Between the 12th and 19th centuries, families of warriors formed Japan’s elite soldiers – training began at age 3. Samurai emerged during the consolidation of the country’s feudal system and peaked in the 15th century, when the archipelago had 260 small rival states.
The warriors were neighbors of the feudal lords, living in castles, with access to iron smelters (for the manufacture of weapons), pastures and warehouses for food, clothing and weapons. In the 18th century, they were so numerous that they began to occupy bureaucratic functions in the government and, at the end of the 19th century, they were incorporated into the army. At that time, they reached 2 million (6% of the Japanese population).
In the 20th century, already out of combat, samurai families gave rise to large business groups in the country, such as Mitsubishi and Mitsui.
Total control – In addition to educating the mind, the samurai dominated the movements and limits of the body.
mental exercise
Every samurai knew how to read and write. It was the mother who taught, who also instructed the girls in financial mathematics – when they grew up, they controlled the household accounts. Children practiced series of exercises (katas) that served to meditate and control the body. Kata originated judo and karate.
horse hunting
In the first five centuries of existence, samurai were knights armed with bows and arrows (yumi). Fight training began with the young man shooting, mounted, against dogs held by chains – the goal was to kill with just one arrow. The next level was hunting pigs.
by a thread
The suburi, technique of using the sword, was applied against an imaginary enemy, with a wooden sword (bokken), which could also be used in battle. To develop self-control, the apprentice would move the weapon quickly towards the instructor, stopping the blow millimeters from the master’s face.
no retirement
At any age, the samurai took care of physical fitness, taking the body’s resistance to the extreme. One of the workouts was standing still, naked, in the snow or under an icy waterfall for up to eight hours. In addition, many went without water, food or sleep for days to always be ready for war.
Ready, aim…
Between the 15th and 17th centuries, samurai used firearms: the arquebus was 1.5 m long, weighed 8 kg and was difficult to reload.
abbreviated youth – At the age of 12, the samurai was already ready to fight
3 to 7 years – The apprentice is literate, knows the samurai ideals (obedience and loyalty to the lord and not being afraid of death) and begins to handle wooden weapons.
8 to 11 years – Learn to ride a horse and handle a bow and arrow (still on the ground). He starts training with the bokken and, at the end of this stage, he already uses the mamorigatana, a light metal sword.
12 years onwards – Participate in battles, in the rear, or executing prisoners of war and criminals. Learn to use oyumi on the horse and to fight with the katana.
Curiosities:
Musashi, the most famous samurai of all time, preferred to use a wooden sword in combat.
The samurai killed himself with the wakizashi when he made a mistake that led to defeat in battle.
Closed body – Armor was light, strong and made of various materials.
Target shooting – Carried on the back, the bamboo bow was 2 m long. The arrows were made of wood sharpened at the tip.
facing from the front – The warrior’s head was protected by a mask (hoate) and a helmet (kabuto).
Lethal Blades – The most important swords were the katana, 90 cm long, and the wakizashi, used in tight spaces or in ritual suicide (seppuku).
protective layers – The armor was formed by a series of coverings of leather, wood and metal blades.
Consultancy: William Wayne Farris, Professor of Japanese Culture at the University of Hawaii, and William E. Deal, Professor of Japanese History at Case Western University. Source: Samurai Swords by Clive Sinclaire.