A negative electrode for a lithium secondary battery includes a layer of a mixture containing graphite powder and an organic binder on a current collector, wherein a diffraction intensity ratio (002)/(110) measured by X-ray diffractometry of the layer of a mixture is 500 or less. A lithium secondary battery includes the negative electrode for a lithium secondary battery, and a positive electrode that includes a lithium compound. This results in less deterioration in the rapid charge and discharge characteristics and the cycle characteristics when the density of the negative electrode is made higher, thereby providing a high capacity lithium secondary battery having the improved energy density per unit volume of the secondary battery.