Bushido

Customs

Samurai Customs

Bushido Code of the New Empire Bushido, the warrior code, is that which separates the Samurai from the lower castes through a concept of honor. The code

includes complete loyalty to their shogun or daimyo, honesty, courage, politeness and self-control. To the dedicated

samurai, an individual's honor is as important as personal wealth, glory or well-being.

Gojo (the 5 virtues of the samurai)

1. Sincerity & Honor • Always remember and repay one's giri (duty, obligation or debt of gratitude — especially to one's lord). • The purest expression of one's gratitude is to die for one's lord (daimyo). • The samurai has but "one word." Once he has pledged his word he is bound by it, and nothing can dissuade him from fulfilling the duty he has undertaken. • Any obligation undertaken by a samurai requires a willingness to undergo any sacrifice in order to repay a kindness, or honor a commitment. • Always maintain one's principles.

2. Wisdom • Use "common sense" in all aspects of life. • Beware of magic and the supernatural. Know it in its many guises. • Beware technology. Avoid it and admonish it. • You die in vain if you do not accomplish what you set out to do. • You live as a coward if you forsake your objective and continue to live. • To miss an objective and choose death (dies trying or commits seppuku/ritual suicide) —

3. Propriety • Devotion to duty above all else. • Exhibit self-control in all things. • Avoid bringing disgrace to one's lord (daimyo). • Avoid bringing disgrace upon oneself — observe courtesy and etiquette. • Observe all due proprieties in one's dealings with others. • Put oneself above material reward, especially money; remain true to oneself and one's lord. • Avoid foul language, especially in front of women, children and nobility. • Keep to tradition — avoid using the technology that once destroyed Japan. • Show respect to authority, especially one's lord and the Emperor. • Fight with honor. • Avenge the wronged.

4. Benevolence • Show kindness. It should not be difficult to show some measure of kindness, especially to the less fortunate, innocent, or downtrodden. • Avoid thoughtless cruelty even to those without honor or courage lest you become like them. • Avoid torture, especially as an act of revenge. • Administer swift justice. • Administer swift and gentle mercy. • Protect the innocent.

5. Courage • Cultivate a fearless spirit to better serve one's master and oneself. • Death is inevitable, meet it as a warrior. • Recognize the face of one's fears, learn to look it squarely in the eyes, and meet it head on. • Defend one's master/daimyo/shogun and all that is his. • Defend the weak or innocent if orders allow.

Gorin (the 5 relationships of the samurai) The samurai's loyalty and commitment is listed in order of importance:

1. Samurai to Lord: Absolute loyalty to daimyo and emperor, even above the tenants of Bushido. 2. Father & son/teacher & pupil 3. Husband & wife 4. Senpai's: juniors & seniors 5. Friends—peers & equals

Note: Despite the Samurai's allegiance to the shogun or daimyo, the warrior could challenge and fight the shogun or daimyo

to replace him, without breaking the code of Bushido. Such challenges could occur as the result of a terrible injustice,

tyranny and/or cruelty. In the past, this would involve war between entire samurai armies or clans. The losing side would

have to swear allegiance to the new shogun or be slain. In history, the leaders (and sometimes entire armies) weren't given

a choice and were beheaded. Ceremonial suicide was an acceptable way of saving face and honor, but one could not kill himself if he owed any debts,

until they were repaid.

Caste System

The New Empire operates as a benevolent military dictatorship similar to the ways of old feudal Japan. It is a pyramid power structure with the we'althy and educated landowners and military at the top and the average citizen at the bottom.

Society in the New Empire is structured around the tenants of the feudal system. This dictates the rights of individuals and their status through the institution of several social classes. Equality between the classes does not exist, but the members of all groups have accepted their roles in the firmly entrenched socioeconomic system. Duty and responsibility is the cement which binds the classes together. Individuals are less self-serving and more community oriented, accepting their role and fulfilling it to the best of their ability. Revolution is virtually unheard of in the New Empire due to this highly developed sense of duty.

The Emperor is the religious and political leader of the Empire. This is no figurehead. The royal family from which the Emperor (usually male, but can be female) is born is said to have been selected by the sun godess and possesses some aspect of true divinity. Indeed, the line of Emperors that have thus far arisen have been wise, merciful and strong leaders. They are fervent Shinto followers and ardent anti-technologists — raised and taught by the greatest Shinto priests in the land. According to legend, the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu, appeared to the humans at Kyoto after a victorious fight against oni hordes. Clinging to her gown was an eight year old boy. The child, Toyo Tennu, an indirect descendant of the Imperial line, was named Emperor by the goddess. She charged those present to protect the boy and to "forge a New Empire" from the ashes of the old. It was on that day that the dream of a "New Empire" was born.

The Imperial Court & Royal Family have the ear of the Emperor, but are mainly positions of prestige with no or little actual power. This group includes family members and counselors such as respected priests, monks, aging samurai warriors, powerful landowners, philosophers, doctors, and other people of experience, learning and wisdom.

The Shogun is the Minister of War and the primary military power of the New Empire. In the past, the shogun was the real power in Japan, but in the Empire, he accepts the Emperor as his master and is satisfied with his position as Second in Command. It is the Shogun who coordinates the nation's defenses and directs any offensives with the national army into The Zone. Military expeditions into The Zone (and the Freelands) usually have to do with border skirmishes, reclaiming territory seized by the oni, or the rescue of captives taken by the demons.

