Culture Fairies: Bushido

Showing posts with label Bushido. Show all posts

Monday, 28 September 2015

Ninja

The conspicuous covert warriors known as Ninja (忍者) specialized in unconventional warfare. Otherwise known referred to as shinobi (meaning those who act in stealth) had been around as early as the eleventh century. This was around the age of the samurai venturing through and well beyond the sixteenth century. Unlike the Samurai the Ninja were not given an honourable image because of their mercenary class skill level and expertise in said warfare. Samurai warlords often would seek the assistance of the Ninja hidden in the remote villages of Iga and Koka. Now these villages serve as museums in which original buildings and training grounds still exist.

Ninja specialized in infiltration, sabotage, and assassination of samurai feudal lords. Ninjutsu is an art form referring to the many attributes of the ninja such as stealth, combat skills, vast knowledge of poisons and weapons control. Military strategy, meteorology and geometry were a part of their expert tracking and sense of direction. Female ninja were amongst the most prominent, especially when it came down to infiltration during the night

There is little factual information about ninja and thus many rumours and mysteries remain unanswered. So much so that anime and manga utilize these as a fun way of interpretation through shows such as Naruto. Ninja remained active until the beginning of the Edo Period when social order was restored. Jinichi Kawakami is the 21st head of the Ban clan and he says the ninja way will die with him as ninja do not fit in with modern day japan.

Jinichi Kawakami - 21st head of the Ban clan

Read more at these great sites to paint a clear mental picture of the truly skilled Ninja:

Friday, 25 September 2015

Baseball in Japan - Swing and Miss? Maybe not!

You might not have thunk it, but baseball is big in Japan! Baseball originated in America and adopted by Japan in the Meiji period over a century ago. The Tokyo Yomiuri Giants baseball club was one of the first clubs to be founded as early as 1934. Although the American sport was a quick favourite, it was given the Japanese touch when it came to the set of rules (Shuji). The two styles of baseball, both American and Japanese incorporate their respective country’s cultural ideals and profiles. Major League Baseball (MLB) is famous around the western world and while it keeps to a traditional style of rulings when it comes to referee’s decisions in which the calls are made by an individual. However the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league in Japan follows are more flexible and fairer democratic decision making ideals, where a discussion is held before a disputable call is made, this is to settle both parties until a satisfying explanation is given.

The NPB consists of twelve teams split into two leagues consisting of six teams each. The Central League pursues a more traditional set of rules whereas the Pacific League entails an exciting fast paced game series. The best part of course is the major play offs. The Climax Series is where the top three teams from each of the two leagues face-off in a hard hitting – well you guessed it – climax! Here comes the most interesting bit of Japanese baseball culture…

The Japanese live in dormitories, have one month off a year, and an extra week if their team wins the championship. The teams are all owned by major companies and as such, typically the average player is guaranteed a place into the organization after retiring from baseball. As was mentioned earlier, the ideal and profiles of the Japanese culture are of a group mentality where everyone can prove their worth and is always a part of the group until death much like the Bushido – The Samurai way.

Whilst living in the dormitories, players are not allowed to drink, smoke or (get this) - grow a moustache. The Japanese are strict on foreign players (gaijin) and each team is only allowed three gaijin players.
For more detailed information about the game including teams, seasons and ticketing visit these great sites:

Thursday, 24 September 2015

The Samurai's Legend

Contrary to the misconceptions, the legendary samurai (侍) were a military force with exceptional combat skills and swordsmanship, highly educated and polite, rather than just a small elite covert unit. Bushido(武士道) which is used to describe the spirit of samurai, referring to morals, most commonly stressing some combination of frugality, loyalty, martial arts mastery, and honour unto death. This legendary military force was of upper-class citizens whom served for the noble-class citizens to protect them from enemies and samurai even dare to die for them. They reined during the tenth to nineteenth century in Japan.

The samurai fought in many battles and as such, they would have their own military accordance’s and unlike being court martialled the samurai were subject to capital punishment. Seppuku(切腹) was a ritual suicide and reserved for Samurai. The process was that Samurai would puncture their abdomen and suffer from self disembowelment. Because it caused infinite pain, people believed that only the bravest Samurai could bear the suffering of Seppuku and referred this death penalty to the highest honour.

In Japanese history, only Samurai could wield Katana whereas civilians could only wield and possess daggers. Generally, Samurai brought a Katana and dagger to protect their lives. Samurai regarded the sheath (a close-fitting cover for their blade) as their honour, hitting the sheath would be treated as a disrespectful action.

In addition, Samurai's armour was also astonishing, and represented the taste of a Samurai; upper Samurai usually put their own family crest or special meanings on a set of armour or flag, especially helmet. The helmets were ordinarily made of metal with terrifying design as a demon. In modern day Japan, samurai are non-existent; however there are amazing Samurai towns which you can read about in the links below.

For a more detailed understanding on this topic and especially samurai towns check out these links: