Ise Zumi

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Ise Zumi
Ise Zumi

The Ise Zumi are an order of tattooed monks who belong to the Dragon Clan exclusively. The Ise Zumi, along with the Tsurai Zumi of the Hoshi family and the Kikage Zumi of the Hitomi family, form the spiritual core of the Dragon Clan. While their tattoos grant them mystical powers ranging everywhere from extreme speed to the ability to breathe fire, the Ise Zumi are enigmatic and generally pacifistic, though they can be fierce warriors when necessary. [1]

Contents

[edit] Appearance

Ise Zumi are remarkably easy to recognize because they rarely wear anything more than a couple of simple garments, they have clean shaven heads and their skins are covered in intricate tattoos. [1]

[edit] Becoming Ise Zumi

Those who climbed the mountains of the Dragon Clan searching for the Togashi each followed their own paths, but each path had the same steps leading them to the mindset of becoming a Togashi. [2]

[edit] First Step

It is said "the first step kills your parents". This means that the student must leave everything behind so that he can take a new name when he finally reaches his destination, and can begin study at the Togashi school. [3]

[edit] Second Step

The second step is said to be "killing the teacher". The Ise Zumi must walk their own path, making the teachings of their teacher their own, as it is with any path to enlightenment. [4]

[edit] Last Step

The final step is said to be "killing himself". The Ise Zumi learns that he has no self, and that he is part of everything and nothing. This step teaches the Ise Zumi to live life like a child, one moment at a time. [5]

[edit] Fourth Step

The fourth step is the neverending pursuit of enlightenment. While the previous steps are focused on making the Ise Zumi ready for the monastic life, the fourth is their continual search for enlightenment, and it will take as many steps as each individual requires. Some Ise Zumi run at these steps attempting to get to enlightenment faster. Others walk, believing enlightenment will come no faster if they run or crawl. The destiny is as different as the path for each man. [2]

[edit] History of the Ise Zumi

The Ise Zumi were founded personally by the Kami Togashi, and swore directly to his name as the Togashi family. Each member of the Ise Zumi, from the beginning of the Empire, was tattooed originally with Togashi's blood. It was this blood, and their understanding of their own place within the universe, that allowed them to access such phenomenal abilities. It is unclear how the Ise Zumi claimed their tattoos after Togashi's death on the Second Day of Thunder, but it is likely that they now receive their tattoos from Togashi Satsu, whose soul also houses that of his grandfather, Togashi. When Hitomi discovered how to create her own tattooed men, known as the Kikage Zumi, she forced the Togashi to swear to her name or be banished or killed. [6] Later, after Hitomi's realization of her evils, and her banishment of the dark influence of Kokujin, the Togashi were readmitted along with the newly formed Hoshi family to the Dragon Clan. They returned to their role as advisors and mystics, and have continued as such to this day. [7]

[edit] The Togashi and their Kami

The Dragon Clan, like the Phoenix, have had the comfort of the guidance of their founding Kami from the beginning of the Empire. By moving his soul into a different host body and masquerading as that host, Togashi remained champion of the Dragon Clan until the Second Day of Thunder. This cycle of reincarnation of the kami was guaranteed by the appearance of at least one tamashii each generation. A tamashii is a member of the Tattooed Order whose soul is attuned properly to be a host soul and body for Togashi. Generally the most powerful of the Ise Zumi, these men rarely lived full lives, as Togashi's reincarnation killed them as surely as would death. The body lived on, but the soul was that of another. This cycle seems to have been broken with the curious cohabitation of Togashi Satsu and the original soul of Togashi, but this is not assured. Tamashii are still appearing, as in the case of Togashi Matsuo. [8]

[edit] Madness

Mad tattooed man
Mad tattooed man

The method originally used to tattoo Ise Zumi could often leave the man in a state of raving madness when completed. If the man was strong then the mind and body would be able to join with the blood used in the tattoo. If not the mind would break, leaving a madman. These instances were rare, and even if the man escaped and went on a rampage throughout Kyuden Togashi they would be stopped. Only on rare occasions would the madman escape the castle and roam Rokugan. [5]

[edit] Sayings

The Ise Zumi are renowned for their cryptic demeanors and love of riddles and maxims, some often quoting directly from the Tao of Shinsei [1]

