Samurai Code Quotes
Often cited as a Japanese Proverb, however, there is no evidence of its general use. The quote can be traced to Georges Maget, a French Naval doctor in the 1870’s – see the article link in the citation. Magets reference to “black blood” is likely rooted in the French historical slang “sang noir,” which was used to describe non-noble blood.
His documentation of Bushido—the way of the warrior—has influenced Japanese culture and behavior even into modern times. This statement in large part explained the behavior of Japanese troops in WWII. Surrender was considered cowardice and therefore fighting to the death was required of all Japanese. This particular work was studied by American experts on Japan and the assumption that this was the Japanese cultural imperative for soldier and civilian alike, was one of the major factors leading Truman and America to use the Atomic bomb in WWII for they did not anticipate any Japanese surrender otherwise and an invasion of the Japanese mainland would have killed more Japanese and many Americans as well. Even after the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, the Japanese would not surrender and it took the Emperor to finally contradict the Japanese culture as stated in Yamamoto Tsunetomo’s writing. See also {586232}.
