Personal Narrative Essay

In source 4 it says, “A boy in a samurai family was given his first sword when he was born. It was not real, but a symbol of the life he was going to lead” (Source 4). This means that since birth people already started to expect big things from them. Which meant a lot of pressure on them as they grew up. By the age of 13 they knew how to read, write and knew about physical training, poetry, and spiritual discipline since a young age. At the age of 7 they learned kendo, moral code of a samurai, and Zen Buddhism. “At age 13, the young samurai was given a training sword, armor, and a warrior name. They learned how to fight well with a blade and how to fire arrows on horseback with accuracy” (Source 4), source 4 said. Learning how to aim with a blade on a horse would help them in the future during battle. Most samurais has had this training and has started at a young

The Samurai warriors wielded a large variety of weapons but they became famous for their symbol, the katana (samurai sword). From birth, the Samurai were to undergo brutal training to ensure their success as warriors. They could be tested by running barefoot in the snow, enduring a freezing cold waterfall, or fasting for days on end. However, many of these early Japanese-made weapons were not practical; they were used for religious ceremonies and rituals, indicating a relatively peaceful island nation during its early years. Japan’s most famous weapon needs little introduction.. Strong enough to be used defensively but sharp enough to cut through limbs, the katana earned the reputation as the soul of the samurai – a reputation that lasted long after the samurai abandoned the sword for the pen. After destroying the forces responsible for Nobunaga's death, Hideyoshi was rewarded with a joint guardianship of Nobunaga's heir, who was a minor. By 1584 Hideyoshi had eliminated the three other guardians, taken complete control of Kyoto, and become the undisputed successor of his late overlord.. In 1590, with an army of 200,000 troops,

During this time, there was a 250 year stretch of peace and prosperity in Japan, and for the first time the samurai’s took on the responsibility of administrating through diplomatic means rather than through army force. Samurai’s were told to train equally in arms and “polite” learning in accordance to Confucianism principle. The traditional faith, along with its emphasis on loyalty and duty, exceed Buddhism during the Tokugawa period as the assertive religion to the samurai. During this period, the principles of bushido started to emerge as a general code for the general Japanese public. Bushido varied due to the influences of Buddhist and Confucian thought, its warrior spirit remained continuous, including the emphasis on military skills and fearlessness in the face of their enemies.

Every Tuesday and Friday at around 8:15 pm a ritual occurs in small town Montana. A tradition made popular in America in the 1940 and WWII era, but has been around for hundreds of years.It involves anywhere between 3 and 30 people, ages 9 and up, standing in a line shoulder to shoulder and staring straight ahead at what to an untrained eye seems to be nothing but, in fact is everything. These people , myself amongst them, have just finished a training session in Shotokan karate and are waiting to be excused from the class, but before they leave the man in front, the Sensei, shouts “Dojo Kodo!” Code of the Dojo. There are 5 principles to this code, These principles are my responsibility to myself, my companions, my state, and my country.

“As a dedicated student of the martial arts I live by the code of the black belt: modesty, courtesy, integrity, self-control and perseverance, SIR!” For eight years I had to follow this creed thoroughly and whole-heartedly. When karate was first mentioned in my household, I was narrow-minded and pessimistic. The use of self-defense and fighting seemed irrelevant to my naive and youthful life. However even after what seemed to be a lifetime of complaints and arguments, my pressing parents held their ground and I was forced to start my long and rewarding journey of becoming a black belt.

This article will demonstrate the extent to which the martial arts were used to instill

The Samurai's prided themselves on following a strict system of loyalty and honor known as Bushido or “The Way of the Warrior” (von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow 388). A samurai was expected to be an expert with swords and writing brushes while remaining loyal to their daimyo to the point of death (von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow 388). Bushido provided a military and social code for samurais with the tradition of seppuku or hara-kiri a ritual suicide meant to disdain for their capture and showing honor and respects towards their opponents (von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow 388). In the 12th century Zen Buddhism reached Japan and spread with the daimyo samurai, who possessed the discipline to follow its doctrines (von Sivers, Desnoyers, and Stow

I had been in Karate for six years at Franz Karate, and was finally given the option to test in December, 2013, for the rank of Sho Dan, or first degree. There were eight of my fellow ryu, or family, testing alongside me, which was a relief. With this though, I knew I'd have to know ten different katas, or forms, all kicks, blocks, and punches, every defense, sparring training, and the will to do so. Testing itself would take place on the fifteenth and sixteenth of August, costing over three hundred dollars. That's not including any of the seventeen

Created through the warrior traditions of the Samurai during the Feudal Age, Japanese martial arts originated not as a sport, but as a defense for the kingdoms. Born out of a necessity to protect one’s country from assailants, the samurai were proficient in

In Japan’s Edo period was born a samurai who went to become the greatest swordsman of the period he was Miyomoto Musashi. A prodigious child, he trained himself at the art of sword fighting at an early age so much so that at the age of thirteen, he went on to win his first duel. Musashi spent the greater part of his life wandering through the countryside, challenging people to prove his outright capabilities and toughness. Overall, he won sixty duels in his life, some of which was against multiple enemies. He was the founder of the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-ryū or Niten-ryū style of swordsmanship and the author of ‘The Book of Five Rings’.

Throughout history, there have been famous groups of warriors who followed codes of conduct based on Confucianism and Confucius’s script, The Analects. The Samurai of Japan are the most famous warriors associated with Confucianism, specifically referring to a code called Bushido, and are noted for their display of chivalry to both friends and foes. Chivalry in Asia guides conduct as to inspire and enhance humanity’s development (Simpkins, Annellen and Alex). The ancient Hwa Rang Do warriors of Korea also borrowed ideas from Confucian doctrine. Hwa Rang Do later became known as Taekwondo, the most popular martial art in the world. Taekwondo’s moral culture is influenced by the moral culture of Confucian philosophy (Maguire). Modern Taekwondo is more than a skill/technique set; it is an art. Traditional martial arts, including Taekwondo, integrate the art as a lifestyle, rather than a sport/hobby.

When people continue to be pushed like this, they tend to stay in karate for long amounts of time compared to other activities because they always want to do better than the last time, and this translates to not only learning how to become the best that you can be, but teaching lower belts the best way, so that they might become better. I’m getting ahead of myself though, as all journeys have a beginning, and the beginning of any student’s journey is progressing from white belt.

The Samurai are some of the most feared warriors in the history of warfare. Masters of hand to hand combat, surprise and showing no fear of the enemy. The soul of the Samurai was his sword, it held the power and strength to cut men in half with a single blow. The Samurai/ Katana did not appear in the history books all at once. The sword took hundreds of years to perfect, and the smith months to make the perfect sword. The Katana became an art form and took a master smith years to learn the ways of the metals and steps to go into making the sword. The Samurai sword remains to this day the most developed and innovative weapon the world has ever seen. It is an icon in Japanese culture and also has become

My observations lead me to understand that martial arts are unique in the way that they dissolve pre-existing class structure within their own realm of practice. Lawyers, professors, cashiers, fighters, students, executives, etc (these are people I know and have discussed career and life outside of training with) enter a gym under the persona assigned to them by society but are stripped of this once training begins. I observe that within the martial arts community the social merit of ‘regular’ regular retract significantly

Disclaimer this is not the tale of the crazed “Lifetime” movie network teen, but it is the testimonial of a use to be chubby little girl with a mustache that has a passion for change. I didn’t come close to killing, but it felt like an easy option to retaliating against my bullies, instead I decided to become better, stronger, and enjoy the journey of self-discovery.