The Code of the Warrior: Daidoji Yuzan

by Daidōji Yūzan, D.E. Tarver

The Budo Sho Shinshu was originally written by Daidoji Yuzan as a text book on warrior ethics for young people born into the warrior cast. It teaches the general tenets of bushido without going too far into any one fief's history or traditions, which is one of the reasons it was so widely accepted. In many senses it makes a much better text book than The Hagakure which contains many obscure and seemingly pointless stories that leave it up to the reader to draw out a lesson. The Budo Sho Shinshu is clear and easy to understand.

Anyone who wants to understand the Japanese mindset today should start with this book. Although the cast system has long been abolished, the principles of bushido still influence every facet of the Japanese way of thinking.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, History, Martial Arts, Japan, Classics, Japanese Literature

76 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1943

About the author

Also known as Taira Shigesuke

Reviews

[marko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesantna knjiga... Kolekcija saveta, mudrosti i priča o samurajima i njihovom kodeksu, što moralnom, što ratnom. Neke od priča se mogu primeniti i u današnje vreme. Veoma se brzo čita i odlična je za sve ljubitelje Japana.

[Nash · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the content of this book is the same as "Budo Shoshinshu" I recommended above and I prefer the other translation, this one was the first book I ran into and got me very interested to use it as the primary focus for my dissertation. I agree with the official web site of Columbia University's Bushido Page that did a review on all three translation of the same book, Budo Shoshinshu, that the version by William Scott Wilson is perhaps the most comprehensive. Why? 1) Wilson's version comes with complete introduction that reflects intensive research 2) Wilson's translation is more complete since it contains the details like the ending poem, etc., which this one omits and actually I personally believes it holds the key, and; 3) this translation "promises" that you will understand the Japanese after you read it. Well, it over-simplifies things. Wilson is more practical and realistic. More Japanese, even. He invites us to "think" and contemplate along as we read. However, you will likely find this version by Thomas Cleary on sales everywhere more than Wilson's at bookstores near you because it's a more recent translation than Wilson's. Therefore, if you're going to spend money on only *one* version of the book, don't get this one! Get Wilson's instead! Trust me, I'm doing a dissertation on *this* book! :-)

[Lili°❀⋆⋅˚₊‧ ୨୧ ‧₊˚ (book slump) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know what I must do

[Olga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rule number one: Being aware of having to die honourably makes one a true samurai and a better person living a better life.
"One who is a samurai must before all things keep constantly in mind, by day and by night from the morning when he takes up his chop-sticks to eat his New Year Breakfast to Old Year’s night when he pays his yearly bills, the fact that he has to die. That is his chief business. If he is always mindful of this he will be able to live in accordance with the paths of Loyalty and Filial Duty, will avoid myriads of evils and adversities, keep himself free from disease and calamity and moreover enjoy a long life. He will also be a fine personality with many admirable qualities. For existence is impermanent as the dew of evening and the hoar-frost of morning, and particularly uncertain is the life of the warrior, and if he thinks he can console himself with the idea of eternal service to his lord or unending devotion to his relatives, something may well happen to make him neglect his duty to his lord and forget what he owes to his family. But if he determines simply to live for today and take no thought for the morrow, so that when he stands before his lord to receive his commands he thinks of it as his last appearance and when he looks on the faces of his relatives he feels that he will never see them again, then will his duty and regard for both of them be completely sincere and his mind be in accord with the path of loyalty and filial duty."

"(...)And all this misfortune springs from his not remembering to keep death always in his thoughts."

[Violeta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Con el mismo estilo de "El Arte de la Guerra", El código del samuray nos indica precisamente el comportamiento que debe tener un samuray para que se le considere como tal, el cual debe ser honrado, sin temor a la muerte, leal, empático, y todas las demás cualidades que en nuestros días desgraciadamente esos ejemplos o valores ya no existen y los cuales se deberían de tomar, te habla del respeto hacia ti mismo y hacia los demás, cómo mantener tu postura frente a tus amistades y enemigos así como con tu familia en tiempos de paz y de guerra, y aunque podrías pensar que no aplica a nosotros porque "no somos samurais", en realidad sí aplicaría si quieres ser una persona respetada por lo que es y no por lo que abusa. Te explica cómo se debe comportar un bushido y el por qué de esa forma, para que el lector pueda entrar en comprensión y aplicarlo a su propia vida. Libro muy bueno y considero esencial para ajustar nuestras acciones y nuestra mente.

