Why Samurai Hardly Used the Katana

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*The content is based on personal studies and experience
There is no intention of denying other theories and cultural aspects

When you imagine a samurai fighting, wouldn’t he be using a katana? However in the past when they actually existed, it was a weapon that they actually hardly used.

During the war eras, the samurai would mainly fight with long range weapons like bows, guns, and spears (including naginata) which were most effective on the battlefield.

In iaido (the katana martial art), we are taught that “a battle with a katana is done within a tatami mat distance (182cm/71in).” So you can understand how close you have to be in order to attack your opponent with a katana, and it would be very strange/unusual to try to use a short range weapon on the battlefield.

Every samurai would carry a katana with them, but it was the last weapon they would use only in extremely close combat or for defensive reasons. In other words, if you are using a sword, it means that you are in a very desperate situation and have no other choice.

During the peaceful Edo period (1603-1868) with no wars, the samurai were always required to always have two katana (one long and one short) by law, as a symbol of their class authority.

However, they would hardly have any occasions to use them either, because if you didn’t have a good reason and an eye witness to prove its legitimacy, even just showing your blade in public could get you thrown in jail or sentenced to death. So the samurai were taught… “If you're not prepared to die, don't pull out your katana."

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