Shoto Niju Kun
(20 Golden Lessons of Shotokan)

1. Karate-do begins and ends with courtesy.
2. In karate, never attack first.
3. One who practices karate must follow the way of justice.
4. Know yourself first, and then you can know others.
5. Spiritual development is paramount; technical skills are merely means to an end.
6. Always be ready to release your mind.
7. Trouble comes from negligence.
8. Do not think that karate training is only in the dojo.
9. Karate is a lifelong training; there is no limit.
10. Put your everyday living into karate and you will find the ideal state of existence.
11. Karate is like hot water. If you do not give it constant heat, it becomes cold again.
12. Do not think that you have to win. Think, rather, that you do not have to lose.
13. Victory depends on your ability to distinguish vulnerable points from invulnerable ones.
14. The battle is according to how you move guarded and unguarded. Move according to your opponent.
15. Think of the hands and feet as sharp swords.
16. When you leave home, think that millions of opponents are waiting for you.
17. Beginners must master low stance and posture; natural stance and posture for advanced.
18. Practicing a kata is one thing, and engaging in a real fight is another.
19. Do not forget: 1) strength and weakness of power, 2) stretching and contraction of the body, and 3) slowness and speed of techniques. Apply these correctly.
20. Devise at all times.