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Ri is formless and unchanging. Ri is ineffable; it is impossible to describe adequately underlying principles in words. Because principles have no form, the way they manifest themselves will vary from situation to situation. Specific manifestations of ri also are referred to as ji. Thus, in the Ways, techniques are seen as specific manifestations of the underlying principles. Ji is an embodiment of ri in specific situations, but is not itself ri in the same sense that a specific recipe is not in itself the underlying principles of cooking.

It is possible to gain a high level of proficiency in an art by mastering techniques. For example, one might be able to become skillful in self-defense by mastering the techniques of judo or karate-do, just as one might be able to become an accurate archer in kyudo. But this is not the intent of the Ways. Mere technical mastery is not true mastery. To rely on techniques means that one is limited to the specific techniques at which one is proficient. In this vein, Leggett writes: