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One Who Serves

© Meg Greene Malvasi

In the winter of 1274, word reached the southern Japanese province Kyushu that the great Mongol emperor warrior, Kubla Khan had arrived in Japan. Khan, with an army rumored to be over 15,000 warriors, was intent on conquering Japan. Slowly, he made his way to the south, easily defeating the badly outnumbered Japanese.

Upon hearing the news, several Japanese warriors prepared for battle. Applying powders and perfumes, they also blackened their teeth, while tying their hair into topknots. Because beheading was common in Japanese battles, these warriors went into battle as well groomed as possible; if one suffered the fate of losing his head, at least the warrior died with dignity. Next came their dressing of loincloth, kimono and baggy trousers and the donning of their armor. Lastly, was the collecting of weapons which included a bow, a dagger and at least one sword. A deerskin used for sitting, or in the case of a warrior about to be executed, a pad to kneel on, was tucked into the warrior's gear.

These great Japanese warriors, known as "samurai" or "one who serves," played an important role in Japanese history. Serving as private armies for the great Japanese landowners, the samurai emerged as one of the most powerful and respected classes in Japan for almost 600 years. The samurai followed a strict code of behavior known as bushido or "the way of the warrior." This code was emphasized not only how to be a great warrior, it was a way of life that most every samurai followed.

Only the sons of samurai could become samurai themselves. Their training began almost from the moment of birth as these young men prepared themselves for their future lives as warriors. All attended school, where they mastered the basics of reading, writing and good manners which were very important in Japanese society.

According to one samurai swordmaster, a samurai was "a man of great awareness and great action." Samurai training-that is the skills needed to become a samurai--might be done by a son's father. In some cases, a boy was sent to apprentice with a master. There were also training schools for samurai, known as bugei ryuha.

No matter where a young boy received his instruction, all samurai learned the same kinds of skills. To prepare young men for a career that was largely spent fighting, archery and swordsmanship were taught. Sword fighting was very important as the samurai's most important weapon was his sword. To become an excellent swordsman, one mastered many different movements for speed and accuracy. In some cases, styles of sword play even imitated the movements of certain animals such as cats or birds.

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