THE ESSENCE OF HAGAKURE

by
HOWARD KEVIN ALEXANDER
B.A., U n i v e r s i t y o f L e t h b r i d g e , 1972

A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
MASTER OF ARTS

in
THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES
Department o f A s i a n S t u d i e s

We accept t h i s t h e s i s as conforming
to the r e q u i r e d standard

THE UNIVERSITY" OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

A p r i l , 1976

(cT) Howard Kevin Alexander, 1976

In p r e s e n t i n g t h i s thesis in p a r t i a l f u l f i l m e n t o f the requirements f o r

an advanced degree at the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia, I agree that

the L i b r a r y s h a l l make i t freely available for r e f e r e n c e and study.

I f u r t h e r agree that permission f o r e x t e n s i v e copying o f this thesis

for s c h o l a r l y purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or

by h i s representatives. It is understood that copying or p u b l i c a t i o n

of this thesis f o r f i n a n c i a l gain s h a l l not be allowed without my

written permission.

Department of Asian Studies

The U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h Columbia
2075 Wesbrook P l a c e
Vancouver, Canada
V 6 T 1W5
 i

ABSTRACT

In 1700 Yamamoto Tsunetomo, a samurai o f the p r o v i n c e o f

Saga i n n o r t h e r n Kyushu, r e t i r e d from a c t i v e duty i n o r d e r to

spend h i s remaining years p r a y i n g f o r h i s l o r d , who had died

t h a t year. In c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h a younger a s s o c i a t e , T a s h i r o

Tsuramoto, who recorded h i s l e c t u r e s and c o n v e r s a t i o n s , Tsune-

tomo authored a book e n t i t l e d Hagakure. F i n i s h e d i n 1716, the

work had taken s i x y e a r s , and upon completion i t c o n s i s t e d of

eleven volumes o f s h o r t passages, mainly of a moral or a n e c d o t a l

nature. Through d i d a c t i c i l l u s t r a t i o n s Tsunetomo d e l i n e a t e d

behaviour proper to the samurai class.

R e a l i z i n g t h a t the extended age of peace of the Tokugawa

p e r i o d was having a d e b i l i t a t i n g e f f e c t on the morals of the

w a r r i o r c l a s s , Tsunetomo attempted i n Hagakure to r e v e r s e t h i s

trend. Aware o f the changing circumstances, i n which the samurai

were i n c r e a s i n g l y assuming the r o l e of a d m i n i s t r a t o r s r a t h e r

than w a r r i o r s , Tsunetomo emphasized the development of mental

a t t i t u d e s a p p r o p r i a t e to the b a t t l e f i e l d . Self discipline and

u n q u e s t i o n i n g l o y a l t y , such as might be expected o f an ideal

w a r r i o r , even to the e x t e n t o f b e i n g r e s i g n e d to death a t any

time, was, he b e l i e v e d , a p r e r e q u i s i t e to s e r v i c e of any k i n d .

By d e v e l o p i n g such moral v i r t u e s as r e c t i t u d e , courage, honour,

decorum, compassion, u n s e l f i s h n e s s , f r u g a l i t y , and, most im-

p o r t a n t l y , l o y a l t y , Tsunetomo expected a samurai to prepare

h i m s e l f to serve h i s l o r d i n any c a p a c i t y . On the o t h e r hand,

he d e r i d e d samurai who were obsessed w i t h i n t e l l e c t u a l or a r -

t i s t i c p u r s u i t s , s t a t i n g t h a t they o f t e n became e x c e s s i v e l y
proud and l o s t t h e i r a b i l i t y to c a r r y out t h e i r d u t i e s e f f e c -

tively.

Because of Tsunetomo's emphasis on r e g i o n a l h i s t o r y and

on l o y a l t y to h i s p r o v i n c i a l l o r d , Hagakure, would most certain-

l y have d i s p l e a s e d the a u t h o r i t i e s i n Edo had i t been widely

circulated. T h e r e f o r e , f o l l o w i n g the author's o r d e r s , i t r e -

mained s e c r e t among the l e a d i n g samurai o f Saga u n t i l the middle

of the n i n e t e e n t h century. Then the r i g o r o u s l o y a l t y found i n

Hagakure was r e d i r e c t e d away from the r e g i o n a l l o r d to the em-

p e r o r , i n keeping w i t h the r i s i n g sense o f n a t i o n a l i s m which

accompanied the i m p e r i a l r e s t o r a t i o n . Hagakure thus took on

a new function. During the p e r i o d of" m i l i t a r i s m l e a d i n g t o

the P a c i f i c War, Tsunetomo's d e c l a r a t i o n that a w a r r i o r must

be r e s i g n e d to death i n the cause of l o y a l t y brought widespread

r e c o g n i t i o n to Hagakure. In f a c t , the book came to be equated

w i t h a d e t e r m i n a t i o n to d i e f o r the sake o f the emperor.

To g i v e a manageable s t r u c t u r e to the hundreds o f l o o s e l y

a s s o c i a t e d passages o f which Hagakure i s composed, a m o d i f i e d

framework o f Confucian mores has been employed i n t h i s essay.

Since the most p r e v a l e n t philosophy o f the book, and indeed o f

the whole Edo p e r i o d , was Neo-Confucianism, t h i s framework,

however a r t i f i c i a l , seems a p p r o p r i a t e . Other approaches may

a l s o have been p o s s i b l e f o r Hagakure c o n t a i n s much more than

only Neo-Confucian p h i l o s o p h y . The emphasis on s i m p l i c i t y and

the r e l i a n c e on one's own e f f o r t s , concepts which form i n t r e g a l

p a r t s o f Zen Buddhism, a l s o h e l d g r e a t appeal to Tsunetomo.

He d i d not c l e a r l y c o n c e p t u a l i z e h i s b e l i e f s as b e i n g C o n f u c i a n ,

B u d d h i s t , o r n a t i v e Japanese components. Rather a l l h i s ideas

were amalgamated i n t o a s y n c r e t i s m which he expresses

Hagakure as the way o f the w a r r i o r .

 iv

PREFACE'

I f i r s t became aware of the e x i s t e n c e of Hagakure a decade

ago, y e t I remember the circumstances w e l l . At t h a t time I had

been i n Japan t r a i n i n g i n m a r t i a l a r t s f o r almost two years and

f e l t t h a t I was f i n a l l y making p r o g r e s s . My misplaced p r i d e was

soon d i s l o d g e d , however, by a r e s p e c t e d i n s t r u c t o r who said that

although p h y s i c a l l y r was s t a r t i n g to l e a r n the techniques, my

mind had not y e t begun t o c o n t r o l my body. Unless, he advised,

I s t u d i e d the contents o f books such as Hagakure I would never

be able to comprehend the true s p i r i t o f the Japanese m a r t i a l

arts. In the f o l l o w i n g y e a r s , as I became more i n t e r e s t e d i n

the h i s t o r i c a l and s p i r i t u a l aspects o f Japanese budo, I heard

repeated r e f e r e n c e s to Hagakure, p a r t i c u l a r l y by those practi-

t i o n e r s o f the more t r a d i t i o n a l forms o f m a r t i a l a r t s . I came

to r e a l i z e t h a t Hagakure i s indeed a seminal work i n the e t h i c s

of the samurai c l a s s d u r i n g the Edo p e r i o d .

Because o f t h i s i n t e r e s t i t was n a t u r a l t h a t I would

s e l e c t Hagakure as the t o p i c o f my Master's thesis. Unfortunately,

due to the book's g r e a t l e n g t h , I have found i t p r a c t i c a l to

l i m i t my s t u d i e s f o r t h i s t h e s i s to the f i r s t chapter, which I

b e l i e v e t o be r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of the whole. Close examination

of the remaining p o r t i o n of Hagakure may i n d i c a t e a need f o r a

s l i g h t s h i f t i n emphasis and p r o v i d e more e x a c t i n g examples.

However, I b e l i e v e t h a t f u r t h e r r e s e a r c h would almost certainly

support the c o n c l u s i o n s reached i n t h i s paper.

 V

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter I .

1. Introduction p. 1

2. H i s t o r i c a l Background p. 8

3. Yamamoto Tsunetomo p. 17

4. Compilation and T e x t u a l Information p. 26

Chapter I I .

1. I n t e r n a l Aspects p. 34

2. Training p. 44

3. Loyalty p. 51

4. A t t i t u d e Toward Death p. 55

5. P e r s o n a l Appearance p. 6 3

Chapter I I I .

1. Conduct i n S o c i e t y p. 66

2. Rectitude p. 71*

3. Compassion p. 76

4. Courage and Honour p. 78

5. Etiquette p. 82

Chapter IV.

1. Conclusion p. 85
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Chapter I .

1. Introduction

By the t u r n o f the eighteenth century the Tokugawa bakufu

had, a f t e r a hundred years o f r u l e , f i r m l y secured i t s

p o s i t i o n o f supremacy i n Japan. A s t a b l e r e l a t i o n s h i p had been

s t r u c k between the c e n t r a l regime i n Edo/:C , the p r e s e n t Tokyo,

o f the v a r i o u s han )J^~. The r e s u l t a n t baku-

3
and the, dainty o 7\ jfc 2

h a n ^ system had proven i t s e l f as an e n t i t y s u f f i c i e n t l y

v i a b l e t o have r e a l i z e d a p e r i o d o f extended peace. The absence

of war eroded the need f o r , and t h e r e f o r e the q u a l i t y o f , the

m i l i t a r y techniques o f the samurai. In t h e i r p l a c e s p e c i a l i z e d

a d m i n i s t r a t i v e and b u r e a u c r a t i c s k i l l s became more h i g h l y valued

as the demand f o r such t a l e n t i n c r e a s e d . As the p o s i t i o n o f the

samurai a t the top o f the f o u r c l a s s s o c i a l system^ had not y e t

been threatened by the r i s i n g merchant c l a s s 6

and the surge o f

production and p r o s p e r i t y d u r i n g the l a t t e r p a r t o f the seven-

teenth century had b e n e f i t e d the samurai as w e l l as o t h e r s , i t

was only n a t u r a l t h a t a r e l a x a t i o n o f the moral f i b r e o f the

code o f bushi "fyj^C ^ e t h i c s should result.

Hagakure ^ ,8
known a l s o as Hagakure rongo ^$f[*g^Nffiv

Nabeshima r o n g o f f l j&f%*, o r Hizen rongo fflijfc)^ffi*/ exemplifies

e x c e l l e n t l y one attempt t o counteract the movement toward the

impotency o f bushi conduct and t o r e s t o r e the q u a l i t i e s which

had enabled the samurai to r i s e t o the p i n n a c l e o f s o c i e t y . En-

compassing w e l l over a thousand passages o r paragraphs o f v a r y i n g

l e n g t h , each more o r l e s s a complete u n i t i n i t s e l f , Hagakure

was n o t intended to c o n s t i t u t e m a t e r i a l f o r c a s u a l r e a d i n g nor

entertainment but was r a t h e r composed as a book o f moral and

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social injunctions. As such, s t r u c t u r a l q u a l i t i e s and literary-

smoothness were f o r c e d i n t o a p o s i t i o n s u b s e r v i e n t to such things

as i t e r a t i o n of the samurai code of e t h i c s . In s p i t e of c e r t a i n

l i t e r a r y d e f i c i e n c i e s s u f f e r e d because of t h i s requirement, the

manner of p r e s e n t a t i o n , mainly through the i n c o r p o r a t i o n o f

v a r i o u s forms of d i d a c t i c , permits Hagakure to be designated one

9

of the important books o f Japanese c i v i l i z a t i o n . Yet the essen-

tial value o f Hagakure i s not p r i m a r i l y as a work o f literature.

The importance o f t h i s book may be found p a r t l y i n the

g r e a t amount of h i s t o r i c a l i n f o r m a t i o n which may be gleaned from

it. The v a r i e d passages, through the p r o v i s i o n o f d i v e r s e ex-

emplary d e s c r i p t i o n s , i n c l u d e much of the h i s t o r y o f the N a b e s h i m a 10

h a n / ^ a n d thus o f f e r innumerable f a c t s concerning the devel-

opment of S a g a ^ p r e f e c t u r e . ^ To s c h o l a r s o f l o c a l h i s t o r y

i n t e n t on c a r e f u l l y d e t a i l i n g the p a s t o f t h a t p a r t i c u l a r p a r t
12
of Kyushu, Hagakure has long been a source o f v a l u a b l e d e t a i l s .
S o c i a l h i s t o r i a n s , too, have d i s c o v e r e d a great d e a l o f m a t e r i a l
13

r e g a r d i n g m a r i t a l and family conditions. References to offi-

c i a l documents, d e l i b e r a t i v e meetings, d u t i e s r e q u i r e d o f par-

t i c u l a r o f f i c e s , and expected behavior regarding intercourse

between v a r i o u s ranks of samurai e x i s t as concrete examples.

For i n s t a n c e , the n o t i f i c a t i o n o f a r a i s e i n s t i p e n d a r r i v e d by
14
means of an o f f i c i a l l e t t e r from the l o r d . Another paragraph
15
deals w i t h methods by which a new group member was s e l e c t e d .
The r e s p o n s i b i l i t y attached to duty i s c l e a r l y d e p i c t e d i n a
statement e x p l a i n i n g the p r e c a u t i o n s r e q u i r e d when d e l i v e r i n g a
16
message and i n the a l l u s i o n to the r o l e o f an o f f i c i a l witness
17
at the r i t u a l o f seppuku j f l j f f . Furthermore, h i s t o r i a n s i n t e r -
 3

e s t e d i n the i n s t i t u t i o n a l development o f a d m i n i s t r a t i v e appa-

18

ratus w i l l f i n d many passages o f s p e c i f i c interest.

The r e a l s i g n i f i c a n c e o f Hagakure, though, l i e s beyond a

s u p e r f i c i a l examination of the t e x t i n search o f s p e c i f i c accounts

d e p i c t i n g c e r t a i n aspects o f h i s t o r i c a l study. Rather i t e x i s t s

as an o u t s t a n d i n g r e c o r d o f the code o f conduct o f the i d e a l i z e d

samurai i n the p r o v i n c e o f Saga. The f a c t t h a t i t indeed rep-

resents but a s m a l l p o r t i o n o f the whole country does not de-

t r a c t from i t s c r e d i t a b i l i t y because i t s author, Yamamoto Tsune-

tomo ^ f l ? (1659-1719), w h i l e drawing on l o c a l events f o r

i l l u s t r a t i o n , propounds what may be regarded as the c u l m i n a t i o n

o f - t h e s e t o f e t h i c s which l a t e r came t o be known as bushido

Tsunetomo was i n f l u e n c e d by v a r i o u s sources and the

b u s h i which he so c o n s c i e n t i o u s l y p o r t r a y s were i d e a l models who,

i n a c t u a l i t y , d i d not e x i s t a t any time i n Japanese h i s t o r y .

This f a b r i c a t i o n i s openly admitted.

At p r e s e n t , models o f g r e a t r e t a i n e r s have
disappeared. T h e r e f o r e i t i s probably b e s t
to make one's own model and i m i t a t e t h a t .
The way t o c r e a t e t h i s model i s t o take the
decorum o f one person, the courage o f another
and a t h i r d ' s way o f u s i n g words. Add some-
one's proper b e h a v i o r and the f i r m o b l i g a t i o n
of someone e l s e . Study y e t another man's way
of q u i c k l y and f i r m l y making good d e c i s i o n s .
I f from among people one s e l e c t s men who each
have an o u t s t a n d i n g q u a l i t y , and s e l e c t s o n l y
the b e s t o f these q u a l i t i e s , he can make a
model.20

The Utopian q u a l i t i e s d e p i c t e d i n Hagakure n e v e r t h e l e s s c o i n -

c i d e d almost e x a c t l y w i t h the e s t a b l i s h e d c r i t e r i a o f the stand-

ard b u s h i i n o t h e r p a r t s o f Japan. The p o i n t o f d i f f e r e n c e ,

then, l i e s n o t so much i n the content as i t does i n degree. For

Tsunetomo p i c t u r e d h i s model i n s u c c i n c t and f o r c e f u l terms and,

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because o f t h i s emphasis which bordered on the i l l u s i o n a r y ,

Hagakure p r o v i d e s an e x c e l l e n t example of the b a s i c p r e c e p t s

which the bushi o f the middle Edo p e r i o d were expected to emulate.

While i t i s p o s s i b l e and e x c i t i n g to s e l e c t s p e c i f i c sen-

tences o r paragraphs and attempt t o r e l a t e them to s i t u a t i o n s o f

theppresent age, c a u t i o n on t h i s p o i n t i s i m p e r a t i v e . However

much c e r t a i n passages lend themselves to t h i s p r a c t i c e , i t does

not serve the purpose o f f i n d i n g the true essence o f the book.

For, as i t w i l l be seen, Hagakure was produced w i t h a c e r t a i n

i n t e n t i o n and subsequently the passages, a l b e i t v a r i e d and color-

f u l , c o n s t a n t l y r e t u r n to the e x p o s i t i o n o f p r i n c i p l e s meant to

strengthen t h a t o r i g i n a l i n t e n t . N a t u r a l l y the words themselves

have an important r o l e to p l a y and each must be c o n s i d e r e d c a r e -

fully. The use o f these words by the author, however, sometimes

p l a y i n g on t h e i r shock v a l u e , sometimes on t h e i r emotional v a l u e ,

and o t h e r times upon t h e i r a b i l i t y to impart l o g i c , constantly

reconfirms and s o l i d i f i e s Tsunetomo's p o i n t of view.

Common sense was, i n h i s day, based on fundamentals o f

reasoning d i f f e r e n t from the p r e s e n t age. With the modern em-

p h a s i s upon the f e e l i n g s and r i g h t s o f the i n d i v i d u a l , i t i s not

expected t h a t an employee w i l l have the degree o f commitment

21

which was demanded o f the r e t a i n e r s o f the Nabeshima han. By

p r e s e n t standards t h a t d e d i c a t i o n to s e r v i c e would appear to be

f a n a t i c i s m b o r d e r i n g on i n s a n i t y . Indeed, even Tsunetomo f r e -

q u e n t l y mentions the need f o r a b l i n d and unreasonable d e v o t i o n

22
which he c a l l s s h i n i g u r u i ^fcj^£wi, "death madness." In appa-
r e n t o p p o s i t i o n to t h i s he a l s o s t a t e s the need f o r l o g i c and
23
self control. To Tsunetomo adherence to two such c o n t r a d i c t o r y
 5

viewpoints p r e s e n t e d no problem because i n c o n s i s t e n c i e s c o u l d be

caused only by d e v i a t i o n from the main duty of a bushi which

was to f u l f i l l h i s r o l e i n l i f e .

Tsunetomo b e l i e v e d t h a t the Nabeshima House was among the

foremost i n Japan. "Among the generations of l o r d s of our House

there have been no bad men and no s t u p i d men. Nor have there

been any who have dropped to second or t h i r d among the daimyo

of Japan. This marvelous House must have been d i v i n e l y p r o t e c t e d

by the p i e t y of our a n c e s t o r s . " He f u r t h e r b e l i e v e d t h a t the

entire l i f e of a b u s h i , p a r t i c u l a r l y one who was a r e t a i n e r of

such an unequalled House, c o u l d center around o n l y one thought,

the u t t e r and complete devotion to the s e r v i c e o f one's l o r d .

...having been born by happy chance i n t o a House

where the vows between l o r d and f o l l o w e r are
s t r o n g , the r e t a i n e r s , and even the peasants
and townsmen, have such deep indebtedness, the
inheritance of successive generations, that
words are inadequate to express i t f u l l y . When
one t h i n k s of t h i s w i t h the r e s o l u t i o n f i x e d
i n h i s h e a r t t h a t i n the repayment o f t h i s
indebtedness he has to somehow be employed, he
serves even more s e l f l e s s l y . Even i f ordered
to become a m a s t e r l e s s samurai o r to commit
seppuku, he knows these to be d u t i e s . From the
depths o f the mountains and from under the e a r t h ,
from l i f e to l i f e and age to age, determining to
serve i s the fundamental stage o f the r e s o l u t i o n
of the samurai of the Nabeshima. This i s our
h e a r t and s o u l . Although i t does not s u i t my
p r e s e n t s e l f , Iwithdrawn as I am from the world
as a monk,] I never pray f o r such t h i n g s as
a t t a i n i n g Buddhahood. Being born as a Nabeshima
samurai f o r seven l i v e s , and the d e t e r m i n a t i o n
to serve the f i e f , i s s t a i n e d on my very l i v e r
as long as I l i v e . A b i l i t y i s not needed. A l l
t h a t i s necessary i s the d e t e r m i n a t i o n to bear
the House by m y s e l f . ^

No a c t i o n c o u l d be c o n s i d e r e d insane o r i l l o g i c a l i f i t were

s i n c e r e l y intended to f u r t h e r the cause o f the l o r d . Conversely,

any e f f o r t which was made i n an attempt to b e t t e r one's p e r s o n a l

 6

lot i n l i f e was regarded as wicked. T h e r e f o r e , the use o f exam-

p l e s , s t o r i e s , i n c i d e n t s taken from h i s t o r y f a m i l i a r t o the b u s h i

of the time, q u o t a t i o n s from other books, admonitions, accusa-

t i o n s employing harsh and c r u e l words f o r the purpose of shocking

the r e a d e r , the use o f humour, the s t i m u l a t i o n o f the emotions

of love and compassion and o f h a t r e d f o r cowardice, and even the

appeal to the vengeance of the gods, are a l l employed when needed

to convince the young samurai i n one way o r another t h a t the p r a c -

t i s e of chu , " l o y a l t y , " c o n s t i t u t e d the main f a c t o r i n t h e i r

way of life.

There are i n d i c a t i o n s that the author was c l e a r l y aware t h a t

the age i n which the major s e r v i c e o f the r e t a i n e r was to f i g h t

for h i s l o r d on the b a t t l e f i e l d had passed. Tsunetomo h i m s e l f

had had no b a t t l e e x p e r i e n c e and the i n c i d e n t s d e a l i n g w i t h war

which are s p r i n k l e d throughout Hagakure are a l l drawn from e a r l i e r

p e r i o d s as examples of accepted behaviour i n the contingency o f

war. More o f t e n the passages o f Hagakure attempt to d e a l w i t h the

problem o f how t o m a i n t a i n the proper a t t i t u d e o f complete loyalty

in a p e r i o d o f peace. The young samurai o f the mid-Edo p e r i o d

were d e s t i n e d to become o f f i c i a l s and a d m i n i s t r a t o r s r a t h e r than

w a r r i o r s , but i n the d i s c h a r g e of t h e i r d u t i e s they were expected

to fulfill the requirements o f l o y a l t y and d e v o t i o n to t h e i r lord.

Thus, Hagakure deals d i r e c t l y w i t h the d e l i c a t e problem o f a c h i e v -

ing a mental a t t i t u d e o f preparedness o r r e s o l u t i o n (kakugo,^(j^^f)

and s u s t a i n i n g t h i s c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f purpose throughout a l i f e t i m e

i n which there may have been no c o n c r e t e o p p o r t u n i t y to consummately

demonstrate i t .

Taken as a whole, the c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f e f f o r t must be

d i r e c t e d toward the c u l t i v a t i o n and development o f an awareness

 7

of the d i s c i p l i n e which i s necessary to p r o p e r l y serve one's

lord. I t i s i n t h i s r e s p e c t t h a t Hagakure d i f f e r s from the

g r e a t c l a s s i c s o f war i n two main but r e l a t e d r e s p e c t s . The

25 26
Sun Tzu ffi Jj- , M a c h i a v e l l i ' s The A r t o f War, and On War by
27

Clausewitz, a l l but ignore the mental a t t r i b u t e s o f s o l d i e r s

as i n d i v i d u a l s , emphasizing i n s t e a d i n s t r u c t i o n s to the comman-

der o f the army and the a c t u a l s t r a t e g y to be employed by t h a t

commander i n l e a d i n g h i s army to v i c t o r y . Hagakure, on the

other hand, i s a book which r e v o l v e s around the i n d i v i d u a l s who

make up the army, not around the l e a d e r . These individuals

e x i s t only i n response to the needs of t h e i r l o r d . Hagakure

p r o v i d e s them w i t h d i r e c t i o n s on how t o become commendable r e -

t a i n e r s and i n c i t e s them to do t h e i r utmost to a t t a i n a degree

of mental d i s c i p l i n e which would enable them to achieve the most

favorable results.

Hagakure's concept o f d e v o t i o n to s e r v i c e i n c o r p o r a t e s an

amalgamation o f C o n f u c i a n , Buddhist, and T a o i s t ideas t o g e t h e r

with e x p r e s s i o n s r e m i n i s c e n t o f n a t i v e Japanese modes o f thought.

The d o c t r i n e s o f "reason" o r " r a t i o n a l i s m " ( r i , / ? _ ) and "human-

28

ism" (j i n , •fa- ) are c e n t r a l to orthodox Confucianism and are

supported by such C o n f u c i a n v i r t u e s as " l o y a l t y " (chu),, "filial

piety" (ko, j% ) and " r i t u a l " or "decorum" ( g i , ) . The reiter-

a t i o n of these elements i n the Neo-Confucianism of the Sung

dynasty i n the p h i l o s o p h i c a l teachings o f Chu H s i \ , (113 0-

29
1200, Japanese name Shushi) and the o f f i c i a l adoption o f t h i s
30

s c h o o l by the Tokugawa bakufu gave f u r t h e r s t r e n g t h to the

i n f l u e n c e o f Chinese thought. The emphasis on moderation, con-

s e r v a t i s m and the maintenance of r e l a t i o n s h i p s between i n d i v i d -

 8

u a l s and among groups e x e m p l i f i e s the d i r e c t e f f e c t o f orthodox

Neo-Confucianism on Hagakure. I n c l i n a t i o n s toward ethnocentrism

and h i s t o r i c a l s t u d i e s a l s o i n d i c a t e an indebtedness to Confu-

31
danism. Apparent, too, i s the harmonizing e f f e c t of the
a n c i e n t yin-yang (in-yo, ffip^ ) philosophy o f C h i n a . 3 2
The legacy

from Buddhism i s a l s o p r e s e n t , and the expressed n e c e s s i t y to

gain r e l e a s e from w o r l d l y d e s i r e s and the acknowledgment o f the

33
t r a n s i t o r y nature of the world p l a y s an obvious r o l e i n Hagakure•
E s o t e r i c p a t t e r n s , i n the methods o f t r a n s m i t t i n g knowledge f o r

example, are a l s o c l o s e l y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h the p r a c t i s e s of Bud-

34
dhist sects. On the other hand, Zen Buddhism added the recog-
n i t i o n f o r s e l f - u n d e r s t a n d i n g and s e l f - r e l i a n c e t o Tsunetomo's
35

ideal bushi. Furthermore, Tsunetomo's support o f the very rigid

h i e r a r c h i c a l system, while i n f l u e n c e d by Confucianism, is a

s o c i a l phenomenon which appeared i n Japan even i n very e a r l y

times. Some o f the elements r e g a r d i n g r i t u a l and e t i q u e t t e

37

can a l s o be t r a c e d to very e a r l y n a t i v e t r a d i t i o n s . Since a l l

of these components are d i f f u s e d throughout Hagakure and have

become i n t r i n s i c p a r t s o f the t e x t , f u r t h e r a t t e n t i o n w i l l be

given them
2. H ias
s t othey
r i c a lr e lBackground
a t e to the contents o f t h i s paper.

During the n i n t h century p r o v i n c i a l governors began to

surround themselves w i t h armed men. By the e l e v e n t h century the

bushi had emerged w i t h enough power t o become a source o f a n x i e t y

to the government i n Kyoto, and b e f o r e the t w e l f t h century had

come t o a c l o s e they had e s t a b l i s h e d a bakufu i n Kamakura^

38

which h e l d a wide range o f a d m i n i s t r a t i v e power. Thereafter,

the samurai c l a s s continued to be a tremendously powerful f o r c e

 9

i n Japanese h i s t o r y . Beginning w i t h the Onin/ciWar (1467-

39
1477), armed c o n f l i c t ravaged Japan almost c o n s t a n t l y f o r
n e a r l y a century and a h a l f . H o s t i l i t i e s continued u n t i l they

culminated i n the u n i f i c a t i o n o f the country i n 1600 by Tokugawa

40
Ieyasu. A f t e r he had s o l i d x f i e d h i s g r i p on the n a t i o n through
. . . - 41

the e l i m i n a t i o n o f the Toyotomi f a c t i o n at Osaka i n 1615, any

m i l i t a r y a c t i o n s which o c c u r r e d , such as the s u p p r e s s i o n of

l o c a l i z e d u p r i s i n g s , c o n s t i t u t e d only minor s k i r m i s h e s , w i t h
the e x c e p t i o n of the C h r i s t i a n u p r i s i n g a t Shimabara in
42

1638. Ieyasu e s t a b l i s h e d a - p e r i o d of peace which was to l a s t

f o r more than two hundred and f i f t y years u n t i l the M e i j i Restor-

a t i o n o f 1868. The m i l i t a r y s k i l l s of the b u s h i d e c l i n e d through

the p r o t r a c t e d p e r i o d o f i n a c t i v i t y and the f u n c t i o n o f the

samurai evolved from one of p h y s i c a l combat i n t o one o f adminis-

trative responsibilities. Among those who were concerned with

the s t a t u s of the samurai d u r i n g the prolonged peace was Yamaga

Soko who attempted t o j u s t i f y the continued importance o f the

bushi. He b e l i e v e d t h a t samurai, who r e c e i v e d sustenance as a

r e s u l t of the e f f o r t s of the o t h e r s o c i a l c l a s s e s , must earn

t h e i r y e a r l y s t i p e n d , not only by m a i n t a i n i n g proper m i l i t a r y

preparedness, but by d i s c i p l i n i n g themselves i n a r t s and virtues

which would equip them as proper models and l e a d e r s f o r o t h e r s
43

to f o l l o w .

Yamaga was not alone i n h i s concern f o r the f u t u r e o f the

samurai. One hundred years a f t e r the b a t t l e o f Osaka and e i g h t y

a f t e r Shimabara, a t a time when the n a t i o n was engrossed i n en-

j o y i n g the b e n e f i t s o f peace, Hagakure was w r i t t e n (1716). Con-

demning the l a c k of m i l i t a r y v i r t u e s i n terms which were o f t e n

 10

extremely harsh and b r u t a l , such as, " A l l the work o f men used

to have the stench o f b l o o d about i t . In the p r e s e n t age this

is s a i d to be f o o l i s h . Through c l e v e r n e s s i n the use of words

people t i d y up t h e i r appearance, and i f there happens to be a

s l i g h t l y d i f f i c u l t t a s k , they a v o i d i t . I would l i k e the young

44

people to r e f l e c t c a r e f u l l y on t h i s , " Tsunetomo appealed f o r

a r e t u r n t o the s t r i c t e r mental and p h y s i c a l d i s c i p l i n e of e a r l i e r

times.

Why, i t may be asked, d i d Tsunetomo f e e l the need to

r e v e r t to what appears to be a more p r i m i t i v e l i f e style? The

author h i m s e l f d e s c r i b e s g r a p h i c a l l y the circumstances which

induced him to w r i t e . In the t h i r t y years p r i o r to the compila-

t i o n o f Hagakure,
...the c h a r a c t e r o f the world changed. When the
young samurai get t o g e t h e r , t h e i r c o n v e r s a t i o n
c o n s i s t s e n t i r e l y of such t h i n g s as c h a t t e r about
money, accounts o f p r o f i t and l o s s , t a l k o f the
private a f f a i r s of families, styles of clothing,
and g o s s i p r e l a t e d to l u s t . I f the c o n v e r s a t i o n
does not turn to t h i s k i n d o f t h i n g , they are a l l
bored. T h i s t r u l y has become a custom devoid of
a sense o f r i g h t and wrong. In the o l d days,
u n t i l the age of twenty or t h i r t y young men d i d
not t a l k o f such t h i n g s because they d i d not have
such d e s p i c a b l e t h i n g s i n t h e i r minds i n the
f i r s t p l a c e . The o l d e r men, too, i f they s a i d
something i n a d v e r t e n t l y , r e c o g n i z e d i t as an
error. I t must be because the world has become
g a r i s h and o n l y the way to get r i c h e r i s seen
to be important.^5
Instead o f d e v o t i n g themselves completely t o p r e p a r a t i o n f o r
46
proper s e r v i c e , they show much more i n t e r e s t i n the m a t e r i a l
47
goods which may be found on the s h e l v e s o f merchant's s t o r e s
48

.and t r y t o a v o i d any duty which may be a t a l l d i f f i c u l t .

The a n x i e t y expressed i n Hagakure r e g a r d i n g the i l l

e f f e c t s of the process o f moral degeneration which was taking

 11

place i s mirrored i n other works as w e l l . Ogyu S o r a i ^ JL jO^s^

(1666-1728), i n Seidan h i n t s t h a t the l a c k o f discipline

49

was the r e s u l t of poor government c o n t r o l . In Sundai zatsuwa

•^jtfr -jjH&fl^' w r i t t e n i n 1732 and p u b l i s h e d i n 1750, Muro Kyuso

^ JjL. (1658-1734) i n d i c a t e s h i s g r i e f f o r the dismal state

of s o c i e t y . 5 0
A few years e a r l i e r Kaibara Ekken ^ ^ l ^ j ] ^ ( 1 6 30-

1714) had s t r e s s e d the need f o r proper e t h i c a l conduct i n h i s

Yamatozokukun XJjfl jfafy^, 51

and Kumazawa Banzan jl\ (1619-

1691) was being o s t r a c i z e d by the bakufu f o r suggesting action

which might be taken to remedy p o l i t i c a l and economic d e f i c i e n -

52 53
cies. The Imagawa l e t t e r , a t t r i b u t e d to Imagawa Ryoshun
)l
j T $Ml325-1420) , governor of S u r u g a j j ^ ^ , expounds the

fundamental p r i n c i p l e s of m o r a l i t y . Although w r i t t e n about

200 years before Hagakure, i t s c l a r i t y and s t r u c t u r e allowed i t

to a t t a i n and s u s t a i n a high degree of p o p u l a r i t y . During the

Muromachi p e r i o d the p r a c t i s e o f w r i t i n g such l e t t e r s of i n s t r u c t

t i o n to incoming heads of m i l i t a r y houses was q u i t e common and

54

t h i s custom was r e v i v e d i n the Edo era. The Imagawa l e t t e r ,

f o r i n s t a n c e , was republished at l e a s t 220 times d u r i n g the

Tokugawa p e r i o d . 5 5
The memorandum o f Tokugawa Mitsukuni )'|

^|^| (1628-1700) of Mi to ^ j* i l l u s t r a t e s a s i m i l a r method by

which moral advice was given to r e t a i n e r s at a time n e a r l y con-

temporary to H a g a k u r e . 56
Only s l i g h t l y l a t e r D a i d o j i Yuzan

T\i^A.ik (1639-1730) wrote Budo shoshin shu -jfr jjjS-ri H* 5 7

On

the major p o i n t s of l o y a l t y and views r e g a r d i n g death^this text

58

c o i n c i d e s c l o s e l y w i t h Hagakure. On minor p o i n t s a l s o , such

as the avoidance o f f r i e n d s who seek only p l e a s u r e , Daidoji's

ideas o v e r l a p w i t h Tsunetomo s. 1
 12

A response to moral degeneration made i t s e l f v i s i b l e i n

— 59 —
p o p u l a r l i t e r a t u r e as w e l l . The f o r t y seven r o n i n S k . K o r

had gained t h e i r revenge i n 1703 and during the years imme-

diately following t h e i r mass s u i c i d e , v a r i o u s stage v e r s i o n s of

t h i s story,, c u l m i n a t i n g i n the mid, e i g h t e e n t h century drama

c a l l e d Chushingura t^'l£yf& appeared. The f i r s t successful play,

appeared i n 1706. I t was w r i t t e n by Chikamatsu Monzaemon jfr

f^frjjtff^ (1653-1724) and e n t i t l e d Gob an t a i h e i k i fjO. 60

The p l a y s produced f o r bunraku JZJ -^ 1

^ and kabuki^|| $jJ* 2
by

Chikamatsu, o f t e n p r a i s e d as Japan's g r e a t e s t p l a y w r i g h t , are

i n c u l c a t e d w i t h the Confucian themes of l o y a l t y and filial piety

and generally depict the c o n f l i c t between f e u d a l obligations,

cjiri^^,, and human emotions, n i n j o A'ffi • ^ While the novelist

I h a r a Saikaku 4 $ (1642-1693) 6 4
i s celebrated mainly f o r h i s

prose f i c t i o n concerning townsmen and e r o t i c adventures, he also

wrote d i d a c t i c m a t e r i a l f e a t u r i n g the incompatibility of giri

and ninjo. The most important of h i s works i n t h i s f i e l d are

66
Buke g i r i monogatari-^ ffjty 5 a n d
Budo d e n r a i k i ^ x J L f a ^ j ? ^

These men, Chikamatsu and Ihara, as the l e a d i n g authors of pop-

u l a r l i t e r a t u r e , i n d i c a t e through t h e i r works the value placed

on moral b e h a v i o r i n the l a t e seventeenth and early eighteenth

centuries. By i l l u s t r a t i n g that dedication to the advocated code

o f e t h i c s was not always as i t s h o u l d be, they v a l i d a t e the con-

t e n t i o n t h a t Hagakure was compiled as a measure to counteract,

particularly among the samurai of the Nabeshima han, the decline

of morality which was obvious throughout Japan.

Hagakure, then, may be regarded not only as a p r o t e s t

against the degeneration and ostentation of the age but also as

 13

p o s i t i v e a c t i o n toward c o r r e c t i n g those e v i l s . Tsunetomo, acutely-

aware o f the c o n t i n u i n g v u l g a r i z a t i o n of s o c i e t y , s t a t e s t h a t the

beginning of a r e v e r s a l must emanate from sound knowledge of the

h i s t o r y of the han. He f e l t t h a t the value of the traditional

mores c o u l d be seen by the young r e t a i n e r s o n l y i f r t h e y were

f i r s t e n l i g h t e n e d about the deeds and p e r s o n a l i t i e s i n the history

68

of the Nabeshima han. In e a r l i e r y e a r s , he d e c l a r e s , "... the

r e t a i n e r s a l l worked d i l i g e n t l y at t h e i r family occupations.

The l o r d s searched f o r persons who would serve w e l l , and the sub-

o r d i n a t e s were eager to comply. The h e a r t s o f thev.upper and

69

lower c l a s s e s met, and the House prospered." That i s , through

the honest endeavor o f both l e a d e r s and f o l l o w e r s , cooperation

was p o s s i b l e with the r e s u l t t h a t there was peace and success

w i t h i n the fief.

Tsunetomo, i n r e f e r r i n g to the men of o l d , understandably

i g n o r e s the numerous i n s t a n c e s o f i n s i n c e r i t y , t r e a c h e r y , and

d e c e i t which abound throughout Japanese h i s t o r y . By emphasizing

the commendable t r a i t s o n l y , admittedly a b i a s e d use of o n l y

some of the f a c t s , he fails i n the cause of p r e s e n t i n g a true

history. However, t o do so was not h i s i n t e n t i o n . With a s i n g l e -

mindedness b o r d e r i n g on the f a n a t i c he drew i l l u s t r a t i o n s from

l o c a l h i s t o r y o n l y to encourage t h e i r emulation by the youths

of the han.

