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Hagakure: Hidden among the shadows of leaves
The Hagakure is a samurai doctrine written by Tsunetomo Yamamoto near the end of his life. The text originally was kept alive within small samurai clans and later became the defacto warrior philosophy text of Japan. The kamikaze pilots of Pearl Harbor were gifted a handwritten version of the text during the ceremonies of their death mission.
Here are some excerpts:
A certain swordsman in his declining years said the following:
In one’s life. there are levels in the pursuit of study. In the lowest level, a person studies but nothing comes of it, and
he feels that both he and others are unskillful. At this point he is worthless. In the middle level he is still useless but is
aware of his own insufficiencies and can also see the insufficiencies of others. In a higher level he has pride
concerning his own ability, rejoices in praise from others, and laments the lack of ability in his fellows. This man has
worth. In the highest level a man has the look of knowing nothing .
These are the levels in general;. But there is one transcending level, and this is the most excellent of all. This person is
aware of the endlessness of entering deeply into a certain Way arid never thinks of himself as having finished. He
truly knows his own insufficiencies and never in his whole life thinks that he has succeeded. He has no thoughts of
pride but with self-abasement knows the Way to the end. It is said that Master Yagyu once remarked, “I do not know
the way to defeat others, but the way to defeat myself. ”
Throughout your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today. This is neverending.
******
It is not good to settle into a set of opinions. It is a mistake to put forth effort and obtain some understanding and then
stop at that. At first putting forth great effort to be sure that you have grasped the bastes, then practicing so that they
may come to fruition is something that will never stop for your whole lifetime. Do not rely on following the degree of
understanding that you have discovered, but simply think, “This is not enough.”
One should search throughout his whole life how best to follow the Way. And he should study, setting his mind to
work without putting things off. Within this is the Way.******
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.******
According to a certain person, a number of years ago Matsuguma Kyoan told this story :
In the practice of medicine there is a differentiation of treatment according to the Yin and Yang of men and women.
There is also a difference in pulse. In the last fifty years, however, men’s pulse has become the same as women’s.
Noticing this, in the treatment of eye disease I applied women’s treatment to men and found it suitable. When I
observed the application of men’s treatment to men, there was no result. Thus I knew that men’s spirit had weakened
and that they had become the same as women, and the end of the world had come. Since I witnessed this with
certainty, I kept it a secret.
When looking at the men of today with this in mind, those who could be thought to have a woman’s pulse are many
indeed, and those who seem like real men few. Because of this, if one were to make a little effort, he would be able to
take the upper hand quite easily. That there are few men who arc able to cut well in beheadings is further proof that
men’s courage has waned. And when one comes to speak of kaishaku, it has become an age of men who are prudent
and clever at making excuses. Forty or fifty years ago, when such things as matanuki were considered manly, a man
wouldn’t show an unscarred thigh to his fellows, so he would pierce it himself.
All of man’s work is a bloody business. That fact, today, is considered foolish, affairs are finished cleverly with words
alone, and jobs that require effort are avoided. I would like young men to have some understanding of this.
******
People will become your enemies if you become eminent too quickly in life, and you will be ineffectual. Rising
slowly in the world, people will be your allies and your happiness will he assured.
In the long run, whether you are fast or slow, as long as you have people’s understanding there will be no danger. It is
said that fortune that is urged upon you from others is the most effective.******
Meditation on inevitable death should be performed daily. Every day when one’s body and mind are at peace, one
should meditate upon being ripped apart by arrows, rifles, spears and swords, being carried away by surging waves,
being thrown into the midst of a great fire, being struck by lightning, being shaken to death by a great earthquake,
falling from thousand-foot cliffs, dying of disease or committing seppuku at the death of one’s master. And every day
without fail one should consider himself as dead.
There is a saying of the elders’ that goes, “Step from under the eaves and you’re a dead man. Leave the gate and the
enemy is waiting.” This is not a matter of being careful. It is to consider oneself as dead beforehand.
