Tao of Shinsei

The Tao of Shinsei was a series of lectures and discussions which became the basis of the religion known as Shinseism. The whole of it was recorded by the Kami Shiba and consisted primarily of Shinsei's famed discussion with Hantei, and also Shinsei's teachings as he traveled Rokugan finding the Seven Thunders.

Recording the Tao
As Shinsei met with Hantei to convince the Emperor to allow the monk to take the Seven Thunders and fight Fu Leng, Shiba sat nearby, listening and recording each word the two said. When the conversation was over, Shiba was left with a thick stack of papers covered with writing.

As Shinsei traveled Rokugan finding and collecting his Thunders, Shiba remained by his side, continuing to record his teachings. As they passed through the Empire, Shinsei would stop and speak with the locals, teaching everyone who would listen. These conversations became the final chapters of the Tao.

The pair traveled, collecting the Thunders, until they finally reached Gisei Toshi, where Isawa would eventually join their party. At this point, Shinsei told Shiba to stop writing. he said that the work was complete and would forever remain with the Isawa in the city.

Isawa reaction
As Isawa's family began researching the Tao after their namesake's departure, they were appalled at the teachings and declared that the text was blasphemously opposed to kami no michi. Obsessed with finding some flaw in the text, the scholars of the Isawa family began poring over it in order to find irregularities. These scholars spent years dissecting every lesson, mystery and riddle, but ultimately found no errors. Instead, they began to realize that the teachings of Shinsei were in fact compatible with kami no michi. Within a few generations, the Tao took the place of honor in the Isawa family's great library.

Varying texts
Some lectures that Shinsei gave while collecting the Thunders were often written down by his students. Some were chronicled immediately after the scribe heard the Little Teacher, and some versions were not written until decades afterwards. As a result, many of Shinsei's lectures have several different recorded versions. Clarity was made more difficult because monks who were writing sutra would often use the name of a previous master as a pseudonym. Since the partial destruction of the original Tao (see below), it became difficult to determine what teachings were originally Shinsei's and which came from his followers over the centuries.

Approbation
Although the Tao became the foundation of the Shinseism and the Shinsei Brotherhood, the text was still controversial. The most skeptical critics were from the Scorpion Clan, who doubted about the text's authenticity, such as Soshi Muyoko.

Contents
Most important part of the Tao of Shinsei is the revelation of the Path of Man.

The Fire at Gisei Toshi
In 283, in the wake of the rampage of Oni no Akuma, fire swept through Gisei Toshi. The great library was ravaged, and the Tao was nearly lost. many of the Asako librarians perished trying to stem the blaze and save the Tao, but they were not completely successful. Entire sections of the Tao were burned, and the remainder was badly damaged. What remained were only fragments, charred and brittle. These were isolated in the deepest vault of the library. The damaged Tao nearly filled a table, whereas the original text had once been contained within hundreds of scrolls.

After the fire, the greatest of the Asako family librarians devoted their lives to restoring the Tao. They researched every scroll they could in order to find any passage that had been quoted elsewhere. They questioned every scholar of the Tao they could find, recording what they could remember about the original writings. In the end, they could not restore the complete Tao, but their efforts did result in a large body of work which remained as enlightening as ever it was.

The Theft of the Tao
In 1132, the Tao was stolen by the Kolat, who were attempting to protect it from the Lying Darkness. Some of the Kolat planned to revise the Tao, changing bits to suit their goals, but others Kolat disagreed. Half of the Tao was given to Daidoji Rekai by a traitor in the Kolat, a monk named Ikudaiu, but the other half was taken by the Lying Darkness and presumed lost.

Akodo Kage also intended to revise the Tao to suit his needs. It may have been for this reason that Ikudaiu returned half the Tao to Daidoji Rekai, or it may have been successfully changed and Kage ordered Ikudaiu to "return" it.

The Second Half is Recovered


The second half of the Tao was eventually recovered by a Scorpion, Yogo Tjeki, after that shugenja meditated upon the elements for a long period of time. Everyone was surprised by this, even Tjeki himself. Although Tjeki dabbled in maho and was affiliated with the Shadowed Tower, he resisted the urge to alter the Tao for the benefit of anyone and surrendered the second half unaltered to the Brotherhood of Shinsei.