I t i s necessary at t h i s p o i n t to d e s c r i b e b r i e f l y the social

and economic s i t u a t i o n o f the country i n g e n e r a l and o f Saga han

in particular. The response of the s o c i e t y to the g r e a t peace

t h a t accompanied Tokugawa r u l e was profound. Increases i n the

q u a n t i t y and v a r i e t y of a g r i c u l t u r a l products and freedom of

 14

70
movement on the t r a n s p o r t a t i o n routes prompted economic expansion,

i n i t i a l l y i n the l a r g e r centers of p o p u l a t i o n , and l a t e r , through

the process of d i f f u s i o n , to the c a s t l e c i t i e s of r e g i o n a l c a p i -

tals. In a d d i t i o n t o i n c r e a s e d m a t e r i a l goods, p r o s p e r i t y brought

a g r e a t c u l t u r a l surge which o r i g i n a t e d i n the major c i t i e s of

Edo, Kyoto, and Osaka and which i s epitomized i n the f l o w e r i n g ,

e s p e c i a l l y d u r i n g the Genroku/L-^era (16 88-170 3) , of bunraku and

kabuki t h e a t e r , the a r t s t y l e known as ukiyoe ^ ^ J l f f t ^ , and var-

ious forms o f l i t e r a t u r e and p o e t r y . The entertainment quarters

of every c i t y and town c a r r i e d on an i n c r e a s i n g l y l i v e l y business.

Forms of t h i s c u l t u r a l a c t i v i t y spread to even the most remote

provinces. One main c a r r i e r of t h i s c u l t u r e was the institution

of sankin k o t a i w i t h i t s requirement t h a t the daimyo,

with.a number of t h e i r r e t a i n e r s , make frequent t r i p s between

t h e i r p r o v i n c i a l c a p i t a l s and Edo. Yet there were other means,

too, by which the p r o v i n c e s came i n t o c o n t a c t w i t h the cultural

a c t i v i t i e s of the l a r g e c i t i e s . Contained i n Hagakure, f o r ex-

ample, i s the s t o r y of a man who had been s t a t i o n e d i n Osaka f o r

a number of y e a r s . When he r e t u r n e d to Saga he was ridiculed

because o f h i s new accent and a f f e c t e d manner. In t h i s connection

Tsunetomo s a i d , "In our p r o v i n c e , s i m p l i c i t y i n the country style

is best. I t may be s a i d t h a t i m i t a t i o n of the manners of o t h e r

73

provinces i s f a l l a c i o u s . "

While much of the b e n e f i t from the new p r o s p e r i t y found i t s

way i n t o the purses o f the r i s i n g merchant c l a s s , the samurai

c l a s s , too, was a b l e , through s t i p e n d s , s p e c i a l taxes and loans,

f o r c e d o r otherwise, to procure enough funds to take p a r t i n the

g e n e r a l c u l t u r a l expansion. Even the s e l e c t i o n of marriage part-

 15

ners began t o take on some of the aspects o f an open market, as

each f a m i l y p l a c e d an i n c r e a s i n g emphasis on wealth r a t h e r than

upon s o c i a l s t a n d i n g , much to the dismay of Tsunetomo, who called

74
this "outrageous and i n e x c u s a b l e . "

In view o f the above-described s o c i a l and economic s t a t e of

a f f a i r s , i t i s not s t a r t l i n g to see the appearance o f a r e a c -

t i o n a r y movement. C o n s e r v a t i v e men were concerned t h a t the samurai

c l a s s , which i n p r a c t i s e s u p p l i e d v i r t u a l l y a l l o f the a d m i n i s t r a -

tive o f f i c i a l s to the governments, both n a t i o n a l and l o c a l , would

j e o p a r d i z e i t s a b i l i t y to r u l e e f f e c t i v e l y . Tsunetomo laments,

"When there i s peace the world g r a d u a l l y becomes a gaudy show-

p l a c e ; people become extravagant and i n d i f f e r e n t t o the ways o f

war. They have many f a i l u r e s . Persons of both h i g h and low

ranks are s o r e l y t r o u b l e d and people, both i n s i d e and o u t s i d e o f

75

the f i e f , are ashamed. The f i e f may even f a l l i n t o r u i n . " In

o t h e r words Tsunetomo f e l t t h a t war may be necessary to m a i n t a i n

the moral r i g o r of the samurai. Without war to ensure d e d i c a t i o n

to matters o f moral conduct a t t e n t i o n may be d i v e r t e d away from

the f u l f i l l m e n t o f d u t i e s . Through n e g l e c t of t h i s s o r t the

very f a t e o f the c l a n c o u l d be i n jeopardy. Thus, through proper

m o r a l i t y one's p e r s o n a l f a t e and the d e s t i n y of the han c o u l d be

influenced. Tsunetomo's l i n e o f r e a s o n i n g i n t h i s r e g a r d was

c l o s e r to the Confucian concept of r e c t i t u d e than t o Buddhist

t h e o r i e s o f an i n a l t e r a b l e f a t e . One Hundred years l a t e r Takizawa

Bakin (1767-1848), one o f the most popular w r i t e r s of

d i d a c t i c f i c t i o n o f the Edo p e r i o d , expressed a s i m i l a r view.

"Fate i s indeed c a p r i c i o u s , but m o r a l i t y can sway i t . Morality

76
i s more c r u c i a l than f a t e . "
The Nabeshima han, i n s p i t e of i t s remoteness, was not f r e e
 16

from the degenerative i n f l u e n c e s of the age. According to Tsune-

tomo, the p r o h i b i t i o n o f junshiffi] jf^, i n f a n t s u c c e s s i o n to

f a m i l y headship, and the c e s s a t i o n o f the custom o f c h i l d pages,

a l l newly i n t r o d u c e d measures, were not good f o r s o c i e t y i n gen-

e r a l , and the young samurai o f Saga han i n p a r t i c u l a r , because

each of these new elements was d e t r i m e n t a l to the t r a i n i n g o f

good r e t a i n e r s . I n s t e a d o f l e a r n i n g t h i n g s which would help to

serve the l o r d and the House, he says, they become a d d i c t e d to

m i s c h i e f d u r i n g t h e i r spare time. Because they are t r e a t e d as

a d u l t s a t the age o f f i f t e e n or s i x t e e n and as y e t have no taste,

they spend a l l t h e i r time e a t i n g , d r i n k i n g and t e l l i n g obscene

78
stories. In h i s o p i n i o n they would do b e t t e r to ignore a l l
o u t s i d e i n f l u e n c e s and apply themselves only to the study of

kokugaku||] , the h i s t o r y and accepted t r a d i t i o n s o f the Nabe-

79
shima f i e f . E a r l y i n Hagakure Tsunetomo makes a statement which,
at f i r s t g l a n c e , seems to be a t odds w i t h h i s r e a c t i o n a r y views.
80

He d e c l a r e s t h a t s i n c e Buddha, C o n f u c i u s , Kusunoki, and Shin-

gen ,^ had never served w i t h i n the Nabeshima han, and so

had not experienced the circumstances of that f i e f , t h e i r teach-

82

ings are of no relevance to Nabeshima r e t a i n e r s . After having

gained the a t t e n t i o n o f h i s readers by means o f t h i s startling

statement, however, Tsunetomo proceeds to use the i n s t r u c t i o n s

and p r i n c i p l e s o f these men throughout Hagakure. The essential

purpose i n i n t r o d u c i n g such a p r o v o c a t i v e d e c l a r a t i o n was, no

doubt, to emphasize h i s c o n t e n t i o n t h a t a l l l e a r n i n g i s v a l i d

only i f i t d i r e c t l y a s s i s t s the samurai o f the Nabeshima han

in serving their lord.

 17

3. Yamamoto Tsunetomo

Although Yamamoto Jinuemon Tsunetomo fc'ffi] P^^ty^ , 83

was h i m s e l f a product o f the age o f peace, h i s i n s t i n c t was to

r e a c t a g a i n s t what he considered to be the degenerate t r e n d o f

the times. Born i n the K a t a t a e k o j i f^j $ yS->\>.$& s e c t i o n o f Saga

84

c a s t l e town i n 1659, twenty years a f t e r the Shimabara r e v o l t ,

he had no b a t t l e e x p e r i e n c e . As no war took p l a c e d u r i n g h i s

l i f e t i m e , h i s c o n t a c t w i t h a c t u a l combat e x i s t e d only through

the s t o r i e s o f the o l d e r bushi o f Saga han, those who had taken

p a r t i n the b a t t l e o f Shimabara. The t a l e s o f such men d o t the

pages o f Hagakure, e i t h e r as d i r e c t q u o t a t i o n s o r as s p e c i f i c
p r.

i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f Tsunetomo s standards.
1

Tsunetomo s own p a t e r n a l g r a n d f a t h e r , Nakano Jinuemon

1

Kiyoaki f v
(1555-16 20) , was the n i n t h generation de-

scended from Nakano Goto Y o r i a k i ^ $ f i % J ^ 4 * 5 $\ , who had founded

a branch o f the m i g h t l y G o t o f | t ^ c l a n . Kiyoaki had, i n true bushi

f a s h i o n , gained r e c o g n i t i o n f o r m i l i t a r y e x p l o i t s while serving

under Nabeshima Naoshige. Tsunetomo s f a t h e r , Yamamoto Jinuemon

1

Shigezumi

hJfffifr^P^iLi'ft (1590-1669), the t h i r d son o f K i y o a k i ,

became the adopted h e i r o f Yamamoto Sukebei Muneharu Qpfy^ffififcA

and so assumed the f a m i l y name o f Yamamoto. He p a r t i c i p a t e d both

in the Osaka campaigns and i n the Shimabara i n c i d e n t , and was

86

renowned f o r h i s m i l i t a r y v a l o r . He was seventy years o l d a t

the time o f Tsunetomo's b i r t h but even a t t h i s advanced age he

was an a c t i v e man who, according t o Tsunetomo, r e t a i n e d h i s

health and energy by using moxa cautery and b e i n g prudent i n

87

sexual i n t e r c o u r s e . He remained vigorous u n t i l h i s death i n

the y e a r t h a t Tsunetomo turned e l e v e n . T h e r e a f t e r Tsunetomo
 18

r e c e i v e d much o f h i s t r a i n i n g from Yamamoto Gorozaemon Tsuneharu

i /^JLtf^.%t^ ] ^l<a
s
r f
(1639-1687) whose b l o o d r e l a t i o n s h i p to Tsune-
;

88

tomo was t h a t o f a nephew although he was twenty years o l d e r .

Both Shigezumi and Tsuneharu were among those who resisted the

wave of d e t e r i o r a t i o n which was b e g i n n i n g t o appear even i n the

remote Nabeshima han.

While Shigezumi remained "as a shadowy f i g u r e " (kageboshi

^ ^ ^ ^ t l ^ ) ^ he s t r o n g l y i n f l u e n c e d Tsunetomo s t h i n k i n g
1

during h i s e a r l y years. Shigezumi had earned a commendable rep-

u t a t i o n w i t h i n the f i e f , a n d the f i r s t han l e a d e r , Nabeshima

K a t s u s h i g e ^ f t *%>% (1580-1657), had s a i d t h a t the men under

90

Shigezumi were the most trustworthy i n the p r o v i n c e . He i n -

stilled t h i s s t r o n g sense of l o y a l t y not o n l y i n the minds of

his men but a l s o i n the mind o f h i s young son by whispering,

"You must become a s t r o n g man and serve the l o r d , " i n t o the ears

of Tsunetomo, even while he was an i n f a n t too young to understand.

92
Tsunetomo l i s t s some o f the o t h e r remarks which h i s f a t h e r was
fond of s a y i n g .
I f one comprehends one t h i n g he comes t o understand
many t h i n g s . I t i s b e s t to t h i n k t h a t people who.
laugh a t the wrong times are, i n the case o f men,
f e l l o w s w i t h no sense o f d i g n i t y , and i n the case
women, shameless.
When t a l k i n g , e i t h e r on formal o c c a s i o n s o r i n
normal circumstances, i t i s b e s t to speak while
l o o k i n g i n t o the o t h e r person's eyes.
I t i s s u f f i c i e n t to bow w i t h one's head lowered
only when g r e e t i n g someone. To t a l k while l o o k i n g
downward i s i n a t t e n t i o n . To put one's hands i n s i d e
one's c l o t h i n g i s i n a t t e n t i o n . A f t e r reading a l e t t e r
or document, i t i s to be burned immediately. Looking
at documents i s the job o f o f f i c i a l s , and the duty
of the Nakano f a m i l y i s to grasp swords of oak and be
d i l i g e n t i n the m a r t i a l way.
An e c c e n t r i c man [who i s not concerned w i t h making an
impression] i s a man to be t r u s t e d .
Rise at f o u r i n the morning, have a bath and arrange
 19

the h a i r every day, e a t with the r i s i n g sun, and

r e t i r e when the sun sets.
Although he may n o t have eaten, a bushi uses a
toothpick. E x h i b i t the f u r o f a t i g e r on the
o u t s i d e even though the i n s i d e may be the f u r o f a dog.

Most o f these i n j u n c t i o n s are s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d and need no ex-

p l a n a t i o n b u t the l a s t i s the source o f some puzzlement. The

p o i n t o f focus here i s t h a t while a bushi may, i n the manner o f

a dog, f e e l p e r s o n a l f e a r , he must show the world an e x t e r i o r

93

of courage, confidence, and composure.

Tsuneharu, t o o , continued as an important i n f l u e n c e i n

Tsunetomo's l i f e , by sending him, f o r i n s t a n c e , a g i f t o f en-

couragement when he had done a f i n e job o f kaishaku /^^nf . 9 4

In

a d d i t i o n t o moral support, Tsuneharu r e l a t e d s t o r i e s o f g r e a t

m i l i t a r y heroes and p r o v i d e d i l l u s t r a t i o n s o f proper bushi con-
95
duct u n t i l 1687 when, assuming r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r a f i r e , he
96
committed s u i c i d e m atonement.

In a d d i t i o n t o these f a m i l i a l i n f l u e n c e s , Tsunetomo's

c h a r a c t e r was molded by three o t h e r f o r c e s , each i n a d i v e r s e

way. When he was nine years o l d , Tsunetomo was given the name

Fukei-^-1^ and assigned the p o s i t i o n o f p e r s o n a l page t o and p l a y -

mate 9 7
o f Tsunashige^Kjj^ (1652-1706) , the son o f the second head

o f the Nabeshima House, M i t s u s h i g e . Although i t must be granted

t h a t M i t s u s h i g e was a s t r o n g l e a d e r , he was o f the b e l i e f t h a t

the sphere o f the l o r d of a han encompassed more than m i l i t a r y

exploits. A t an e a r l y age he developed a deep i n t e r e s t i n p o e t r y ,

much to the c h a g r i n o f h i s f a t h e r , Katsushige, who, a t one stage

when h i s son was s t i l l young, even burned h i s c o l l e c t i o n o f
98

p o e t r y books. N e v e r t h e l e s s , M i t s u s h i g e maintained h i s a c t i v e

involvement i n p o e t r y and Tsunetomo, through c o n t a c t with h i s

 20

l o r d , developed an i n t e r e s t i n poetry. H i s t a l e n t was soon r e c -

ognized, and he was o f f e r e d the o p p o r t u n i t y to become a p u p i l o f

Kuranaga R i h e i ^.»\<.V}^^\ ,the o f f i c i a l i n charge o f poetry under

Mitsushige. Tsunetomo d e c l i n e d t h i s o f f e r on the grounds t h a t

i t would i n t e r f e r e w i t h the c a r r y i n g o u t o f h i s primary duty as

99
a companion t o Tsunashige.

When he was i n h i s t w e l f t h o r t h i r t e e n t h • y e a r - ^ 0 T f S u n e tomo

was allowed t o withdraw temporarily from s e r v i c e i n order to l e t

h i s h a i r grow out o f the p a r t i a l l y shaved s t y l e o f a c h i l d . This

p e r i o d o f i n a c t i v i t y was expected to be about one y e a r b u t i t

grew l o n g e r . During t h i s time Tsunetomo was c o n s t a n t l y filled

w i t h the d e s i r e t o serve h i s l o r d and h i s determination t o do so

i s demonstrated by h i s a c t i o n s . Having been t o l d t h a t h i s face

e x h i b i t e d i n t e l l i g e n c e , and that the l o r d d i s l i k e d such f a c e s ,

Tsunetomo s t u d i e d h i s f a c i a l e x p r e s s i o n i n a m i r r o r w i t h the

i n t e n t i o n of a l t e r i n g i t s appearance. He was s u c c e s s f u l i n t h i s

regard, f o r at the end o f the p e r i o d h i s countenance had changed,

it i s s a i d , from one o f i n t e l l i g e n c e t o one o f s l e e p i n e s s , which,

apparently, was p r e f e r a b l e . 1 0 1
He r e l a t e s the i n t e n s i t y o f h i s

f e e l i n g s by s a y i n g t h a t during t h i s p e r i o d he had seen the pro-

c e s s i o n o f h i s l o r d s pass by and was so d r i v e n by h i s anxiety to

serve t h a t he went to a c e r t a i n s h r i n e and made a p e t i t i o n to the

gods. Because h i s true f e e l i n g s were thus known t o the gods, h i s

prayers were not denied and w i t h i n a s h o r t time he was once again

, . , , 102
serving his lord.

In 1672 h i s name was changed t o I c h i j u r o ^t£j!> and seven

years l a t e r , a t the age o f twenty, he e x p e r i e n c e d the ceremony

of manhood, genpuku /L ^JL' At t h i s time he assumed the name

 21

Gonnosuke tlx . During these teen-age years another major

f o r c e e n t e r e d Tsunetomo's life and helped t o mold h i s c h a r a c t e r .

104
He met the Zen monk Tannen Ryoju Osho i&fZL'fctfc^ (died 1680)

whom he p r a i s e d as the most l e a r n e d and understanding o f a l l the

105
monks i n Japan. A man of f i r m moral c o n v i c t i o n s , Tannen had
r e s i g n e d h i s p o s t as the head monk o f Kodenji v£) i n pro-
. . . 107

t e s t o f a d e c i s i o n t o punish a f e l l o w monk. He r e t i r e d t o

the s m a l l v i l l a g e o f Matsuze4&&l[in Saga Gun and i t was: ihere

t h a t Tsunetomo came to him f o r i n s t r u c t i o n i n Zen Buddhism. At

the age o f twenty-one Tsunetomo had the Buddhist name Kyokuzan

Jocho c o n f e r r e d upon him."*"^ The compassion and s e n s i -

tivity f o r human emotion which may be found i n Hagakure no doubt

r e f l e c t s the t r a i n i n g which Tsunetomo r e c e i v e d under Tannen. One

prominent example o f the i n c o r p o r a t i o n o f Tannen's benevolence

i n t o Tsunetomo's thought i s i t s appearance as one o f the Four
109

Vows which Tsunetomo e s t a b l i s h e d as the foundation upon which

a good b u s h i s h o u l d base h i s l i f e . Other examples o f ideas which

o b v i o u s l y d e r i v e from h i s Buddhist background are found i n var-

ious passages throughout Hagakure. ^ These i n j u n c t i o n s to l o v e ,

e s p e c i a l l y as expressed i n the f o u r t h vow, are apparently i n

d i r e c t c o n t r a s t t o the Sun Tzu which s t a t e s e x p l i c i t l y that com-

p a s s i o n i s a f a u l t i f found i n a general."^"'"

The f o u r t h g r e a t i n f l u e n c e , one which permeated a l l aspects

of h i s u p b r i n g i n g and l a t e r l i f e , was Neo-Confucianism. This

m o d i f i e d form o f Confucianism had the support o f the Tokugawa

bakufu because i t s p r e c e p t s upheld t h e , c o n t i n u a t i o n o f the s o c i a l

o r d e r i n s t i t u t e d by Tokugawa Ieyasu. I t i s u n c l e a r as t o whether

Tsunetomo had d i r e c t access t o the w r i t i n g s o f such noted Con-

 22

z a k i Ansai (1618-1682) , o r I t o J i n s a i {f%- f=.|j-(1627-1705) .

As much of h i s t r a i n i n g had been i n l i t e r a t u r e , i t i s not i n c o n -

c e i v a b l e t h a t he had read at l e a s t some of t h e i r works. The

f a c t t h a t no mention i s made o f them i n Hagakure may indicate

nothing more than h i s devotion to h i s own teacher of Confucian

ethics.

T h i s was Ishida I t t e i ^ W — (1628-1693)^ who had once

occupied the p o s i t i o n of top Confucian s c h o l a r i n the Nabeshima

112

han. He had been a c l o s e and r e s p e c t e d a d v i s o r to Katsushige

but found, upon Katsushige's death, t h a t h i s views c l a s h e d w i t h

those o f the new han c h i e f , Mitsushige. His b e l i e f t h a t n o t h i n g

i s more important than working d i l i g e n t l y to f u l f i l l one's s t a -

t i o n i n l i f e was not f a v o u r a b l y accepted by M i t s u s h i g e , who had,

from an e a r l y date, showed h i s p r e f e r e n c e f o r p o e t r y . Remaining

s t e a d f a s t to h i s c o n v i c t i o n s , I t t e i r e f u s e d to compromise h i s

views and consequently was banished from the l o r d ' s c a s t l e .

A f t e r e i g h t years of e x i l e i n YamashirogoJ^^V^k i n Matsuura Gun

r e s p e c t of the s e n i o r r e t a i n e r s o f the han and, even d u r i n g t h i s

s o j o u r n , he was o f t e n i n v i t e d to t h e i r homes, where he gave

113
l e c t u r e s and advice. Among those who v i s i t e d h i s p l a c e of

r e t i r e m e n t was Tsunetomo, who not only l e a r n e d from him the b a s i c

tenets of Neo-Confucianism but a l s o developed a determination to

faithfully f o l l o w these p r e c e p t s . Such phrases as, "No matter

what, i f one concentrates one's mind, there i s n o t h i n g which

cannot be done," were to remain i n t e n s e i n Tsunetomo's con-

s c i o u s n e s s f o r the r e s t of h i s l i f e . Another recorded thought

i l l u s t r a t e s I t t e i ' s d a i l y r e s o l u t i o n to s e r v i c e . To Naoshige's

maxim, "Important thoughts must be taken l i g h t l y , " he added,

115

"Unimportant thoughts must be taken s e r i o u s l y . " By t h i s he

meant t h a t as there are only a few thoughts which are very s e r i o u s ,

they can be c o n s i d e r e d i n advance and one w i l l be prepared to

deal w i t h them as the o c c a s i o n demands. On the o t h e r hand, be-

cause there are so many unimportant thoughts, one has the tend-

ency to overlook them and t h e r e f o r e does not a d m i n i s t e r to them

competently. For t h a t reason one must be p a r t i c u l a r l y careful

to g i v e a p p r o p r i a t e a t t e n t i o n to a l l t h i n g s , no matter how trivial

they may appear.

Yamamoto's c h a r a c t e r , then, was b u i l t upon the s t r o n g

foundation o f Confucian e t h i c s which had been i n s t i l l e d by h i s

f a t h e r and nephew. When added to t h i s b a s i s , the Neo-Confucian

teachings of I s h i d a I t t e i formed an extremely s o l i d understanding

of the p r e c e p t s o f moral and s o c i a l o b l i g a t i o n s of h i s c l a s s ,

the samurai. The harshness o f these c o n v i c t i o n s was, at certain

times and i n p a r t i c u l a r areas, s o f t e n e d by the more humanitarian

and compassionate tones o f Buddhism. A t h i r d element o f h i s

p e r s o n a l d i s p o s i t i o n , t h a t centered around h i s t r a i n i n g i n l i t -

e r a t u r e , p r o v i d e d the t o o l s and perhaps p a r t o f the i n c e n t i v e

f o r the composition o f the book, Hagakure.

Hagakure p r i m a r i l y expresses views demonstrative o f the

Confucian p r i n c i p l e s harboured n a t i o n a l l y , and as c l e a r l y ex-

— — 116
p r e s s e d by Yamaga Soko, Kumazawa Banzan, and Ogyu S o r a i . The
i n f l u e n c e o f Zen Buddhism tends, however, to moderate the c o l d -
 24

ness o f Confucianism with the warmth o f Buddhism. Thus there

i s a sharp c o n t r a s t between the harsh and r a d i c a l words used to

emphasize the d u t i e s o f the w a r r i o r and the almost g e n t l e effect

o f the passages advocating love. The combination of these con-

t r a s t i n g s t y l e s i n t o a u n i t y shows the l i t e r a r y aspect of Tsune-

tomo' s t r a i n i n g . But the a b i l i t y to combine Confucianism and

Buddhism was not merely i n d i c a t i v e o f l i t e r a r y t a l e n t , f o r the

two were i n s e p a r a b l e i n h i s mind. For him to b e l i e v e t h a t e i t h e r

of the two was d i f f e r e n t from the way which the w a r r i o r must

117

f o l l o w was wrong, f o r they were one and the same. In what

appears to be a conscious e f f o r t to show t h a t the two were, i n

f a c t , i d e n t i c a l , Tsunetomo quotes I t t e i as s a y i n g t h a t he had

f e l t at an e a r l y age t h a t he must devote h i s l i f e to study and

d i d not f i r s t accumulate knowledge and then become a sage. Im-

mediately f o l l o w i n g t h i s , Tsunetomo repeats the same concept

i n a Buddhist sense by s t a t i n g t h a t at the time of r e l i g i o u s

118

awakening one already has r e l i g i o n i n one's h e a r t .

L i t e r a r y a b i l i t y , although vital f o r the a d m i n i s t r a t i v e

d u t i e s o f the samurai, was not a p a r t i c u l a r l y commendable skill,

a c c o r d i n g to Tsunetomo, f o r a devoted b u s h i . Indeed, i t w i l l be

seen t h a t there are numerous p l a c e s i n Hagakure where such ac-

complishments are b e r a t e d as b e i n g o b s t a c l e s to the t r u e duty

of a b u s h i , namely s e r v i c e to the l o r d . Nevertheless, Tsunetomo's

l i t e r a r y i n t e r e s t s were i n s t r u m e n t a l i n the w r i t i n g of Hagakure.

Furthermore, i t was h i s c a p a b i l i t y i n l i t e r a t u r e which p r o v i d e d

him w i t h the o p p o r t u n i t y to serve h i s l o r d . In 16 82 he was given

ithe
n 16d u86t i he
e s was appointed Yakut*)'-}
of Okakimono to the p<f$
o s tULro f " Shoshamono
O f f i c e r of Books," and
 25

If} /"Copier of Books/' i n Edo. Twice he served Kyoto Zume

%%tyt& /"Duty a t Kyoto," f i r s t i n 1687 and again i n 1696.

From t h i s d i v e r s e background of t r a i n i n g and service,

Tsunetomo e v o l v e d what he c o n s i d e r e d to be the key to the con-

t i n u a t i o n o f an ardent d e s i r e to s e r v e . Each bushi should i n -

120

tone the Four Vows every morning so t h a t he w i l l come to

possess the s t r e n g t h o f two men and the w i l l to apply t h i s power

i n the p r e s c r i b e d way. Here, he b e l i e v e d , was the magic formula

which, i f pursued s e r i o u s l y , would make even a weak person into

a commendable b u s h i . The Four Vows a r e :

Bushido n i o i t e okure t o r i mosu m a j i k i koto.

One must not be behind i n t a k i n g up the way of the

warrior.

2' i S f l Iffffll< i L ^ A* 3 ^
Shukun no goyo n i t a t s u b e k i koto.

One must be of s e r v i c e to the lord.

3. Jfr-

Oya n i koko tsukamatsuru b e k i koto.

One must serve one's parents w i t h f i l i a l piety.

D a i j i h i o okoshi h i to no tame n i naru b e k i koto.

One must give r i s e to g r e a t good w i l l and compassion

and thus serve o t h e r s .

As the f i r s t three vows are o b v i o u s l y founded on Confucian prin-

c i p l e s , i t i s not s u r p r i s i n g to d i s c o v e r t h a t they, together

w i t h the i d e a o f p r e s e n t i n g one's c e n t r a l b e l i e f s i n the form of

an o a t h , were d e r i v e d from the works o f h i s Confucian teacher,

 26

Ishida I t t e i . In 1672 I t t e i had w r i t t e n a document e n t i t l e d

Bushido yokansho i n which he d e l i n e a t e d the f o l -

, . 121
lowing three vows:

Bushido n i o i t e miren o t o r u bekarazu.

One must n o t be u n s k i l l f u l i n the way o f the w a r r i o r .

Senzo no myoji o danzetsu subekarazu.

One must not d i s c o n t i n u e the f a m i l y name o f one's

ancestors.

Hikkyo, shukun no goyo n i t a t s u b e s h i .

U l t i m a t e l y , one must stand i n the l o r d ' s service.

The f o u r t h and l a s t vow d i f f e r s from the o t h e r three i n t h a t i t

i s imbued w i t h Buddhist thought r a t h e r than C o n f u c i a n i s t . That

i t s content was e x t r a c t e d from the teachings o f Tsunetomo's Zen

teacher i s c l e a r l y expressed w i t h i n Hagakure i t s e l f . Tsunetomo

- 122
a t t r i b u t e s the f o l l o w i n g statement t o Tannen Osho:

Bushi wa y u k i o omote n i s h i t e n a i s h i n n i wa hara no

waruru hodo d a i j i h i s h i n o motazareba, kagyo wa t a t a z a r u

mono n a r i .

Unless a bushi does not have w i t h i n him deep compassion

w h i l e e x h i b i t i n g outward courage, he w i l l n o t be s u c c e s s -

f u l i n h i s occupation.

4. Compilation and T e x t u a l Information

In 1694 M i t s u s h i g e t r a n s f e r r e d the headship o f the Nabeshima

 27

123

House t o h i s son, Tsunashige. Although Tsunetomo had been

a c l o s e companion t o Tsunashige s i n c e c h i l d h o o d and may have

had a chance to a t t a i n a p o s i t i o n o f h i g h e r p r e s t i g e under the

new a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , he b e l i e v e d t h a t h i s l o y a l t y must remain

with his l o r d , Mitsushige. In speaking o f t h i s d e c i s i o n he ex-

h i b i t s a c e r t a i n amount o f p r i d e and shows h i s d i s d a i n f o r o t h e r

r e t a i n e r s who had been very l o y a l i n t h e i r words but who q u i c k l y

changed t h e i r a l l e g i a n c e t o the new l e a d e r when the time was

124

most advantageous to themselves. In order to serve M i t s u s h i g e ,

Tsunetomo had h i m s e l f appointed to a minor p o s t i n Kyoto and

devoted h i m s e l f to the procurement o f a book o f p o e t r y , the Kokin

denju {i>J$sL^~^ which M i t s u s h i g e had d e s i r e d f o r many y e a r s .

F i n a l l y , w i t h t h i s book on h i s back, he r e t u r n e d to Saga on the

f i r s t day of the f i f t h month o f the t h i r t e e n t h year o f Genroku
126

(1700). On the s i x t e e n t h day o f t h a t month M i t s u s h i g e d i e d ,

l e a v i n g Tsunetomo w i t h a sense o f g r a t i t u d e t h a t he had been

able to complete h i s task i n time. Y e t , he a l s o f e l t a s t r o n g

c o n v i c t i o n t h a t h i s duty t o h i s l o r d remained u n f u l f i l l e d . He

says t h a t i n o r d e r to be able to accomplish h i s l o n g - c h e r i s h e d

ambition o f s e r v i c e he would have to be born i n t o the House o f

127

Nabeshima seven times over.

M i t s u s h i g e ' s demise and the f e e l i n g o f u n f u l f i l l e d obliga-

t i o n s l e d Tsunetomo t o the c o n c l u s i o n t h a t the most a p p r o p r i a t e

course o f a c t i o n would be to commit j u h s h i so t h a t he might con-

t i n u e t o serve h i s l o r d i n the next world. T h i s was rendered

i n f e a s i b l e , however, by the ban on such a c t i o n . He lamented

t h i s s i t u a t i o n w i t h the statement, " I t i s t r u l y a lonesome t h i n g

t h a t n o t even one person accompanies a daimyo a t the time of h i s

 28

128
death." Because o f f i c i a l s who had been important men under
129

M i t s u s h i g e merely turned t h e i r backs upon t h e i r l o r d ' s death,

Tsunetomo c o n s i d e r e d h i m s e l f to be the o n l y honourable retainer. 1

Such honour had been a c q u i r e d through h i s d e c i s i o n t h a t the next

b e s t t h i n g to j u n s h i was r e t i r e m e n t from t h i s mundane world and

assumption o f the l i f e o f a monk so t h a t he would be b e t t e r able

to devote h i s l i f e to prayers f o r h i s departed l o r d .

131 . . 132
At the age of f o r t y two he took h i s w i f e and s e t t l e d
i n a s e c l u d e d spot c a l l e d K u r o t s u c h i b a r a ^ i n a f o r e s t e d
- A. -* 133
area near Kinryu/f^JL mountain i n the n o r t h e r n p a r t o f Saga.

Here he passed h i s remaining y e a r s , although he o f t e n l e f t f o r

134 135
memorial s e r v i c e s and p e r s o n a l v i s i t s . Nor was h i s spot

of r e t i r e m e n t so i s o l a t e d t h a t he had no v i s i t o r s . In f a c t , he

f e l t somewhat g u i l t y about the many f r i e n d s who came to c a l l on

him and about the kindness they showed him. He s a i d , "The kind

treatment given to me by v a r i o u s people i s more than I deserve

136

and s u r e l y I w i l l be punished f o r i t . "

One o f those v i s i t o r s , T a s h i r o Matazaemon Tsuramoto )31

(1678-1748), came to K u r o t s u c h i b a r a on the f i f t h day

v.

of the t h i r d month i n the seventh year o f H5ei*f?-fj^ (1710). On

the o c c a s i o n o f h i s f i r s t meeting w i t h Tsunetomo, they exchanged

the f o l l o w i n g h a i k u fy>Q . 1 3 7

Ukiyo k a r a i k u r i aro ka yamazakura.

From the mundane world, how many m i l e s might i t be?

— mountain c h e r r y blossoms.

Kogan tfcTtft, (Tsunetomo)

 Shirakumo ya tadaima hana n i tazune a i .

Among the s i l v e r clouds — now t o g e t h e r we ask the

cherry blossoms.

Kizui (Tsuramoto)

The q u e s t i o n b e i n g asked by Kogan, the name Tsunetomo used when

w r i t i n g p o e t r y , i n the f i r s t h a i k u i s n o t the p h y s i c a l d i s t a n c e

t r a v e l l e d b u t r a t h e r the degree t o which Tsuramoto has made the

t r a n s i t i o n from the s e c u l a r d i v e r s i o n s o f the mundane world t o

an awareness of a more s p i r i t u a l e x i s t e n c e . That i s , i n a d d i -

t i o n t o s e t t i n g the season and the mood, the c h e r r y blossoms

m e t a p h o r i c a l l y s i g n i f y the p u r i t y o f a mental o r s p i r i t u a l en-

lightenment. Thus, behind the obvious, there appears a query of

deeper s i g n i f i c a n c e . In response to the q u e s t i o n o f whether he

knows h i s d i r e c t i o n and d e s t i n a t i o n , Tsuramoto, under h i s pen

name, K i z u i , admits h i s u n c e r t a i n t y . F o r the word s h i r a ity ,

"white," because o f i t s o r a l s i m i l a r i t y t o s h i r a n a i %p ^/"jTn , "not

knowing," i s a kakekotoba^|- Y] , a p l a y on words. As such, the

s i l v e r o r white clouds p r o v i d e not only a metaphor f o r c o n f u s i o n

or u n c e r t a i n t y but a l s o a n e g a t i v e answer t o Tsunetomo's ques-

tion. Yet he expresses h i s d e s i r e t o search, t o g e t h e r w i t h

Tsunetomo, f o r an e n l i g h t e n i n g escape fromvthe.:perplexity o f

the mundane world.

Tsuramoto took up r e s i d e n c e nearby and c a l l e d r e g u l a r l y on

Tsunetomo, making c o n v e r s a t i o n and l i s t e n i n g t o a d v i c e . A l l this

he recorded and compiled i n t o a c o l l e c t i o n which came t o be known

as Hagakure. Tsuramoto was w e l l q u a l i f i e d f o r t h i s task o f p r e -

s e r v i n g Tsunetomo's ideas f o r , u n t i l b e i n g r e l i e v e d of "his d u t i e s

 30

i n 1709, he had spent t h i r t e e n years as amanuensis t o the t h i r d

13 8

and f o u r t h l o r d s o f the Nabeshima han.

Tsunetomo and Tsuramoto c o n t i n u e d to work t o g e t h e r u n t i l

1716 when they completed Hagakure. I t had come t o c o n s i s t o f

eleven volumes c o n t a i n i n g about 1,350 s e c t i o n s o r a r t i c l e s , each

of which d e l i n e a t e d a s p e c i f i c thought o r i n j u n c t i o n . Of vary-

i n g l e n g t h s , from one sentence to s e v e r a l paragraphs, and d i v e r s e

s t y l e , these passages were more o r l e s s verbatim accounts o f

Tsunetomo's d i s c o u r s e s . In a d d i t i o n , e x t e n s i v e use was made of

documents which had been w r i t t e n by Tsunetomo h i m s e l f i n e a r l i e r

years. Those known to have been used are Gukenshu ^ ^ (1708),

Tsunetomo k a k i o k i *npffij^(1714) , Juryoan Chuza no n i k k i j^^jk-*

vffe-*) '0i't> ( 1 7 1 1
) ' Sembetsu o r Tsunetomo sembetsu sho tfjp ^

^L^l^t ( 1 7 1 5 )
' Yamamoto Jinuemon K i y o a k i nempu ^ %ffl%$T\f \ e
'^^h
J^$fc i and Yamamoto Jinuemon Shigezumi nempu
ht 139

• Works o f former han l e a d e r s , such as Naoshige's Nao-

shigedono goheki sho ffiffi^ffiffi^,"*" ^4

were a l s o c a r e f u l l y studied.

Furthermore, almost constant r e f e r e n c e i s made throughout Hagakure

to t h i n g s s a i d by o t h e r han l e a d e r s , by famous persons i n Jap-

anese h i s t o r y , and by the t e a c h e r s , r e l a t i v e s , and acquaintances

of Tsunetomo h i m s e l f . I t was h i s s t y l e t o use such phrases as

"a c e r t a i n person" o r "a certain., r e t a i n e r " without mentioning

names. He a l s o had a penchant f o r o l d e x p r e s s i o n s the sources

of which cannot be i d e n t i f i e d , and these appear a t v a r i o u s p l a c e s

i n the t e x t . Consequently, w h i l e Hagakure i s outwardly a com-

p i l a t i o n m i r r o r i n g the i d e a s o f Tsunetomo, i t more r e a l i s t i c a l l y

reflects the thoughts and concepts which he b e l i e v e d to be the

most important elements i n the l i t e r a t u r e w i t h which he was

 31

f a m i l i a r and the s o c i e t y i n which he lived.

