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've read Bushido and Hagakure in the past, but plan to take another swing at them and the rest you mentioned, when I'm in Japan and to write my thoughts on them. Should be interesting, I'm glad you recommended those books Librarian as always you're very well read.
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.
Merci frère, it's an honour to hear those last words from you. I'm glad that you realised the flaws and changed. Because I've seen people who lie, make excuses, never take responsibility, are never honest, even to their loved ones... And that ruins their lives. passe une bonne soirée à venir. (Excuse my Google translate french, it may be incorrect I dunno ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Haha it's fine. It's fascinating how you can just do some clickity clakity on your phone and have the ability ti speak in a language you don't know at all to connect. That wasn't possible just a decade ago.
Oh good, I worried about what you a Japanese man might think of it, I genuinely want to capture the Japanese pov and how we might all learn from it. I also want to capture how we Occidentals might view this same virtue, and how others might learn from us also.
I’m not the most authentic of Japanese males :) But I think Japanese would be touched to read what you say about them and bestow upon you the ultimate compliment for being able to put it into words: 日本人より日本人だ.
Oh yes, I forgot sorry I just tend to think of you and my friend Gaki-kun when I think of Japanese young men.
As to the compliment, my gosh that's such a high compliment... I'm genuinely moved, gonna have to try not to weep (I'm being sincere here). Arigatou Jonathon-san! Hontoni totemou arigatou gozaimashita!
I fully agree, it gets so stressful and will be honest it is easier when you are young or so I've found it until I hit my mid-twenties when I couldn't sustain it anymore and began just telling the truth as much as possible. It is too difficult to maintain and wore on me mentally.
So definitely agree with you from personal experience, I imagine you arrived at the same conclusion probably faster than I did.
I did, I guess. Probably because I'm such a bad liar, that it is easier for me to just be honest. In school, like all kids I used to make up excuses and lies and stuff for why I didn't do what the teacher told us to do just to get in trouble. Now, I just say why I didn't do the work and most teachers surprisingly don't do anything. Of course being the adult you are, the stakes of lying or being completely honest are much higher for you, I think
Maybe I don't know, I was a bad liar as a good then became a skilled one, but with each lie I felt increasing shame until it filled me to the brim and I kind of broke down. It was a hard thing, to face myself and realize how twisted I had become so that I was to make the conscious choice to remake myself into a more honest man.
I had to ferret out one flaw/lie after another, or one thing I don't like about myself until I was satisfied (still doing this).
I'm very proud of you for keeping honest and not training yourself good sir, I imagine your parents must also be proud mon ami.
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've read Bushido and Hagakure in the past, but plan to take another swing at them and the rest you mentioned, when I'm in Japan and to write my thoughts on them. Should be interesting, I'm glad you recommended those books Librarian as always you're very well read.
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.
Yeah, that's exactly how it is I think, and it is why I'm making more of an effort to be honest and calm.
Thanks for this excellent comment Jim M.
Merci frère, it's an honour to hear those last words from you. I'm glad that you realised the flaws and changed. Because I've seen people who lie, make excuses, never take responsibility, are never honest, even to their loved ones... And that ruins their lives. passe une bonne soirée à venir. (Excuse my Google translate french, it may be incorrect I dunno ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Ton francais est toute a fait correcte X).
Et oui, moi-meme j'ai observer la meme.
I should probably inform thou that substack doesn't allow you to copy the texts from these comments so there's really no way I can translate them 😅
Gosh darn it, okay what I said was that your Francais was absolutely correct and that I've observed the same thing as you sorry for that.
Haha it's fine. It's fascinating how you can just do some clickity clakity on your phone and have the ability ti speak in a language you don't know at all to connect. That wasn't possible just a decade ago.
That's a good point, I never looked at it that way.
This is very profound. I read it twice.
Oh good, I worried about what you a Japanese man might think of it, I genuinely want to capture the Japanese pov and how we might all learn from it. I also want to capture how we Occidentals might view this same virtue, and how others might learn from us also.
I want it to be philosophical and also honest.
I’m not the most authentic of Japanese males :) But I think Japanese would be touched to read what you say about them and bestow upon you the ultimate compliment for being able to put it into words: 日本人より日本人だ.
Oh yes, I forgot sorry I just tend to think of you and my friend Gaki-kun when I think of Japanese young men.
As to the compliment, my gosh that's such a high compliment... I'm genuinely moved, gonna have to try not to weep (I'm being sincere here). Arigatou Jonathon-san! Hontoni totemou arigatou gozaimashita!
Lying is honestly one of the most stressful thing you can do in your entire life. It's much harder to manage a lie, than it is to tell the truth.
I fully agree, it gets so stressful and will be honest it is easier when you are young or so I've found it until I hit my mid-twenties when I couldn't sustain it anymore and began just telling the truth as much as possible. It is too difficult to maintain and wore on me mentally.
So definitely agree with you from personal experience, I imagine you arrived at the same conclusion probably faster than I did.
I did, I guess. Probably because I'm such a bad liar, that it is easier for me to just be honest. In school, like all kids I used to make up excuses and lies and stuff for why I didn't do what the teacher told us to do just to get in trouble. Now, I just say why I didn't do the work and most teachers surprisingly don't do anything. Of course being the adult you are, the stakes of lying or being completely honest are much higher for you, I think
Maybe I don't know, I was a bad liar as a good then became a skilled one, but with each lie I felt increasing shame until it filled me to the brim and I kind of broke down. It was a hard thing, to face myself and realize how twisted I had become so that I was to make the conscious choice to remake myself into a more honest man.
I had to ferret out one flaw/lie after another, or one thing I don't like about myself until I was satisfied (still doing this).
I'm very proud of you for keeping honest and not training yourself good sir, I imagine your parents must also be proud mon ami.
Was not able to post earlier.
The telling the truth ends the trouble very quickly. The trouble from telling lies last forever, unless truth end the lie.
This is my list of foundational books of Bushido
The Art of War
Hagakure
The Book of Five Rings
I am sure there are more.
Alt media:
Usagi Yojimbo
The music video 'Sound and Fury' by Sturgill Simpson. (NSFW) The Ronin is awesome.
Star Wars: Visions (Season one)