Notable Quotes

 * "Your soul - your life energy - is not bound by the flesh. It can reach where your fingers cannot."
 * "Following a false light only leads you deeper into darkness."
 * "He who would not be a fool knows not to fear long knives but ones that may only strike close."
 * "Sometimes the downfall of houses hinges on a fumble of the wrist."
 * "The way of darkness always brings great power. The way of darkness always brings a great price."
 * "Do not be wary of men who take risks with titles and lands, be wary of men who have nothing to lose."
 * "One must learn to see what is to be seen and to see though what others wish you to see."
 * "Courage may feed a man's soul, but it is rice that feeds his belly, and an army cannot move on courage alone."
 * "It takes a wise man to see an obstacle as it truly is and not as it appears to be."
 * "Wisdom can be found in many places, but you must always begin at home."
 * "You are always blind to your truest enemy, for he is behind your eyes."
 * "When I have a voice in the Emperor's ear, I need no general in the field."
 * "What you do not understand can kill you."
 * "Lose your fear, and you gain the world."
 * "You cannot conquer the elements. You must learn to dance with their harmony."
 * "The art of war is to put your enemy in a position that he cannot fight from."
 * "Even in times of trouble, remember this: there is no evil in nature. What is now has been before and will be again. It is the shortsighted and foolish who believe that life has no patterns, no purposes. All that is now is part of what has been and what will come to be."
 * "Do not be distracted by the pincers when it is the tail that can kill you."
 * "The only true test of courage is the last one."
 * "Desperate men employ desperate measures."
 * "Friendship is truly tested when it is time to share the burden."
 * "Petting scorpions with a compassionate hand only gets you a sting."
 * "When darkness descends, a man must find allies in the shadows."
 * "Sometimes the downfall of houses hinges on a fumble of the wrist."
 * "The way of darkness always brings great power. The way of darkness always brings a great price.
 * "One must learn to see what is to be seen and to see though what others wish you to see."
 * "Wisdom can be found in many places, but you must always begin at home."
 * "You cannot balance the elements while you are without balance."
 * "The center is everything. Find the center. All else proceeds naturally from there."
 * "It is the sound of purest harmony, the sound of the universe. Make your soul sing its song, and you will find there is nothing you cannot accomplish."
 * "There are no secrets. There is no understanding. Void is all and nothing. It is the dance of the elements."
 * "A clear mind can topple even the strongest will."
 * "Brave men may be forgotten; brave deeds never so."
 * "Winds blow, nations change, fortunes rise and fall, but the simple folk will always be asked to shoulder the weight."
 * "Only the face of all that is and is not can reveal the truth."
 * "In order to choose the correct path, you must know the pitfalls that await you."
 * "There are subtler strategies and deadlier battlefields than even I know."
 * "If a general is wise, he knows that a single man can halt an entire army."
 * "The higher you stand above modesty, the easier it becomes to lose your footing."
 * "A sagacious general, armed with the knowledge of his enemy, will be able to act as if he knows his enemy's every thought."
 * "...for the more corrupt the soul, the more painful it becomes to look upon the pure. So it is with crystal and jade and the creatures of the dark lands. Remember this, Hantei, for it will one day save your life."
 * "When you are doing one thing, be concerned with that one thing and nothing else. Distraction breeds disaster."
 * "When ten thousand men clash with arms and fire, it is always a single man's actions that make the difference."
 * "You need no armor, you need no sword. You need only to know that you cannot be defeated."
 * "Destiny does not believe in secrets. When something is meant to be, it is obvious to all but the foolish."
 * "When your enemy is certain you cannot act, victory is within your reach."
 * "While others lament on what they should have done, the wise man prepares for whate he should do next."
 * "Guard your words carefully, for you own every word you speak."
 * "As an ocean to a small stream, the leader to his people, this is the Tao to the world."
 * "The Elements are not the means to an end... they are the beginning, and the end."
 * "True Nobility comes not from being superior to another man, but from being superior to your past."
 * "All things are necessary - war, peace, the edge of the sword, and the sound of a poem. With understanding, all things are one."
 * "People argue. Nature acts."
 * "Seek enlightenment, but do not be foolish enough to expect enlightenment."