These fascinating facts illuminate the grisly ritualistic suicide practice of seppuku once carried out by Japan's elite samurai.
Samurai are among history’s most powerful and noble warriors. Living their lives by a code known as bushidō, loyalty and honor were core tenets of the samurai lifestyle. That sense of honor followed a samurai throughout his life — and even, in some instances, his death. When facing defeat, for example, a samurai might commit seppuku, also known as harakiri, a form of ritual suicide done by slitting one’s own belly horizontally with a blade.
Although the exact origins of this rather grisly act are unclear, seppuku likely originated in the late 12th century with one warrior by the name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Over the following centuries, seppuku started to evolve into something else, however. In the Warring States period, it allowed leaders to save the lives of their retainers. Then, during the more peaceful Edo period, it became a ritualized form of capital punishment — a way for a disgraced samurai to regain his honor.
Additional customs became attached to seppuku, including wearing a white kimono, writing a death poem, and the introduction of a “kaishakunin,” who would behead the condemned after disembowelment. Seppuku, conceptually, influenced the concept of honor in Japanese culture, but, at the same time, the changes in Japanese culture over the centuries influenced seppuku, as if the two existed in an evolving symbiotic relationship.
In this illustration, a warrior prepares himself to perform seppuku, 1850.Wikimedia Commons
In this colorized photo (possibly a reenactment), a warrior performs seppuku. 1890.Wikimedia Commons
Here a samurai is shown in the process of committing seppuku, his death poem at his feet.
Circa 1880.Getty Images
This photo shows a disassembled antique tanto and its smaller dagger counterpart. British Museum/Wikimedia Commons
The blade would be thrust into the left side of the belly and pulled to the right with a sharp upward cut at the end.
This image from a kabuki play depicts a warrior committing seppuku as armed soldiers pursue him. 1856.Wikimedia Commons
Around 1700, a helping-hand was incorporated with the addition of a kaishakunin or "second." This person's job was to use a sword to lop off the head of the samurai to deliver a quick death after the samurai had committed seppuku and returned his dagger to its sheath. Wikimedia Commons
The distraught face of the kaishakunin above possibly shows his embarrassment in his less than ideal performance. Library of Congress
Known as kanshi, this version would see the samurai commit the act and then quickly bandage the wound. He would later appear before his lord and state his grievances before removing the bandage to expose the mortal wound.
1895.Wikimedia Commons
The revenge of the 47 ronin took place in Japan at the start of the 18th century and recounts the most famous case involving the samurai code of honor, bushido.
The story tells of a group of samurai who were left leaderless — making them ronin — after their lord Asano Naganori was forced to commit seppuku for assaulting a court official.CPA Media Pte Ltd/Alamy Stock Photo
It's believed that he carried out the act after suffering huge financial losses as CEO of his company in 2001. Mario De Biassi/Wikimedia Commons
Appearing on the balcony of the building, Mishima delivered a speech to 2,000 soldiers who surrounded it. "Japan's present politics are full of corruption," he said, closing his speech with the war cry of the old Japanese armed forces: "Tenno Banzai" ("long live the emperor"). He then disappeared into the building and committed seppuku.Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images
One of these was writing his death poem, which was supposed to be eloquent and attest to their emotions, but not directly mention death.
In this illustration, General Akashi Gidayu prepares to commit seppuku after losing a battle for his master in 1582. His death poem is visible in the upper right corner. 1890. Wikimedia Commons
The participant would be properly groomed and bathed and dressed in white to symbolize purity.
1867.Wikimedia Commons
The Kobe Incident was a diplomatic crisis in 1868 between Imperial Japan and several Western powers, caused by a skirmish between Bizen soldiers and foreign sailors in Kobe. It led to the temporary occupation of Kobe by foreign forces and the execution of Japanese squad leader Taki Zenzaburo to resolve the incident.Universal Art Archive/Alamy Stock Photo
Even the way in which the sake was consumed was of the utmost importance. The sake would be consumed in two drinks of two sips each. One sip would show greed, and three or more would show hesitation. The total of four sips, or shi, would symbolize death. Wikimedia Commons
The Origins Of Seppuku
Despite being intrinsically linked to the samurai code, seppuku did not begin with the samurai — at least, so long as legend is to be believed. According to Nippon.com, the first instance of seppuku allegedly dates back to 988 C.E., when a bandit by the name of Hakamadare was said to have slashed open his stomach after being caught. However, there is no real evidence that Hakamadare actually did this, and since he was a thief and not a samurai, it would be somewhat untruthful to say his death marked the beginning of seppuku.
Rather, University of Tokyo professor Yamamoto Hirofumi suggests seppuku's true origins came about a century later, in 1189. Following the Genpei War — a final struggle in Japan between the Taira and Minamoto clans, ending with the Minamoto's establishment of the Kamakura shogunate — Minamoto no Yoshitsune was facing defeat, with no option to retreat. Not willing to surrender himself to the forces that overwhelmed him, Minamoto chose to take his own life, plunging a knife into his stomach and slicing it open. His death was seen as an honorable way to die, a death that wiped away the dishonor of defeat.
