Hagakure (Shambhala Pocket Classic): The Book of the Samurai

The "hidden leaves" of Yamamoto Tsunetomo were collected, between 1710 and 1716, by a young samurai. Tsunetomo had been a samurai himself, when his original master died. Prevented by imperial command fromfollowing his lord into death, and unable to accept the new lord, Tsunetomo withdrew into monkhood. This collection summarizes the wisdom gained in his career. This book collects passages, a few lines to a page long, on a wandering range of topics. Some reflect on historical events, others on proper behavior, yet others on Zen and bushido. The range of topics appeals to me, making it easy to open the book at random and read until something touches on my current thoughts. One recurring theme is acceptance of human failure, with examples on pp 28, 42, and 113. By analogy, a wooden beam may be a little out of true or hold little knots and weeps, but still be strong and sound - perfect boards are rare, and very rarely needed. He also acknowledges (p.52) that "great genius matures late," that one can not reach the highest achievements without twenty or thirty years of development. This has meaning for me personally, and I hope for the best. I have a few reservations about this translation, no matter how much I like it. It abridges the original 1300-plus passages down to 300, and abandoned the traditional organization of passages. I appreciate the brevity, but I wonder how much this non-native translator may have sacrificed in the abbreviation. This is an important look into the samurai's heart and mind - I do not see that becoming a monk ended his life as a samurai. It is cryptic at times, but describes difficult matters. It is as relevant today as when it was written, almost three centuries ago. //wiredweird

This book brought me out of a dark age in my life. I was an Infantryman in the U.S Army for a while. In the beginning I was satisfied. Towards the end I became disillusioned and malcontent. I felt like I had wasted my life, my youth. I was miserable. I first read this book during a winter field rotation. Halfway through the book, I was revitalized, and at the same time ashamed of myself. This book gave me a fresh perspective, which allowed me to pinpoint the things that were making me unhappy. I resolved to change and attempt to make the most of my time. The advice and wisdom contained in this book is timeless. What applied to a Samurai in the past still applies to us today. There are several quotes that have stuck with me and have helped me get through a particularly difficult day, here are a few: " If a retainer will just think about what he is to do for the day at hand, he will be able to do anything. If its a single day's work, one should be able to put up with it. Tomorrow, too, is but a single day." " There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to get wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything." There are a few dated (O.K a few absurd) pieces of advice in this book. You can easily make the distinction of what can be applied today and what can't. Overall, this book can help put you in the right direction and give you renewed focus. To move forward sometimes you have to look in the past.

This book is very interesting and packed full of wisdom. It’s a must read if you want to learn the old ways of the samurai or gain some different perspectives.

Some might be bored by a book on samurai etiquette I thought it was interesting but not 5 stars interesting. Well written insight into a part of feudal Japan.

This particular eBook translation - the $0.99 one - is rife with errors in both spelling, translation, and formatting. Bargain bin prices for a reason. == I liked the little bits of philosophy in Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai. This book is where those quotes were pulled from, and I was very interested in reading it. Aside from the occasional bit of weird commentary, this book does have a lot of interesting lessons from the perspective of a lifelong servant. This is a book that doesn't just teach you what it means to serve - it teaches you what it means to live a life of service. The book itself is also very sturdy and can take quite a bit of abuse. I've spilled a drink on the cover once or twice, I've dropped it... hell, I used it as a coaster, once. And it still lasts to this day. I've since given it away as a gift and I'll be buying it again when I can get a reprint of the same size and quality.

Handbook. Invaluable thoughts.

Livro versão pocket muito bom pra carregar consigo. Boa qualidade e recebi bem antes do prazo.

J'avais acheté cet ouvrage une première fois, mais dans un format minuscule: ici il s'agit du format relié, taille A5 à peu près, enfin le format qui convient à un ouvrage aussi puissant: je le relis régulièrement, c'est très facile à lire, des petits morceaux de sagesse tachées de sang! C'est très guerrier et souvent violent, tout n'a pas forcément de sens, mais certains passages sont des perles à méditer.

One of the main works (among the top 5) to understand Japanese culture. Need to be treated as a filosofical work. Not for the “general public”. It’s all about analogies and methafors.

OK