Are Samurai Still Alive?

As we all know, and are perhaps saddened by, the era of the Samurai ended about 100 years ago. There is no ands, ifs, or what’s about it. Samurai simply do not walk around the streets of Japan anymore. They no longer dominate the social classes. However, is it really true that you can’t become a Samurai anymore? Is Bushido completely nonexistent now?

Well, while the blatantly obvious would deter someone form believing in the existence of true Samurai in the modern day (you can’t exactly wield a weapon in the streets of modern Japan) yet you may still do other things worthy of a Samurai though. For instance, Bushido is the code of ethics, immensely important to Samurai. One may certainly follow that code as well as train in weaponry and martial arts. In short, live as a warrior, live as a Samurai. It does not matter how the outside world treats you, sure you do not have the social respect, or the feeling of “I am a Samurai, hear me roar”, but it is on the inside. You simply know that you are a warrior and that is all that matters.

On the other hand, it may be a good thing that the Samurai do not fully exist anymore. Now, they can focus on solely their fighting skills and living up to the code of ethics. Now there is no way for a warrior to feel himself better than others (IE a Samurai was allowed by law to attack any commoner that disrespected him). You are simply not any better than them; they are human just as you. To be frank, I believe that that was a huge weak point in the traditional Samurai; they believed themselves to be God, when they were no better than any other good citizen.

Ok, so maybe it’s not as cool, not as amazing, but its better this way. Samurai may not roam the streets, and battle in the open. But at least you know that the ones who are Samurai, are real warriors. They practice in the dojo and train, nothing more, there is no vanity, there is no superiority. And for another thing, I’m sure that most warriors nowadays do not condone the practice of Seppuku, and that my friends is a good thing. So in conclusion, do Samurai really exist? Of course they do, they are the true warrior’s out there who are never heard nor seen, and that is the way it should be

Bushido: The Soul of Japan

This is a wonderful book that does not fail to impress. If you are a all interested in marital arts, Japanese culture, and especially samurai, read this book. This book tells the reader all about the Samurai, and the ways of the warrior. That is, this book covers all of details of the life of the Samurai. It goes in depth from warrior ethics, to Seppuku, a samurai ritual suicide.

As you read you will realize that these warriors really did follow their pact to “Live by the sword and die by the sword”. In fact, you may begin to see that Japanese warriors shared many of the same qualities as the Medieval European knights! And that my friends, is truly amazing! “Bushido: the Soul of Japan”, covers all of the codes and values of the military way of life. These are explained through a plethora of examples and fables which further help the audience feel “in tune” so to speak with the Bushido way of life.

Through this book, you will see that there clearly is value to the warrior way of life; it is not just shear bloodshed. There is honor and pride, a love for your people that most certainly masks “brute power”. You will find interesting also, the style of the book, for this is not a fake, not a modern “Take on Bushido” This is the “real” deal. Bushido: The Soul of Japan was written in 1900, and perfectly captures the true feeling and meaning of Bushido.

If nothing else, do yourself a favor and read this book as a means of acquiring knowledge about a past culture. Because, the fact is, there were and are cultures out there that, to us, seem “taboo”. However, one must fully walk in another’s moccasins before one may be given the right t truly judge that culture. So please, just for once, step out of your westernized box. Experiment with something new for once.

Bushido derived from both Buddhism and Shintoism. There are seven important principals that can summarize Bushido. Although simple, they were each and every one of them, absolutely essential for these warriors.

Gi: this refers to rectitude, or justice. It is the power of deciding upon a certain course of conduct in accordance with reason, and without wavering; that is to die when it is right to die, to strike when it is right to strike. This principle also held the warriors responsible for choosing at all times, the correct decision from the heart rather than from the mind.

Yu: this referred to courage and bravery. “Courage is doing what is right” That is, a warrior’s bravery came after rectitude, and courage was only courage when the warriors were doing what was right. This last part was very important, for if a warrior died for a cause that was unworthy of death, it was known as a “dog’s death”.

Jin: This referred to benevolence, love, and magnanimity. This was an extreme virtue. The warrior had to display love and commission, and a stone heart made for a terrible samurai. The warrior had to “show universal love to all mankind” or he was not truly a warrior.

Rei: this referred to courtesy, etiquette, and urbanity of manners. This principle was extremely important, as the samurai believed that it was better for one to die than be impolite. The warrior had to be polite and courteous at all times.

