(读历史学英语：二) 武士道：武士的古老准则

Bushido was the code for Japan's warrior classes from perhaps as early as the 8th century through modern times. The word "bushido" comes from the Japanese roots "bushi" meaning "warrior," and "do" meaning "path" or "way." Literally, then, it can be translated as the "way of the warrior."

武士道是从大约8世纪开始到现代日本武士阶层的行为准则。“武士道”一词来源于日语词根“武士”，意为“战士”，“道”意思为“途径”或“路”。可以将武士道从字面上翻译为“武士之路”。

Bushido was the code of conduct followed by Japan's samurai warriors and their precursors in feudal Japan, as well as much of central and east Asia. The principles of bushido emphasized honor, courage, frugality, skill in the martial arts, and loyalty to a warrior's master (daimyo) above all else. It is somewhat similar to the ideas of chivalry that knights followed in feudal Europe, and has just about as many bits of folklore—such as the 47 Ronin of Japanese legend—that exemplify bushido as the European counterparts do of their knights.

武士道是日本武士以及他们在封建日本的前辈的行为准则，这一准则同样在中亚及东亚也适用。武士道精神强调荣誉、勇敢、俭省和武术技巧。最重要的是要对他们的领主即大名保持忠诚。武士道精神类似于封建欧洲遵循的骑士精神。很多民间文学里描述的武士道和欧洲骑士精神都很相似，比如日本的47浪人的传说。

What is Bushido?

A typical list of the virtues encoded in bushido includes righteousness, courage, benevolence, respect, sincerity, honor, loyalty, and self-control. The specific strictures of bushido varied, however, over time and from place to place within Japan.

武士道蕴含的典型品质包括正直、勇敢、仁慈、尊重、真诚、荣誉感、忠诚和自控。在日本，由于时代和地区之间的差异，具体的戒条又各不相同。

Bushido was an ethical system, rather than a religious belief system. In fact, many samurais believed that they were excluded from any reward in the afterlife according to the rules of Buddhism because they were trained to fight and kill in this life. Nevertheless, their honor and loyalty had to sustain them, in the face of the knowledge that they would likely end up in the Buddhist version of hell after they died.

武士道是一种道德体系，而不是宗教信仰。许多武士认为从佛教的理论看，因为他们生前被训练用于战斗和*戮，死后不会得到好的报应。武士们知道他们最终的归宿是佛教中的地狱，然而他们的荣誉感和忠诚却支撑着他们的内心。

The ideal samurai warrior was supposed to be immune from the fear of death. Only the fear of dishonor and loyalty to his daimyo motivated the true samurai. If a samurai felt that he had lost his honor (or was about to lose it) according to the rules of bushido, he could regain his standing by committing a rather painful form of ritual suicide, called "seppuku."

理想中的武士不惧死亡。能够激励真正的武士的只有名誉和对大名的忠诚。根据武士道精神，如果武士失去了荣誉（或者可能会失去荣誉），他会采用一种非常痛苦的自*方式来重拾荣誉—切腹自*。

While western religious codes of conduct forbade suicide, in feudal Japan it was the ultimate in bravery. A samurai who committed seppuku would not only regain his honor, he would actually gain prestige for his courage in facing death calmly. This became a cultural touchstone in Japan, so much so that women and children of the samurai class were also expected to face death calmly if they were caught up in a battle or siege.

与西方宗教教义禁止自*相反，在封建时代的日本，自*被看作是最勇敢的行为。切腹自*的武士不仅可以重拾荣誉，甚至可以因为能够勇敢、冷静的面对死亡而获得声望。自*在日本成为了一种道德标准，甚至日本武士阶层的妇女和儿童在遭遇战斗或围攻时，也被要求平静地面对死亡。

武士道的历史

How did this rather extraordinary system arise? As early as the 8th century, military men were writing books about the use and the perfection of the sword. They also created the ideal of the warrior-poet , who was brave, well-educated and loyal.

武士道这个特殊的道德系统是怎么建立的呢？早在8世纪，就有军人开始编撰有关剑的使用和完善的书籍。他们也在诗中创造了理想中的战士形象，他们勇敢、受过良好的教育、忠诚。

In the middle period between the 13th to 16th centuries, Japanese literature celebrated reckless courage, extreme devotion to one's family and to one's lord, and cultivation of the intellect for warriors. Most of the works that dealt with what would later be called bushido concerned the great civil war known as the Genpei War from 1180 to 1185, which pitted the Minamoto and Taira clans against one another and led to the foundation of the Kamakura Period of shogunate rule.

