Difference between revisions of "Bushido" - New World Encyclopedia

Revision as of 19:32, 20 November 2007

Japanese samurai in armor, 1860s. Photograph by Felice Beato

Bushido (武士道 Bushidō), meaning "way of the warrior," is a Japanese code of conduct and a way of life, associated with the Samurai, and loosely analogous to the Western concept of chivalry. It is also known as the Samurai code and was influenced by the teachings of Zen Buddhism as well as Confucianism.

Historically, Bushido developed between the 11th to 14th centuries in Japan and spread through the warrior class. Inazo Nitobe, in his book Bushido: The Soul of Japan, described it in this way: "...Bushido, then, is the code of moral principles which the samurai were required or instructed to observe... More frequently it is a code unuttered and unwritten... It was an organic growth of decades and centuries of military career."^[1] Eventually, the tenets of Bushido were written down in numerous documents dating from the 12th to 16th centuries. Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, Bushido became formalized into Japanese Feudal Law.

The core tenets of Bushido are honor, loyalty, courage, rectitude, calmness, justice, fairness, and politeness. These virtues have had an enduring influence on Japanese history, culture and values into the modern period. Thus while the Bushido code sometimes led to extremes—such as ritual suicide (seppuku) and loyalty even to despotic rulers, overall it played an important role in the dissemination of moral virtue and the moral edification of Japanese society.

Historical development

Early history

There is evidence to suggest that the ideas of Bushido have existed in the Japanese literature from the earliest recorded literary period in the history of Japan. Kojiki is Japan's oldest extant book. Written in 712 C.E., it contains passages about Yamato Takeru, the son of the Emperor Keiko. It provides an early indication of the values and literary self-image of the bushido ideal, including references to the use and admiration of the sword by Japanese warriors. Yamato Takeru may be considered the rough ideal of the Japanese warrior to come. He is sincere and loyal, slicing up his father's enemies "like melons," unbending and yet not unfeeling, as can be seen in his laments for lost wives and homeland, and in his willingness to combat the enemy alone. Most important, his portrayal in the Kojiki shows the ideal of harmonizing the literary with the martial may have been an early trait of Japanese civilization, appealing to the Japanese long before its introduction from Confucian China.

This early conceptualization of a Japanese self-image of the "ideal warrior" can further be found in Shoku Nihongi, an early history of Japan written in the year 797 C.E. A section of the book covering the year 723 C.E. is notable for an early use of the term bushi in Japanese literature as a reference to the educated warrior-poet ideal. The term bushi entered the Japanese vocabulary with the general introduction of Chinese literature and added to the indigenous words, tsuwamono and mononofu.

In Kokinshu (early 10th century), the first imperial anthology of poems, there is an early reference to Saburau — originally a verb meaning "to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society." In Japanese, the pronunciation would become saburai. By the end of the 12th century, samurai became synonymous with bushi almost entirely and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class.

13th to 16th centuries

From the Bushido literature of the 13th to 16th centuries, there exists an abundance of literary references to the ideals of Bushido.

Written in 1371, the Heike Monogatari chronicles the struggle between the Minamoto and Taira clans for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century—a conflict known as the Gempei War. Clearly depicted throughout the Heike Monogatari is the ideal of the cultivated warrior. The warriors in the Heike Monogatari served as models for the educated warriors of later generations, and the ideals depicted by them were not assumed to be beyond reach. Rather, these ideals were vigorously pursued in the upper echelons of warrior society and recommended as the proper form of the Japanese man of arms.

Other examples of the evolution in the Bushido literature of the 13th to 16th centuries included:

"The Message Of Master Gokurakuji" by Shogunal Deputy, Hōjō Shigetoki (1198-1261 C.E.)
"The Chikubasho" by Shiba Yoshimasa (1350-1410 C.E.)
Writings by Imagawa Ryoshun (1326-1420 C.E.)
Writings by Governor of Echizen, Asakura Toshikage (1428-1481 C.E.)
Writings by the Samurai general Hōjō Nagauji (1432-1519 C.E.)
The warlord Takeda Shingen (1521-1573 C.E.)
The Precepts of Kato Kiyomasa (1562-1611 C.E.)

Throughout this literature, important themes and values in the Bushido code were developed. For example, Bushi (warriors) were expected to conduct themselves with calmness, fairness, justice, and politeness. They were also expected to be fiercely loyalty to one's master, to preserve the honor of their name and reputation, and to find a proper death in battle.

