It first occurs in the Otome (乙女) section of The Tale of Genji (Chapter 21), as a native virtue that flourishes best, not as a contrast to foreign civilization but, rather precisely, when it is grounded on a solid basis in Chinese learning.
[1] Yamato-damashii "Japan, Japanese" compounds Yamato (大和, "great harmony") with damashii, which is the voiced rendaku pronunciation of tamashii (魂 "spirit; soul").
Since Wa 和 commonly abbreviates Yamato 大和 "Japan; Japanese", 和魂 (also read Wakon) is a contraction of Yamato-damashii.
"Although Kiyohara no Yoshizumi (清原善澄) had admirable learning, he is said to have died in this childish way because he did not have the slightest knowledge of the Japanese spirit" (tr.
Still, he had the personality of (his uncle) Fujiwara no Kinzane (藤原公実) characterized by Chinese learning and followed in the footsteps of (his ancestor) Sugawara no Michizane, but Toba had even more Japanese spirit than either of them.
His Chinsetsu Yumiharizuki ("The Crescent Moon", 1811) quotes Minamoto no Tametomo discussing seppuku rituals: "I admit that a person who does not care about dying when on the verge of death may superficially have the Japanese spirit, but I think this is a misunderstanding from not having learned about it."
Second, Wakon-kansai (和魂漢才 "Japanese spirit and Chinese scholarship") occurs in the Kanke ikai (菅家遺戒 "Sugawara's dying instructions").
Third, Wakon-yōsai (和魂洋才 "Japanese spirit and Western techniques") was created by Yoshikawa Tadayasu (吉川忠安) in his Kaika sakuron (開化策論 , "Questions and Themes on Progress", 1867).
During the last century and a half the West has been the antithetical term in the dialectic, and as always it has been in that "other" that Japan has sought its own image, peering anxiously for signs of its own identity into the mirror of the rest of the world.
Michael Carr argues that Yamato-damashii (1994:280-1) "significantly differs from everyday racist slurs because it is not an overt insult, it is the opposite: an ethnic adulation.
It belongs to a special category of benedictions such as Manifest Destiny or Chosen People that imply national, racial, or ethnic self-conceit."
Carr lexicographically analyzed Yamato-damashii definitions among modern general-purpose Japanese dictionaries from four publishers, namely, Daijisen (Shōgakukan, 1986), Daijirin (Sanseidō, 1988), Nihongo Daijiten (Kōdansha, 1989), and Kōjien (Iwanami, 1991).
For instance, this definition from the popular Daijirin dictionary gives the kanji 大和魂, modern and historical kana spellings, two meanings, synonyms, and usage examples from Japanese literature.
(in contrast to knowledge obtained from studying Chinese classics) Japanese people's characteristic ability or wisdom/intelligence for managing/treating actual things and worldly affairs.
They all distinguish two basic meanings: ① "A Japanese practical ability; opposed to Chinese scholarship" and ② "A traditional (bushido/nationalistic) concept of death-defying valor".
For meaning ①, the most salient word (used seven times) is koyū (固有 "inherent; innate; characteristic; special quality").
This sense is defined as a noryoku (能力 "ability, capability; competency") or chie (知恵 "wisdom; insight; intelligence"), which pertains to jisseikatsujōno (実生活上 "real life; everyday/practical reality') or jitsumutekina (実務的な "actual things, practical experience").
Specifically a "Japanese spirit" with kakan (果敢 "boldness; courage; daring; determination"), yūmō (勇猛 "bravery; valor; intrepidness; daring"), and shinmei o mo oshimanai (身命をも惜しまない "without regard for one's life"), especially when koto ni atatte (事に当たって "facing a vital matter; in case of crisis").
Within this dictionary sample, only the Nihongo daijiten qualifies Yamato-damashii as a characteristic that is to sareta (とされた "assumed, supposed; alleged'"), whereas the other three define it as a matter of fact.
… (v. 3, 2002) The OED gives three usage examples, starting with Yamato-damashi (1942, Royal Air Force Journal, "He will be filled with what is called yamato damashi [sic] or the pure spirit of Japan.")
Yamato damashii refers to an inherent faculty of common-sense wisdom, resourcefulness, and prudent judgment that is characteristic of, and unique to, the Japanese people.