About Unit Kerjasama Awam dan Swasta (UKAS) Prime Minister Office.

Initially form as a part of Economic Planning Unit (EPU), Prime Minister Department due to increasing need for closer public-private relationship in developing the economy of the country, new unit named Unit Kerjasama Awam dan Swasta(UKAS) was created on 22nd. April 2009.

UKAS consist of 17 section 1) Corporate Advisors 2) PPP Policy & Corridor Development 3) Project Monitoring & Secretariat 4) Corporate Communication 5) PPP Fund 6) Security, Housing, Local Government & Land Development 7) Infrastructure Section 8) Health, Science & Technology and Services Industry 9) Education, Energy & Utility 10) Technical 11) Corporate Services & ICT 12) Legal Section 13) Highway & Town Services 14) Integriti 15) Excellent Centre 17) Corporate Technical Advisor.

UKAS act as the central agency for planning and coordinating privatisation and PFI/PPP program in Malaysia. The main function of UKAS act as secretarial for PPP project, facilitate the funding for PPP/PFI project, monitoring them, negotiation for terms, condition and costing of the project and act as secretarial for government corridor project i.e ECER, IM, SCORE, SDC and NCER.

Majlis Berbuka Puasa Sunat (Isnin & Khamis) di Masjid Al-Wathiqubillah Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, UiTM Shah Alam.

Tahniah dan sekalung penghargaan kepada Pusat Pemikiran & Kefahaman Islam, UiTM kerana menganjurkan program Iftar (Berbuka Puasa Sunat Isnin dan Khamis) di Masjid Al-Wathiqubillah Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, UiTM Shah Alam bermula pada semester ini. Ia terbuka kepada semua warga UiTM termasuk para pelajar.

Program ini bertujuan untuk menggalakan warga UiTM berpuasa sunat sebagai tanda bersyukur kepada Allah s.w.t. atas limpah kurnia nikmatNya yang tidak terhingga kepada kita disamping mendidik nafsu ammarah (yang lebih banyak mengajak kepada keburukan) agar berubah menjadi nafsu lawwamah dan seterusnya meningkat kepada nafsu mutmainnah yakni nafsu yang tenang tenteram, bersedia menjunjung titah perintah Allah s.w.t.

Dengan berpuasa sunat ia juga mendidik jiwa supaya mempunyai sifat kasihan belas terhadap orang-orang yang susah menderita dan kurang bernasib baik kehidupan mereka, ia juga membersihkan diri daripada sifat-sifat mazmumah (keji) seperti tamak, sombong, hasad dengki dan lain-lain lagi. Mendidik jiwa supaya bersifat sabar, tahan menanggung kesusahan dan pelbagai cabaran dalam menempuh perjuangan hidup.

Marilah kita beramai-ramai memeriahkan program yang julung kalinya dianjurkan oleh Pusat Pemikiran dan Kefahaman Islam ini.

Persaingan Vs. Kerjasama - Mana Lebih Utama?

Persaingan terjadi dimana-mana, di UiTM kami mengambil pelajar berdasarkan merit, maksudnya, hanya pelajar yang memenuhi syarat kemasukan minimum atau lebih baik diterima masuk ke UiTM. Justeru para lepasan SPM perlu bersaing diantara satu sama lain, hanya mereka yang terbaik diterima masuk menjadi mahasiswa UiTM.

Dalam dunia perniagaan persaingan sering berlaku dan terjadi. Demikian juga dalam politik. Kebaikan persaingan ialah pengguna terakhir (end user) akan mendapat manfaat kerana hasil persaingan tersebut pelanggan akan ditawarkan dengan harga yang lebih kompetatif dan produk yang lebih berkualiti.

Dalam politik pun begitu, selepas Pilihanraya ke-12, menyaksikan persaingan yang kuat diantara Barisan Nasional dan Pakatan Rakyat untuk memenangi hati rakyat, hasilnya rakyat mendapat manfaat apabila kedua-dua pihak mengambil berat terhadap masalah rakyat. Contohnya, semasa berlaku banjir batu 14, Cheras, Hulu Langat baru-baru ini, kedua-dua pihak menghulurkan bantuan kepada mangsa banjir.

