Written in the late XNUMXth century by Yamamoto Tsunetomo, a retired vassal samurai of the clan Nabeshima, Hagakure: The Secret Book of the Samurai, is about him bushido, the way of warrior and the way a samurai you must carry out your behavior.
This book, in addition to being interesting for serving as a daily manual to face the diverse situations that life throws up, also hides its value in the ability to enhance the lost time of Japan immersed in endless internal conflicts, but with intense respect and adoration for the culture of the one who was going to fight the wars that marked the definitive culture of the Japanese country.
From the XNUMXth century the first chronicles on the war culture and honor through the fulfillment of duty were established, but it was close to the XNUMXth century that the term began to be used bushi, which in the West is known as samurai, the noblest of the Warriors who was at the service shogun, a historical title granted directly by the emperor.
Over the years, their loyalty was granting these fighters some functions of government and civil business, enhancing their importance within the society, while strengthening their teaching through buddhism, which in the end gives the culture of samurai an ideal of serenity, quiet acceptance of the inevitable, and confidence in his destiny, all elements Tsunetomo learned throughout much of his life.
He taught him, like all the warriors of the period sengōku, which means a period of states at war, and between 1467 and 1568, that one had to look down on death, not fear him, and incidentally, accept it when the time comes to have to.
These soldiers were trained to see themselves as a cherry blossom, always ready to die at the first breath of the morning breeze, that is, in full youth and without pain.
When the period when this legion was commonly seen passed, around 1615, one of the first formal codes that explained the functions of the samurai legion appeared, it was the Bukhe-sho-hatto written by the monk zen suden. Then, in 1686, came the budo shin shu de Daideti yuzan, and finally in 1716, the eleven volumes of the hagakure, of which we refer here and is distinguished by its philosophical maxims and the highlighting of the path that the samurai must take.
Hagakure: The Secret Book of the Samurai It is valuable for many reasons, but also because it is a retranscription of teachings transmitted by a retired monk from the world. It has two translations into English: The Way of the Samurai, Y.Mishima, and The book of Samouraï Hagakuré, william scott wilson.
The samurai behind hagakure
Yamamoto Tsunetomo, who was born June 11, 1659 and died on November 30, 1719, dedicated his whole life to learning samurai, since from the age of 9 he became a page, a position that was part of the warrior class in charge of enforce the law in Japan.
At the age of 42, after several years in the struggle, education and formation of the culture, he received the blessing and authorization from his teachers to become a monk and withdraw from the world, a common decision made by the warriors of the time.
In 1717, he received a visit from Tashiro Tsuramoto, who transcribed all the conversations he had with the former fighter, and although he did not receive authorization, published the text Analects of Nabeshima: The Samurai of Saga, a text that was spread practically in secret between the Nabeshima clan until restoration Meiji in 1868, when it became more public and accessible to readers.
hagakure means "hidden behind the foliage", and historians suggest that the author gave that name because it belonged to the Saga castle clan, which became famous for hiding behind trees and plants.
Source: The Samurai Museum in Kabukicho, Shinjuku.