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Code of Bushido - honor and life of the samurai. History of the Bushido Code
The Bushido Code is a set of rules of life that should ensure the following of the true path to the best members of society, custodians of honor and dignity. It has existed for more than a thousand years, but has not lost its value today.
The current and modern code of Bushido
Philosophical fundamentals
The traditional medieval society in Japan was strictly structured. Each class had certain rights and duties, formed by tradition and fixed by state power. There are four categories of the population. Peasants, merchants, artisans and military aristocracy. It was for the latter that the Bushido code was created. The path of a samurai (a warrior in Japan) was determined by ethical ethical categories that would provide support to the shogun, to the gentleman. The existing vassal relations determined the existence of whole clans. At the head of it was the house of the gentleman, he was sworn to fidelity by the smaller feudal lords who received from the landowner the estates, and for this served faith and truth to the end of his life. The Bushido Code was based on the concept of duty as the defining category of Eastern philosophy in general, and in particular Confucianism, Buddhism and Shinto. The attitude to death and life was formed under the influence of the ideas of reincarnation and karma, loyalty to duty and honor - with direct reliance on the category of Confucian "noble husband", respect for the ancestors and power of the emperor - on the basis of Shinto traditions.
Body and spirit training
Western society is surprisingly pragmatic. The desire for comfort and getting rid of unnecessary suffering makes you think up new technical discoveries, medicines, but does not give a person peace or confidence in the future. Code of the samurai Bushido proclaims the unity of the three components that allow us to live and die with honor. Their acquisition requires intensive work on oneself, which itself denies the idea of comfort and ease. For the warrior, the training of the body is important. He must be strong, hardy, flexible, tempered, which will give him advantages in combat. But all this means little without technology. It is she, like a master carpenter, from a rough-hewn club, creates a delicate piece. Technology can always resist only force. But the most important element is the spirit. It is the inner spiritual force that determines the true warrior, braver, hero. He is not afraid of death, and therefore not limited in his courage and honor.
Noble man
Attitude towards death
The Four Commandments of a Samurai
Written sources
The written code of laws as such does not have the code of Bushido. Quotations, which are full of the Internet, do not always have to do with ancient reality. Many of them are modern reprocessings of the eastern parables and wisdoms in general, and the Buddhist canons in particular. In ancient Japan, all these moral rules existed a priori, reproduced by society. The philosophers of the East believed that by writing down thoughts, we close them in the prison of words, and they lose their reality and vitality. The main thing is not words, but the meaning, time and place of the ideas expressed, a visible example. Everything flows, everything is moving, an attempt to make static from the dynamics is detrimental to the main thing. But if you still have a desire to read the code of Bushido, then the greatest benefit and truthful reflection of the teachings can be found in the book "Collection of sayings of Master Hagakure." It is a collection of sayings of the samurai hermit, which his disciple recorded at the beginning of the eighteenth century. By the way, Khakagure ordered him to burn records, but he disobeyed the teacher, and after the latter began to distribute copies of the book. Here is your code of honor. Anyway, but thanks to this, we have a written source of bushido philosophy. Also of particular interest are the instructions for young samurai, authored by Daidoji Yuzan. His works were created in the same period, that is, at the beginning of the 18th century.
Hidden in foliage
Eleven books compose the collection of statements Hagakure - "Hidden in the foliage." Its name is very symbolic, because the truth is not exposed, but is hidden. Conversations speak about the value of duty, conscience, responsibility and justice. The life of a samurai is a preparation for a worthy death, which is the only sincerity in our feigned world. The author clearly distinguishes between a valiant and faithful service to the master and servitude, servility. A samurai footman is one who has lost his conscience and honor. Vassal relations must be filled with dignity from one side and the other. All life is built in a relationship, so the warrior shows goodness to others, especially to children and wife, appreciating her faithfulness and devotion to her husband just as the lord appreciates him. The path of the samurai is straight, there is no place for it even for small lies, laziness, betrayal or cowardice. The willingness to quickly make a decision is valued more than the long reflections and philosophizing that inevitably lead away from the right choice.
Some conclusions
So, bushido is not only military art, but also the moral path of the warrior, on which he must prepare for the inevitable death and accept it with honor. It is necessary to note the maximalist character of the Eastern teaching. But, maybe, this is exactly what is needed in our age of universal relativity and unprincipledness. The path of the samurai requires the renunciation of selfishness and continuous labor over oneself, the rejection of the search for benefits, the proclamation in the works of the principles of good and justice.
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