Bushido
Somewhere, in all of us, there is a warrior. Although some cultivate it more than others, if this wasn’t inherently true of all humans, surely the very genes that make up ‘you’ would have died long ago. This is a good thing, because I believe we are all at war. Maybe not in the most direct sense of the word – but we are always locked in battle with our environment, others, and most importantly, ourselves.
If we are at war, than there is a lot we can learn from the Samurai. Their code of conduct, Bushido, is a philosophy that empathizes loyalty, modesty, mastery of one’s craft, and most importantly, honor. These are not just traits of a great warrior, but also of a great communicator.
Blog
This blog will examine the writings of Tamamoto Tsunetomo, a Samurai scribe who lived from 1659-1719. His book, Hagakure, is a manual for Samurai wishing to live their lives according the doctrine of Bushido. The version I have is translated William Scott Wilson; from what I have read this was no easy task, and I have much respect for Mr. Wilson and thank him very much for making this great work available to English speakers. Hagakure contains passages of wisdom passed down from Japanese Samurai. I will interpret Tsunetomos’s passages through the lens of a communications professional. I also hope to draw wisdom and lessons from my own Sensei, as he has been a role model for my professional conduct and dedication.
Your Way
To a Samurai, Bushido was the Way. This meant an endless dedication to the betterment of one’s self and his craft. More importantly to the Samurai, it meant a dedication, bound by death, to his master. For us living in Canada or the United States, our Way is obviously very different; to serve another without question is considered foolish in an individualist culture. But what if we didn’t serve a master, but instead our goals, dreams, ambitions, friends and family? You can follow your own Bushido with Samurai dedication. Your own Way.
My Way, is the Way of the communicator.
Hi, this is a great idea. I hope you keep at it (I’m from Reddit btw).
You might want to consider adding a link to your RSS Feed. I couldn’t find it anywhere on your blog, so I took a guess and nailed it. It’s http://bushidowisdom.wordpress.com/feed/
I don’t use Twitter…
Thank you for the great feedback. I added a RSS link to the sidebar. Hope you enjoy the content!
This should prove to be a very interesting blog. I will offer comments where I see they may be appropriate or helpful.
One note I offer regarding the code of bushido is the time that it was developed. The Samurai existed before the code of bushido was written. The majority of the code was written during the Tokugawa Shogunite which was a time of peace in Japan (over 200 years).
The code of bushido was written to govern Samurai behaviour in times of peace when they were not using their craft in battle. To have thosands of highly trained, armed soldiers not fighting required a code of conduct.
Since we live, work and train (some of us) in a time of peace in Canada the code can be applied (in some ways) as it was in the 17 & 18th centuries.
Thank you very much for your feedback. I am certainly learning a lot from this blog already. Is there any books you recommended I take a look at after Hagakure?
Excellent!!
Very interesting and intriguing.
Thank you Tim. I look forward to bringing you more content.
Three books come to mind.
The Book Of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi – Musashi is a national hero in Japan and considered the greatest of all swordsmen. He lived in the late 1500 – early 1600′s. Before he was 35 he had fought over 60 duels (most to the death).
The Unfettered Mind by Takuan Soho – Soho was a Zen pries, teacher of Miyamoto Musashi and adviser to the third Tokugawa Shogun. The translation I have of this book is also by William Scott Wilson.
The Art of War by Sun Tzu – Tzu was a Chinese general from China who lived around 550 BC. Some say he was not a real person. Regardless the book was a big influence on Japan, specifically the Samurai.
All of these books pre-date Hagakure and will give you good background regarding the Code of Bushido and Samurai military tactics
Thank you very much Shorai. These are next up on my read list.