Kabukimono
The dandy of old Japan, this figure was a subculture of the samurai. At the end of the Warring States Period and the start of the era of peace came libertine-style dandies. They were warriors who dressed with flamboyance, were loud and caused a ruckus. They wore extravagant sword fittings, sometimes even female clothes, and bright colors, moved in bands and generally caused ample trouble.
The Knight Errant
A Musha shugyo is a samurai pilgrimage, where a warrior will wander the country in search of other combatants to test their skills against; pitting themselves in duels to the death and challenges to other schools, the most famous of these is Miyamoto Musashi—the legendary sword saint.
The Tools of the Samurai
Is the samurai sword the soul of the samurai? Well, not quite. The katana has been given a central place in the image of the samurai; however, as mentioned previously, the spear and the bow also have a claim to be the samurai’s principle weapon. The heightened glory of the sword is a factor from an era of peace, when armor was stowed away and spears were put to rest; but the samurai kept the sword. A samurai was a warrior and each could pick his own weapons. One samurai may favor the chain and sickle, another the bow and the next a long sword. If a samurai knows his opponent has a specialty with a specific weapon, then it is best to defend against that samurai by forcing him to fight with a different weapon, or alternatively to create distance between the enemy and to hit them with projectiles. A samurai may not carry his bow or spear but they must always have their swords.
To understand the samurai and his tools, consider the following list of weapons used by the samurai—they have been placed together according to their range capabilities:
♦ Fire rockets
♦ Bows: including fire arrows and gas attacks
♦ Muskets
♦ Hand-thrown projectile weapons and grenades
♦ Long chain weapons
♦ The spear and other pole-arms, including quarterstaffs
♦ Shorter chain weapons
♦ Long swords
♦ Short swords
♦ Daggers and dirks
♦ Truncheons, knuckle dusters and grappling tools
Samurai would have to utilize whichever tool or weapon that situation demanded and have proficiency in most, if not all, with the additional constraint or having to own and maintain most of the above. Many modern cinema adaptions from Japan would have the modern reader believe that poor samurai wandered the land, having to sell their sword blades or work as evil bodyguards to save their ailing wife. However, while it cannot be disputed that some samurai were poor, this image has been portrayed because of the audience’s love of the “underdog” story. In truth, a samurai who has been retained by a lord has lodgings or a house; they are furnished with a salary proportionate to their abilities or social status, and they themselves retain servants. The concept of the “poor samurai” image is heavily associated with the end of the period of peace. Peace had been in Japan for over two centuries and land grabbing through war was no longer an option. Samurai being hereditary positions in this period meant that land and income could be divided between sons—or given to the eldest—and over the generations retainer fees become smaller and smaller. The pressure of this reduction in monetary power was increased with the rise in wealth of the merchant class, and together they saw many samurai fall into poverty.
However, this was only one period of samurai history, the end. The actual periods of interest are in the warring years when a samurai could make a fortune, and fortunes were made and land and vast incomes were competed for. In these times the samurai supported a house complex, possibly horses, an array of martial weapons and armor, food stocks, slaves and servants. A retained samurai could afford these things—with only the horse being out of reach of some samurai—therefore it was not a case of “if they could afford a sword, etc.,” but was more of a case of what level of sword they could afford. Samurai would pass down family heirlooms; however, at times they would also have to purchase their own arsenal or add to their stocks and both a market for secondhand and new items existed. Remember, a samurai had an arsenal and in the main a samurai had a good life by the standards of the day and the katana was only a small part of that; and while some samurai fell on hard times it is not an image you should maintain as your primary image of the samurai.