Di UiTM, Info Tech iaitu sebuah jabatan yang bertanggungjawab terhadap sistem ICT termasuk sistem rangkaian (network) di UiTM diseluruh negara menetapkan hanya satu jenama produk rangkaian (network) digunakan didalam UiTM dan mereka menjalinkan kerjasama dengan vendor tersebut untuk memudahkan mereka menyelenggara sistem rangkaian (networking system) seluruh UiTM. Dengan kerjasama tersebut, semua masalah teknikal dapat diatasi dengan mudah. Malahan semua kakitangan teknikal dihantar berkursus dan didedahkan dengan tatacara menyelenggara sistem rangkaian produk berjenama tersebut. Hasilnya berlakulah monopoli namun semua masalah teknikal dan penyelenggaraan mudah diselesaikan jika ia berlaku.

Saya tertanya-tanya pendekatan manakah yang lebih baik, bersaing atau berkerjasama. Saya berpendapat pendekatan terbaik ialah bergantung kepada keadaan. Pada masa-masa tertentu kita perlu mewujudkan persaingan dan dimasa yang lain, kita perlu mewujudkan kerjasama. Segalanya bergantung kepada keadaan. Tidak semestinya outcome persaingan menguntungkan end-user dan begitu jugalah sebaliknya dengan kerjasama.

The Magic of Doing One Thing at a Time

Why is it that between 25 and 50 per cent of people report feeling overwhelmed or burned out at work?

It's not just the number of hours we're working, but also the fact that we spend too many continuous hours juggling too many things at the same time.

What we've lost, above all, are stopping points, finish lines and boundaries. Technology has blurred them beyond recognition. Wherever we go, our work follows us, on our digital devices, ever insistent and intrusive. It's like an itch we can't resist scratching, even though scratching invariably makes it worse.

Tell the truth: Do you answer email during conference calls (and sometimes even during calls with one other person)? Do you bring your laptop to meetings and then pretend you're taking notes while you surf the net? Do you eat lunch at your desk? Do you make calls while you're driving, and even send the occasional text, even though you know you shouldn't?

The biggest cost — assuming you don't crash — is to your productivity. In part, that's a simple consequence of splitting your attention, so that you're partially engaged in multiple activities but rarely fully engaged in any one. In part, it's because when you switch away from a primary task to do something else, you're increasing the time it takes to finish that task by an average of 25 per cent.

But most insidiously, it's because if you're always doing something, you're relentlessly burning down your available reservoir of energy over the course of every day, so you have less available with every passing hour.

I know this from my own experience. I get two to three times as much writing accomplished when I focus without interruption for a designated period of time and then take a real break, away from my desk. The best way for an organization to fuel higher productivity and more innovative thinking is to strongly encourage finite periods of absorbed focus, as well as shorter periods of real renewal.

If you're a manager, here are three policies worth promoting:

1. Maintain meeting discipline. Schedule meetings for 45 minutes, rather than an hour or longer, so participants can stay focused, take time afterward to reflect on what's been discussed, and recover before the next obligation. Start all meetings at a precise time, end at a precise time, and insist that all digital devices be turned off throughout the meeting.

2. Stop demanding or expecting instant responsiveness at every moment of the day. It forces your people into reactive mode, fractures their attention, and makes it difficult for them to sustain attention on their priorities. Let them turn off their email at certain times. If it's urgent, you can call them — but that won't happen very often.

3. Encourage renewal. Create at least one time during the day when you encourage your people to stop working and take a break. Offer a midafternoon class in yoga, or meditation, organize a group walk or workout, or consider creating a renewal room where people can relax, or take a nap.

It's also up to individuals to set their own boundaries. Consider these three behaviors for yourself:

1. Do the most important thing first in the morning, preferably without interruption, for 60 to 90 minutes, with a clear start and stop time. If possible, work in a private space during this period, or with sound-reducing earphones. Finally, resist every impulse to distraction, knowing that you have a designated stopping point. The more absorbed you can get, the more productive you'll be. When you're done, take at least a few minutes to renew.

2. Establish regular, scheduled times to think more long term, creatively, or strategically. If you don't, you'll constantly succumb to the tyranny of the urgent. Also, find a different environment in which to do this activity — preferably one that's relaxed and conducive to open-ended thinking.

