« Hakama (warnings for the would-be warrior) »

I donned hakama today

Opened like a black book
A silent knot guarding the entrance…

Jin
Many samurai of old died young
Outlived by their pleats
For want of mercy

Gi
A right path is righteous
But seek not rectitude or certitude:
The refuge and mausoleum of fools

Rei
Etiquette paves the streets of society
Shall a gentleman with clothes aflame
be suffered to burn,
or seized and rolled upon the ground?

Chi
Intelligence is required to distinguish success from error
But is neither their prerequisite
nor counter-guarantee

Shin
Trust is the light that shines only for the bearer

Chu
Loyalty heeds the word
Even when the speaker is silent
Rewards the deed when the doer is spent

Ko
Piety is the art and love of obedience
to no lesser authority than the universe itself