17th to 19th centuries

Although Japan enjoyed a period of peace during the Sakoku ("closed country") period from the 17th to the mid-19th century, the samurai class continued to play a central role in the policing of the country. It has been suggested that this period of relative peace led to the refinement and formalism of Bushido code. Exemplary literary works on Bushido during this period include:

The Last Statement of Torii Mototada (1539-1600 C.E.)
Kuroda Nagamasa (1568-1623 C.E.)
Nabeshima Naoshige (1538-1618 c.e..)
Go Rin No Sho (The Book of Five Rings) by Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645 C.E.)
Bushido Shoshinshu (Bushido for Beginners) by Tair

Bushido was widely practiced and it is surprising how uniform the samurai code remained over time, crossing over all geographic and socio-economic backgrounds of the samurai. The samurai represented a wide populace numbering between 7 to 10% of the Japanese population, and the first Meiji era census at the end of the 19th century counted 1,282,000 members of the "high samurais," allowed to ride a horse, and 492,000 members of the "low samurai," allowed to wear two swords but not to ride a horse, in a country of about 25 million.^[2]

Tenets

Bushido expanded and formalized the earlier code of the samurai, and stressed frugality, loyalty, mastery of martial arts, and honor to the death.

The central seven virtues of the Bushido code were:

義 – Gi – Rectitude
勇 – Yū – Courage
仁 – Jin – Benevolence
礼 – Rei – Respect
誠 – Makoto or 信 - Shin– Honesty
名誉 – Meiyo – Honor, Glory
忠義 – Chū – Loyalty

-Translations from: Random House's Japanese-English, English-Japanese Dictionary

Others that are sometimes added to these:

孝 - Kō - Filial piety
智 - Chi - Wisdom
悌 - Tei - Care for the aged

Under the Bushido ideal, if a samurai failed to uphold his honor he could regain it by performing seppuku (ritual suicide).

In an excerpt from his book Samurai: The World of the Warrior, historian Stephen Turnbull describes the role of Seppuku in feudal Japan:

Seppuku is a more correct expression for an act of suicide performed by the process of cutting open the abdomen. Seppuku is better known in the West as hara kiri (belly-cutting), and is a concept so alien to the European tradition that it is one of the few words from the world of the samurai to have entered foreign languages without a need for translation. Seppuku was commonly performed using a dagger. It could take place with preparation and ritual in the privacy of one’s home, or speedily in a quiet corner of a battlefield while one’s comrades kept the enemy at bay.

In the world of the warrior, seppuku was a deed of bravery that was admirable in a samurai who knew he was defeated, disgraced, or mortally wounded. It meant that he could end his days with his transgressions wiped away and with his reputation not merely intact but actually enhanced. The cutting of the abdomen released the samurai’s spirit in the most dramatic fashion, but it was an extremely painful and unpleasant way to die, and sometimes the samurai who was performing the act asked a loyal comrade to cut off his head at the moment of agony.

Bushido made constant awareness and preparation for death a important tenet of their philosophy. One might say that the overall purpose of Bushido was to die a good death and with one's honor intact.

Modern Bushido

Some people in Japan as well as other countries follow the same virtues listed above under the philisophical term modern bushido. The idea was derived from the fact that the Japanese male should be able to adapt his beliefs and philosophies to a changing world.

In an excerpt of James Williams' article "Virtue of the sword," a fairly simple explanation of modern bushido can be found:

The warrior protects and defends because he realizes the value of others. He knows that they are essential to society and, in his gift of service, recognizes and values theirs... take the extra moment in dark parking lots at night to make sure that a woman gets into her car safely before leaving yourself. Daily involvement in acts such as these are as much a part of training as time spent in the dojo, and indeed should be the reason for that time spent training... When faced with a woman or child in a situation in which they are vulnerable, there are two types of men: those who would offer succor and aid, and those who would prey upon them. And in modern society, there is another loathsome breed who would totally ignore their plight!

The full article and others can be found at http://www.bugei.com/article.html

Notes

↑ Inazo Nitobe, "Bushido, the Soul of Japan." Retrieved November 20, 2007.
↑ Mikiso Hane, Japan: A Historical Survey (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1972).

External links and further reading

An interview with William Scott Wilson about Bushido

Bushido Website: a good definition of bushido, including The Samurai Creed

The website of William Scott Wilson A 2005 recipient of the Japanese Government's Japan’s Foreign Minister’s Commendation, William Scott Wilson was honored for his research on Samurai and Bushido.