Makoto: this referred to honesty, veracity, sincerity, and truthfulness. There is nothing worse that a dishonest warrior. “Sincerity is in the end and the beginning of all tings, without sincerity there would be nothing.” The warrior had to be honorable in thought, word, and deed, always.

Meiyo: This referred to honor, pride, and glory. There are no better words to characterize the Samurai, these characteristics stood out above all because Samurai were born and bred to value the duties and privileges of their profession. The Samurai had to display glory without ego, and promised to be honorable in thought word and deed.

Chugo: This referred to the Samurai duty of Loyalty and devotion. Samurai displayed complete loyalty to their lords. Life for the Samurai was regarded as a means to serve a lord, and everything (education, and training) were conducted accordingly Warriors had to be loyal to any superiors.

These are the seven principles that made up the whole of Bushido. These are also the virtues that a samurai must have and display daily. In he simplest terms, this was the “Way of the Warrior”. This, in retrospect, defeats the perception that “warriors do nothing but fight”. It proves on the other hand, that warriors led a notably moral and honest life.

Bushido made the sword its emblem of power. In fact, a wise man one said that “The sword is the Key of heaven and hell”. Indeed, the swords of Samurai never left their side, they were priceless. But more than just that, these swords also have a unique and amazing history.

Historically the first Japanese sword was produced around 700 AD. A Blacksmith named Amakuni Yasutsuna, was responsible for making the first single edged long sword. At first, his swords were doing little to help the warriors in battle. There was of course reason for this, One day Amakuni realized that the Emperor never gave Amakuni any sign of recognition for his efforts. So, upon realizing this, Amakuni observed the warriors as they returned from battle. Of these warriors, nearly half of them were returning with broken swords.

Amakuni was heartbroken. He realized that all of his work had been put to shame. He had to make things right, and so he and his son Amakura set off to work again. They at first, evaluated the broken sword of a warrior, and realized that they were improperly made. The swords could not handle large impacts, yet they desperately needed to. So Amakuni and his son locked themselves up in the forge for seven days and nights, during which they prayed to the Shinto gods. After their long prayer session, Amakuni selected the finest Iron sand ore and refined it to steel. Thirty days later after arduous work and days of sleepless nights, Amakuni and his son emerged from the foe with a single edged sword that had curvature. They polished this new sword, and later continued to work developing many more like it.

And so, the warriors came to wield these new swords. The next spring, there was another war, and the Samurai fought with Amakuni’s swords. They returned however, not with broken swords, but with perfectly intact swords. Afterwords, the Emperor congratulated Amakuni, saying that he was an expert swordsman. And thus, the Katana, the Wakizashi, and the Tanto were born.

Even today, there still exist sword smiths who practice the ancient art of sword making. Currently, the best known Japanese sword company is the Japanese Sword Company in Tokyo.

In 1853, Samurai changed forever. It all happened when massive steamships from the US Navy imposed a broader commerce system, on the previously strict system. That system, isolationism, kept the Japanese from socializing with the western half of the world. And thus, with the strict system abolished, the Samurai were exposed to a different side of the world.

From then on, the Samurai and the Japanese navy were modernized. In 1855 a naval training school was brought about in Nagasaki. There, you guessed it, they learned about western ways of life. Of course, this also brought upon the future onset of westernized and foreign educated leaders. By 1867 the Japanese Navy possessed 8 western style steamships; soon the armies were heavily modernized as well.

Of course, this also brings us to another point, in 1967 the Japanese saw an end to Traditional Samurai, and this was also around the time of the Boshin War. In late 19th century around 1968, another change occurred that pretty much brought an end to Samurai. You see, previously Samurai were the only armed forces in Japan. Emperor Meji abolished this however in favor of a more westernized army of course. The right for a Samurai to wear a Katana or other weapon was also abolished, as well as the right to attack any commoner who disrespected them.

As well, Samurai were no longer really Samurai; their name was even changed to Shizoku in 1873. Sadly, Samurai were simply nonexistent; they had no longer a high status or fame. It was official in the 19th century, that Samurai no longer walked the streets of Japan. In place of them, was a more westernized army. Later on along the lines, in 1943 to be exact, the name Shizoku, a last shred of Samurai spirit, also disappeared.

