1645 in Japan

text on kenjutsu and the martial arts, written by Miyamoto Musashi

The Dokkōdō (The Path of Aloneness, The Way to Go Forth Alone, or The Way of Walking Alone) is a short work on philosophy, written by the Japanese swordsman and strategist Miyamoto Musashi a week before he died in 1645. It consists of 21 precepts and was largely composed on the occasion of Musashi giving away his possessions in preparation for death. The work was dedicated to his favorite disciple who took the precepts to heart, Terao Magonojō, and to whom his earlier Go rin no sho (The Book of Five Rings) had been dedicated. Dokkōdō expresses a stringent, honest, and ascetic view of life.