[Amanda Nunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and fairly short treatise on the expected behaviour for Samurai in 16th century Japan. I managed to read it in an afternoon (well, the English translation - my Japanese is very rusty so I didn't take much more than a casual glance at the original Japanese).

The author by this time I believe was fairly elderly, which shows through in classic grumbling about young people these days. Same story, different setting. There was no life-changing philosophy here - I learned that Samurai shouldn't beat their wives, shouldn't make their masters look bad, and should spend their free time productively rather than wining and womanising. I suppose if anything this humanises the oft-mythologised Samurai warrior.

[Professor · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Code of the Samurai is an example of one of the staples of literature since ancient times: the self-help/how-to guide. Sure, we like to think of that as a modern phenomena, but most literate societies have produced a book that tells you how to live, and feudal Japan was no different. This particular example is aimed at the young samurai, and attempts to instill in its reader good habits by first offering up advice on the mindset that is required of the samurai, then offering up examples of how not following the author's advice can end badly. Everything from family relations to day-to-day activities are covered, albeit briefly, as the book is a slim 98 pages long. The translator, Thomas F. Cleary, does not seem to have abridged the text, but he definitely gives it a modern slant, which can be seen as a good or bad thing depending on your aim in reading the book. As I read it out of curiosity, but as I was more interested in it from a historical perspective than a "personal development" one, I would have preferred a less modernized translation. Still, it's a quick, occasionally thought provoking read, both on a personal and historical level (I especially enjoyed seeing that, once again, that our ancestors were always better than us) that's worth a look if you're at all interested in samurai, Japanese martial arts, or Japanese history.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the days of the Samurai, if a warrior lived long enough to retire, they wrote what they learned down for future generations to learn from. They wrote for the youth just starting out. This is one of those books, a primer of how to act - from waking up, going thru the day, and going to sleep. In many cases these books were a kind of "gentlemans primer".

[Dumitru Moraru · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Cel care se consideră războinic trebuie să trăiască mereu cu conștiința morții. Reflectând mereu la moarte, vei fi capabil să-ți îndeplinești îndatoririle familiale și să-ți păstrezi devotamentul. Vei evita nenumărate calamități și nenorociri, vei fi sănătos, în bună formă fizică și vei avea o viață îndelungată. Mai mult decât atât, vei fi mai virtuos și-ți vei desăvârși caracterul."

"Pentru războinici, a avea grijă de părinți este un lucru fundamental. Cei care-și neglijează părinții, nu pot fi oameni vrednici. A cunoaște rădăcina și ramul înseamnă a înțelege că părinții sunt rădăcina corpului nostru, iar noi suntem ramurile crescute din carnea și oasele lor."

[Ignas Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Myliu Japonija ir japonus. Japonu virtuve, darbstuma ir mastymo buda. Azijietiskas stoicizmas

[Lukáš Pelcman | From Book to Mind · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am sorry to say that but this book was a big disappointment.

Let me explain. Similarly as with Sun Tsu's Art of War, even with the Code of the Samurai I could not help but to think how dated and without relevance the content was; despite the fact that many people actually say the opposite.

Now then, making a way through chapters about horse-riding, building houses in 16th century Japan, or close to endless loyalty to warrior's employer, I remained bored and uninterested for most parts of the book.

[Mattheus Guttenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A modern translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu, the classic 400 year old Japanese text on samurai chivalry, Cleary's Code of the Samurai is an accessible and clear account of the behavioral and personal standards for samurai in feudal Japan. The sections describing loyalty and duty to the daimyo (lord) present an excellent model for us in our working life. The most valuable part of it for me was the insistence on death contemplation - it was weirdly like reading Seneca from another world.

[Scott Johnston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty great book, lots of great wisdom sprinkled throughout it and the pillars of bushido are definitely timeless. The gist of the book is to always do the right thing and live/act honorably. I liked the wisdom of always having death on the mind so you can live life to the fullest now and complete everything you want to so you leave nothing behind. A nice and quick read but I found alot of the lessons are already known (which is fair as this wisdom has been written down for 400 years).