  • "What is most useful of the cup: What is there or what is not?"[9]
  • "Petting scorpions with a compassionate hand only gets you a sting."[9]
  • "The most difficult act in the world is to sit still."[9]
  • "Be more concerned with good actions than great ones."[9]
  • "Friendship is tested when it is time to share the burden."[9]
  • "Distant thunder tells of present danger."[9]
  • "See obstacles as they truly are, not as they appear to be."[9]
  • "A woman asked a wise man, "My husband drinks to much." The wise man said, "Might as well tell that to a fish.""[9]
  • "The mountains never learned to step aside."[9]
  • "When asked how he gained his great wisdom, Shinsei said: "Following my footsteps will not lead you to what I found.""[9]
  • "Every moments has a lesson for you to learn. Learn to listen."[10]
  • "Hearts are the repositories of secrets. Lips are their locks and tongues are their keys."[10]
  • "Treat everyone you meet as if they will die tomorrow."[10]
  • "Choosing between two evils is still choosing evil."[10]
  • "Even a goblins is beautiful at eighteen."[10]
  • "While you rest, your enemy practices."[10]
  • "Those who choose to stand alone, fall alone."[10]
  • "You can never bake the same cake twice."[10]
  • "Relish the moment before you make the first step on a journey, for that is the sweetest moment in the world."[10]
  • "When asked of the meaning of dreams Shinsei said: If only men put so much thought into what they see when they are awake."[10]
  • "The only true test of courage is the last one."[10]
  • "If you eat poison, don't forget to lick the dish."[11]
  • "A gift is given for the purpose of recieving one."[11]
  • "Suspect that all men are liars and that it will rain tomorrow."[11]
  • "Truth and peace never live under the same roof. When one moves in, the other leaves."[11]
  • "A face is never uglier than when it asks for praise."[11]
  • "Never trust a man on the merit of what he "once was" or "will be". Only trust who he is."[11]
  • "Friends do not hold on to the past, they hold on to each other."[11]
  • "Nothing offends anger more than laughter."[11]
  • "A courageous man has no need of weapons."[11]
  • "One must bow to offer aid to a fallen man."[11]
  • "Shinsei said: "My faults derive from my parents, my virtues are my own. How foolish is this?."[11]
  • "When you are gone," asked Hantei, "where will I find wisdom such as yours?" Shinsei answered, "In rice cakes"[12]
  • "If you are walking, walk. If you are running, run. Never meander."[12]
  • "Fear is afraid of laughter."[12]
  • Shinsei said: "I am only the ladle and the Tao is the well. When you are not thirsty, is your mind on the ladle or on the well?"[12]
  • "Brave deeds may be forgotten; brave men, never so."[12]
  • "The child wants to grow old fast, the parent wants to grow old slowly."[12]
  • "The nail that sticks out is the one that gets pounded first."[12]
  • "The price of greatness is paid by the great, but we all reap the benefit."[12]
  • "What is written is not what is, only what is written"[12]
  • "We only sympathize with pain when it is our own."[12]
  • "Do not simply say that anything is true. Know it is true or stay silent."[13]
  • A man climbed a mountain to find a shrine that housed a wise man and said, "I came here to find truth." The wise man answered, "Be glad you brought it with you."[13]
  • "Five and two multiplied are ten, but added are only seven. Learn by doing."[13]
  • "Kharma and shadows follow us all."[13]
  • "Don't trust a man who doesn't know how to smile."[13]
  • "If you only look for oranges at the top of the tree, you will go hungry."[13]
  • "What is wisdom?" one asked. "What is not wisdom?" the other answered.[13]
  • "For every single achievement, there are one hundred people looking for merit."[13]
  • "Fear is the measuring stick of ignorance."[13]
  • "Don't use two hands when one is good enough."[14]
  • "Criticism is kindness in disguise."[14]
  • "The fortuneteller cannot tell his own future."[14]
  • "In all the world, man is the only creature that as taught itself to argue."[14]
  • "Do not be concerned with any life but this one. One world at a time."[14]
  • "Many hands make too much work."[14]
  • "The simplest questions are the hardest to ask."[14]
  • "Blink your eyes and eighty years will pass."[14]
  • "Not all blooming flowers bears fruit."[14]
  • "It is difficult enough to master yourself, let alone others."[14]

[edit] References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Way of the Dragon p. 15
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Way of the Dragon p. 20
  3. ↑ Way of the Dragon pp. 21-22
  4. ↑ Way of the Dragon p. 22
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Way of the Dragon p. 23
  6. ↑ Enlightened Madness, Part One
  7. ↑ Legend of the Five Rings: Third Edition p. 23
  8. ↑ Enlightened Madness, Part Five
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 9.8 9.9 Way of the Dragon p. 15, sidebar
  10. ↑ 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 Way of the Dragon p. 35, sidebar
  11. ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 Way of the Dragon p. 40, sidebar
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 12.7 12.8 12.9 Way of the Dragon p. 43, sidebar
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 13.7 13.8 Way of the Dragon p. 47, sidebar
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6 14.7 14.8 14.9 Way of the Dragon p. 83, sidebar
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