| Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook |  | Author: Thomas Cleary
Publisher: Shambhala
Category: Book
List Price: $18.95
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Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 144,059
Media: Paperback
Pages: 288
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8
ISBN: 1590307216
Dewey Decimal Number: 170.440952
EAN: 9781590307212
ASIN: 1590307216
Publication Date: October 6, 2009
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Product Description
Through the ages, the samurai have been associated with honor, fearlessness, calm, decisive action, strategic thinking, and martial prowess. Their ethos is known as bushido, the Way of the Warrior-Knight.
Here, premier translator Thomas Cleary presents a rich collection of writings on bushido by warriors, scholars, political advisors, and educators from the fifteenth century through the nineteenth century that provide a comprehensive, historically rich view of samurai life and philosophy. Training the Samurai Mind gives an insider’s view of the samurai world: the moral and psychological development of the warrior, the ethical standards they were meant to uphold, their training in both martial arts and strategy, and the enormous role that the traditions of Shintoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism had in influencing samurai ideals.
The writings deal with a broad range of subjects—from military strategy and political science, to personal discipline and character development. Cleary introduces each piece, putting it into historical context, and presents biographical information about the authors. This is an essential read for anyone interested in military history and samurai history, and for martial artists who want to understand strategy.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 8
 Too early to tell June 27, 2010
R. Gram
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
JUst received book and it is too early to tell although Cleary generally does very nice work.
 Excellent source book April 24, 2010
C. M. Clarke (Near Washington)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Cleary is a treasure for translating so many works for those of us without his linguistic talent. This is a fine sampling of thoughts on the samurai lifestyle and inner life over a period of several hundred years. I personally found more interesting the earlier pieces which reflected periods when the samurai were still at war; much of the Tokugawa era writing takes on a tone of sad reflection that current samurai aren't living up to the standards of the "old days." But the "old days" were rather different seen in 1300 or 1400 than in 1800. So much was written (and has been translated) from the Tokugawa era that it has shaped our understanding of bushido, a concept that looked and felt rather different when death in combat really was a daily possibility. I look forward to Cleary's continued efforts.
 One of Cleary's Best July 24, 2009
Crazed (London, England)
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
An excellent survey of samurai information and philosophy. Highly recommended to anyone wishing to learn more about the samurai. I found this book to be an excellent companion to the other edition I purchased, which was The Samurai Series.
The Samurai Series: The Book of Five Rings, Hagakure -The Way of the Samurai & Bushido - The Soul of Japan
Magnificent Collection of Samurai Philosophy May 31, 2009
Ronin
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book is a great edition to my collection and contains 22 short chapters of translated Samurai philosophical material spanning roughly the start of the Ashikaga Shogunate of 1338 (1349 in the book) through the Meiji Restoration in 1865. This period witnessed the Onin Wars and Warring States, the Feudal Wars and the unification, and the 300-year Tokugawa period leading to the end of the samurai and rise of the merchant class. If you are a fan of William Scott Wilson's "Ideals of the Samurai", you will love Training the Samurai Mind.
My main complaints about the book are more personal in nature and center around some of Cleary's commentary, which at times can be insightful while others clearly reveal his exceeding his own understanding of the subject. One example is his description of the ninja merging of the Left hand Path with Shinto and Buddhism for the purpose of "mental terror", which is arguably correct in certain later instances, though it suggests he has no clue about the ninja and their relationship with the Yamabushi or how this relationship developed over 900-years ago or the various evolutions that took place during that period. I could debate other issues but as mentioned this is my personal peeve and should not detract from the quality of the book.
My only other complaint is the inclusion of Yamamoto Tsunetomo taking up chapter 10. The Hagakure is a book unto itself and is translated by Wilson, which Cleary must certainly be aware of. Since this book would mostly appeal to people who have already read The Hagakure, why waste space including it here? I would have preferred to have been astonished with a never before translated piece by Yamaoka Tesshu or one of the Yagyu's. That could have put the book over the top.
As the 3-star review by Duff aptly points out, this is not a casual read or any sort of flowing study that will appeal to the mass market. Students of martial arts and history who are willing to read and reread and contemplate the material are certain to not be disappointed. I highly recommend this book.
Wisdom for the Warrior Lifestyle October 17, 2008
Bohdi Sanders, Ph.D. (Loveland, CO)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
Training the Samurai Mind is a collection of teachings from samurai, Confucian teachers, and Taoist teachers from 1349-1865. I found the teachings in this book to be full of useful wisdom for those who are seeking to live the warrior lifestyle. Of course some of the teachings are more useful than others, but overall I really enjoyed this book. Thomas Cleary seems to have a knack for finding interesting writings and translating them so those of us in the West can benefit from the wisdom that we would otherwise not be privy to.
The subtitle on this book is "A Bushido Source Book" and could just as easily be called The Bushido Chronicles as it chronicles writing pertaining to the warrior lifestyle over 500 years. This book combined with the writings of Sun Tzu, Lao Ztu, and Cleary's translation of the Code of the Samurai, will give the warrior a clear picture of what the Asian warrior was all about, as well as give the warrior a guide to how to live a life of character, honor and integrity.
I highly recommend this book to every martial artist, every military man, and everyone who may be interested in the ways of Asian wisdom. I honestly don't see how you could read this and not get some benefit from the wisdom that it contains. Highly recommended!
Bohdi Sanders, author of Warrior Wisdom: Ageless Wisdom for the Modern Warrior
Showing reviews 1-5 of 8
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