3. Take real and regular vacations. Real means that when you're off, you're truly disconnecting from work. Regular means several times a year if possible, even if some are only two or three days added to a weekend. The research strongly suggests that you'll be far healthier if you take all of your vacation time, and more productive overall.

A single principle lies at the heart of all these suggestions. When you're engaged at work, fully engage, for defined periods of time. When you're renewing, truly renew. Make waves. Stop living your life in the gray zone.

by

TONY SCHWARTZ

Tony Schwartz is the president and CEO of The Energy Project and the author of Be Excellent at Anything. Become a fan of The Energy Project on Facebook and connect with Tony at Twitter.com/TonySchwartz and Twitter.com/Energy_Project.

Berkerja Kerana Allah S.W.T - Sr. Tuan Hj. Tamzil Munir

Pada hari ini termeterailah sebuah perjanjian untuk membangunkan sebuah kampus baru UiTM di Dengkil khas untuk program matrikulasi dalam semua jurusan dan aliran berkapasiti 5,000 orang pelajar. Majlis tersebut disaksikan sendiri oleh Menteri Pengajian Tinggi, Dato Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

Saya berkesempatan berbual panjang dengan Sr. Tuan Haji Tamzil Munir, Pengarah PFI, Pejabat Pembangunan UiTM semasa dalam pulang dari KPT ke UiTM kerana kami menaiki kenderaan yang sama. Satu nasihat yang memberikan beliau dan memberikan kesan kepada saya ialah berkerja kerana Allah. Jangan takut kepada selain daripada Allah kerana semua itu makhluk Allah belaka. Tuhan melihat apa yang kita buat dimanapun kita berada, justeru sebagai hambanya kita kena wajib menyerahkan seluruh kekuatan, tenaga dan pemikiran untuk berkerja sekuat mungkin tanpa mengira waktu dan niatkan kerana Allah untuk menjalankan tugas yang diamanahkan kepada kita. Ia akan menjadi ibadah dan pekerjaan kita akan diberkati. Demikianlah nasihat beliau.

Tambah beliau lagi "...kita kena bekerja secara profesional. Dalam dunia pembinaan, kualiti binaan perlu dijaga dan diperhalusi sehalus-halus mungkin. Kita perlu tegur kontraktor jika mereka mengabaikan kualiti..." Saya berazam untuk mengikuti nasihat beliau itu demi meneruskan sebuah perjalanan hidup untuk agama, bangsa dan negara.

Bill Gates Was Speechless When A Microsoft Manager Compared Windows To A Toilet

by Matt Rosoff | Mar. 12, 2012, 8:56 PM

Hillel Cooperman quit Microsoft about five years ago to found his own software design company, Jackson Fish Market.

Today, Cooperman described a meeting in 2003, when he tried to convince Bill Gates that different software features could have different types of designs.

As an engineer, Gates had a firm belief that interface design should be as consistent as possible -- why rewrite menus in a bunch of different ways? It was a waste of time and code.

Cooperman believed that people aren't that robotic and can handle variations. It's more important to make sure the overall user experience feels good.

So he told Gates, "A shower, a toilet, and a water fountain all have mechanisms to control water flow, places where the water comes out, some sort of porcelain basin to hold the water, and a drain, but we don’t combine them into one thing to reduce their learning curve."

Gates paused for what seemed like forever.

Then he finally came out with, "That's just rude."

Cooperman lost the battle, but Microsoft has since come around to the idea that user experience can be tailored for different functions -- just look at the way Windows 8 combines two totally different interfaces in the same product.

Full credit to Cooperman for bringing Bill Gates to a near speechless state. In his earlier days, Gates was known for his blunt opinions, including favorites like "that's the stupidest f-ing idea I've ever heard."

Read the whole blog post here.

Please follow SAI on Twitter and Facebook.

(Sources - http://www.businessinsider.com)

A Patent Lie: How Yahoo Weaponized My Work

By Andy Baio March 13, 2012 | 3:44 pm |

While most of the tech world was partying at South by Southwest in Austin yesterday, Yahoo announced it was filing a lawsuit against Facebook for allegedly infringing on 10 patents from their 1,000+ patent warehouse.

I’m no fan of Facebook, but this is a deplorable move. It’s nothing less than extortion, expertly timed during the SEC-mandated quiet period before Facebook’s IPO. It’s an attack on invention and the hacker ethic.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have a small supporting role in this story. None of the patents I co-invented are cited in the Yahoo complaint, but a handful of applications I worked on with Yahoo were granted patents, weaponized now to use against people like me.

Here’s how the process worked, in my case:

In 2005, Yahoo acquired Upcoming.org, the collaborative events calendar I’d launched two years before.

Back then, the Web 1.0 behemoth seemed on the verge of turning things around. A series of smart moves — high-profile hires, the Oddpost and Flickr acquisitions, the launch of the Yahoo! Developer Network, and their Research Lab — was breathing new life into things. Two months after we were acquired, Del.icio.us and Webjay joined us in the Yahoo fold.

After we moved in, we were asked to file patents for anything and everything we’d invented while working on Upcoming.org. Every Yahoo employee was encouraged to participate in their “Patent Incentive Program,” with sizable bonuses issued to everyone who took the time to apply.

Now, I’ve always hated the idea of software patents. But Yahoo assured us that their patent portfolio was a precautionary measure, to defend against patent trolls and others who might try to attack Yahoo with their own holdings. It was a cold war, stockpiling patents instead of nuclear arms, and every company in the valley had a bunker full of them.

Against my better judgement, I sat in a conference room with my co-founders and a couple of patent attorneys and told them what we’d created. They took notes and created nonsensical documents that I still can’t make sense of. In all, I helped Yahoo file eight patent applications.

Years after I left I discovered to my dismay that four of them were granted by the U.S. Patent and Trade Office.

I thought I was giving them a shield, but turns out I gave them a missile with my name permanently engraved on it.

I was naive. Even if the original intention was truly defensive, a patent portfolio can easily change hands, and a company can even more easily change its mind. Since I left in 2007, Yahoo has had three CEOsand a board overhaul.

The scary part is that even the most innocuous patent can be used to crush another’s creativity. One of the patents I co-invented is so abstract, it could not only cover Facebook’s News Feed, but virtually any activity feed. It puts into very sharp focus the trouble with software patents: Purposefully vague wording invites broad interpretation.

In their complaint, Yahoo alleges that Facebook’s News Feed violates “Dynamic page generator,” apatent filed in 1997 by their former CTO related to the launch of My Yahoo, one of the first personalized websites. Every web application, from Twitter to Pinterest, could be said to violate this patent. This is chaos.

Software patents should be abolished, plain and simple. Software is already covered by copyright, making patent protection unnecessary.

Ask any programmer — developing software is as creative and unique as writing poetry.

Yahoo’s lawsuit against Facebook is an insult to the talented engineers who filed patents with the understanding they wouldn’t be used for evil. Betraying that trust won’t be forgotten, but I doubt it matters anymore. Nobody I know wants to work for a company like that.

I’m embarrassed by the patents I filed, but I’ve learned from my mistake. I’ll never file a software patent again, and I urge you to do the same.

For years, Yahoo was mostly harmless. Management foibles and executive shuffles only hurt shareholders and employee morale. But in the last few years, the company’s incompetence has begun to hurt the rest of us. First, with the wholesale destruction of internet history, and now by attacking younger, smarter companies.

Yahoo tried and failed, over and over again, to build a social network that people would love and use. Unable to innovate, Yahoo is falling back to the last resort of a desperate, dying company: litigation as a business model.

That it’s Yahoo makes it even sadder. The complaint isn’t really wrong when it asserts that: “For much of the technology upon which Facebook is based, Yahoo! got there first.”

But being first with something generic that would have been invented by someone (like the wheel) — as opposed to something few could have imagined (like the Segway) — is a big difference.

Ask any start-up CEO — execution is everything.

As Facebook founder Jesse Eisenberg cum Mark Zuckerberg says in The Social Network, “If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you’d have invented Facebook.”

Illustration: From one of the patents I helped Yahoo obtain.

