The Code of the Feudal Warrior Part 1: Bushido

“It is not a written code; at best it consists of a few maxims handed down from mouth to mouth or coming from the pen of some well-known warrior or savant. More frequently it is a code unuttered and unwritten, possessing all the more the powerful sanction of veritable deed, and of a law written on the fleshly tablets of the heart.”[1]

The fundamental principles and virtues of the feudal warrior were shaped and directed by the cultural mores and social and political environment of feudalism in the middle ages. A strong feudal system dominated Europe and Japan for many centuries, producing a military class in both cultures that was famed throughout history and celebrated in legend and literature. These two regions boast vastly different cultures, yet the emergence of the quintessential warrior occurred in much the same way. Consequently, their basic code of conduct contains many similarities in regards to the virtues, duties, and role of the warrior. Although they share certain universal principles, there are also ideals which separate the knight from the samurai, revealing the profound moral and theological differences between the cultures of Europe and Asia.

In the next three entries I will explore the Japanese code of bushido, the European code of chivalry, and the similarities and differences between them.

Japan has a long and tangled history of warfare. From ancient times the islands have been home to various groups and clans of people, each trying to hold onto their own territory. At the close of the Asuka period (538–710 AD), the dream of unifying the country under one ruler would take a stronghold in the minds of many powerful men, initiating warfare that would last for centuries.[1] The scattered clans engaged in civil war with one another in the hopes of dominating Japan.

“Some clans were originally formed by farmers who had taken up arms to protect themselves from the imperial magistrates sent to govern their lands and collect taxes. These clans formed alliances to protect themselves against more powerful clans, and by the mid-Heian period they had adopted characteristic Japanese armor and weapons, and laid the foundations of Bushido, their ethical code.”[2]

Out of these clans came the samurai, the warrior class of Japan. The position of the samurai in medieval Japan was parallel to that of the knight in Europe, the samurai holding a position just below that of lord. These warriors developed their own code of behavior and morality which came to be known as the code of Bushido. This code was highly developed and fairly rigid in relation to the code of chivalry. No set written doctrine existed, but the social pressure to uphold the accepted behavior of the code was immense. To break with the code was disgraceful and therefore unacceptable to the samurai himself, his peers and his lord.

The basic principles of Bushido are the three attributes of wisdom, benevolence, and courage, as well as honor, loyalty, self-control, and sacrifice. These ideals were learned and honed within the family environment and within the group oriented society of feudal Japan. The first three principles, Chi, wisdom, Jin, benevolence, and Yu, courage, are referred to by Inazo Nitobe in his book Bushido: The Soul of Japan as the “tripod which supported the framework of Bushido.”[3] These three attributes were essential for the development of the samurai. The wisdom represented by Chi is an understanding of everyday life and not necessarily knowledge acquired through scholastic endeavors. Intellectualism and book learning were considered secondary to a firm grasp of common sense:

“The first point to observe in knightly pedagogics, was to build up character, leaving in the shade the subtler faculties of prudence, intelligence, and dialectics…literature was pursued mainly as a pastime, and philosophy as a practical aid in the formation of character, if not for the exposition of some military or political problem.”[3]

Benevolence was defined as feelings of consideration, sympathy, and love toward others. This virtue was important for the warrior on an individual level because it instilled a sense of communion with humanity and also developed in him a conscience and a sense of morality. Although it was considered a valuable personal virtue, benevolence also affected the lives of others through the samurai’s deeds and decisions. On a large scale, a warrior class without benevolence would be merely a network of barbarians inflicting ruin and chaos. Nitobe refers to Confucius and Mencious, two renowned Chinese scholars, who cite that a benevolent government and warrior class cultivate trust in their people through their compassion, thus building a strong nation:

“Instances are on record where individuals attained to supreme power in a single state, without benevolence, but never have I heard of a whole empire falling into the hands of one who lacked this virtue.”[3]

Courage is a necessary virtue for any warrior, especially a professional soldier. However courage is not just the act of sacrificing oneself needlessly in battle. In his explanation of Bushido, Nitobe refers to a Prince of Mito who states that;

“To rush into the thick of battle and to be slain in it is easy enough…but, it is true courage to live when it is right to live, and to die only when it is right to die.”[3]

