How Did The Samurai Influence Japanese Culture

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The Bushi, who centuries later would be called the Samurai, first appeared around the Nara Era (710 – 794 A.D.). The Bushi which roughly translates to those who fight, were an aristocratic warrior class of feudal Japan who served and protected there master or emperor. Though not all actually fought, they were all well trained with the sword and bow, and some went on to be renowned for their artistic triumphs rather than militaristic wins. These warriors were loyal to their masters and fought for them fiercely. Another term given to the warrior class was ji-samurai, these warriors came only from powerful families. During the Asuka and Nara periods of Japanese history the imperial government organized an army called Gundan-Sei which was modeled after the Chinese system. During this period the Taiho code, written in 702 AD, required the population to report for a regular census, which gave Emperor Mommu knowledge as to how the population was distributed in the empire. After the census 1 in 3 to 4 males adult were drafted into the national military. The soldiers were required to furnish all of their own…show more content…
Some of these are the tea ceremony, poetry, monochrome ink painting, and rock gardens. Most of these practices were adapted from the Chinese. Most samurai, being from the aristocratic class, were very literate and skilled at math. All samurai lived by the tenets of bushido, which translates to the way of the warrior. The bushido code was a way of life and for one who practiced bushido the ultimate goal was to die a good death with one’s honor intact. The bushido code instructed followers in matters of grooming, raising children and appearance. There are seven virtues of the bushido code and they are: righteousness, loyalty, courage, honor, benevolence, sincerity, and respect. The samurai culture was influenced by the philosophies of Buddhism, Zen, Confucianism, and

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