[Gimo Zangana · Rating 5 out of 5]

It gives you a nice guide of life rules to follow, with the purpose of better'ing yourself.

[Igor Pignatti]

O Código do Samurai traz uma perspectiva filosófica e social do que constitui um guerreiro no Japão Feudal durante o Shogunato Tokugawa. Porém, acredito que inconscientemente o que as palavras do Samurai Daidoji Yuzan representam é o resultado de um mergulho de uma casta inteira dentro de sua própria anima a procura de como se justificar perante a si mesma diante a aparente tragédia de sua inutilidade.

O livro não poupa esforços em ditar o samurai não apenas como o ídolo da sociedade japonesa, mesmo em tempos de paz, mas faz sempre paralelos com o homem que o samurai se tornou comparado ao menino que era antes do período de paz que veio com o Shogunato. A perspectiva da criação deste modelo de homem não vem sem a tremenda responsabilidade que deve ser imputada a qualquer um que queira provar seu significado perante seu Eu.

O que para muitos seria a morte de uma parte da sociedade japonesa (e eventual crise social), o Budō Shoshin-shū trouxe um novo significado ao Samurai e já o ensina a como restabelecer seus laços saudáveis com as outras castas da sociedade feudal.

Assim, não devemos encarar este livro como um simples guia de como o samurai deveria se portar, mas como uma casta renasce diante sua aparente morte e carrega a tocha de seu passado ao presente e futuro, em uma corrente de tradição que viveria por séculos após seus escritos.

[Mané · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me encanta esta reivindicación del punto medio en plan “no seas cateto, escribe algún verso pero no seas Lorca, chaval”.

Más allá de eso pues resulta curioso ver cómo no han cambiado las cosas en +400 años.

Mención especial el capítulo sobre seguir al señor feudal a la muerte y sobre el honor. Entronca perfecto con la historia de Patriotismo de Mishima.

[Brayden Raymond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Something I listened to as a companion to Shogun. Rating primary texts is always tricky, I enjoyed it but wasn't sucked in and hanging on every word. There's a few things in here I appreciated and will consider further though!

[Manel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hardest book I've ever read. Probably because English isn't my first language. But very interesting i liked it ( won't be reading it again )

[Sean Morlan]

The Code of the Samurai translated by Thomas Cleary summarized is a book that ancient samurais lived by. Today it is used by executives, military leaders, and politicians to them to success. It discusses moral duty, honor to your family and bosses, leadership, and daily life.As being over 400 years old it has some outdated terms but never outdated ideas.

In the first chapter of the book it explains how to keep death always in mind. To me, this seemed preposterous because you would worry yourself to death. However it states if you always keep death in mind you do not waste away your life, your money, or you objectives in life. You won't worry whats going to happen next, therefore living in the current time.

Another chapter in the book that is explained quite specifically is how to act. It quotes "Always on the battlefield...", meaning you should act the way you do on the battlefield as you would in a public market, or conversing with your friends or family. Therefore it says to do this so you do not create a hypocritical image of yourself.

Although it is 400 years old the laws and regulations and teachings in this book are still used today. This book can clearly be used to teach and inform new or potential leaders to create a division between personal and work life. Also to shape modern government and base their teachings off highly moralized life.

[Sylvan Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant script for living and breathing the art of the bushido through the tenets of the samurai way of life. Each element within this book can be translated into all walks of life at home,work,business and play, it provides practical explanations for why the samurai did what they did when they did it and how this transcended into their practice of not just the physical but the psychological rationale for setting into place a course of action. A wonderful easy to read book that really does outline the code and ethics of the samurai, a must have for the modern day thought provoking martial artist and a definite good read for business managers and the general public as it outlines straight forward morals for taking ownership of our own responsibilities to our family, acquaintances, friends, colleagues and business relationships.

[TarasProkopyuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Будосёсинсю" является напутствием для молодого воина вступающего на Путь Воина - путь самурая. Книга призывает молодых воинов воспитать в себе настоящих самураев в духе верных воинов своего хозяина с прилежными моральными и этическими ценностями.

