just enough.
14. Do not hold on to possessions you no longer need.
Live like a Spartan. Possessions hold you back.
You may want to travel the world but if you have too much stuff, you never will.
I routinely get rid of all of my stuff and it is always a cathartic process.
In fact, B&D; started when I got rid of everything that didn't fit into a suitcase.
15. Do not act following customary beliefs.
Everything they do is wrong and everything they tell you to do is wrong.
Do the opposite of what everyone else is doing. If they're jealous, never be jealous.
16. Do not collect weapons or practice with weapons beyond what is useful.
Too much stuff is like too much food, it bogs down the mind. It's a burden on your back.
When you follow the way of the Ronin, you need not extra weapons.
Frankly you can run your entire business from a smartphone.
Have what you need for business and do not worry about more.
Too many options = no options chosen.
When you have only a few options you must get creative.
In fact, creativity only exists in constraints.
When you have no constraints, you have no limits. Great in theory, but in reality when you have no limits you never make any choices.
Analysis paralysis, dirty kitchen etc. Keep your arsenal simple.
17. Do not fear death.
The biggest fear people have is dying, which is silly.
Everyone on earth will experience death. It is not a smart use of time worrying about the inevitable.
“The whole secret of existence is to have no fear. Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely.” -The Buddha
18. Do not seek to possess either goods or fiefs for your old age.
You cannot take it with you when you die. Greed in old age is pointless.
The last rule of the New World Ronin is “give back to the gods.” This is the time you use your accumulated wealth for good.
19. Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help.
Like the Buddha said, what you think you become.
The gods will not give it to you, they will simply make it possible for you.
Respect that, but follow your own path and rely on the most high - yourself.
20. You may abandon your own body but you must preserve your honor.
Your body will die, your legacy has the ability to live forever.
A dishonorable life precludes a lasting legacy.
This is the information age, nothing can be hidden anymore.
Thankfully our weapons are words and not swords, and words are slightly less likely to get you killed.
21. Never stray from the Way.
All falls apart when you stray from the way.
Stay centered, stay focused, stay ronin.
This is the way of working alone, do not ever stray from it.
Until next time.
Your man,
-Victor Pride
What a great article! It made me re-read NWR.
Great article! Every sentence counts and it is a lesson in itself! I hope one day I can pass these on to my son!
Thanks BJ.
Thanks Andrew.
Thank you for this article. Every point gave me a realization. The biggest realization I had was how the gods make it possible for you but do not give anything to you. Instead of sitting around all day asking for things or praying all Ronin should be working. Self-reliance is the biggest factor in success in everything.
Give a man a fish, and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish, and he will eat for a lifetime.
A religious man will probably die praying for a fish.
yup.
Thanks Dylan.
Awesome Vic.
I was heavily influenced by musashi growing up and read the book of 5 rings numerous times. I even had Bushido tattooed onto my arm when I became an adult.
Just like Musashi, you changed my life for the better and I know that if not for you I wouldn’t be the man I am today.
Your words allowed me to break free and become my true self not the fake loser that society wants.
Thank you Victor.
Thank you Bebop.
Great article as always Nick,
Quick question, are you practicing Stoicism? The main points from your rules are very similar to Stoicism.
Thank you William. No, I do not practice anything.
Thank you for a great article.
Thank you Eddie.
I just finished reading New World Ronin for the second time a few days ago and this article is the perfect follow up. This website has become my motivation pit stop.
Thank you Alex.
Shaving head is whsat i do to grow things in a garden and lettting go…
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELFZC2HAjiZ5A
This is a GOLD.
Thank you PJ.
Just another great article! Thank you, Vic! Everyone has his own dark vices. Overeating is definitely my worst one. Maybe even my only one significant vice. I swear the day I conquer the pleasure of food will probably be the day I’m totally the master of my life.
Thank you Aleks.
I just finished formulating my own mental strategy. Immediately after reading Rule 5, my mind literally stopped to play foolishly with my soulful needs I got to fulfill.
At that time of realisation, it finally occurred to me that I am not my mind. My mind is just a capital source of information to know how to use my thoughts. And thereafter, I constrained the thoughts I needed. All of a sudden, I can choose because of the limit just satisfy the inquiry to have a clearly & defined routine of what’ll be the next best thing to my life.
All in all, thank you.
P. S. Thank you for attracting me with my favourite number in the whole wide world: number 21.
Very powerful article…
Thank you San Carlos.
Thank you Tshepang. 21 is power personified.
Hey this article was pretty good, usually when i see a bold email, im like “here we go with another cult type stuff lol”
but this was good.
Thank you Boris.
Hi Victor,
Fantastic post! IMO your best since the old days of B&D.
Have you read The Iliad?
Thank you Rodney. I’ve not read the Illiad.
I never realized Musashi wrote these 21 precepts! Thank you very much for introducing them to me!