Homepage photo: Schill/Flickr

Andy Baio is a writer and tech entrepreneur in Portland, OR. He blogs at Waxy.org, and writes the Wired column "Codeword" every Tuesday. He works with Expert Labs, helped build Kickstarter, founded Upcoming, made the album Kind of Bloop, and other stuff too.
Follow @waxpancake on Twitter.

(Sources - http://www.wired.com)

As Dell Shifts To Software & Services, Announces Plans To Buy SonicWall

Computer manufacturer Dell announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement that will allow it to acquire SonicWall, a security vendor specializing in firewalls, network security and data protection. The move will help Dell round out its security solutions portfolio, the company reports, which currently includes Dell’s SecureWorks security services, cloud security solutions, data encryption solutions and Dell KACE vulnerability and patch management.

The acquisition is more than just a “beefing up” of Dell’s security line up, though – it’s representative of a shift in Dell’s overall strategy as a technology firm.

The move comes shortly after last month’s announcement regarding the formation of a new Software Group within the company, designed to enhance Dell’s solutions capabilities. Dell hired John Swainson to serve as President of the Group. Swainson, whose background includes over 26 years at IBM, and 4 years as the CEO of CA, Inc., took the position on March 5th – only a week ago. And boy, did he move fast.

Although terms of the deal were not disclosed, SonicWall is no small potatoes. In 2010, it was bought for around $717 million led by private-equity firm Thoma Bravo LLC.

Founded in 1991, SonicWall got its start selling Ethernet cards, hubs and other networking equipment. It later shifted into firewalls and VPN appliances for the SMB market and went public on NASDAQ back in 1999. Today, SonicWall has 300,000 customers in 50 countries, 950 employees and a channel program with 15,000 retailers, which Dell plans to integrate into its own PartnerDirect program. When the deal closes in Dell’s Q2 2013 (early August), resellers from both Dell and SonicWall will be about to sell the enhanced security line up.

SonicWall also has over 130 patent apps, with 64 issued to date, which Dell rightly states as another reason why the acquisition has value.

Explains Swainson in a release, “SonicWALL gives Dell access to unique intellectual property resources and technology that position us well in fast growing parts of the software security business.”

Dell also told Wall St. this morning that SonicWall had approximately $260 million in revenue over the last 12 months, and it expects the acquisitive to be accretive to earnings in the second half of its fiscal 2013.

The acquisition, beyond being an attempt to beef up Dell’s security portfolio, is also indicative of a bigger shift for the computer maker – a move to software and services boosted by acquisitions, with a special focus on business customers. The change is reflective of an overall shift in computing, and especially in personal computing, which is a decreasing part of PC manufacturers’ business, and Dell’s in particular. In Dell’s last earnings call, the company noted that in its consumer business, revenue was down 8% year-over-year and client growth was down 6% in the same time frame.

Companies that once made their bread-and-butter putting PC’s in every home – Dell, HP, and IBM, for example – are now moving towards high-margin software and services to make up for the fact that consumers are now using mobile devices and Apple computers in increasing numbers

(Sources - http://techcrunch.com)

Government Has No Plans To Introduce Freedom Of Information Act - Rais

(Bernama) -- The Information, Communications and Culture Ministry has no plans to formulate a Freedom of Information Act because this is already provided for by the Constitution. Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said matters like freedom of speech, basic freedoms, Whistleblower Protection Act 2010, audit reports, Information Act 1950, were provided for by the Constitution, "As such, my ministry is only focusing on information dissemination using the new media like the Internet as a platfrom to channel and share information with the people by raising the capability of the communications network rather than introducing a new act," he said during question time in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Rais said this in replying to a question from Khairy Jamaluddin (BN-Rembau) who had wanted to know if the government had plans to introduce such an act to encourage provision of information from public and private sector bodies.To another question from Khairy on abolishing the Official Secrets Act 1972, Rais said the government saw the act as necessary for national interest.

Yahoo saman Facebook

2012/03/13,

SAN FRANCISCO: Yahoo! hari ini menfailkan saman di Mahkamah California terhadap Facebook selepas mendakwa gergasi rangkaian sosial terbesar itu mencabuli 10 paten yang dihasilkan perintis Internet berkenaan.

Yahoo! dalam tuntutan saman setebal 19 muka surat yang difailkan di Mahkamah Daerah Amerika Syarikat bagi Utara California menuduh Facebook melanggar paten dalam beberapa bidang termasuk pengiklanan, hak persendirian dan pesanan.

