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Many painless and time-saving methods of self-immolation will come in vogue, as its votaries are increasing with fearful rapidity throughout the world; but Professor Morselli will have to concede to seppuku an aristocratic position among them.
To be condemned to commit "seppuku" was a disgrace, but it was much less of a disgrace than to be beheaded as a common man, for it permitted the samurai to show of what stuff he was made.
Modern neurologists speak of the abdominal and pelvic brains, denoting thereby sympathetic nerve-centres in those parts which are strongly affected by any psychical action. This view of mental physiology once admitted, the syllogism of seppuku is easy to construct. "I will open the seat of my soul and show you how it fares with it. See for yourself whether it is polluted or clean."
Mitford, in his "Tales of Old Japan," after giving a translation of a treatise on seppuku from a rare Japanese manuscript, goes on to describe an instance of such an execution of which he was an eye-witness: It was an imposing scene. A large hall with a high roof supported by dark pillars of wood.
"The ancient tradition of seppuku," continued the Chinaman, "or hara-kiri, still rules, as you know, in the great families of Japan. There is a sacred ritual, and the samurai who dedicates himself to this honorable end, must follow strictly the ritual. As a physician, the exact nature of the ceremony might possibly interest you, Dr.
The acme of self-control is reached and best illustrated in the first of the two institutions which we shall now bring to view; namely, To begin with suicide, let me state that I confine my observations only to seppuku or kappuku, popularly known as hara-kiri which means self-immolation by disembowelment. "Ripping the abdomen? How absurd!" so cry those to whom the name is new.
"Did I miss something interesting?" he asked. "Oh, very," Lowiewski told him. "Your Junker friend thinks I should perform seppuku." Kato nodded quickly. "Excellent idea!" he congratulated von Heldenfeld. "If he does, he'll save everybody a lot of trouble. Himself included." He nodded again. "If he does that, we can protect his reputation, after he's dead."
Undoubtedly, therefore, in the minds of most Japanese, there are many instances of hara-kiri which should not be classed as suicide, but technically as execution of judicial sentence. And yet no sentence or process of death known in western lands had such influence in glorifying the victim, as had seppuku in Japan. The Family Idea.
"When they were all seated in a row for final despatch, Sakon turned to the youngest and said 'Go thou first, for I wish to be sure that thou doest it aright. Upon the little one's replying that, as he had never seen seppuku performed, he would like to see his brothers do it and then he could follow them, the older brothers smiled between their tears: 'Well said, little fellow!
If thy dagger feels anything within and thy strength fails, take courage and double thy effort to cut across. The child looked from one to the other, and when both had expired, he calmly half denuded himself and followed the example set him on either hand." The glorification of seppuku offered, naturally enough, no small temptation to its unwarranted committal.
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