Astounding Facts About Samurai That Surprise You

Newslatestworld.com – The samurai are a caste of Japanese warriors often depicted as heroic knights. Even though samurai often appear in entertainment works with the theme of feudal Japan, many facts about samurai in the real world are rarely known by the common people. The following are some of them.

The Samurai Had the Habit of Carrying a Small Sack on His Back

If asked to describe the appearance of a samurai on the battlefield, then the layman will generally describe a figure wearing armor with a helmet that expands at the bottom.

Apart from the appearance above, the samurai also habitually carried special banners. The cloth is called horo and can reach almost 2 meters in length. The horo strangedidunia.com friend looks like a small sack because the inside of the horo is usually filled with light objects.

Although horo made the appearance of the samurai who wore it look clumsy and comical, horo had great benefits for the samurai who carried it.

The first function of horo is identification. Since horo was usually only used by the samurai class, one could tell whether the warrior was from the samurai class by looking at the hero he was carrying. If the samurai who carried Horo died, the enemy who wanted to bury him would treat his corpse with great care.

Another function of the horo is as a protector. Since the horo was mounted on the back and filled with light objects, it could help protect its owner when shot from behind.

Samurai Weapons Are Not Just Swords

When discussing samurai facts, people usually immediately imagine typical Japanese knights who only fight using swords. In fact, the sword is not the only weapon of the samurai.

Samurai is also known to use bows and arrows on the battlefield. With more than 2 meters long, the samurai or yumi bow became one of the largest bow individual weapons ever in history.

Compared to swords, the main advantage of bows is that they can injure their enemies from a safe distance. The range of a samurai bow is reported to be up to 400 meters. Samurai usually use his bow while riding a horse.

When rifles began to be widely used in Japan in the 15th century, the use of bows did not disappear. This is because rifles at that time had a long reload time and could not be used when it was raining.

Since the bow is a long-range weapon, it cannot be used at close range. In this close combat, the samurai will use his sword as a weapon.

Contrary to popular belief, the Japanese sword or katana is fragile. Although this weapon can be used to cut humans without problems, the katana is very easy to break if used to cut through hard armor.

The weakness of the sword was exposed when the Mongols invaded Japanese territory in the 13th century. When the Japanese troops tried to injure the Mongol warriors wearing armor, their swords turned out to be problematic or broken. Since then, Japanese sword craftsmen have started to make thicker and stronger swords.

Samurai Also Often Betrayed Their Masters

In samurai-themed films, the samurai is often depicted as someone very loyal to his master or employer. Samurai told stories that he would rather fight to the death than see his master die.

In fact, history shows that samurai who serve as employers themselves are not uncommon. Samurai did not hesitate to dump their masters when they felt the need.

The samurai and his masterwork through a reciprocal relationship. If the employer is willing to bear all the necessities of life for the samurai, then the samurai must use his fighting skills to protect his master.

If it turns out that the master is unable to meet the needs of the samurai, then the samurai does not hesitate to turn against his master. When rebelling, samurai will cooperate with fellow samurai with common interests.

Nitta Yoshisada is an example of a samurai who once faced his master. At first, Yoshisada acknowledged the Shogun of Kamakura as his master.

However, following the outbreak of war between Kamakura and Prince Morinaga, Yoshisada decided to ridicule Kamakura and returned to help Morinaga.

As a result of this betrayal, the Kamakura shogunate collapsed. After the fall of Kamakura, Yoshisada was rewarded with high office and allowed to govern several Japanese provinces.

Samurai Also Disguise and Use Secret Weapons

The Shakuhachi is a large Japanese flute. Japanese monks originally used this flute as a sound accompaniment and substitute for prayer readings.

During its development, the monks often paraded around playing their flutes while wearing hats that resembled bamboo baskets. The monk with the bamboo hat is known as the komuso.

Because the bamboo hat worn by the komuso covers almost the entire head, the komuso’s face becomes difficult to recognize. The samurai who saw this then got an idea.

While samurai are often portrayed as willing only to fight honorably on open battlefields, samurai were also willing to kill in secret. This tactic is usually used to quell rebellions, considering that rebels have a habit of blending in with society.

To be able to spy on his enemies, samurai would walk around disguised as komungo. When the samurai found the right moment to act, he would kill his target using a flute attached to a sharp object. The flute is also strong enough to be used as a punching weapon like a mace.

Samurai Prefer to Have Sex with Men Than Women

Samurai are always required to show their dignity and masculinity in public. Interestingly, Japanese feudal society also believed that samurai who spent too much time with women would lose their authority.

According to the belief at that time, samurai who had sex with women over time would weaken their souls and bodies. Friends of odddidunia.com if a samurai is caught kissing a woman in front of a crowd, the samurai will be labeled a coward by those who see him.

Even so, it doesn’t mean that samurai avoid women altogether. Samurai also married to maintain the continuity of their lineage. However, in order to maintain his authority, the samurai would not make out with his wife in front of other people.

If samurai who have too much sex with women are considered weak, then this is not the case if samurai have sex with men. According to the beliefs of the samurai, having sex with other men will increase their strength.

For this reason, samurai often had sexual relations with their shudo or students. Samurai taught self-defense techniques and samurai philosophy to their students. Instead, the disciple must obey his master’s samurai orders. Including an invitation to have sex.

Source :
https://listverse.com/2016/12/01/10-facts-about-samurai-that-movies-usually-leave-out/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yumi
https://www.japanesewiki.com/person/Yoshisada%20NITTA.html