U n l i k e the authors of most o f the o t h e r books o f moral

i n s t r u c t i o n s mentioned e a r l i e r , Tsunetomo s p e r s o n a l
1
qualifica-

t i o n s are unimpressive. At the time o f h i s r e t i r e m e n t from a c t i v e

s e r v i c e , he was but a lowly-ranked samurai w i t h i n the Nabeshima

House. He r e c e i v e d a modest r i c e allowance o f about one hundred

141

twenty f i v e koku. Although he had shown i n t e l l i g e n c e and lit-

e r a r y t a l e n t d u r i n g h i s youth, much o f h i s a d u l t l i f e was spent

i n performing r e l a t i v e l y minor c l e r i c a l d u t i e s , and he never ful-

f i l l e d h i s dream o f a c h i e v i n g a p o s i t i o n o f importance i n the

han. He h i m s e l f r e g r e t f u l l y admits t h a t , due to c e r t a i n o b s t a -

c l e s which he was unable to overcome, he could not succeed as w e l l

142
as he had hoped.
Because I have been the i n s i g n i f i c a n t f e l l o w you
see b e f o r e you s i n c e I was young, I have not done
any e x c e p t i o n a l s e r v i c e . Whenever I saw persons who
a s s e r t e d themselves, I f e l t envious. But I knew
i n my h e a r t t h a t probably there was no one who
compared with me i n t e n d e r i n g concern f o r the
lord. This one t h i n g i s enough to soothe my f e e l i n g s .
I served i n t o t a l d i s r e g a r d o f my low s t a t u s and
lack of t a l e n t .
Tsunetomo's purpose i n w r i t i n g Hagakure may be t r a c e d to

the d e s i r e to implant such an a t t i t u d e i n other r e t a i n e r s o f the

han. He d i d not, however, favour a program of mass i n d o c t r i n a -

143

t i o n as the method f o r a c h i e v i n g h i s aim. Some e d i t i o n s of

Hagakure i n c l u d e a p r e f a c e which i n d i c a t e s t h a t Tsunetomo c e r -

t a i n l y d i d not i n t e n d t h i s document to be read w i d e l y , even

w i t h i n Saga han. He doubtlessly r e a l i z e d that i t s preoccupation

w i t h han a f f a i r s and the repeated demands f o r undivided loyalty

to the Nabeshima House, r a t h e r than to the Tokugawa bakufu, would

have p l a c e d i t and the han i n an unfavourable p o s i t i o n with re-

 32

144
gard t o the Edo regime. He i n s t r u c t e d Tsuramoto t h a t , as

Hagakure was w r i t t e n f o r the p e r s o n a l use o f s e l e c t e d samurai o f

145

Saga, i t was meant t o be burned a f t e r having been read.

Throughout the remaining century and a h a l f o f Tokugawa r u l e ,

Hagakure r e t a i n e d i t s s t a t u s as a s h i e l d e d book, p a s s i n g only

i n t o t r u s t e d hands to be copied clandestinely. No doubt t h i s

secrecy was due a t l e a s t i n p a r t to f e a r o f bakufu r e t r i b u t i o n ,

but there can a l s o be sensed an aspect o f the e s o t e r i c element

found i n many areas o f Japanese l i f e , i n c l u d i n g r e l i g i o n and the

m i l i t a r y sciences. Y e t , although Hagakure was not p u b l i s h e d and

widely read, i t was f a m i l i a r enough t h a t a commentary entitled

Hagakure k i k i g a k i koho ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ / ^ i w a s w r i t t e n near the end o f

the Edo period."'" ^ 4

Perhaps because o f Tsunetomo's e x p l i c i t l y stated desire,

the o r i g i n a l manuscript, gempon j^jf^ t i s no longer in.'existence .

T h i s regrettable d e f i c i e n c y i s , i n p a r t , compensated f o r by a

number o f copied manuscripts, shahon Those which are known

to be e x t a n t are the Kohaku hon -fa ^ , the Nakano hon \J3

the Yamamoto hon )L\Jf jfc*., the Furukawa hon $C > }jf> , the Go jo hon {

J2L v^p'jfc i and the Matsumoto hon yfej^fc. 47

As the p o s s i b i l i t y no

longer e x i s t s t o make a comparison between these copies and the

o r i g i n a l manuscript, there i s no way o f a s c e r t a i n i n g which o f

them f o l l o w the r e c o r d o f Tsuramoto most c l o s e l y . During t r a n -

s c r i p t i o n , the c o p i e r o f any shahon was bound to commit c e r t a i n

e r r o r s o f omission and e d i t i o n , w i t h the r e s u l t t h a t no two

copies are i d e n t i c a l . A c a r e f u l study o f the e x t a n t manuscripts

has l e d the foremost s c h o l a r o f Hagakure t o s e l e c t the Kohaku

148
hon as the most accurate and r e l i a b l e , p a r t l y because i t was
copied by a contemporary o f Tsuramoto, Kabahara Kohakuiffl

The e x t e n s i v e r e s e a r c h and r e v i t a l i z a t i o n which l e d to the

p u b l i c a t i o n o f Hagakure i n the t w e n t i e t h century was carried out

almost e x c l u s i v e l y by one man, K u r i h a r a Arano (or Koya) ^J^L

149

who devoted almost h i s e n t i r e a d u l t l i f e t o the study o f Hagakure.

His c a r e f u l l y o r g a n i z e d , f u l l y researched, and complete work,

Kochu hagakure !^ tl.^^fehas p r o v i d e d the b a s i c t e x t , sokuhon Jjj^fc ,

for most modern p u b l i c a t i o n s , as i t has for this p a p e r . 1 5 0
Through

his e f f o r t s of arrangement, Hagakure has taken i t s p r e s e n t form.

The general i n f o r m a t i o n presented i n the i n t r o d u c t o r y s e c t i o n ,

which i s c a l l e d Yain no kandan f o l l o w e d by eleven

chapters. In g e n e r a l , the f i r s t two chapters l i s t moral i n s t r u c -

tions. Chapter three deals w i t h the deeds o f Naoshige, the

founder o f the Nabeshima l i n e of han leaders. The feats of the

f i r s t head o f the House, Katsushige, are d e p i c t e d i n the f o u r t h

s e c t i o n , and the f i f t h depicts Mitsushige and h i s son Tsunashige.

Chapters s i x through eleven give concrete examples of the his-

t o r i c a l i n c i d e n t s and t r a d i t i o n s o f Saga han, and r e c o r d the

outstanding a c t i o n s of the samurai o f t h a t p r o v i n c e .

 34

Chapter I I .

1. I n t e r n a l Aspects

As p r e v i o u s l y mentioned, Hagakure was not w r i t t e n as a

manual f o r generals to guide t h e i r armies to v i c t o r y as were

Sun Tzu and M a c h i a v e l l i ' s The A r t of War. As a book o f conduct,

i t s d e s i g n i s c l e a r l y to i n s t r u c t the w a r r i o r s , who i n the Japan

of the Edo p e r i o d were v i r t u a l l y a l l members o f the samurai class,

i n the proper a t t i t u d e b e f i t t i n g men of t h e i r p o s i t i o n . There

i s almost no mention of the a c t u a l p h y s i c a l techniques o f b a t t l e ,

and m i l i t a r y s t r a t e g y , i f r e f e r r e d to a t a l l , i s d e a l t w i t h only

i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h some o t h e r matter."'" ''"

5
In p l a c e o f the e l e -

ment o f p h y s i c a l prowess, Hagakure concerns i t s e l f more w i t h the

mental d i s c i p l i n e which a samurai must undergo i n o r d e r to become

a man worthy of the d e s i g n a t i o n b u s h i .

A l l people are human and t h e r e f o r e i t i s o n l y n a t u r a l that

they have shortcomings. The emotions of greed, s e l f i s h n e s s ,

p r i d e , l u s t , cowardice, and h a t r e d , however n a t u r a l they may be,

are a l l i n d i c a t i v e of the worst aspects o f human n a t u r e . They

are a l s o most commonly manifested among people who think of

t h e i r own i n d i v i d u a l b e i n g as the most v i t a l element i n the world.

T h e r e f o r e , the e x i s t e n c e of i n d i v i d u a l i t y among members of the

samurai c l a s s o f the Edo p e r i o d was not a r e s p e c t e d v i r t u e . The

i n d i v i d u a l was consequently expected, indeed r e q u i r e d , to f o r f e i t

h i s p e r s o n a l goals and adopt those which would b e n e f i t the group."'"

Such conformation ensured t h a t he would have no enemies among

153

his associates. From the viewpoint of the p r e s e n t day western

w o r l d , which p l a c e s so much emphasis on the r i g h t s o f the indi-

 35

v i d u a l , t h i s appears to be an extremely c o n f i n i n g f a t e , but to

the samurai, who had never experienced anything s i m i l a r to the

freedom of our age, i t was a t r a d i t i o n a l aspect of the s o c i e t y

and had proven i t s e l f a most e f f e c t i v e f o r c e f o r m a i n t a i n i n g the

system. I t was, a c t u a l l y , w i t h i n t h i s framework t h a t the samurai

found h i s reason f o r e x i s t e n c e .

The statements, "Nothing should p l e a s e one more than to

pass on to others t h a t which ones possesses, i f i t i s i n the b e s t

154
i n t e r e s t s of the l o r d , " and, " A l l people must a c t f o r the
155

benefit of others," are s i m p l i s t i c i n t h e i r meaning but are

not e a s i l y c a r r i e d i n t o p r a c t i s e . Human nature d i c t a t e s that

when a person i s d e v e l o p i n g a course o f a c t i o n , he may think that

he i s b e i n g i m p a r t i a l , but i n r e a l i t y h i s plans a l l r e v o l v e around

himself. The end r e s u l t of any s e l f i s h a c t i o n cannot be anything

but f a i l u r e . "People who aim a t c e r t a i n d u t i e s , which they fancy

to be b e t t e r , and who work f o r the sake o f p e r s o n a l g a i n and

s e l f i s h n e s s by gauging the moods of t h e i r l o r d and group l e a d e r s ,

may be s u c c e s s f u l i n ten cases but when they f a i l i n one every-

156

t h i n g i s r u i n e d , and they are d i s g r a c e d . " To become completely

unselfish i s a d i f f i c u l t task. The Buddhist b e l i e f t h a t the

hard road to Nirvana c o u l d be covered only i n many l i v e s o f v i r -

157
tue and s e l f s a c r i f i c e can be seen here i n a d a p t a t i o n to the
system of f e u d a l l o y a l t i e s . Tsunetomo b e l i e v e d t h a t o n l y through
u t t e r d e v o t i o n to the l o r d and continuous d e d i c a t i o n t o the Four
15 8

Vows c o u l d such s e l f l e s s n e s s be achieved.

Accounts o f deeds which were c o n s i d e r e d to be s e l f i s h and

u n s e l f i s h abound i n Hagakure. The two f o l l o w i n g examples indi-

cate a s u b t l e awareness of the s l i g h t shades of d i f f e r e n c e b e t -

 159
ween the acceptable and the unacceptable. The f i r s t of these

deals w i t h a man who had been promoted to a p o s i t i o n of promi-

nence and i n t h a t p o s t was sent g i f t s by a number of people.

He d e c l i n e d these g i f t s , •ostensibly - ' because he was neither

greedy nor p a r t i a l , but, to Tsunetomo, t h i s r e f u s a l was done i n

a manner so as to a t t r a c t n o t i c e to the righteousness of the

man himself, and so was not t r u l y w i t h o u t s e l f i s h motive. He

says, "To remove s e l f i s h n e s s from the bottom of your h e a r t with-

160

out drawing a t t e n t i o n i s d i f f i c u l t . " There i s a l s o an account

of a man who had been i n s e r v i c e f o r many years and was expect-

i n g a s u b s t a n t i a l reward f o r h i s e f f o r t s . He became angry when

i n s t e a d he r e c e i v e d only a small i n c r e a s e i n h i s s t i p e n d and

threatened to r e t i r e from s e r v i c e . His conduct i s r i d i c u l e d by

Tsunetomo f o r , "...the r e s o l u t i o n to s e r v i c e i s f o r g o t t e n com-

p l e t e l y , because he i s t h i n k i n g only o f p e r s o n a l pride."

S e l f - s a c r i f i c e underwent a q u a l i t a t i v e change d u r i n g the

16

years o f peace. The decreasing need f o r men with m i l i t a r y s k i l l s

and the i n c r e a s i n g t r e n d toward a c t i v i t i e s o f p l e a s u r e near the

end of the seventeenth century weakened s t r i c t observance . of the

p r a c t i s e of o f f e r i n g o n e s e l f f o r the sake o f o t h e r s . There was

l e s s o f a n e c e s s i t y and little d e s i r e to f o l l o w the example of

men l i k e Yamasaki K u r a n d o h ^ r f j ^ w h o disdained material goods. 1 6 2

I t had become f a r more enjoyable to spend time l o o k i n g a t the

163

goods d i s p l a y e d on the shelves of the shops.

I t i s impossible f o r any e t h i c such as l o y a l t y or courage

to e x i s t w i t h i n the mind o f one person. Mores are recognizable

only when they are the accepted norm. Because o r i e n t a t i o n i s

w i t h the i d e a l o f group u n i t y , the presence o f such e t h i c s can

 37

be v a l i d only w i t h i n the l a r g e r c i r c l e o f s o c i a l o r g a n i z a t i o n .

Nevertheless, values must be i n t e r n a l i z e d by each i n d i v i d u a l f o r

i t i s from w i t h i n the mind o f each person t h a t the u n d e r l y i n g

s t r e n g t h o f the concept i s created. In t h i s r e s p e c t moral p r i n -

c i p l e s may be regarded as i n t e r n a l e n t i t i e s which must be sup-

p o r t e d by a g r e a t m a j o r i t y o f the members o f s o c i e t y before they

become v i a b l e mores. F o r t h i s reason, Tsunetomo, although he

r e a l i z e d t h a t i t was the s o c i e t y which was degenerating, appealed

to the i n d i v i d u a l s to i n t e n s i f y t h e i r i n n e r d e t e r m i n a t i o n . Each

man must, w i t h i n h i m s e l f , come t o recognize the proper way.

To shun unrighteousness and p e r s i s t i n r i g h t e o u s -

ness i s a d i f f i c u l t t h i n g . . . . Over and above
l o y a l t y to p r i n c i p l e there i_s a Way. But to f i n d
it is difficult. Those who can do i t are the pos-
s e s s o r s o f s u p e r i o r wisdom. When one t h i n k s about
i t from t h i s s t a n d p o i n t , even p r i n c i p l e and t h i n g s
of t h a t s o r t are r a t h e r s m a l l matters. Unless one
has experienced t h i s by h i m s e l f , he probably cannot
understand. But even i f one cannot experience t h i s
alone, there i s a method by which he can achieve
the Way. That i s to have dialogue with o t h e r s . ^ 4 x

The Tokugawa bakufu i n s t i t u t e d v a r i o u s l e g a l c o n t r o l s such

as the Buke shohatto ^ , the Shoshi h a t t o |p§-JT and

the Tokugawa seiken hy akk a j o fe^x 165

i n an attempt t o

s u s t a i n the r i g o r o u s mental d i s c i p l i n e o f the samurai c l a s s and

to d i r e c t t h a t d i s c i p l i n e toward the c o n t i n u a t i o n o f the regime

166

i n Edo. A d d i t i o n a l l y there were numerous methods o f s o c i a l

c o n t r o l , both formal and i n f o r m a l , by which the samurai were

c o n s t a n t l y o b s e r v i n g each other to m a i n t a i n , through v a r i o u s

167
degrees of s o c i a l p r e s s u r e , i n c l u d i n g systems o f i n s p e c t o r s
16 8

and s p i e s , r i d i c u l e , and o s t r a c i s m , a s t a t e o f a f f a i r s favour-

able to the bakufu. In the l a s t a n a l y s i s , however, i t , too, was

dependent upon the determination o f each i n d i v i d u a l to r e i n f o r c e

 38

moral standards through i n t e r n a l i z a t i o n .

Tsunetomo o b v i o u s l y b e l i e v e d t h a t the moral p r e s s u r e b e i n g

a p p l i e d by the samurai as a group upon i t s wayward members had

become, i n r e a l i t y , i n e f f e c t i v e because o f the g e n e r a l l y wide-

spread divergence from s t r i c t observance o f proper morals. In-

d i c a t i n g t h a t men no l o n g e r had the courage nor d e s i r e to make

use o f t h e i r weapons, the symbol o f the samurai c l a s s , he says,

"Proof t h a t manly courage has f a i l e d i s shown i n the f a c t that

there are few persons who have even cut o f f the heads o f con-

demned c r i m i n a l s , l e t alone any who have a s s i s t e d a t seppuku.

I t has become an age i n which people who skillfully d e c l i n e are

169
c o n s i d e r e d c l e v e r persons or accomplished people."
Phrases such as "be r e s o l v e d , " "be determined," "make up
170

one's mind," " s e t one's h e a r t , " " s e t t l e one's b e l l y , " and

"decide," p r e v a i l i n almost every p o r t i o n o f Hagakure. Tsunetomo

i s e v i d e n t l y aware o f the n e c e s s i t y to support the mental deter-

mination o f the i n d i v i d u a l and throughout the book d i r e c t s a rep-

171
etxtous campaign toward t h a t end. In doing so he demands,
172 173 174
cajols, teases, reasons, appeals to emotions and i n -
175 176
stinct, c a l l s on the r e p u t a t i o n s o f a n c e s t o r s , and t h r e a t e n s
177

w i t h the 'curse o f the gods. He d e l i n e a t e s the proper a t t i -

tude and the b e s t way o f a t t a i n i n g the d e t e r m i n a t i o n to achieve

t h a t a t t i t u d e by d e s c r i b i n g improper conduct o f c e r t a i n people

and e x p l a i n i n g why i t i s c o n s i d e r e d to be improper. In o t h e r

i l l u m i n a t i n g s t o r i e s and i n c i d e n t s he p r a i s e s the proper elements

of behaviour. He s t a t e s r e p e a t e d l y such t h i n g s as,

Upon l o o k i n g a t the r e t a i n e r s o f the p r e s e n t time,
one n o t i c e s t h a t t h e i r a s p i r a t i o n s are low. The
way they use t h e i r eyes reminds one o f p i c k p o c k e t s .
 39

G e n e r a l l y t h i s may be a t t r i b u t e d t o p e r s o n a l
selfishness. By g i v i n g a i r s of c l e v e r n e s s ,
they appear t o be at ease w i t h themselves, but
t h i s i s n o t h i n g more than a b l u f f i n f r o n t o f
people. When one does not f a s t e n one's eyes
upon the s t r e n g t h e n i n g o f the foundations of
the p r o v i n c e , attend to one's d u t i e s and r e -
p o r t to the l o r d , c o n s i d e r the l o r d ' s w e l f a r e
s e r i o u s l y a l l day and n i g h t , and o f f e r o n e s e l f
to the l o r d , w h i l e b e i n g r e s i g n e d t o death, one
cannot be s a i d to be a r e a l r e t a i n e r . 8 x 7

Mistakes are to be expected and are not condemned. "When one

knows h i s mistakes and c o r r e c t s them, they are i n s t a n t l y erased.

When one t r i e s to g l o s s over those e r r o r s , they become a l l the

179

more d i s g r a c e f u l and one comes t o s u f f e r f o r i t . "

Perhaps the most e s s e n t i a l r e q u i s i t e i n a bushi i s a com-

p l e t e d e v o t i o n to s e r v i c e i n which he advances b l i n d l y w i t h no

thought o f anything but the e x e c u t i o n of what he knows to be h i s

duty. In bushido, forward p r o g r e s s i o n with a r e c k l e s s n e s s border-

u
i n g on rashness i•s i' n dJ i' s p e n s a b l e . 180
I f s e r v i c e i s s t r i v e n f o r without regard to reason
or substance, and i f e v e r y t h i n g i s f o r g o t t e n and
only the l o r d i s thought to be important, t h a t i s
a l l t h a t i s needed. Such i s a good r e t a i n e r . By
b e i n g too fond o f s e r v i n g and being too concerned
about the l o r d , i t i s p o s s i b l e to f a l l i n t o e r r o r ,
but t h a t i s what a r e t a i n e r ' s b a s i c wish should be."

T h e r e f o r e , w h i l e i t may sometimes be b e t t e r to advance c a u t i o u s l y ,

182
i n many cases i t i s b e s t to proceed wholeheartedly. Tsunetomo
183

reinforces t h i s concept by r e i t e r a t i n g the a n c i e n t e x p r e s s i o n ,

"Seven breaths make a p l a n , " by q u o t i n g R y u z o j i Takanobu, "Even

a good p l a n becomes r o t t e n i f l e f t too l o n g , " and Naoshige, " I f

one takes too much time i n e v e r y t h i n g , seven times out of ten

i t w i l l t u r n out bad. In any s i t u a t i o n a b u s h i must be quick

to a c t . " The space of seven breaths g i v e s s u f f i c i e n t time f o r

a b u s h i to g a i n composure and determine to do what must be done.

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This i s t r u e o f a l l aspects o f l i f e , even the w r i t i n g of Chinese

characters. "A w a r r i o r need only w r i t e from h i s h e a r t and not

c o n s i d e r the q u a l i t y of h i s work. D e c i d i n g good or bad i s the

job o f a p r o f e s s i o n a l . A bushi does things i n an unwavering

,,184

manner.

Advocacy.! of impetuous a c t i o n i s one p o i n t i n which the

thought o f Hagakure stands d i a m e t r i c a l l y opposed to the classic

m i l i t a r y manual of China, the Sun Tzu. Granting t h a t the words

of the Sun Tzu were meant d i r e c t l y f o r the commander o f the army

and c o n c e d i n g t h a t he must be more c o n s e r v a t i v e i n h i s a c t i o n s

than the average s o l d i e r , nowhere i s there an e x p r e s s i o n to the

e f f e c t t h a t the w a r r i o r must forsake l o g i c . Instead, one o f the

most dangerous q u a l i t i e s t h a t a g e n e r a l might possess i s s a i d
to be r e c k l e s s n e s s , f o r a commander who i s courageous but s t u p i d
185
i s a calamity. " I t i s the business o f a g e n e r a l to be serene
186

and i n s c r u t a b l e , i m p a r t i a l and s e l f c o n t r o l l e d . " This view

of e x p e c t a t i o n s was v a l i d a l s o f o r the lower ranks o f the Chinese

armies. In a d i s c u s s i o n between Confucius'- and one of h i s d i s -

c i p l e s , the f o l l o w i n g exchange i s s a i d to have taken p l a c e .

T z u - l u s a i d , Supposing you had command of the
Three Hosts, whom would you take to h e l p you?
The Master s a i d , The man who was ready to beard
a t i g e r or rush a r i v e r without c a r i n g whether
he l i v e d or d i e d - t h a t s o r t of man I should not
take. I should c e r t a i n l y take someone who
approaches d i f f i c u l t i e s with due c a u t i o n and who
p r e f e r r e d to succeed by s t r a t e g y . ^ 7 x

When i t i s r e c a l l e d t h a t Hagakure was w r i t t e n during a period

of peace and t h a t the emphasis was upon the upgrading of mental

d i s c i p l i n e , the o b s e s s i o n with r e c k l e s s n e s s and rashness can be

brought more c l e a r l y i n t o focus. By means of such a d o c t r i n e

 41

Tsunetomo i s attempting to reduce the i n d e c i s i o n and p r o c r a s t i -

n a t i o n which he observed i n the young samurai around him. In

t h i s Hagakure i s weakened, i n comparison w i t h Sun Tzu, as a t e x t

to be f o l l o w e d i n winning wars. Yet i t i s strengthened i n i t s

purpose o f a l l e v i a t i n g the e v i l s of s o c i e t y as seen by Tsunetomo.

A s t r o n g l y s t a t e d d i s r e g a r d f o r i n t e l l i g e n c e and logic,

an o f t e n repeated theme i n Hagakure, may be a t t r i b u t e d to the

188
Zen p r e f e r e n c e f o r i n t u i t i o n over i n t e l l e c t . Utter devotion
to one's duty r e q u i r e s t h a t one " . . . r e l i n q u i s h one's mind and
189
body and come t o t h i n k only of the l o r d . " I f , i n addition
to t h i s frame of mind, one a l s o has i n t e l l i g e n c e and talent,
190
one i s able to g i v e even b e t t e r s e r v i c e . But there i s a l s o
a very r e a l danger t h a t mistakes may be committed because of
191
an e x c e s s i v e d e v o t i o n t o l e a r n i n g . That i s , d u t i e s may be
n e g l e c t e d i f a person comes t o value h i s accomplishments more
192

than h i s reason f o r a t t a i n i n g them. I f he develops a f e e l i n g

of immoderate p r i d e , he becomes u s e l e s s i n h i s work. "No matter

how s u p e r i o r one's t a l e n t s , a person w i t h a d i s p o s i t i o n which

i s not l i k e d by people i s u s e l e s s . A person who humbles h i m s e l f

and who f e e l s happy a t b e i n g i n a lower p o s i t i o n than h i s com-

19 3

panions cannot be disliked."

T h e r e f o r e , people who are o u t s t a n d i n g i n t h e i r accomplish-

ments may be regarded as f o o l s , because i n o r d e r to achieve such

outstanding s k i l l s , they have exhausted much time and e f f o r t . If

what they have l e a r n e d i s not u s e f u l , i t has been a complete
194
waste of time. A samurai who has a r t i s t i c accomplishments,
then, has h i s s t a t u s as a bushi r u i n e d . He begins to serve as
. 195
an e n t e r t a i n e r , and t h i s i s not the o c c u p a t i o n o f a b u s h i .
 42

While, as mentioned e a r l i e r , Tsunetomo h e l d the b e l i e f t h a t a

bushi must pay careful a t t e n t i o n to d e t a i l s o f conduct i n h i s

daily l i f e , he d i d not f e e l t h a t such i s s u e s should become the

end i n themselves. He says, "People who are b r i g h t i n l o g i c

are, i n most cases, o v e r l y p a r t i c u l a r about minute d e t a i l s , and

196
spend t h e i r whole l i v e s w a s t e f u l l y . This i s regrettable."
His view on t h i s p o i n t appears to be i n d i r e c t c o n t r a s t to K a i b a r a
197

Ekken's b e l i e f t h a t the study o f the c l a s s i c s i s a u n i v e r s a l duty.

Yet i t was not l e a r n i n g i t s e l f which Tsunetomo frowned upon, f o r

he h i m s e l f had a r e l a t i v e l y sound background i n the Chinese clas-

s i c s and i n Buddhist d o c t r i n e s . His concern was t h a t an over-

emphasis on knowledge t o r knowledge's sake had begun to obliterate

the bushi's c o n c e p t i o n of h i s true duty, s e r v i c e t o the lord.

A number of m i l i t a r y men are remembered f o r t h e i r l i t e r a r y abil-

i n the composition o f wakafa^fcJt ^p o e t r y ,

9
ity, particularly and

indeed Tsunetomo h i m s e l f was accomplished in this field. But

s u r e l y t h i s t r e n d away from m i l i t a r y matters and toward l i t e r a r y

skill i s the very reason why d i s d a i n f o r i n t e l l e c t u a l and a r -

t i s t i c a c t i v i t i e s was not l i m i t e d to Hagakure alone, but was a

. - 199

common element i n bushido throughout the country.

Because the main o c c u p a t i o n of the samurai was to serve,

l o g i c was unnecessary. "In whatever l o g i c i s a p p l i e d , r e a l reason

is lost." 2 0 0
"To become confused w i t h excess ideas cannot be
201
s a i d to be the Way." A bushi i s able to serve much b e t t e r ,
t h e r e f o r e , i f he avoids t h i n k i n g about too many i r r e l e v a n t
things. " I t i s not good to be confused over one t h i n g and another.
It i s b e s t i f one d i s c a r d s e v e r y t h i n g and s e t s h i s mind only on
20 2
service." T h i s i s a p p l i c a b l e whether one i s a b u s h i o f a
low o r a high rank. When one i s a country b u s h i , f o r example,

he imagines t h a t the o f f i c i a l s who are i n high p l a c e s must neces-

s a r i l y have s p e c i a l a b i l i t i e s , but t h i s , a c c o r d i n g t o Tsunetomo,

is not true. "When one becomes i n t i m a t e w i t h the House e l d e r s

and s e n i o r a d v i s o r s and exchanges c a s u a l c o n v e r s a t i o n , one sees

t h a t they never f o r g e t t h a t they are i n s e r v i c e and worry about

v a r i o u s things i n p o l i t i c s , but apart from t h a t , are no d i f f e r e n t

from o n e s e l f . " 2 0 4
The head monk o f S o r y u j i ^ C ^ 2
-
0 5
temple,

Konan Osho ^ )>j

c
e x p l a i n s why knowledge may be a d e t r i -

ment t o proper s e r v i c e by s a y i n g , "The more one knows about con-

c r e t e t h i n g s , the f a r t h e r one i s removed from the Way. The

reason i s t h a t by having read o r heard about the words and ac-

t i o n s of o t h e r people, one acquires knowledge, comes t o b e l i e v e

h i m s e l f equal t o the Sages, and t h e r e f o r e looks down upon the

207
common people as though they were i n s e c t s . " Furthermore,
Tsunetomo says,

A c a l c u l a t i n g person i s a cowardly person. Be-

cause he always t h i n k s about the c a l c u l a t i o n o f
l o s s and g a i n , the i d e a o f p r o f i t and l o s s i s
c o n s t a n t l y on h i s mind. Because death i s a l o s s
and l i f e i s a g a i n , he w i l l not l i k e death.
That i s why he i s a coward. Again, a l e a r n e d
person hides c o n g e n i t a l cowardice and greed with
c l e v e r n e s s and eloquence. This i s something by
which people are f o o l e d . ^

Of course, without a c e r t a i n degree o f i n t e l l i g e n c e a bushi will

be unable t o c a r r y out even the most b a s i c d u t i e s . I f i t can

be s a i d t h a t a cunning man does n o t succeed i n l i f e , i t can a l s o

209

be s a i d t h a t a f o o l i s h man does n o t succeed e i t h e r .

It i s particularly important t o have s t r e n g t h o f s e l f will

and to a c t without o b t r u s i v e l y using one's i n t e l l i g e n c e and d i s -

cernment u n t i l the age o f f o r t y . After that, i f i n a p o s i t i o n

 44

of l e a d i n g o t h e r s , i n t e l l i g e n c e and discernment p l a y a more

v i t a l r o l e i n prompting response from one's charges. Slightly

p a r a p h r a s i n g the words of Confucius-",^ Tsunetomo s t a t e s , "In the

f i r s t f o r t y years of one's l i f e i t i s b e s t to be b o l d i n every-

thing. From the age of f i f t y i t i s more s u i t a b l e to be r e s e r v e d . "

A t a l a t e r p o i n t i n the t e x t he adds, "Whether one i s wise or

f o o l i s h , when one reaches the age of f o r t y he achieves the degree

of m a t u r i t y a p p r o p r i a t e to h i m s e l f , and i s no l o n g e r i n doubt
211

as to h i s course o f a c t i o n . " Tsunetomo's view t h a t a bushi

must forsake l e a r n i n g and the a r t s only to rush b l i n d l y forward

i n s e r v i c e takes on a much more f l e x i b l e appearance w i t h these

statements. Devotion to s e r v i c e must evolve from experience

and experience can be gained only by f o l l o w i n g the way o f the

true bushi w i t h a l l one's h e a r t . The use o f l o g i c and intellect

to q u e s t i o n the v a l i d i t y of commands forms a d i v e r s i o n from the

way i n the same manner as the s a t i s f a c t i o n of s e l f i s h desires.

In e i t h e r case, the y o u t h f u l bushi would be d i r e c t e d away from

the path o f bushido. To ensure t h a t , upon r e a c h i n g middle age,

he would have gained s u f f i c i e n t experience to q u a l i f y as a

l e a d e r o f men, Tsunetomo f e l t , samurai should undergo a s t r i c t

regime o f t r a i n i n g .

2. Training

Even though there were no wars a f t e r 1638, the p h y s i c a l

t r a i n i n g o f the Japanese bushi c o u l d not be separated from the

values o f the samurai class. The combination of s c h o l a r l y learn-

ing, bun on one hand and m i l i t a r y s k i l l , b u ^ , on the o t h e r

212
had a t r a d i t i o n o f some l e n g t h i n Japan. The placement of
 45

the concept o f bun-bu i n the f i r s t a r t i c l e o f the Buke shohatto

i n d i c a t e s the importance i n i t i a l l y accorded i t by the Tokugawa

authorities. Yet each time the code was reissued, the emphasis

s h i f t e d s l i g h t l y i n the d i r e c t i o n o f the c i v i l and away from the

213

martial. N e v e r t h e l e s s , t r a i n i n g i n the p h y s i c a l use o f weapons

continued to be an important aspect o f samurai e d u c a t i o n until

the end o f the Edo period.

K a i b a r a Ekken once expressed the b e l i e f t h a t a bushi needed

214

only moral t r a i n i n g and military skills. When the need f o r

the l a t t e r decreased d u r i n g the p e r i o d of peace, more a t t e n t i o n

was given the former. Thus the d i s t i n c t i o n between b u j u t s u ^ f o ' ^ ,

military skills used i n combat, and budo ffi^jf martial arts

p r a c t i s e d as a means o f s e l f c u l t i v a t i o n and moral d i s c i p l i n e ,

215 . .
is a v a l i d one. Furthermore, as success i n m i l i t a r y opera-
t i o n s had come, to jdspehd.almost s o l e l y on firearms and group t a c -
tics, the o l d e r a r t s of archery, swordsmanship, and r i d i n g be-
came p r i m a r i l y methods o f s p i r i t u a l t r a i n i n g . Teachers o f the
m a r t i a l a r t s were expected not only to i n s t r u c t the students i n
the p h y s i c a l aspects o f a technique, but a l s o to guide them i n
the proper mental a t t i t u d e and instill i n them the w i l l for
perpetual s e l f improvement. The e t h i c s of r e c t i t u d e , l o y a l t y ,
courage, honour, e t i q u e t t e , r e s p e c t f o r s u p e r i o r s , compassion,
and r e s o l u t i o n to s e r v i c e , were c o n s t a n t l y being s u b s t a n t i a t e d
216
w i t h i n the framework o f the t r a i n i n g s e s s i o n . Because Yamaga
Soko recorded h i s thoughts on the r o l e o f moral s e l f - c u l t i v a t i o n
217

through p h y s i c a l t r a i n i n g , he i s perhaps the best-known e a r l y

proponent o f the u n i t y o f mental and p h y s i c a l d i s c i p l i n e i n the

martial arts. Yet most of the concepts which he taught were

 — o 218

a l s o being d r i l l e d i n one form or another i n v a r i o u s do j o jji T%

throughout the country. The p h y s i c a l techniques became a form

of s e l f c u l t i v a t i o n s i m i l a r t o Zen-oriented p r a c t i s e s such as

the tea c e r e m o n y . 2x9

In Hagakure the a r t s of y a r i ^ ^ , yumi Zj ,

and j u j u t s u ^ f f i j " , as w e l l as the p r a c t i s e of r e n g a o e t r y

219

are i n t r o d u c e d , not i n the d e t a i l of t h e i r p h y s i c a l appearance,

but i n r e l a t i o n to how they may be employed to improve one's

a b i l i t y to serve one's l o r d .

While i n t e r n a l i z a t i o n o f the mores o f the s o c i e t y rested

within the i n d i v i d u a l , methods o f t e a c h i n g them r e l i e d more

h e a v i l y upon group t r a i n i n g . Instruction generally took place

w i t h a number of students a t the same time and, as was the case

even i n p r i v a t e l e s s o n s , there was bound to be a c e r t a i n amount

of' i n t e r c o u r s e , spoken or unspoken, between teacher and student.

Because o f t h i s human element, the l e a r n i n g process o f the phys-

ical a r t s occurred i n a s e t t i n g s t r o n g l y i n f l u e n c e d by the ac-

cepted m o r a l i t y o f the l o c a l i t y and the i n s t r u c t o r . Tsunetomo

says t h a t , f o r him, t r a i n i n g was a f u l l - t i m e a f f a i r which never

221

gave him a chance to bend h i s knees and rest. He felt that

such extended e f f o r t s were r e q u i r e d so the d i s c i p l i n e attained

through guided p h y s i c a l t r a i n i n g would provide the samurai with

the r e s o l u t i o n t h a t , i f , on a b a t t l e f i e d ,
...one leads the charge and i s determined to
destroy the enemy ranks, he w i l l not f a l l be-
h i n d o t h e r s , h i s h e a r t w i l l become brave, and
he w i l l be able to make a g l o r i o u s d i s p l a y o f
m a r t i a l courage. One must have, as a usual
p r a c t i s e , the r e s o l u t i o n t h a t when he d i e s
i n a b a t t l e , he w i l l f a l l f a c i n g i n the d i r e c -
t i o n of the e n e m y . 222

Furthermore, he must not regard s u p e r i o r people as b e i n g i n v i n -

 47

cible, f o r they, t o o , are human. " I f one makes up h i s mind t h a t

22

he i s i n f e r i o r t o no one, e v e r y t h i n g w i l l soon t u r n o u t f i n e . "

Of c o u r s e , t h i s does n o t mean t h a t a samurai should be content

w i t h what he has.
E x e r t your mind t o the utmost. F i r s t of a l l ,
grasp the seeds f i r m l y and c u l t i v a t e your conduct,
a l l your l i f e , i n such a way t h a t these seeds
r i p e n . Whatever you may have found, do not t h i n k
i t i s sufficient. Think only t h a t i t i s wrong
and t h a t i t i s n o t enough. In a l i f e l o n g quest
one must s e a r c h f o r the way i n which the t r u t h
can be f o l l o w e d . Herein l i e s the r e a l W a y . 224

N a t u r a l l y , d u r i n g the g r e a t peace, s k i l l i n combat was o f

l e s s importance to the samurai than i t had been i n time o f war.

N e v e r t h e l e s s , t r a i n i n g i n the c l a s s i c a l methods o f combat was

c a r r i e d on t o impart to the practitioners -.the mental discipline

which was r e q u i r e d o f them i n t h e i r r o l e s as samurai and as ad-
. . 225

ministrators. The s i g n i f i c a n c e o f p h y s i c a l t r a i n i n g was r e c -

ognized c l e a r l y by the samurai o f the Edo p e r i o d . Kumazawa Ban-

zan and Yamaga Soko are b u t two men who expressed t h e i r o p i n i o n s

on t h i s matter. 2 2 6
Yagyu Munenori <#p£,£££-.(1571-1646) , the

founder o f the o f f i c i a l f e n c i n g s c h o o l o f the bakufu, i s quoted

in Hagakure as having s a i d , "I don't know how to win a g a i n s t

227

o t h e r s ; I only know how t o c o n t r o l myself." Although he was

a master swordsman and could handle the weapon extremely w e l l ,

he c o n s i d e r e d i t s main f u n c t i o n t o be an instrument of t r a i n i n g .

The f a c t t h a t Tsunetomo quotes Yagyu shows t h a t he, t o o ,

was aware o f the importance o f p r o f i c i e n c y i n the m a r t i a l arts

as a p r e r e q u i s i t e t o mental c o n t r o l , and hence t o c o n f i d e n c e .

He a l s o r e c o g n i z e d t h a t t h i s t r a i n i n g was n o t an easy nor a

s u p e r f i c i a l task. He e x p l o i t s the words o f an u n i d e n t i f i e d o l d

 48

master o f swordsmanship who says t h a t people i n the lower levels

of the samurai c l a s s are n o t u s e f u l even i f they t r a i n . Those

in the middle l e v e l s a l s o f a i l to serve but a t l e a s t are aware

of t h e i r shortcomings. People i n the upper ranks are capable

of being b e n e f i c i a l because they have a f u l l e r understanding.