Прочитав её становится не трудно понять почему Япония была настолько сильной и при этом столь длительное время погрязшей во междоусобицы. Эта книга наряду с другими не менее известными работами были призваны воспитывать сильных и преданных воинов и выполнять строго определённые идеологические функции во благо своего господина.

Я не считаю что данные древние учения помогут воспитать великих людей, так как эти учения очень ограничены.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly-moving example of excellence in self-discipline and personal honor. I felt while reading it as though I belonged in that era, and also a sense of shame at straying from certain principles I knew were right, even by slight margins, during years of experimenting with various ways of life as a young adult. It was a pleasure to know that there were men in long ago times living out their ethos with every ounce of strength to their dying breath; I found this work to be redemptive toward my view of humanity.

[Aldwin Susantio · Rating 3 out of 5]

What makes someone a samurai?
(+)A samurai would do anything to help his master.
(+)A samurai would sacrifice everything including his life to uphold his principles.
(+)A samurai avoid worldly pleasure to keep his soul clean.
(+)A samurai is humble, discipline, dilligence, brave, and frugal.
(+)To help maintain its integrity, a samurai would remember death from the beginning of the year until the end of that year.

Someone who has all attributes above are worthy to be called a samurai!

[Djordje · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vrlo interesantna knjiga gde 70% pouka može da se primeni na današnje društvo i odnose. Vredi pročitati, nakon čega ćete sigurno preispitati svoj odnos prema roditeljima, porodici, poslu, kolegama i prijateljima u svojim dužnostima uopšte.

Svakako je i obavezno štivo za sve ljubitelje Japana i samurajske klase. Odanost, dužnost i hrabrost!

[Michael Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great philosophy.

[Halina Hetman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Кодекс самурая шістнадцятого сторіччя, що певним чином вплинув на мій розвиток як людини. Читати з оглядом на систему феодалізму, що - слава Богу - більше не є актуальною для наших земель.

[Adam Bing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Duty, Honour, Valour. Good if you want a straight forward 'glossary' on how Bushido code relates to a certain aspect of life.

1. Frugality - Therefore, fully aware of this to begin with, live within your means, taking care to avoid useless expenses, even minor ones, spending money only on imperative necessities. This is the way of frugality.
• Yet there is something about frugality that must be under-stood. When you are obsessed with thrift, hate to spend money, and concentrate on skimping and saving, while you quickly restore your finances and become even more affluent than before, if you become acquisitive and miserly, eventually neglecting obligations and duties because all you are thinking of is saving up money, then this is being what is called a skinflint.
• However it may be among peasants and townspeople, a knight who is a skinflint is much despised. That is because someone who disdains to spend money-which is abundant in the world- even for worthy purposes would certainly not freely give up his one and only life. Thus the ancients have said that a miser is another name for a coward.
• He avoids personal luxury, and disdains to waste even a penny. He is not stingy, however, and spends his money freely when necessary.
2. Principles of Warriors - ordinary and emergency.
• He keeps fit, and because he wants to accomplish something significant in life he always takes care of his health moderating ((not restricting)) his diet and avoiding drink.
3. Friendly Relations - do not get involved unless you are asked. When asked, consider things carefully, rather than immediately accept or reject. Commit wholeheartedly to what you can, and do not commit to what you cannot in the first place.
4. Giving Advice - if someone comes to you for advice, to absolutely refuse on the grounds that it is beyond you too is an exceptional case. Once you have become someone's confidant, it shows a certain degree of dependability to pursue the truth and speak your mind freely even if the other person doesn't like what you say.
• If, however, you are fainthearted and fear to speak the truth, lest you cause offense or upset, and thus say whatever is convenient instead of what is right, thereby inducing other people to say things they shouldn't, or causing them to blunder to their own disadvantage, then you are useless as an advisor.
5. Fame - if one is going to die, one mighty as well to it heroically.

[Guilherme Dantas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bushido: o código feudal nipônico.

