discipline
pride
prestise
respect
It's an abstract concept that really only has meaning to the person professing about it.
Historically, "warriors" were simply people who went to war- soldiers. Their "way" was to find the most functional way to kill the enemy. Once standing armies/warrior classes became common, however, society at large had to find a way to integrate them into the social structure as a whole. After all, if you're really good at killing and there's no "enemy" to kill, what good are you? And if you're a civilian, aren't you the least bit worried about the killers who have a "power" of sorts that you don't posses?
Gradually, societies imposed structures and rules on their professional killers. In Medieval Europe, for example, knights were generally expected to follow Christian values... when facing Christians, of course. In East Asia, Confucianism was the source for many "warrior codes", which emphasized filial piety, or service to a "lord".
The "rules" that warriors lived by were inconsistent, cross-culture, save for a few things. Mostly, they were expected to serve a higher power. They were also expected to take responsibility for their actions. In Japan, this could mean ritual suicide; in Europe, suicide was frowned upon. This is one example of a common value having inconsistent actions in different cultures.
In modern times, folks who fancy themselves "martial arts warriors" will adopt a romanticized version of some warrior code. Really, it means anything YOU want it to mean.
Is a set of values for warriors. Many cultures had different ones, in martial arts most of people are familiar with the Samurai Bushido.
These set of values were guiding theories (not dogmas) combined with philosophies and other civilized theories and actions that were there to distinguish civilized and honorable warriors from barbarians..In addition the civilized were also considered more valor, brave, intelligent and beautiful in a sense. They were writing stories for them, poems songs e.t.c Knights for example e.t.c
Is like when somebody is in a war for long term, and he/she is not doing (or not that many at list) war crimes, raping, stealing, killing unarmed civilians e.t.c then he/she is civilized, while if he/she is doing all those things (especially heavily) he/she is a barbarian. It may seems strange for some, but in conflict is important. Not as a dogma but as a guidance to guide people to better behaviors when they can in conflicts.
Practically not all knights and samurai were exactly saints of course, but averagely better behaviors were recorded in comparison with some barbaric cultures that they were conducting genocides, mass rapes e.t.c whenever they could.
Civilized honorable warriors in history were considered the Greeks, the European Knights, the Byzantines, the Romans, the Europeans, the Samurai, the Chinese, the Russians e.t.c
Barbarians, were considered the Mongols, the Turks, the Aztecs, the Tatars, the Huns, e.t.c
The Arabs and the Persians were considered both according to times and sources..Lol!!!
Keep on mind that most of the sources are European of course.:)
In world war two too many war crimes had being done and things started to take a different perception, on several things.
I think you mean the way of the warrior. It's bushido. Has very luttle to do with martial arts. Martial arts can be whatever you want it to be. For some it's a way to get into shape, for others it's something recreational and for some it's their whole life and it has a spiritual meaning. What it is to you I don't know.
Nitobe Inazo explained the eight virtues of bushido:
Rectitude or Justice: Rectitude is one’s power to decide upon a course of conduct in accordance with reason, without wavering; to die when to die is right, to strike when to strike is right.
Courage: Bushido distinguishes between bravery and courage: Courage is worthy of being counted among virtues only if it’s exercised in the cause of Righteousness and Rectitude. In his Analects, Confucius says: ‘Perceiving what is right and doing it not, reveals a lack of Courage.’ In short, ‘Courage is doing what is right.’
Benevolence or Mercy: A man invested with the power to command and the power to kill was expected to demonstrate equally extraordinary powers of benevolence and mercy: Love, magnanimity, affection for others, sympathy and pity, are traits of Benevolence, the highest attribute of the human soul.
Politeness: Politeness should be the expression of a benevolent regard for the feelings of others; it’s a poor virtue if it’s motivated only by a fear of offending good taste. In its highest form Politeness approaches love.
Honesty and Sincerity: True samurai, according to author Nitobe, disdained money, believing that “men must grudge money, for riches hinder wisdom.” Bushido encouraged thrift, not for economical reasons so much as for the exercise of abstinence. Luxury was thought the greatest menace to manhood, and severe simplicity was required of the warrior class.
Honor: The sense of Honor, a vivid consciousness of personal dignity and worth, characterized the samurai. He was born and bred to value the duties and privileges of his profession. To take offense at slight provocation was ridiculed as ‘short-tempered.’ As the popular adage put it: ‘True patience means bearing the unbearable’.
Loyalty: True men remain loyal to those to whom they are indebted. Personal fidelity exists among all sorts of men: a gang of pickpockets swears allegiance to its leader. But only in the code of chivalrous Honor does Loyalty assume paramount importance.
Character and Self-Control: Bushido teaches that men should behave according to an absolute moral standard, one that transcends logic. What’s right is right, and what’s wrong is wrong. The difference between good and bad and between right and wrong are givens, not arguments subject to discussion or justification, and a man should know the difference. The first objective of samurai education was to build up Character. The subtler faculties of prudence, intelligence, and dialectics were less important. Intellectual superiority was esteemed, but a samurai was essentially a man of action.
In reality bushido had many more codes and not just those eight.
There are books you can read on the bushido code:
Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai by Yamamoto Tsunetomo
and
The Code of the Samurai: A Modern Translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu of Taira Shigesuke by Thomas F Cleary, PH.D., Oscar Ratti (Illustrator), Yuzan Daidoji
Integrity
Respect
Heroic Courage
Compassion
Honour
Honesty and sincerity
Duty and loyalty
Research "Bushido" it will give you the answer to your question, a lifetime dedicated to martial arts will give it meaning.
I'm not really into any martial arts (not yet anyway) but I've heard it mentioned in several different disciplines. I believe it's supposed to be more of like a philosophy? Is this correct? Please go into as much detail as you'd like. I'm just really curious as to what it actually is.
