Hagakure: The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai

Si trovano in giro un'infinità di traduzioni dell'Hagakure, alcune grossolanamente incomplete o reinterpretate. non dico che questa sia la migliore perché a questo punto è difficile capire quale corrisponda di più all'originale. Ciò detto, il testo appare molto completo e vicino allo stile dell'opera originale di cui non conosco che alcuni brani (rivisti) in lingua giapponese moderna. Utilissime le note e sobria l'interpretazione, come si addice agli argomenti trattati.

Gutes buch

This translation needs no recommendation to the readers interested in martial arts, medieval history or Japanese literature. Security professionals, Fortune 500 executives and those already having it on their must-read list need no recommendation either.Instead, I would like to recommend this book to the reader who might never consider reading it, or worse, who would put it aside after seeing flashy cover and skimming through the Introduction.There is a strong reason for that.To any Westerner unfamiliar with it, Bushido could be best described by using Michel Foucault's terms 'technology of the self' and 'caring for oneself'(epimeleia heautou). It is true art (techne) that provides necessary preparation skills (paraskeue), influenced by the time and field-tested Neo-Confucianism, Zen and Buddhism. However, Bushido resonates familiar to anyone who read Epictetus or Marcus Aurelius. Therefore, in an indirect way, Bushido reminds us Westerners of our own Classical roots, mostly lost and forgotten in the West.That is why Hagakure is timeless, and not limited to martial arts only, if read in a wider context. Jim Jarmusch used Hagakure as a loose framework for 'Ghost Dog', set in a fictional 1990s slum. Kenneth Branagh might use it as well to create another present-day drama, like he did with Hamlet, because, like Yamamoto''s time, ours is also the time of turmoil, when the old ways are becoming obsolete, or so it seems, if attention is not paid to what is 'hidden in the leaves'(i.e. hidden in plain sight). Here is a suggestion to non-martial artist, one of the ways how to approach Hagakure. First reading provides historical context and information to better understand Japanese society,Yukio Mishima''s writing, Japanese movies or even some better Hollywood attempts (47 Ronin). Subsequent readings should be an idea, one vignette or one chapter at the time, perhaps kept on a phone, read and reflected as an allegorical training manual. 'The Lord' (daimyo) should be understood as the best possible version of the Reader's self, while the 'Retainer' (Samurai) is the Reader''s will to achieve this. Like samurai, the Reader has to struggle with the notion that we do not control things around us, but we do control our actions and reactions, the same way long jumper does not control the wind speed, only his actions, to make the longest possible jump.Like Samurai writing the scroll, the Reader has to keep in mind that hastily written e-mail could end up on the Facebook wall. Like Samurai, the Reader has to be able to make the right decision within the span of seven breaths. That is how this book comes into perspective of non-martial artist and how to be in the right frame of mind to accept what this gem of a book offers. I guess everyone will benefit differently. A friend of mine gave me Hagakure almost thirty years ago and told me to read it often. Perhaps it was one of the best advice I ever got.

I can think of perhaps no one better qualified than Alex Bennett to do a new translation of Hagakure into English; Professor Bennett is probably the foremost authority on Budō and bushidō writing in English (and probably any other language) today. His extensive experience as both a practitioner and researcher of the Japanese martial traditions renders him especially suited to the task, and Bennett's translation does not disappoint: thoroughly researched from a historical perspective, yet with a keen eye toward what lessons the text may hold for readers of today, both practitioners of the martial arts and non-practitioners alike. It is eminently readable, devoid of the stuffy archaicisms often resorted to by translators of such texts in order to give them an exotic flavor; this translation favors substance over surface. My only quibble with the text has nothing to do with the translation, but with the publisher Tuttle's decision to go with a somewhat substandard quality of paper used for the first imprint of the book itself. I understand that the publishing industry is facing difficulties with the production of physical books in the face of digital publishing's continuing rise, but cutting costs by producing cheaper printings seems like a step in exactly the wrong direction. This is not a throwaway beach novel or once-through self-help toss-off, but a classic, one to which readers will want to refer again and again, and which deserves a physical presentation worthy of its quality. I can only hope that future editions are of higher physical quality, perhaps also with a hardcover available. In this day and age, if one is going to buy an actual book, it seems like it should be one worth keeping. In the meantime, I'm afraid I would suggest the Kindle edition.

Having studied kendo in Saga in the 1980s, Hagakure has always been of particular interest to me, so I have been looking forward to this latest translation/interpretation of samurai philosophy. Dr. Bennett's "Hagakure:The Secret Wisdom Of The Samurai" presents Books 1 & 2 of the original in full, along with pertinent selections from Books 3 - 11, thus creating the most complete version of Hagakure presently available in the English language. Dr. Bennett's take on the subject is unique in its awareness of the times in which the text was written and compiled, thereby presenting the reader with a translation not just literally "word for word" but taking into account the context in which the original authors presented their thoughts. This makes for a deeper and richer reading experience. There is much in this book to discover, either as a casual reader with an interest in Japan and its samurai history, or as a lifelong budo (martial arts) enthusiast looking for deeper philosophical insights.