Samurai Wisdom Abstracted: Teachings of Highly Acclaimed Samurai Warriors

By Sreechinth C

The word Samurai itself is a synonym for Japan, as they are the great ferocious aristocratic warriors in the history of the country. They are the best known for their dignity and elegance during peace and fierce atrocities in war. These highly honoured ardent champions were much ready to sacrifice their own life than bearing any dishonours. The Samurais practice a number of weapons including spears, bows and arrows, nevertheless the main weaponry and symbol of strength is their sword which was called as Katana. Their ethic code of conduct, Bushido was later adapted as the traditional code of conduct of entire Japan. Though after Meiji restoration, the importance of martial arts and hence the Samurai powers diminished, they are still revered as the most ferocious warriors for their contributions in uniting the country. In this book, we present you some of the greatest samurai heroes and their valuable words. Here are the impeccable words of acclaimed samurais like Miyamoto Musashi, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Oda Nobunaga and many more...

• Language: English
• Publisher: UB Tech
• Release date: Oct 5, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370979547

Book preview

Sincerely showing thankfulness to all those who participated and supported directly and indirectly in the release of this book.

INTRODUCTION

The word Samurai itself is a synonym for Japan, as they are the great ferocious warriors written in golden words in the history of the country. They are the best known for their dignity and elegance during peace and fierce atrocities in war. These loyal warriors also known as Bushi in their homeland, have an indispensible part in the history of the Japan civilization. These highly honored ardent champions were much ready to sacrifice their own life than bearing any dishonors. The Samurais practice a number of weapons including spears, bows and arrows, nevertheless the main weaponry and symbol of strength is their sword which was called as Katana. They lead their lives based on the ethic code of Bushido which explains the ways how a warrior is supposed to live.

This warrior caste in feudal Japan rose to prominence by the 12th century as the shogunate – the first military dictatorship was established in the country. With awesome skills, they served their Daimyos or lords and always supported the authority of the shogun which gave them more power over Mikado or Emperor. They were the elite of the country till the Meiji Restoration of 1868 which abolished the feudal system of Japan. Many of the traditional Samurais entered into official ranks in politics and industry as they lost their relevance s a warrior. But their traditional codes of ethics, discipline, integrity and morality, what they call the Bushido, have become an integral part of code of conduct of the Japan society.

By the end of twelfth century, there was a major change in the political arena of the Japan. The political powers were slowly shifting from the emperor and aristocrats to the powerful landlords of large estates in the country. The Gempei war between the two most prominent landowning clans, Taira and the Minamoto got marked as the most important in the history of the country as it was for their supremacy over the central government. Minamoto Yoritomo came out as victorious that led to a new military government under the supreme power of a shogun.

The Minamoto clan introduced the military dictatorship or shogunate under Minamoto Yoritomo centered around Kamakura. The establishment of