The Autobiography Of A Tokugawa Samurai By Katsu Kokichi

The late 19th century was a very different time for many living in Japan. The Tokugawa regime was leveling off, and the people of Japan who weren’t as wealthy had to find a balance between religious serenity and making money. The three most predominant religions of this era were Shinto, Confucianism and Buddhism, and an abundance of citizens living in Japan were often rooted very heavily in their religious backgrounds solely because these religious were seen more as ways of life than a religious practice. However, even the most devout of worshipers don’t always start off that way. In Katsu Kokichi’s book Musui’s Story: The Autobiography of a Tokugawa Samurai, Kokichi begins his life as a down and out Samurai, adopted by the Katsu family at

However, Kami is not an anthropomorphic deity. Kami is in everything. The concept of Kami is very difficult to explain because Kami is everything and nothing at the same time. Kami are not divine nor are they omnipotent. For many living in poverty during the Tokugawa period, culture and shires were often in the foreground when highlighting the relationship between the family or individual and religion. Similarly, Kokichi first comes into contact with Kami when he runs away for the first time. Out in the middle of the woods, Kokichi wanders to the Ise Shrine. Kokichi uses the Ise Shrine to help look out for his overall well being when he is traveling. He was originally advised to pray at the shrine for guidance, but instead spent most of his days begging for alms and would try to find shelter in other shrines he stumbled upon along his travels. Kokichi was still on a path of destruction. He even used the power of religion to convince a priest that he was a pilgrim there to pay his respects at Ise only to get free food, a good night’s rest, a free bath, a temporary sum of money for the remainder of his travels as well as a amulet. Realizing he could do this throughout his travels, he continued to fool people at other

His father locked him in a cage for a few years and during this time, he made Kokichi learn to read and write as well as realize the error of his ways and truly look back at the life he had led thus far. This point in his life could be argued as the awakening of the Kami inside of him. His time being punished in the cage actually did him a lot of good. He became well read, understood how to deal with his moral issues, took responsibility for his actions, as well as learned to be a better fighter. Although he had been a skilled swordsman since a very young age, he started to read military manuals and learned how to settle issues with communication instead of just fighting. This earned him a lot of respect within his community and within himself. However, Kokichi’s true change in character arguably came after some advice from an old man in his community who told him that he should, “try to return a good deed for every act of ill will.” After this encounter is when Kokichi’s life changed dramatically. His situations at home improved and her started acting astoundingly different than before, when he was a child. He was moving on from situations when he would normally fight to walking away or simply using his words to handle a disagreement. If Kokichi would have never been awakened religiously, who knows where he would have ended up? He was in a place of very sad turmoil