Hagakure: Book of the Samurai Paperback – 23 Oct. 2010

Turns out this was all I needed to vanquish my enemies.Running headlong into battle, the Yakuza are no longer an issue for this small village... I may however need to explain the dead boatman I cut down and beat to death for daring to not address me as "sire" as I passed him at the docks.:3

I got this having watched Ghost Dog with Forest Whitaker. Perhaps it is down to my preconception but the book doesn’t flow, jumping from passage to passage on disparate subjects. I have no idea if it is a faithful rendition of the original text. I am sure for those with a more in-depth or academic interest in the subject might be better placed to give a more appropriate and useful review.

The book is one of the samurai treatises but as opposed to some others in the same area, works a bit differently - it is a collection of thoughts, rather than a concise guide. The translator selected 300 out of the original 1300 and while most work well, it is hard to say if the complete set would make more sense.In terms of content, a lot of the thoughts are very insightful, timeless and still relevant. His thoughts on event randomness looks a bit like a 300 year older Taleb ( Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets ). On the other hand some of the other thoughts appear somewhat random, short, almost haiku-like.Unlike the other samurai treatises I have read, Hagakure touches on more topics but brushes them more lightly - so yo will have thoughts on the role of the wife, upbringing of offspring and homosexuality.While you can pick it up, open on a random page and read, like mentioned by other reviewers and therefore makes it good as a gift, I still much prefer Musashi Miyamoto's  The Book of Five Rings . It might be more accessible to a Western audience, or it might be that the completeness and structure just works much better. I suppose if you have not read much samurai writing, The Book of Five Rings might be an easier initiation to the topic, too.

Hagakure relates the essence of the Samurai code through anecdotes and collected wisdom rather than as set scriptures to follow. From the chapter headings it is clear that this edition is not a complete and comprehensive version. Not that it matters. There is enough here to feed the interest and imagination, with enough detail to highlight a fascinating period of Japanese history and the warrior code in general. Some of the short accounts are like whole novels in themselves with the emotive contents hinted it. I can see budding story writers and young film makers having a field day with some of the material. A very satisfying purchase.

Great book would recommend especially if you liked 'the five rings' and 'art of war' really great takes me back to watching Ghost Dog!

More, words of advice and etiquette for the Samuri, small wisdoms and observations, rather than a continuous read, it jumps about. Not a big read, would do for a holiday!

So, if you thought the Samurai were nothing more than warmongering clans who would go into battle on the flimsiest of excuses, think again.Although not readily accessible, I found I had to go back a few pages to pick up on elements of the work, it does give a period gone, but not forgotten and the importance of that era on modern Japan.

An inspiring book filled with many inciteful anecdotes which are relevant to both the ancient Japanese times and also today. After watching the film Ghostdog I got the idea to buy this book. Worth every penny and if you are a student of Japanese martial arts or any other type for that matter, this book will help define your warrior spirit. Great stuff.