Hagakure (Ky jitai: Shinjitai: meaning In the shadow the Leaves or hidden leaves.), is a practical and spiritual guide for a warrior, drawn from a collection of commentaries by the samurai Yamamoto Tsunetomo, a former retainer to Nabeshima Mitsushige, the third ruler of what is now the Saga prefecture in Japan. Tsuramoto Tashiro compiled these commentaries from his conversations with Tsunetomo from 1709 to 1716 and recorded Tsunetomo's views on bushido, the warrior code of the samurai. Hagakure is sometimes said to assert that bushido is really the "Way of Dying" or living as though one was...

Hagakure is a classic text from 17th century Japan written by a Samurai retainer. This is an absolute must have for every library.