Bushido: the Way of the Warrior

When an opponent comes forward, move in and greet him; 

if he wants to pull back, send him on his way.

Samurai have been the most powerful social class in Japan for centuries. From the 12th century, the warrior class known in Japanese as ‘bushi’ or ‘samurai’, started having power within the social structure and even within the political sphere. Samurai followed a lifestyle, an ethos, certain rules, a code, which spread to all levels of society and even today it affects the way Japanese people think and behave.

Bushidō (武士道) is a Japanese word which is used to describe a uniquely Japanese code of conduct and a way of the samurai life. The last character (do : 道) could be translated as ‘way’or a way living with continual intelligent observation or thought. It originates from the samurai moral code and stresses frugality, loyalty, martial arts mastery, and honor unto death.

Bushido takes its influences from two religious disciplines, Zen Buddhism and Confucianism. Buddhism came through China during the 6th century and ever since it has greatly influenced Japanese culture. Specifically, a sect called Zen was the one that settled in Japan with greatest strength. The main goal of Zen is to achieve enlightenment by freeing one’s mind, searching the way to unite soul and body, in order to calm the soul until there is no thoughts in one’s mind.

Confucianism also came through China during the 12th century. Relationships among human beings are the core of society, so we must respect our ancestors, our relatives, our superiors. It defended the values of loyalty, justice and honor. Confucianism is still in the mind of the Japanese people today, making them respect their superiors very much, as well as their families and their enterprises.


The Bushidō code is typified by seven virtues:
Rectitude (義 gi)
Courage (勇 yū)
Benevolence (仁 jin)
Respect (礼 rei)
Honesty (誠 makoto)
Honor (名誉 meiyo)
Loyalty (忠義 chūgi)



 In the case of honor, they were really strict. “Better to die before being a disgrace” was their philosophy. Samurai always tried to be in the first line of battle, and if they failed to uphold his honor he could only regain it by performing seppuku (suicide), cutting their abdomen with their sword.

Loyalty might be one of the most important values for the samurai. They were completely loyal to their “feudal lord”, and they risked their lives for him on a daily basis. Samurai didn’t mind dying as long as they didn’t regret anything they had done during their lives. Meaning they always had to try to be loyal and free their minds of any “stain”.

Bushido is still present in Japanese society, in their mind, in their families, in their companies and in Japan in general. Bushido may have been one of the factors that has helped in the restoration of the country several times after destruction in the last 150 years.