"Bushido" by Inazo Nitobe begins with one such sentence; "Chivalry is as much a part of Japan as its national flower, the cherry blossom."
This book was written in 1899 of the Meiji era, the time when politics changed from the feudal style of government in the Edo era, the times of the samurai, to the modern parliamentary system.

I knew about and read this book after becoming an adult; however, I couldn't read it for the first time without it making a deep impression on me and causing some shock.
His sentences are easy and simple to read and also written in very elegant, noble, and beautiful English. We are proud to be the same Japanese as the Japanese who, more than 100 years ago, wrote sentences in such beautiful English.

In this book, views on religions, ethics and values at the root of the Japanese heart are explained through a commentary of the Bushido.
The Bushido also greatly affects the morals of our modern Japanese.
For example, a lost article is often found without being stolen even if you leave something behind in Japan.The Japanese morals are generally high, and I heard that after the East Japan Great Earthquake Disaster in March 2011, the Japanese people waiting orderly for a train at a station was broadcasted and surprised people all over the world.

There is the phrase in Japanese, "Kill oneself and serve for public" that was made in the times of the samurai. It means that public order and other people are more valued than self-interest.
The content in " Bushido " also teaches us the Japanese heart.

It is the book I greatly recommend to those foreigners who are interested in Japan and also to Japanese.