Mediocre Samurai Describes Real Life in Historical Japan 

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Bro just casually explains how at 7 years old he lost a fight over some kites and decided he must commit ritual suicide on the spot

The dude managed to have kids and an active sex life after rolling off a cliff in his sleep and smashing his nuts so bad they got infected. He didn't even seek medical help for them out of sheer embarrassment. This dude has all his stats in luck

For those that don't know Katsu's background before he started his story. He's a LEGENDARY slacker. He was adopted into his family so his "sister" could marry him without giving up her independence. His "brother" Otani by the time he was 25 was a famous calligrapher and philosopher. His father was a shogunate official. Katsu more or less survived on NEET allowance (43 koku = 43 x $800) for his entire life as a death benefit from his adopted father. Katsu was so notoriously inept that he begged his son at FIFTEEN to take over the entire household because the family was falling apart and Otani couldn't handle it anymore. His son Rintaro would go on to become one of the best naval commanders in Japanese history, driven by his fear of turning into his father and the wise guidance of Otani making him so charismatic he talked the legendarily hardcore ronin rebel Sakamoto Ryoma into quitting his terror campaign and becoming his assistant.

The craziest part of this story is how he had a serious infected untreated testicular injury that lasted months or years, and he was still able to have children just fine. Man is strong.

This is so cool because it's actually the story of someone's life, open ends and unfinished business, plans that didn't work out, just a mess of ideas and experiences.

I am WHEEZING at that part where as kids his classmates tied him up and strung him above them to eat his lunchbox, so he PISSED ALL OVER THEM AND THE FOOD

Hey man not everyone can be a Miyamoto Musashi.

This is what real life feels like. There’s not always a solid beginning, middle and end. Just things happening, things being left undone or unsaid, and finally a bit of reflection and maybe even regret before death. We’re just so used to only “outstanding” people having their histories recorded for us, never the common guy.

His son, Rintaro, better known as Kaishū, would later go on to be the Shōgun's army minister and is considered to be the father of the Japanese Navy. He also negotiated the surrender of Edo castle and the safety of the last Shōgun Yoshinobu (Keiki). While he may have been mediocre, his son became a national hero. Good thing his testicular infection healed.

The story about the innkeeper helping him after his things are stolen is really wholesome, one man's kindness has survived hundreds of years.

It's interesting that the son of this samurai was Katsu Kaishu who was one of the foremost and most interesting figures in the Meiji restoration that brought Japan into the western 'modern' era. He helped save Tokyo from destruction in the civil war that ensued among many other accomplishments.

i bet he’d never imagine that people hundreds of years later would be watching a video about him. crazy how life and history works

No man is mediocre who, after a life filled with wretched failure and strife, comes to terms with his own foolishness and leaves a word to the wise for those who come after him.

This guy must have had a lot of charisma. For all his hardships, people seem to just want to be nice to him. It's amazing to hear about him being robbed and the kindness he received from strangers afterward. It's somehow comforting knowing that human nature has largely remained the same for so long.

“I got up my courage, and spend my whole day begging” I can only imagine what one must be going thru when they make this mental calculus. Yet I hardly ever consider the lives of the panhandlers on my daily commute. What adventures and misfortunes they must’ve endured up to the decision to start begging on the side of the highway

Plain journals like this from average cowboys and samurai are in my opinion the best way to look into history accurately. They don’t dwell on significant events like historians or record keepers do, and I think that makes their perspective less prone to corruption or censorship.

As another less than mediocre samurai, this related to me a lot.

Honestly I have to imagine this guy was pretty charismatic even if he is not emphasizing it much in his writing. There seems to be an implication that he charmed most people he met and was able to get by living a fairly idle life off of his personality alone

feel bad for the couple who briefly adopted him, probably have trouble conceiving their own children so they must've been heartbroken to see him just gone

"My body has no scars" BUT WHAT ABOUT YOUR BALLS

"Ever since my father died I've had no one to turn to"... I toally felt that part. Miss you pops.

As a 40 year old man, it felt good having a conversation with this man.

In the midst of “its so over”…he found, within himself, an indomitable “we’re so back”. Fantastic tale, thnx for the narration.

