Samurai Culture

[Tomisama]

Now that we are going back to Japan (so to speak) and playing as Samurai, the seven principals of Bushido (the way of the warrior), will be getting some attention again.

Learn them, teach them, live them, and require these virtues of those you play with, as they truly are as much a part of the game as they are a part of the history of the era.

These are the seven principles underlying the spirit of Bushido, Bu--martial arts; shi--warrior; do -- the way.

Gi: honesty and truth

Rei: polite courtesy

Yu: personal courage

Meiyo: honourable behavior

Jin: benevolent compassion

Makoto: complete sincerity

Chugo: duty and loyalty

Understanding these concepts can provide examples of how we can better enjoy both playing and each other, both in and outside of the game.




For a broader explaniations:

http://www.japanesebushido.net/artic...f-bushido.html

And historical reference:

The Book of Five rings by Manimoto Mushi
http://victorian.fortunecity.com/duc...fiverings.html

Hagkure: A samurai manual
http://victorian.fortunecity.com/duc.../hagindex.html

[BasharCaptWill]

This post is sort of a clerification regarding bushido. If I'm not mistaken Shogun 2 (and even Shogun TW) are set in the Sengoku period. If the above posts regarding bushido is refering to Sengoku period, then that's not correct. The following text is an extract from the book Sword and Spirit.


Neglected treasure
The Koyo Gunkan

Alexander C. Bennett


Many are not aware that Takeda clan had profound influence on the development of the concept of bushido, the warrior class ethical system, which in turn can be said to premeate much of the modern Japanese culture. The Koyo Gunkan, the Military Chronicles of Kai, is the product of the earlier Sengoku period (167-1568), the Koyo Gunkan came to have enormous influence on the young bushi of the peacful Edo period (1600-1868) who used it as a history, military strategy, and ethics textbook.

The Koyo Gunkan subsequently became one of the most important reference works for scholars of bushido throught the Edo period, when the concept assume its mature form as a deliberately articulated ethical system and martial cult. It provided first-hand information on the bushi ethos of the Sengoku period, which was nostalgically admired as the warrior culture's ''Golden Age.'' In fact, the Koyo Gunkan was the first text to use word bushido to designate the ruling warrior class' ethical code. In addition to martial prowess, this way of the bushi demanded a sense of honor, loyalty, devotion to duty, courage, and acceptance of the inevitability of death.

The Koyo Gunkan is a massive and often neglected primary source of medieval Japan, and it is a rich source of information on day-to-day life and culture during the Japanese medieval period. A study of the text provides a clear insight into the morality and ethical mindset of the sengoku bushi, a factor that made it popular with the later Edo period warrior-class, and thus a major influence in the definition of bushido.


Japan's medieval period ended with Togukawa Ieyasu's victory at Sekigahara in 1600, and the shogunate's ''Great Peace in the Realm'' policies resulted in a dimnished need for the military services of the ruling bushi class, and warriors lost the opportunity to demonstrate their martial prowess, and hence the chance to enchance their reputation and social standing. The newly developing Togukawa society did not require military efficiency as much as it needed bureaucratic skills, and the bushi were gradually transformed into bureaucratic administrators. In resposnse they were forceed to re-evaluate the very basis of their existance.


Thus, the early Togukawa bushi strove to maintain a direct link with their battlefield heritage while acknowledging the need to adapt and change to a new ega of peace. Drawing on thexts such as the Koyo Gunkan, they developed a ''new version'' of bushido by extracting the principle values expressed by these Sengoku-era writtings, then applying them to existing social conditions (Fukushima, 54).

The Koyo Gunkan itself thus influenced a whole new crop of texts on the subjects and stimulated academic discussion on the merit of the ideals it espoused. Togukawa Ieyasu, who was known to be a great admirer of Shingen, endorsed many of the Koyo Gunkan's teachings (Nitta, Sakaiya, and Ueno 189). Also, in later famous Edo period text concerning bushido, such as Budo Shoshinshu (The Code of the Samurai) by Daidoji Yuzan (1663-1730), and Hagakure (Hidden by the Leaves) by Yamamoto Tsunetomo (1659-1719), there were many references to Koyo Gunkan values.

