Samurai is a Japanese warrior. Stories about the courage and fortitude of the samurai have survived even to this day. The samurai estate existed until the bourgeois revolution, and even after that, some features in society were preserved. Samurai is not just a warrior, initially only feudal lords became them. The lifestyle and virtues of medieval samurai are widely reflected in art.
Such popularization led to the distortion of some facts about the warriors of feudal Japan.
Origination
The meaning of the word samurai can be interpreted as "a person who served". The first samurai appeared in the 7th century. During Taika's reign, a number of different reforms were introduced. Thus, a privileged class of warriors emerged. Initially, these were people who already occupied a high position in society and were landowners. Samurai became widespread in the 9th century, when the Japanese emperor Kammu waged war against the Ainu. Over the next centuries, clear dogmas are formed, whichdefine a warrior. A set of rules "Bushido" appears, which says that a samurai is a person who puts loy alty to his master above all else. This is the practical difference from European chivalry. "Bushido" also indicated kindness, decency, honesty, but the focus still remained loy alty to the war and the master.
Ideology
Among the samurai, such virtues as courage, loy alty, lack of fear of death and suffering were most revered. Such nihilism is due not least to the influence of Buddhism. The way of the warrior (literal translation "Bushido") also involved moral and psychological development. Many procedures, such as meditation, were designed to maintain balance and spiritual calmness of a person. The main task of the "path of the spirit" was to purify from emotional experiences and to develop an indifferent attitude to worldly fuss.
The lack of fear of death has become a kind of cult. A striking example of such an ideology is hara-kiri. This is ritual suicide with a special knife. Harakiri was considered a fitting death for any samurai. The person who decided to commit it, knelt down and then ripped open his stomach. Similar methods of suicide were observed among the warriors of ancient Rome. The abdomen was chosen as the target, as the Japanese believed that this is where the human soul is located. At hara-kiri, a friend of the samurai could be present, who decapitated him after ripping. Such execution was allowed only forpetty crimes or violations of the code.
Who is a samurai
Modern art has somewhat distorted the image of the samurai. In ancient Japan, a samurai is, first of all, a feudal lord. The poor classes could not belong to this movement. In addition to social prejudices, this was also due to material problems. Samurai ammunition and weapons were very expensive, and training lasted a lifetime. The warrior was brought up from childhood. It was, first of all, hard physical training. The teenager had to constantly work and train. For this, he had a personal mentor, who was the ideal and spiritual image of courage for the student. Training mostly consisted of endless repetition of the same combat situations. This was done in order for the fighter to remember actions under certain conditions at the reflex level.
Spiritual education
Besides physical training, there were also moral ones. From childhood, a father had to teach his son not to be afraid of pain and hardship. To temper the spirit of a teenager, they could be awakened at night and ordered to go to a place that was considered cursed. Also in their youth, future warriors were taken to watch the executions of criminals. At some stages, it was forbidden to sleep or even eat. Such hardships were supposed to temper the body and spirit of the samurai. Home, family and children have never been a priority for a soldier according to "Bushido". Before leaving for the war, he swore to forget them and not remember them until he returned.
Among the samurai there was a special elite - Daimyo. It was believed that these are the most experienced and courageous warriors. However, in reality, these were just large feudal lords who actually ruled individual regions. A samurai is not necessarily a man. History has preserved many memories of female warriors.
Armaments
Samurai is, first of all, a man in expensive armor. On the battlefield, this is what distinguished them from the ashigaru - the peasant militia. Samurai armor was difficult to manufacture and could cost more than a whole settlement. Unlike European armor, samurai armor consisted mainly of metal plates. Between themselves, they were connected with silk threads and covered with leather. As weapons, the samurai used swords - katanas, something in between a saber and a European sword of a knight. In addition to the katana, the samurai carried a small dagger with him. Also used yari - spears with a long sting. Some samurai used bows.
With the advent of firearms, armor lost its practical use and was used only as an attribute of high status. Some elements of armor were used as a manifestation of military rank in capitalist Japan. In the Russian film "The Priest", a samurai is shown in modern society, which is not uncommon.