The 17th century was home to the Edo period. At this time the Tokugawa Shogunat ruled Japan. At this time, Samurai ruled the lands, and there were about 2 million Samurai living and fighting in Japan. There were both Samurai who lived under the rule of a lord and Ronin, who wandered the countryside without a lord, and consequently without money. Thus they wandered, looking for someone who would find them useful. This was due mostly to the fact that Japan was not at war, the Samurai did not have to battle. From 1616 until 1868, Japan was at peace.

Due to this new found peace, Samurai found that there combatant skills had no use. They became therefore, involved in other matters. Samurai became bureaucrats, courtiers, and administrators. As a class, there military function started to decline, and quickly at that. They still carried weapons however and were still allowed to attack any commoner who did not show the proper respect. More importantly, it was during the Edo period that the code of Bushido was written. This code became the ideal, and citizens tried to follow the code just as Samurai.

With more and more time on their hands, Samurai began to follow the code to the tea; they also had time to pursue a good education. In fact, many Samurai became scholars.

During the 15th Century, the Samurai started to improve in their combat tactics. Schools of swordsmanship were abundant and many became rivals. During this time ashigaru were seen by the thousands. This term refers to the foot warriors that were employed by the shogun. The term itself latterly meant light foot, and referred to the lowest warrior class the “light Armor class” which consisted of either low class warriors or commoners who had decided to join the army. For them, the weapon of choice was the Naginata which was a pole weapon, and they were typically seen on horseback.

In the 16th century the emergence of the aruebus also changed the Samurai. The aruebus came into the hands of the Samurai from Portugal in 1543, and was quickly assimilated. The aruebus was a different kind of weapon, a weapon that is most prevalent now a day. That’s right; it was a firearm, a hook gun. It was however a primitive firearm, the predecessor of the musket and rifle. Although, needless to stay it was still powerful. This weapon came in handy especially against enemies in steel plate armor.

Pretty soon, and by pretty soon I mean at the end of the feudal period, firearms wee seen by the thousands in Japan. Army size also soared to numbers of well over 100,000! The Japanese were certainly getting ahead of themselves! Most other countries were not even near this amount of shear power.

At the end of the 16 century, in 1592, Toyotomi Hideyoshi decided to invade Korea. This invasion was also known as the seven year war, because it lasted seven years from 1592 to 1598. An army of 160,000 samurai were sent to Korea, and at first all seemed to be going well. The Japanese appeared to be taking in a victory; however this was not the case. The Japanese had seen consistent success on land, and failure at sea. However, they began to suffer due to lack of communication and supply lines. The Korean forces were also starting to become victorious; their navy successfully starved the Japanese from their vital resources of communication and supply lines. They did this by intercepting their supply fleets on the western side of the peninsula. In fact, they interjected the waters of which, most major Korean rivers flow. To add more, China also became involved in the war.

Emperor Wanli of China tried to bring in a diplomatic intervention. This stalled the war for five years, as negotiations went on, although peace failed to arrive as Japan invaded Korea for yet a second time in 1597. This time however, they were shot down. The war was over at the naval battle of Noryang. At last, after seven years, Japanese forces retreated, and returned to Japan after a horrible and shocking defeat against the Korean Navy.

In the 14th century, Samurai really started to develop into what we know them as today. At this time an amazing innovation came into the hands of these warriors, and it was all because of a blacksmith named Masamune. He had developed a two layered structure of both soft and hard steel to use in his swords. This led to improved cutting power and life. This production technique also led to the recognition of Japanese swords as the most powerful weapons of East Asia. In the 14th century, another amazing thing occurred, the Samurai creed as written. This creed was written by an anonymous warrior and contained Confucian, Shinto, Buddhist and Zen principles.

During this time, the practice of primogeniture was also prevalent. Primogeniture was the practice of giving the entire estate heritance to only the first born son. At this time fighting between samurai classes was also common, although unfortunate. This was seen between the Kamakura and Ashikaga shogunates. The Kamakura were a feudal military dictatorship, that derived from Kamakura Japan. The Ashikaga were a feudal military dictatorship from the Ashikaga family. Power struggles between classes were all too common in the 14th century.

Mainly, in the 14th century, the system of ethics that derived from the warriors creed, were put in place. This included Loyalty, honor, courage, refinement, and excellence. This creed of course and its strictness also led to some unfavorable occurrences of Japan. By this I am referring to the ritual suicide known as seppuku, or Hara Kiri. This practice became more and more common during this century, which was mostly due to the strong sense of pride these warrior had, the “never back down” feeling was mutual.

