3 ms·

A very good book about the soul is: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido:_The_Soul_of_Japan https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido:_The_Soul_of_Japan Basic

A very good book about the soul is: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido:_The_Soul_of_Japan https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido:_The_Soul_of_Japan Basically Nitobe (the guy on the 5000 yen note) tried to explain Japanese society to foreigners.

RayVR 4y ago
This podcast can be a little rough to listen to at times but it is extremely detailed and balanced. https://historyofjapan.libsyn.com/episode-22-the-way-of-the-warrior https://historyofjapan.libsyn.com/episode-22-the-way-of-the-... The linked episode is all about bushido.
rramadass 4y ago
That book is controversial and has to be taken with a large dose of salt. It was written by a "Westernized" Japanese and targeted at Westerners. Some articles; 1) https://www.tofugu.com/japan/bushido/ https://www.tofugu.com/japan/bushido/ 2) https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201020-bushido-the-book-that-changed-japans-image https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201020-bushido-the-boo... 3) https://www.japanesestudies.org.uk/ejcjs/vol18/iss3/etzrodt.html https://www.japanesestudies.org.uk/ejcjs/vol18/iss3/etzrodt.... A better book is Legends of the Samurai by Hiroaki Sato. Review at https://www.tofugu.com/reviews/hiroaki-sato-legends-of-the-samurai/ https://www.tofugu.com/reviews/hiroaki-sato-legends-of-the-s...
- rubin55 4y ago
  I think calling the book controversial is too strong. Maybe "highly romanticised" (as quoted in the above rather good BBC culture article) is a better description. The "Legends of the Samurai" book sounds interesting and worth a read too. My take: Just read, make up your own mind, disregard labels like controversial, westernized, etc. Those come off as trying to tell me what one should read and what one should not read, which should raise alarm-bells.
  - rramadass 4y ago
    You can read whatever you like but should strive to find out whether it is/was factual (assuming non-fiction). When it comes to Cultural/Social/Historical accounts of any Civilization this becomes even more important since so much has been lost and hence needs to be rediscovered/recreated. Nothing is simple and homogeneous but interpretations, point-of-view, agency all matter. When the "West" discovered the "alien East", partial knowledge, romanticization, Social/Cultural Darwinism were the coloured lenses through which they interpreted everything. Thus all accounts were necessarily incomplete and distorted but once they were written down became "gospel". This is why "Historical Revisionism" (in the positive sense) is so important nowadays.
    - rubin55 4y ago
      You should always strive to understand the context in which something is written, meaning the times, the habits of those times, its biases etc. I don't think we're better off with a group-consensus "historical revisionism" to "guide us". Again, I would call to think for ourselves, read and make up our own minds.
- andi999 4y ago
  I agree that it might not be historical accurate, but it became the standard narrative of modern japanese. So it actually helps you to understand modern japan instead of the era it describes.
Pamar 4y ago
Far from an expert but I found it really forced in trying to create parallels between Middle-Age Chivalry in Europe and Bushido in Japan.

RayVR 4y ago

This podcast can be a little rough to listen to at times but it is extremely detailed and balanced. https://historyofjapan.libsyn.com/episode-22-the-way-of-the-warrior https://historyofjapan.libsyn.com/episode-22-the-way-of-the-... The linked episode is all about bushido.

rramadass 4y ago

That book is controversial and has to be taken with a large dose of salt. It was written by a "Westernized" Japanese and targeted at Westerners. Some articles; 1) https://www.tofugu.com/japan/bushido/ https://www.tofugu.com/japan/bushido/ 2) https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201020-bushido-the-book-that-changed-japans-image https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20201020-bushido-the-boo... 3) https://www.japanesestudies.org.uk/ejcjs/vol18/iss3/etzrodt.html https://www.japanesestudies.org.uk/ejcjs/vol18/iss3/etzrodt.... A better book is Legends of the Samurai by Hiroaki Sato. Review at https://www.tofugu.com/reviews/hiroaki-sato-legends-of-the-samurai/ https://www.tofugu.com/reviews/hiroaki-sato-legends-of-the-s...

rubin55 4y ago
I think calling the book controversial is too strong. Maybe "highly romanticised" (as quoted in the above rather good BBC culture article) is a better description. The "Legends of the Samurai" book sounds interesting and worth a read too. My take: Just read, make up your own mind, disregard labels like controversial, westernized, etc. Those come off as trying to tell me what one should read and what one should not read, which should raise alarm-bells.
- rramadass 4y ago
  You can read whatever you like but should strive to find out whether it is/was factual (assuming non-fiction). When it comes to Cultural/Social/Historical accounts of any Civilization this becomes even more important since so much has been lost and hence needs to be rediscovered/recreated. Nothing is simple and homogeneous but interpretations, point-of-view, agency all matter. When the "West" discovered the "alien East", partial knowledge, romanticization, Social/Cultural Darwinism were the coloured lenses through which they interpreted everything. Thus all accounts were necessarily incomplete and distorted but once they were written down became "gospel". This is why "Historical Revisionism" (in the positive sense) is so important nowadays.
  - rubin55 4y ago
    You should always strive to understand the context in which something is written, meaning the times, the habits of those times, its biases etc. I don't think we're better off with a group-consensus "historical revisionism" to "guide us". Again, I would call to think for ourselves, read and make up our own minds.
andi999 4y ago
I agree that it might not be historical accurate, but it became the standard narrative of modern japanese. So it actually helps you to understand modern japan instead of the era it describes.

Pamar 4y ago

Far from an expert but I found it really forced in trying to create parallels between Middle-Age Chivalry in Europe and Bushido in Japan.