Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
had been deprived of his post. The
rōnin
were some of the freest inhabitants of traditional
Japan, since they maintained their
samurai
status without the burden of its duties, but for-
goingitsassuredsustenance.Theyearnedalivingasbesttheycould:somebecamewriters,
Confucian scholars, or schoolteachers; some, instructors in swordsmanship or other mil-
itary arts; others traded on their ability with their weapons and hired themselves out as
bodyguards and trouble-shooters for rich merchants. While they were earning, they could
afford comfortable accommodation; when things went less well, they had to live at best in
temples, at worst in what rough shelter they could find.
14 (a).
Samurai
in
naga-bakama.
