With Kano's death in 1938, Mifune became the most influential instructor. Students had long complained that Mifune would get carried away with lectures, and he was "feared more than loved." On May 25, 1945, he was promoted to "judan" (10th "dan"), the fourth of 15 judoka to ever be so honored. Mifune was given the title of Hanshi then Meijin by the International Martial Arts Federation (IMAF) and In 1956, he wrote his classic book, "The Canon of Judo", still a remarkable exposition of judo history, philosophy, and technical description. To E. J. Harrison, he wrote a book foreword that was simple but expressed Mifune's philosophical nature: "Freedom in continuous change!"