But w i t h t h i s understanding comes a f e e l i n g o f p r i d e , and they

begin t o b e l i e v e t h a t they are s u p e r i o r t o o t h e r s . Such an a t -

titude i s detrimental. Men o f r e a l s e r v i c e are found only above

t h i s l e v e l , b u t i t i s n o t easy t o a t t a i n such h e i g h t s . When one

becomes deeply i n v o l v e d i n such advanced t r a i n i n g , "...one final-

ly d i s c o v e r s t h a t there i s no l i m i t . One never t h i n k s t h a t he

has completed it. R e a l i z i n g t h a t he has shortcomings, a l l o f

his life he never f a n c i e s h i m s e l f t o have succeeded, he doesn't

preen h i m s e l f , and he doesn't b e l i t t l e o t h e r s . He improves day

by day and there i s no l i m i t t o h i s improvement. This i s the

228

way one advances." I t i s t r u l y lamentable, says Tsunetomo,

t h a t t h e r e are so few such persons. "There are no g r e a t men.

There are n o t even any who w i l l l i s t e n to advice which would

229

b e n e f i t them, l e t alone t r a i n to become g r e a t men."

Attainment o f the proper a t t i t u d e o f d e t e r m i n a t i o n to

serve w i t h o u t f l i n c h i n g i s something which must be accomplished

230
through many years o f p r a c t i s e . A c c o r d i n g to the o l d s a y i n g ,
231

"Great genius comes s l o w l y , " proficiency i n service cannot

be gained r a p i d l y . I f a young person t r i e s to p r o g r e s s too

q u i c k l y , he becomes rude and o v e r c o n f i d e n t , and develops an a i r

of insincerity. He i s then scorned by o t h e r s and may be c o n s i d -

ered a f a i l u r e . To p r e v e n t t h i s one must s u f f e r h a r d s h i p s i n

t r a i n i n g and adopt the a t t i t u d e t h a t , "...nothing i s i m p o s s i b l e . . .

 49

moving the u n i v e r s e without u s i n g any s t r e n g t h i s but a q u e s t i o n

232
of d e t e r m i n a t i o n . " The d o c t r i n e o f Zen Buddhism pervades
t h i s statement, f o r Zen, w i t h i t s emphasis on s i m p l i c i t y , direct-
ness, and s e l f - r e l i a n c e , may be regarded as a r e l i g i o n of w i l l
233
power.

Shitsuke J j ^ , "proper u p b r i n g i n g , " 2 3 4

should begin a t a

very e a r l y age. A c c o r d i n g to Tsunetomo, a boy must be taught

to f e a r n o t h i n g , f o r i f he i s a coward as a baby, i t w i l l become

a lifetime habit. He should not, t h e r e f o r e , be s c o l d e d s t r o n g l y

l e s t he come to have a t i m i d nature. G r a d u a l l y he should be

made to pay a t t e n t i o n to the ways of speaking and to c o u r t e s y .

S e l f i s h n e s s must not be p e r m i t t e d . I f he i s normal he will

develop w e l l . I f the parents do not get along there can be no

f i l i a l p i e t y because c h i l d r e n i m i t a t e t h e i r p a r e n t s . "Even

b i r d s and animals, a f t e r they are born, always do what they see

and hear and thus determine their characters." The mother should

not always defend the c h i l d from the f a t h e r because i f she does,

235

d i s c o r d w i l l develop between f a t h e r and son.

From about the age of f i f t e e n , a youth must s t a r t train-

i n g i n e a r n e s t to make a s o l i d foundation so t h a t he may be p r e -

pared t o d e a l w i t h any contingency.

I f he has a s t r o n g base he
2 36
may persevere through any setbacks caused by e r r o r s . People
who have served as pages d u r i n g t h e i r youth are e s p e c i a l l y use-
237

f u l , because they are f a m i l i a r w i t h performing v a r i o u s d u t i e s .

T r a i n i n g was a l s o c a r r i e d out through admonitions by

seniors. Tsunetomo c i t e s one l e c t u r e which he h i m s e l f d e l i v e r e d

to a young man who was having a problem p l e a s i n g a very difficult

father-in-law.
 50

To begin w i t h , i t must be r e a l i z e d t h a t b e i n g born

as a human b e i n g i s a t o t a l l y unexpected s t r o k e o f
good f o r t u n e . Besides t h a t , b e i n g able to serve
as one of the r e t a i n e r s of t h i s Nabeshima House i s
a l i f e l o n g d e s i r e . I f one looks a t the peasants
or townsmen one w i l l understand t h i s . Being born
the e l d e s t son and i n h e r i t i n g the e s t a t e of one's
true f a t h e r i s indeed a very b l e s s e d t h i n g but
a l l the more so f o r you, born the youngest c h i l d ,
to i n h e r i t another household and c l e a r l y become
one of the r e t a i n e r s of our l o r d i s a r a r e b l e s s -
ing. To f a i l i n t h i s and become a bushi who has
no s t i p e n d i s d i s l o y a l t y and d i s p l e a s i n g one's
father i s u n f i l i a l . A person who has s t r a y e d
from the way o f l o y a l t y and f i l i a l p i e t y has no
p l a c e i n t h i s world. Return to the proper path
and c o n s i d e r t h i s very c a r e f u l l y .
Now, the l o y a l t y and f i l i a l p i e t y which concern you
i s only to p l e a s e your f a t h e r - i n - l a w . You have to
take i n t o account the p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t , no matter
how hard you t r y to p l e a s e him, he might not accept
you. So I w i l l teach you a way to a l t e r h i s mood.
You should pray to the f a m i l y god, c r y i n g t e a r s
of b l o o d , t h a t your f a c i a l e x p r e s s i o n , i n whatever
you do, may p l e a s e him. This i s not f o r p r i v a t e
i n t e r e s t , but a matter o f p r i n c i p l e . The mere
thought w i l l s t r i k e a responsive chord i n your
father-in-law's heart. Go home and t r y i t . Before
you know i t your f a t h e r - i n - l a w ' s mind w i l l be
changed. This phenomenon of heaven, e a r t h , and
man on the same wave l e n g t h i s an e x p r e s s i o n o f
the mysterious incomprehensible t r u t h . What I've
j u s t s a i d to you i s p a r t i c u l a r l y true i n t h i s case
because your f a t h e r has long been i l l . He can't
l a s t l o n g . Being f i l i a l f o r a s h o r t time i s easy,
even s t a n d i n g on your head.238

Advice o f t h i s type was e s s e n t i a l f o r a young samurai to develop

the s t r e n g t h o f c h a r a c t e r which would be r e q u i r e d a t a l a t e r

time. He must l e a r n to honour h i s d u t i e s and r e s p e c t h i s supe-

riors. For example, upon h i s f i r s t audience before the lord,

a c e r t a i n young samurai was i n s t r u c t e d , "At the time t h a t you

bow and lower your head, swear to y o u r s e l f , 'This i s a f o r t u n a t e

t h i n g indeed! Not having r e c e i v e d an i n t e r v i e w u n t i l now, I

have l i v e d i n o b s c u r i t y . I am as happy as one can p o s s i b l y be.

From now on I must d i s c a r d my own life and serve my lord. 1

This
 51

thought w i l l be t r a n s m i t t e d to the l o r d and you w i l l be able

..239

to s e r v e .

Rewards were given f o r work w e l l done and punishments f o r

behaviour o t h e r than the expected norm. But o f more consequence

was the f a c t t h a t a b u s h i was t r a i n e d to respect p r o p r i e t y . He

was taught to be c a r e f u l i n e v e r y t h i n g he d i d and to do i t w e l l .

Even when w r i t i n g , f o r example, each l e t t e r was to be w r i t t e n

240

as though i t were f o r a p i c t u r e s c r o l l . Through l i f e l o n g i n -

d o c t r i n a t i o n , the b u s h i was taught to be s e l f c o n f i d e n t y e t hum-

b l e , compatible y e t r e s e r v e d , brave y e t cautious,'compassionate

y e t s t e r n , p o l i t e y e t prudent, and above a l l , loyal.

3. Loyalty

L o y a l and devoted s e r v i c e to one's l o r d i s c e n t r a l , to the

maintenance o f any f e u d a l s o c i e t y . Tokugawa Japan was no excep-

t i o n , and bushido, which developed as the code o f the samurai

d i d , i n f a c t , c o n s i s t e s s e n t i a l l y o f d i l i g e n c e i n the duty o f

s e r v i c e , even to the e x t e n t t h a t i t may have had r e l i g i o u s over-

tones. Adherence to the p r i n c i p l e s o f bushido r e q u i r e d a l o y a l t y

241

which would o v e r r i d e o t h e r r e l i g i o u s commitments and by doing

t h i s , bushido became what might be c a l l e d a r e l i g i o n of l o y a l t y .

A c c o r d i n g to Tsunetomo, the bushi must preoccupy h i m s e l f w i t h

bushido, and the:.ma;jor duty of bushido b e i n g devotion to the

l o r d , he must dwell on l o y a l t y . These bare f a c t s , he says, de-

242

s c r i b e the ambitions o f a p e r f e c t r e t a i n e r . Support f o r the

l o r d was i n r e a l i t y support f o r the group o f which the l o r d was

but a f i g u r e h e a d , but t h i s f a c t i s e i t h e r d e l i b e r a t e l y n e g l e c t e d

by Tsunetomo or not comprehended. The d u t i e s performed f o r the

 52

l o r d and the r e t u r n o f c e r t a i n b e n e f i t s p r o v i d e d the group with

s o l i d a r i t y which allowed i t to overcome o b s t a c l e s and t o r e t a i n

i t s p o s i t i o n o f power. The p a t e r n a l i s t i c form o f t h i s arrange-

ment, i n which the l o r d may be seen as a f a t h e r f i g u r e to h i s

r e t a i n e r s , i s common to Japanese s o c i e t y , even i n the p r e s e n t

day. W i t h i n the o r g a n i z a t i o n s under v a r i o u s daimyo, such forms

were a l s o p r e s e n t , n o t a b l y i n the r e l a t i o n s h i p s between the

243
groups and t h e i r l e a d e r s . On a broader s c a l e , the bakufu may
244

be seen as an e x t e n s i o n o f the p a t e r n a l i s t i c phenomenon. Nor

i s such a concept l i m i t e d t o Japan. The Sun Tzu says, "Because

...a g e n e r a l regards h i s men as i n f a n t s they w i l l march w i t h him

i n t o the deepest v a l l e y s . He t r e a t s them as h i s own beloved

245
sons and they w i l l d i e w i t h him."
The o b l i g a t i o n o f l o y a l t y to a s u p e r i o r i s a b a s i c t e n e t
246
i n the teachings o f Confucius- and i s p a r t i c u l a r l y obvious
i n Japanese f e u d a l i s m . The e t h i c . o f d e v o t i o n t o a s o v e r e i g n
247
may be found throughout Japanese h i s t o r y . Nitobe says t h a t "
the v i r t u e s o f homage and f e a l t y to a s u p e r i o r i s a d i s t i n c t i v e
2 48
feature of feudal morality. The duty o f l o y a l t y stood a t the
a x i s o f bushido, and such sentences as, "We bushi know n o t h i n g
249

but to t h i n k o f our l o r d , " are found i n abundance i n Hagakure.

By a c t u a l count one hundred twenty s i x o f the two hundred three

a r t i c l e s comprising the f i r s t chapter mention a t l e a s t some

aspect o f l o y a l t y , and o f these, s i x t y f i v e are p r i m a r i l y con-

cerned w i t h d e v o t i o n t o s e r v i c e .

Because l o y a l t y c o u l d n o t be ensured by a w r i t t e n c o n t r a c t

alone, s t r e s s was p l a c e d , i n a manner d i s t i n c t i v e o f Japanese

bushido, upon i n t e r n a l i z a t i o n o f the concept o f l o y a l t y w i t h i n

 53

the minds o f i n d i v i d u a l b u s h i . While there were innumerable

i n s t a n c e s o f d i s l o y a l t y throughout the h i s t o r y o f Japan, most

n o t a b l y i n the Sengoku p e r i o d but a l s o i n the b a t t l e o f Sekigahara,

the concept o f l o y a l t y remained a v i a b l e e t h i c i n the code o f

bushido. I n d i c a t i o n s are t h a t t h i s was n o t the case i n the armies

of China and Europe. There the p r a c t i s e s o f corvee and c o n s c r i p -

t i o n p l a c e d a l i m i t on the amount o f l o y a l t y which might be ex-

250

pected. Although the samurai r e c e i v e d s t i p e n d s f o r t h e i r

s e r v i c e s , and so may be c o n s i d e r e d , i n a sense, mercenaries, i n

a c t u a l p r a c t i s e by the Edo p e r i o d t h e i r e f f o r t s were almost s o l e l y

administrative. Furthermore, from about the middle of t h i s period

onward, when the economic s i t u a t i o n o f the bakufu was becoming

p r o g r e s s i v e l y worse, the s t i p e n d s o f many r e t a i n e r s were c u r t a i l e d

251

f o r i n d e f i n i t e p e r i o d s of time. In s p i t e o f t h i s , outward

symptoms o f d i s l o y a l t y d i d not appear u n t i l near the end of the

Edo p e r i o d . A d d i t i o n a l l y , the r e c e i p t o f an allowance and the

r e l a t i o n o f the s o l d i e r s to the commanders was not o f the same

nature as t h a t i n China. In Japan, a f t e r a l l , the s o l d i e r s and

the o f f i c e r s were, i n the Tokugawa p e r i o d o f peace, drawn s o l e l y

from the samurai c l a s s , and thus the "...payment o f a l a r g e

252

bounty to assure the l o y a l t y o f the army..." was n o t as nec-

essary as i t was w i t h the c o n s c r i p t armies o f China.

Of the r e l a t i o n s h i p between l o y a l t y and punishment, Sun

Tzu s t a t e s , " I f troops are punished b e f o r e t h e i r l o y a l t y i s

secured they w i l l Be:~disdbedient. I f not o b e d i e n t , i t i s d i f -

f i c u l t to employ them. I f troops are l o y a l , but punishments are

253

not e n f o r c e d , you cannot employ them." Of course, punishment

f o r l a c k o f d e d i c a t i o n and f o r d i s o b e d i e n c e f u n c t i o n e d i n Japan
 54

254
also, and there i s no doubt t h a t i t had a g r e a t deal o f i n -

fluence i n preserving l o y a l i n c l i n a t i o n s . There remain, however,

many cases, such as the r e t i r e m e n t o f Tsunetomo h i m s e l f , i n which

u n c a l l e d - f o r acts o f l o y a l t y were e x h i b i t e d . Tsunetomo would

undoubtedly have been i n a b e t t e r p o s i t i o n had he continued to

serve i n the Nabeshima House under Tsunashige a f t e r the death o f

M i t s u s h i g e , b u t he f e l t t h a t to turn h i s back on the l o r d was

255

not i n keeping w i t h h i s b e l i e f s .

It was Tsunetomo's c o n t e n t i o n t h a t persons who make a fuss

of s e r v i n g , and outwardly appear to be very l o y a l i n t h e i r ac-

t i o n s , may i n r e a l i t y n o t have the same depth o f c h a r a c t e r as

lowly-ranked persons who are devoted i n t h e i r h e a r t s . Natu-

r a l l y i t i s hard t o m a i n t a i n an i n t e n s e degree o f l o y a l t y . Still,

i f one remembers t h a t the oaths between r e t a i n e r and l o r d are n o t

something remote from r e a l i t y , but r a t h e r are something very near

at hand, and i f one. r e i n f o r c e s h i s r e s o l u t i o n to them d a i l y by

r e p e a t i n g the Four Oaths over and over, one w i l l f u l f i l l the

requirements o f a r e t a i n e r admirably.

The l o y a l t y so o f t e n mentioned by Tsunetomo i s l i m i t e d a l -

most e x c l u s i v e l y t o t h a t o f a r e t a i n e r f o r h i s l o r d and does n o t

c a r r y w i t h i t the seeds o f g r e a t e r l o y a l t y , to the emperor, as i t d i d

257

i i v . the w r i t i n g s o f Yamaga Soko and Motoori Norinaga. On the

o t h e r hand, he gives some f l e x i b i l i t y to h i s concept o f l o y a l t y

by s t a t i n g t h a t s i n c e the r e l a t i o n s h i p between a l o r d and h i s

r e t a i n e r resembles t h a t between f a t h e r and son, the l o y a l t y which

a samurai has f o r h i s master i s n o t d i f f e r e n t i n essence from

the p i e t y he has f o r h i s p a r e n t s . Some authors, Chikamatsu i n

his Tamba Yosaku P^y&Jfrtff,^^ f o r example, c e n t e r e d t h e i r stories

around a c o n f l i c t between l o y a l t y to the l o r d and f a m i l i a l l o v e .

While r e c o g n i z i n g l o y a l t y as an extremely important virtue,

Takizawa Bakin was i n c l i n e d t o p l a c e f i l i a l p i e t y i n an even

259

more .exalted p o s i t i o n . Tsunetomo's approach d i f f e r e d some-

what i n t h a t he b e l i e v e d t h a t no such c o n f l i c t c o u l d e x i s t , be-

cause l o y a l t y and f i l i a l p i e t y c o n s t i t u t e d the same b a s i c e l e -

ment. Both show i n t r i n s i c involvement w i t h h e l p i n g others by

260

giving of oneself unselfishly. In the morning, when one

addresses the gods, the l o r d should r e c e i v e a t t e n t i o n first,

then one's p a r e n t s , and f i n a l l y the gods and buddhas. I f prayers

are c a r r i e d o u t i n t h i s manner a l l w i l l be w e l l because, " I f the

l o r d i s served s e r i o u s l y , parents w i l l a l s o r e j o i c e , and the gods

261
and buddhas w i l l be s a t i s f i e d . " F o l l o w i n g t h i s Confucian
l i n e o f reasoning Tsunetomo repeats the o l d s a y i n g , "Look f o r a
26 2
l o y a l r e t a i n e r , i n the home o f a f i l i a l son." For i t i s only
a f t e r one has l e a r n e d how to serve one's parents t h a t one can
26 3

fulfill one's duty t o the s o v e r e i g n . Under normal circum-

stances t h i s devotion e i t h e r to the l o r d o r to the parents i s

not r e a d i l y observed; the s t r e n g t h o f f a i t h f u l n e s s i s e x h i b i t e d

most c l e a r l y when there i s an emergency o r h a r d s h i p . Yet a

samurai must be s i n g l e m i n d e d l y devoted every minute f o r , " T h i s ,

in r e l a t i o n to one's l o r d i s l o y a l t y , t o one's p a r e n t s , filial

p i e t y , to m i l i t a r y matters, b r a v e r y , and i s something which can

be used i n a l l t h i n g s . " 2 6 4

4. A t t i t u d e Toward Death

S o l d i e r s who r e a l i z e t h a t there i s no escape from the

battlefield will f i g h t much more i n t e n s e l y . T h i s f a c t has l o n g

 56

been r e c o g n i z e d as the n a t u r a l i n s t i n c t o f any man or animal

who i s cornered. Use of t h i s d e s i r e to f i g h t to the death was

recorded as p a r t o f the s t r a t e g y o f the Sun Tzu. To d e f e a t a

surrounded enemy more e a s i l y , a commander must always leave

j. 265 o . , , J_ , 266
an avenue o f escape, and he must not press an enemy a t bay.

Thorough comprehension o f t h i s f a c t w i l l a l s o allow i t t o be

a p p l i e d i n a r e v e r s e f a s h i o n , t h a t i s , toward the management

of one's own army. Make i t " . . . e v i d e n t t h a t there i s no chance

of s u r v i v a l . For i t i s the nature o f s o l d i e r s to r e s i s t when

surrounded; to f i g h t to the death when there i s no alternative,

26 7

and when desperate to f o l l o w commands i m p l i c i t l y . " "Throw

the troops i n t o a p o s i t i o n from which there i s no escape and

even when faced w i t h death they w i l l not f l e e . For i f they

are prepared to d i e , what can they not achieve? Then o f f i c e r s

and men t o g e t h e r put f o r t h t h e i r b e s t e f f o r t s . In a desperate

s i t u a t i o n they f e a r n o t h i n g ; when there i s no way out they

stand firm." 2 6 8

C e r t a i n l y Hagakure was g r e a t l y i n f l u e n c e d by the thought

o f Sun Tzu, which had been f i r s t i n t r o d u c e d i n t o Japan as

269
e a r l y as the eigii.th century. Many l e a d i n g w r i t e r s o f the
270
Edo p e r i o d wrote commentaries on the Sun Tzu i n Japanese.
Hayashi Razan, f o r i n s t a n c e , wrote Sonshi genkai }%^t%'ffi^~
i n 1626. Yamaga Soko wrote a t l e a s t three e s s a y s , Sonshi gengi

Sonshi kuto V$ a n d
Sonshi k o g i 3$ }- B-|^ •

Both Sonshi k o k u j i k a i } )|] $?$jp and Sonshi k a i were

produced by Ogyu S o r a i , and Muro Kyuso was responsible for

Sonshi kibun ffiWhether o r not Tsunetomo had direct

access to a l l or any of these secondary works i s u n c e r t a i n ,

 57

but i t i s h i g h l y l i k e l y t h a t , due to h i s i n t e r e s t i n l i t e r a -

t u r e , he was f a m i l i a r w i t h the ideas c o n t a i n e d i n Sun Tzu.

However, because Hagakure i s not d i r e c t e d toward m i l i -

t a r y commanders, Tsunetomo views the f i g h t i n g a t t i t u d e o f

cornered men from a d e c i d e d l y d i f f e r e n t p e r s p e c t i v e than Sun

Tzu. He f e e l s t h a t the i n d i v i d u a l bushi must t r a i n to be loyal

even i n .his d a i l y a c t i o n s and devotion as though he were i n

a p o s i t i o n of having no escape. The extreme e x p r e s s i o n of

l o y a l t y i s manifested i n the w i l l i n g n e s s to s a c r i f i c e everything,

even one's l i f e , f o r the sake of the l o r d and the good of the

House. The g e n e r a l e s t i m a t i o n i n which Hagakure i s h e l d by

the p u b l i c i n p r e s e n t day Japan r e s t s mainly upon i t s views

concerning the expressed n e c e s s i t y f o r a r e t a i n e r to g i v e up

his life in service. The most famous words i n Hagakure, and

those most o f t e n quoted, appear very e a r l y i n the book. They

are,
 58

Bus h i do t o i u via, s h i n u koto t o mitsuke t a r i .

F u t a t s u f u t a t s u no ba n i te > havaku s h i n u ho
n i katazuku b a k a r i n a r i . Betsu n i s h i s a i
n a s h i . Mune suwatte susumu n a r i . Zu_ni ataranu
wa i n u j i n i riado i u koto wa, kamigatafu no u c h i -
a g a r i t a r u budo riaru b e s h i . F u t a t s u f u t a t s u no
ba n i te., zu n l a t a r u yo n i suru wa oyobanu koto
nari. Warehito, i k u r u ho ga s u k i n a r i . Tabun
s u k i no ho n i r i g_a tsuku b e s h i , moshi z u r h i
hazurete i k i taraba k o s h i nuke n a r i . Kono s a k a i
ayauki n a r i . H a j i n i wa narazu. Kore ga budo
n i jobu n a r i . Mai asa mai yu, aratamete wa
s h i n i shi'ni, j o j u s h i n i m i n i marite o r u t o k i wa,
:

budo n i j i y u o e_, i s s h o ochido naku, kashoku o

;

shios u beki n a r i .

The way o f the w a r r i o r amounts to b e i n g r e s i g n e d

to death. In a s i t u a t i o n o f two c h o i c e s , l i f e o r
death, there i s nothing but t o decide upon death
immediately. I t i s as simple as t h a t . I t i s t o
make up one's mind and proceed. The statement,
'To d i e without a t t a i n i n g one's goal i s a u s e l e s s
deaths' must s u r e l y be the c o n c e i t e d Kyoto v e r s i o n
of bushido. In a s i t u a t i o n o f two choices i t i s
not necessary t o a c t so as t o always achieve one's
g o a l . We a l l p r e f e r t o l i v e . Our p r e f e r e n c e would
seem t o p r e v a i l . I t i s cowardice i f one l i v e s
without a t t a i n i n g one's g o a l . This p o i n t i s c r i t i -
cal. I f one misses the g o a l and d i e s , i t simply
proves t h a t he was f a n a t i c a l l y determined to d i e
i n v a i n . But t h i s i s no d i s g r a c e . On the c o n t r a r y ,
t h i s i s h e r o i c behaviour. Every morning and every
evening, when one r e p e a t e d l y t h i n k s o f dying and
dying, and i s always as a dead body, he should be
able to a c q u i r e mastery i n the m a r t i a l way, l i v e
a l i f e f r e e o f f a u l t s , and f u l f i l l h i s occupation
in life.271

At f i r s t glance these words can be, and o f t e n are, mistaken

to mean t h a t a w a r r i o r must d e s i r e death. This i s d e f i n i t e l y

not the i n f e r e n c e here. On the c o n t r a r y , t h i s paragraph means

t h a t the bushi' must recognize the i n e v i t a b i l i t y o f death, and

upon having done so, must be determined t h a t when the time

comes t o d i e , he w i l l be prepared to g i v e h i s l i f e i n a way

b e f i t t i n g one o f h i s c l a s s . Sun Tzu s t a t e s , i n a s i m i l a r vein,

t h a t good o f f i c e r s have no e x p e c t a t i o n o f long l i f e , but t h i s

272
is n o t because they have d i s d a i n f o r l i f e .
If a bushi c o n f r o n t s a predicament i n which there are
 59

but two c h o i c e s , l i f e o r death, he should without hesitation

273

choose death. That i s , he must be r e s o l v e d beforehand that,

i f a l i f e - o r - d e a t h s i t u a t i o n arose, he would not waver. For i n

his mind, as a l o y a l r e t a i n e r , there would be but one thought:

s e r v i c e to h i s l o r d . Even though p a r t o f t h a t s e r v i c e be death,

there i s no c h o i c e . P e s s i m i s t i c as t h i s may initially appear,

in a c t u a l i t y , f o r a m i l i t a r y man t h i s p r a c t i c a l form of reason-

ing was perhaps even a somewhat o p t i m i s t i c way of r e g a r d i n g

the s i t u a t i o n . "When as a usual p r a c t i s e one has carefully

accustomed one's mind to the f a c t o f death, i t i s p o s s i b l e to

274

die w i t h peace of mind." A d m i t t i n g the i n s t i n c t i v e human

d e s i r e to remain a l i v e , and f u r t h e r g r a n t i n g t h a t a l l people

n a t u r a l l y f e a r death, Tsunetomo reasons that i n this desire

to stay a l i v e a w a r r i o r may h e s i t a t e i n the e x e c u t i o n of h i s

duty by attempting to f i n d a way i n which to a v o i d death. Al-

though one may f a i l i n the endeavour, he must not c o n s i d e r

275

t a k i n g a roundabout route but must advance d i r e c t l y . A se-

cond of i n d e c i s i o n c o u l d prove f a t a l , i n t h a t i t might allow

the enemy to s t r i k e a l e t h a l blow. Thus by predetermining

t h a t he may d i e , and p r e p a r i n g h i m s e l f mentally f o r t h a t death,

the b u s h i demarcated the path which he was o b l i g e d to f o l l o w

while e l i m i n a t i n g a l l o t h e r courses. A Chinese commentator on

the Sun Tzu says t h a t the g e n e r a l who esteems l i f e above a l l

e l s e w i l l be overcome w i t h h e s i t a n c y , and t h i s , i n a commander
276

is a calamity. Hagakure, too, s t a t e s r e p e a t e d l y t h a t i n

o r d e r to serve h i s l o r d and avoid shame, there i s only one path

for a b u s h i to f o l l o w . The r e q u i r e d r e s o l u t i o n to accept real-

ity i s i l l u s t r a t e d a l s o i n the f o l l o w i n g account. At the time

 60

of a c e r t a i n - f e s t i v a l , " . . . t h e r e was a sudden shower. In o r d e r

not to get wet some people ran q u i c k l y down the road and o t h e r s

walked along under the eaves, y e t t h i s d i d n o t stop them from

g e t t i n g wet. Had they been r e s o l v e d to get wet from the be-

g i n n i n g , they would n o t have had unpleasant thoughts. F o r they

would have gotten wet no matter what they d i d . This i s an

277

understanding which permeates everything."

The fundamental statement b e i n g made here, then, i s simply

t h a t death i s l i f e , a concept very r e m i n i s c e n t o f Zen thought.

For by r e c o g n i z i n g death as the only v i a b l e choice,, a b u s h i ,

when c o n f r o n t e d by the enemy, i s n o t a t a l l encumbered by any

i n d e c i s i o n as to the course o f a c t i o n which he must take. Free-

dom from d i v e r s i o n a r y n o t i o n s allows him t o c o n c e n t r a t e f u l l y

upon the immediate problem a t hand, namely, the d i s p a t c h i n g o f

the enemy, o r , i n the time o f the Edo peace, the f u l f i l l m e n t

of duty. Thus, h i s chances o f l e a d i n g a commendable l i f e are

improved. Here the s i m p l i s t i c appeal o f Zen, w i t h i t s b e l i e f

2 78

t h a t d e s t i n y i s determined by f a t e , tended to h e l p erase

the f e a r o f death. Suzuki D a i s e t z expresses the Zen a t t i t u d e

toward death i n the f o l l o w i n g way, "When one i s r e s o l v e d t o

die, t h a t i s , when the thought o f death i s wiped o f f the f i e l d

of c o n s c i o u s n e s s , there a r i s e s something i n i t , o r , r a t h e r ,

apparently from the o u t s i d e , the presence o f which one has

never been aware o f , and when t h i s strange presence begins to

d i r e c t one's a c t i v i t i e s i n an i n s t i n c t u a l manner wonders are

achieved.

In emphasizing the extreme form o f s e r v i c e , the s a c r i f i c e

2 80
of one's l i f e , Tsunetomo attempts to shock the young samurai
 61

out o f t h e i r l a c k a d a i s i c a l a t t i t u d e toward s e r v i c e . He r e a l -

i z e d , o f course, t h a t i n a time o f peace there would be very

little call f o r a bushi to s a c r i f i c e h i s l i f e i n battle. Still

he was t r y i n g t o i l l u s t r a t e t h a t the same a t t i t u d e was a p p l i -

c a b l e , n o t only on the b a t t l e f i e d , b u t to any o f a samurai's

various duties. Making r e f e r e n c e to the a n c i e n t example o f

Sato Tsugunobu (1158-1185), who gave h i s l i f e i n the

2 81
service of h i s l o r d , Yoshitsune, Tsunetomo says, "More than
the k i l l i n g o f an enemy, the d i s t i n c t i o n o f a w a r r i o r i s dying
282
for the sake o f the l o r d . " T h i s s u p e r i o r q u a l i t y should be
c a r r i e d over i n t o one's d a i l y l i f e . R e f l e c t i n g an a t t i t u d e
28 3

toward l i f e and death s i m i l a r t o t h a t o f Taoism, Tsunetomo

a s s e r t s t h a t one must go about h i s d u t i e s w i t h the thought

t h a t the p h y s i c a l body i s not h i s own b u t i s r a t h e r t h a t o f a

g h o s t l y being a c t i n g i n s e r v i c e to the l o r d . When he says

2 84

that one should always be as a dead body, he means t h a t

one's body i s n o t one's own but, i n f a c t , belongs to the l o r d .

Nitobe c l a r i f i e s such t h i n k i n g even f u r t h e r w i t h the statement,

"Him who has once d i e d i n the bottom o f h i s b r e a s t , no spears

285

of Sanada nor a l l the arrows o f Tametomo can p i e r c e . "

P l a c i n g one's own b e s t i n t e r e s t s foremost and t h i n k i n g that

because one may make a mistake i n an important p o s i t i o n , i t

is b e t t e r to r e t i r e from t h a t p o s i t i o n i s the same as showing

one's back t o the enemy on the b a t t l e f i e l d . I t i s cowardly

286

and unworthy o f a b u s h i .

While the Tokugawa bakufu had banned the t r a d i t i o n o f

j u n s h i , the i n s t i t u t i o n o f seppuku came t o be e s t a b l i s h e d on

a formal basis. Although there are i n d i c a t i o n s t h a t i t was

 62

used l e s s as the years passed, there i s l i t t l e doubt t h a t i t

was an e v e r - p r e s e n t f e a t u r e of the samurai c l a s s d u r i n g the

Edo p e r i o d . The a c t of s e l f disembodiment as a form of honour-

able death f o r a samurai developed from a spontaneous commit-

2 87
ment i n the l a t e Heian p e r i o d i n t o a r e g u l a t e d and very
288

s t y l i z e d ceremony i n the Edo p e r i o d . B a s i c a l l y there were

but a few accepted and s a n c t i o n e d reasons f o r performing seppuku,

and i l l u s t r a t i o n s of each are found i n Hagakure. The three

289
mam motives were t o atone f o r a crime o r f a u l t , to demon-
290 291
s t r a t e one's s i n c e r i t y , and to draw a t t e n t i o n t o one's cause.
A d e c i s i o n t o commit s u i c i d e was not i r r e v o c a b l e , whether

t h a t d e c i s i o n was the r e s u l t of the p r i n c i p a l ' s own resolution

or of a d i r e c t i v e from the l o r d . One account i n Hagakure deals

w i t h an o f f i c i a l who used the t h r e a t o f s u i c i d e as a l e v e r to

manipulate the l o r d . Tsunetomo condemns such a c t i o n as a de-

p r e c i a t i o n o f the true meaning o f the i n s t i t u t i o n f o r the

292

reason that i t was not behaviour r o o t e d i n s e r v i c e . On the

o t h e r hand, a request by Nakano Kazumaf I^J^(1627-1699) , 2 9 3

repeated seven times, f o r the pardon o f f i v e c o n v i c t e d men,

gains h i s s y m p a t h y . 294
The case of Sagara KyubaJJ!Q %fyS-1619-
29 5

1670) i s somewhat of an o d d i t y i n t h a t he was once sentenced

and f o r g i v e n , but l a t e r committed seppuku to save h i s l o r d from

embarassment. Tsunetomo a l s o r e l a t e s advice put f o r t h when a

c e r t a i n person was c o n f r o n t e d w i t h the p o s s i b i l i t y o f b e i n g

charged w i t h an e r r o r of s e r i o u s consequences. In the f i r s t

p l a c e , even though the i n c i d e n t has o c c u r r e d , i t i s p o s s i b l e

t h a t i t w i l l be o v e r l o o k e d . I f there i s an i n v e s t i g a t i o n ,

l i e s must not be t o l d . R e l y i n g on the good r e p u t a t i o n of your

 63

a n c e s t o r s , p l e a d your case, and i f you are not f o r g i v e n even

296
a f t e r t h i s , be r e s o l v e d t o d i e .
The duty of kaishaku, a s s i s t i n g a t seppuku, i s c l e a r l y

c o n s i d e r e d by Tsunetomo to be an appointment of honour, and

proper e x e c u t i o n o f t h i s task i n d i c a t e d a b i l i t y and integrity

. 297

in a bushi. Many o f the young samurai felt a definite aver-

s i o n to the work of beheading, and thereby became the o b j e c t s

of Tsunetomo's s c o r n .

5. P e r s o n a l Appearance

The degree t o which each b u s h i accepted and internalized

the values o f the s o c i e t y as a p a r t o f h i s own e x i s t e n c e was

g e n e r a l l y v i s i b l e o n l y through the manner i n which he carried

out h i s d a i l y d u t i e s . His conduct i n emergencies, or i n the

e x e c u t i o n o f matters o f g r e a t importance, clearly indicated

his degree of i n n e r c o n v i c t i o n . The most p e r c e p t i b l e mani-

f e s t a t i o n of the i n t e r n a l d e t e r m i n a t i o n , as expressed on a

d a i l y b a s i s , was the meticulous care a samurai p a i d to h i s

personal appearance.

The b u s h i o f u n t i l about f i f t y o r s i x t y year ago

took baths, shaved t h e i r heads, scented t h e i r
h a i r , cut the n a i l s of t h e i r hands and f e e t ,
f i l e d them w i t h pumice and p o l i s h e d them beau-
t i f u l l y w i t h golden g r a s s , and without f a i l ,
arranged t h e i r appearance every morning. Of
course, no t a r n i s h became a t t a c h e d to t h e i r
weapons, dust was wiped away, and they were
p o l i s h e d and s t o r e d away. The g r e a t a t t e n t i o n
p a i d to appearance, although i t was somewhat
gaudy, was not f o r f a l s e elegance. Every day
they r e s i g n e d themselves to i n e v i t a b l e death.
In the event t h a t they d i e d i n b a t t l e w i t h an
u n s l i g h t l y p h y s i c a l appearance, the degree o f
t h e i r p r e v i o u s l a c k of d e t e r m i n a t i o n would be
r e v e a l e d , they would be scorned by t h e i r enemies,
and would be d i s g r a c e d . Therefore both o l d and
 64

young men d i d t h e i r grooming c a r e f u l l y . Although

it is troublesome and takes a l o t of time, a
bushi has no o t h e r b u s i n e s s . Nor i s there any-
thing e l s e which can i n t r u d e on h i s t i m e . ^ 2

A secondary c o n s i d e r a t i o n i n the matter o f a t t e n t i o n to

p h y s i c a l appearance i s the f a c t t h a t the h a b i t s i n s t i l l e d i n

the i n d i v i d u a l through the custom o f p e r s o n a l c l e a n l i n e s s c o u l d

be extended to o t h e r segments o f l i f e . A samurai who, by h a b i t

o r design, was s o l i c i t o u s i n the care o f h i s weapons, h i s c l o t h -

ing, and h i s body, would be f a r more l i k e l y to develop commend-

able customs r e g a r d i n g the manners, l e a r n i n g , and behaviour,

expected o f a man in his position. One must have a "modest

and s t e r n l y handsome" countenance and "be calm i n deportment

and behaviour." " I f a man has no s u b s t a n t i a l d i g n i t y and

majesty, h i s appearance, p o s t u r e , and b e a r i n g w i l l not look

good." 3 0 0
As i n w r i t i n g Chinese logographs, one must be d i s -
301

t i n c t i v e i n h i s a c t i o n s and y e t true to the accepted form.

Speech, too, i s very e s s e n t i a l to the p r e s e n t a t i o n o f

a proper impression f o r , as K a i b a r a Ekken says, words are the

c l o t h i n g of one's body and show the f e e l i n g o f a person on
302
the i n s i d e . One must always be c a r e f u l i n choosing one's
303

words as they i n d i c a t e one's mental d e t e r m i n a t i o n . A bushi

must pay a t t e n t i o n not to say anything l i g h t l y i n d a i l y life,

even as a joke, because t h i s exposes h i s true h e a r t . Tsunetomo

h i m s e l f determined when he was young t h a t he would use o n l y

304
one word i n the p l a c e o f t e n . " I t i s b e s t to appear q u i e t
305
on the s u r f a c e but to c o n t a i n s t r e n g t h underneath." But
to remain completely s i l e n t shows c o n f u s i o n and t h i s too i s
, . ,- 306
undesirable.
 65

Because the e x t e r n a l appearance i s b u t a r e f l e c t i o n o f

internal thoughts, a bushi must s t r i v e t o p u r i f y h i s mind.

When given a post, be g l a d of the assignment.

When there i s a f e e l i n g o f e x c e s s i v e p r i d e , i t
appears on one's f a c e . I have seen s e v e r a l such
people and they are d i s g r a c e f u l . 'As a u s e l e s s
person assigned to t h i s p o s t , how can I c a r r y
i t out. T h i s i s r e a l l y an anxious and d i s t r e s s -
i n g t h i n g . ' People who t h i n k i n t h i s way are
aware o f t h e i r own weakness and, even i f they
do n o t express i t i n words, show t h i s h u m i l i t y
on t h e i r f a c e s , and appear modest. "7 3u
 66

Chapter III

1. Conduct i n S o c i e t y

While c o n c e n t r a t i n g on the importance o f s e l f d i s c i p l i n e , .