Hojo Shigetoki (1198-1261)and His Role in the History of Political and Ethical Ideas in Japan by Carl Steenstrup; Curzon Press (1979)ISBN 0-7007-0132-X

A History of Law in Japan Until 1868 by Carl Steenstrup; Brill Academic Publishers;second edition (1996) ISBN 90-04-10453-4

Bushido—the Soul of Japan by Inazo Nitobe (1905) (ISBN 0-8048-3413-X) —

Budoshoshinshu - The Code of The Warrior by Daidōji Yuzan (ISBN 0-89750-096-2) —

Hagakure-The Book of the Samurai By Tsunetomo Yamamoto (ISBN 4-7700-1106-7 paperback, ISBN 4-7700-2916-0 hardcover) — Complete text online: The Hagakure Kikigaki

Go Rin No Sho - Miyamoto Musashi (1645 C.E.) (ISBN 4-7700-2801-6 hardback, ISBN 4-7700-2844-X hardback Japan only) — Complete text online:

The Unfettered Mind - Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword master by Takuan Soho (Musashi's mentor) (ISBN 0-87011-851-X) — Complete text online:

The Religion of the Samurai (1913), study of zen philosophy and discipline in China and Japan, by Kaiten Nukariya, professor of Kei-o-gi-Jiku University and of So-To-Shu Buddhist College, Tokyo — Complete text online

Tales of Old Japan by Algernon Bertram Freeman-Mitford (1871) reprinted 1910 — Complete text online

Sakujiro Yokoyama's Account of a Samurai Sword Duel
Death Before Dishonor By Masaru Fujimoto—Special to The Japan Times: Dec. 15, 2002 [5]

Japanese Feudal Laws John Carey Hall, The Tokuagwa Legislation, (Yokohama, 1910), pp. 286-319

Credits

New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

Bushido ^history

The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:

History of "Bushido"

Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.

[1] Inazo Nitobe, "Bushido, the Soul of Japan." Retrieved November 20, 2007.

[2] Mikiso Hane, Japan: A Historical Survey (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1972).

[1]

[2]

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 '''Bushido''' (武士道 Bushidō), meaning "way of the warrior," is a [[Japan]]ese code of conduct and a way of life, associated with the [[Samurai]], and loosely analogous to the Western concept of [[chivalry]]. It is also known as the Samurai code and was influenced by the teachings of [[Zen]] [[Buddhism]] as well as [[Confucianism]].
-Historically, Bushido developed between the 11th to 14th centuries in Japan and spread through the warrior class. Inazo Nitobe, in his book ''Bushido: The Soul of Japan'', described it in this way: "...Bushido, then, is the code of moral principles which the samurai were required or instructed to observe... More frequently it is a code unuttered and unwritten... It was an organic growth of decades and centuries of military career."  Eventually, the tenets of Bushido were written down in numerous documents dating from the 12th to 16th centuries. Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, Bushido became formalized into [http://www.uni-erfurt.de/ostasiatische_geschichte/texte/japan/dokumente/17/tokugawa_legislation/index.htm Japanese Feudal Law.]
+Historically, Bushido developed between the 11th to 14th centuries in Japan and spread through the warrior class. Inazo Nitobe, in his book ''Bushido: The Soul of Japan'', described it in this way: "...Bushido, then, is the code of moral principles which the samurai were required or instructed to observe... More frequently it is a code unuttered and unwritten... It was an organic growth of decades and centuries of military career."<ref> Inazo Nitobe, [http://www.fullbooks.com/Bushido-the-Soul-of-Japanx14761.html "Bushido, the Soul of Japan."] Retrieved November 20, 2007.</ref>  Eventually, the tenets of Bushido were written down in numerous documents dating from the 12th to 16th centuries. Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, Bushido became formalized into [http://www.uni-erfurt.de/ostasiatische_geschichte/texte/japan/dokumente/17/tokugawa_legislation/index.htm Japanese Feudal Law.]
 The core tenets of Bushido are honor, loyalty, courage, rectitude, calmness, justice, fairness, and politeness. These virtues have had an enduring influence on Japanese history, culture and values into the modern period. Thus while the Bushido code sometimes led to extremes—such as ritual suicide ([[seppuku]]) and loyalty even to despotic rulers, overall it played an important role in the dissemination of moral virtue and the moral edification of Japanese society.