"Yahoo! sudah melabur begitu banyak dalam penyelidikan dan pembangunan selama bertahun-tahun dengan berjaya menghasilkan banyak ciptaan teknologi dipatenkan tetapi syarikat lain yang melesenkannya,” katanya.

“Teknologi ini adalah asas perniagaan kami yang melayani lebih 700 juta pelawat unik bulanan dan membuktikan semangat inovasi sejak Yahoo! ditubuhkan,” katanya. - AFP

(Sumber - http://www.bharian.com.my)

Cerita Al Amir Shakib Arsalan Mengenai Budaya Mengampu

Al Amir Shakib Arsalan (1869-1946) seorang politikus, penulis, penyair dan ahli sejarah yang berpengaruh semasa zamannya dari Lubnan. Beliau menulis buku bertajuk Our Decline : Its Courses and Remedies. Dalam bukunya beliau mencerita ..

"....punca kejatuhan sistem khalifah islam semasa perang dunia pertama adalah kerana ulama tidak berperanan sebagai ulama sebenar. Kasta ulama pada masa itu berkerja untuk mendapatkan pangkat, wang dan kekayaan, mereka menggunakan agama untuk mengail dunia, hanya sedikit sahaja ulama yang berperanan sebagai ulama sebenar, selebihnya meletakan kepentingan peribadi melebihi kepentingan agama.

Yang menjadi kesukaan mereka ialah mengampu dan menjilat-jilat Raja dengan mencari-cari alasan untuk menghalalkan kejahatan-kejahatan mereka dari dalil syarak dan fatwa di atas nama agama, mereka mencari nas dan dalil untuk menghalalkan apa yang dilakukan Raja walaupun bertentangan dengan kehendak agama. Jarang perbuatan salah raja-raja itu yang tidak mendapat sokongan dengan ayat dan hadist dari Ulama dalam pemerintahannya yang sewenang-wenangnya despotisme itu, dengan memalingkan maksud dari yang sebenar dan mentakrifkan kehendak agama dari aslinya. Malah ulama menggunakan hadist lemah atau bohong (maudhu') kerana mengharapkan pujian daripada 'jilatisme'nya itu.

Network Communication Speed Comparison Chart

Posted by Kevin Miller on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 @ 08:45 AM

As the demand for faster speeds has grown rapidly over recent decades, new communications networking equipment and systems are constantly being developed to accommodate these requirements . A result of these efforts is a series of established networking protocols and terminology that are used to identify various speed thresholds and the related equipment.

The chart below is intended as a quick reference guide to help readers associate the various networking speeds with their respective protocol/service names.

Network Communication Speed Comparison Chart

Max Throughput Speed	Protocol / Service
64 kbps	DSO / Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
1.5 Mbps	DS1 / T1
10 Mbps	10Base-T Ethernet / RS-422
45 Mbps	DS3 / T3
100 Mbps	100Base-T Ethernet (Fast Ethernet) / FDDI
155 Mbps	OC-3 / STM-1 Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) / Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)
200 Mbps	ESCON (Enterprise Systems Connectivity)
622 Mbps	OC-12 / STM-4
1 Gbps	Gigabit Ethernet and Fibre Channel
2 Gbps	Fibre Channel
2.5 Gbps	OC-48 / STM-16 / OTU1 (Optical Transport Unit)
4/8 Gbps	Fibre Channel / Infiniband
10 Gbps	10G Ethernet / OC-192 / STM-64 / OTU2 / Fibre Channel (Serial and Parallel)
16 Gbps	Fibre Channel / Infiniband
40/43 Gbps	OC-768 / OTU3
100/112 Gbps	100GE / OTU4
Various	Video and proprietary protocols
> 1 Tbps	Wavelength Division Multiplex

Chart courtesy of ONPATH Technologies
Whitepaper “Optical Switching: Implementing a Future-Proof Infrastructure”

(Sources - http://www.m2optics.com)

Bushido - The Soul of Japan.

More than 100 years ago, in the year 1900, Nitobe Inazo composed Bushido: The Soul of Japan. Even amongst the Japanese, there is a significantly large number of people who hold the mistaken notion that “It must be a book of samurai code, since there used to be samurai in Japan.”