Tsunetomo does not l o s e s i g h t o f the f a c t t h a t the whole must

be considered along w i t h the p a r t s . The development of •'•properly

t r a i n e d and l o y a l r e t a i n e r s was, he b e l i e v e d , f o r the purpose

of g e n e r a t i n g a harmonious s o c i e t y w i t h i n Saga han. The ideal

of harmony can, as has been mentioned, be t r a c e d back to the

d u a l i t y of the a n c i e n t yin-yang p h i l o s o p h y of China. Supple-

mentary to t h i s , Buddhist, Confucian, and Neo-Confucian ideas

30 8

s t r e s s e d the maintenance o f an o r d e r l y s o c i e t y . Through

the adherence of each person to h i s p a r t i c u l a r s t a t i o n i n life,

harmony c o u l d be achieved and continued i n d e f i n i t e l y . To

Tsunetomo, harmony a l s o meant c o o p e r a t i o n w i t h one's f e l l o w

bushi i n s e r v i n g the l o r d . He says, " I f a l l people are i n

harmony and t r u s t i n the way o f the gods, they w i l l have peace

of mind." Acknowledgment t h a t the e s s e n t i a l nature of mutual

endeavour had c o n s i d e r a b l e importance i s apparent i n Tsunetomo's

work. In a n c i e n t times, he s t a t e s , the i n t i m a c y between group

l e a d e r and the members o f h i s group l e f t no room f o r o t h e r
309
matters. "Bad f e e l i n g s between the r e t i r e d and the present
heads of the f a m i l y , between f a t h e r and son, and between e l d e r
310

and younger b r o t h e r s a r i s e from base s e l f i s h n e s s . " When

r e l a t i o n s d e t e r i o r a t e to the p o i n t where attendance a t meetings

and d i s c u s s i o n s begins to f a i l , consequences of a s e r i o u s nature

may occur. For i f peopleare not used to working t o g e t h e r they

311
w i l l be u s e l e s s i n a time of emergency. I t i s imperative,
then, f o r samurai n o t only t o maintain c o r d i a l friendships

but to t r y t o develop these i n t o i n t i m a t e and meaningful r e -

lationships. Lord Naoshige b e l i e v e d t h a t a determined samurai

312

was one who a s s o c i a t e d w i t h many f r i e n d s . In o r d e r to be-

come and remain f r i e n d l y w i t h many people, each must be ad-

dressed i n the proper way.

So the c o r r e c t use o f words i s e s s e n t i a l . Many are the

people who t a l k b o a s t f u l l y as a h a b i t but who, i n a c r i s i s ,

313
are g e n e r a l l y s p e e c h l e s s . "People who are d i s c r e e t w i t h
t h e i r mouths are w e l l employed i n p e r i o d s o f good government
314

and i n times o f bad government are n o t punished." A bushi

should n o t open up h i s h e a r t completely t o s t r a n g e r s but r a t h e r

should express h i s f e e l i n g s through h i s d a i l y conduct and

315 . . . .
speech. When t a l k i n g to f r i e n d s i n d a i l y c o n v e r s a t i o n , care
must be taken n o t to lose c o n c e n t r a t i o n on what they are s a y i n g .

I f one agrees w i t h them on every matter, duty i s b e i n g n e g l e c t e d .

Pay a t t e n t i o n and d i s c u s s anything which does not c o i n c i d e w i t h

one's own o p i n i o n , because s m a l l o v e r s i g h t s may grow i n t o large
316

errors. When t h i n g s are going w e l l , one must be doubly c a r e -

f u l to guard a g a i n s t p r i d e and extravagance, f o r a person who

317

becomes happy e a s i l y can j u s t as e a s i l y become discouraged.

A w e l l - t r a i n e d bushi uses h i s f r i e n d s and a s s o c i a t e s i n

the proper way. F r i e n d s who are c l o s e to the l o r d are o f

s p e c i a l value when a samurai needs to communicate an i d e a to

the l o r d . But unless they are completely l o y a l to the l o r d ,

they may m i s r e p r e s e n t one's i n t e n t i o n s to promote t h e i r own
318

cause. In any case, although i t may be necessary a t times

to r e q u e s t a i d from o t h e r s , t h i s should be avoided as f a r as

 68

319
p o s s i b l e l e s t i t appear to be begging. Furthermore, the

use o f f r i e n d s can only be condoned i f the e f f o r t i s made, not

320

f o r a s e l f i s h purpose, but f o r the sake o f the lord.

Another element which Tsunetomo c o n s i d e r e d c r i t i c a l r e -

garding f r i e n d s must be presented. In the course o f doing

t h i n g s one e a s i l y makes mistakes and, even more s e r i o u s l y ,

there i s a tendency to become s e l f i s h . Through c o n s u l t a t i o n

with o t h e r s , one's a c t i o n s can be tempered and solidified,

and one can become as s t a b l e as a g r e a t t r e e w i t h many r o o t s

321

r a t h e r than l i k e a twig which j u s t has been stuck i n the ground.

There i s no one from a lowly f o o t s o l d i e r to a l o r d who would

not b e n e f i t from the advice o f o t h e r s . "A person who contem-

p l a t e s h i s own mistakes as a usual r o u t i n e and searches for

322

the Way d u r i n g h i s whole l i f e , i s a t r e a s u r e to the han."

Various methods o f o b t a i n i n g knowledge are open to those who

search. The maxims o f p r e v i o u s generations can be good models

323
f o r the men o f the p r e s e n t but may be hard to understand.
In f a c t , t h a t which i s understood may be only superficial
324
knowledge. T h e r e f o r e , do not be a f r a i d t h a t by seeking
advice from others you w i l l be showing ignorance f o r , " . . . t o
325
request the advice o f others i s to surpass them." The way
of righteousness i s very d i f f i c u l t to understand by o n e s e l f
326

and may be f o l l o w e d more e a s i l y by c o n s u l t i n g o t h e r s . On

the o t h e r hand, i n c e r t a i n circumstances c o n s u l t a t i o n may be

disadvantageous, and a t those times one must be prepared to

327
use one's own judgment. In such i n s t a n c e s , " . . . i n o r d e r
to make a proper d e c i s i o n , study the Four Oaths and the s o l u -
32 8
t i o n w i l l appear n a t u r a l l y . " In a l l cases i t i s b e s t to
 69

accept any advice g l a d l y and l a t e r decide whether o r n o t to

adopt i t . F o r i f one r e f u s e s advice i t may be t h a t t h a t person

329

w i l l never again o f f e r i t .

I t i s a l s o the duty o f a bushi to advise o t h e r s . In t h i s

there must be no i n t e n t i o n o f r i d i c u l i n g o r shaming the o t h e r

party. The s o l e purpose l i e s i n b e t t e r p r e p a r i n g him f o r s e r v -
330
ice. "In the world there are many people who give moral
instructions. However, there are few people who l i s t e n g l a d l y
331

to instructions. And people who obey them are even fewer."

I t i s a p r e r e q u i s i t e t h a t the person whom one wishes to advise

be brought to the proper frame of mind so t h a t he i s l i k e "a

t h i r s t y man d r i n k i n g water." T h i s may be done by c a r e f u l l y

s t u d y i n g the r e c e p t i v e c a p a c i t y o f the person and becoming i n t i -

mate w i t h him. Use words i n a way so as to g i v e them c r e d i -

bility. Talk f i r s t about t h i n g s which he l i k e s and t h i n k about

how t o speak. Choosing the proper o p p o r t u n i t y , t a l k about one's

own f a u l t s i n such a way as to make him understand. Be sure

332

to p r a i s e h i s good p o i n t s and speak t o him from your h e a r t .

Only i n t h i s way w i l l your advice be b e l i e v e d and t r u s t e d . A l -

though i t i s g e n e r a l l y thought to be kindness only t o p o i n t o u t

the f a u l t s i n o t h e r people, t h i s does no good unless suggestions

are thoroughly d i s c u s s e d i n a p e a c e f u l manner so t h a t they will
333

be accepted. Once good advice i s adopted by the other p a r t y ,

he w i l l be b e t t e r equipped t o serve h i s l o r d .

An even more d i f f i c u l t task i s the admonishment o f one's

superiors. I f one's p o s i t i o n i s n o t o f s u f f i c i e n t s t a t u s to

advise t h a t s e n i o r d i r e c t l y , i t i s b e s t t o do so through the

334
medium o f a f r i e n d who i s c l o s e to him. I f one's a c t i o n s
 70

are motivated by l o y a l t y , i t i s not necessary t h a t the r e c i p i -

335

ent know the source o f the a d v i c e . A serious f a u l t that

o b v i o u s l y r e q u i r e s c o r r e c t i o n must be p o i n t e d o u t immediately,

f o r i f one waits f o r a b e t t e r o p p o r t u n i t y , there i s the chance

336

t h a t f u r t h e r damage w i l l accrue. Fear t h a t the l o r d might

r e t a l i a t e i f given advice when he i s i n an unfavourable mood

should n o t d e t e r your d e c i s i o n t o c o r r e c t him. I f one i s

s i n c e r e i n h i s d e t e r m i n a t i o n t o s t a t e h i s p o i n t o f view, the
337
lord w i l l listen. On the o t h e r hand, i f he i s a l o r d who
i s e x c e l l e n t i n a l l t h i n g s , advice on very p e t t y matters can
33 8
do naught b u t harm. A l l advice and admonition must be meted
out f o r the s o l e end o f l o y a l t y . When t h i s i s n o t the case,
and i t i s done only t o e x h i b i t one's own power, i t i s s e l f i s h
339

and shameful.

One f u r t h e r type o f s o c i a l r e l a t i o n s h i p i s d e a l t w i t h

i n Hagakure. Although few i n number, t h e r e a r e some a l l u s i o n s

to homosexuality. This i s n o t a p a r t i c u l a r l y s u r p r i s i n g r e -

v e l a t i o n when one r e a l i z e s the low s o c i a l p o s i t i o n o f women

and the d i s d a i n which samurai had f o r p a s s i o n a t e love between

man and woman. In f a c t , homosexuality had a long t r a d i t i o n

i n Japan, being recorded i n l i t e r a t u r e as e a r l y as the e i g h t h

century i n the Manyoshu 7^"^.%^' The p r o h i b i t i o n o f women
340
from monasteries resulted i n close p h y s i c a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s bet-

ween the monks. The t r a d i t i o n o f homosexuality thus e s t a b l i s h e d

i n the Buddhist orders continued t o t h r i v e through subsequent

341

centuries. A s i m i l a r s e t o f circumstances i n the armies

of the samurai l e d t o a corresponding p o p u l a r i t y o f homosexu-

a l i t y among b u s h i . Tsunetomo, t h e r e f o r e , does not i n t r o d u c e

any new elements, but r a t h e r tenders advice on how to s e l e c t
342

male companions p r o p e r l y . He s t r e s s e s the f a c t t h a t a f r i e n d -

s h i p must be a l a s t i n g one i n order to be a c c e p t a b l e . 3 4 3

The

s t o r y of a c l o s e r e l a t i o n s h i p between two men gives the details

of t h e i r f i r s t meeting and t e l l s of the deep s i n c e r i t y o f their

344

mutual a f f e c t i o n . Information i s a l s o r e l a t e d on how the

man Tsunetomo c o n s i d e r s to be the founder of homosexuality i n

Saga han, Hoshino Ryotetsu Iff 7$ (1607-1680), e s o t e r i c a l l y

345

passed s e c r e t i n s t r u c t i o n in' the p r a c t i s e to o t h e r s . Thus

Tsunetomo deals w i t h the matter of homosexuality w i t h no hint

of sensationalism. Instead he i n d i c a t e s only t h a t , as i n a l l

other conduct, a bushi must behave as r e q u i r e d by p r o p r i e t y .

2. Rectitude

The teachings o f the Sung s c h o l a r , Chu H s i , p r o v i d e d the

foundations f o r orthodox Neo-Confucianism which, under the

auspices o f Hayashi Razan, became the o f f i c i a l philosophy of

346

the Edo regime. Chu H s i h e l d t h a t the "great u l t i m a t e "

(t'ai-chi ^ , taikyoku i n Japanese) c o n s i s t s of p r i n c i p l e

i n i t s t o t a l i t y but takes no p h y s i c a l form. The manifestation

of the great u l t i m a t e i n v o l v e s both "principle" ( l ifff, r i _ i n

Japanese) and " m a t e r i a l f o r c e " ( c h ' i % . , k i i n Japanese). Prin-

c i p l e e x p l a i n s the r e a l i t y and u n i v e r s a l i t y o f t h i n g s w h i l e

m a t e r i a l f o r c e epitomizes the p h y s i c a l form. The apparently

d u a l i s t i c nature i s counteracted..'by the f a c t t h a t n e i t h e r l i

nor c h ' i can e x i s t without the o t h e r . The p r i n c i p l e , l i , o f

a t h i n g o r a man i s h i s very nature and, in i t s original state,

it i s p e r f e c t goodness. P h y s i c a l nature i s p r i n c i p l e mixed

 72

w i t h m a t e r i a l f o r c e and i n v o l v e s both good and e v i l . The

r e s u l t of t h i s mixture i s expressed i n f e e l i n g s . I t i s the

mind which u n i t e s human nature and human f e e l i n g s , and so i t

i s the mind which must be c u l t i v a t e d i n m o r a l i t y . This culti-

v a t i o n simply serves to b r i n g human f e e l i n g s back i n t o harmony

with l i . Combined w i t h the concept of jen^= ( j i n i n Japanese),

"humanity," the r a t i o n a l i s m of Chu H s i ' s p h i l o s o p h y dominated

all official s c h o l a r s h i p d u r i n g the Tokugawa p e r i o d i n Japan.

To Tsunetomo such s c h o l a r l y debate was, as has been

mentioned, not the concern of the b u s h i . In the p o r t i o n of

Hagakure s t u d i e d f o r t h i s paper, Tsunetomo makes no d i r e c t r e -

ference to Neo-Confuciah theory. On the o t h e r hand, most of

the f i r s t chapter of Hagakure i s devoted to the p r a c t i c a l ap-

p l i c a t i o n of Neo-Confucian p r e c e p t s to the l i f e s t y l e o f the

samurai. Tsunetomo f e l t t h a t a l l the e f f o r t o f a b u s h i , i f

not put f o r t h i n the way o f the w a r r i o r , bushido, was meritless.

A c t i o n s of samurai, i f they do not f o l l o w reason and moral

34 7

r i g h t e o u s n e s s , were regarded as shallow and u s e l e s s . The

bushi's concept o f righteousness centered around r e s p o n s i b i l i t y

to one's p o s i t i o n i n l i f e , t h a t i s , t o duty performed f o r the

r. ,. , , 348
cause o f h i s l o r d .
The term g i r i ^ f f j , i n t r o d u c e d p r e v i o u s l y as o b l i g a t i o n ,

at t h i s p o i n t needs to be e x p l a i n e d i n terms o f i t s r e l a t i o n -

ship with r e c t i t u d e . In i t s o r i g i n a l sense g i r i meant duty,

duty performed only because to do so was the way of r i , "right

reason" or " p r i n c i p l e . " The meaning changed, as time passed,

to encompass o b l i g a t o r y r e l a t i o n s h i p s between s o c i a l classes,

parents and c h i l d r e n , and master and f o l l o w e r . I t became the

a u t h o r i t y used t o compel the performance o f d u t i e s which were

then done as moral requirements and not n e c e s s a r i l y spontaneous

349

acts o f l o v e . In t h i s c o n t e x t the o b l i g a t i o n s of g i n may

be seen as the e n f o r c e r of the t r u e p r i n c i p l e , r i . The samurai

was kept on the path o f r i g h t e o u s n e s s by the more c l e a r l y r e -

c o g n i z a b l e m a n i f e s t a t i o n s of g i r i .

Adherence to the way o f r i g h t e o u s n e s s , o r proper conduct,

was expected of a l l bushi' r e g a r d l e s s o f t h e i r rank o r age.

Tsunetomo commands them to conduct themselves i n accordance

350
with t h e i r s t a t u s at a l l times. N a t u r a l l y , the h i g h e r one's
p o s i t i o n and the c l o s e r one becomes to the l o r d , the more c a r e -
351
f u l l y one must abide by reason and j u s t i c e . In a d d i t i o n t o
reprimanding those under him, a s e n i o r statesman must a d m i n i s t e r
352

the p r o v i n c e j u s t l y . He must be f i r m , but i f he i s too

strict t h i n g s cannot p r o s p e r . J u s t as f i s h grow b e t t e r i n the

shade of duckweed than they do i n c l e a r water, the people

353
f l o u r i s h when c o n t r o l s are loosened s l i g h t l y . "By p u n i s h i n g
w i t h a h e a r t o f benevolence and working w i t h a h e a r t o f com-
354
p a s s i o n , there i s no l i m i t to s t r e n g t h and r i g h t e o u s n e s s . "
Furthermore, compassion d i c t a t e s that reason may sometimes be
355
found o u t s i d e o f j u s t i c e .T h e r e f o r e , i f the proper way o f
356
government i s pursued, there w i l l be peace and harmony.
I f the people are l i v i n g i n t r a n q u i l i t y and the r e t a i n e r s f e e l

happy i n g i v i n g s e r v i c e , the government of the p r o v i n c e goes

357
well. However, i f the way o f r e c t i t u d e i s not f o l l o w e d ,
358

the r u l e r s may expect d i v i n e retribution.

Revenge, too, had long been a t r a d i t i o n a l method of

r i g h t i n g an i n j u s t i c e . The case o f the r o n i n of Ako, which

 74

has a l r e a d y been i n t r o d u c e d , i l l u s t r a t e s the degree to which

revenge, c a r r i e d out i n the name of r i g h t e o u s n e s s , was accepted

359

and praxsed. In Hagakure, Tsunetomo, w h i l e condoning and

a c t u a l l y a d v o c a t i n g the d e s i r a b i l i t y o f revenge f o r any obvious

i n j u s t i c e , expresses some r e s e r v a t i o n s as to the manner i n which

it should be achieved. A t t e n t i o n to the c r i t e r i a o f honour

and r e c t i t u d e i s e s s e n t i a l . In keeping w i t h the element o f

l o y a l t y , he i n d i c a t e s that a vendetta should be undertaken o n l y

as a p a r t o f the duty to one's l o r d .

In a d d i t i o n , revenge i s not something which should be

c a r e f u l l y planned. By c a u t i o u s l y d e l i b e r a t i n g the methods to

be used, the odds may appear overwhelming, and l o g i c may dic-

t a t e that the whole a f f a i r be f o r g o t t e n . Such a r e s u l t would

be disgraceful.
The way o f revenge i s to f l y i n t o a c t i o n immediately,
u n t i l one i s cut and k i l l e d . I f one does t h i s there
w i l l be no shame. When one t h i n k s t h a t he must de-
f e a t the enemy, he misses h i s chance.... Even i f
the enemy i s s e v e r a l thousand, i f one proceeds w i t h
the enthusiasm t h a t he w i l l k i l l many w i t h each
sweep o f h i s sword, a l l he has to do to succeed i s
stand up and face them.... N e i t h e r wisdom nor a r t
i s necessary. Those people who are s t r o n g men do
not t h i n k about v i c t o r y o r d e f e a t ; without second
thoughts they are madly i n t e n t upon death.^60
While r e c o g n i z i n g the p o p u l a r i t y o f the two most famous cases

of revenge, Tsunetomo c r i t i c i z e s the vendettas o f the r o n i n o f

Ako and of the S o g a ^ ^ b r o t h e r s .

- 3 6 1

That the men o f Ako d i d not disembowel themselves

a t Sengakuji Ik-fc^ must be regarded as a f a u l t .
In a d d i t i o n , the time from the death o f t h e i r
l o r d u n t i l the k i l l i n g o f the enemy was too l o n g .
I f d u r i n g t h a t time Lord K i r a had d i e d o f
s i c k n e s s , i t would have been most d e p l o r a b l e . . . .
The v e n d e t t a o f the Soga b r o t h e r s , too, took a
very l o n g time.... I do not, i n g e n e r a l , make
c r i t i c i s m of t h i s s o r t , but s i n c e t h i s i s a c l o s e
 75

_ 3 62
examination o f budo, I am mentioning i t .

Many years o f experience and t r a i n i n g were r e q u i r e d be-

fore the average samurai was able to d i s c e r n c l e a r l y the dif-

ference between good and e v i l . Some f a c t o r s , such as the ab-

363

horence o f "underhanded d e a l i n g s and crooked undertakings,"

were obvious, but i n more s u b t l e i n s t a n c e s problems o c c u r r e d .

I t t e i p r o v i d e d a r u l e of thumb f o r samurai to f o l l o w when i n

doubt. He s a i d t h a t any behaviour was good i f i t was accom-

364

panied by s u f f e r i n g , and e v i l i f there was no such s u f f e r i n g .

In t h i s statement he appears to be formulating a p r a c t i c a l guide

which he has d e r i v e d from the Neo-Confucian view of human nature.

The r e s o l v i n g of the c o n f l i c t between p r i n c i p l e , r i , and selfish

human d e s i r e s i s a matter only o f c l e a r i n g away these d e s i r e s so

36 5

that the i n h e r e n t goodness o f human nature w i l l prevail.

I t t e i seems to be s a y i n g t h a t a samurai must s u f f e r i n the a t -

tempt to p u r i f y h i m s e l f of s e l f i s h n e s s and f o l l o w the way of

righteousness. He must not succumb to the temptation to l e a d

an u n d i s c i p l i n e d l i f e . A b u s h i , furthermore, should maintain

unslackening e f f o r t s to serve w i t h utmost r e c t i t u d e . To break

one's c o n c e n t r a t i o n at any time r e v e a l s one's weakness, but

t h i s i s even more a p p l i c a b l e to a person s e r v i n g i n an official

post. By a c t i n g i n a r e l a x e d manner when not performing of-

ficial f u n c t i o n s , he r e v e a l s the exact amount of e f f o r t which

366

he expends on h i s d u t i e s .

Leadership gave a samurai an o p p o r t u n i t y to i n c o r p o r a t e

36 7
observe
the p r e c espitgsn s o f
o f righteousness
any s e c r e t s i in n tthe
o h ifaces
s d u t of
i e s h. i s Years
s u b o rof
d i n aex-
tes.

p e r i e n c e p l u s a c o n s c i e n t i o u s e f f o r t gave him the a b i l i t y to

Of the many examples o f l e a d e r s h i p q u a l i t i e s d e s c r i b e d i n

Hagakure, two are t y p i c a l . One, i n which a c e r t a i n official

o f f e r s to sponsor a bushi' who has once been c o n v i c t e d o f drunken

d i s o r d e r l y conduct, i l l u s t r a t e s i n s i g h t and understanding. In

t h i s instance the o f f i c i a l had s a i d , "To abandon a person who

has e r r e d o n l y once does n o t educate o t h e r s . A person who has

committed an i n d i s c r e t i o n only once i s one who has repented

368

that e r r o r . He behaves h i m s e l f w e l l , and i s u s e f u l . " The

second s t o r y d e p i c t s the o p p o s i t e q u a l i t i e s i n a l e a d e r . While

t r a v e l l i n g on a boat, a young page became rowdy and began an

argument w i t h the s h i p ' s c a p t a i n . He took out h i s sword, and

the c a p t a i n h i t him on the head with a p o l e . The l e a d e r o f

the group o f samurai t r a v e l l e r s d i d n o t h i n g , n o t even a p o l o g i z e .

Tsunetomo f e e l s t h a t the proper a c t i o n f o r the l e a d e r i n t h i s

i n s t a n c e would have been to c u t down both the c a p t a i n and the

• , . .• , 369
page w i t h h i s sword.

3. Compassion

The a l r e a d y mentioned v i r t u e o f jen /^=. ( j i n i n Japanese) ,

"humanity" o r "benevolence," was a key concept to the Confu-

. 370

c i a n i s m o f Confucius h i m s e l f , o f Mencius, and o f Chu H s i .

The scope o f i t s meaning was extremely wide, ranging from the

b a s i c goodness o f man t o the s u g g e s t i o n o f a cosmic f o r c e , de-

pending on the context and the i n t e r p r e t a t i o n . However, as

w i t h the t h e o r i e s o f r i _ and ki_, Tsunetomo does not concern him-

s e l f w i t h e x p l a n a t i o n s o f the meaning o f the term j i n . Instead

he amalgamates i t w i t h the somewhat s i m i l a r term j i h i ffiffi* / a

concept o f Buddhism. In h i s mind the two s c h o o l s o f thought,

 77

Confucianism and Buddhism, d i d not d i f f e r on the p o i n t o f love

f o r one's f e l l o w man. T h e r e f o r e , he uses both the word j i n and

the word j i h i , often interchangeably. In emphasizing benevo-

lence and compassion f o r o t h e r s , Tsunetomo f o l l o w s a tendency

371

which was apparent throughout Japan. He says, "We must t h i n k

and a c t i n a l l t h i n g s f o r the sake o f our l o r d and p a r e n t s , f o r

the sake o f o t h e r people, and f o r the sake o f our descendants.

This i s g r e a t compassion. The wisdom and courage which come

372

from compassion are fundamental elements."

When i n a p o s i t i o n o f s u p e r i o r i t y , a person must conduct

himself c a r e f u l l y f o r his. a c t i o n s are e a s i l y seen by o t h e r s .

Yet people i n h i g h posts o f t e n f o r g e t t o c a r r y out t h e i r duties

w i t h compassion. Tsunetomo s t a t e s r e p e a t e d l y t h a t f o r a supe-

r i o r t o be k i n d t o an i n f e r i o r i s an a c t worthy o f p r a i s e .

Nakano Kazuma, even though very busy, always found time to s t o p ,

on h i s way home from s e r v i c e a t the c a s t l e , at the homes o f

those of h i s group who were s i c k or who had a problem. He was

373

g r e a t l y loved f o r t h i s . Tsunetomo's f a t h e r , Shigezumi, once

s a i d , "Where h o l d i n g men i s concerned, one cannot e a t by one-

s e l f alone. I f one shares h i s meal w i t h h i s men, they can be

held." ^ 3 4
A group l e a d e r who p r a i s e s h i s men l a v i s h l y whenever

they do something commendable w i l l f i n d t h a t they w i l l there-

375

a f t e r commit t h e i r l i v e s to him w i t h o u t r e g r e t . In s p i t e

of the need f o r t h i s s o r t o f kindness, i t i s dangerous to be

l e s s than f i r m i n managing men. Even though Shigezumi was a

compassionate group l e a d e r , on one o c c a s i o n one o f h i s men made

a mistake. Shigezumi d i d not mention anything about i t u n t i l

376
the end o f the y e a r , and then he d i s c h a r g e d the man.
 78

Compassion should be h e l d f o r a l l o t h e r people regardless

of rank. One should convey sympathy to a bushi who i s having

hardships o r misfortunes and thus h e l p him i n becoming coura-

geous enough to overcome h i s d i f f i c u l t i e s . Once he does t h i s ,

377

he w i l l be able to serve the han. In t h i s way, one a l s o serves

the l o r d . I f , f o r the sake o f one's own p r i d e , one embarrasses

others i n s t e a d o f h e l p i n g them, i t i s not only unkind but a l s o

37 8

does not serve to h e l p the l o r d . When f i v e men were sentenced

to punishment, Nakano Ka.'zuma,at the r i s k o f i n c u r r i n g anger

upon h i m s e l f , begged seven times f o r t h e i r pardon u n t i l i t was

379
f i n a l l y granted. He a l s o had the r e p u t a t i o n of a man who
380

gave l i g h t e r sentences than o f f e n s e s c a l l e d f o r . He exem-

plifies the f a c t t h a t there i s no l i m i t to the amount o f l o v e

381
and a f f e c t i o n which can be d i s t r i b u t e d . I t i s therefore
not good to speak badly o f anyone, even a c r i m i n a l . Instead,
382
h e l p people who are i n d i r e s t r a i t s . To r e c e i v e help when
one i s having t r o u b l e i s wonderful, but one must not n e g l e c t
3 83
to be compassionate when times are good.

4. Courage and Honour

In c o n t r a s t to the g e n e r a l a t t i t u d e toward m i l i t a r y ac-

t i o n i n China, where there was a tendency " . . . t o disesteem

384

heroism and v i o l e n c e , not t o g l o r i f y i t , " v a l o u r was de-

finitely a c h e r i s h e d v i r t u e i n Japan. Bravery f o r the s o l e

sake of p e r s o n a l g a i n , however, was c o n s i d e r e d m e r i t l e s s and

disgraceful. Courageous s p i r i t must be c u l t i v a t e d f o r the

385

purpose of s e r v i n g the l o r d or the House. Naturally, l i f e

or death s t r u g g l e s on the b a t t l e f i e d p r o v i d e d the b e s t opportu-

nity f o r r e t a i n e r s to demonstrate p h y s i c a l courage. "An o l d

b u s h i once s a i d words t o the f o l l o w i n g e f f e c t . I f a t the time

of a r e a l b a t t l e , determined t h a t he w i l l outdo even famous

b u s h i , a man c o n t i n u o u s l y t h i n k s , morning and n i g h t , t h a t he

wants to somehow k i l l a s t r o n g enemy, h i s h e a r t w i l l become

brave, he w i l l n o t become t i r e d , and he w i l l be able to d i s p l a y

3 86

courage." Bravery on the b a t t l e f i e l d may be regarded as

c o n t r o l o f the f e a r o f death and d i s i n t e r e s t i n w o r l d l y con-

cerns. For t h a t purpose Zen Buddhism was p a r t i c u l a r l y u s e f u l

387

as a g u i d i n g d o c t r i n e .

But the Edo p e r i o d was a time o f peace, and courage had

to be e x h i b i t e d i n ways o t h e r than b a t t l e .
"In a p e r i o d o f
3 88
peace the way to d i s p l a y bravery i s by words." "This i s
the way one wants to be, n o t only a t the time o f a r e a l b a t t l e ,
389 . .
but a l s o i n normal times." Sentences such as these i n d i c a t e
t h a t Tsunetomo was attempting t o t r a n s f e r the courage r e q u i r e d

i n b a t t l e to the d a i l y d u t i e s o f a samurai. Yet, while showing

a h e r o i c frame o f mind to the whole world, a bushi must n o t

390

become c o n c e i t e d . A t no time, even as a joke o r d u r i n g

one's s l e e p may a bushi say such words as, " I t i s f r i g h t e n i n g , "

o r , "Ouch," f o r these may i n d i c a t e a subconscious weakness,

391
o r may be misunderstood by o t h e r s . Instead, one should

have the d e t e r m i n a t i o n to perform as Mitsushige d i d when he

was r e q u i r e d to read a s u t r a i n f r o n t o f a monk. A t t h a t time

he s a i d , "Everybody come and l i s t e n to me f o r i t i s d i f f i c u l t

392

to read when there are o n l y a few l i s t e n e r s . "

I t i s i n n e r confidence i n one's own a b i l i t y which pro-

v i d e s a man w i t h courage. "For both s e r v i c e and courage one

 80

393
must be determined to become completely singleminded."

As a d a i l y p r a c t i s e one must p o l i s h and expand confidence and

conviction. "Courage must be f o s t e r e d by always b e i n g determined

to surpass brave men and by t h i n k i n g t h a t one w i l l not be beaten

394

by o t h e r s . " I t i s important, n a t u r a l l y , t h a t d e t e r m i n a t i o n

does not become o b s t i n a t e n e s s . However, a bushi must not r e -

t r e a t from the way of righteousness. As mentioned e a r l i e r ,

a bushi must t r y to c o r r e c t the e r r o r s of o t h e r s , even the lord.

I f by doing so he i n c u r r e d the wrath o f h i s l o r d and was sen-

tenced to commit seppuku, i t was a f a t e he had to accept b r a v e l y .

A second form of c a s t i g a t i o n which ca bushi might be f o r c e d to

undergo c o n s i s t e d of b e i n g ordered to f o r f e i t h i s s t i p e n d and

become a r o n i n . Becoming a r o n i n was not n e c e s s a r i l y final,

and Tsunetomo expressed the o p i n i o n t h a t l i f e as a r o n i n was

395

not as uncomfortable as u s u a l l y p o r t r a y e d . Repeated s o j o u r n s ,

he says, are perhaps necessary to make a samurai s t r o n g and

courageous. In t h i s connection Katsushige s a i d , "Someone who

has not become a r o n i n seven times cannot be s a i d to be a r e a l

396
servant. F a l l down seven times and get up e i g h t . " In f a c t ,
a l l bushi "...must be r e s o l v e d from the b e g i n n i n g t h a t the
u l t i m a t e end o f s e r v i c e i s e i t h e r to become a r o n i n or to commit
397

seppuku." Thus a t r u e bushi shows h i s courage and determi-

n a t i o n to serve the House, and f e a r s n o t h i n g i n the e f f o r t to

do so. "One who i s a f r a i d o f f a i l u r e i n assigned d u t i e s i s
398

a coward." That i s , one must not worry about making a

mistake i n h i s duty, but must advance w i t h complete d e v o t i o n .

As there were no wars a t the time i n which Hagakure was w r i t t e n ,

mental courage i n one's d a i l y l i f e was f a r more p r a c t i c a l than

 81

p h y s i c a l courage shown on the b a t t l e f i e l d .

Honour, too, c o u l d b e s t be gained i n the t r a d i t i o n a l

manner of d i s p l a y i n g bravery on the b a t t l e f i e l d , but war was

not an i n d i s p e n s a b l e requirement. To a p r o p e r l y t r a i n e d b u s h i ,

honour o r i g i n a t e d i n the judgment o f one's a c t i o n s by one's

peers and s u p e r i o r s . Accomplishments deemed honourable were

d i v e r s i f i e d , but p r a i s e normally came from others f o r a c t i o n

i n accordance w i t h the accepted conduct for specific circum-

stances, whether the s i t u a t i o n e n t a i l e d p h y s i c a l b a t t l e or the

proper g r e e t i n g o f an acquaintance. G e n e r a l l y speaking, i t

was p o s s i b l e to earn honour i n two broad ways, by doing h e r o i c

or m e r i t o r i o u s deeds and by a v o i d i n g mistakes w h i l e s e r v i n g

399

unselfishly. In keeping w i t h Confucian p r i n c i p l e s , poverty

and d i s t r e s s d i d not d e p r i v e a man o f honour. Confucius him-

s e l f i s r e p o r t e d to have s a i d , "Having only coarse food to e a t ,

p l a i n water to d r i n k , and a bent arm f o r a p i l l o w , one can still

f i n d happiness therein. Riches and honour a c q u i r e d by u n r i g h t -

eous means are to me as d r i f t i n g c l o u d s . " 4 0 0

Thus, any action

done f o r the purpose o f g a i n i n g wealth or fame, even death i n

401
b a t t l e or seppuku, was not c o n s i d e r e d proper nor honourable.
When a b u s h i has honour i n h i s h e a r t , i t w i l l c e r t a i n l y
402
appear i n a time o f emergency. Yet i t i s something which
i s a l s o expressed i n d a i l y behaviour and speech. One example

of the way i n which honour can be expressed v e r b a l l y i s by

403

not speaking i l l o f a man a f t e r h i s death. Another lies

i n adherence t o t r u t h , so t h a t a man may be t r u s t e d at a l l

times. "The word o f a samurai i s f i r m e r than metal. Because

I have d e c i d e d , not the Buddha, the gods, nor anything e l s e

 82

,,404
w i l l move me.

5. Etiquette

Harmonious i n t e r a c t i o n between members o f any s o c i e t y

d i c t a t e s t h a t an accepted s e t o f r u l e s o f e t i q u e t t e be i n s t i -

t u t e d and f o l l o w e d . T h i s was p a r t i c u l a r l y v i t a l i n a f e u d a l

s o c i e t y , deeply i n f u s e d as i t was with a h i e r a r c h y i n which

even the s l i g h t e s t d i f f e r e n c e o f s o c i a l p o s i t i o n n e c e s s i t a t e d

f a m i l i a r i t y with the proper social response.

F o l l o w i n g the example s e t by the Chinese c l a s s i c , The

Book o f R i t e s ( L i Chi ^L.j>£)/ Japanese R a i k i ) a n ( j

s u c n early

Japanese documents as Shotoku T a i s h i ' s seventeen a r t i c l e con-

titution of 604, 4 0 6
much o f Hagakure i s devoted to i n d i c a t i n g ,

e i t h e r through d i r e c t i n s t r u c t i o n s o r by c i t i n g examples, the

proper conduct a p p l i c a b l e to a c e r t a i n circumstance. Knowledge

o f the course o f a c t i o n t o be taken on a s p e c i f i c o c c a s i o n was

not only commendable, b u t the l a c k o f such p r e p a r a t i o n was

considered d i s g r a c e f u l .

T h e r e f o r e , one must prepare i n advance what one would

do and say i n a given s i t u a t i o n . When i n v i t e d somewhere, a

b u s h i should p l a n from the p r e v i o u s n i g h t and make notes so

407
t h a t he could a c t smoothly. "Nothing i s as important as one's
f i r s t words." 4 0 8
When speaking, speak o n l y a f t e r c o n s i d e r i n g
409
who i s p r e s e n t and then do not say anything t h a t might
410
shame o t h e r s . V e r b o s i t y i n a b u s h i was d i s r e s p e c t a b l e .
411
Tsunetomo decided while young to use l e s s words than expected.
412

People i n h i g h p o s i t i o n s made a h a b i t o f n o t u s i n g many words,

and f o r a person o f lower rank to say too much when f a c i n g supe-

 83

413
r i o r s was "discourteous and bad mannered." Even more care

i n one's d a i l y speech was r e q u i r e d when one was very busy i n

one's p o s t , f o r to become e x c i t e d and speak h a r s h l y was the

. 414

way o f lowly servants and was not b e f i t t i n g a samurai.

A minor c o n t r a d i c t i o n appears r e g a r d i n g the proper eti-

quette f o r bowing. Tsunetomo quotes h i s father, Shigezumi, as

s a y i n g , " I t i s b e s t to bow r e s p e c t f u l l y to everyone without

distinction. People of r e c e n t times have no courtesy and

415

have become impetuous." Shigezumi maintained t h a t no one

ever broke h i s back from bowing. But Tsunetomo a l s o p r a i s e s

the c o n v i c t i o n o f another bushi who says t h a t because h i s h i p s

h u r t at the New Year from e x c e s s i v e bowing, he has decided that

416
he w i l l not bow unless he i s the r e c i p i e n t o f a bow first.
This same person had furthermore s t a t e d t h a t d u r i n g the
New Year c e l e b r a t i o n s he would completely r e f u s e to d r i n k
417
liquor. Tsunetomo c e r t a i n l y agrees t h a t l i q u o r should not
be drunk i n g r e a t volume, because when one becomes drunk one
418
w i l l not be able to a c t without mistakes. Besides, one's
419

true mental c o n v i c t i o n s may be seen by a l l . On the other

hand he s t a t e s t h a t i t i s a l s o poor manners to r e p e a t e d l y re-

* 4- * • 1 4 2 0

fuse to d r i n k .
People who r e l y on n a t u r a l i n t e l l i g e n c e w i l l make many
421 . .
mistakes i n e t i q u e t t e . S u r e l y , a t times a quick w i t i s

very important to save a p o t e n t i a l l y d i s a s t r o u s situation,

as i n the case of a samurai who was searching f o r a c r i m i n a l .

