**Independent Publisher Book Award (IPPY) Winner**
Bushido: The Samurai Code of Japan is the most influential book ever
written on the Japanese "Way of the Warrior." A classic study of
Japanese culture, the book outlines the moral code of the Samurai way of
living and the virtues every Samurai warrior holds dear. It is widely
read today in Japan and around the world.
There are seven core precepts of Bushido:
- Rectitude: "The power of deciding upon a certain course of conduct
in accordance with reason, without wavering."
- Courage: "Doing what is right."
- Benevolence: "Love, magnanimity, affection for others, sympathy
and pity."
- Civility: "Courtesy and urbanity of manners."
- Sincerity: "The end and the beginning of all things."
- Honor: "A vivid conscious of personal dignity and worth."
- Loyalty: "Homage and fealty to a superior."
Together, these seven values create a system of beliefs unique to
Japanese philosophy and culture that is widely followed today. Inazo
Nitobe, one of Japan's foremost scholars, thoroughly explores each of
these values and explains how they differ from their Western
counterparts. Until you understand the philosophy behind the ethics, you
will never fully grasp what it meant to be a Samurai--what it meant to
have Bushido. In Bushido, Nitobe points out similarities between Western
and Japanese history and culture. He argues that "no matter how
different any two cultures may appear to be on the surface, they are
still created by human beings, and as such have deep similarities."
Nitobe believed that connecting Bushido with greater teachings could
make an important contribution to all humanity--that the way of the
Samurai is not something peculiarly Japanese, but of value to the entire
human race.
With an extensive new introduction and notes by Alex Bennett, a
respected scholar of Japanese history, culture and martial arts with a
firsthand knowledge of the Japanese warrior code, Bushido: The Samurai
Code of Japan is an essential guide to the essence of Japanese culture.
Bennett's views on this subject are revolutionizing our understanding of
Bushido, as expressed in his Japanese bestseller The Bushido the
Japanese Don't Know About.