"you've got to admit, the friendship between beggers os something special"

Doesn’t sound mediocre at all. What an interesting, determined guy, and a good story teller.

If this man's life was deemed mediocre, I shudder to think of the lives many of us live today.

I’m gonna be 42 at the end of this year and I can say that this story has been just like my life until now. I’ve done every evil vice this world has to offer and it reduced me to a homeless wretch of a man but bit by bit I’ve clawed my way out of the life of destruction and now I want to live a life worth while and love my family and be the husband my fiancé deserves.

The fact he’s self aware enough to criticise his life actually makes him smarter than those others he’s referring to that went missing - who prob had no awareness

The pissing while hanging animation... Best RU-vid content I've seen in the past year. Your animators are true artists .👏

It's honestly sad that he lied to such kind benefactors. They would have supported him regardless given his circumstances

Away from big battles, important dates and superheroes, these are the stories that tell of real life, real people. Struggling with life, a difficult childhood and the harshness of society is of all ages. I take heart from the good people who help us on our way for goodness sake and the lessons we must learn. And how most of us mature and make amends with the mistakes we make. This is history at it’s best: this is about the lives we live.

The title alone is gold. Haven't yet watched the video. I'm already smiling.

Katsu Kokichi (勝 小吉, 1802 - 1850) was born Otani Kokichi in Edo. He was a low-ranking samurai who was adopted by the Katsu family in order to marry the only Katsu daughter, Nobuko. Kokichi's father, Otani Heizo, was a minor official in the shogunate.

This was a great video. It is important to have what could be considered "ordinary stories" from the past that still resonate with people today and this was definitely one of them.

Always nice to hear about gold folk like that older samurai and innkeeper. Kokichi sounds like a man who was very skilled at certain things(horseback riding, haggling), but not interested in trying very hard. It's nice he found an even-keel in the end.

It’s crazy to think that even across so much time, ppl really are just kinda the same still

Imagine going down in history as the ''Mediocre Samurai''

Best part about this story is how relevant different parts of it are, even if you aren't a 40 something year old mediocre samurai. A lot of it feels like things people today go through whether it's the acquiring and parting of treasured goods, getting your trust taken advantage of, having to grind for money, learning your place in your family, etc.

Humility & honesty in the end always makes for a worthwhile redemption. This was an important voice.

I love a flawed man's story. I always feel like I'm there when I can relate to them. Makes me feel like history isn't so far away.

I own a copy of this book, the one cited for the video. It is located///somewhere...on my history shelf. It's a fun and interesting story. Dude was a regular samurai living a regular life (more or less) in Edo-era Japan. Since he wrote his life story down as a sort of cautionary tale, we have a great look at Japan in the time right before the Bakamatsu Period and Meiji Restoration.

my brother would’ve been 35 today & he passed 14 years ago. idk why this feels so calming but i’m grateful. thank you

Dude sounds like he enjoyed life more and had more introspection than most people in the modern age.

Listening to people's thoughts from so long ago is to me why the writing word is a form of magic, while listening to these magical words I am transported back in time where I'm sitting across from someone who was alive hundreds of years ago and I absolutely love it.

This is beautiful. The self-awareness, honesty, and personal insight is art

"I lived a FULL life and i am ashamed of it..." *-proceeds to tell the most interesting adventure of a man's youth that could totally become a Ghibli film*

To historians its not the recounts of lords, ladies, and the powerful that bring the most clarity of what it was like to live in that time. It is often the commonfolk, the mediocre people who despite their status decided to record their stories.

Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent effort.

What a journey for a young man! For reference, the journey from Tokyo (edo) to Ise takes around 6 hours by car. I can’t imagine walking and riding that distance. I love this! A fascinating look at the life of more everyday flawed human. By the way, ganbaru has the stress on the first syllable with the “ba”being very short.

@VoicesofthePast Really can’t say enough how impressed I am by what you do! Having the insight to tell the untold stories, that give us a more grounded, every day perspective of people just like us, from times gone by. Brilliant and important work!

