In one of the Zatoichi films, there is a powerful scene.
He is suddenly surrounded in a closed room by a huge crowd of enemies. It looks bad — one man against many. It looks even worse because he is blind.
Zatoichi fell gravely ill and lost his sight at the age of eight. Since then, he has lived as a wandering masseur. He still remembers the world, but he lives in darkness.
Zatoichi seems like the perfect victim, doesn’t he?
Even though he taught himself the art of drawing a sword, sharpened his hearing, touch, and that mysterious “sixth sense,” the odds are clearly against him.
“What can a blind swordsman do?” the enemy boss shouts. “Drive him into a corner and cut him down!”
But then something unexpected happens.
Zatoichi begins slicing through the candles one by one. Their day turns into his night.
“In the dark, I have an advantage,” the master says calmly. “It turns you all into blind men. If you want to throw away your life, come right on in.”
The boss explodes in rage: “Damn it! Can't any of you kill one lousy blind man? Go get him!" But his army melts away.
Zatoichi wins because of his flaw, not in spite of it. He accepts the curse as a gift and pushes it to the limit. Then he pulled everyone else into the world he had already mastered. His enemies rejected the new condition and lost.
What was supposed to destroy the master became the key to his victory.
Sincerely yours,
-Alexander
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