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Bushido
What Makes a Samurai Truly Honorable?
10
Jan
Jan
Honorable Samurai
The Samurai is one of the most looked up groups of warriors in the world. Their sheer passion is incomparable to most warriors during the early centuries. Honorable Samurai, even on the battlefield, they give importance not only in how they swing their swords.
They also train in how they are going to relate to those around them. They value intelligence, right conduct, and even fashion. These soldiers are not the ones who snap and turn against their belief because their morale is down.
Usually, they stick to what they believe in, no matter what. Samurai only turn against their beliefs when they think that what’s happening is against their code.
So what makes these men honorable as they say? What makes them stand out? Below are some of the few things that make these men unique.
Honorable Way of Life
Bushido or also known to us as “Way of the Warrior” is an ethics system that helps these men to train themselves in the art of living righteously. What makes them even more interesting is that though they are frightening in times of battle, their morality is far from the savages.
The Bushido’s mandate is to teach all Samurai to practice mercy, kindness, and justice similar to the knights of the western countries.
A well-known Samurai defines it this way: “Rectitude is the power of deciding upon a certain course of conduct in accordance with reason, without wavering. To die when it is right to die, to strike when to strike is right.”
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Not known for being easily enraged, these warriors boast about their training philosophy. They ponder on the situation before taking any action and rarely do they make a decision based on emotion. This is one of the reasons why Samurai feels so ashamed and dishonored when they do something that fails in the end.
If they think someone needs to be punished for something, they will make the necessary actions based on their moral code. Since they have the power to take someone’s life, they also should know when to take theirs.
Hanshiro from the movie Hara-kiri is an excellent example of this. Whereas, Ryunosuke from the film The Sword of Doom is an excellent example of what happens to Samurai when they neglect the Bushido Code.
Honorable Foe
Unlike Ninja, who kills their enemies off guard and works for anyone who pays them, Samurai prefers to face their enemies upfront. Part of their ethics system is a face to face fight where their intellect will be judged fairly.
Sparrings or often called duels are common before. For these men, assassinating their enemies is just not an honorable way to take someone’s life. They use non-lethal swords called sparring swords to conduct these duels.
Yes, all of us will agree that using the element of surprise to attack an enemy seem reasonable for two reasons: First, it will give the Samurai a higher chance for survival. Second, it could be a tactical advantage over an adversary.
But not to these men. There is no honor in easy kills, and this makes them not only honorable but also both respectable and formidable enemies.
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According to historical accounts, Ming warriors said that Samurai are honorable rivals. They always look for someone skilled on the battlefield. These warriors often look for someone who has a state of the art armor because they look more important and skilled.
In essences, they are not looking for someone to bully; they look for someone to kill. So, whether they die or get killed by the enemy, they get the honor they badly want.
Honorable Service
Samurai are incredibly loyal to the Daimyo they’re serving and rarely do they waver from them. They pledge and give their lives usually until the death of the one they’re serving. That is if their lord didn’t dishonorably discharge them.
Skeptics question their loyalty, saying they are only loyal because they receive compensation for what they do. Once they found out the circumstances around Samurai service, these doubts disappear.
Samurai are required to kill themselves if their master dies in battle. They could apply and work for the closest relative of that master if their master dies a different cause of death.
They could also kill themselves no matter the reason was if their master dies a different death. Some Samurai, if not accepted by a lord, will become a Ronin.
When a Samurai becomes a Ronin, they lose all the privileges that their master gives. They also cannot apply in a different field of work, so they lose everything they have.
Most of them succumb to becoming mercenaries or merchant guards.
Honorable Death
Whether you are a Samurai or not, dying is something that will surely come to you. The only difference is Samurai have their stylish way of leaving this life depending on the circumstances.
There are two kinds of honorable death for a Samurai. First is either dying in battle. Second is doing the ceremonial Seppuku (also known as Hara-kiri) using their Wakizashi. Samurai wants to die in battle because fighting until your last breath as something brave and ultimately honorable.
Soldiers who died on the battlefield now are honored and regarded as true warriors. That is the same with these individuals. They are eager to be accepted and acknowledged. They also commit Seppuku when they think they’ve dishonored their master.
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Japanese forces adopted this type of suicide even as late as the Second World War. This proves how warriors of Japan throughout the years are always longing for the honor. Dying for what they truly believed in is something that these warriors want in the end, and while most of us fear death, the Samurai welcomes it.
Final Thoughts
One might argue that not all Samurai are after honor. Some of them betray their lords, assassinate political enemies, and kill innocent civilians. But everyone can also say that there are people who don’t live out what they say they believe. That’s what people who believe in the different ethical system do.
What we are sure of is that Samurai who commit these inconsistencies are punished back then. Some are beheaded and ordered to do Hara-kiri out of their own will. Those who firmly stood for their belief are honored for centuries for staying consistent too.