When a palanquin passed, he thought the c r i m i n a l was inside

and prevented i t s passage, but i t turned out to be someone

completely different. He saved the s i t u a t i o n by s a y i n g t h a t

 84

he thought i t was a f r i e n d whom he had l o n g been w a i t i n g f o r ,

422

and begged f o r g i v e n e s s . Tsunetomo h i m s e l f saw t h a t the

b e s t way t o c o r r e c t t h i s type o f mistake was to remember not

to r e p e a t the same e r r o r . When he was young he began to com-

p i l e a d i a r y ^ c o n t a i n i n g the mistakes t h a t he had made each

day. He soon gave i t up because there were j u s t too many.

Still, even as an a d u l t he took a few moments w h i l e he was

l y i n g i n bed every n i g h t to t h i n k over the mistakes o f the

423

day, and no day passed when there were none.

One must a l s o be c a r e f u l o f appearances. Extravagance

is to be avoided except perhaps f o r f a n s , t i s s u e paper, w r i t -

i n g paper, and bedding, which may be o f s l i g h t l y b e t t e r q u a l -

424 . . . .
lty. When r e a d i n g a l o u d , be c e r t a i n to read u s i n g the d i a -
425
phragm, and the r e s u l t s w i l l be much more e f f e c t i v e . Do
426

not yawn o r sneeze i n p u b l i c . Such g u i d e l i n e s on s m a l l

matters o f e t i q u e t t e , found throughout Hagakure, show the de-

gree o f a t t e n t i o n which any samurai must g i v e toward proper

manners. In a s t r i c t and c l o s e d f e u d a l s o c i e t y , dependent

upon obedience and r e s p e c t , adherence t o accepted norms o f

p o l i t e n e s s was essential for i t s continuation.

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Chapter IV

1. Conclusion

Tsunetomo intended t h a t Hagakure be read only by a few

s e l e c t e d r e t a i n e r s o f Saga han. Reproductions were, however,

copied by hand and Hagakure, w h i l e not a book f o r popular con-

sumption, c e r t a i n l y was not completely i n a c c e s s i b l e . Because

t h i s book was oriented toward han a f f a i r s and l o y a l t y to the

p r o v i n c i a l l o r d , i t c o u l d not be expected t h a t the regime i n

Edo would approve of i t . T h e r e f o r e , when i n 1781 Nabeshima

Harushige/jfiA $ j? (1745-1805) b u i l t the f i e f school which

f e a r of o f f e n d i n g the Edo govern-

ment prevented Hagakure from being i n c l u d e d as p a r t of the

427
curriculum. In s p i t e of t h i s Hagakure, or at l e a s t the

essence o f the thought s t a t e d t h e r e i n , served as a constant

g u i d e l i n e i n the i n s t r u c t i o n o f the young samurai o f Saga.

In a number o f p l a c e s i n the t e x t statements, i f s t u d i e d

as i n d i v i d u a l u n i t s , appear to be contradictory to o t h e r pas-

sages. Yet when taken as i n t e r r e l a t e d elements a l l d i r e c t e d

toward the same end, the differences resolve into a unity.

For Tsunetomo, the major aim i n w r i t i n g Hagakure was to instill

i n the samurai o f Saga han an intense l o y a l t y toward t h e i r

lord. He believed t h a t the e f f o r t put f o r t h i n the pursuit

of devotion to one's l o r d and one's duty would act as a cat-

a l y s t f o r other r e v e r e d i d e a l s such as f i l i a l p i e t y , rectitude,

courage, honour and etiquette.

Apart from the purpose f o r which i t was written, namely

to a s s i s t the samurai o f Saga i n a t t a i n i n g a h i g h e r l e v e l of

 86

moral e x i s t e n c e , Hagakure p r o v i d e s an a d d i t i o n a l b e n e f i t .

By c r i t i c i z i n g the a c t i o n s of the samurai o f h i s day and sug-

g e s t i n g methods o f improving behaviour, Tsunetomo i n d i c a t e s ,

and perhaps exaggerates, the moral degeneration o f the times.

C l e a r and emphatic statements c a l l f o r a r e t u r n to the Way.

P o i n t i n g out the Way through a d v i c e , examples, and admonitions,

Tsunetomo g i v e s a c e r t a i n degree o f i n s i g h t i n t o the psycho-

l o g i c a l composition of r u r a l samurai i n the e a r l y e i g h t e e n t h

century. Scorn f o r i n t e l l e c t u a l reasoning and l o g i c , as w e l l

as f o r e x c e s s i v e emphasis on a r t i s t i c p u r s u i t s , i s o f t e n v o i c e d .

The fundamental appeal of Hagakure i s to the emotions, and

there i s l i t t l e doubt t h a t Tsunetomo i s attempting t o e l i c i t

an emotional response from h i s r e a d e r s . Such an appeal r e -

f l e c t s the i n t u i t i v e elements expressed i n the Zen s e c t o f

Buddhism and the Oyomei J ! ^ ® ^ (Wang Yang-ming i n C h i n e s e ) 4 2 8

s c h o o l of Neo-Confucianism.

The concepts d e p i c t e d i n Hagakure t y p ^ i f y the p r i n c i p l e s

which the samurai of the Edo p e r i o d h e l d to be those d e s e r v i n g

of emulation. The ending of the f e u d a l age w i t h the r e t u r n

to i m p e r i a l government i n 186 8 d i d not e l i m i n a t e f e u d a l values

with one c l e a n sweep. V i r t u a l l y a l l of the a c t i v e l e a d e r s

of the R e s t o r a t i o n movement, and o f the a d m i n i s t r a t i o n upon

the i n i t i a t i o n of the new government, were samurai. Most be-

longed to the lower s t r a t a o f the samurai c l a s s o f the r u r a l

han of Satsuma, Choshu w^JI'j , Tosa and Hizen (Saga) itself.

A c t u a l l y , f o u r o f the primary l e a d e r s of the R e s t o r a t i o n were

from Hizen. These were Eto Shimpei^Xrfk f f f ^ (1834-1874) , Okuma

Shigenobu /\.$=Lf 11 (1838-1922), Soe jima Taneomi % 4f £ (1828-

 87

1905), and 5 k i T a k a t o j C ^ f j j ^ f c (1832-1899) . 4 2 9

Abolishment o f

the f o u r - c l a s s system c l e a r e d away the o f f i c i a l s t a t u s o f the

samurai but i t d i d not change the f a c t t h a t the M e i j i leaders

had been educated i n the manner o f samurai. The i n f l u e n c e o f

Hagakure and s i m i l a r works i s apparent i n the words and deeds

of many statesmen o f the p e r i o d , but i s most v i s i b l e i n the

Satsuma g e n e r a l Saigo Takamori. F o l l o w i n g very c l o s e l y the

l i n e o f thought s t a t e d i n Hagakure he s t r e s s e d , " . . . t h a t one

must f r e e h i m s e l f from a l l f e a r o f death and be c o n s t a n t l y

prepared f o r i t s advent as an i n d i s p e n s a b l e c o n d i t i o n f o r ....

selflessness." 4 3 0
Although he uses the word makoto fifa ,

" s i n c e r i t y , " as h i s key term> i t bears many s i m i l a r i t i e s to

Tsunetomo's concept o f devout l o y a l t y . In h i s a t t i t u d e r e -

garding moral t r a i n i n g , compassion, f r u g a l i t y , and e x c e s s i v e

p r i d e , Saigo shared an almost i d e n t i c a l viewpoint w i t h Tsune-

431
tomo. To the end he remained a f o l l o w e r o f the ethos o f
the r u r a l samurai as p o r t r a y e d i n Hagakure.

As c l o s e as Saigo's b e l i e f s were to those expressed i n

Hagakure, there i s no p r o o f that he had f i r s t h a n d knowledge

of the book. That i t was a v a i l a b l e and b e i n g read by o t h e r

n a t i o n a l l e a d e r s , however, i s a f a c t . Okuma Shigenobu, who

l a t e r founded Waseda ^f"4$j V£? U n i v e r s i t y , may be taken as an

illustration. He s t r o n g l y f e l t t h a t the scope of l o y a l t y as

s t r e s s e d i n Hagakure, b e i n g s o l e l y d i r e c t e d as i t was to the

l o c a l l o r d , was f a r too r e s t r i c t e d . In h i s view, the w o r l d

extended f a r beyond Tsunetomo's r e g i o n a l l i m i t a t i o n s . Yet,

432

i n s p i t e o f h i s d e p r e c i a t o r y view o f Hagakure, he had been

schooled i n i t s t r a d i t i o n . The p r o g r e s s i v e nature o f the

 88

i n s t i t u t i o n a l changes wrought by the M e i j i l e a d e r s i s w e l l

documented, and the tremendous i n f l u e n c e of western i d e a s and

technology cannot be doubted. Yet the advances o f the M e i j i

p e r i o d were f a s h i o n e d upon a base of t r a d i t i o n a l e t h i c s . Ha-

gakure , and o t h e r such works, p l a y e d a d e f i n i t i v e r o l e i n p r o -

viding the f o u n d a t i o n of m o r a l i t y upon which reforms c o u l d be

moulded.
1 * * 4 3 3

The words bushido and Yamato damashii T\%o-*$ki "the Jap-

anese s p i r i t , " came i n t o widespread use as Japan asserted

h e r s e l f m i l i t a r i l y w i t h v i c t o r i e s over China and R u s s i a . The

two words were commonly employed t o s i g n i f y i d e n t i c a l meanings

although, t e c h n i c a l l y speaking, they were d i f f e r e n t . Yamato

damashii was a term which had been used a thousand years e a r l i e r

434

to designate a s p i r i t o f l o y a l t y to the emperor and country.

Bushido, on the o t h e r hand, only became more o r l e s s s t a n d a r d i z e d

d u r i n g the f e u d a l o r g a n i z a t i o n o f the Edo p e r i o d . In i t , as

so e m p h a t i c a l l y shown i n Hagakure, l o y a l t y was directed t o the

regional lord. Such s u b t l e nuances soon l o s t t h e i r significance

as the M e i j i a d m i n i s t r a t i o n attempted t o r e d i r e c t the l o y a l t y

. - . 435

of bushido away from p r o v i n c i a l l e a d e r s and toward the emperor.

In t h i s they were s u c c e s s f u l f o r by 1907 Haga Y a i c h i

was able to say, "The s p i r i t o f bushido which has been d e v e l -

oped by the w a r r i o r c l a s s over a l o n g time now has come to be

436
d i r e c t e d s o l e l y toward the i m p e r i a l throne."
During the i n t e n s i f y i n g m i l i t a r i s m o f the p e r i o d l e a d i n g

to the P a c i f i c War, the p r e c e p t s of bushido p l a y e d an e v e r -

i n c r e a s i n g p a r t i n encouraging Japanese soldiers to maximum

437
efforts. By t h i s time no doubt remained as to the o b j e c t
 89

of l o y a l t y . One study of Hagakure, t y p i c a l o f the many pub-

l i s h e d d u r i n g the decade up to and i n c l u d i n g the Second World
438
War, d e c l a r e s t h a t i f Tsunetomo had been born i n the w o r l d
o f t h a t time, the second o f h i s Four Vows would c e r t a i n l y have
439

demanded l o y a l t y to the emperor r a t h e r than to the l o r d .

The contents of t h i s book are f u r t h e r d i s t o r t e d by the s t a t e -

ment t h a t the s p i r i t o f Hagakure d i c t a t e s t h a t a l l people,

i n c l u d i n g farmers, t e a c h e r s , s t u d e n t s , workers, merchants,

officers, and s o l d i e r s should l i v e w i t h d e t e r m i n a t i o n to serve
440

the emperor. Thus moral i n s t r u c t i o n s o r i g i n a l l y meant s o l e -

l y f o r the samurai class, were extended to cover a l l segments

o f s o c i e t y , and l o y a l t y was r e d i r e c t e d to the head o f the n a t i o n ,

In t h i s converted v e r s i o n , Hagakure formed one o f the

b a s i c elements o f the bushidp o f the P a c i f i c War. Recently,

Hagakure has been c a l l e d , "...the most i n f l u e n t i a l of a l l

441

samurai t r e a t i s e s w r i t t e n . " Indeed, i t i s u n l i k e l y that

there was any Japanese s o l d i e r who d i d n o t know a t l e a s t the

t i t l e o f Hagakure, and i n f a c t most were able to quote some

l i n e s which had been l e a r n e d by h e a r t . Perhaps the s i n g l e most

important aspect of Hagakure's c o n t e n t s , w i t h r e s p e c t to World

War I I , can be s i n g l e d out i n the a t t i t u d e toward death. Mag-

n i f i e d f a r beyond Tsunetomo's i n t e n t i o n , Hagakure became almost

442

synonymous w i t h the w i l l to d i e . Toward the end o f the war

e s p e c i a l l y , as i t became apparent t h a t there were s e r i o u s de-

f i c i e n c i e s i n the supply o f war m a t e r i a l s , the Japanese be-

l i e v e d even more deeply t h a t t h e i r u l t i m a t e s t r e n g t h l i e i n

443

t h e i r moral supremacy. A t the same time, a t t i t u d e s regard-

i n g the p u r i t y and s i n c e r i t y o f death i n s e r v i c e to the emperor
 90

became more e x p l i c i t l y expressed, both i n word and deed. The

kamikaze or shimpu ffi ^ s q u a d r o n s 4 4 4

were taught how to courage-

o u s l y face death. One young man, the p i l o t of a s u i c i d e torpedo,

quotes, i n a f a r e w e l l l e t t e r , the words of one of h i s i n s t r u c -

tors. "Never s h i r k f a c i n g death. I f i n doubt whether to live

445

or d i e , i t i s always b e t t e r to d i e . . . . " These words are

taken almost verbatim from Hagakure, and serve as an indica-

tion of i t s influence.

A f t e r Japan's c r u s h i n g d e f e a t , a l l m i l i t a r y t r a i n i n g was

n a t u r a l l y banned. Even s p o r t s such as judo and kendo were

p r o h i b i t e d because they had developed from t r a d i t i o n a l m a r t i a l

a r t s and stressed a r i g i d d i s c i p l i n e . Hagakure, too, s u f f e r e d

446

a setback. Due to i t s f e u d a l i s t i c i d e o l o g y i t no longer

had a p l a c e i n the i n d i v i d u a l i s m and p e r s o n a l independence of

the western value system/which c h a r a c t e r i z e d postwar Japan.

But the p e r v a s i v e p a t t e r n of i n t e n s e w e s t e r n i z a t i o n which Japan

experienced d u r i n g the two decades f o l l o w i n g the P a c i f i c War

has, i n r e c e n t y e a r s , cqme to be counterbalanced somewhat by

the development o f a growing r e s p e c t f o r the t r a d i t i o n s of

Japan's own history. I n d i c a t i o n s o f t h i s are apparent i n the

i n c r e a s e d enrollment i n n a t i o n a l h i s t o r y courses at the u n i -

v e r s i t i e s and i n the p o p u l a r i t y of new books d e a l i n g w i t h the

a r c h a e o l o g i c a l , h i s t o r i c a l , and c u l t u r a l aspects o f Japan.

Thus, w h i l e the i m p o r t a t i o n o f d i v e r s e c u l t u r a l and t e c h n i c a l

elements from o u t s i d e c o u n t r i e s continues unabated, the es-

tablishment o f an as y e t s u b t l y manifested chauvinism i s be-

coming more and more v i s i b l e . Though o n l y c l e a r l y p e r c e p t i -

b l e i n a s m a l l segment of the p o p u l a t i o n , s i g n s r e v e a l t h a t
 91

the number o f i n d i v i d u a l s assuming a r e a c t i o n a r y viewpoint i s

expanding. One o f the e a r l i e s t and perhaps most e a s i l y seen

d e l i n e a t o r s o f t h i s t r e n d i s the appearance and p u b l i c accept-

ance of a number o f authors whose works r e s u l t e i t h e r directly

from a study o f the h i s t o r y and customs of Japan or i n d i r e c t l y

from the b a s i c precepts and themes i n h e r e n t i n the traditional

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f Japan. The depth o f r e s e a r c h and the q u a l i t y

o f the r e s u l t ranges from s u p e r f i c i a l i t y to exhaustive accuracy.

Mishima Yukio p r o v i d e s one obvious example o f a modern

n o v e l i s t who b e l i e v e d i n and expressed the o p i n i o n t h a t r e -

v e r s i o n to t r a d i t i o n a l values w i t h a minimum concession to the

requirements of the age c o n s t i t u t e s the o n l y v a l i d cure f o r

the d e s p i c a b l e c o n d i t i o n i n t o which he thought Japan had de-

generated. His book Hagakure nyumon i s e s p e c i a l l y illustrative

o f t h i s l i n e of thought. The p o p u l a r i t y of i t s r e c e n t p u b l i c a -

t i o n serves to show the degree to which such a work can find

447
a c c e p t a b i l i t y i n p r e s e n t day Japan. In many o f Mishima's
448

o t h e r works, a l s o , the reader can sense the same s o r t of

s p i r i t t h a t moved Tsunetomo to w r i t e Hagakure. Both men

attempted i n t h e i r works to d e f l e c t the s o c i e t y away from a

course of s e l f d e s t r u c t i o n and moral degeneration. The tw.o

men a l s o shared a r e s p e c t f o r the i d e a l s of the p a s t and called

f o r a study o f h i s t o r y . Mishima r e c o g n i z e s the g r e a t importance

449

of Hagakure i n the P a c i f i c War, but d i f f e r s with i t s p r e -

mises on one main p o i n t . As i l l u s t r a t e d i n " E r e i no koe," he

b e l i e v e s t h a t a l l devotion must be to the emperor as a d e i t y

and as a n a t i o n a l l e a d e r . In a s h o r t a r t i c l e e n t i t l e d "Hagakure

to watashi," Mishima s t a t e s t h a t s i n c e the war he kept Hagakure

 92

near at hand, and each time he r e f e r r e d to i t he was emotionally

450
moved i n a way no other book c o u l d move him. He furthermore
d e c l a r e s t h a t Hagakure was not only a g r e a t i n f l u e n c e on h i s

life, i t was indeed the womb of h i s l i t e r a t u r e and the source

451

of h i s energy. Thus, through the. words o f Mishima and other

modern w r i t e r s , Hagakure has once more been r e v i v e d .

In Japanese there are a number o f e x c e l l e n t books a v a i l -

able on the s u b j e c t o f bushido i n g e n e r a l and Hagakure i n

particular. Yet almost no e x t e n s i v e work has been done i n

English. There have been only two e f f o r t s to t r a n s l a t e Hagakure,

and both of these have l i m i t e d themselves to s e l e c t e d passages

only. Beyond the b a r e s t e s s e n t i a l s n e i t h e r work provides i n -

formation regarding the h i s t o r i c a l background of the p e r i o d ,

the p e r s o n a l i t i e s o f the-men i n v o l v e d i n i t s composition, tex-

t u a l i n f o r m a t i o n , o r an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f i t s c o n t e n t s . Daisetz

Suzuki, Robert B e l l a h , and more r e c e n t l y , Ivan M o r r i s have r e -

cognized and quoted Hagakure, but u n f o r t u n a t e l y have c o n f i n e d

t h e i r e x t r a c t s to Hagakure's views on death. Surely a t e x t o f

Hagakure's importance has merited more e x t e n s i v e research.

 93

FOOTNOTES

1
The bakufu was the h e a d q u ^ e r s o f the m i l i t a r y govern-

ment under the sho gun-, "commander i n c h i e f . " The word o r i g i -

n a l l y designated the commander's t e n t , from which orders em-

anted d u r i n g f i e l d operations. K o j i e n j^&f'TtL, ed. Shinmura

I z u r u l ^ - r t ^ (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten % , 1969), pp. 1776-77.

Although they had e a r l i e r o r i g i n s , d u r i n g the Tokugawa

period (1600-186 8), daimyo, " r e g i o n a l l o r d s , " were d i r e c t r e -

t a i n e r s o f the shogun who c o n t r o l l e d t e r r i t o r y which produced

more than 10,000 koku ^ of r i c e . (1 koku = 4.96 bushels).

K o j i e n , p. 1831.

The general term a p p l i e d to the t e r r i t o r y , the adminis-

t r a t i o n , and the a d m i n i s t r a t i v e o f f i c i a l s under the c o n t r o l of

a daimyo d u r i n g the Tokugawa p e r i o d . K o j i e n , p. 1831.

The f e u d a l p o l i t i c a l system of the Tokugawa i n which

the c e n t r a l bakufu e x i s t e d as the supreme a u t h o r i t y and de-

l e g a t e d daimyo to c o l l e c t taxes from the peasants i n r e t u r n

f o r m i l i t a r y obedience. K o j i e n , p. 1776.

The f o u r major d i v i s i o n s o f s o c i e t y under the Tokugawa

regime were samurai^^f- ( s h i -jT ) , peasants (no.Jt,) , a r t i s a n s

(ko_;£ ) , and merchants (sho ) .

G.B. Sansom, Japan: A Short C u l t u r a l H i s t o r y (London:

The Cresset Press, 1931), pp. 511-12.

 94

Although the term bushi may a t times be synonymous with

samurai, the connotation of w a r r i o r or m i l i t a r y personnel re-

mained while the meaning o f samurai became broader as the

samurai expanded i n t o the f i e l d of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . See Kojien,

p. 1935.

The characters of Hagakure mean "hidden" and "leaves"

^ o r , "hidden i n the l e a v e s . " The t i t l e was most l i k e l y de-

s i g n a t e d i n r e c o g n i t i o n o f the f o r e s t e d area of Yamamoto Tsune-

tomo' s p l a c e of r e t i r e m e n t , where the book was written. It

may a l s o i n d i c a t e , as Suzuki suggests, t h a t i t was a virtue

for a samurai to be reserved i n h i s demeanor. See Suzuki

D a i s e t z , Zen and Japanese C u l t u r e (New York: Pantheon Books

Inc., 1959), p. 70. Yet again, Iwado s t a t e s t h a t the title

came from a poem by the monk Saigyo *5> i'f (1118-1190). See

Iwado Tamotsu "Hagakure Bushido," C u l t u r a l Nippon, V I I ,

3 (1939), p. 34.

An e d i t i o n i n the modern Japanese language has been

i n c l u d e d i n a s e r i e s o f the fifty g r e a t books o f Japan. Nara-

moto T a t s u y a ^ / M * J&>&, Hagakure ^ $2, Nihon no meicho B % *)

fo% , V o l . 17 (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha*f 7 v £ $ ^ t , 1967).

The Nabeshima or Saga han, a l s o known as H i z e n ^ ^ j pro-

v i n c e , was l o c a t e d i n the northwest p a r t of Kyushu. During the

l a t e stages 3 o f the Sengoku p e r i o d the area was governed by

the Ryuzoji " C i ^ r f - c l a n . Nabeshima N a o s h i g e ^ f j % (1538-1618)

served under Ryuzoji T a k a n o b u ( 1 5 2 9 - 1 5 8 4 ) , and assumed

c o n t r o l of the han upon h i s l o r d ' s death. The han was formally

 95

p l a c e d i n h i s charge by Tokugawa Ieyasu^») J^^^(1543-1616) i n

l

1601 w i t h a r i c e p r o d u c t i o n value of 357,000 koku. See Nara-

moto, Hagakure, p. 447.

11

The modern p r e f e c t u r e i n Kyushu occupying the same

general r e g i o n as the f e u d a l Nabeshima han.

One example d e a l s w i t h the Benzaigatake-^"border

d i s p u t e between Hizen and C h i k u z e n ^ ^ ^ j i n 16 92. See K u r i h a r a

Arano ( K o y a ) ^ ^ %^j> , Kochu hagakure ffifjjffffi^Tokyo: Naigai

Shobo J ^ k f " " ^ , 1940), p. 81 (# 99) and p. 571 (# 685). See

a l s o Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 452. Throughout t h i s paper, when-

ever d i r e c t r e f e r e n c e i s b e i n g made to the t e x t of Hagakure,

the source used w i l l be K u r i h a r a ' s Kochu hagakure. In t h i s

thorough commentary on Hagakure, K u r i h a r a has numbered the

passages c o n s e c u t i v e l y from 1 to 1353. These same numbers

are o f t e n employed by l a t e r s c h o l a r s when r e f e r r i n g to the

corresponding passages although i n some books no numbers are

used a t a l l , and i n others the passages are arranged i n s l i g h t -

ly d i f f e r e n t order. T h e r e f o r e , a l l t e x t u a l notes i n t h i s

paper w i l l c i t e the page number f o l l o w e d by the designated

passage number i n p a r e n t h e s i s f o r the sake o f convenience i n

l o c a t i n g the passage i n question. Commentaries o t h e r than

K u r i h a r a ' s work w i l l be used as sources o f secondary m a t e r i a l

only.

13

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 73-74 (# 86), f o r i n s t a n c e ,

d e s c r i b e s the proper methods f o r t r a i n i n g a c h i l d and so p r o -

v i d e s a glimpse i n t o household a c t i v i t y . The problems o f d e a l -

ing with a d i f f i c u l t f a t h e r - i n - l a w are a l s o recorded. Ibid.,

pp. 57-58 (# 59).

14
I b i d . , p. 75 (#88).

15
I b i d . , pp. 62-63 (#63).

16
I b i d . , p. 66 (#66).

17

I b i d . , p. 82 (# 100). Seppuku o r hara k i r i , suicide

through s e l f disembowlment, w i l l be d e a l t w i t h more thoroughly

l a t e r i n t h i s paper. See K o j i e n , p. 1251.

18

For example, the d u t i e s o f a metsuke jflffi / " i n s p e c t o r ,

are c l e a r l y d e l i n e a t e d . K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 85-86

(# 110). See a l s o i b i d . , pp. 70-71 (#78) and pp. 62-63 (# 63)

f o r o t h e r examples o f the d u t i e s o f o f f i c i a l s .

19

Bushido, "the way o f the w a r r i o r , " r e f e r s t o a code

of e t h i c s which developed w i t h i n the bushi class. I t began

to evolve d u r i n g the middle ages and was f i r m l y e s t a b l i s h e d

by the Edo p e r i o d . Confucianism p l a y e d a strong r o l e i n i n -

fluencing i t s ideals of loyalty, s e l f s a c r i f i c e , fidelity,

i n t e g r i t y , courtesy, modesty, f r u g a l i t y , honour, and l o v e .

Yamaga Soko (1622-1685) was one of the f i r s t scholars

to expound on bushido a t l e n g t h . See "Shido i n Yamaga

Soko bunshu jL.Jt-jff'^T> e d <

Tsukamoto Tetsuzo f^Zsfa ^» =-
(Tokyo: Yuhodo Bunko /*j fifj %.jjf-, 1930), pp. 45-207. Sansom

says t h a t the term bushido i s comparatively r e c e n t and was n o t

i n wide use even i n the e i g h t e e n t h century. See Sansom, Japan

A Short C u l t u r a l H i s t o r y , p. 487. Most modern h i s t o r i a n s , how

 97

ever, make no mention o f t h i s p o i n t a t a l l . The p r e v a l e n t

use o f the term i n Hagakure i n d i c a t e s t h a t i t was, i n f a c t ,

i n e x i s t e n c e and use i n the e a r l y p a r t of the e i g h t e e n t h century.

As y e t the b e s t work on the s u b j e c t o f bushido i n E n g l i s h i s

Nitobe Inazo ^iiLf' Bushido : The Soul o f Japan (1905;

rpt. Tokyo: K e n k y u s h a ^ , 1935). F o r two e x c e l l e n t works

i n Japanese, see Morikawa Tetsuro $%) \ x

5. , Nihon bushido s h i

(Tokyo: Nihon Bungei sha EJ Jtj&Jftj 1972), and

F u j i Naomoto $J$f , Buke j i d a i no shakai s e i s h i n ^ ^

M^t^flf (Tokyo: Sogensha^'l&jft- ' 1 9 6 7

) / PP- 3-316.
20
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 65-66 (# 65).

21
A c c o r d i n g t o the author o f Hagakure, a l l o t h e r regions

of Japan were a t that time i n f e r i o r t o the Nabeshima han i n

the s e r v i c e and a t t i t u d e o f i t s r e t a i n e r s . I b i d . , pp. 75-76

(# 89) and p. 86 (# 111).

22
I b i d . , p. 88 (# 114). See a l s o Suzuki, p. 70.
23
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 83-84 (#105).

24

I b i d . , pp. 4-5 (# 1 ) . The wish to be reborn seven

times i n order t o serve the f i e f i s very r e m i n i s c e n t o f a

statement g e n e r a l l y a t t r i b u t e d to Kusunoki Masashige jEjfy

(1294-1336), b u t a c t u a l l y made by h i s b r o t h e r , Kusunoki Masasue

^ ^ £ ? f r (died 1336) i n 1336. Ivan M o r r i s , The N o b i l i t y o f

F a i l u r e : T r a g i c Heroes i n the H i s t o r y o f Japan (New York: H o l t

Reinehart and Winston, 1975) , p. 133. The o r i g i n a l statement

can be found i n the T a i h e i k i Nihon koten bungaku t a i -

 98

kei % ' e d
« G o t
° Tanji^j^fblWd Kamada K i -

saburo (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1960), I I , 159.

The phrase s h i c h i s h o hokoku -t^^_^$J%^, "to serve the Emperor

f o r seven l i v e s , " l a t e r became a famous p a t r i o t i c slogan.

See M o r r i s , p. 386.

25

Samuel B. G r i f f i t h , t r a n s . , Sun Tzu: The A r t o f War

(Oxford: Claredon P r e s s , 1963).

26

N i c c o l o M i c h i a v e l l i , The A r t o f War, trans. Ellis

Farneworth (New York: Bobbs M e r r i l l Company, 1965).

27

K a r l von C l a u s e w i t z , On War, t r a n s . J . J . Graham (London:

Routledge and K. P a u l , 1968).

28

Wm. Theodore de Bary, W i n g - t s i t Chan, and Burton Watson,

Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , ed. Wm. Theodore de Bary (New

York and London: Columbia U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1970), I , 16-17.

29
I b i d . , I , 455-57.
30
Sansom, Japan,: A Short C u l t u r a l H i s t o r y , pp. 49 3-96.
31

Ryusaku Tsunoda, Wm. Theodore de Bary, and Donald

Keene, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , ed. Wm. Theodore de

Bary (New York and London: Columbia U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1969),

I, 342-43.

32

The Chinese p r i n c i p l e s o f the cosmic f o r c e s , y i n and

yang, are apparent even i n the e a r l i e s t Japanese r e c o r d s .

Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 56-59. The p r e -

faces o f both the K O j i k i Jb^tZj (712) and the Nihon s h o k i

 99

(or Nihongi Q^£to / 720) i n t r o d u c e these p r i n c i p l e s .

See B a s i l H a l l Chamberlain, K o j i k i o r Records o f A n c i e n t Mat-

ters (Kobe: J.L. Thompson and Co., 1932), p. 37; Donald L.

Phillippi, Kojiki (Tokyo: U n i v e r s i t y o f Tokyo P r e s s , 1968),

p. 37; and W.G. Aston, Nihongi.: C h r o n i c l e s o f Japan From The

E a r l i e s t Times To A.D. 69 7 (London: George A l l e n and Unwin

L t d . , 1956), p. 1.

33
De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 26 8.
34
Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I . 135.

35
I b i d . , I , 226.

36
This aspect .is a t t e s t e d to even by the o r i g i n myths i n

which the gods have a d e f i n i t e order o f h i e r a r c h y . Ibid.,

I , 14-15.

37

For example, k n e e l i n g with both hands on the ground

was a s i g n of r e s p e c t to a s u p e r i o r even i n the t h i r d century.

Reported i n an o f f i c i a l h i s t o r y o f Han China i n 297 A.D. Ibid.,

I, 5.
38

For accounts o f t h i s r i s e to power see George Sansom,

A H i s t o r y Of Japan (19 58; r p t . Tokyo: Charles E. T u t t l e Company,

1974), I, 234-38 and 312-18; John Whitney H a l l , Japan; From

P r e h i s t o r y to Modern Times (Tokyo: Charles E. T u t t l e Company,

1971), pp. 78-79; and H. Paul V a r l e y , Samurai (New York: D e l l

P u b l i s h i n g Co., 1970), pp. 47-68. For a more complete account

see Takeuchi B±zo^jP\ #Cc:, Bushi no to jo "fy^/i- 0 ^ , Nihon

no r e k i s h i $ ^ $L , V o l . 6 (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1965).

 100

39
H. P a u l V a r l e y , The Ohin War (New York: Columbia

University P r e s s , 1967).

40

F o l l o w i n g the p a t t e r n o f expansion s e t by h i s prede-

c e s s o r s , Oda N o b u n a g a M ^ ® {T^L (1534-15 83) and Toyotomi Hide-

yoshi O (1536-1598), Ieyasu extended h i s i n f l u e n c e over

the g r e a t e r p a r t o f Japan w i t h a v i c t o r y i n the b a t t l e o f

Sekigahara^fj4YV|t xn
1600. The events l e a d i n g to t h i s decisive

b a t t l e are covered i n d e t a i l i n Hayashiya Tatsusaburo

Tenka i t t 6 ~f\^ ^"&1L> > Nihon no r e k i s h i , V o l . 12 (Tokyo: Chuo

Koronsha, 1966) .

In the Genna Embu&J$o {l^jft^, the summer and w i n t e r

campaigns a g a i n s t Osaka C a s t l e , a c o a l i t i o n o f s u p p o r t e r s o f

Hideyoshi's h e i r , H i d e y o r i ^ * , was d e c i s i v e l y beaten and

H i d e y o r i was k i l l e d . T s u j i T a t s u y a i j ^ ^ t " ^ , Edo k a i f u ; x J~f^^ ,

Nihon no r e k i s h i , V o l . 13 (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1973), pp.

311-12.

42
T s u j i , Edo k a i f u , pp. 392-418.

43
Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 385-86.

44
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 41 (# "37) .

45
I b i d . , pp. 64-65 (# 64).

46
I b i d . , p. 17 (# 2)

47
I b i d . , p. 24 (# 11).

48
I b i d . , p. 40 (# 36).
 101

49
"Seidan," i n Ogyu S o r a i mjL^iJUfc Nihon no s h i s o taikei

^ %&?v^XJfw e d
« T s u j i Tatsuya (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1973),

pp. 444-45. This passage i s t r a n s l a t e d i n Tsunoda, Sources o f

Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 420-21.

50

"Sundai zatsuwa" i n Me Ik a z u i h i t s u shu ^ % rS' % , ed.

Tsukamoto Tetsuzo (Tokyo: Yuhodo Bunko, 1930), I , 109-26.

For as E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n see George Wm. Knox, "A Japanese

P h i l o s o p h e r , " T r a n s a c t i o n s o f the A s i a t i c S o c i e t y o f Japan,

XX (1893), 1-133. Pages 81-91 d e a l w i t h Muro s views r e g a r d i n g

1

the extravagance o f s o c i e t y . For a r e p r i n t o f p a r t o f t h i s

p a r t i c u l a r s e c t i o n see Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n ,

I , 431-33.

51 o > , ,

"Yamatozokukun" i n Ekken jukun ^jr Iffi *f p'L ed. Tsukamoto

Tetsuzo (Tokyo: Yuhodo Bunko, 19 30) , or i n Ekken z e n s h u 4 f f | / ^ ^ ,

ed. Ekken K a i (Tokyo: Ekken Zenshu Kanko

1881), I I I , 44-164. For an e d i t i o n i n modern Japanese, see

Matsuda Michio./J2v &j^jfyr K a i b a r a Ekken, Nihon no meicho, V o l .

14 (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1969). F o r a d i s c u s s i o n o f Ekken's

works i n r e l a t i o n to bushi e t h i c s see Sakurai S h o t a r o - ^ ^ Jf-fsf,^ ,

Meiyo to c h i joku i (Tokyo: Hosei Daigaku Shuppan Kyoku
S f s ^ ^ M J l ' 1 9 7 1 )
' '
PP
-'
104 30

52

Tsunoda, Sources of Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 377. During

the K y o h o | ! ^ e r a (1716-1736), Tokugawa Yoshimune $j^>)J (1684-

1751) i n s t i t u t e d reforms, known as the Kyoho Reforms, i n an

attempt to overcome the f i n a n c i a l and s o c i a l problems o f the

country. These were o n l y p a r t i a l l y s u c c e s s f u l . See Sansom,

 102

A H i s t o r y o f Japan, I I I / 15.5-66.

53

A d e t a i l e d a n a l y s i s and t r a n s l a t i o n of t h i s document

i s C a r l S t e e n s t r u p , "The Imagawa L e t t e r , " Monumenta N i p p o n i c a ,

XXVIII, 3 (1973), 295-316. See examples o f t h i s and o t h e r

such documents i n Yoshida Y u t a k a ^ l S ^ / Buke no kakun "if\ ^

(Tokyo: Tokuma S h o t e n f ^ ^ ^ / l - , 1972).
54,

Ishikawa Ken, "On Kaibara's Thought and Reasoning as

Expressed i n His Yamatozokukun," C u l t u r a l Nippon, V I I , 1 (1939) ,

24.

55
Steenstrup, p. 296.

E n t i t l e d Giko m e i r e i £\ . See E r n e s t W. Clement,

" I n s t r u c t i o n s of a Mito P r i n c e t o His R e t a i n e r s , " T r a n s a c t i o n s

o f the A s i a t i c S o c i e t y of Japan, XXVI (1898) , 115-53.

57

D a i d o j i Yuzan, Budo shoshin shu i n Yamaga Soko shu -

D a i d o j i Yuzan shu, Dai Nihon s h i s o zenshu j\ 6 j& J l ^ T ^ ^ J j ^ / ed.

Uemura K a t s u y a j l ^ r ^ $ ^ (Tokyo: Senshinsha 1932) , pp.

2 31-334. For a modern commentary on t h i s book see D a i d o j i

Yuzan, Budo shoshin shu, ed. Yoshida Yutaka (Tokyo: Tokuma

Shoten, 1971).

58

A comparison o f the a t t i t u d e toward death i n these two

books i s summarized i n Suzuki, pp. 71-72.

59

The death or d i s i n h e r i t a n c e o f a l o r d , punishment, or

p e r s o n a l c h o i c e c o u l d l e a v e a samurai i n a p o s i t i o n i n which

he owed a l l e g i a n c e to no p a r t i c u l a r l o r d . In such a case he

 103

was a r o n i n o r masterless samurai. See K o j i e n , p-. 2355. The

account o f the vendetta o f the f o r t y seven r o n i n o f Ako i s

w e l l known, and may be found i n a number of E n g l i s h versions.

See, f o r example, Shioya Sakae, Chushingura: An E x p o s i t i o n

(Tokyo: The Hokuseido P r e s s , 1949). For a more r e c e n t trans-

l a t i o n see Donald Keene, t r a n s . , Chushingura;. Treasury of

L o y a l Retainers (New York and London: Columbia U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s ,

1971).

"Goban t a i h e i k i , " i n Chikamatsu j o r u r l shu jjfjfex ffi^jj^ %

ed. Tsukamoto Tetsuzo (Tokyo: Yuhodo Bunko, 1930), I I , 85-109.

61

A form of drama performed by puppets and accompanied

by b a l l a d music. K o j i e n , p. 1982. See Donald Keene, Bunraku,

The Puppet T h r e a t r e o f Japan (Tokyo and Palo A l t o : Kodansha

I n t e r n a t i o n a l , 1965),.

