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“But what Hagakure has to say here about ideal human, or rather manly, beauty – ‘reverent yet stern, self collected’ – is still one kind of aesthetic for manly appearance. ‘Reverent’ requires a humility that inspires trust in others, while ’sternness’ hints at an air of austerity and aloofness. What is needed to reconcile and bind together these two opposite elements is a serene, unflappable calm.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
“It is our common error to believe in the existence of heart or mind, conscience, thought, and abstract ideas, even when they are not directly revealed in conduct.”
“Cowardly words make the heart itself cowardly, and being regarded as a coward by others is the same as being a coward. The slightest flaw in word or deed causes the collapse of one’s philosophy of life. This can be a hard truth to bear.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
“…a samurai is a total human being, whereas a man who is completely absorbed in his technical skill has degenerated into a ‘function’, one cog in a machine.”
“…a total person does not need a skill. He represents spirit, he represents action, and he represents the ideal principles on which his realm is founded.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
“One who in wartime employs rough and manly words appropriate to an age of war and in time of peace words appropriate to peacetime, is not a samurai. It is essential for a samurai to maintain logical consistency, and if one must show valor in one’ s action during times of chaos, then one must demonstrate equal valor in words during a peaceful age.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
“What is strength? It is not to be carried away by attempts at wisdom. It is not to go overboard in judgment. Jōchō knew what it was like to watch patiently while his motivation to action was crushed by wisdom and judgment. And he had seen many people lose their strength as they reached the age of discernment, so that even their newly gained wisdom and judgment were rendered ineffectual. There is a delicate paradox here. If one gains wisdom only at the age of forty, one must retain the strength to put it to use. Most of us do not, however. This is Jōchō ’s warning.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
“…just as the ancient Greeks associated aesthetics with ethics, morality in Hagakure is determined by aesthetics. What is beautiful must be strong, vivid, and brimming with energy. This is the first principle; the second is that what is moral must be beautiful. It does not mean taking great care over clothing and becoming effeminate, but rather it brings together beauty and ethical goals in the greatest possible tension.”
- Yukio Mishima, Mishima on Hagakure