Reading them (and your notes as well) brought my mind back to a 3 week pilgrimage I made across Spain. Many people do it, but not the way I did. It was in the middle of winter, through the mountains, alone. There were times I could have died, and no one would have known for months. It was wet, cold, hungry, painful, tiring work. Not fun. Not pleasurable.
But I absolutely loved it! All of these precepts were followed to a T, even though I knew none of them. There was a great fulfillment of soul during my journey, something I find lacking in everyday life. It seems to be extremely hard to duplicate in this modern world of ours. But I will keep trying.
Thank you again for the article!
Thank you Fidel.
Great stuff! Do you have Ronin in an audio version as well? Easier to keep re-listening when on the move.
Thank you Ammar. No audio for NWR.
wonderful article Vic. your posts have helped me a lot and changed for the better. thanks.
Thank you Ravi.
I have to say that this is one of my favorite posts of yours (and I’ve like a lot). All of this is true. Was good to be reminded of it. Love # 4 the most. Being genuine is key - most people forget this, it seems.
Anyway, I’m going to read this again tomorrow morning, yo start my day. Thanks Vic.
Thank you Matty.
Always forward, forward always.
human body was initially designed to eat meat, meat is very easy to digest unlike other foods. humans should mainly focus on building a farm with venison, goat, lamb etc if possible. of which will get more exercises and live longer.
fear will manipulate a boring and miserable life like a stoicism of a cow standing in the rain.
“ANGER AND HATE ARE FUEL FOR LIFE” Victor Pride
is a powerful article, thanks for reload my energy
Thank you Adrian.
Hi , brother
Comment for another purpose , drake right is out of red supplement , what happen to RED Focus , is there any near release date , because I postpone the idea of buying Modafinil , because it’s illlegal in the country that I live in.
Regards,
Red FOCUS will drop very soon now.
Hey Uncle Vic. Im writing this from a shitty little barracks room in Wahiawa, HI, isolated from everyone I care about. This dwelling is little more than a closet with a bed, but you are absolutely right regarding number 12. Just had a great, refreshing workout surrounded by books. Just finished another blog post earlier here in what I considered poverty, but once again your blog and masterful writing has pulled me through while granting me a new perspective. It has since I discovered your work back in October of 2012. Thank you for being the older brother and father figure we all need. God bless.
Thank you Justin.
You grow along with your business. What starts as something you hide from the world, slowly turns into something you’re proud about. Only two things are needed, a genuine wish to satisfy a need that your gut tells you only you can satisfy, doesn’t have to be entirely unique but unique enough for you to hold a space inside people’s head and more importantly, in your own head. Because that’s what’s going to give you energy and a genuine will to push forward, to the point that it becomes your instinctive response.
Even if your work changes one life, it’s worth it.
Like Victor said, the best have no competition. Because no body else can do what they can do. And what you can do, nobody else can. If you copy somebody else instead of refining your art, you’ll always be 2nd. Not because you suck, because you won’t have nearly as much energy to do it as him. Your work wouldn’t throw you out of bed and would make you hate going back to sleep again. It won’t make you reject a 1.8 million (INR = 27000 USD = 100650 USD after PPP adjustments; considered to be wildly good in my country) job offer after undergrad to pursue your goal even if there are no guarantees of success when what you have is a 5 year old laptop with broken hinges needing a pile of books to support itself to work on.
I’d be lying to say that Victor (not Nick Kelly) wasn’t the driving force that propelled me to take such a decision. Life isn’t just about making enough money to get-by and driving a jag. It’s about doing something valuable. Which builds your self-worth. That’s what’s truly going to make you not give a fuck. But first you gotta respect yourself. And you can’t respect yourself by doing what you don’t find valuable. Your gut wouldn’t allow that. You are absolutely guaranteed to feel deprived however much you money make if you don’t value your own work, if your gut doesn’t value it.
Looking back at your initial work would make it look like shit. That’s how you know you’re progressing.
A lot of guys think they should be writer just because Victor is a writer. For some trivial reasons such as “it doesn’t take much investment” or “can be done from anywhere” or just because Victor or I or anybody likes to move a lot, doesn’t mean you should force yourself to like it too. (After you tried it and didn’t like it)
Maybe you want to change California’s power grid system like Elon Musk. And where would he be had he copycatted Victor and become a blogger instead of following his advise and “following his gut”.
In fact, I’m surprised by the coherence of what Victor writes in his blogs with what I read about all the successful people such as Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, Thomas Jefferson, Gandhi. In none of the photos or depictions, even when forced into jail in case of Gandhi, do their faces not glow with charm and inspiration and an undaunted almost permanentised smile .
Why?
Because they value their work so much.
Even though their fields are entirely different the only thing that holds true for all of them is what Victor tells us in his truly amazing videos, “Follow Your Gut”.
I watch at least one of those videos every day to this day, usually before retiring to bed and that immediately awakens me again to make plans for the next morning. Victor’s voice and presentation (the videos prior to FCG) and honesty moves you from within. I found this blog in fact on youtube. His youtube videos, in my opinion are grossly underrated.