A samurai called Arisawa Nagasada (1638–1715) from Kaga domain wrote about samurai arts and equipment in the seventeenth century in a manual called Heiho Nukigaki Hippu no Sho. His writings were made to educate other samurai. The following is a reduced list of topics from the manual:
♦ Concerning lightweight armor
♦ Understanding outfits
♦ Knowing which tools are appropriate to status
♦ Concerning high and low status as a warrior
♦ Concerning decoration
♦ Understanding the equipment that you excel in and the mindset to have
♦ Of advantages and disadvantages
♦ Preparation of armor
The clothes a samurai needs:
♦ Headband
♦ Under-jacket
♦ Undergarments—for both summer and winter
♦ The outer belt
♦ Underwear and loin cloth
♦ Leggings
♦ Outer trousers
♦ Straw sandals
♦ Straw boots
Gear for battle:
♦ Armor containers
♦ The helmet rest
♦ The banner holder
♦ The battle hat
♦ Rainproof gear
The basic parts of armor:
♦ The breast plate
♦ The helmet
♦ The face mask
♦ Gauntlets and arm protection
♦ Thigh plates
♦ Greaves
Arisawa continues with some hints and advice on tools and equipment that lower samurai should focus on—the headings are given here:
♦ The banner
♦ Small flags
♦ Flag attachments and poles
♦ Decoration on flag poles
♦ Short swords and daggers
♦ Identification marks
♦ War swords
♦ Sword handles—both long and short
♦ Issues on the length of the sword handle
♦ Hilt fittings
♦ Sword rivets—to hold the sword in place
♦ Concerning the “mouth” of the scabbard
♦ The hilt washer
♦ Hair arranger—a small blunt spike on the side of the sword [shinobi use these to climb]
♦ The sword cord
♦ The cord to tie the sword to the wrist
♦ The sword belt
♦ The different forms of daisho—long and short swords
The manual continues on the topic of spears:
♦ The fittings used on our own spears
♦ The advantages and disadvantages of spear length, especially in night raids
♦ Pikes and pole-arms
♦ The three types of spear haft
♦ The parts of the spear—blade, haft, butt with socket, iron bands on the haft and rings attached
♦ The size of spear scabbards
The above gives an understanding of the complexity of samurai equipment and offers only a brief overview of the samurai arsenal. The sword is not given a place of prestige: what is important is that a samurai maintain gear for war and be ready to move to battle at short notice, with all of the equipment needed.
Having understood that the sword is not the only weapon of the samurai, the following list is that which a samurai should take to help him in day-to-day life during military campaigns. Lists contained within original Japanese documents do differ; therefore the following items have been compiled from multiple sources and are things a samurai should carry in his portable box:
♦ Comb
♦ Scissors
> ♦ Tweezers
♦ Rolls of cloth—including a three feet cloth band
♦ Razor
♦ Whetstone
♦ Powdered makeup (white)
♦ Mirror
♦ Magnet or compass
♦ Needle and thread
♦ Glue
♦ Dried bonito
♦ Dried abalone
♦ Strong paper strings
♦ Torches
♦ Hooks and rings
♦ Digging tools
♦ Drills
♦ Saws
♦ Ropes of different lengths and thickness
♦ Hammer and nails
♦ Ink and ink stone (black and red)
♦ Paper
♦ Leather thongs
♦ Warning clappers (two blocks on a string to clap together to give signals)
The Sword of the Samurai
Now that it has been established that the sword is not in the exalted position of the single focus of the samurai, it has to be reinforced that it was still of high importance and is a constant companion in his life. One thing that must be clear is that a sword is of vital importance and not that a certain sword is of importance. A samurai may have his sword stolen, the blades taken or snapped by shinobi; a temporary servant may steal them and sell the swords on the market at Edo so that he can go off gambling; street thieves may take the samurai’s sword by force; a samurai may lend his sword to a man in a duel; or a sword can even be taken home by the wrong person after a drinking party. The main issue of samurai honor is to have and be seen with a sword, it does not necessarily have to be the same sword. In addition, a samurai will always carry his short sword at his side unless he is forced to remove it by a higher-ranking person. Normally, long swords are left in allotted rooms or put into storage when visiting others or when a guest in another’s house—the samurai can also put his sword next to him on the floor.
Sword Typology
The study of the sword is a deep and well-researched subject, and experts in both Japan and the rest of the world have dedicated their lives to the beauty and crafts-manship of the Japanese sword. Therefore, here I will give a brief overview of the evolution of the sword. Being a specialist subject, I have turned to Mr Paul Martin, a specialist on Japanese swords who has kindly provided the following chronology. The descriptions are heavy with terminology; however, Mr. Martin provides a full glossary of terms on his website www.thejapanesesword.com.
Mr Paul Martin at work in Japan. His work can be seen on social media sites under the name The Japanese Sword or at his website of the same name (www.thejapanesesword.com).
Paul Martin’s sword chronology:
1. Late Heian to Early Kamakura
From the late Heian Period and the early Kamakura Period (1185–1333) we can see the Japanese sword as we know it: shinogi-zukuri (ridgeline) construction, with a wide base, narrowing acutely towards the small point section (kokissaki). They are quite slender blades with the curvature concentrated between the handle and base. This shape is called koshi-zori. From midway towards the point there is very little curvature. These blades are usually around 2.5–6 shaku in length (75.8–78.8 cm).
2. Mid-Kamakura
At the zenith of the warrior class’s power during the Kamakura Period, the blade’s kasane becomes thick, the mihaba becomes wide, and they take on magnificent tachi shape. There is not much difference between the size of the moto-haba and the saki-haba. The blade still has koshi-zori, but the center of the curvature has moved further along the blade. The kissaki has become a compact chu-kissaki (ikubi). The hamon has developed into a flowing gorgeous chojimidare. Also around this time, tanto production appears.
3. Late Kamakura
Tachi at the end of the Kamakura Period have developed into magnificent blades. There are two types: one is wide throughout its length and the point section is the same as mid-Kamakura period kissaki, but slightly extended. The other is quite slender and similar in appearance to the late Heian, early Kamakura shapes. However, when you look further along the blade the shape has changed; the curvature has moved further along the blade. During this period notare-gunome hamon appeared. It is said that in Sagami province Goro Nyudo Masamune perfected the production of nie-deki blades.
The numbers on the image coincide with the numbers in the text on the opposite page and below.
4. Nanbokucho
During the Nanbokucho Period many long blades of three shaku (90.9 cm) and other long tachi were made. Tanto of large proportions were also produced. Tachi were majestic, wide, and proportionally long. Among these were some over 90 cm in length and worn over the back. These types of blade are called nodachi and o-dachi. They were rather thin in construction to decrease the weight. Additionally, many have a bo-hi (groove) cut into the shinogi-ji area in order to lighten the blade. Many tachi from this period are o-suriage (shortened in later periods as they were difficult to wield). Consequently, many extant blades from the Nanbokucho Period are unsigned.
5. Early Muromachi
Blades of the early part of the Muromachi Period are reminiscent in construction to the blades of the early Kamakura Period. When compared to the shape of the Nanbokucho Period, the shape has completely changed and no longer includes o-kissaki. At around 2.4–5 shaku (72.7–75.7 cm) in length, they are quite narrow and deeply curved, with a medium-sized point section. At first glance they may appear somewhat similar to Kamakura Period blades, but on closer inspection they are saki-zori character.
6. Late Muromachi
By the late Muromachi Period, samurai fighting methods had changed from cavalry to mass infantry-style warfare. Uchigatana, worn with the cutting edge uppermost thrust through the sash, had become popular. After the Onin War, conflicts broke out in many places and kazu-uchi mono began to appear (mass-produced blades inferior in quality to regular Japanese blades). However, specially ordered blades of excellent quality (chumon-uchi) were also produced at this time. Bizen (Okayama prefecture) and Mino (Gifu prefecture) were the major places of production. Many blades produced in this period are around 2.1 shaku (63.6 cm) in length. They are slightly wider than the standard width, with either a chu-kissaki or an extended chu-kissaki and strong saki-zori. The nakago are short, intended for one-handed use.
7. Azuchi-Momoyama
Swords produced up to the Keicho era (1596–1614) are classified as kotõ (“old blades”). Blades made during and after this era are classified as shintõ (“new swords”). When Japan entered the Azuchi-Momoyama Period, many smiths moved to Edo or Kyoto, or gathered in castle towns of various influential daimyo. Additionally, developments in transportation brought about experimentation with materials, and foreign-made steel (known as nanbantetsu) was utilized. The blade’s shape from around this period mirrors that of shortened Nanbokucho blades. They are generally wide, with little or no difference between the moto and saki-haba. Many have an extended chu-kissaki, while some have o-kissaki, with a thick kasane and are usually around 2.4–5 shaku (72.7–75.8 cm) in length.