As the clans gained more and more warriors, they gained more and more alliances and formed a large hierarchy. This was centered predominantly around a toryo or chief. This toryo was usually a relative of the emperor and a smaller member of a noble family. Of the noble families there were the Fujiwara, Minamoto, and the Taira. Of these the Minamoto and Taira were rivals. As they rose to power, the Taira and Minamoto were finally pit together. The victor, was Taira, short for Taira no Kiyomori, who became the first warrior to become Imperial advisor. He later gained control of the central government and created the first Samurai dominated government. The Taira clan did little however, to improve on weaponry and strength; they focused instead, on control.

In the late 12th century, both clans again sought out their rivalries in a clash. This led to the Gempei War, which ended five years later in 1185. However, this time the tides turned as Minamoto became victorious. This clan, short for Minamoto no Yoritomo, behaved much differently from that of Taira. They did not focus on ruling; they focused however on Sameri superiority. Five years later, Minamoto visited Kyoto and in 1912 stablished the role as Seii Taishogun. He then formed the Kamakura Shogunate, set up in Kamakura near his power base. At this time, it was obvious that, despite some shifts in Aristocratic power and Samurai power, the Shogun and Samurai really lead the show.

In the 13th century, Zen Buddhism paved the way for the Warriors honor code. This was particularly helpful in helping Samurai overcome any fears of death. This brings me to the next battle, in 1274 between the Yuan Dynasty of the Mongol Empire and Japan. This empire had sent about 40,000 men in about 900 ships to invade Japan. However, Japan was only able to come up with about 10,000 samurai to battle. With a bout of luck however, a large thunderstorm interrupted the attempts of the empire. The Yuan army then recalled the invasion. Because of this invasion, the Japanese realized that another invasion was probable. So they constructed a great stone barrier surrounding Hakata Bay in 1276. In 1281, The Yuan army came once again with about 140,000 men and 4,400 ships. In spite of the shear numbers, The Japanese Samurai were able to defeat them. How? Well, the Japanese Army had about 40,000 men defending the bay, and in a bout of Irony, a Typhoon came just as the Yuan army was ready to invade. The damage done by the typhoon was enough to send the Yuan army home again. These events were termed Kami-noKaze, which literally means “wind of the gods”

Samurai: The warrior class of Japan

…. It Starts

Samurai’s are legendary; they have been inscribed in out history for centuries. They are the picture of power and vigilance, and more so, they are looked upon with respect. Of course, there are reasons or all of this. These warriors lived a serious lifestyle, one dedicated to the mastery of battle, otherwise known as Bushido.

Alas, there might be some confusion between Bushido, and Bushi. Firstly, as you should already know, Bushido is a warrior code of conduct that surrounds the Samurai warrior class. On the other hand, Bushi refers to the older version of the Samurai, which refers to horsemen who wielded bows.

The age of the Samurai, and as well, the age of Bushido originated before the thirteenth century. Then, the principles of Bushido had been influenced by Buddhism, Zen and Confucianism and shintoism. Buddhism is a major religion that concentrates on explaining the origin of existence, morality, and has a specific set of rituals and behaviors. Zen was the school of Mahāyāna Buddhism known mostly for its noted form of meditation; it also placed much emphasis on practice and experiential wisdom. Confucianism bases itself on the philosophical teachings of Confucius. Shintoism, formulary the official religion of Japan, it is now the folk religion. Shintoism concentrates on Kami spirits, and there are several different spirits that represent a wide array of things.

In essence, it was the combination of Buddhism, Zen, Confucianism, and Shintoism that brought about the Bushido warrior code and the Samurai. This creation of Bushido occurred somewhere around the 9th century until the 12th century. These warriors, at that point began to form a class all their own, a ruling and powerful class. This occurred in the Heian Period, and was due to the fact that wealth land owners would hire private warriors for land protection. They also became police guards around the city of Kyoto. Then, these warriors were merely servants, however it was quickly noted that they were the only armored clan around. Soon, they rose to power by promising protection and gaining political awareness, they eventually succeeded in surpassing the aristocrats. By mid Heian period they had also adapted Japanese style armory and weaponry, and soon they would form the Bushido warrior code.