Japanese Soldiers: The Samurai Essay

In school, they learned of the Kendo, which is fencing with bamboo sticks, the moral code of the samurai, and their religion, Zen Buddhism. Their code of conduct, the Bushido, demanded that a samurai must hold his loyalty, courage, honesty, compassion, and honor. According to The Way of the Samurai by Yamaga Soko, “Within his [samurai] heart he keeps to the ways of peace, but without he keeps his weapons ready for use.” As stated before, samurais have a much lighter armor. This is mainly due to They have an opening on their right arm in order for them to draw their bows faster and

Imagine a knight, jousting in an arena in Europe during the Middle Ages. Surprisingly, across the world during approximately the same time period, samurai warriors fought in Japan. During the time period, 1000 to 1600 CE, the samurai and knights fought in battle in many different ways. Many differences between the samurai and knights included codes, armor, training, and religions. Without a doubt, the differences between the samurai and the knight overshadow the similarities.

The samurai had an unwritten code of honor called the bushido. Bushido means “way of the warrior” (History of the Samurai 3). This provided them with a code to help show them how to live and conduct themselves at home and in battle. One of the most important duties of the samurai was their loyalty to their lord. The samurai would defend their lord until the death. Revenge was also central in the samurai’s

Bushido is the way of the warrior or a Japanese term for samurai way of life. The seven virtues of bushido are the codes; they are justice, courage, mercy, respect, honesty, honour, and loyalty. Justice means that they can make their own decision and that they can make it correctly. Courage means that what we do is right and that we have the courage to do the right thing and not what others do. While mercy means that you have mercy and sympathy at the right time for a samurai knows how to kill and must use this wisely. Respect is how the samurai must treat everybody and anything, they must also have honesty which will make them more respectable. Honour was very important which means that everything they did they did it with honour. The last is loyalty which was very important because it showed that the samurai would help and protect their people like

The entire Japanese culture is based on honor. Honor extends to the nation, the family, and the individual. The samurai are no exception to a code of honor. The samurai follow the code of bushido. Bushido is closer to the western term of chivalry. Bushido places emphasis on courage, benevolence, justice, politeness, truthfulness, honor, loyalty, and most importantly is self-control. The samurai's primary religion is Zen. The samurai adapted Zen easily due to the philosophy that fits closely to Buddhism. Samurai may act in the extreme when it comes to honor. They will kill anyone who may dishonor them or their lord. Nothing is worse to a samurai than to have corrupt dealings. Some of the warriors believed, "Honor is the power of deciding upon 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." Other warriors believed that "Honor is the bone that gives firmness and stature. As without bones the head cannot rest on top of the spine, nor hands move, nor feet stand, so without honor neither talent nor learning can make of a human frame a

Bashido is the code the Japanese samurai followed. There were three basic codes they were expected to follow. The biggest one was to have good virtue and morally correct thinking. This law was the basis of the others. Another law was courage. There is a difference between bravery and courage and Bushido defines the difference. Courage is worthy and it is doing what is right. Mercy is also a code in Bashido. It states that the samurai have the ability to kill and command but they also have to equally demonstrate mercy and compassion. Samurai also had to be honest and sincere. Samurai were supposed to look down on money and they were even taught to believe that talking about wealth showed poor character. Samurai also were supposed to hold great honor. They have to understand their sense of dignity and worth because the fear of disgrace was constantly on their mind. The last two are loyalty and self-control. Bushido teachings taught that you have to behave morally. They have to understand that

In, document D - The Way of the Samurai, 1600’s: it talks about the code of Bushido and Chivalry. It says (paragraph 1) “ Outwardly he stands in physical readiness for any call to service in inwardly he strives to fulfill the Way….” this shows just how honorable a samurai could be. In Europe it was just the same (paragraph 2) it states “give mercy in those who ask for it” These similarities are significant because loyalty between the two, shows how much they trust each other. Without this trust and loyalty , these countries would be

Just as European knights had a code of chivalry, the samurai had the code of Bushido (Document E). The code of Bushido, like the code of chivalry in medieval Europe, governed a samurai’s life. It called on samurai to be honest, fair, and fearless in the face of death. Samurai were expected to value loyalty and personal honor even more than their lives.

The code of Bushido consist that the samurai must obey his master at all times. If someone goes against these moral principles the samurai has to punish them. A samurai puts his duty above all else and his association with friends. The code makes an unavoidably obligation between father and child, older and younger brother, husband and wife [Document E].

Chloe Lo Papa 2-8-18 Period 1 Warriors of the 11th Century “More Than a thousand years ago, a class of professional warriors arose, who swore oaths of loyalty to noble lords and fought to the death to defend them in battle. ”(Pg 243) In the 11th and 12th century, Japanese leaders were struggling to keep control of daimyos who were fighting for power. Meanwhile, Rome had recently fallen leaving Europe scattered. Lords and daimyos stopped relying on the government as much, so they hired the warriors and a feudal relationship between the two was created.

Cameron, C. M. (2002). American samurai: myth, and imagination in the conduct of battle in the First Marine Division, 1941-1951. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Samurai were elite Japanese warriors that became significant around the 12th century AD. The Samurai were known for their effectiveness and courage in battle. There were two main religions that Samurai believed in and adhered to: Zen Buddhism and Confucianism. Certain beliefs of each religion were combined to produce the Bushido Code. The Bushido Code is one that the Samurai practiced in battle and throughout their lives.

Throughout History, there have been many different groups or events that are still widely known today. Groups of people such as the Indians or Vikings are popular groups which are referenced constantly in today’s society. However, none of these groups is more known or referenced than the Japanese Samurai. Originating in 646 AD, these Japanese warriors developed from a loose organization of farmers to the dominant social class in Feudal Japan. Along with their dominant military and political standing, the samurai brought with them a unique code or moral belief that became the core of Samurai culture. Because of this, the Samurai and their principles still affect modern day Japanese society with social customs today

Personal honor and behavior governed by a specific code are signature characteristics of Japan's storied warrior-scholars: the samurai. This code, known as Bushidō (literally "Way of the Warrior"), governed a way of life that separated the samurai from the rest of Japanese society. However, Bushidō would, ultimately, influence the entire nation. This paper examines the origins, functions, and impact of Bushidō in the context of samurai culture and contemporary Japanese thought.

Bushido comes from medieval Japan, but until the 1600's it was something that had to be taught by a master. It was later written down for everyone to see and understand (Hurst 16). Bushido comes from all kinds of traits. It comes from Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shintoism. All these schools of thought and religion has formed the code of the warrior that the samurai follow in their everyday life (Clark 2). Buddhism teaches the samurai that you need to detach yourself from worldly feelings, wants, and needs. This was so that the samurai would not fear danger or death (Clark 3). Zen mediation teaches the samurai how to focus to rid themselves of unsteadiness and of all