Historical Homosexuality: The Real Way of the Samurai
Friday 16th May 2008
The word Samurai invokes an image of powerful stoic warriors, living and dying by a code of honour and duty.
"Samurai kisses male actor" by Miyagawa Isshô. A samurai kisses his young male lover in this 18th century silk scroll.
The Samurai are one of the classic iconic groups for many men, inspiring an ideal of masculinity across generations as they are mythologized in literature and film.
So it may come as a surprise to some that these fearsome warriors also had a long and proud tradition of institutionalized homosexuality.
Much like the men of Ancient Greece, the samurai class were very respectful of the bond, both emotional and sexual, created between an older warrior and a young apprentice. Though the practice has been covered up in modern times, it was said that it was once so common that a daimyo, or lord, would have faced queries if he did not engage in the practice.
The sexual and emotional relationship between warriors and apprentices went by many names: nanshuko, or “the love of the samurai”, and bi-do, “the beautiful way”. It’s perhaps most commonly known as wakashudo, “the way of the youth”.
The practice first became particularly common around 1200 CE during the Kamakura period. It continued until Japan was unified and the samurai class’ importance decreased in the 17th century. Of course male sexual relationships were well-known before and after that period, but they were never quite as common or officially sanctioned as they were during the samurai’s golden years.
Wakashudo was practiced by nearly every member of the warrior class. From the simple warrior to the highest lord, almost everyone partook in the practice. Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the three mighty shoguns who unified the nation of Japan, all had male apprentice lovers.
The practice was similar in most ways to pederasty in Ancient Greece. The older man would take the youth as his lover and student, educating him in the ways of war and the world. As the young man aged, it was generally expected that the sexual relationship would end and transform into a friendship of equals. Such sexual relationships were not seen as defining a man’s sexuality. Most samurai married and had female sexual relationships as well.
Like the Greeks, the Japanese saw the love of a mentor and his young apprentice as a path towards the ideals they held in high esteem. Unlike the Greeks, however, it was the youth who was expected to initiate the relationship.
Some guidelines to the practice were laid down in samurai manuals. Yamamoto Tsunetomo’s famous manual Hagakure stated: “A young man should test an older man for at least five years, and if he is assured of that person’s intentions, then he too should request the relationship… If the younger man can devote himself and get into the situation for five or six years then it will not be unsuitable.”
The relationship would last until a coming of age ceremony around the age of 18, at which point the youth would officially become an adult.
The practice began to decline in earnest with the arrival of Westerners in Japan. As missionaries first began to trickle into the country, they brought with them their own anti-homosexual morality. Even then they had little effect on the practice until the 19th century. It was then that Japan was forced to open its borders to westerners under threat from American armed forces.
As the Western world flooded in to the country in previously unthinkable numbers, their mindset also began to be more common in Japan. By the first quarter of the 20th century the practice had been demonized and was almost completely unheard of within the country.
Check out Pinke's other articles on historical homosexuality:
Lesbians in Ancient History
Gay Men in Ancient Greece
"Samurai kisses male actor" by Miyagawa Isshô. A samurai kisses his young male lover in this 18th century silk scroll.
The Samurai are one of the classic iconic groups for many men, inspiring an ideal of masculinity across generations as they are mythologized in literature and film.
So it may come as a surprise to some that these fearsome warriors also had a long and proud tradition of institutionalized homosexuality.
Much like the men of Ancient Greece, the samurai class were very respectful of the bond, both emotional and sexual, created between an older warrior and a young apprentice. Though the practice has been covered up in modern times, it was said that it was once so common that a daimyo, or lord, would have faced queries if he did not engage in the practice.
The sexual and emotional relationship between warriors and apprentices went by many names: nanshuko, or “the love of the samurai”, and bi-do, “the beautiful way”. It’s perhaps most commonly known as wakashudo, “the way of the youth”.
The practice first became particularly common around 1200 CE during the Kamakura period. It continued until Japan was unified and the samurai class’ importance decreased in the 17th century. Of course male sexual relationships were well-known before and after that period, but they were never quite as common or officially sanctioned as they were during the samurai’s golden years.
Wakashudo was practiced by nearly every member of the warrior class. From the simple warrior to the highest lord, almost everyone partook in the practice. Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the three mighty shoguns who unified the nation of Japan, all had male apprentice lovers.
The practice was similar in most ways to pederasty in Ancient Greece. The older man would take the youth as his lover and student, educating him in the ways of war and the world. As the young man aged, it was generally expected that the sexual relationship would end and transform into a friendship of equals. Such sexual relationships were not seen as defining a man’s sexuality. Most samurai married and had female sexual relationships as well.
Like the Greeks, the Japanese saw the love of a mentor and his young apprentice as a path towards the ideals they held in high esteem. Unlike the Greeks, however, it was the youth who was expected to initiate the relationship.
Some guidelines to the practice were laid down in samurai manuals. Yamamoto Tsunetomo’s famous manual Hagakure stated: “A young man should test an older man for at least five years, and if he is assured of that person’s intentions, then he too should request the relationship… If the younger man can devote himself and get into the situation for five or six years then it will not be unsuitable.”
The relationship would last until a coming of age ceremony around the age of 18, at which point the youth would officially become an adult.
The practice began to decline in earnest with the arrival of Westerners in Japan. As missionaries first began to trickle into the country, they brought with them their own anti-homosexual morality. Even then they had little effect on the practice until the 19th century. It was then that Japan was forced to open its borders to westerners under threat from American armed forces.
As the Western world flooded in to the country in previously unthinkable numbers, their mindset also began to be more common in Japan. By the first quarter of the 20th century the practice had been demonized and was almost completely unheard of within the country.
Check out Pinke's other articles on historical homosexuality:
Lesbians in Ancient History
Gay Men in Ancient Greece
Your Comments
Adam Fox wrote (on the 16th May 2008)
I thought that was quite fascinating, just to know that homosexuality has been practised this long, but i'm also quite annoyed that it's been 'covered up' by modern society - if the truth is there, let it be known!Please register to post a comment.