在中间阶段即13世纪到16世纪这个阶段，日本文学推崇无畏的勇气，对家庭和领主的无限忠诚，以及对武士知识的培养。大部分描写武士道作品都与1180年至1185年的“原平之战”有关。这场源氏家族和平氏家族之间的这场大规模的内战，最终导致了镰仓幕府统治时期的到来。

The final phase of the development of bushido was the Tokugawa era, from 1600 to 1868. This was a time of introspection and theoretical development for the samurai warrior class because the country had been basically peaceful for centuries. The samurai practiced martial arts and studied the great war literature of earlier periods, but they had little opportunity to put the theory into practice until the Boshin War of 1868 to 1869 and the later Meiji Restoration.

武士道精神发展的最后阶段是德川时代，从1600年到1868年。因为几个世纪以来日本整体维持了和平，武士阶级得以总结自身并实现理论发展。武士们练习武术，研究早期的战争文学，但在戊辰战争（1868-1869）及明治维新之前他们很少有机会将理论付诸实践。

As with earlier periods, Tokugawa samurai looked to a previous, bloodier era in Japanese history for inspiration—in this case, more than a century of constant warfare among the daimyo clans.

在德川时代，武士们和从前一样，也从前一个时代中汲取灵感。他们的前一个时代刚好是长达一个多实际的幕府混战。

现代武士道

After the samurai ruling class was abolished in the wake of the Meiji Restoration, Japan created a modern conscript army. One might think that bushido would fade away along with the samurai who had invented it, but in fact, Japanese nationalists and war leaders continued to appeal to this cultural ideal throughout the early 20th century and World War II.

在明治维新废除了武士统治阶级之后，日本实行了现代义务兵制。人们本以为武士道将会随着武士阶级的消失而消失，但实际上日本的民族主义者和战争*们在20世纪早期和二战中一直在提倡这种精神。

Echoes of seppuku were strong in the suicide charges that Japanese troops made on various Pacific Islands, as well as in the kamikaze pilots who drove their aircraft into Allied battleships and bombed Hawaii to start off America's involvement in the war.

日本军队在多个太平洋岛屿上的自*式攻击，以及神风敢死队员为了使美国卷入战争而驾驶飞机撞向盟军战舰、对夏威夷进行轰炸，都与“切腹自*”如出一辙。

Today, bushido continues to resonate in modern Japanese culture. Its stress on courage, self-denial, and loyalty has proved particularly useful for corporations seeking to get the maximum amount of work out of their "salarymen."

当下，武士道精神仍然受到现代日本社会的认可。因为作为希望榨取员工最大工作价值的公司来说，武士道精神所强调的勇气、克己以及忠诚再实用不过了。

后记：

这篇文章翻译了很久，一是因为对日本的历史不熟悉，二是里面确实有一些很地道的表达，学识有限，无法准确翻译。虽然整体上对传达文章的主旨影响不大，但是还是希望高手不吝赐教。如有对以下几个短语或词组有独到理解的请留言。

1、第六段：cultural touchstone 原文 This became a cultural touchstone in Japan, so much so that women and children of the samurai class were also expected to face death calmly if they were caught up in a battle or siege.

2、第七段： warrior-poet 原文They also created the ideal of the warrior-poet , who was brave, well-educated and loyal.

3、第四段：had to 原文 Nevertheless, their honor and loyalty had to sustain them, in the face of the knowledge that they would likely end up in the Buddhist version of hell after they died. 这句话有什么更好的翻译方法么?

重点词汇：

• Bushido：/'buːʃɪdəʊ; bʊ'ʃiːdəʊ/ 武士道
• precursor： /prɪ'kɜːsə/ 先驱；先锋；前身 e.g.:Bushido was the code of conduct followed by Japan's samurai warriors and their precursors in feudal Japan
• folklore : /'fəʊklɔː/ 民间传统；民俗；民间传说 codes of conductcodes of conduct
• codes of conduct: 行为准则
• reckless：/'reklɪs/ 鲁莽的；不计后果的；无所顾忌的 本文译作无所顾忌，reckless courage无畏的勇气