However, at the time of its publication, Bushido was certainly not read in Japan alone. This masterpiece was in fact written in English in California, and received high praise from such affluent figures as former President Theodore Roosevelt. So then, what exactly is this book, Bushido? As you can tell from the subtitle The Soul of Japan, this book describes the temperament possessed by Japanese people, and was the first book to do so in the international community.

Nitobe asserts that the inception of a Japanese identity is based in bushido, the way of the samurai. For that reason, “bushido” was inevitably used as the optimal way to explain Japanese people. Perhaps one of the reasons why Bushido was held in such high esteem is because it was written by none other than the great Nitobe Inazo. Let’s discover what kind of person Nitobe was and how he came to write Bushido.

Who is Nitobe Inazo?

Nitobe Inazo was born in 1862 as the third son into a samurai family in what is now Iwate Prefecture. It was the end of the Edo Period, and a period of great change for Japan. The historic abolition of feudal domains and the establishment of prefectures took place in 1871, marking the end of the samurai class in society.

Nitobe was still a child when he moved to Tokyo, and two years later at the young age of 12, he entered the Tokyo Foreign Language School. Under the influence of the Westernization movement known as bunmei kaika promoted by the Meiji government, English education was extremely popular at that time, and Nitobe joined the trend himself by studying English.

Nitobe later enrolled in the 2nd graduating class of the Sapporo Agricultural College (now Hokkaido University), and this became a very important period in his life. The Sapporo Agricultural College had been established by the famous William Smith Clark.

In stark contrast to the Japanese education system, in which strict rules were considered the norm, the school taught each of its students to follow his own conscience and become an individual capable of voluntarily taking responsibility for his own actions.

Clark, a pious Christian, also had his students study ethics in the Bible. Although he was only employed at the school for eight months, he made a tremendous impact on the school and its students. His catchphrase “Boys, be ambitious” is still famous today. Nitobe, who enrolled the year after Clark left the school, received an education directly influenced by Clark’s efforts.

Bushido: A Preface.

In the preface to Bushido, Nitobe Inazo describes how he came to write such a work. While strolling with the esteemed Belgian jurist Laveleye, he mentioned that Japanese students do not study religion, to which an extremely surprised Laveleye inquired, “How, then, do you Japanese gain any moral education?” It was Nitobe’s turn to be surprised, and he was unable to answer, such was his astonishment. This was because the morals he was taught as a child were not learned at school. Then, where did he learn them? It was only when Nitobe began to analyze the various components that formed his conception of right, wrong, and justice that he realized his understanding of morality stemmed from bushido.

Nitobe’s wife also often asked him why such thoughts and customs took root in Japan, and he thought hard to find an answer that would satisfy both her and Laveleye. As a result, the conclusion Nitobe gave was this: “Not understanding bushido is like trying to read an unopened scroll.” With the publishing of the book Bushido in English, knowledge of bushido spread through the world and the word itself became part of the universal language.

It can be said that thanks to Nitobe Inazo, foreigners were first able to find significant answers to the vague question, “Who are the Japanese people?” However, in the present 21 st. century, it seems that the Japanese themselves are leaving bushido behind. It may seem ironic that a book written so that foreigners can understand the Japanese people is now being read by the Japanese to recall their own identity that has been cultivated through a long history. Now let’s take a look at the seven core virtues of bushido.

The seven core virtues of bushido.

1. Rectitude (gi)

Nitobe first sets forth the principle of “rectitude” (righteousness). This is the strictest and most important code in bushido. It was deemed unacceptable for samurai (bushi) to engage in foul play or improper behavior. In order for them to follow the righteous path, they had to employ decisiveness in every aspect of their lives. Even faced with their own deaths, samurai regarded the notion that “One dies when one must.” This is not the same as simply thinking “Oh well, I will just die now,” as dying in vain was deeply shameful for these warriors. Rather, this facing of death was advocated as an important way to feel the value of one’s life and live each day to the fullest. By taking responsibility for and carrying out even the smallest of duties, samurai endowed their own existence with meaning.