62

A dramatic performance which became p o p u l a r w i t h the

common people a t the end o f the seventeenth century. The

p l a y u s u a l l y i n v o l v e d h i s t o r i c a l events o r s o c i a l situations

which happened before or d u r i n g the Edo p e r i o d . Stage sets

are used, and performances are always accompanied by Japanese

music. There i s a l s o an element o f dancing. See K o j i e n , p.

445. See a l s o T o i t a Y a s u j i , Kabuki: The Popular T h e a t e r ,

t r a n s . , Don Kenny (New York and Tokyo: W a l k e r / W e a t h e r h i l l ,

1970), and Zoe K i n c a i d , Kabuki: The Popular Stage o f Japan

(New York: Benjamin Blom, 1965).

63

Donald Keene, t r a n s . , Major P l a y s o f Chikamatsu (New

York and London: Columbia U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1961), pp. 33-35.

 104

See a l s o Sansom, J a p a n : A Short C u l t u r a l H i s t o r y , pp. 476-80,

and Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 436. For a

d i s c u s s i o n on h i s c o n f l i c t between g i r i - and n i h j o see Minamoto

Ryoen £ ^ f , G i r l to nih j o ^ ^ ) t A'i^"

v
(Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha,

1969), pp. 98-153.

64

H. Paul V a r l e y , Japanese C u l t u r e : A Short H i s t o r y

(New York and Washington: Praeger P u b l i s h e r s , 1973), pp. 123-26.

65

Ihara Saikaku, "Buke g i r i monogatari, 11

i n Saikaku zenshu

>&5tfc/fe4\ ' ed. Ohashi Taro Tv^jS (Tokyo: Teikoku Bunko np7)£)

J\ffi, 1894), pp. 361-454. See Minamoto, pp. 70-97 f o r a d i s -

c u s s i o n o f the- g i r i i n t h i s s t o r y , and f o r a s h o r t comparison

to Hagakure see Iwado, p. 91.

66

I h a r a Saikaku, "Budo d e n r a i k i , " i n Saikaku zenshu, ed.

Ohashi Taro (Tokyo: Teikoku Bunko, 1894), pp. 729-910. For a

d i s c u s s i o n o f b u s h i p r o p r i e t y i n S a i k a k u s works see S a k u r a i ,
1

Meiyo t o c h i j o k u , pp. 333-36.

67

An emphasis on h i s t o r y i s a mark o f orthodox Neo-Con-

fucianism. Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese H i s t o r y , I , 384. I t

is a l s o a common element i n o t h e r Chinese p h i l o s o p h i e s . See

Hajime Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n P e o p l e s : I n d i a ,

China, T i b e t , Japan, ed. P h i l i p P. Wiener (Honolulu: E a s t West

Center P r e s s , 1964), pp. 204-16.

68

For
I b i d .examples see
, p. 2 (# 1)Ku
.r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 1 (# 1 ) ,
p. 39 (# 35), p. 51 (# 52), and pp. 65-66 (# 65).

69
 105

70

Thomas C. Smith, The A g r a r i a n O r i g i n s o f Modern Japan

( S t a n f o r d : S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1959), p. 204 and Sansom,

Japan ; A S h o r t C u l t u r a l H i s t o r y , p. 505.

71

L i t e r a l l y the " f l o a t i n g world," t h i s s t y l e o f a r t de-

p i c t e d the mundane o r genre aspects o f l i f e . The b e s t known

medium f o r e x p r e s s i o n was the woodblock print. See K o j i e n ,

p. 178; Frank A. Turk, The P r i n t s o f Japan (Worcester and London

Arco P u b l i c a t i o n s , 1966); and Takahashi S e i i c h i r o , Traditional

Woodblock P r i n t s o f Japan, t r a n s . Richard Stanley-Baker (New

York and Tokyo: W e a t h e r h i l l / H e i b o n s h a , 1972).

72

Sankin k o t a i was the bakufu r e g u l a t i o n which required

t h a t each daimyo spend p a r t o f each y e a r s e r v i n g the shogun i n

Edo. I t was e n f o r c e d by the r e t e n t i o n o f hostages i n Edo.

K o j i e n , p. 916. See Toshio George T s u k a h i r a , "The Sankin K o t a i

System o f Tokugawa Japan, 1600-1868," D i s s . Harvard 1951, o r

Toshio G. T s u k a h i r a , Feudal C o n t r o l i n Tokugawa Japan, The

Sankin K o t a i System (Cambridge: Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1966).

73
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 50 (# 50).
74
I b i d . , p. 125 (#' 198) .
75
I b i d . , p. 3 (# 1)
76

Leon M. Zolbrod, Takizawa Bakin (New York: Twayne Pub-

l i s h e r s , 1967), p. 120.

77

J u n s h i , a l s o known as o i b a r a jjj_ff%or t s u i f uku ^ flffi^

was the custom o f f o l l o w i n g one's l o r d i n death by committing

 106

suicide. Kojien-, p. 10 75. As i t was w a s t e f u l o f t r a i n e d men

and d i s t r u p t i v e t o the c o n t i n u i t y o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , i t was

f o r b i d d e n by an e d i c t o f the bakufu i n 166 3. I t had been p r o -

h i b i t e d even e a r l i e r i n Saga han by Nabeshima M i t s u s h i g e ^iffj J*-j

(1632-1700) i n 1661. See Sagara Toru jflj ^ , KOyo

gunk an : g o r l n s h o : hagakure shu ^f^/^'jffgL' 3 L $ ^ £ • ^fj^-jj^

(Tokyo: Chikuma Shobo ^H.J^'^M ' 1 9 6 9
) > P« 2 8 6
« F o r
more de-

t a i l e d i n f o r m a t i o n on j u n s h i , see Furukawa T e s s h i "^T^j yL^ ,

J u n s h i : H i g e k i no i s e k i ^ SJ^_ >
/
J *) (T° Y° k :
Jimbutsu

Oraisha J\fty ^JL , 1967) ; Furukawa T e s s h i , Nihon r i n r i s h i s o

no de-flto Q^ ^?t£ I^vf ^ {% iftj (Tokyo: sSgensha, 1965), pp.
86-154; and Furukawa T e s s h i , " J u n s h i , " i n Edo j i d a i b u s h i no

seikatsu j* ^ S, f) jii^ , ed. S h i n j i Yoshimoto ^ j f T i

(Tokyo: Yuzankaku Shuppan jfe. ]^^ 1 9 6 6

) ' PP« 249-58. Jun-

shi i s a l s o the theme of Mori OgaiJ^i^^^f) Abe i c h i z o k u p£j^"p^^j^

in Mori Ogai zenshu ^ $$j4\-Jt^ , V o l . 3 (Tokyo: Chikuma Shobo,
1959), pp. 111-34.

78
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 87 (# 113).
79

Tsunetomo uses the term kokugaku to i n d i c a t e a study

of the h i s t o r y o f Saga han. I t i s not to be mistaken, t h e r e -

f o r e , f o r the kokugaku fej^which was d e s c r i b e d by such n a t i o n -

alistic t h i n k e r s as Motoori Norinaga 4v^1»C'^--( 730-1801) .

y
1
The

l a t t e r c e n t e r e d around the study o f e a r l y Japanese literature

and developed i n t o a consciousness o f n a t i o n a l p o l i t y . See

Tsunoda, Sources of Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I I , 1-35; Masaharu

A n e s a k i , H i s t o r y o f Japanese R e l i g i o n (Rutland, Vt. and Tokyo:

Charles E. T u t t l e , 196 3), p. 30 8; and Motoori Norinaga zenshu

 107

•^/^T^-Sj^^ed. Ono S u s u m u A ^ ^ and Okubo Tadashi X A "ff;

(Tokyo: Chikuma Shobo, 1968).

Kusunoki Masashige. A powerful g e n e r a l from Kawachi^J ll/sj ,

who l o y a l y supported Emperor Godaigo j j ^ ^ j | _ ^ ^ ( r . 1318-1336) i n

the Kemmu^L^^Restoration o f 1334. He d i e d i n the defense o f the

Court a g a i n s t Ashikaga T a k a u j i Jl_% }(1305-1358) {

. See M o r r i s ,

pp. 106-42.
8 1
. >.

Takeda Shingen ^ T# % \ (1521-1573). Became l o r d o f

Kai p r o v i n c e i n 1541 and through m i l i t a r y a b i l i t y expanded

his territory. Considered one of the g r e a t generals o f Japanese

h i s t o r y , he d i e d w h i l e b e s i e g i n g the f o r c e s o f Oda Nobunaga.

82
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 2 (# 1 ) .
83
May a l s o be pronounced Yamamoto Jinuemon Jocho.

84

Saga ken s h i ^ ^ 4 $ ^ ' e d

« S a
g a Ken S h i Hensan Iinkai

>fc|[i^^/||^^|-^(Saga: Saga ken, 1968), I I , 185.

85

Examples o f such s t o r i e s may be found i n K u r i h a r a ,

Kochu hagakure, p. 72 (# 84), pp. 80-81 (# 98), p. 106 (# 163),

and pp. 119-20 (# 189).

86

T h i s b i o g r a p h i c a l i n f o r m a t i o n was taken from Saga ken

shi, I I , 185; Naramoto, Hagakure, pp. 19-2 5; K u r i h a r a , Kochu

hagakure, pp. 3 0-33; and K u r i h a r a Arano (Koya), Hagakure no

s h i n z u i l|[ *) %f ^ (Saga: Hagakure S e i s h i n Fukyu K a i |j^^)\J5

87
K^u r i,h a1935) , pp. hagakure,
r a , Kochu 66-72 p. 93 (# 12 9).
 108

88
Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 20.

89 _.. _
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 93 (# 129).

90
I b i d . , p. 95 (# 132) .

91
I b i d . , p. 541 (#.742).

92
I b i d . , pp. 59-60 (# 61) .

93
I b i d . , p. 101 (# 146) .

94

I b i d . , pp. 28-29 (# 17). The duty o f a kaishaku was

to a s s i s t i n the r i t u a l o f seppuku by beheading the samurai

committing s u i c i d e . I t demanded complete composure as w e l l

as e x c e l l e n t swordsmanship.

95

The manner i n which he handled h i m s e l f i n the i n v e s t i -

gation of a certain f i r e , f o r example. I b i d . , p. 35 (# 29).

96
Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 20.
97
Saga ken s h i , I I , 187, and Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 21.
98
I b i d . , p. 21.

99
I b i d . , p. 22 .

100

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 85 (#M08)'and p. 123

(# 195).

101
I b i d . , p. 85 (# 108) .
102
I b i d . , p. 123 (# 195).
 109

103
Saga ken shi-, I I , 187.
;

104

Tannen Osho was the e l e v e n t h head p r i e s t o f the Nabe-

shima f a m i l y temple, K o d e n j i . See a more complete biography

of Tannen i n K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 36-37; K u r i h a r a ,

Hagakure no s h i n z u i , pp. 73-74; Saga ken s h i , I I , 187; and

Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 450.

105
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 107 (# 166).
106 _ J* -

Located i n H o n j o m a c h i ^ ^ l ^ y , Saga C i t y ^ , Kodenji

has been t h e f a m i l y temple ( b o d a i j i ^ t ^ ^ C ) o f the Nabeshima

House s i n c e the seventeenth century. I t was founded i n 1552

and i n 1655 was extended c o n s i d e r a b l y by Nabeshima Katsushige.

See Saga ken s h i , I I , 187; Saga gun s h i ^ ^ J t ^ j J i G f e d

« Shiritsu

Saga Gun Kyoiku K a i J$A"ft tfc^l&^ffity^ (Tokyo : Meicho Shuppan

]k% ^ty^> 1973), pp. 430-31; and H o r i Yoshizo ^ , ed.,

Dai Nihon j i i n soran T v ^ / f c ' ^ j ^ ^ ^ f t (Tokyo: Meicho Kahko K a i

?*%y)tf\^' 1 9 1 6 )
' *
PP
- '
2648 49

S p e c i f i c a l l y Sonryo Osho-^ 5-^°)^) ' w n o n a d

been chief

monk a t the s m a l l temple c a l l e d Enzoin See Naramoto,

Hagakure, p. 22. U n f o r t u n a t e l y , the d e t a i l s o f the o r i g i n a l

disagreement are obscure, but Tsunetomo t e l l s h i s v e r s i o n i n

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 468-70 (# 653).

108
Saga ken s h i , I I , 187.

109

These Four Vows w i l l be d i s c u s s e d i n more depth a t

a l a t e r p o i n t i n t h i s paper.
 110

110
These passages w i l l be presented l a t e r i n t h i s paper.

Ill
See G r i f f i t h , p. 115.

112

More i n f o r m a t i o n on I s h i d a I t t e i may be found i n

Saga gun s h i , pp. 469-71; Dai Nihon jlmmel j i s h o T\)b%*kjb. £ f " ^ '
ed. Dai Nihon Jimmei J i s h o Kanko K a i j\0 Jfc J\fa. (Tokyo :

N a i g a i S h o s e k i , 1937), p. 195; Saga ken s h i , I I , 187; Naramoto,

Hagakure, p. 23; K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 34-36; and

K u r i h a r a , Hagakure no s h i n z u i , pp. 64-66.

113
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 108 (# 168).
114
I b i d . , p. 83 (# 103). See a l s o i b i d . , p. 100 (# 144).

115

I b i d . , p. 47 (# 47). For the o r i g i n a l statement see

i b i d . , p. 1023.

116

P a r t i a l t r a n s l a t i o n s o f the works o f these men may

be found i n Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 385-

401, 378-83, and 413-24 r e s p e c t i v e l y .

117
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 99 (# 140).
118
I b i d . , p. 89 (# 117).
119

See Saga ken s h i , I I , 187, and Naramoto, Hagakure,

p. 24.

120

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 5-6 (# 1 ) . Further ref-

erences are found i n o t h e r p l a c e s i n the t e x t . See ibid.,

p. 18 (# 5 ) , p. 31 (# 20), p. 36 (# 31), and p. 95 (# 109).

 Ill

These vows are t r a n s l a t e d i n Iwado, p. 37 as:

1. We w i l l be second to none i n performance o f

our duty:

2. We w i l l make o u r s e l v e s u s e f u l to our l o r d :

3. We w i l l be d u t i f u l t o our p a r e n t s :

4. We w i l l a t t a i n greatness i n c h a r i t y .

A more r e c e n t t r a n s l a t i o n i s as f o l l o w s :

1. Never l a g behind i n t h e i p r a c t i s e o f Bushido.

2. Always be l o y a l and devoted i n the s e r v i c e to

your l o r d .

3. Do your duty to your p a r e n t s .

4. S t i r up your compassion f o r a l l s e n t i e n t beings

i n o r d e r to devote y o u r s e l f to the s e r v i c e o f

others.

See Tanaka Minoru, Bushido, Way o f the Samurai (Albuquerque,

New Mexico: Sun Books, 19 75), p. 21.

121

See K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 1034-35., and Saga

ken s h i , I I , 188. T h i s book has a l s o been known as Bushido

yokansho r f ] % y , o r simply as Yokansho. I t provides

p r o o f t h a t the word bushido was i n use even i n the seventeenth

century. A complete e d i t i o n o f t h i s t e x t may be found i n

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 1033-57.

122
I b i d . , p. 474 (# 654).
12 3
Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 24.

124
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 26 (# 13).
 112

125
This book, one o f many o f the same t i t l e , had been

passed down i n the S a n j o n i s h i family of Kyoto. See

Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 24. Tsunetomo's request f o r the Kyoto

appointment may be found i n K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 84

(# 107).

126
Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 24.

127
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure , p. 93 (# 129) .

128
I b i d . , p. 24 (# 13). See a l s o i b i d . , p. 87 (# 113).

129
I b i d . , p. 23 (# 10).

130
I b i d . , p. 24 (# 13), and p. 123 (# 195).

131
I b i d . , p. 41 (# 38).

132

S t r i c t l y speaking, the term shukke ^applies t o the

practise o f c u t t i n g o f f t i e s with the common world and assum-

i n g a l i f e o f t r a i n i n g i n Buddhism. Technically t h i s meant

t h a t a man s h o u l d leave h i s w i f e behind. However, the e x i s t -

ence o f a s p e c i a l tax, shukke s a i t a i yaku ^ ^ " ^ ^ f ^ / levied

a g a i n s t c e r t a i n married monks i n the s i x t e e n t h century, shows

that the p r a c t i s e o f t a k i n g one's w i f e was not unknown. See

Nihon kokugo d a i j i t e n # ^ )|]^r j\ , ed. Nihon D a i j i t e n

Kanko K a i ^£f$ N (Tokyo: Shogakkan J o f ^ , 1974),

X, 371. Furthermore, i t i s not completely c l e a r whether Tsune-

tomo a c t u a l l y took the tonsure or whether he merely assumed

the r o l e o f a l a y monk. The l a t t e r case seems more p r o b a b l e .

 113

133
A d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h i s area, as i t i s today, i s given

i n Naramoto Tatsuya, Nihoh r e k i s h i no s u i g e n c h i ^h]^.%S) J^j^&l

(Tokyo: Bungei Shunj u , 1972), pp. 9-29.

134
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 108
:
(# 168) .

135
I b i d . , p. 122 (# 195) .

136
I b i d . , p. 41 (# 38).

137

I b i d . , p. 1. O r i g i n a l l y a haiku ^ ^ w a s the f i r s t

p o r t i o n of l i n k e d v e r s e , renga ^ j f f i , but l a t e r , through pop-

u l a r i z a t i o n by the poet Basho Matsuo 4-1694), i t

came to stand as a type o f poetry by i t s e l f . I t consists of

a t o t a l o f seventeen s y l l a b l e s which are c l e a r l y d i v i d e d into

three s e c t i o n s o f f i v e , seven, and f i v e s y l l a b l e s each. A

word which s i g n i f i e s the season o f the year i s r e q u i r e d .

138

F o r b i o g r a p h i c a l i n f o r m a t i o n see K u r i h a r a , Kochu ha-

gakure , pp. 33-34; K u r i h a r a , Hagakure no s h i n z u i , pp. 72-73;

and Kamiko Tadashi ^$?T ' ed. , Hagakure (Tokyo: Tokuma

Shoten, 1973), p. 23.

139

See K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 1059-1108 f o r trans-

c r i p t s o f Gukenshu, Sembetsu, Tsunetomo k a k i o k i , and Juryoan

Chuza no n i k k i . See a l s o Saga ken s h i , I I , p. 180.

140

See K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 1009-31; Kamiko Tadashi,

Busho goroku, ^ $ f jfcl&fc (Tokyo: Hyakusen Shobo 13 fk > 1969) ,

pp. 121-26; and Yoshida, Buke ho kakun, pp. 261-72.

 114

141

Naramoto/ Hagakure, p. 29. T h i s compares w i t h amounts

of from three to s i x thousand koku which were p a i d to the karo

r "house e l d e r s , " o f about the same p e r i o d . See Saga ken

shi, I I , 110. T o s h i y o r i ^^if , " C o u n c i l l o r s , " such as Sagara

K y u b a ^ %J[i ,^(1618-1696) , r e c e i v e d one thousand two hundred

koku. See Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 449. In 1767 a c e r t a i n karo,

Nabeshima K o j i r o / ^ i r e c e i v e d 6,262 koku, which he

d i v i d e d among 237 r e t a i n e r s . T h e i r allowances ranged from one

koku f o r t h e lowest f o o t s o l d i e r t o f i f t y four koku f o r the

senior advisor. See Kimura Motoi ^s^^j" /^jlL ' K a k

Y u
bushi ron
^&3jKl-%fifj (Tokyo: Hanawa Shobo , 1967) , pp. 165-66.
142
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 123 (# 195).

See Wa t s u j i Tetsuro and Furukawa T e s s h i , ed.,

Hagakure (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1965), I , 16; and K u r i h a r a ,

Kochu hagakure, p. 3.

144
Furukawa, K i n s e i Nihon s h i s 5 no kenkyu, pp. 255-57.

145
Saga ken s h i , I I , 190-91.

146

I b i d . , I I , 191. This may be the same p r e f a c e which

was w r i t t e n i n 1852. See Samura H a c h i r o

Kokusho k a i d a i Hflj^ f% IS>( Tokyo : Rokugokan A j ^ t f f 1926), p. 1625,

147

These shahon are mentioned i n Saga ken s h i , I I , 181;

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 19-24; W a t s u j i and Furukawa,

Hagakure, I, 12; Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 51; Kamiko, Hagakure,

p. 8;'..and Sagara, Koyo gunkan: go r i n sho: hagakure shu, p, 206.

 115

148
The reasons f o r t h i s s e l e c t i o n may be found i n K u r i h a r a ,

Kochu hagakure, pp. 19-24. For another d i s c u s s i o n o f the shahon

see W a t s u j i and Furukawa, Hagakure, pp. 12-14.

149

Naramoto, Nihon r e k i s h i no s u i g e n c h i , pp. 19-21; and

Saga keh s h i , I I , 180-81.

150

The f o l l o w i n g books a l l use K u r i h a r a s Kochu hagakure

1

as t h e i r s o u r c e : Kamiko, Hagakure; Naramoto, Hagakure; Mishima

Yukio ^jf] Hagakure nyumon l^ft^^y (Tokyo : Kobunsha

iC* JL^tf 1967); and Shiroshima Seisho "$J$^ Hagakure

(Tokyo: Jimbutsu O r a i s h a , 196 8).

151

For example, the r e c e i p t o f i n s t r u c t i o n s by Minamoto

Yoshitsune jf^feh (1159-1189) from T e n g u ^ ^ w a s only f o r the

purpose o f e s t a b l i s h i n g a d i f f e r e n t s t y l e of m i l i t a r y tactics.

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 84 (# 106). The s t o r y regarding

Yoshitsune and the Tengu i s recounted i n E n g l i s h . See Helen

C r a i g McCullough, Y o s h i t s u n e : A F i f t e e n t h Century Japanese

Chronicle (Tokyo: U n i v e r s i t y o f Tokyo P r e s s , 1966), pp. 37-38.

152
Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n Peoples, p. 409.
153
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 34 (# 27).
154
I b i d . , p. 92 (# 125) .
155
I b i d . , p. 31 (# 20).
156 '
I b i d . , pp. 105-06 (# 161).

157
De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 271.
 116

158
I t w i l l be r e c a l l e d t h a t three o f the Four Vows con-

t a i n the i d e a o f unselfishness.

159 _
Kurihara, Kochu hagakure, pp. 121-22 (# 193).

160
I b i d . , p. 75 (# 88).

161

P r e v i o u s l y , m i l i t a r y s e r v i c e i n the han had been from

the age of t h i r t e e n to s i x t y , and the o l d e r men had lied about

t h e i r age to stay i n longer. See Sagara, Koyo gunkan: gorinsho:

hagakure shu, p. 320.

162

Kurihara, Kochu hagakure, p. 25 (# 12). Yamasaki

Kurando, mentioned a number of times i n the t e x t , served as a

s e n i o r r e t a i n e r under Nabeshima M i t s u s h i g e . Except f o r informa-

tion provided i n Hagakure, l i t t l e i s known about t h i s man.

163
I b i d . , p. 25 (# 12).
164

I b i d . , pp. 45-46 (# 45). The Way r e f e r r e d to i n t h i s

passage i s the way of bushido.

165

These laws were r e i s s u e d p e r i o d i c a l l y d u r i n g the Edo

period. T r a n s c r i p t s o f the e d i t i o n s of v a r i o u s years may be

found i n I s h i i S h i r o ^ , K i n s e i buke s h i s o i ^ - t ^ f ^ ^ Kr^V

Nihon s h i s o t a i k e i , V o l . 2 7 (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten,

1974), pp. 454-75. A d i s c u s s i o n may be found i n T s u j i , Edo

k a i f u , pp. 313-16. E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n s o f the Buke shohatto

may be found i n Tsunoda, Sources of Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I,

326-29; and Sansom, A H i s t o r y of Japan, I I I , 7-8.

 117

166 _ . .

For example through the system o f sankin k o t a i which

has already been defined.

167 _ _
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 85-86 (# 110) mentions
the metsuke system of i n s p e c t i o n w i t h r e f e r e n c e to i t s opera-

t i o n i n Saga.

168

Each daimyo, as w e l l as the bakufu i t s e l f , retained

a number o f s p i e s c a l l e d n i n j a K ^ ^ J o r shinobimono iX"^ to

f o l l o w the a c t i o n s of neighbours.

169
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 40-41 (# 37).
170
" S e t t l e one's b e l l y , " i s only an approximate transla-

t i o n o f the phrases hara o o c h i ts uke ru t" 3 and hara o

shizumeru ffi.'fc^ffi'ff? <3 • Both phrases mean to gather composure

o r get c o n t r o l of o n e s e l f . The haraijjj^, " b e l l y , " o r , "abdomen,"

i n d i c a t e s , to the Japanese, the seat o f the human s o u l and the

source o f human energy. See K a r l f r i e d Graf von Durckheim,

Hara: The V i t a l Center o f Man (London: George A l l e n and Unwin,

1962) .

171

As i n d e l i n e a t i n g d r i n k i n g h a b i t s . See K u r i h a r a ,

Kochu hagakure, p. 33 (# 24).

172

By s a y i n g not to i m i t a t e the poor example of people

from o t h e r p r o v i n c e s . See i b i d . , p. 105 (# 158).

173

He s a y s , f o r example, t h a t men have become s i m i l a r to

women. See i b i d . , p. 40 (# 37).

 118

174
He gives medical p r o o f t h a t the bodies of men have

declined physically. I b i d . , p. 40 (# 37).

175

He calls for a return o f the t r a d i t i o n of b r a v e r y .

I b i d . , p. 72 (# 84).

176
I b i d . , p. 125 (# 197).
177

He t e l l s how the poor p l a n n i n g of a f e s t i v a l caused

heavenly r e t r i b u t i o n . I b i d . , p. 37 (# 34). He a l s o says that

persons w i t h e x c e s s i v e p r i d e w i l l be s t r u c k down. See ibid.,

p. 91 (# 133) .

178

I b i d . , pp. 39-40 (# 36). The phrase t r a n s l a t e d in

t h i s pas&age as, "their aspirations are low," i s iko h i k u i me

no tsuke tokoro n a r i o ? -j {{^ <?) ^ fl] H j . . i t may be more

literally translated as, " t h e i r eyes are f i x e d on a very low

place." The word r i h a t s u iftjffi^, which appears l a t e r i n the

passage, i s a c o n t r a c t i o n of r i k o hatsumei ^T'j t3,ffi^fl)jand has

been rendered i n t o E n g l i s h as "cleverness."

179
I b i d . , p. 78 (# 91) .
180
I b i d . , p. 120 (# 190).
181
I b i d . , pp. 124-25 (# 196).

182
I b i d . , p. 67 (# 68) .

183

I b i d . , p. 91 C# 122). The e x p r e s s i o n , s h i c h i s o k u shian

i o r
undetermined o r i g i n , may be understood to mean

e i t h e r t h a t one s h o u l d take one's time i n r e a c h i n g a decision

 119

or t h a t one should not w a i t too long t o make a d e c i s i o n . It

i s obvious i n the p r e s e n t passage t h a t Tsunetomo took i t to

mean the l a t t e r . The t e x t o f R y u z o j i Takanobu's statement may

be found i n Kamiko, Busho goroku, p. 123; Yoshida, Buke no kakun,

:

p. 272; and K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 1027.

184
I b i d . , p. 36 (# 30).

185
G r i f f i t h , p. 114.

186
I b i d . , p. 136.

187
I b i d . , p. 41.

188
Suzuki, p. 61.

189
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 18 (# 4) .

190
I b i d . , p. 18 (# 4% t

191
I b i d . , p. 69 (# 73).

192
I b i d . , p. 71 (# 81).

193
I b i d . , pp. 91-92 (# 123).

194
I b i d . , pp. 124-25 (# 196).

195
I b i d . , pp. 75-76 (# 89).

196
I b i d . , p. 125 (# 196).

197
See Tsukamoto, ed., Ekken jukun, I , 67. These ideas

are summarized i n R.P. Dore, E d u c a t i o n i n Tokugawa Japan

(Berkeley and Los Angeles: U n i v e r s i t y o f C a l i f o r n i a P r e s s ,

 120

1969) , p.. 35.

198

Waka i s the g e n e r i c term used to d e s i g n a t e Japanese

forms o f p o e t r y as opposed to Chinese. I n c l u d e d among waka,

t h e r e f o r e , are choka ^Jeffij long poems w i t h a r e p e t i t i o n o f

5-7 s y l l a b l e s and u s u a l l y ending w i t h 7 - 7; tank a

s h o r t poems c o n s i s t i n g o f 5 - 7 - 5 - 7 - 7 s y l l a b l e s ; sedoka

poetry i n which the f i r s t h a l f and the l a s t h a l f con-

t a i n the same number o f s y l l a b l e s such as 5 - 7 - 5 — 5 - 7

- 5; and k a t a u t a tf^fi^ poetry o f 5 - 7 - 7 or 5 - 7 - 5 syl-

l a b l e s and used mainly i n the form o f a q u e s t i o n d u r i n g the

Nara p e r i o d . See K o j i e n , p. 2368.

199

N i t o b e , pp. 17-18. Takeda Shingen, a l s o , s a i d that

those r e t a i n e r s who were only s l i g h t l y i n t e l l i g e n t were n o t

useful. See Kamiko, Busho goroku, p. 29.

200
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 125 (# 198).
201
I b i d . , p. 99 (# 140) .
202
l b i d . , p. 125 (# 196) .

203
I b i d . , p. 40 (# 36) .

204
I b i d . , p. 201 (# 200).

205

A temple i n Saga C i t y , b u i l t i n 1588 by Nabeshima

Naoshige t o honour the memory o f R y u z o j i Takenobu. See i b i d . ,

p. 48.

206
Almost n o t h i n g i s known about t h i s monk o t h e r than
 121

what i s found i n t h i s passage. I b i d . , p. 48.

207
I b i d . , p. 47 (# 48).

208
I b i d . , p. 87 (# 112).

209
I b i d . , p. 113 (# 180).

210

I b i d . , p. 102 (#149). The words o f Confucius were,

"At f i f t e e n , I s e t my h e a r t on l e a r n i n g . At t h i r t y , I was

firmly established. At f o r t y , I had no more doubts. At fifty,

I knew the w i l l of Heaven. At s i x t y , I was ready to l i s t e n

to i t . At seventy, I could f o l l o w my h e a r t ' s d e s i r e w i t h o u t

transgressing what was right." This English translation i s

found i n De Bary, Sources of Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I, 22. See

a l s o Kimura E i i c h i ^ v . ^ " a n d Suzuki K i i c h i / ^ ^ ^ ^ - , ed. ,

Rongo Chugoku kotan bungaku t a i k e i ^ I f c H f - ^ i Vol.

3 (Tokyo: Heibonsha ^ f f * l ^ i l , 1970), p. 9. A slight variation

of t h i s theme, and one which more c l o s e l y f i t s Tsunetomo's

statement, may be found i n Takeuchi Teruo TH. $L>^\, Raiki ^[.jf u

Chugoku koten bungaku t a i k e i , V o l . 3 (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19 70),

p. 435. Takeda Shingen a l s o i n c o r p o r a t e d t h i s concept i n t o h i s

writings. See Kamiko, Busho goroku, p. 32.

211
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 109-110 (# 171).
212
See Dore, pp. 16-17.

213

See I s h i i , pp. 454-62; Dore, p. 151; H e r b e r t P a s s i n ,

Society 1
and E d u c a t i o n i n Japan (New York: Teacher's C o l l e g e ,

Columbia U n i v e r s i t y , 1965) , p. 13; and Donn F. Draeger,

 122

C l a s s i c a l Budo.; The M a r t i a l A r t s and Ways o f Japan, V o l . I I

(New York and Tokyo: W e a t h e r h i l l , 1973), pp. 20-21.

214 _ . .
Tsukamoto, ed., Ekkeh jukun, I , 8-12.

215 _ .
Draeger, C l a s s i c a l Budo/ pp. 33-36.

216
I b i d . , pp. 24-30, and 41-65.

217
His d i s c o u r s e e n t i t l e d Shindo has been p r e v i o u s l y noted.

218

Although a dojo may be a s c h o o l o r a p l a c e where Bud-

d h i s t s e r v i c e s are h e l d , i n t h i s context i t r e f e r s to a p l a c e

where m a r t i a l a r t s are taught and p r a c t i s e d . A f u r t h e r mean-

i n g designates a p l a c e where a group o f people t r a i n and l i v e

f o r the achievement o f a common o b j e c t i v e such as s e l f dis-

cipline. See K o j i e n , p. 1570.

219

For d i s c u s s i o n s o f the i n t e r r e l a t i o n s h i p between budo,

Zen, and chado " t e a ceremony," see F u j i , pp. 317-516;

and Suzuki, pp. 269-314. D o g e n ^ ^(1200-1253) , a Zen monk,

had e a r l i e r advocated Zen enlightenment through d i s c i p l i n e o f

the body. See Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E as t e r n Peoples,

pp. 366-67.

220

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 72 (# 83). Yari designates

a form o f m a r t i a l a r t which uses the spear as a weapon. It

came i n t o p o p u l a r i t y from the end of the Kamakura p e r i o d . See

K o j i e n , p. 2154; Donn F. Draeger, C l a s s i c a l Bujutsu,- The M a r t i a l

A r t s and Ways of Japan, V o l . I (New York and Tokyo: W e a t h e r h i l l ,

1973), pp. 71-72; and Imamura Yoshio/^ft , ed. , Nihon budo

zenshu iz] - ^ A i ^ E ^ (Tokyo: Jimbutsu O r a i s h a , 1967) , V I I , 193-

25 2, and VI, 11-372. Yunti i s the m a r t i a l a r t o f a r c h e r y . See

Kojienp. 2178; Draeger, C l a s s i c a l B u j u t s u , pp. 81-83; and

Inamura, I I I , 13-27, and 43-458. An empty handed form of com-

bat, j u j u t s u i s an o l d e r form o f judo. I t uses the opponent's

s t r e n g t h and motion to overcome him. See Draeger, Classical

Budo, pp. 106-22. During the Edo p e r i o d a l l o f these forms

l o s t much o f t h e i r combat e f f e c t i v e n e s s and became i n s t e a d

methods of achieving a h i g h l e v e l o f mental d i s c i p l i n e . Renga

designates a form of Japanese p o e t r y i n which poems are l i n k e d

together. One person reads the f i r s t stanza and a second caps

t h i s w i t h a stanza o f h i s own. I t i s p o s s i b l e f o r such p o e t r y

to become very l o n g . See K o j i e n , p. 2261.

221
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 90 (# 120).
222
I b i d . , p. 106 (# 163).

223
I b i d . , p. 89 (# 117).

224
I b i d . , p. 59 (# 60).

225

Dore says, "The samurai's v o c a t i o n was government and .

good government was l a r g e l y a matter o f c o r r e c t moral d i s p o s i -

t i o n s on the p a r t o f the governors. Hence moral t r a i n i n g was

the fundamental element o f the samurai's v o c a t i o n a l e d u c a t i o n

See Dore, pp. 41-42.

226

Yamaga Soko b e l i e v e d t h a t a major o b l i g a t i o n o f the

samurai was the proper p r e p a r a t i o n to serve as good examples

o f conduct f o r the lower c l a s s e s . See "Shido" i n Yamaga Soko

 124

bunshu, pp. 45-48. For a v i v i d d e s c r i p t i o n o f how at l e a s t one

b u s h i t r a i n e d , see the account o f Kumazawa Banzan. The English

t r a n s l a t i o n i s found i n Galen F i s h e r , "Kumazawa Banzan, His

L i f e and I d e a l s , " Trans a c t i o n s o f the A s i a t i c S o c i e t y o f Japan,

:

second s e r i e s , XVI (1938), 230-31. T h i s passage has been r e -

produced i n Tsunoda, Sources Of Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 378-79.

1

227

P a r t o f t h i s t e x t has a p p a r e n t l y been o m i t t e d i n K u r i -

hara, Kochu hagakure, p. 46 (# 46). The phrase i s complete,

however, i n two o t h e r t e x t s . See W a t s u j i and Furukawa, Hagakure,

I, 41; and Sagara, Koyo gunkan: g o r i n s h o ; hagakure shu, p. 295.

For a comprehensive account o f the Yagyu s c h o o l of swordsman-

s h i p see Murayama Tomoyoshi ^ X\ , Muto no den: Yagyu s h i n -

kage r y u gokui fa 73 t) ^^^^^ikJ^%^°^°'- s h i n

Nihon

Shuppansha 2). E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n s o f many

o f Yagyu's i d e a s may be found i n S u z u k i , pp. 95-113, and 147-68.

228
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 46 (# 46).
229
I b i d . , pp. 107-08 (# 167) .

230
I b i d . , p. 75 (# 87).

231

I b i d . , p. 104 (# 156). This s a y i n g was originally

used i n the f o r t y f i r s t chapter o f the Chinese c l a s s i c , Lao

Tzu See Morohashi T e t s u j i Dai kanwa j i t e n

fis'&fri^ ^ (Tokyo: Taishukan Shoten T\A$?A*% ^ [ , 1955), I I I ,

384.
232
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 100 (# 144).
 125

233
Suzuki, pp. 62-63.

234

The term: s h i t s u k e designates both i n s t r u c t i o n i n the

accepted decorum and the manners possessed by a person. Kojien,

p. 989. One of the-most famous d i s c o u r s e s on t r a i n i n g was

K a i b a r a Ekken's Shogakukun ;]\ ^ f 1 1

. See Ekken zenshu, I I I , 1-43.

Regarding t r a i n i n g , P a s s i n says, "Samurai c h i l d r e n took t h e i r

f i r s t steps i n education i n t h e i r own homes, a c q u i r i n g not only

some rudimentary, r i t u a l m i l i t a r y s k i l l s but, more i m p o r t a n t l y ,

the elements of a s e l f - i m a g e proper to t h e i r c l a s s and family

status. The u p b r i n g i n g was severe, emphasizing the develop-

ment of c h a r a c t e r t r a i t s considered appropriate to potential

r u l e r ' s proper manners, proper language to s u p e r i o r s and i n -

f e r i o r s , s e l f r e s p e c t , f r u g a l i t y , toughness, and moderation

in food and d r i n k . " P a s s i n , p. 22. The g r e a t N £ master, Zeami

-^tfft^ffi (1363-1443) , wrote a t r e a t i s e on t r a i n i n g f o r No perform-

ance. While the t e c h n i c a l aspects o f h i s t r a i n i n g have no sim-

ilarity to the t r a i n i n g of a b u s h i , the emphasis on improving

mental d i s c i p l i n e i s q u i t e s i m i l a r . See Zeami, Kadensho *

t r a n s . Sakurai C h u i c h i ^ ^ p ^ (Tokyo: Sumiya-Shinobe Shuppan

Kaife>£- 1968), pp. 17-24.

235
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 74 (# 86) .
2 36
I b i d . , p. 93 (# 127) .

237
I b i d . , p. 87 (# 113) .

238

I b i d . , pp. 57-58 (# 59). The phrase udonge ho shiawase

f^^^O fc^^has been t r a n s l a t e d as, "a r a r e b l e s s i n g . " The

 126

udonge was a f l o w e r o f I n d i a s a c r e d to Buddhism, and was s a i d

to bloom only once i n three thousand y e a r s . Thus I have r e n -

dered i t s meaning i n t h i s context as " r a r e . " See H o j i e n , p. 203.

239
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 96 (# 135).

240
I b i d . , p. 76 (# 90) .

241
B e l l a h , p. 81.

242
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 18 (# 4 ) .

