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Virtue & Paradox

Philosophy you can do, not just read.

Category

Martial Arts Philosophy

The philosophy, ethics and history behind the martial arts, traced through dated texts and historical scholarship, with no fighting techniques taught.

2 entries

  1. Photograph of Nitobe Inazō, seated, with glasses and one hand on a cane; his name is handwritten on the negative

    Flagship entry

    Seven Virtues of Bushido: Same Order as Nitobe's Chapters

    The seven virtues of bushido follow chapters 3–9 of Nitobe's 1900 English book, in order. His titles are English; meiyo and chūgi are not in the revised text.

    Close reading of a source text ·

    Image credit

    "Inazo Nitobe LCCN2014686321" by Bain News Service; George Grantham Bain Collection, Library of Congress — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Inazo_Nitobe_LCCN2014686321.jpg — Public domain (US: published by the Bain News Service before 1931, per the Commons PD-old-70-1923 tag; EU: the photographer is not named, and an anonymous photograph made public more than 70 years ago is out of copyright)

  2. Edo-period print of the long Sanjūsangendō hall in Kyoto, with archers at one end and crowds in the grounds

    Zen in the Art of Archery: No Sign Its Master Trained in Zen

    Yamada's 2001 study finds no sign that Awa Kenzō, archery master of Zen in the Art of Archery, trained in Zen; Awa called the famous night shot a coincidence.

    Trace: misquotes and invented traditions ·

    Image credit

    "Kyōto sanjūsangendō no zu LCCN2009615009" by Utagawa Toyoharu; Japanese fine prints, pre-1915, Library of Congress — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ky%C5%8Dto_sanj%C5%ABsangend%C5%8D_no_zu_LCCN2009615009.jpg — Public domain (US: an Edo-period woodblock print, published long before 1931, per the Commons PD-old-100-1923 tag; EU: the artist, Utagawa Toyoharu, died in 1814; a faithful reproduction of a public-domain print adds no new rights)