ARMENIAN WARRIORS, JAPANESE SAMURAI: MILITARY CODES OF HONOR
Armen Ayvazyan
Published: 18/07/2011
Posted in: ARMENIAN RESISTANCE, Analysis, Armenia @en, GEOGRAPHY
YEREVAN magazine, July-August, 2011 issue (14)
Based on his book The Code of Honor of the Armenian Military (4-5th
centuries)
Translated by Arsen Nazarian and Armen Ayvazyan
Armenian historiography contains considerable information about
ancient and medieval Armenian military ideology. In the works of fifth
century historians Pavstos Buzand and Movses Khorenatzi, the commands
and legacy of the Armenian sparapets (commanders in chief) to their
successors articulate in detail the obligations and responsibilities of
Armenian warriors. Their norms of conduct share striking similarities
with the system of values of the Japanese samurai codified during the
16th to 18th centuries, as well as with later medieval West European
chivalry of the eight to 14th centuries.
“Fight and offer your life for the Armenian World just as your
brave forefathers did, consciously sacrificing their lives for this
Homeland…”
According to Pavstos Buzand, this was the message of Sparapet Manuel
Mamikonian (d. 384) to his son Artashir at the time of passing on “his
rule and command of the Army” to him. This ideological commandment
has continued to be part and parcel of the professional value system
of the Armenian armed forces. During his lifelong military service,
Sparapet Manuel himself was led by this commandment. While he was
lying in bed in an incurable physical state surrounded by the king,
queen, noble men and women, Manuel undressed himself and showed
those in presence the numerous wounds that he had sustained during
the battles waged for the independence of Armenia.
“There was no unharmed space on his body which would match the size
of a coin. He had been wounded in battles and bore more than fifty
scars on his body, even on his masculine organ, which he also opened
and showed to all.”
Sacrificing one’s life for the sake of fatherland is exactly the
same ideology that historian Movses Khorenatsi preaches throughout
his History of Armenia in the following passage about the Armenian
King-warrior Aram:
“Being himself a worldly and patriotic man, this king preferred
to die for his fatherland rather than to see that the sons of the
foreigners encroach upon the borders of his fatherland and rule over
his own people.”
While codifying the personal virtues of sparapet Moushegh Mamikonian
(d. 376), Pavstos Buzand in History of Armenia actually presents a
list of the main commitments assumed by the Armenian warriors towards
the Armenian state and nation. Thus, here are the basic components
of the Code of Honor of the Armenian military during the fourth and
fifth centuries, according to the hierarchical order of priority laid
down by Buzand: Loyalty and selfless service to the Armenian Homeland
and Kingdom; unblemished preservation of a chivalrous reputation
and dignity, if necessary, at the cost of life; Loyalty and selfless
service to the Armenian King, i.e. the most important sociopolitical
institution of ancient Armenia’s state system; loyalty and selfless
service to all inhabitants of Armenia, irrespective of their social
origin or status; piety towards the Christian faith, the Armenian
(national) Church and clergymen and their selfless protection;
devotion to family; devotion to kinsmen/noble clan; and loyalty to
comrades-in-arms.
Some points are akin to the chivalric codes of the medieval European
knightood and the Samurai, Japanese professional warriors, valuing
honor and allegiant service to a suzerain above life.
In his renowned work Hagakure (literally, “Hidden in the Leaves”),
samurai Yamamoto Tsunetomo (d. 1719) describes the code of honor of the
Samurai, Bushido – “A warrior’s path”. He emphasizes the requirement
of disregarding death for a warrior.
“Bushido, the path of the warrior, means death. When you have only
two paths between which to choose, you must immediately choose the
path that leads to death. Don’t think anymore. Direct your thought on
the path to which you gave your preference and walk!” he writes. The
question arises unintentionally: ‘Why should I die if it has no use.
Why should I pay with my life for nothing?’ These are value judgments
of an egoistic man. When you have to make a choice, don’t allow the
thoughts about use or profit to sway your mind. Since all of us prefer
life to death, that preference in fact determines our choice. Think
about the indignity that might befall you when you, laboring for
profit, may suddenly fail. Think about the despicable fate of the
man who continues to live while he hasn’t yet achieved his goal.
The Samurai is obliged to give his soul and his body to his
prince/lord. He should, moreover, be wise, merciful and valiant. …
Remember! Death does not bring down your dignity. Death does not bring
you dishonor. … Your fulfillment of commitment must be thorough
and your reputation must be unblemished.
A samurai swore to perform the following four commandments: Not to
succumb to anything in fulfilling my commitment; to be of service to
his lord; to be respectful towards his parents; and to be merciful
and compassionate.”
The resemblance of the codes of honor of the Armenian warrior of the
Arshakuni era and of the Japanese Samurai, which places honor, dignity
and dedicated service to one’s lord (suzerain, “master”) above life,
is striking. In this connection, Pavstos Buzand provides us with a
number of cases which speak for themselves. One of them concerns an
episode in Persia.
