A subject I’ve not yet written about explicitly has been Bushido, it is one that I’ve not entirely felt comfortable writing about.
But as the weeks have progressed I’ve looked into this subject on the side, with my familiarity with the topic one that has slowly developped.
The truth is that the Samurai believed that being truthful was of the utmost importance, and that being honest in all things meant that a man would inspire respect in others for you. It was from this respect that a reputation for honourable conduct and honesty would develop, and such reputations were nothing to sneer at.
Some men misused their reputations such as the three great Unifiers of Japan; Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu. Each of them paid for it dearly, wtih Oda & Toyotomi having their legacies destroyed after their deaths while Tokugawa had to spend his elder years defending his up until he was six feet under.
Honest men didn’t always win out in Medieval Japan though, as can be seen with the likess of Sanada Nobushige/Yukimura, Sanada died but was honoured after his death as one of the finest men of his generation. What is so interesting is that his family had a reputation for treachery, yet he was the most upstanding gent of his generation.
Honesty in all that you do is often times difficult for everyone to do, we live in a fallen world one filled with lies. Lying is easy, especially if we think it is to spare another’s feelings or because we feel squeamish.
Still it is important to tell the truth, so that we avoid later sorrows for those around us. Because lies always come out, always simply repress the truth rather than hiding it, but the truth will come out and when it does it will burst forth as though through a dam and break things.
This is why truth must be told at all times. In terms of fiction a good example for those fond of history dramas, might be Titus Pullo’s lie to Lucius Vorenus about the death of Evander the lover of Niobe (Vorenus’s wife, who was unfaithful whil he Vorenus was out on duty in Gaul for almost decade). Pullo murdered him and lied about it, but when the truth comes out it wounds Vorenus even worse so that it drives him to near madness, until he becomes even more impulsive and hot-headed then he collapses and has to leave his family for Egypt.
Thing is, this was all avoidable and for a time Vorenus even doubts Pullo’s word. Why? Because Pullo, his sworn-brother and best friend lied to him.
You cultivate lies, you will cultivate doubt from others. It is that simple.
Another example one can probably use is Anakin Skywalker; he lies and lies and lies to his Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, who decides to acquiesce to his desires and humours him even as he knows the truth of what happened to Shmi (or most of it) and about Anakin’s marriage. This along with the murder of Dooku and the lies surrounding it invert the bond between the two men.
This is why Anakin leaps to the conclusion his Master was lying, at the end because the bond has become one series of lies after another. Sure, all the lies were told by Anakin but Obi-Wan still humoured him when he should have set the record straight on everything. Lies poisoned their love, and turned Anakin into Vader. It was only with the power of the Truth that Luke was able to tear apart the ‘armour’ of his father, lay him bear and turn him back into Anakin Skywalker.
Luke is an honest man, perhaps the most honest in Science-Fiction. In turn, for those who love Japanese literature there is Miyamoto Musashi, who is always truthful after his brief impulsive youth wherein he clashes with the people of his hometown. He sought to tell them the truth, they didn’t believe him so he left after atoning for his sins and sought to become an honourable, and honest man which he did in Yoshikawa Eiji’s novel.
In Manga/Anime for those who like such stories there is Dragonball; Son Goku is honest to a fault, same goes for the likes of Yamcha and Krillin. The trio shine and never fail to do the right thing throughout a good chunk of the series. Certainly they have flaws, but if one looks at say Goku, from a thematic point of view the reason he weds Chi-Chi is because he gave his word, despite not knowing what he was agreeing to. Still his word of honour must be upheld, so he proceeds with the wedding, and later he does come to adore her, and still later it is evident that he sometimes struggles with telling the truth right before events such as the Cell Games. That said, he doesn’t shirk in his duty for the most part in telling the truth.
Honesty is an important virtue, and a difficult one to master. The Japanese for their part have a great love for truthful foreigners, even as they like them to be polite and deliver the truth delicately. They themselves will often do so with foreigners, and are fond of them (especially those from the West), and they will never shirk from speaking honestly.
Those that don’t, will instantly earn the disapproval of other Japanese citizens, in my experience and they will not hesitate to voice their discontent and anger on your behalf. But in return, they expect the same sort of behaviour from foreigners.
This is why often it is better to tell the truth clumsily, and innocently than it is to lie and try to save face out there. Because they expect foreigners to be as honourable as Sir Gawain, as loyal as Yukimura, and as honest as Samwise Gamgee. And in my experience if you don’t expect them to be familiar with Gawain or Samwise, be prepared for a shock, I’ve met many Japanese familiar with these characters. They won’t always come out and say it, the reason being; they are fairly shy about this knowledge.
What can we all learn from the virtue of ‘Honesty’ or ‘Makoto’ that is to say ‘Truth’? We can learn to embrace in our lives, in small gestures, doing away with small lies (tough isn’t it?) and start to build up towards getting rid of the larger ones. Slowly dismantling such things and doing so carefully and slowly. We can also be honest in all things at all times ever so slowly, building up a habit. Once it becomes habitual to always be honest and kind, then you will have transformed yourself as a person into one who is honest and kind.
You will have gone from Matahachi (a lying character in Musashi the novel) at the start of the book, to Matahachi at the end. Or from the Paladin in Mark Twain’s Joan of Arc, to being Louis de Conte or Mamoru (Tuxedo Mask/Kamen) in Sailor Moon, both very honest characters.
Great stuff. You may enjoy Inazo Nitobe’s Bushido, as well as older works like the Hagakure, the Bushido Shoshinsu, or a personal favorite, The Life-Giving Sword by Yagyu Munenori.
I agree that achieving a state of honesty can transform a person in wonderful ways. Much like meditation, it's something you get better at the more you do it.