Dying in battle was courageous, but running away was seen as a coward's option. By taking one's own life, a samurai was making a final, painful choice about how he died. Seppuku embodied the bushidō code of honor, courage, and self-sacrifice, and this grisly practice continued to be seen in such a manner through the medieval era. However, during the Warring States period (1467 to 1568), it would change.
How Seppuku Changed During The Warring States Period
The Warring States period — or the Sengoku period — was a time in Japanese history plagued by almost continual civil wars throughout the 15th and 16th centuries. Feudal lords turned on each other and the emperor, each vying to control Japan. Vassals turned on their lords, hoping to come into power of their own. It was a time of political chaos and mass social unrest.
Wikimedia CommonsAn ukiyo-e print depicting a battle during the Warring States period.
Given the tumultuous nature of the times, the life of a samurai was a busy, violent one. But the samurai code had not changed, and an honorable death was still sought after. But something had changed. Seppuku was no longer just a means for a warrior to retain his honor in death; it started being seen as a way for a military leader to save the lives of his retainers.
One of the most famous examples of this sacrificial seppuku occurred in June 1582. Hashiba Hideyoshi's forces sieged the castle of Shimizu Muneharu, intentionally diverting a river to flood the castle. Muneharu, realizing defeat was imminent, struck a deal of sorts with Hideyoshi: if Muneharu would commit seppuku, no one else would be killed.
Muneharu boarded a small boat and sailed out of the flooded castle. There, in the middle of the water, he plunged a knife into his stomach, and his people were spared.
His sacrifice was seen as a noble one, and it was slowly adopted by other military leaders who would sacrifice their own lives to protect their people.
This turbulent, war-torn period eventually came to an end, however. Once the conflict was over, a period of peace was ushered in, and with it, a new evolution of seppuku.
Seppuku As Capital Punishment During The Edo Period
Until now, seppuku had been a voluntary act, an honorable way out for samurai in dire situations. However, now that Japan's constant infighting had come to an end, the role of samurai in society began to change as well. Rather than serving as a military force, samurai instead took roles as civil servants, teachers, clerks, and bureaucrats in the Tokugawa shogunate.
But they were still bound by a code, and with that came certain expectations of how they should behave. As such, there needed to be punishment for any samurai who broke his code — and seppuku was as fitting a punishment as any.
Wikimedia CommonsAn ukiyo-e print of Osaka's shipping industry during the Edo period.
The biggest change during the Edo period, however, was that seppuku was no longer a voluntary act. It was a forced form of execution, ordered by the shogunate for any samurai who violated laws or feudal codes. Dishonorable acts or offenses brought shame not just on the samurai who committed them, but also upon his lord. Seppuku, as always, was seen as a way for the samurai to restore his honor.
During this period, other elements of the ritual evolved, too. Someone forced to commit seppuku would do so publicly, dressed in a white kimono. They were to face their death with dignity and stoicism in hopes of restoring their honor, and once the deed was done, a kaishakunin would step forward and behead the newly atoned samurai — though, notably, they would not remove the head completely.
Seppuku was essentially the most extreme example of a devotion to the bushiō code, a representation of the strict ideals of feudal Japan. But that feudal structure ultimately came to an end in the mid-19th century, when Japan signed numerous commercial agreements with Western countries. It was a controversial decision, but it also empowered those in Japan who opposed the power of the shogunate and wanted to restore the power of the emperor. Eventually, the combined efforts of the Choshu and Satsuma clans toppled the Tokugawa Shogunate and brought about the Meiji restoration in 1868.
Seppuku In Post-Feudal Japan
Three years later, feudalism in Japan officially came to an end — and with it, the reign of the samurai. That said, bushidō did not disappear entirely. It became the ruling moral code of Japan, which is why, during World War II, Japanese soldiers equipped themselves with samurai swords to make suicidal "banzai" attacks.
In fact, TIME, in July 1945, shared the account of a soldier who witnessed the deaths of Japanese generals Mitsuru Ushijima and Isamu Cho — brutal deaths that harkened back to the age of the samurai:
"Ushijima's aide stepped forward, bowed, handed each General a gleaming knife. The knives had been half covered with white cloth, so that the aide did not touch the sacred metal.
The Generals opened their blouses, unbuckled their belts. Ushijima leaned forward and with both hands pressed the blade against his belly. One of his adjutants did not wait for the knife to plunge deep. With his razor-sharp saber he lopped off his superior's head. General Cho leaned forward against his blade. The adjutant swung again. Orderlies took the bodies away.
General Cho had left his own epitaph: 'Twenty-second day, sixth month, 20th year of Showa era. I depart without regret, fear, shame or obligation. Age on departure 51 years.'"
Although the men had not been samurai, they still sought an honorable death through seppuku. While the act is unlikely to be used in the modern age, the fact that it lasted well into the 20th century is, if nothing else, remarkable. Seppuku, though it might seem gruesome to Westerners, represented the deeply ingrained cultural ideals of feudal Japan that altered the course of the nation's history.
After learning about seppuku, check out more of Japan's Imperial era and be sure and dive deeper into the lost ways of the last samurai.