This vision of the ideal warrior was deliberately refashioned during the Edo period to place a greater emphasis on loyalty, self-sacrifice, and fortitude. It was this version of bushido that was distorted by the militant right-wing nationalists to drive Japanese miliatry aggression in this century.


About the writer
Alexander C. Bennet began his training in kendo, naginata, and iaido in 1987. He also trains in the classical traditions of Tendo-ryu naginatajutsu and Hoki-ryu iaijutsu. He has translated several important martial arts texts from Japanese into English, and has written, in Japanese, for Budo Gekkan (Budo Monthly). This text is derived from his master's thesis (University of Canterbury, New Zealand) which was researched at Kyoto University.

References which the author used and refered too, are all listed in the book.


regards

[ELITEofWARMANGINGERYBREADMEN88]

Good stuff Tomisama.


As we say in ELITE FORCE,

RUHM UND EHRE= GLORY AND HONOR

[Tomisama]

To a simular critique as above, concerning the periods of development and actual writing.

Good books but actually, both those books were written post Sengoku period, when writers they tried to codify what being a Samurai was.

They were probably too busy fighting in the period of the country at war, to write many books about culture :)

And the point is; that what has survived over the centuries to describe what was developed during those years, can help us today in a game about that same period.

Understanding the concepts of honesty and truth, the need for polite courtesy, personal courage, honourable behavior, benevolent compassion, complete sincerity, are all your duty if you are to be loyal to the samurai tradition.

It wouldn’t hurt a bit for all of this to be taught through the game, and provide examples of how we can better enjoy both playing and each other, both in and outside the game.

[BasharCaptWill]

Reader didn't grasp what the writer wrote.

To a simular critique as above

It wasn't a critique. It was only more detailed explanation on the subject of bushido.

Understanding the concepts of honesty and truth, the need for polite courtesy, personal courage, honourable behavior, benevolent compassion, complete sincerity, are all your duty if you are to be loyal to the samurai tradition.

Principle values in Sengoku-era writtings were applied to the existing social conditions of that time. Linking present social conditions with those of Sengoku-era needs detailed explanation, otherwise those concepts become distorted.

regards

[ichi]

The term bushido may not have been used, but the principles existed at least as far back as the 700s.

I remember Tomi used to whoop me if I didn't practice them.

[TosaInu]

Hello ichi,

It's been some time, how're you doing?

[Tomisama]

It wasn't a critique. It was only more detailed explanation on the subject of bushido.

Sorry, no doubt a poor choice of words, was short on time.

Principle values in Sengoku-era writings were applied to the existing social conditions of that time.

The principle values refined through the Sengoku, and spelled out to keep order in the Edo, can be applied directly to almost any era of Total War online multiplayer gaming.

The problems are the same (dishonorable behavior and lack of respect for others) and so are the solutions (developing personal integrity and accepting responsibility to maintain the community).

My goal is always to get folks to play together “nice”, so we can have a large family of players to have fun with.

I remember Tomi used to whoop me if I didn't practice them.

Master Ichi-san, is my teacher

I knew you would be back at the first smell of teppo smoke

[ichi]

Hello ichi,

It's been some time, how're you doing?

<bows>

I'm good, looking forward to S2TW. My compliments to you, the site looks to be in excellent health.

[ichi]

I knew you would be back at the first smell of teppo smoke

I'm glad to find you well Tomisama, and look forward to taking the field with you

[Hunter KIng George]

Hiya Ichi! Welcome Back m8!

[t1master]

Ichi! long time no time!

[ichi]

Hey George, Hey Goat (remember Gabhar? I do)

As fast as these battles play I think I'm going to need you to help me remember how to quickly organize and control these crazy pixels


(ps sorry Tomi for jackin this thread)

We now return you to your regularly scheduled discussion of the principles of samurai culture

[BasharCaptWill]

My goal is always to get folks to play together “nice”, so we can have a large family of players to have fun with.

Yes, and I'm (was) aware of that. I posted that info with the idea to say few more words regarding the subject. I didn't want to disturb the flow of the thread. I apologyze for the inconvenience.

regards