The book can be purchased or downloaded for free here:
http://www.rosenoire.org/archives/Hagakure.pdf
******
Tags: Hagakure, Shadows of Leaves
or you could watch Jarmusch’s Ghostdog = Forrest Whitaker as a hip-hop samurai working as an assassin for the mob. . . .
or you could watch Jarmusch’s Ghostdog = Forrest Whitaker as a hip-hop samurai working as an assassin for the mob. . . .
gazpromdate,
sure if you want to do that you can.
i own it. it is nothing compared to the philosophy within the hagakure.
plus i get a little miffed when i watch the scene where Jarmusch blatantly ripped off “Branded to Kill”
gazpromdate,
sure if you want to do that you can.
i own it. it is nothing compared to the philosophy within the hagakure.
plus i get a little miffed when i watch the scene where Jarmusch blatantly ripped off “Branded to Kill”
very wacky cool stuff that i would never have seen if it weren’t for this. thanks. i really want to visit tokyo and some of the remote islands of japan…someday.
Thanks for posting this.
Thanks for posting this.
aokigahara
aokigahara
i want to read this now.
i want to read this now.
sam,
it is old enough where the book is free. click on the link.
it is one of my favorite books. let me know what you think of it.
ken,
you are welcome. just for you baby.
sam,
it is old enough where the book is free. click on the link.
it is one of my favorite books. let me know what you think of it.
ken,
you are welcome. just for you baby.
do you like chuang tzu at all? i was going to do an I like chuang tzu post
do you like chuang tzu at all? i was going to do an I like chuang tzu post
yes what i have read i liked.
do a post or an excerpt.
yes what i have read i liked.
do a post or an excerpt.
just saying . . . a few of the quotes, in their entirety, are featured in ghostdog. didn’t mention anything about the quality of one being less than or greater to the other. i’m sure the book is not ghostdog and vice versa. didn’t mean to imply that watching or reading one should preclude interest in the other.
just saying . . . a few of the quotes, in their entirety, are featured in ghostdog. didn’t mention anything about the quality of one being less than or greater to the other. i’m sure the book is not ghostdog and vice versa. didn’t mean to imply that watching or reading one should preclude interest in the other.
gaz,
it is okay. you kind of worded it that way and i wanted to clarify because i know some people are lazy and will only watch a movie instead of reading.
the movie is a story based on the philosophy. the hagakure is the book of the philosophy.
have you ever seen ‘dead man’ by Jarmusch? I recommend it if you haven’t.
gaz,
it is okay. you kind of worded it that way and i wanted to clarify because i know some people are lazy and will only watch a movie instead of reading.
the movie is a story based on the philosophy. the hagakure is the book of the philosophy.
have you ever seen ‘dead man’ by Jarmusch? I recommend it if you haven’t.
dead man is one of my favorite movies. so beautiful and funny. jonathan rosenbaum ( a critic at the chicago reader) wrote a book about it that i keep meaning to read. i tend to make friends of mine watch it at odd times . . .
dead man is one of my favorite movies. so beautiful and funny. jonathan rosenbaum ( a critic at the chicago reader) wrote a book about it that i keep meaning to read. i tend to make friends of mine watch it at odd times . . .
gaz,
i couldn’t get any one to watch it. they always dismissed the recommendation because johnny depp was in it and it was black and white.
now he’s famous and people are amazed i never showed them the movie before.
people are awesome.
gaz,
i couldn’t get any one to watch it. they always dismissed the recommendation because johnny depp was in it and it was black and white.
now he’s famous and people are amazed i never showed them the movie before.
people are awesome.
my favourite bit of the hagakure:
“Every morning, the samurai of fifty or sixty years ago would bathe, shave their foreheads, put lotion in their hair, cut their fingernails and toenails rubbing them with pumice and then with wood sorrel, and without fail pay attention to their personal appearance.”
i like to shave my forehead. i like to pumice my toenails.
my favourite bit of the hagakure:
“Every morning, the samurai of fifty or sixty years ago would bathe, shave their foreheads, put lotion in their hair, cut their fingernails and toenails rubbing them with pumice and then with wood sorrel, and without fail pay attention to their personal appearance.”
i like to shave my forehead. i like to pumice my toenails.
crispin,
the meditation on death has helped me immensely with my existential terror. i think every one should read this book and reflect on its words.
crispin,
the meditation on death has helped me immensely with my existential terror. i think every one should read this book and reflect on its words.