This diary is remarkable. I was shocked to see that this diary in the original reads like modern Japanese! He wrote in roughly the 1840s (He died around 1850 at slightly less than 50 years of age, so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised in a sense, given the recent period. Yet so many written works are written by elites, which are commonly written either in Sino-Japanese (Kanbun) or classical Japanese, so that may be part of the reason.) He also was active to some degree in mercantile activities, which were obviously "banned" for samurai but suggests such bans, by the late Edo period, were effectively meaningless, as increasingly indebted samurai became desperate. I taught in US universities earlier in my career, and I commonly had students read the translation in the J culture course. What an entertaining narrative! His son became the prominent Meiji figure Katsu Kaishu, but many Japanese unfortunately themselves have little idea about this fellow (father Kokichi), despite the existence of this diary.

this was so relaxing. the story was pretty all over the place, but such is life…and it also made the story less predictable. the visuals were great and the narration complemented the video well. love this period of history in Japan and this really was a great way to enjoy it. thanks!

I love how he doesn’t even mention courting his wife. The first we know of him having anything at all to do with women is when he refers to having a 5 year-old son. Romance wasn’t too high a priority in feudal Japan.

Watching this a few days ago when it came out - popped up in random recommendations - was enough to get me to plunk a few bucks down and buy this guy's book (Musui's Story: The Autobiography of a Tokugawa Samurai by Katsu Kokichi). At times I was wondering if some of this story could possibly be real, or if ol' Katsu was just BSing the reader... but I think it might be real. He had a lot of escapades and adventures, but he does put the bad in with the good. He doesn't just cover himself up in glory, or make himself into some forlorn antihero. It's pretty entertaining, and is a quick and easy read... it is history speaking with a modern, down-to-earth voice. For whatever it's worth, from some random guy on the internet, I recommend it!

He does not seem mediocre at all. Life full of adventure and discovery. More than many can claim

Well what a wild ride this was, thank you guys for narrating this interesting bio.

I started crying when I realized his chaotic behavior in his adulthood was an attempt to supress grief after his father's death.

Looking back on my life, this mediocre samurai's story resonates with me. Despite my many mistakes & questionabke ethics, I always ended up landing on my feet.

I thought the title was misspelled at first but then 2 minutes into listening and oh I see now.

He might've been a mediocre Samurai, but he led an extraordinary life.

With a bit of writing and editing, this is an academy award winning film.

This was an absolute delight to listen to the thoughts and reflection of a man of Japanese culture from two centuries ago.

What makes it even crazier is that this is all true, Everyone on here were real people.

I always wonder about the life of the average people throughout history. The idea that 99% of people slipped through the cracks and we will never see anything more than maybe their names in records is wild to me. An entire lifetime, maybe in simpler times, but still humans that had dreams, thoughts, beliefs and relationships with the people and world around them. This is such a cool look into the look of not an every day man in a Japanese shogunate, but still of a pretty mediocre guy overall. Love it!

"The friendship between beggars is something special."

This is so soothing, almost like an audiobook but with visuals. Subscribed :)

He was just born a few hundred years too soon. He would be right at home in the RU-vid comment section lol

I have this book on my shelf and have enjoyed reading it a few times over the years. Your presentation really brings these stories to life, thanks!

Such eloquent and extended personal words from the past strike so fiercely and poignantly. As good or better than the best books written. True treasures of humanity. Heartening that this chap realized his folly and amended his ways.

This was wonderful. In some ways, it's more interesting to learn about the more ordinary people than it is about the exalted, because they are more relatable. I loved the illustrations.

Fun fact. Everybody know the saying about revenge? The one that says to dig two graves? Well, its meaning changed over years and cultures, in fudal japan for example, it did not warn about the the consequences of revenge, only that you have to do it no matter the consequences. It meant pretty much "doesn't matter who ends up in the grave, it will either be your enemy, you if you fail, or both of you, but someone is going to end up dead." I always found that sort of dedication admiring.

He was so lucky being sorrounded by some very kind and understanding people.

These sound like the memoirs of an incredibly interesting and skilled man, but one who is depressed and has had a hard life. This is not a mediocre samurai. This is a man who did his best and he did well.

He might have been mediocre as a samurai, but he was not at all a mediocre man. Charismatic, persistent and incredibly courageous, he could have been a general had his life gone differently. His biggest issues were falling into self gratification, but that can easily be explained by having incredibly low spirits due to not being wanted whenever he actually tried to apply himself and being subjected to injustices consistently as a child.

