The masters work With Sweat pouring from his body the blacksmith forges his passion with fire, bruit strength and delicate precision . His battered hands create and give life and purpose to a meaningless object. He puts the steel to the fire and when it reaches the right temperature he beats it with a hammer. With each strike the steel becomes closer to what the blacksmith intends for it. His care and skill will turn the raw steel into something beautiful and useful. A sense of satisfaction that is unexplainable comes over him as the steel begins to resemble a blade. The black smith is motivated by his passion and pride knowing no two swords that have came from his hands are the same, yet he patently and diligently works each blade until they are flawless and perfect in their own way. This blade will always carry the mark of the blacksmith just under the handle. this is done following the ancient tradition of the Japanese sword maker. The flawless work of art will bring honor to the blacksmith all the way to his childrens children. When finished the katana will not only reflect honor upon its maker it will become a symbol of courage and valor to the samurai warrior who possesses it. The blade that was born from the earth, forged in fire, cooled in water, and sharpened with stone, and finally made perfect and complete, unique and beautiful, through the passion blood and sweat of the master sword maker. The blacksmith bows and humbly presents his blade to the samurai warrior. This steel blade carries blacksmiths mark and also part of his soul. Once the katana is passes from the blacksmith to the samurai the blade is given a new purpose. in the hands the samurai it becomes part of him as he faithfully practices his kata and carries it wherever he goes. the warriors hands begin to form to the sward and the sward forms to his hands. The warriors skill, sweat, blood and passion transforms the katana into an extension of his body and soul as he faithfully prepares himself for battle. the blade and the warrior move together as one in harmony like cherry blossoms dancing in the wind. Over time the blade will tell the story of the samurai to his children and his childrens children after he has fallen. the katana will carry part of his spirit for generations to come. Taken from the earth and placed in the hands of the blacksmith, the katana was shaped. Given to the warrior the katana was given its purpose. Like the katana, the warrior and the blacksmith came from the earth but the day will come when the master blacksmith and the samurai master will breath their last breath. Their spirit will depart and the earth and their bodies will return to the ground. The katana will continue on this earth to bare the mark of the blacksmith and tell the story of the samurai. Like the two masters we will all someday return to the earth. We can only hope that we will leave our mark and have our story remembered through the things we have touched. Like the blade Our soul is touched by our masters. We bare their mark and tell their story. We are formed and perfected by fire through hardship, cooled by the waters of wisdom, sharpened by the stone of discipline. Then shaped into something beautiful and useful. Each one unique and each one beautiful in our own way
Posted on: Sun, 23 Mar 2014 20:59:51 +0000