Courage helps a soldier uphold his convictions in word and deed, gives him the strength to make difficult decisions, and gives him faith in himself. From a young age, tales of valorous warriors were recounted to children, giving them an image of the ideal warrior who was heroic, but wise. To temper their fears and mould them into daring young men, parents would sometimes place their children in difficult or intimidating situations as a way of preparing them for their future position in the warrior class.[3]

The honor of a samurai was his ability to embody all of these traits, and also included his reputation and social identity. In this respect his honor was carefully guarded as the true nature of his soul and considered the culmination of all his personal virtues. Possessing a sense of honor the samurai created for himself a set of standards to which he would hold himself accountable. Honor was often prickly in feudal Japan and many times led to unnecessary bloodshed where no real quarrel existed. The warrior who truly understood the significance and responsibility inherent in honor, was a wise man.

Loyalty was one way of expressing a warrior’s honor through his devotion to his lord and his oaths. In the code of Bushido, loyalty was placed highest, even above a man’s personal honor.

“…loyalty as we conceive it may find few admirers elsewhere, not because our conception is wrong, but because it is, I am afraid, forgotten, and also because we carry it to a degree not reached in any other country.”[3]

To the samurai, his devotion and service to his lord was the pinnacle of achievement. If he disgraced or betrayed his lord, he failed in his duty and lost his own honor. The social and governmental systems of feudal Japan were based on a series of relationships that hinged on loyalty. Disloyal samurai were viewed as disrupting and disregarding these relationships, a serious offense. If a samurai felt that his loyalty to his lord contradicted his own sense of ethics, he exercised his sense of self-control, remembering his duty and his allegiance. This characteristic self-control was frequently revealed in the stern and stoic nature of the samurai, carefully concealing his true feelings whatever their nature.

In Japan, to openly display one’s emotions was considered inappropriate. Nitobe relates that for the warrior, “Calmness of behavior, composure of mind, should not be disturbed by passion of any kind.”[3]Particularly for the soldier, whose job was often fraught with fluctuating emotions as he was confronted with death, controlling ones inner desires and feelings was essential to maintaining objectivity, rationality, and mental coherence. Also, openly revealing emotions was looked upon as selfish in that it showed a certain degree of disdain and hesitation for the duties assigned. In regards to a warrior’s conduct within society, self-control was a necessary tool for him, just as his sword was necessary to fight in a battle. With his martial skills, an intemperate samurai posed a threat to his fellow man. Nitobe asserts that,

“A dastard or a braggart was he who brandished his weapon on undeserved occasions. A self-possessed man knows the right time to use it, and such times come but rarely.”[3]

The ultimate expression of self-control and loyalty can be seen within the samurai notion of sacrifice. This institution was highly refined and hauntingly common among warriors in feudal Japan. Japanese society and culture is group-oriented, emphasizing the needs of the whole over the needs of the individual. The individual owed his allegiance to the collective group because he himself was a part of that group, created and sustained by that group. In the warrior class the samurai dedicated his life to his lord and to the populace in serving his lord. If he failed in his duties, atonement was often offered in the form of suicide and sacrifice.

“Life being regarded as the means whereby to serve his master, and its ideal being set upon honour, the whole education and training of a samurai were conducted accordingly.”[3]

Part of the education and training of the samurai was taken up with preparing a warrior for the possibility of suicide. This reality was taken very seriously as it often involved not only the death of the warrior himself, but the sacrifice of his family and any vassals in his service. This was expected and understood by those in his care as part of their duty to both him and to greater society.

“The individualism of the west, which recognizes separate interests for father and son, husband and wife, necessarily brings into strong relief the duties owed by one to the other; but bushido held that the interest of the family and of the members thereof is intact, -one and inseparable.”[3]

Confronted with the tenuous nature of life and death as a professional soldier, the code of bushido offered the samurai a model of the true warrior, guidelines by which he could mould his character and understand his path in life. Embracing the virtues of wisdom, benevolence, and courage, and the principles of honor, loyalty, self-control, and sacrifice, the samurai of Japan created a class of great warriors marked by their philosophical depth, their admirable deeds, and their civility.

[1]Wikipedia. June, 27 2006. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.22 June 2006 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samurai#Origin_of_samurai.
[2] Wikipedia. June, 27 2006. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.22 June 2006 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samurai#Origin_of_samurai.
[3]Nitobe, Inazo, Bushido: The Soul of Japan, Charles E. Tuttle Publishing Co.: Tokyo, 1969.