sepukku

Is any diffrence between sepukku and hara-kiri ? i rememberd it is but i dont know for sure.

They are one and the same.

Seppukku is the Chinese word for self immolation. Hara Kiri is the correct pronunciation for the sacred act of dying to remove the stain of dishonour.

To quote from the Book: Bushido, The Soul of Japan which was written in the late 1800's Hara Kiri is the act upon which the samurai uses the wakizashi to cut below the adomen thrusting it sideways and then turning it upwards in a thrust. Complete composure was maintained whilst this was performed. Basically the philosophy is that The hara contained the spirit of the samurai and he opened it up to let people know how it faired with positioning of the burden of the dishonour. (IE: I am showing you my soul to see how it fairs)

He would usually have a person who, would usually be a relative or friend who would perform the task of Kaishaku, which would wait for the appropriate moment when the person committing Hara Kiri could no longer maintain he composure and swiftly behead him. To be kaishaku was an immense honour, but a great dishonour to both if the cut was not clean.

When visiting Himeji Jo there is a courtyard which explains that the daimyo would perform Hara Kiri there. It was quite distinct to me when a Japanese tourist asked me if I knew what it meant. I motioned with my hands what it meant, which I think astounded him because a westerner actually knew about it.



[This message has been edited by Yoritomo78 (edited 03-21-2002).]

Hara means roughly stomach or belly and
Kiri means cut....
In studying Iado I got to learn the kata for acting as second,,,it is quite hard as you are to cut the head but leave just the last bit of skin intact so that the head doesn't actually seperate from the body,,,wouldn't want your m8 to have his head roll down to the dirty ground or mess up his death poem!


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Watashiwa Yagyu Jubei desu! Ganbate!

I have always heard that "hara kiri" was less formal, and less proper, than "seppuku". The words are both made of the same two kanji characters for "belly" and "cut", but the order of the two characters is reversed in "seppuku".

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Asante sana
Squashed banana
Wewe nugu
Mimi apana

Quote Originally posted by Yoritomo78:
Seppukku is the Chinese word for self immolation.[/QUOTE]

I am assuming that you mean Japanese?

Hara Kiri belongs to the peasants... non formal.

The head slicing job belongs to the Kai Shaku..who if indeed was skilled would leave a bit of skin so his mates head would not go spinning into the air...but this was very rare...and only a few very skilled men could do this.

Read 'Hagakuri' (hope thats the right spelling) the book that has gained new fame with the movie 'Ghost Dog'...or read the 5 Rings...which is also a good insight into a warriors life.
both books are written by the real thing...a bible to those who wish to learn.

Quote Originally posted by Jaguara:
I am assuming that you mean Japanese?[/QUOTE]


Im fairly certain that it is Chinese and not Japanese, dont quote me as im not 100% certain..

Also in kendo, they tell you that you should use the force of the strike from your hara, not your shoulders as most westerners tend to do.

This enables the person striking to maintain kigurai and zanshin. To use the shoulders and miss the opponent is embarassing and costly.

If you were to read the characters that make up seppuku in Chinese, it would say QieFu. I believe that seppuku is the more formal term because it _derives_ from the Chinese. To say it IS the Chinese word doesn't work unless you're actually writing it in Chinese characters (as the sounds "seppuku" would mean nothing in Chinese).

Quote Originally posted by Yoritomo78:
Also in kendo, they tell you that you should use the force of the strike from your hara, not your shoulders as most westerners tend to do.

This enables the person striking to maintain kigurai and zanshin. To use the shoulders and miss the opponent is embarassing and costly. [/QUOTE]


It is always a pleasure to meet another 'Kendoka' in this small world.

That is very true, if one uses only the 'shoulders' to make a cut he/she will undoubtably fall forward if there is no contact. Given the fact that he/she will use all his/her might for that hit.
Ofcourse this could easily be caused by stepping over ones own trousers/skirt.

Domo,
A fellow Kendoka