“It so happened in one of those days that the Armenian king Arshak
entered one of the stalls of the Persian king. The Riding-master
of the Persian king was sitting inside. When he saw the king, he
uttered no words of welcome, nor paid any attention to him. He even
began to deride and insult, telling him: “King of Armenian goats,
come and sit on this heap of grass.”
At hearing these words, Vasak, the general and Commander in Chief
of the Army of Great Armenia, from Mamikonian dynasty, who was
accompanying the king, became enraged. Fuming, he drew his sword
which hang from his back and struck at the Riding-master of the king
of Persia and decapitated him at once, because he could not endure
the impudence shown to his king. He preferred death many times as
much to witnessing any insult or indignity to his lord.”
The calls of the Japanese Samurai author of the Hagakure not to fear
death and to strive for an unblemished reputation are uttered almost
in the same manner by Armenian Sparapet Manuel in his above cited
message-commandment:
And he commanded him to be loyal and dedicated to King Arshak, to
be honest, diligent and hard working. “Fight and offer your life
for the Homeland of Armenia just as your brave forefathers did by
sacrificing their lives consciously for this Homeland. Because, he
said, that would be a much more decent deed and one pleasing God and
that if you behave like that you will not be forgotten by the Almighty.
Strive to have the reputation of a valiant man in this world and
do justice for the sake of heaven. And do not fear death, but pin
your hopes on the one who has created and founded everything. Throw
everything corrupt, unethical and evil out of yourself and worship
the Lord with clean heart and faithfulness. Die courageously for the
sake of the God-fearing (Armenian) Homeland, because then you will
have died for God, for his churches, for his covenant and for the
inborn lords of this Homeland, the Arshakunis.”
This passage clearly demonstrates how skillfully the Armenian
commanders of the fourth and fifth centuries made use of the Christian
faith as a resistance-inspiring ideology in almost unremitting wars
waged for the independence of Armenia. “To die for Armenia is to
die for God”, preached the Commander in Chief Manuel Sparapet and,
of course, other Armenian commanders of the fourth century. (“Die
courageously for the sake of the God-fearing (Armenian) Homeland,
because then you will have died for God”). By this, they brought
harmony and congruity between the code of honor of the Armenian
soldier, which had already been formed since very old times and
sanctified during numerous battles (especially the ideological
standpoint to offer one’s life for the sake of the fatherland), on
the one hand and the relatively new Christian faith and religious
sentiments, on the other. Exactly with this same belief, that dying
for fatherland is a God-loving deed, the Christian-Armenian warrior
continued to fight during all the coming centuries.
A striking resemblance with the Samurai code of honor offers
another decree of Commander in Chief Manuel. He told his warriors to
“be honest, diligent and hard-working,” which matches the similar
postulates of Hagakure:
“A soldier should ceaselessly train himself and should never think
about rest. There is no end to training yourself. It may happen that
you come to a point where you get the feeling that you have reached
the point of perfection and you stop doing that with which you busied
yourself so far. Whereas, one who wants to be perfect should always
remember that he is still far from that point. Be honest and truth
loving in your soldierly service. Dishonest people can never serve
arms honestly.”
However, there are significant differences in the priority of
obligations of the Armenian honor code, and the Western European and
Japanese codes, as it is evident from the hierarchy of commitments
of the Armenian warrior of the fourth and fifth centuries presented
above. The Armenian commander’s topmost personal attachment
unequivocally went to the country, kingdom, and land of Armenia
and commitment to the entire people of Armenia irrespective of their
social origin and status – standing higher than the pledges to the own
noble family and house and even the piety to the Christian religion
and church.
Certainly, this is a stunning ranking for the ancient-early medieval
times. Perhaps, this was partly due to the very early formation of
the concept of fatherland and nation-state embedded in the Armenian
people long before the adoption of Christianity. As early as the 4-5th
centuries, the idea of fatherland was expressed by various terms, such
as “Hayotz ashkharh, Yerkir, Tagavorutiun” (the Armenian “world,”
country, kingdom). In addition to these terms, Movses Khorenatsi
directly uses the terms “hayrenik” (fatherland) and “hayrenaser”
(patriot).
Epilogue
In this historical context the Armenian military’s code of honor had a
solid and lasting impact upon the national character and worldview of
the Armenian people – just as the Bushido had on the Japanese people.
Both Armenian and Japanese collective psyches would remain largely
impenetrable, if examined without considering their ancestral warrior
ethics. This challenge has been profoundly recognized by perceptive
students of Japanese culture. As Thomas Cleary, a Buddhist scholar
and translator of many classics of Asian military theory, notes,
“Even in the social and cultural spheres, Japan today still retains
indelible impressions of the Samurai Bushido. This is true not only in
education and the fine arts, but also in characteristic attitudes and
conduct marking the course of political, professional, and personal
relations.” If observed, however, from a similar angle, Armenian
culture – including literature, music, national epic, folklore – would
reveal a thorough infusion of martial traditions that originally,
and powerfully, stem from the ancient Armenian warrior class.
From: A. Papazian
http://www.ardarutyun.org/?p=4433&lang=en