"So I pissed on their heads" Logical reaction right there, what a chad

2:05 i am sure they didn't had therapy sponsors in in 1567 💀

Just s little correction... Judo was systematized in 1882 by master Jigoro Kano. By the time of this story, the existing arts were under the name of Jujutsu, some of them Yawara jutsu and Aikijutsu. Please don't think of this as destructive criticism, I love your work, but I understand you have a lot of work in your hands here to be aware of some of the specifics like martial arts. Great video as always, thanks for sharing!

This is a very relatable tale, he was clearly spoiled from being born into power without an active tutor. Yet he clearly had skills, be it riding, trading or writting a good tale. I wonder how many of those fights did he actually win, how many of those were his fault and which of them were real. But it's also interesting that his childhood and early adulthood were often him just trying to eat, fuck and sleep. Someone that gave up on fame and power, yet became famous and bore a much accomplished son.

I find this channel endlessly fascinating. Listening to real historical primary source accounts is about as close to time travel as we can come.

As someone of nearly the same age, this voice of a man from 200 years ago, completely different culture, resounds so wildly similar with my own personal reality.

So amazing hearing the heart of a person who lived long ago.

I would watch that as a movie or an anime. It's so relatable, everybody know people with the same kind of troubled lives.

a tragedy of fathers is that they push upon their young sons lessons that they have only recently learned themselves. the tragedy of young sons is that they are rarely capable of understanding those lessons before adulthood.

How common was it to just like, build a cage for family members?

Apparently his son Katsu Kaishu went on to become a famous naval admiral and presided over the surrender of Tokyo to the Meiji restorationists. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he doesn’t mention his father much in his own writings and memoirs.

I also lost my father while trying to better myself after a life of misdeeds. And, like the rest of us, a less than mediocre samurai.

This video made my day. Truly thank you.

Brilliantly rendered. The match of image to text is just incredible! Thank you so much :)

That was a great story. I know people love to fantasize about living in such a time & place, but I can't imagine how hard it was for most people. I sounds extremely challenging to live a long life that way.

Imagine hurting your balls so bad you have to stay home for two years.

I really appreciate this. For the longest time I had a very similar mindset to this dude, that feeling of if everything I do dissapoints you then I give up trying. I'm much younger but going through a similar situation of finally living up to the standards I have for myself. In a way it almost makes me feel better about my situation, I'm 25 and its very easy to feel that I'm on the back foot and wasted too much time, but stories like this remind me that I could've gone much longer before getting to the good place I am at now. I think the thing that helped me the most was learning to stop caring what anyone thought of me. The big thing is learning to stop caring about family members that dissaprove of you. I had to realize that if they arent gonna support me they are dragging me down so cut them loose. And its hard, especially when its parents, but when you parents are literally saying "your passion for what you do disheartens me" instead of supporting you even if they don't understand it, you have to learn to not look for approval. Because if everytime you talk about your goal or your progress they take the wind out of your sails, they just aren't a positive influence.

There is nothing mediocre about this man. He took the effort to write a parting lesson to those who might read his memoires someday.

This video was so beautifully composed that i almost felt like witnessing all those events before my eyes. A life lived hundreds of years ago, different culture, varied circumstances. It was truly fascinating ❤

He had a full life at least and learned a lot. He doesn't seem unintelligent or untalented, he was just unlucky many times.

Middle aged grouchy samurai is a character we need more of in stories.

Yeah. By the 19th century japan didn't have any conflict for more than 200 years so samurais were just your regular salary men working for there master. Many of them would sell there armor and sword for money. Of course it was humilaiting for them so they would put rocks in there closet that was for there weapons and pretend they still had armor to guest. There is a movie called 'the twilight samurai' that was released in 2002. It's about a dad samurai that has two kids and have sold his weapons and amor for his dead wife funeral. It probally my favorite potrayal of a samurai.

Glad he stood up to bullies

Im 29, feels good that dude's 100 years ago still didnt k ow wtf they were doing with their life until they were 40+. Definitely identify with this guy, not wanting to conform to what role he's expected to play and just listlessly wandering through life.

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