The best thing about Victor’s work is that he is, for the most, intellectually honest (spare a few recent marketing tactics, hey, nobody’s perfect, don’t like it, don’t read it). People who criticise him for being too abstract are exactly what Victor calls them, Losers. No matter what you do, they won’t change. Nothing that you read on Bold and determined, for the most part, is without evidence unless your brain is paralysed.
And second thing, sorry for going wildly off-topic, is endurance, which I don’t think has a more passionate advocate than Victor.
I’ll reproduce this comment in future on my blog for my audience too, if that’s an issue, contact me and I won’t.
My blog is called, Many-Wounds.com; hosted on bluehost, needless to say by BadNet.
And this link points to my latest work which I invite you to read, learn and critic.
http://many-wounds.com/genetics-luck-propaganda-youve-systematically-brainwashed-helpless/
It’s titled:
Genetics, Luck and Propaganda. How We’ve Been Systematically Brainwashed To Be Helpless.
And a very sincere “Thank You” to Uncle Pride. You flourish because you deserve to, I hope you keep yourself deserving.
Have A Nice Day.
Thank you Abhinav.
Hi Victor, first and foremost, you have achieved social “success” and I am proud of you, you showed and taught young men how to act and be men, you also showed people the “way”, brought “lightness” into a world of “darkness” (with New World Ronin) I am one of these people Thank you!,You also Spoke about how to achieve financial freedom,by being yourself. However I could go on. I am still convinced you still are “hiding something” up your sleeve.. You are NOT telling the full truth, No judgement by the way.. Just curious I know you have “something”New and Special coming out VERY SOON!!! I can SMELL IT!!! I would also like to hear some Story’s about your life ,you covered all bases This would Advance your “status” to another level. Thank you and God bless….- Scooter.
Thank you Scooter.
Should read the Kybalion Victor, it’s a great book. Talks about the 2 minds female and male. The male mind is the ‘I’ as in the conscious mind and the female mind is the ‘me’ as in the subconscious mind and it’s where our minds wander too when we daydream and strange thoughts progenerate from. Most people derive their sense of self from the female mind and believe they are what they think about and if you ask yourself what your characteristics are your female mind will be what you describe yourself as. But the key is you can change yourself through thinking through the male mind by using your will and to change your thought patterns and impressing enough good thoughts into your subconscious female mind. Of course from a meditative standpoint when people say you are not your thoughts I never really understood until I realised this principle of 2 minds and that I was identifying myself from my subconscious and my subconscious was derived from the experiences in my life and the things I watched through dumb ass media. So if I changed the things I fed into my subconscious then I can change who I am and therefore I can become anything. Reading your articles has definitely helped in rewiring my subconscious into a more positive one.
Hi Alan.
Your comment has a strong influence on earlier comment.
I became what I consciously thought by practising visualization. I see the man in my vision to live life throughout what I think is my choice to be- me, my actual self.
Your words worked perfectly, & man, I’m definitely digging in your place of understanding. Do you have place of communication to elaborate right up on it?
“Should read the Kybalion Victor, it’s a great book.”
I’ll have to check it out. Thanks Alan.
Please cn one get a pdf of the book or a place to buy or download it?
nyc blog . thanks for sharing.
Thank you Vijay.
I can only applaud the fact that you study Musashi and the Dokkodo, and share your conclusions with virtually the whole world.
Thank you Marc.
Your writing and advice just gets better and better.
Thank you Alexander.
Another timeless piece of content.
Long overdue. Highly appreciated!!
Thank you Lupebogi.
It is a rare gift to be able to open the eyes of blind men.
I’m done with this online stuff, I’m selling off all of my domains
https://www.namecheap.com/domains/marketplace/buy-domains.aspx?sellerusername=gregbun
great article
Thank you.
There is no room in the world for regret. What you got is exactly what you wanted at that point of your life. To regret is, is to say that you lied to yourself.
These rules sum up everything you need for a successful life.
Live minimalistic.
Accept the way it is.
Believe in yourself.
Be determined.
Go all out and take massive action.
This information is gold and it is free. Read it, absorb it and live by it guys.
By the way, it’s time to finally pick up your book Victor!
Excellent post, man. I needed this today!
Grts from Belgium
Vic. This article was amazing. Also, I just wanted to say thanks. A week ago I was a poly drug user. (Using multiple drugs daily) to getting off everything this week. 100% drug free and now am becoming a killer. I am starting my blog soon with badnet, and I have already came up with 13 blog article names. Now I just have to make the content based off those ideas. 100% original, not copying anyone. All based off real life experiences. I fucking love you Vic. Be great.
Holy Mary!!!This is very insightful.May the brain that wrote this be replenished hundredfold.
Hi Victor,
When might you be selling New World Ronin again?
Every man regardless of their current situation would benefit from these wise words. This is gold and it will always be. I occasionally come and read B&D. Every time, it gives me a different perspective with a new detail. Thank you.