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If the body dies, it does no harm to the mind, but if the mind dies, one can no longer act as a man even though the body survives.

— Yoshida Shoin

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More quotes by Yoshida Shoin

If Heaven does not completely abandon this land of the Gods, there must be an uprising of grass-roots heroes.

Life and death, union and separation, follow hard upon one another. Nothing is steadfast but the will, nothing endures but one's achievements. These alone count in life.

To consider oneself different from ordinary men is wrong, but it is right to hope that one will not remain like ordinary men.

Once the will is resolved, one’s spirit is strengthened. Even a peasant's will is hard to deny, but a samurai of resolute will can sway ten thousand men.

What is important in a leader is a resolute will and determination. A man may be versatile and learned, but if he lacks resoluteness and determination, of what use will he be?

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Yoshida Shoin (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.