death of samurai

Perhaps the only thing in this world that is certain is death. It is a concept that is universal among the world and likewise is feared by many. Many have qualms regarding the questions that surround death. Due to the complexity of these questions and the mystery that surrounds its possible answers, fear arises within people. It is said that the number one fear is public speaking, but one must wonder if death was one of the choices. Although death is frightening for many, there were particular individuals in Japanese history that were believed to be fearless in the face of death, they were the samurai.

The samurai were a warrior class that gained immense power during feudal Japan. They held high status positions in society and exemplified the power of the shoguns. Samurai often faced death on the cruel battlefield of medieval Japan. However, most interesting about the samurai is their conception of death. The samurai not only faced death much more frequently than the average man but they also had a practice of hara-kiri or seppuku, in which they took their own life. In this paper, I will look at the notions surrounding death for a samurai. I will begin by first by discussing the origins and rise of both the samurai class and Zen Buddhism in Japan. Thereupon, I will look at the samurai philosophy of bushido and in specific the notion of seppuku. My main interest will be to delve deeper into the samurai practice of ritual suicide and how Zen Buddhism may have affected the samurai ideology. Finally, I will look into if these cultural constructs emphasized in medieval Japan, can still be made relevant to Japanese suicide during World War II.

As this topic is not relatively popular among scholars, none of my sources deal directly ...

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...resignation was favored. This resignation created a freedom from the fear of death on the battlefield. The Shintoistic beliefs had a much more positive view towards life and death was looked down upon on, whereas the negative and life-minimizing views of Buddhism aided in the creation of a bold and fearless mentality. When these two elements blended together they formed a moral code for the samurai, which became known as Bushido, or the Way of the Warrior. Bushido became firmly established during the reign of the Tokugawa Shogunate and it was during this time that seppuku became the most honorable sentence of death to those who had violated Tokugawa law. However, seppuku was not only practiced as a death sentence but also as a way to demonstrate intense loyalty. Therefore, for the Japanese warrior, seppuku became the keynote of discipline in way of the warrior.