Bushido 武士道

Once upon a time there was a swordsman who was adopted by an old general from the east to learn the classical ways of fighting. The apprentice grew in stature and prominence as he learned from him. They fought together in wars alongside other warriors. He swore loyalty to him and in turn was recognized for his achievements. He worked with different commanders and has proven his worth even in the most challenging of times.

Sadly, he would hear of stories from the others that the old master was not as honorable as he thought. The other commanders who swore loyalty to him eventually left him oftentimes disgruntled and never came back. The swordsman often wondered about this but dismissed the rumors said of him. Others who came under the general's tutelage would leave in the hopes of finding greener pastures.

In time, the general grew his army by acquiring new recruits and commanders. New warriors were signed up to replace those who left. The swordsman grew to become a teacher himself to the new recruits. He was respected by others of different class and rank. He was often recruited to better masters but he decided to stay with the old general. He believed that he can learn a few more of the ways and perhaps become a commander himself for his loyalty.


Battles were won and lost. The swordsman was sent away on long periods to far off places for covert missions. On his wedding day, the swordsman was even asked to leave his wife for a time to fulfill his duties. Sacrifices were made for the war all in the name of honor and loyalty.

Time came when peace returned to the land. Battles were less frequent and swords were now being replaced by plowshares. The era of the sword warrior is starting to wane.

One day no different from the others, the swordsmen, their commanders and the old general were summoned. They were told that their services for the feudal lord were no longer needed. However, they are enjoined to help another feudal lord in his war effort in another prefecture. To ensure that the samurais were to be as loyal, he asked them to give up certain rights in place of new ones. They were to go through certain rites to renounce their old ways of bushido. They were to be substantially rewarded for their new found loyalty.

It became apparent that the warlord made a pact with another warlord of that other kingdom. They had agreed to convert the army of samurai to ninjas. They will inherit the ways of the ninja and are required to give up bushido or the Code of the Warrior. Bushido will have to be given up and compensated by blood money. Blood money is substantially more than the what is being earned through bushido. Unlike bushido, blood money entails giving up your rights and requires a bond of servitude to the warlord ninja. Breaking the bond requires severe punishment which includes returning all the blood money you have earned from the ninja master.

The choice was given to the swordsmen to accept the offer of the ninja master with the promise of gold and punishment of blood money. If they choose otherwise, the swordsman will be paid for his final services as a samurai including honor for his tenure and be left to wander in solitude as the warlord has no need of him. He will have to look for work somewhere else and find a new master.

The swordsman thought about the choice given to him. Reason compels him to choose to accept the offer of gold for he has a family to support yet the thought of giving up Bushido greatly bothers him. In his thoughts he had a vision, he walked upon halls of many doors. All the doors seemed open and yet he could not see beyond the open doors. He was asked to enter only one. For this he asked for wisdom.

"Please close the doors if they are not meant to be", he asked the Divine Wind. It was impressed upon him that this is a time of testing and resolve.

"The doors are left open for us to make the choice between path of self preservation or the path of bushido".

The swordsman was deeply troubled and sought the counsel of wise men.

They were old samurais who were noted for their wisdom and honor. Notably was a priest of of the School of the Divine Sacrificial Wind who advised against considering the pact.

"Bushido is a code of the warrior for honor, truth, integrity and loyalty", the priest explained.

"You cannot have honor and receive blood money at the same time. You cannot eat your rice cake and have it too", he added.

Others advised that the blood money was not intended to be of blood. It was customary to some houses that a guarantee of loyalty was required for the sake of the survival of the house. Bonds of servitude often didn't require blood as payment and oftentimes Bushido is honored and kept intact.

The swordsman returned to the old general and spoke to him.

"I don't think its right to ask us to give up Bushido in place of blood money". The swordsman implored the empathy of the old general.

"I agree. It's not about the money as Bushido is far more important than gold", said the old general. The general quickly agreed and went on to speak to his masters and the warlord.

The next day the old general came to speak to his swordsmen. A compromise was reached. Bushido will still have to be given up as it is the requirement of the pact. In it's place, more gold was promised and the length of the bond of servitude was shortened.

Each of the swordsman have different situations it seems. Some have been with the old warlord for just a short time and whose loyalties are unestablished. Some are in dire need and feeding their family is of primary importance. Others are heavily in debt and are willing to risk everything in spite of warnings of seers and fortune tellers. So it seems, little by little, the swordsmen agreed to the pact. Some gave up Bushido for the promise of gold. Only a handful opted out for one reason or another.

The loyal swordsman wouldn't have any of it. Of which he was summoned by the old general.

"I'm not asking you to compromise Bushido, you can return to it after the bond of servitude has been served. You only need to fulfill the time and go through the motions required and find another master if you don't like it. You can even have your gold to boot." Said the old general to the loyal swordsman.

"You can actually eat your rice cake and have it too!"

The words sent chills to the spine of the swordsman. It is apparent that The Divine Wind is speaking to the swordsman through the priest.

The old general realized that the loyal swordsman will not enlist, so he spoke to the new ninja warlords for a plan.

"Give him more gold!", said the ninja masters. They were very generous yet Bushido has to be given up.

"It is not the gold that I seek. I only desire that my right to keep honor and Bushido to remain intact. Once that is guaranteed, I am willing to give you my loyalty and serve you willfully without the bond of servitude nor the extra gold, however generous".

The old general was insistent. He was already suspiciously hard selling the new ninja masters.

"I cannot give up Bushido and return to it. Once its broken, it cannot be restored. A stew with bitter herbs cannot be undone by adding more sweeteners to hide the bitterness", the swordsman explained.

"I don't think i can look myself in the mirror by accepting it. I'm betraying myself by putting undo pressure on my swordsmanship. The gold i that accept will set me in a higher expectation than my skills. I'm not a master and should not be valued as one".

"I can never work for a master who requires absolute subservience. I desire to work with loyalty where loyalty is due."

The loyal swordsman realized that this will be a lonely path he will have to take. It has to be taken even if the road for it will be difficult. He trusts that the Divine Wind will guide him to the enlightened path as was promised in the prophecy and the old scrolls.

With this, the loyal swordsman went away sad. Not only that he lost his house but he also lost his loyalty to the old general. He chose Bushido and went to seek the unknown wilderness with the guidance of the Divine Wind.


TO BE CONTINUED...



All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.