The Highs and Lows of the Trend are the Law of Nature

“The rise and fall of the rice price follows the law of nature, and it is hard to identify either the down or up moments while it goes up and down continuously. Those who are ignorant of this rule should not even attempt to try their hand at trading.”

Wait Calmly When You Have Missed the Perfect Time to Buy

“If the rice price goes up by 2 koku just when you have decided to buy rice, you may think you missed the perfect time to buy and it is a better time to sell, but this would be a big mistake. When you have missed the best time to buy, you should wait for the next opportunity to buy.”

“There are times when just as you have made your buy at the bottom and expected some profit, the price stagnates or goes down slightly. When this happens you think you have miscalculated the market and you regret that you didn’t sell when the price went up previously. But this is the wrong way to think. When you buy at the bottom, you should never sell until the trend makes a shift.”

State of Mind at the Time of Good Luck

“When an opportunity presents itself to make profit from trading, you should go for the profit-taking at an appropriate level. Then take a two day break. If you forget to take a break at this time, you are sure to cause a loss at the end of trading no matter what profit-making opportunity knocks at your door. You cause a loss because your greed prevents you from making the right decision and because you become so overconfident of your winning that you wish to make 200 when you made a 100 profit before, and wish to make 2000 profit when”

When Moving Without a Stable Mind, There Will be Only Loss

“Even when you anticipate the rice price going up, you become reluctant to buy or sell when you see signs of the price going down, and when the price goes down after having gone up slightly, you think it is a bearish market. People often move without any firm conviction in mind. When you look back and think of the trend later, it seems easy for you to respond to the market formation by selling when the price goes up and buying when price goes down, but it is not easy to identify the market trend accurately. You should remain observant for at least two months until you are sure of a temporary bearish market. As long as your mind is chained to the up and down trend of the market, you will be lost throughout the year because of the market trends. Consequently, you will lose and cause loss in the end.”

Going Against the Trend is Not Allowed

“There are times when you decide to sell off your offerings because your forecast for the market is gloomy, but your forecast turns out to be wrong and it leads you to loss. Intending to distribute,28 some people begin to sell off their rice when the price is moving upward, but this is very wrong. You must not go against the trend. The same applies when you buy. When you realize your market forecast was wrong, take your hands off the market and remain observant.”

When I am Optimistic, All Others are Optimistic Too

“When the market seems bearish and you are frequently tempted to sell off, wait for three days, change your mind, and you are sure to win if you decide to buy instead. You also need to change your mind when you are sure the price is going to go up. This is a profound rule in rice trading. Don’t forget this. When you are optimistic, all others are optimistic: when you are pessimistic, all others are pessimistic too. People’s minds cannot comprehend the profound law of Ying and Yang, which governs the rise and fall of the rice price; it is destined destined to go down after going up to its limit, and to go up after going down to its limit. You only need to rely on the “Three Methods.”

Leave Emotions When Trading

“You should never sell or buy because you are angry. This should never happen.”

Rice Trading is like Military Strategy

“Three Military Strategies and Six Secret Teachings is the Wen Wei (文偉) of Military Strategies. It teaches you the importance of being well prepared, and the skills to build strong base. You also need to learn how it is impossible to win and defeat the enemies every time. Rice trading is like the military art. You trade with tens of thousands of people but you do not say you make laws and abide by them. Three Methods should be more open for interpretation than the writings in the Three Military Strategies and Six Secret Teachings. If it is cold for three years after making a shift in July, you arrive at a formation comparable to the Eight Formations (Ba Zhen 八陣). You must cherish the lessons with a sense of awe and respect.”

Mindset is Everything

“When trading futures in the eleventh month of frost, your mindset is the most important. For example, you should be ready, in your mind to make 500 koku of profit when you can make a thousand koku of profit, depending on your financial situation. You should also take 50 koku of profit when you could have made 100 koku of profit. Unless your mind is set in this way, you will be tempted and reckless, trade be it at the ceiling or at the bottom, until you fail to make any profit after having worked so hard. Those who want to take this path have to have this kind of mindset.”

Foolish Debates over the Highs and Lows of the Market Price

“No matter how close a friend you are with someone, it is not good to give advice to your friend on buying and selling. When your analysis turns out to be wrong, you can create a big conflict. In addition, debating the high and low of the market price is not good, either. Those who follow the path do not force their analysis on others, and do not trade based on analysis by others. If the prediction turns out to be correct even just to a certain degree, you become arrogant and want to boast of your analytical skills. You have to avoid this attitude. Of course when you explain your method to others, you can make the others believe you and could possibly help the others make some profits — perhaps two or three koku — but you can never give them a winning card. Do not get involved in somebody else’s business when you trade. It is most ideal to listen to the news about what it is like in Kyushu, the market conditions in Osaka, bad harvest and good harvest, and the general harvest conditions. Never tell others what is in your mind. This is a grand secret. Always keep it to yourself. ”

Trading Throughout the Year Brings About Less Winning

“If you trade throughout the year, you become more distant from the winning streak. Sometimes it is best for you to keep your hands off and take a break.”

Do Not Trade Based on the Daily Market Fluctuation

“It is not advisable to trade based on the daily fluctuation of the market price. Think of the ‘Three Methods”, and observe the market to see how much the price is going up or down during the up and down trend, and at what point it stops, while at the same time thinking of the harvest condition of local granaries and market formation in Osaka, and what position you should keep. For example, when you make your move to buy, you must buy after making a firm position, and disregarding the ups and downs of the price that you have seen. But thinking of buying at cheap price and selling at higher price only require too much work and does not return good profit. ”

Never Show These Writings to Others

“This writing, you should never show to anybody no matter how close they are to you. It is not because I want to remain the only rich person. Rather, it is because this writing could be misunderstood by some people, who are likely to end up making mistakes, and even worse it could cause damage to them and even create hostility against us. It is not advisable for others to see this and that is why it has to remain a secret. The Three Methods in particular are rarely taught techniques and few people in the world know about them. If you sell and purchase based on these rules, you will make profits and build a fortune, and will not end up losing. You have to value this writing and be cautious and determined in keeping this a secret from others.”