243
See, f o r example, i b i d . , p. 119 (# 187).

244

Tsunetomo quotes Tokugawa Ieyasu as s a y i n g , " I f a l l

people thought l i k e c h i l d r e n , they would t h i n k o f me as t h e i r

father." I b i d . , p. 113 (# 179).

245
G r i f f i t h , p. 12 8.
246
De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 25.

247
Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n Peoples, p. 429.

248
Nitobe, p. 86.

249
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 36 (# 32) .

250

The s i t u a t i o n i n China i s d e s c r i b e d i n H e r b e r t Franke,

"Siege and Defence o f Towns i n Medieval China," Chinese Ways

i n Warfare, ed. Frank A. Keirman, J r . and John K. Fairbank

(Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1974), p. 156.

For the European e x p e r i e n c e see M a c h i a v e l l i , p. 26.

 127

251 _ ._

See K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 122-2 3 (# 195).

Tsunetomo c a l l s t h i s c u r t a i l m e n t denial k y u s o k u ^ ^ l b f c f ^ • • T n e

exact meaning i s not c l e a r , however. In Osaka d u r i n g the Edo

p e r i o d , demai was r i c e r e c e i v e d i n exchange for special rice

coupons. See Nihon kokugo d a i j i t e n , XIV, 275. A c c o r d i n g to

K u r i h a r a , d u r i n g a p e r i o d o f demai kyusoku a samurai was given

a temporary leave o f absence from h i s d u t i e s . He continued

to r e c e i v e a s t i p e n d but t h i s was reduced i n s i z e . See K u r i h a r a ,

Kochu hagakure, p. 124. See a l s o Naramoto, Hagakure, p. 454.

252

Charles P e t e r s o n , "Regional Defense A g a i n s t the C e n t r a l

Power, The H u a i - h s i Campaign 815-817," Chinese Ways i n Warfare,

ed. Frank A. Kierman, J r . and John K. Fairbank (Cambridge, Mass.:

Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 19 74), p. 12 9. Peterson a l s o mentions

r e c u r r i n g schemes to p r e v e n t the army from t a k i n g over more

c o n t r o l than the c e n t r a l government wanted t o g i v e it.

253
G r i f f i t h , p. 122.
254

Most n o t a b l y b e i n g ordered to become a r o n i n o r to

commit seppuku. Both o f these punishments w i l l be d i s c u s s e d

at a l a t e r p o i n t . I f demoted to r o n i n s t a t u s o r f o r c e d to

commit seppuku, a good r e t a i n e r was expected to e x h i b i t great

courage, even when g u i l t y of no crime. See K u r i h a r a , Kochu

hagakure, p. 75 (# 88) .

255

Tsunetomo does not see any c o n f l i c t between t h i s ac-

t i o n and h i s statement t h a t those who r e f u s e d an appointment

o r r e s i g n e d from a p o s t because o f something they d i d not l i k e

 12 8

were a c t i n g i n treason. See ibid p. 105 (# 158).

256
Ibid pp. 23-24 (# 10) .

257
A discussion o f Yamaga's views on l o y a l t y may be found

i n Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 38 8. A sample

of Motoori's works i n t r a n s l a t i o n are found i n i b i d . , I I , 1-35.

258
II
Tamba Yosaku," i n Chikamatsu joruri shu

ed. Tsukamoto Tetsuzo (Tokyo: Yuhodo Bunko, 1930), I I , 223-62.

An E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n may be found i n Donald Keene, trans.,

Major P l a y s o f Chikamatsu (New York and London: Columbia Uni-

v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1961).

259
See Z o l b r o d , p. 65.

260

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 31 (# 20). See also

Bellah, p. 93.

261
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 36 (# 32).
262

I b i d . , p. I l l (# 176). Although there are numerous

idioms o f a s i m i l a r n a t u r e , t h i s phrase i s almost i d e n t i c a l

to one found i n the l a t t e r Han dynasty document, the GOkanjo

f&^Uf • Morohashi, IV, 971.

S e e

263
De Bary, Sources i n Chinese T r a d i t i o n , p. 169.

264
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 61 (# 62).

265
G r i f f i t h , p. 109.

266
I b i d . , p. 110.
 129

267
I b i d . , p. 133.

268

I b i d . , p. 134. F o r a very s i m i l a r p o i n t o f view see

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 17-18 (# 3 ) .

269
G r i f f i t h , p. 169.
270

The Kokusho somokuroku l i s t s n i n e t y one commentaries

on the Sun Tzu, a l l of which begin w i t h the word Sonshi. See

Kokusho s o m o k u r o k u T o k y o : Iwanami Shoten, 1970),

V, 349-51. A f o u r t h essay by Yamaga, e n t i t l e d Sonshi Kyokai

If/ftkj^ ' k e f o u n d i n
Tsukamoto, ed. , Yamaga Soko bunshu,

pp. 39-43.

271

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 17-18 (# 3). The f i r s t

sentence o f t h i s passage has been t r a n s l a t e d i n t o E n g l i s h by

four authors. These are as f o l l o w s :

"I have seen i t eye to eye: Bushido, the way o f the

w a r r i o r , means death." Iwado, p. 38.

"I have found the essence o f Bushido: to d i e ! "

Tanaka, p. 22.

"Bushido means the determined w i l l to die." Suzuki,

pp. 72-73.

"The way o f the w a r r i o r i s [ f i n a l l y ] r e v e a l e d i n the

act o f dying." M o r r i s , p. 15.

272
G r i f f i t h , p. 135.
273

Tsunetomo r e i t e r a t e s t h i s statement i n other p l a c e s

also. See K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 49 (# 49), and p. 88

 130

(# 115). Muro Kyuso, i n Sundai zatsuwa, says almost the same

thing.

Nothing i s more important to the samurai than duty.

Second i n importance comes l i f e , and then money.
Since both money and l i f e are a l s o o f v a l u e , a man
i s l i k e l y when c o n f r o n t e d by a l i f e - o r - d e a t h s i t u a -
t i o n o r when faced w i t h money matters to d e p r e c i a t e
the p r e c i o u s t h i n g c a l l e d duty. Hence, o n l y i f the
samurai i s c a r e f u l n o t to speak o f greed f o r l i f e
or greed f o r money can he remove h i m s e l f e n t i r e l y
from a v a r i c i o u s d e s i r e s . What I c a l l a v a r i c i o u s
d e s i r e s i s n o t l i m i t e d to l o v e o f money, f o r con-
cern w i t h one's own l i f e i s a l s o a v a r i c e . Is one's
l i f e n o t more p r e c i o u s than money? When faced w i t h
however unpleasant a duty, the way o f the samurai
c o n s i s t s i n r e g a r d i n g h i s own wishes - even l i f e
i t s e l f - as o f l e s s value than r u b b i s h . "

Tsukamoto, ed., Meika z u i h i t s u shu, I , 293. This English

t r a n s l a t i o n was taken from Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese Tradi-

t i o n , I , 428.

274

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 79 (# 93). T h i s a t t i t u d e

was a l s o observed i n Mito and r e p o r t e d i n Clement, p. 153.

See a l s o Furukawa, Nihon r i n r i s h i s o no dento, p. 79.

275
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 120 (# 190).
276
Griffith, p. 114.

277
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 71 (# 80).

278
Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n Peoples, p. 49 4.

279
S u z u k i , p. 197.

280

As w e l l as to encourage, f o r he a l s o says, "In a g r e a t

emergency one must advance w i t h j o y and be i n h i g h spirits."

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 89 (# 116).

 131

281
I b i d . , p. 110 .(# 172). See a l s o McCullough, p. 20.

282

K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p.'110 (# 172). He a l s o says

that s e r v i c e can be performed even a f t e r one's head has been

cut o f f . See I b i d . , p. 90 (# 121).

283
De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 246.
284
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 18 (# 3) .

285

N i t o b e , p. 132. Nitobe a l s o says, "Talk as he may,

a samurai who ne'er has d i e d i s apt i n d e c i s i v e moments t o

flee or hide." I b i d . , pp. 131-32.

286
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 105
(# 160).
287 _ ,
The account o f the s u i c i d e o f Sato Tadanobu ^ jffe. flj.

(1161-1186) i s given i n McCullough, pp. 201-06.

288

The term seppuku has been d e f i n e d e a r l i e r . The c l a s -

s i c a l western account of seppuku i s by M i t f o r d . See A.B. Mitford,

T a l e s o f O l d Japan (London: Macmillan and Co., 1883), pp. 329-

63. See a l s o N i t o b e , pp. 117-33. A l e s s s c h o l a r l y but more

r e c e n t work i s Jack Seward, H a r a k i r i : Japanese R i t u a l Suicide

(Rutland, Vermont and Tokyo: Charles E. T u t t l e Company, 1968).

289
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 82 (# 101).
290
I b i d . , p. 84 (# 107).

291
I b i d . , p. 86 (# 111).

292
I b i d . , p. 86 (# 111).
 132

293
Kazuma was a house e l d e r d u r i n g the time t h a t Nabeshima

Mitsushige was chord. See a s h o r t biography i n i b i d . , p. 29.

294
I b i d . , pp. 97-98 (# 137).

295

Kyuba was the c h i l d h o o d playmate of Mitsushige and

l a t e r became a House e l d e r . See a biography i n i b i d . , p. 21.

For r e f e r e n c e s to h i s s u i c i d e see i b i d . , p. 20 (# 8), pp. 22-

23 (# 9 ) , and pp. 97-98 (# 137).

296
I b i d . , pp. 80-81 (# 98).
297
I b i d . , pp. 28-29 (# 17).

298

M i t f o r d a l s o makes the p o i n t t h a t people who could do

a commendable job as kaishaku were so r a r e t h a t c e r t a i n daimyo

were o f t e n f o r c e d to borrow someone to perform the task when

they were r e s p o n s i b l e f o r the f u l f i l l m e n t o f a sentence. See

M i t f o r d , p. 330.

299

Kurihara, Kochu hagakure, p. 64 (# 64). During the Edo

p e r i o d i t was the custom f o r a d u l t men to shave the top front

p a r t o f t h e i r heads. This custom and the h a i r s t y l e i t s e l f

were r e f e r r e d to as sakayaki Js-jf^. See Nihon kokugo d a i jiten,

VIII, 646.

300
Kurihara, Kochu hagakure, p. 85 (# 108).
301
I b i d . , p. 79 (# 92) .
302
See Tsukamoto, ed., Ekken jukun, I, 178.

303
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 100 (# 142).
 304
I b i d . , p. 90 (# 120).

305
I b i d . , p. 76 (# 90).

306
I b i d . , p. 68 (# 72).

307
I b i d . , p. 68 (# 72).

308

The f i v e human r e l a t i o n s h i p s o f Confucianism (between

father and son, r u l e r and subjiect, husband and w i f e , older

and younger b r o t h e r , and between friends) emphasize rules

which are c o n g e n i a l t o f e u d a l society as i t e x i s t e d during

the Edo p e r i o d . See Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese Tradition,

I, 342. The c o n s t i t u t i o n o f Shotoku T a i s h i ^JtzJk J ~ (573-621),

a l s o , had the concept o f harmony as i t s f i r s t a r t i c l e . See

I b i d . , I , 48 f o r an E n g l i s h translation. See a l s o Shotoku T a i -

shi j u s h i c h i j o kempo ^j? j\ "j"*t. iv^ / ed. , Mombusho Shakai

Kyoiku Kyoku^||>^ ^^/5^|j /|j (Tokyo: Shakai Kyoiku Kyokai

/
,
^i.^

Mm%> ' -
i936) p 24
•
309
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 62 (# 63).
310
I b i d . , p. 92 (# 126).

311
I b i d . , pp. 106-07 (# 164).

312
I b i d . , p. 94 (# 130).

313

Tsunetomo r e l a t e s the s t o r y o f a person i n China who

l i k e d dragons very much. He had p i c t u r e s and images o f dragons

throughout h i s house, and t a l k e d o f dragons c o n t i n u a l l y . One

 134

day a r e a l dragon appeared i n h i s garden. This s u r p r i s e d him

so much that he f a i n t e d . I b i d . , p. 72 (# 82). The phrase

Yeh Gong hao l u n g "jj^ 4A ^ - ^ ^ r e f e r s to Yeh Gong, a man who loved

dragons. I t was o r i g i n a l l y used i n the Chuang Tzu ^JT. See

Huang Yen-kai, A D i c t i o n a r y of Chinese I d l o m a t i c Phrases (Hong

Kong: The Eton P r e s s , 1964), p. 1176. The complete s t o r y i s

found i n Ch'iu T ' i n g jsj^ , L i - s h i h ch'eng-yu ku-shih J% ^fc ^ jfe

(Hong Kong: Ch'iao Kuang S h u - c h u , 1968), pp. 106

-07.

314
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 96 (# 135).

315
I b i d . , p. 90 (# 119).

316
I b i d . , pp. 73-74 (# 86).

317
I b i d . , p. I l l (# 175).

318
I b i d . , p. 102 (# 151).

319
I b i d . , p. 71 (# 79).

320

I b i d . , p. 92 (# 124). Naoshige had once s a i d t h a t a

bushi must a s s o c i a t e even w i t h d i s t a s t e f u l persons i n the

course o f duty. See Kamiko, Busho goroku, p. 126.

321
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 19 (# 6 ) .
322
I b i d . , p. 102 (# 148).

323
I b i d . , pp. 19-20 (# 7 ) .

324
I b i d . , pp. 129-30 (# 203).
 135

325
I b i d . , p. 99 (# 138) .

326
I b i d . , pp. 45-46. Naoshige s a i d t h a t a s u p e r i o r man

l e a r n s from watching and l i s t e n i n g to o t h e r s , and t h a t even the

most lowly ranked person may have a good i d e a . See Kamiko,

Busho goroku, p. 126.

327
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 122 (# 194).

328
I b i d . , p. 85 (# 109) .

329
I b i d . , p. 103 (# 152) .

330
I b i d . , p. 27 (# 15).

331
I b i d . , p. 103 (# 154).

332
I b i d . , p. 27 (# 15).

333
I b i d . , p. 103 (# 154).

334
I b i d . , p. 92 (# 124).

335
I b i d . , pp. 44-45 (# 44).

336
I b i d . , pp. 44-45 (# 44), and p. 92 (# 124).

337
Ibid. pp. 97-98 (# 137). Tsunetomo h i m s e l f turned

down a post i n Nagasaki so t h a t he c o u l d remain with h i s l o r d .

His request was granted. See i b i d . , p. 84 (# 107).

338
I b i d . , p. 103 (# 153).

339
I b i d . , p. 86 (# 111)
 136

340 .

The Manyoshu i s the o l d e s t and perhaps the g r e a t e s t

c o l l e c t i o n s o f Japanese p o e t r y . I n d i c a t i o n s of i t s r e f e r e n c e

to homosexuality i s given i n I c h i k o T e i j i ^7 %. , Chusei

shosetsu no kenkyu *jpt£ ;)fJL<9 ffijffi (Tokyo: Tokyo Daigaku Shuppan

N

Kai f t f \ f ^ ^ K ^ , 1962), p. 131,

341 .
See "Chigo m o n o g a t a r i ^ ^ " i f f r " i n I c h i k o , pp. 130-42.
342
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, pp. 113-14 (# 181).

343
I b i d . , p. 114 (# 181) .

344
I b i d . , pp. 116-17 (# 183).

345
I b i d . , p. 115 (# 182).

346

A summary o f the philosophy o f Chu H s i may be found i n

W i n g - t s i t Chan, A Source Book i n Chinese Philosophy (Princeton,

New J e r s e y : P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1969), pp. 588-93; and

i n Maruyama Masao, S t u d i e s i n the I n t e l l e c t u a l H i s t o r y o f

Tokugawa Japan, M i k i s o Hane, t r a n s . (Tokyo: U n i v e r s i t y o f Tokyo

P r e s s , 1974), pp. 20-24.

347
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 19 (# 6 ) .
348
I b i d . , p. 18 (# 4 ) .

349

See N i t o b e , pp. 25-26; Nihon kokugo d a i j i t e n , VI, 26 8;

and K o j i e n , p. 589.

350
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 68 (# 70).
351
I b i d . , p. 121 (# 192).
 352
I b i d . , p. 31 (# 20). The i d e a t h a t a statesman was bound

to r u l e j u s t l y a l s o d e r i v e s from Confucism thought. The views

of Mencius on t h i s s u b j e c t may be found i n De Bary, Sources o f

Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 92-9 3.

353
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 33 (# 25).

354
I b i d . , pp. 112-13 (# 179).

355
I b i d . , pp. 112-13 (# 179).

356

For example, the head monk o f a c e r t a i n temple was

a very able a d m i n i s t r a t o r because he r e a l i z e d t h a t he c o u l d

not do e v e r y t h i n g h i m s e l f and employed deputies effectively.

See i b i d . , p. 39 (# 35).

357
I b i d . , p. 103 (# 153) .
358

This statement s t r o n g l y r e f l e c t s the i n f l u e n c e o f the

a n c i e n t Chinese concept o f the mandate o f heaven. See Chan,

pp. 6-8. One concrete example given i n Hagakure r e l a t e s the

events which o c c u r r e d a t the annual f e s t i v a l o f K i n r y u Shrine

-01 ^ i n 1713. Preparations f o r the f e s t i v i t i e s had n o t

been c a r r i e d o u t p r o p e r l y w i t h the r e s u l t t h a t a d i s t u r b a n c e

broke out over the proper way to beat the drums. A fight

ensued and some people were k i l l e d . I t was s a i d t h a t due to

d i v i n e r e t r i b u t i o n , many o f the e l d e r s who had p a r t i c i p a t e d

i n the p l a n n i n g o f the event f e l l upon bad times, and some

d i e d by a c c i d e n t o r by e x e c u t i o n . See i b i d . , p. 37 (# 34).

359
Although the f o r t y seven r o n i n were ordered t o commit
 138

seppuku, t h i s was n o t because of t h e i r a c t of revenge but r a t h e r

i t was because they had broken a bakufu law by d i s t u r b i n g the

peace and b r e a k i n g i n t o a nobleman's house. Before they were

sentenced, there was a g r e a t d e a l o f debate as to whether they

should be pardoned. See Naramoto Tatsuya, Bushido no k e i f u

jk^^Ly (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1971), p. 92.

360
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 54 (# 56).

361 >j.

Soga Sukenari Juro *$.|jfc^'t'tf (1172-1193) and h i s

b r o t h e r , Soga Tokimune Goro ^ fy^ l ^ l ^ & f f (1174-1193) suceeded

i n avenging t h e i r f a t h e r ' s death by k i l l i n g Kudo Suketsune

only a f t e r a p e r i o d of eighteen y e a r s . See Soga

monogatari ^ ifc , ed. Sshima T a t e h i k o %Jfa*S$L.ff and I c h i k o

Teiji (Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1966).

362
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 54 (# 56).

363
N i t o b e , p. 23.

364
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 118 (# 184).

365
See Maruyama, pp. 35-36.

366
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 66 (# 67).

367
I b i d . , p. 83 (# 104).

368
I b i d . , p. 51 (# 51).

369
I b i d . , p. 120 (# 190).

370
E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n s of the views o f Confucius r e g a r d -
i n g j e n are found i n De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I ,

26-2 7. See a l s o Chan, pp. 16-17. Comments on the a t t i t u d e o f

Mencius toward j e n are g i v e n i n Chan, p. 50, and pp. 788-89;

and i n De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 86-92. Chu

H s i ' s i d e a s are r e c o r d e d i n i b i d . , I , 501-02; and Chan, pp.

593-97.

371
Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n Peoples, pp.

381-83.

372
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 112 (# 179) .

373
I b i d . , p. 119 (# 187) .

374
I b i d . , p. 95 (# 132).

375
I b i d . , p. 95 (# 132).

376
I b i d . , p. 80 (# 97).

377
I b i d . , p. 69 (# 74).

378
I b i d . , pp. 31-32 (# 21).

379
I b i d . , pp. 97-98 (# 137).

380
I b i d . , p. 51 (# 52).

381
I b i d . , p. 112 (# 179).

3 82
I b i d . , p. 121 (# 192). See a l s o i b i d . , p. 112 (# 179).

383
I b i d . , p. 80 (# 95).

384
John K. F a i r b a n k , " I n t r o d u c t i o n : V a r i e t i e s of the
 140

Chinese M i l i t a r y Experience," i n Chinese Ways i n Warfare, ed.

Frank A. Kierman, J r . and John K. Fairbank (Cambridge, Mass:

Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1974), p. 25.

385

"Courage was s c a r c e l y deemed worthy to be counted among

v i r t u e s , unless i t was e x e r c i s e d i n the cause o f Righteousness."

Nitobe, p. 29.

386 K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 72 (# 84)

387
Nakamura, Ways o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n Peoples, p. 492.

388
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 100 (# 142).

389
Ibid. p. 72 (# 84) .

390
Ibid. p. 31 (# 20).

391
Ibid. pp. 89-90 (# 118).

392
Ibid. p. 36 (# 31).

393
Ibid. p. 99 (#139).

394
Ibid. p. 106 (# 162).

395
Ibid. p. 79 (# 93).

396
Ibid. p. 93 (# 12 8). A search has f a i l e d to unearth

any document i n which t h i s i s s t a t e d by Katsushige. As Tsune-

tomo s t a t e s t h a t i t was a f a v o u r i t e e x p r e s s i o n o f Katsushige,

i t may have been t r a n s m i t t e d o r a l l y .

397
I b i d . , p. 79 (# 93). T h i s a t t i t u d e i s very s i m i l a r to
 141

that r e f l e c t e d by Saigo Takamori Y$)jtj£$ (1827-1877), o f

the nearby S a t s u m a ^ iff' han, when i n 1862 he was e x i l e d t o a

s m a l l i s l a n d near Okinawa. Told t h a t he need n o t remain i n the

small cage which had been b u i l t f o r him once the s h i p had l e f t

port, he answered, "Thank you, b u t whatever happens I must

obey the l o r d [of Satsuma], I am a c o n v i c t and must be where

a convict should be...." M o r r i s , p. 362 q u o t i n g the t r a n s l a t i o n

of Sakamoto M o r i a k i , The Great Saigo: The L i f e o f Takamori

Saigo (Tokyo: 1942).

398
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 79 (# 94).

399
I b i d . , pp. 18-19 (# 5 ) .

400

De Bary, Sources o f Chinese T r a d i t i o n , I , 20. See

a l s o i b i d . , I , 16-17, and 27.

401

See Morikawa, pp. 82-83; N i t o b e , pp. 102-04; and K u r i -

hara, Kochu hagakure, p. 56 (# 57).

402
I b i d . , p. 90 (# 119) .
403
I b i d . , p. 126 (# 199) .
404
I b i d . , p. 81 (# 99).

405

A Japanese e d i t i o n o f t h i s book i s e d i t e d by Takeuchi.

I t has been noted e a r l i e r . An E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n has been

made by James Legge, L l C h i B o o k o f Ri tes

:
(18 85; r p t . New

York: New Hyde Park, 1967).

406
A r t i c l e Four o f t h i s document i n c i t e s o f f i c i a l s t o
 142

behave w i t h decorum. An E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n may be found i n

Tsunoda, Sources of Japanese- T r a d i t i o n , I , 48. See also

Shotoku T a i s h i j u s h i c h i j o kempo, pp. 25-26.

407
K u r i h a r a , Kochu hagakure, p. 30 (# 19).

408
I b i d . , p. 42 (# 39).

409
I b i d . , p. 78 (# 91).

410
I b i d . , p. 32 (# 21), and p. 34 (# 26).

411
I b i d . , p. 90 (# 120).

412
I b i d . , p. 118 (# 185).

413
I b i d . , p. 34 (# 27).

414
I b i d . , pp. 70-71 (# 78).

415
I b i d . , p. 100 (# 145).

416
I b i d . , p. 42 (# 38).

417
I b i d . , p. 42 (# 38).

418
I b i d . , p. 67 (# 69).

419
I b i d . , p. 33 (# 24).

420
I b i d . , p. 30 (# 19).

421
I b i d . , p. 110 (# 173).

422
I b i d . , p. 70 (# 76).

423
I b i d . , p. 110 (# 173).
 143

424
I b i d . , p. 57 (# 58) .

425
I b i d . , p. I l l (# 174) .

426
I b i d . , pp. 29-30 (# 18) .

427 . . .
Saga ken s h i , I I , 191.
; :

428
See Tsunoda, Sources o f Japanese T r a d i t i o n , I , 369-83;

Maruyaraa, pp. 31-32; and M o r r i s , pp. 181-83.

429
H a l l , p. 268.

430
M o r r i s , p. 235.

431
I b i d . , pp. 243-47.

432

433
See Sagara Toru, N i h o n j i n no d e n t o t e k i r i n r i kan $

^fcKtL^j <f) ^ ^ j ^ (Tokyo: Kodansha, 1972), p. 102

435
F u j i , p. 246-47.

436

o f T h i n k i n g o f E a s t e r n P e o p l e s , p. 467.

437
F u j i , p. 221.
 144

438
Some o f the books p u b l i s h e d d u r i n g t h i s p e r i o d were:

Ogasawara A k i r a J\ fifc B)?J , "Hagakure" h i miru j i n s e i no kangae-

s

k a t a ^frs<4lj (Tokyo: S h i n s e i Shuppansha ^ ^

!t\%ftJt'i-' 1 9 3 4
) Nakamura Y u i c h i /^}>-—, Nabeshima rohgo

hagakure zehshu Jj j ^ 1 ^ ^ ^ y f c - | r (Tokyo: 1 9 3 6 ) ; Oki Yodo

fUj^t' H a
g a k u r e
zensho - ^ ^ ^ " ( T o k y o : Kyozaisha /$^$t^>
1936) ; O k i Yodo/ Hagakure kowa: Nabeshima rongo '^^^^•^ >

^ ^ ( T o k y o : Mikasa Shobo Z.$l%fj$, 1938); Hamano S u j i r o

f >ti}> H a
g a k u r e
^ i s h i n t o kyoiku % fa \
(Tokyo: D a i i c h i Shuppan Kyokai £\^j#r>^ , 1939); Nakamura

Tsuneichiro ^^tf> / Hagakure bushido s e i g i ^ f^J.^

(Tokyo: Takunansha ^ 1 9 4 2 ) ; O k i Shunkuro 7\^Fv $ W £|\

Hagakure no s e i s u i °) (Fukuoka: Junshindo f f f| ^ ,

1942) ; Yamagami Sogen ^ £ If ' Hagakure bushi no s e i s h i n

^FJ^r^V^ ^$j#f (Tokyo: Sanyusha 1942); and Oki Yodo,

Chushaku hagakure Z^^fJjfffyj.Tokyo: Kyozaisha, 1943).

439
Yamagami, p. 6 .
440
I b i d . , p. 8.

441
M o r r i s , p. 3 1 5 .

442
See, f o r example, F u j i , p. 2 4 6 ; and M o r r i s , pp. 315-16

443
Morris, p. 285.

444

An e x c e l l e n t account o f these s u i c i d e squadrons may

be found i n M o r r i s , pp. 2 7 6 - 3 3 4 .

445
M o r r i s , p. 320. The o r i g i n a l t e x t o f these words may
 145

found on pages 57 and 58 o f t h i s paper.

446 _ _

Furukawa T e s s h i , K i n s e i Nihon s h i s o ho kenkyu j^_iJhi

)|^ft-fd^£(Tokyo: Koyama Shoten >V)l^^ , 1 9 4 8 ) , p. 2 5 5 .

447
By October, 1 9 7 5 , Hagakure riyumon had been reprinted

62 times.

448 Some o f these are " E i r e i no koe " ^ ^ . 0 ^ ," i n M i s h iima

i

Yukio zenshu ^ $$.Zj.f-\ ' V o 1

- 1 7
(Tokyo: Shinchosha

H> 1 9 7 3 ) , pp. 5 1 1 - 6 5 ; "'Hagakure' to watashi ^ j^-j f

"

i n Mishima Yukio bungakuron shu ^ j^j $1fotj'fcX . ^ i f ^ ' ^ (Tokyo:

Kodansha, 1 9 7 0 ) , pp. 4 3 5 - 3 9 ; Ken/^)(Tokyo: Kodansha, 1 9 7 1 ) ; and

"Yukoku^l^J ," i n Mishima Yukio zenshu, V o l . 1 3 , pp. 2 2 1 - 2 4 1 .

This last s t o r y has been t r a n s l a t e d i n t o E n g l i s h . See G e o f f r e y

W. Sargent, " P a t r i o t i s m , " i n Death i n Midsummer and Other

Stories (New York: New D i r e c t i o n s , 1 9 6 6 ) , pp. 93-118.

449

In " E i r e i no koe" the ghosts o f the kamikaze f i g h t e r s

t e l l o f t h e i r f a v o u r i t e passages from Hagakure. See Mishima,

" E i r e i no koe," pp. 551-52.

450
Mishima "'Hagakure' to w a t a s h i , " p. 4 36.
451
I b i d . , p. 4 3 9 .
452
by Iwado i n 1939 and Tanaka i n 1 9 7 5 .
 146

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

E d i t i o n s and Commentaries on Hagakure

;

1. In Japanese

Kamiko Tadashi ^ }" f/vj. Hagakure ^/^j- Tokyo: Tokuma Shoten

ffeffi-r£l973.

K u r i h a r a Koya (Arano) ^^f" • Hagakure no s h i n z u i : bunrui

chushaku ^ fffe <0%f$^'^$^f£,$J^ • Saga: Hagakure S e i s h i n

Fukyu K a i $^^f4A^ 1935.

. Kochu hagakure ^ ) ^ - Tokyo: N a i g a i Shobo $ ^Hf*J- ,

1940.

Mishima Yukio ^$Z^f\ . Hagakure nyumon^^$>j\f^. Tokyo:

Kobunsha %j X7rK 196 7.

Morikawa Tetsuro ^.^\ $t^>. Hagakure nyumon ' ^ T ^ X l ^ Tokyo:

Nihon Bungeisha 0 Jf. , 1975.

Nakamura T s u n e i c h i r o Hagakure bushido seigi

^ l ^ ^ i O f ^ - Tokyo: Takunanshaf^ l ^ ^ i , 1 9 4 2 .

Naramoto T a t s u y a ^ $,2J>> . H a g a k u r e . Nihon no meicho

°) fo% t V o l . 1 7 . Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha f

1967.

Oki Yodo X ^ j ^ ^ - 1
Hagakure jj^j^;• 2 vols. Tokyo: Kyozaisha
 147

Sagara T o r u ^ ^ . Koyo gunkan: go g i n sho: hagakure shu

f PI % ' 2- # j l P % f&Jk T o k Y
° : c h i k u i n a S h o b
° % ,
1969.

Shiroshima Seisho jHl/^ . Hagakure -J^T^. Tokyo: Jimbutsu

Oraisha A^fl&ft* 1 9 6 8
•

Watsuji Tetsuro ^^and Furiikawa T e t s u j i % "| ^ . Hagakure

^jfffe-
3
vols. Tokyo: Iwanami S h o t e n ^ jfe, , 1965 .

Yamagami Sogen ht-^tffi • Hagakure b u s h i no s e i s h i n •jj^'p&y •j^-jc <

9
. Tokyo: Sanyusha Z${frt- , 1942.

2. In E n g l i s h

Iwado, Tamotsu "'Haaakure B u s h i d o 1

o r the Book o f

the W a r r i o r . " C u l t u r a l Nippon, V I I (1939), 3, 33-55,

4, 57-78.

Tanaka, Minoru. Bushido: Way of the Samurai. Albuquerque, New

Mexico: Sun Books, 1975.

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Chikamatsu Monzaemon "Goban t a i h e i k i

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 148

D a i d o j i Yuzan . Budo shoshin' shu •f\jjLj 7)Kl^ i

. . Ed.

Y o s h i d a Yutaka ~& & $k . Tokyo: Tokuma Shoten, 1971.

Enjoji Kiyoshi fl*M" ft, ed . Okuma- haku s e k l j i t s u d a n 9

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F u j i Naomoto ^ )«-ff . Buke j i d a i ho shakai t o s e i s h i n ^ tf^ 9

fefyk^}^' Tokyo: Sogensha, 1967.

Furukawa T e s s h i ^ ^ " ^ j ^ s * J u n s h i : H i g e k i no i s e k i ^ g ^ j • tfj

^jfy. . Tokyo: Jimbutsu O r a i s h a , 196 7.

' . "Kinsho to s h i t e no 'Hagakure* [ 2 ^l^ffcy " Kinsei

Nihon s h i s o no kenkyu 3^[_1j£ 9 ^ ^ i 1

$t * T o k
y° :
Koyama

Shoten WM't'lt , 1948. pp. 255-72.

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1
Tokyo:

Sogensha, 1965.

Hayashiya Tatsusaburo X%^. Tenka i t to ^ " f •

Nihon no R e k i s h i # j$> *)$L£^ , V o l . 12. Tokyo: Chuo Koron-

sha, 1966.

Ichiko Tei j i • Chusei shosetsu no kenkyu \fj? u\ ^

^. Tokyo: Tokyo Daigaku Shuppan K a i ,

1962.

I h a r a Saikaku if ^ "Buke g i r i monogatari f\%$i$%$7)%$r."

Saikaku zenshu ^^/^Jj^. Ed. Ohashi Taro j\^> Tokyo:

Teikoku Bunko )$] , 1894. pp. 361-454.

"Budo d e n r a i k i f\^Jrk%iti-" Saikaku zenshu, Ed.

 149

Ohashi Taro. Tokyo: Teikoku Bunko, 1 8 9 4 . pp. 729-910.

Imamura Yoshio , ed. Nihon budo :

zehshu 0 ^ "^Jj^/^Jj^.
7 vols. Tokyo: Jimbutsu O r a i s h a , 1 9 6 7 .

I s h i i S h i r o /£ . K i n s e i buke' s h i s o j f i j l L % Nihon

s h i s o t a i k e i Q jf> 7\ ?\\, V o l . 2 7 . Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten,

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K a i b a r a Ekken fj ^ • "Yamatozokukun ^ J") • " Ekken

jukun » Ed. Tsukamoto Tetsuzo. Tokyo: Yuhodo

Bunko, 1 9 3 0 . I , 67-265.

Kamiko Tadashi. Busho goroku X^__f^i^<. Tokyo: Hyakusen Shobo

• ^fc-if' i 9 6 9
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Katsube Mitake f$;f j>%Jfr^ • Bushido: Bunbu ryodo no s h i s o ^\-ti^_l
^f\^Af)\V% • Tokyo: Kadokawa Sensho i t f , 1971.

Kawazoe H i r o s h i )'j §/} . Ryuzo j 1 Takanobu W&Jzf {\_ . Nihon

no busho £ ; £ > , Vol. 45. Tokyo: Jimbutsu O r a i s h a ,

1967.

Kimura M o t o i j ^ ^ J - ^ ^ . Kakyu bushi ron t Tokyo:

Hanawa Shobo ^ ' f y ^ / 1967.

Kori Junshi-^* ^ . Hagakure mono gat a r i ^fys-StyPfc* Tokyo:

N i c h i b o Shuppansha 0 %%^sj%1-> 1973 .

Hagakure shikon ^ " ^ r < ? ^ Tokyo: S e i j u s h a i | ^ i - >

1975.

Matsuda Michioj}& £ . K a i b a r a Ekken ^J^^J^ - Nihon no

 150

Meicho, V o l . 14. Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1969.

Minamoto Ryoen '/fg ^ P] % . G i r l to n i n j o -f^$1Li J\j^ . Tokyo: Chuo

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Mishima Yukio ^ $fej% . " E i r e i no koe^%0 ." Mishima

Yukio zenshu $&lL%JtJ^. V o l . 17. Tokyo: Shinchosha

fy'Mft* 1 9 7 3
* PP' 5 1 1
" 6 5
-

______ "'Hagakure' to watashi %$rjt h ^ (, ." Mishima Yukio

bungakuron shu ^ |tj & &L>f %Jfi$l^ s ' T o k
Y 0:
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Ken/jfy . Tokyo: Kodansha, 1971.

______ "Yukoku "f-f )^| ." Mishima Yukio zenshu. V o l . 13.

pp. 221-241.

Morikawa Tetsuro. "'Hagakure' n i arawareta bushido ^ j^j

- f t ^ j j L ." Nihon bushido s h i Q ^ A ^ i - ^ - Tokyo: Nihon

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Motoori N o r i n a g a ^ ^ - Motoori Norinaga zenshu l^/^jj^ •

Ed. Ono S h i n ^ l ^ ^ and Okubo Tadashi \% j j ^ . Tokyo:

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Muro K y u s o ^ / t | f | L "Sundai zatsuwajjjf^ $ | # . f | ." Me Ik a zuihitsu

shu ffi ^fj^' E d

" T s u k a m o t o
Tetsuzo. Tokyo: Yuhodo
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Naramoto Tatsuya. Bushido no k e i f u ^\^i^J\ Tokyo: Chuo

 151

Koronsha, 1973.

'"Hagakure : H i t o to fudo ?f\^A

1
t I^L^- ." Nihon

r e k i s h i no s u i g e n c h i ^ vf^~$li Tokyo: Bungei

S h u n j u l ^ 4 * 4 ^ • 1972.

Naramoto Tetsuya and Kinugasa Yasuki "Hagak ure.-^r7f- "

Edo j i d a i no s h i s o ?1 f f) j f ^ i ^ . K i n d a i Nihon no meicho

0 ^ *) ' v
° l * !• Tokyo: Tokuma Shoten, 1966.

pp. 183-92.

Odamura T o r a g i r o c A V?) . "'Hagakure': Yamamoto Tsunetomo

no goroku ^ t f e j i ^ ^ ^ ^ •" Nihon s h i s o no k e i f u :

bunken s h l r y a shufl^ f . f t /> f -* fr'ffifjfc • I , 789-93.

R a i k i /j^fg^. 2 vols. Ed. Takeuchi T e r u o ^ $ f £ f v Tokyo: M e i j i

Shoin B f f i - f f f o , 1971.

Rongo: Mo s h i : Junshi : R a i k i if^fifl?' $L.~}- ' ^\' ^L»^t>* Chugoku

koten bungaku t a i k e i *j* "fjjfe ^ ^ ^ . V o l . 3. Ed.

Kimura E i i c h i j ^ ^ J ^ •— , e t a l . Tokyo: H e i b o n s h a ,

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Saga gun s h i ^ ffi^j^fc. Ed. S h i r i t s u Saga Gun Kyoiku Kai ^

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Saga ken s h i kft%^ ft • 3 vols. Ed. Saga Ken S h i Hensan I i n K a i

fef #££|*>MM^ • S a g a : S a g aK e n
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Saga ken s h i r y o s h u s e i komonjo hen {jj.1jf jjjJL ^ ^ f t ^ lT Ajjt ^• 1

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ToshokantetRjft^'SHWf • 1 9 5 5
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Sagara Toru. "'Hagakure 1
t o Bukkyo ift^j ." Bushido

Tokyo: Hanawa Shobo, 1972. pp. 108-16.

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Sakurai Shotaro Jfi£~$f /t^\f?j3. Meiyo t o c h l joku T o k

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Hosei Daigaku Shuppan Kyoku % ^ ^ )f^^j , 1971.

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•

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Ichiko T e i j i . Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1966.

Taiheiki • 3
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^L^^s^** ' E d
" G o t o
Tanji T ^ ^ a n d Kamada Kisaburo

^ 2 . ^ • Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1961.

Takeuchi Riso YXj • Bushi no to jo ^^t^ ^f§j • Nihon no

rekishi. V o l . 6. Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha, 1965.

T s u j i Tatsuya xt_^JtL> Edo K a i f u '^f^\^> Nihon no r e k i s h i .

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-^"HN* E d
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