Ghost Dog: There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolv...
Ghost Dog: It is a good viewpoint to see the world as a dream. When you have something like a nightmare, you will wake up and tell yourself that it was only a dream. It is said that the world we live in is not a bit different from this.
Ghost Dog: There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the moment. A man's whole life is a succession of moment after moment. If one fully understands the present moment, there is nothing left to do, and nothing else to pursue.
Pearline: Can't you understand what he's saying? Ghost Dog: No, I don't understand him. I don't speak French, only English. I never understand a word he says. Pearline: And that's your best friend? Ghost Dog: Yeah.
Ghost Dog: Among the maxims on Lord Naoshige's wall, there was this one: "Matters of great concern should be treated lightly." Master Ittei commented, "Matters of small concern should be treated seriously."
Ghost Dog: You know, in ancient cultures, bears were considered equal with men. Hunter: This ain't no ancient culture here, mister. Ghost Dog: Sometimes it is.
Sonny Valerio: What the fuck is his name? Louie: Ghost Dog. Sonny Valerio: What? Louie: Ghost Dog. Sonny Valerio: Ghost Dog? Joe Rags: He said Ghost Dog. Louie: Yeah. He calls himself Ghost Dog. I don't know, a lot of these Black guys today, these ga...
[after Vinny shoots a policewoman] Louie: Jesus, Vinny. You just iced a woman, you know that? Vinny: You know what you are, Louie? You're a fuckin' male chauvinist pig. Louie: What do you mean, I'm a male chauvinist pig? You just shot a broad. Vinny:...
Ghost Dog: In the words of the ancients, one should make his decision within the space of seven breaths. It is a matter of being determined and having the spirit to break through to the other side.
Sonny Valerio: "If a warrior's head were to be suddenly cut off, he should still be able to perform one more action with certainty." What the fuck does that mean? Ray Vargo: It's poetry. The poetry of war.
Louie: Goddamn it. You shot me in the exact same fucking place as last time! Ghost Dog: I'm sorry. I mean you no disrespect. You're my retainer. I don't want to put too many holes in you.
[first lines] Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is found in death. Meditation on inevitable death should be performed daily. Every day when one's body and mind are at peace, one should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, rifles, spears, and s...
Ghost Dog: It is said that what is called the Spirit of an Age is something to which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is due to the world's coming to an end. In the same way, a single year does not have just spring or summer. ...
[last lines] Pearline: In the Kamigata area, they have a sort of tiered lunchbox they use for a single day when flower viewing. Upon returning, they throw them away, trampling them underfoot. The end is important in all things.
Ghost Dog: According to what one of the elders said, taking an enemy on the battlefield is like a hawk taking a bird. Even though it enters into the midst of a thousand of them, it gives no attention to any bird than the one it first marked.
Ghost Dog: It is bad when one thing becomes two. One should not look for anything else in the Way of the Samurai. It is the same for anything that is called a Way. If one understands things in this manner, he should be able to hear about all ways and...
Ghost Dog: If one were to say in a word what the condition of being a samurai is, its basis lies first in seriously devoting one's body and soul to his master.
Ghost Dog: Even if one's head were to be suddenly cut off, he should be able to do one more action with certainty. With martial valor, if one becomes like a revengeful ghost and shows great determination, though his head is cut off, he should not die...