2. Courage (yu)

Courage means not faltering in one’s righteousness; in other words, one must possess valor. To be righteous, one must stand up in the face of fear or threat. As Confucius said in his Analects, “Knowing what is right and not doing it is to lack courage.” This means that having “courage” is to do the right thing However, there are two kinds of courage, and that by which one goes forth recklessly into something in order to display heroic bravery is not the kind of courage advocated in bushido. Dying under such circumstances is to die in vain. Proper courage is much greater; namely, to possess the faculty of reason, or judgment. Such judgment is needed to know when to fight, and when to sacrifice one’s life. If it is not time to die, one must possess the fortitude to suppress vanity and recklessness.

3. Benevolence (jin)

“Benevolence” is one of the highest virtues of man. Having a heart full of love and compassion for others comes most quickly to mind when considering benevolence. However, this is not the only kind of benevolence in bushido. Nowadays it may be hard for us to imagine, but to the warriors of the past, benevolence was considered to be the ability to recognize one’s own strength while sympathizing with the defeated and the weak. Some might read this and think it hypocritical or arrogant to meddle in the affairs of those below oneself, but benevolence in bushido really means to realize the responsibility associated with one’s social status. It also means that if you are blessed with good fortune, you are expected to do something for those less fortunate. Thus, the application of benevolence is truly very important.

4. Politeness (rei)

The first thing Nitobe writes regarding “politeness” is that “All foreign travelers acknowledge the excellence and beauty of Japanese manners.” He also remarks that “Politeness is the outward expression of one’s consideration for others.” In following the rules of etiquette, you gain virtue. Etiquette is a set of rules that indicate when to take what kind of attitude, and minding this etiquette is to be aware of how other people are perceiving you. One should not avoid, but rather actively display his respect and feelings of modesty towards others. It can be said that the cultivation of etiquette is a natural necessity in human society

5. Sincerity (makoto)

“Sincerity” is a notion that goes hand-in-hand with politeness. Whereas politeness is an action displayed externally, sincerity is subjective and internal. In Japan today, sincerity holds the nuance of being devoted to others, but in the past, it held a profound meaning of honesty and integrity. As was mentioned in regards to “righteousness,” telling lies and cheating were considered cowardly acts. Thus, even if one merely pretends to do something honestly, if he is aware of the truth then he is just being insincere to himself. Consistently making sure one is being honest and not being ashamed of his actions is essentially the spirit of “sincerity.”

6. Honor (meiyo)

Honor is an important characteristic of in bushido, but it is not bred of vanity. Rather, a sense of honor comes from understanding shame. Being told during childhood, “Aren’t you ashamed?” or “They’re all going to laugh at you”, causes one to naturally carry that sense of shame. In other words, it is the precept of “avoiding shameful behavior.”

7. The Duty of Loyalty/Devotion (chugi)

For a samurai, servicing one’s lord with the readiness to die for him is the most important and natural act. Especially when discussing samurai, the duty of loyalty must certainly be mentioned. It is hard for us to understand this concept today, but samurai considered obedience and loyalty to their lords more important than their own lives. Even the mothers of samurai persuaded their children to sacrifice everything for their lords. If you look at stories from the Warring States Period, there are several references to those who gave their lives according to pledges they gave their lords. Devotion to their country, rather than self-profit, was a samurai’s highest calling. If asked to “show devotion” today, you may think “to whom?” Perhaps in today’s society it is best to be loyal first and foremost to oneself. By taking responsibility for one’s actions and decisions in any situation, the practice of “devotion” unfolds naturally.

Conclusion

What do you think after reading about these seven virtues of bushido? These virtues were not only meant for the samurai, but for all human beings as well, and should develop naturally in life. However, it seems that these ideals have been disappearing in recent times. As we enter the rainy season in June and spend more time indoors, why not take the opportunity to read through Bushido and think once more about how you live your own life? The virtues of bushido remain deeply rooted in the Japanese spirit, and the Japanese people pick them up unconsciously from their daily activities. However, many people feel that this “spirit of bushido” is fading from modern life. The “dojo” (martial arts training hall) comes to mind when thinking of a place where people can still actively learn about bushido. There are many kinds of dojo, including those for judo, karate, aikido, iaido, jujutsu, kyudo, etc.