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of Asia on our civilization consisted in introducing the metaphysical elements, teaching us to solve in part the mysteries of our spiritual nature, of good and evil, of life and death—with which the practical minds of warriors were little concerned, but into which every rational soul is wont to pry ‘in times of calm weather.’ We may say that this Aryan religion has supplied our minds with the act of contemplation, whereas Shintoism, in spite of its worship of nature, puts more stress on reflection. Thus, what we most gained from Buddhism in moral respects was the method of contemplation as a modus operandi of spiritual culture, and not so much its philosophy as its dogmas.

In this way every alien form of thought but helped to swell the volume of our ethical sentiments, without diverting their direction or changing their essential quality. The truth is that Bushido is the totality of the moral instincts of the Japanese race, and as such it was in its elements coeval with our blood, and therefore also with our religion of Shintoism. I am strongly inclined to believe that the simple Shinto worship of nature and of ancestors was the foundation of Bushido, and that whatever we borrowed from Chinese philosophy or Hindu religion was its flowers—nay, scarcely flowers even, but rather acted as a fertilizer to feed the tree of the Yamato race to blossom into knightly deeds and virtues.

The central moral teachings of Shintoism seem to me to be these: Know thyself; reflect into thy mind; see in thy heart a god enthroned, appointing this, or commanding that; obey his mandate, and thou needest no other gods. Consider whence thou camest—namely, from thy parents, and they from theirs, and so back from generation to generation: thou owest thy being to thy progenitors, to whom, though invisible, thou canst still be thankful. Consider also where thou art—namely, in a well-ordered state, where thou and thine are safe and well: only in such a state could thy mother give birth and suck to thee; only in such a state can thy children thrive; forget not, therefore, him thy Lord and King, from whom peace, law, and order emanate. In such simple wise did Shintoism instil moral responsibility into our own conscience, filial love to our parents and forefathers, and loyalty to our King. These threefold duties, representing respectively personal, family, and social relations, may be called the primary moral notions, in the practical exercise of which many others must of necessity follow as postulates.

Having given a rough idea of what Bushido is, I will proceed to present a little more detailed account of its precepts. I shall begin with those which concern the duties which one owes to one’s self.