Samurai and Ninja: The Real Story Behind the Japanese Warrior Myth That Shatters the Bushido Mystique (3 page)
Authors: Antony Cummins
Tags: #Non-Fiction, #History, #Asia, #Japan, #Military, #Espionage
With most of the above myths starting to crumble, becoming wiped clean from the mind, a better understanding of the Japanese warrior class should begin to form. The next step is to clarify their identity and understand the variations in the identities of these warriors themselves.
Identity
Too often, individual identity becomes lost in the pages of history. Volumes are given to the outline and lives of rulers. Yet the masses may go unnoticed. It is easy to relegate the samurai and the
ashigaru
(foot soldiers) to the faceless rank-and-file figures that come from the “samurai factory.” These faceless figures stood ready to fight, behind their leaders. Instead of this approach, we need to observe the samurai in three layers. First we need to see them as human beings, secondly as Japanese, and lastly as samurai. From this we will fill in the details of their lives. Each individual has strengths and weaknesses as a human, but what needs to be identified specifically is their personality, along with their skill sets. Personality inserts “color” into our picture of the Sengoku Period samurai. Skills help to fill in the “detailed lines.” Each samurai was born into a world that has an established identity. Their individual identity was forged through personal experiences and the environment around them.
The basic elements of identity are as follows:
1.
Fundamental identity
—An individual has a basic identity. They are named and a self image is formed around that name. When their given name was spoken, the individual had a sense of himself or herself. Those looking upon that person formed an opinion in their mind—this name was their inner core.2.
Identity of family
—Each person belongs to a family unit which has a name attached to it. The individual would have grown up within the social class and circumstances of that family, and their identity was shaped through a connection to the family and the lifestyle of that family.3.
Identity through personality
—The emotions of a person and the nature they are born with, along with the influence of their society’s ethics, would have formed into a part of that person’s identity. A person may have been known as an angry person, a loving person, a wise person, or a cruel person, etc.4.
Identity of position
—Occupation is a critical factor in developing identity. The role or function a person holds in society dictates how they are seen by others—and how they view themselves. This often determines their friendships and social class.5.
Identity by personal interest
—Hobbies, likes, and interests form the periphery sections of a person. An individual’s likes and dislikes added color to a forming and changing identity.6.
Identity in connection to history
—A person’s place in the thread of history dictate how they see themselves. Their place in history help form that individual’s identity. A person’s country, culture, and religion also form a part of this identity.7.
Identity through objectives
—With the other sections of identity in place, an objective and goal gave a person direction and purpose.
To illustrate this fact, separate fictional cases of three warriors from medieval Japan—each with their own identity—have been given below:
Samurai One
1. Fundamental identity—Resolved and quiet.
2. Identity by family—Born into a powerful family and son to a warlord, he has been groomed to lead men.
3. Identity through personality—A natural leader of men; however, prone to bursts of anger, refuses to apologize, lacks humility, does not appear sincere when admitting he is wrong.
4. Identity of position—Son to a powerful father, his position is based on name and family history; he is a warlord in training and therefore forever overshadowed by his father; always as a lesser in the eyes of his peers, his position always reminds him that he is second before another.
5. Identity by personal interest—Loves to shoot game birds over lakes and indulges in expensive clothes; however, has a generous side and gives benefits to religious orders.
6. Identity in connection to history—Born into a family that has a long and vast history, his understanding of it, and his place within it, is seen through the distorted lens of family agenda.
7. Identity through objectives—Wishes to best his father’s legacy.
Samurai Two
1. Fundamental identity—Playful and kind hearted.
2. Identity of family—Born into a poorer samurai family, but never without food or shelter. His upbringing was in the shadow of richer samurai but he still underwent a solid samurai education. This has led him to push his abilities. His family are experts in the ways of shinobi and the identity of shinobi has formed within his mind.
3. Identity through personality—A warm and kind person with a happy countenance, he attracts others yet pushes them aside when there is hope of furthering his position.
4. Identity of position—Shinobi: as he was born in Iga, through his training and family arts he has gained employment as an
Iga mono
—a man of Iga, i.e., shinobi. He has been hired as an
In no shinobi
—“hidden agent.” His cover is that of a low-ranking guardsman. Only the captain of the shinobi, other hidden agents, and the lord know his true role in the army. Often sent out under-cover to perform missions for the lord, collect information, infiltrate the enemy, or set fires in a “black operations” strike team. Given the secondary role of rooting out enemy spies.
5. Identity by personal interest—Enjoys poetry and drinking songs, known to gamble but is considered a strongly stable character.
6. Identity in connection to history—Born in the Sengoku Period. His family, which are situated in Iga, are still at this time samurai class. Brought up in the Shingon sect of Buddhism, he also has an interest in the victories of those from Iga, attempting to remedy his lack of a notable family name.
7. Identity through objectives—His aim is to understand the deeper meanings of the Shingon texts and try to shift to a similar understanding of that of a “man of the cloth.”
Ashigaru One
1. Fundamental identity—Strong willed and sly.
2. Identity of family—Born to servants within a farming family, he grew up in a rural area; his family are known to be shrewd, crafty, but honest. However, they are known for their strong family bonds and wild temper if one member is wronged.
3. Identity through personality—While crafty, he is not intelligent. Yet beside a lack of formal education he has “street wisdom” and understands well the working of the world. A jolly countenance with an eye for profit, he will steal monetarily from enemy targets that he has infiltrated.