The Daimyo (pronounced dime-yo) are the lords or governors of the Province. The New Empire is divided into eight provinces, each with a capital city and an army of samurai loyal to the daimyo and the Emperor. The daimyo are also wealthy, samurai land barons who serve as military generals. They accept the Emperor as the heart and soul of Japan and defer to his wishes, which are usually fair and rarely interfere with their local policies and conduct. The daimyo and the shogun are second in power only to the Emperor.

The samurai are elite warriors, landowners and administrators, loyal to a specific daimyo master and province, and the New Empire in general. Most are noble, honorable, and heroic knights of the realm dedicated to keeping the New Empire safe. Each samurai is granted a portion of farmland and indentured peasants by his daimyo, in order to support himself. These holdings are fixed by family lines, such that a samurai's children inherits the noble class, land and obligation to the daimyo. The daimyo has complete control over his vassals, so much that if a samurai should fail in his duties, even once, he must make restitution or his daimyo has the right to demand "honor be met," meaning the samurai is obligated to commit ritual suicide. Loyalty and obedience to one's lord is extremely important in this military society.

At the base of this pyramid structured caste system are the multitude of peasants (uneducated laborers and farmers) and the lowly eta. It is interesting to note that in the structure of the New Empire, there is nothing dishonorable about being a peasant and indeed, the peasant farmers, workers and craftsmen represent the life's blood of the kingdom. They work the land, farm, harvest and process crops, raise animals, weave and fashion clothing, and serve as carpenters, builders, kabuki entertainers, and craftsmen of all kind. They work the lands owned by the samurai and their daimyo, and live in homes owned by their landlords. They cannot own their own land, cannot bear arms (other than farm tools and staves), and are uneducated; they may have certain trade skills, but no formal education. It is the members of the samurai family clans who become the doctors, scientists, scholars, architects, engineers, artists, owners of business, and politicians of the realm. The only way for a peasant to get a better education and pursue a different type of work is to become a monk, priest, or kabuki entertainer; or to leave the New Empire to become a mercenary or adventurer. Most peasants are happy and treated reasonably well, although their living conditions, welfare and the respect they receive is largely dependent upon the landowner(s) they serve. Some daimyo and samurai landowners work the people like animals, with little rewards for their labor or loyalty. Others treat them with great kindness and generosity. Fortunately for the peasant population, most daimyo and samurai take their cue for behavior from the Emperor, nobility and priests at Kyoto, who show respect, honor and mercy to even the lowliest peasant. Currently throughout the New Empire, most administrators and lords treat their people well, and the samurai truly fight to keep them safe and free from inhuman tyranny. This is due, in part, to the strong leadership of the Emperor and the genuine presence of the gods, spirits and the Tree of Life.

The eta are a different story. They are the lowest of the low and fall below peasant or even the detestable ronin. They are people who do labor that even the peasants find disgusting or beneath them. All the distasteful tasks in the New Empire are left to eta. These include the handling of the dead, digging graves, waste disposal, butchering and preparing animal meat as food, tanning, leather-working and making clothing out of animal skins, and similar. For example, a samurai can seize an eta's property, ransack their home, use torture for interrogation, rape their women, beat and even kill eta without evidence of wrongdoing and without fear of legal or social repercussions — of course the eta may extract their own revenge by stealing from their cruel masters, vandalizing property, cooperating with enemies and even engage in murder. It is among the eta that one is most likely to find thieves, bandits, assassins, ninja, witches, evil sorcerers, and other criminals. Sadly, many people point to this foul behavior as evidence of the eta's sub-human and vile nature, without realizing that it is the coldhearted abuses and degradation delivered from their hands to the eta that fill them with hate and vile, and make them desperate misanthropes.

Merchants are part of the peasant class, as the act of making and selling goods and handling money is not considered a noble pursuit worthy of a warrior. However, a samurai may own a business, he's just not active in it. Subordinate to the samurai, these merchants still have a fair degree of unofficial freedom and privilege. Merchants can, within the framework of the law, own property (but not land), travel freely throughout the Empire and engage in enterprises and the pursuit of trade and profit. Additionally, the merchant is able to deal with members of the samurai class on a fairly equal level. Politeness and respect are obvious requirements, but the merchant has the right to bargain and safeguard their own best interests. 65% of all merchants operate a business owned by a samurai family clan, but a full 35% are privately owned companies.

Ninja are peasant elite mercenaries who operate from secret family clans. Masters of disguise, they sometimes pretend to be monks, priests, and samurai.

Doctors are one of the few groups outside the caste system. Although the majority (60%) are of noble lineage, many are from peasant stock. However, healers are both respected and appreciated, and free to walk among eta and samurai without regard to class or character.

Monks and priests enjoy a similar status, although they are generally considered to be of peasant stock and only a notch above them. Despite this, priests and monks are often counsels to royal families, daimyo, and samurai, as well as warriors of renown. There is no class requirement for becoming a monk and anyone from the lowly eta to the powerful samurai can join the monastic orders. Serving as the spiritual caretakers of the people, the monks tend to the many shrines and temples in the Empire. Others wander the countryside teaching and lending a helping hand. Monks are held in the highest regard and are protected by the samurai. These individuals are subject to the same punishments for criminal activity, though all but the most severe crimes are usually ignored. Should a monk ever be attacked or harmed, retribution will be both swift and severe.