Code of the Samurai by Taira Shigesuke trans. by Thomas Cleary

"One who is supposed to be a warrior considers it his foremost concern to keep death in mind at all times, every day and night, from the morning of New Year's Day through the night of New Year's Eve. As long as you keep death in mind at all times, you will also fulfill the ways of loyalty and familial duty."
- pg. 3 -

"For warriors, taking good care of parents is fundamental. If people do not care for their parents, they are not good, even if they are exceptionally smart, well-spoken, and handsome."
- pg. 7 -

"In the code of warriors there are two kinds of principles with four levels. The two kinds of principles are ordinary principles and emergency principles. The ordinary principles include principles of knighthood and principles of weaponry. The emergency principles include army principles and combat principles."
- pg. 10 -

Shigesuke, Taria. trans by Thomas Cleary. Code of the Samurai. Tuttle Publishing: Rutland, VT. 1999.
ISBN # 0-8048-3190-4 (hc)