Death Poems(Samurai wrote these before they died)

[Wolf Nightshade]

It was common in japan for warriors to write poems before death here are a few.
http://www.samurai-archives.com/deathq.html  

[Mangafairy]

I read the poems, some weren't bad, but I was looking on the list to the left about culture and wisdom, a good site try it people!  

[Shin2]

Wonderful poems  

[deathcomes_onsilentwings]

Strange poems, but good none the less.  

[TaeKyon]

Perhaps the best text on the Samurai's strange fascination w/ death is the Hakagura...which was I believe a manual of sorts for samurai behaviors. It's interesting really in only understanding how perverse the Bushido and the code of honor really were (something many tend to glorify as some chilvalrous code)...Really, the Samurai were totally emo.  

[Mangafairy]

TaeKyon

Perhaps the best text on the Samurai's strange fascination w/ death is the Hakagura...which was I believe a manual of sorts for samurai behaviors. It's interesting really in only understanding how perverse the Bushido and the code of honor really were (something many tend to glorify as some chilvalrous code)...Really, the Samurai were totally emo.

The book you are refering to is called the Hagakure, not Hakagura, it was written by Yamamoto. I have it at homw somewhere...probably in my cupboard. The manual by which samurai folowed was the Bubishi, often called the Samurai Bible.

I know a very good site with the Hagakure online, it has all of the stories within the book itself. It told real stories as examples of the samurai morals.

www.hagakure.go.ro

Have a look at the topics under seppuku TaeKyon, maybe you will learn the truth. Perhaps a more interesting example is that of the 47 Ronin, you can look them up on Wikipedia and it comes up with a great true story! Perhaps if you take the time you will find that what they did was called total dedication, that was why they were so revered and brilliant at fighting, they welcomed death and were not scared, that is why they fought so fiercely!  

[TaeKyon]

And why they raped pilaged and massacred chinese civilians young and old at Nanking among other war atrocities during WWII not to mention why they were so stubborn about surrender that they practically brought the destruction wrought by the Hydrogen bomb onto themselves. Total dedication is one thing but objectively you must admit that bushido was used as an excuse for quite its share of human atrocities (as w/ most idealogies really).

And my bad, thanks for the corrections on the title, Japanese history isn't my forte and I read it on a whim years ago.  

[Mangafairy]

TaeKyon

And why they raped pilaged and massacred chinese civilians young and old at Nanking among other war atrocities during WWII not to mention why they were so stubborn about surrender that they practically brought the destruction wrought by the Hydrogen bomb onto themselves. Total dedication is one thing but objectively you must admit that bushido was used as an excuse for quite its share of human atrocities (as w/ most idealogies really).

And my bad, thanks for the corrections on the title, Japanese history isn't my forte and I read it on a whim years ago.

Oh yes of course, the Japanese were absoloutely rutheless, even cruel, but so were many countries of the time, they just happened to have a very different history, but there are many underlying stories too, where because the enemy soldiers fought well and did not show fear and even attempted to escape they were treated with respect, and honour, however during the times they still had to kill them all the same. The government completely went 'overboard' as it were on the honour and respect thing, and used it to such an extent that they had suicide bombers! So yes, they could have surrendered but they didn't and they paid the price. Nice chating 2 ya... biggrin