In his famous book “Bushido. The soul of Japan”, Inazo Nitobe defined 8 virtues of Bushido : Justice, Courage, Kindness, Politeness, Sincerity, Honor, Loyalty, and Self-control.

French Federation of Karate (F.F.Karaté) suggested to define the moral virtues of karate similar to 8 virtues of Bushido, as follows.

1. Courage and self-control : the desire to fight and to win cannot be virtous, unless related to self-perfection and to respect to others.
2. Frendship : frendship is an important component of sportmanship. The improvement of individual performance must be aligned with collective interests.
3. Sincerity : one should strive to know the rules and to follow them sincerely without failures, both in letter and in spirit.
4. Honor : one should behave to set an example beyond reproach.
5. Modesty and humility : kindness and benevolence cannot be sincerely expressed without moderation in self-appreciation.
6. Respect : karate is respect for others, just as it is respect for oneself and one’s body.
7. Politeness : politeness is the expression of respect owed to others, whatever their qualities, weaknesses or social position.
8. Tolerance : karate unites people in practice, whatever their origins, social situation, opinions, beliefs, age or sex.

Source : G.Morel, “Quelle valeurs dans un Dôjô?”, in Karaté Bushido, 2023, #446, P/ 61-64.