Art of Peace

Morihei Ueshiba The Art of Peace

I snagged this little book, and it is little, on my way out of Japan. I figured that since I was going to war that this is the sort of thing that I should be reading to ensure that I remained a human being through the end of my trip. Turns out that the book doesnt really have anything to do with peace per say (at least in the Western since of the word). The book is more about personal balance and finding the 'way'. Ueshida was the founder of Aikido which is the martial art study of 'nonviolent way to victory'. The statements and pronouncements in the book are all reasonable and generally convincing. However the translation (John Stevens) seems poor as the book does not flow with the elegance of the versions of The Art of War that I have read nor does it match the strength of The Book of Five Rings. My biggest problem is that the book doesnt really flow all that well from cover to cover. I suppose I will wait for an alternate translation before I pass too much judgment.