Hagakure- post 1

"Although it stands to reason that a samurai should be mindful of the Way of the Samurai, it would seem that we are all negligent. Consequently, if someone were to ask, "What is the true meaning of the Way of the Samurai?" the person who would be able to answer promptly is rare. This is because it has not been established in one's mind beforehand. From this, one's unmindfullness of the Way can be known.
Negligence is an extreme thing" (Yamamoto 1)

These are the first lines in this book Hagakure, The Way of the Samurai. I have evaluated from this that Yamamoto wants people to know and be mindful of the Way (i think he was referring to the Tao which means the Path in Japanese). He thinks that the Way is extremely important and that if one should not know of the Way, that is would be negligence. I can tell that this book was not meant for westerners, because it doesn't go on to and explain to the reader what a samurai is! Maybe some Americans don't really know the significance. if a westerner were to pick this up not knowing what a samurai is, he or she may not know what it applies to. but i think that the point of the book, is that it applies to everything in life. so even thought someone doesn't know what a samurai is the book could still be useful

-Who read this book?
-is it standard literature for that time?
-could samurai= human? and thus fight= life?