8. Mid-Edo
Swords of the mid-Edo Period are of standard width. The saki-haba is relatively narrow when compared to the moto-haba. The curvature is noticeably shallow with a small to medium-sized point section. They are usually around 2.3 shaku (69.7 cm) in length. This particular type of construction was generally produced around the middle of the Kanbun (1661–73) and Enpo (1673–81) eras, and is usually referred to as Kanbun-shintõ.
9. Edo Period, Genroku era
The change in shape of Japanese swords between the Jokyo (1684–88) and Genroku (1688–1704) eras reflects the transition of shape from Kanbun-shintõ blades to the beginning of the Shin-shintõ period of sword manufacture. As it was a very peaceful period in Japanese history, rather flamboyant hamon appear, and as opposed to that of Kanbun-shintõ blades, the curvature is quite deep.
10. Edo Period, Bakamatsu era
Blades made after the Bunka (1804–18) and Bunsei (1818–30) eras are referred to as fukko-
shintõ (revival swords). Pioneers of the revival movement include Suishinshi Masahide and Nankai Taro Tomotaka. Taikei Naotane was among Masahide’s students. Minamoto Kiyomaro led a revival aimed at soshu-den and Mino-Shizu workmanship. Bakumatsu blades are shallow in curvature, have a wide haba with not much difference in width between the saki and moto-haba, and are around 2.5–6 shaku (75.7–78.7 cm) in length, with an o-kissaki and thick kasane.
Testing the sword
Test cutting on bamboo and rolled straw is now a staple of the samurai image; however, it does have a darker side. The use of convicted criminals or the corpses of dead criminals was done to test the efficiency of a blade. In addition to this, there was also the criminal activity of tsujigiri—“testing swords on passers-by at night.”
Cleaning and sharpening the sword
If you have held an original samurai sword it is likely that it was in a dim museum room or antique collectors shop. You will have been passed the sword, blade upright with the back of the blade towards your face. Then you probably rested the blade on the sleeve of your jacket and commented on the beauty of the object, before you passed it back in the same manner, white gloves grasping the black hilt. In contrast, a samurai would grab it in a flash, draw it and hack a man’s head off with it or open up his belly, spilling his guts; then if it was bent he would try and hammer it back into shape—not quite the same treatment. Also, if you have ever seen a sword polished and cleaned, the whole affair is a delicate art and the sword is not allowed to be breathed on in some circles (a factor that one of my friends was unaware of when he was politely told by the head teacher of Katori Shinto Ryu, when we were having tea and biscuits with him one day, and the friend had happened to breath all over the sword). In contrast, a samurai, after he had removed the blade from the head of his victim, would normally pick up horse droppings, or gravel, fold it inside some paper and scratch the blade as he cleaned the slopping red liquid off the sword. This means that in modern and some high-class circles of samurai days, swords were regarded as elegant works of art, but for the common samurai his sword was a vicious tool. It must be stressed that you have to be careful not to sway too far from the image that is already present and know that in fact a samurai would take good care of his sword. They would have it cleaned and polished if needed, they would give another samurai’s sword respect—a respect for the samurai owner which was transferred through the sword. The sword was held as a valuable weapon and a thing of beauty, but it was also a practical weapon. Therefore a middle view is required: a sword was the racecar of its day, a high performance instrument that was to be cared for but was also an object that could be destroyed in the heat of the moment. Remember, a samurai may have many swords or just a single pair; he would keep it clean and look after it, but the idea of highly polished swords that are passed around in whispers is a modern idea as samurai often came to blows in drinking parties—complaints about bent and broken swords are not few in number.
Samurai and Ninja: The Real Story Behind the Japanese Warrior Myth That Shatters the Bushido Mystique Page 8