The Code of the Samurai

Beautifully produced in traditional Chinese binding with a cloth cover and string, and with a timeless design, this book includes the classic Inazo text with a new introduction. It will appeal to anyone interested in leadership, the nobility of the Samurai and Japanese culture.

Bushido is the chivalric code of moral principles that the Samurai followed: rectitude, frugality, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, honour and loyalty. Influenced by Confucianism, Shinto and Zen Buddhism, it tempers the violence of a warrior with wisdom and serenity. Alongside Sun Tzu’s The Art of War and Machiavelli’s The Prince, Inazo’s book has become influential among military and corporate leaders looking for ways to manage their people and overcome their opponents.

The term bushido was originally used in the 17th Century and came into common use around the world after the original publication of this book in 1899. In the tradition of the Kojiki, the Heike Monogatari, and The Book of Five Rings, this collection of principles sheds a great deal of clarity on the evolution of the Japanese Samurai culture. 

Inazo Nitobe was a scholar, educator, diplomat and statesman. After studying at Johns Hopkins University he maintained his links with the US and tried throughout his academic career 'to become a bridge across the Pacific'. He attended the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 and then joined the newly established League of Nations. Nitobe wrote many works, of which Bushido: The Soul of Japan is perhaps the best known and established his reputation in the West. Nitobe's portrait featured on the Y5,000 note from 1984 to 2004.