4. Identity of position—An ashigaru foot soldier, he works the campaign months in the army and spends the rest of the year working his family farm. However, he has excellent shinobi infiltration skills obtained through years of stealing from rich mansions. He is often called upon to form up with shinobi night attack squads, helps identify routes, and find paths for the shinobi night attack teams. He was a very good advance infiltrator but in the last few years his body is getting older. Now he tends to find routes and position himself as a night signal coordinator, so that the teams work as one.
5. Identity by personal interest—Loves games, especially simple soldier games while in battle camps. Has a deft hand at carving. He often carves wooden religious figures for sale or barter.
6. Identity in connection to history—Has no connection to anyone of importance in history and believes that his family has farmed since ancient times. He thinks that his ancestors are part of the landscape of that area. He does not believe his family will ever move away. After he retires from active warfare he will probably never leave his town again.
7. Identity through objectives—Has saved up a secret stash of booty, gold, and silver in the hope of having a peaceful life; enjoying his time before he dies.
Having two shinobi in the three examples was done deliberately, as the use of these two examples show that shinobi can be from either the samurai class or the lower ashigaru foot soldier class. Their skills and expertise would be allotted to the task for which they were best suited.
So far, we have broken down many samurai myths and popular ideas. In the place of these misconceptions, we reformed the identity of the Eastern knight. A new character is starting to take shape. Japan is a world with a long history and full traditions. It has rituals and customs. It has a voice in the world all its own. It has live individuals, humans with names and family backgrounds. They have personalities, likes and dislikes. They have an ethical code shaped by the population’s collective thinking (as all ethical codes are).
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Remember, terminology can change depending on both chronology and time; the terms here are taken from Natori-Ryu.
Part II
THE SAMURAI
The World of the
Samurai and the Shinobi
T
o
build this picture of the samurai and the shinobi, without stereotype, it is best to examine the world that they lived in. This includes the physical landscape, the social norms of the times, and the historical influences in the world into which they were born.
The Landscape and History of Japan
Japan is a mountainous country with a wide range of climate differences, from extremely cold in the northern parts to the hot climates of the islands of the south. A high percentage of the country is clad in mountains and forests, and much of the population dwell on the fertile plans and coastlines. The history of Japan can be divided into different eras, yet the world is primarily interested in a single thousand-year period—
the epoch of the samurai
. Before the samurai, Japan was a land heavily influenced by Chinese culture. This influence soaked into all areas of life. Much earlier, Japan moved through early “civilized” culture. It passed through its own stone ages, all of which were sophisticated in their own way. Around 800–900 AD—and taking a few hundred years to develop—the samurai started to form, adapting to a changing socio-political environment. Fast forward, they evolved into the now famous warrior culture known across the world, a culture that came to an end around the 1860s and 1870s.
Ignoring the rest of Japanese history, but without forgetting its existence, the age of the samurai can be broken up into sections. These are classifications that only exist here and are theoretical; their only purpose is to help form a visual understanding of the progress of samurai history. This timeline has been simplified for ease. Japanese history can be divided into many individual ages; however, this aid focuses on the samurai’s development and the major changes that occurred.
Proto-Samurai
In the ninth and tenth centuries of the first millennium—that is, before 1000 AD—the samurai began to develop, moving from an obviously pre-samurai warrior template into a more identifiably Japanese form, the birth of the samurai.
The First Great Samurai
From around 1000 AD to 1450 AD comes the classical age of the samurai. This is the age of the samurai as the mounted warrior. His principle weapons include the bow and arrow; warfare is wider and more open. The Genpei War (1180–85) rages and the Kemmu Restoration (1333–1336) takes place. The land is at times in turmoil, heroes are created, and iconic images are crafted for future samurai to adore.
The Age of War
From around the 1400s to the early 1600s, Japan enters a fierce and bloody part of its history. The country is changed from collections of practically self-governing societies, under diffident warlords, to a unified country. A change achieved through consistent campaigning, in which military tactics are developed, classical samurai ideals are giving way to well-structured and formulated “modern” war-craft; gunnery is introduced and explosives gain a more solid foothold while warrior knights are supported by masses of foot soldiers. In a climactic clash at the battle of Sekigahara and the victories at the sieges of Osaka Castle, the Tokugawa family take control of the country and “peace” is restored to Japan.
The Age of Peace
From the early 1600s, “peace” was established in the country. “Peace” has been placed in quotation marks because it is wrongly considered a “peaceful” time. The start of the seventeenth century was full of rebellion and attempted coups, including the siege of Osaka Castle, the slaughter of the last Toyotomi members, the brutal murder of the Christian horde at the siege of Shimabara, and the attempted take-over led by Yui Shosetsu—possibly ordered by the Kishu domain. These are only a few examples of this bloody “peace.” By 1650 the country had “calmed down” and the Tokugawa clan held an iron grip. “Peace” is provided through a feudal dictatorship and true power is held by the Shogun. All of the other clans are placed under the Sankin Kotai system, which means that each clan has to biannually move its chief personnel to the capital—at great cost. This was a measure designed to prevent anyone from rising in rebellion against the Tokugawa family. With the country under dictatorship and war at an end, the samurai class—in the main—moved towards bureaucracy, with less importance placed on combat efficiency. Armor and weapons become more decorative, ethics and the ideals of Confucianism take a stronger hold. Our idea of the perfectly honorable knight is shaped in this age, but in truth, the samurai declined in power and ability.
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