The Way of the Samurai
During the 9th and 12th centuries in Japan the warrior class were known as samurai, also called bushi (knights/warriors - bushi hence bushido).
They emerged from the provinces of Japan to become the ruling class until their decline and later total abolition in 1876 during the Meiji Era.
These warriors were men who lived by Bushido; it was their way of life. The samurai's loyalty to the emperor and his overlord or daimyo were unsurpassed. They were trustworthy and honest. They lived frugal lives with no interest in riches and material things, but rather in honor and pride. They were men of true valor. Samurai had no fear of death. They would enter any battle no matter the odds. To die in battle would only bring honor to one's family and one's lord.
The actual code was passed on verbally to each generation of samurai, but over time, seven chief virtues emerged, and became the written form of Bushido.
Of course, credit is generally given that a Chinese man (known in the west as "Confucius") is the father of these values in China. Therefore, you'll find these concepts belong not only to the Japanese samurai, but have spread throughout Asia. Variations of these soldierly and moral values can be seen in China, Korea, Vietnam, and elsewhere.
See our Bushido Way of the Samurai page for more custom Japanese calligraphy options related to Bushido concepts.
Authentic Japanese Calligraphy by Japanese Master Calligrapher Michiko Imai
(Imai, Michiko) was born and raised in Nara, Japan. She began her studies of Calligraphy at the age of four at Baikou Calligraphy School. When Michiko was 25 years old, she received a membership to the Tenshin Kai (calligraphy society) and her life as a calligrapher began. Michiko progressed to the next level, becoming a member of the Cho-ko Guild which is the most prestigious calligraphy society in Japan. During her apprenticeship, she taught calligraphy and studied the art of Japanese silk scroll making (hyougu) at Mizuno Hyougu-ten.
In 1998, Master Calligrapher Michiko Imai was awarded the highest rank in Japanese Calligraphy of Shihan. She currently holds a guild licence for teaching both calligraphy and instructing teachers to teach calligraphy.
Michiko Imai is among the few to have won multiple best of category awards in national competitions (Japan). Her work has been displayed at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Osaka Municipal Museum Of Art, Nara City Museum Of Art and Kyoto Municipal Museum Of Art.
In Addition to being a calligrapher, she is also an "artisan artist" (Hyougushi). Ms. Imai now resides half of the year in Japan and the other in Boston.
It should be noted that Master Imai signs her artwork with the "art name" of 
(Beautiful Cliff/Mountain). So this is what you will see just before the red signature stamp on her calligraphy pieces.
Completely handmade, yet affordable...
If you've shopped much for Japanese calligraphy, you know that it generally starts from $200 and up. In fact, I can show you a catalog full of Japanese calligraphy priced at $2000 and up (someone sent it to me, thinking that I'd like to blow $12,000 on a wall scroll).
So how can we offer authentic Japanese calligraphy for such a low price? The short answer is that I work with people who are more interested in the art than getting rich. Master Michiko Imai has given us a very special opportunity to offer her artwork at a price that most people can afford.
The second part of the equation is the fact that we are building all of our own wall scrolls by hand in our workshop in Beijing. You can see how we build these wall scrolls by visiting our How we build these Asian art wall scrolls page.
All of this means you get high-quality artwork with no "middle man markup".
