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Philosophy
Philosophies of Buddhism and Zen, to the lesser
extent Confucianism influenced the samurai culture as well
as Shinto. Zen meditation became an important teaching by offering
a process to calm one's mind. Buddhism concept of reincarnation
and rebirth led samurai to abandon torture and needless killing.
Some
samurai even gave up violence altogether and became Buddhist
monks after realizing how fruitless their killings were.
Some were killed as they came to terms with the relizations
in the
battle field.
Bushido, codified during Edo period, was the
way of the samurai, yet its deceptive simplicity led to countless
arguments over
its interpretation. Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai by
Yamamoto Tsunetomo is a manual of instruction into the way
of the samurai.
Even as it was published, it received a number of reviews
that criticized strict and impersonal interpretations. If the
lord
is wrong, for example if he ordered a massacre of civilians,
should he observe Loyalty to massacre as ordered or should
he observe Rectitude to let civilians escape unharmed?
If a man
had sick parents but committed an unforgivable mistake, should
he protect his Honor by committing Seppuku or should he show
Courage by living with dishonor and care for his parents?
The
incident of 47 Ronin caused debates about the righteousness
of their actions and how bushido should be applied. They
had defied shogun in ways by taking matters into their
own hands
but it was an act of Loyalty and Rectitude as well. Finally,
their acts were agreed to be Rectitude but not Loyalty
to the shogun. This made them criminals with conscience and
eligible
for seppuku.
The most famous book of kenjutsu, or sword fighting,
dates from this period (Miyamoto Musashi's The Book of
Five Rings,
1643).
However, the larger part of the book is focused on the
mentality of fighting. In an attempt to help develop the character
needed to cope with moral demands that the practice of
kenjutsu
required,
many kenjutsu books from the Edo period also focused on
spiritual issues.
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