Dentre as obras sobre a cultura Japonesa no tempo dos Xogunatos com as quais já tive contato, os 3 livros de Daidoji constituem a mais organizada, centrada e polida que já li. Isso é algo impressionante, tendo em vista que a maioria dos escritos do período nipônico de 1500~1700 não tinham uma ordem coerente escolhida pelo autor, se perdiam facilmente em meio a guerras e roubos, dificilmente eram completas por motivos de saúde, e muitas vezes refletiam apenas suas opiniões cruas sobre o período. Daidoji não é em todo distante disso, porém, como objetivava um manuscrito de referência para cidadões e guerreiros do tempo, é possível ver o quanto a precaução e o rebusco com as palavras é tomado na obra, o que a torna ainda mais interessante para uma análise cultural geral do tempo.

O caminho do guerreiro é uma idealização social e militar para os soldados do tempo senhorial japonês. Todo o código moral do Bushido se baseia na relação de serventia do guerrilheiro ao feudo, onde sua vida é centralizada na lealdade ao seu senhor de terras e na valentia contra a maldade e a injustiça do mundo. Assim, o homem que nasce para guerrear, ou decide tomar este caminho, deve ter plena noção da relação de poder, dever e dominância na qual está sendo inserido. Neste ponto, o livro é de extrema relevância para uma análise da relação de classes do Japão feudal, que se distinguem rispidamente não apenas pelo seu aspecto ou finança, mas também por seus códigos de moral, sua significação social e suas obrigações. Nestes quesitos, a filosofia de vida de um samurai é tão sociológica quanto singular, e gera um choque cultural tremendo, ainda mais para ocidentais.

Com isso, é importante de lembrar ao leitor entusiasmado com o assunto: na mesma medida em que os costumes dos samurais eram honrosos e disciplinados, eram serventios e submissos. Aquele que almeja incorporá-los em sua vida, ou pelo menos tomá-los como base para seus próprios paradigmas, deve ter plena consciência do modelo social que representa a vassalagem para nossa sociedade moderna. Transpor a arte do Bushido para o dia-a-dia sem um pingo de consideração à cronologia de seu desenvolvimento seria o mesmo que tentar aplicar a arte da esgrima com katanas ao manusear rifles.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this one more. I've had it on my list for a long time and I finally got it on Kindle so I could read it when I had extra time and had my phone with me. I did like parts of it, but it started to sounds like it was written by a disgruntled employer and/or parent with passages like

"Suppose there are parents who are obstreperous, cranky, and argumentative, who insist on running the household and refuse to hand over anything, and on top of that complain to others how vexed and troubled they are by the poor treatment they get from their sons, thus damaging their children's reputations. To honor even such unreasonable parents, to take the trouble to humor them, to lament their aging and decline, and take care of them sincerely, without a bit of negligence - this is the aim of dutiful children."

OR

"Anywhere forbidden by the regulations of his employment, or disliked by his parents, he will avoid going even if he wants to. He will give up those things which are hard to give up just to avoid displeasing his employer and parents."

Yeah... No. Sorry Samurai of the past, I'm going to live my own life.

PS. Written by older Samurai to younger Samurai in times of peace, it is an interesting peek into their perspectives and lifestyles, however, this book should not be used as a code that anyone today should seek to live by.

[Poncho González · Rating 4 out of 5]

entender un poco de una cultura diferente siempre es grato, y despues de leer este libro entiendes porque el comportamiento actual de la sociedad japonesa, si vien no son samurais en la actualidad, han aceptado cada uno de estos pasos o codigos con el fin de ser una mejor sociedad, y si todos tus antepasados han sido regidos bajo estos codigos es muy dificil desaserte de ellos, mientras en otras sociedades hemos adoptado como normal o comun el machismo, la ambicion, la traicion y corrupcion y otros males que en la actualidad nos desagradan si alguien mas lo hace, pero si nosotros tenemos la oportunidad lo vamos ha hacer, en japn hace mas de 400 años ya tenian valores muy bien establecidos para con el fin de convertirse en una de las mejores sociedades del mundo, el cual no se si ese era su objetivo a futuro de los samurais, pero sabian que hiban por el camino correcto para algun dia llegar a serlo, y sobre el libro, es muy cortito, muy bien traducido y si no conoces nada de la cultura japonesa es una muy buena introduccion para comprender su forma de pensar y actuar en la actualidad.