Sword Etiquette

At a friend’s home, a samurai removes his katana in the outer hall and puts it on a sword rack there. At a stranger’s
home, a samurai lays his katana beside him as he kneels on the tatami mat. If he puts it on his right, so the sword could
not be easily drawn, it means he feels some trust for his host. If he puts it on his left, it means he distrusts his host (or
that his host should distrust him). If he goes to another room or even to another part of the same room, he takes his
sword with him. The wakizashi remains in his obi, since it is too short to get in his way.

It is quite impolite to lay the katana down with its hilt facing the host, since this implies he was too unskilled to be any
sort of danger. It is also impolite for a host to wear swords while receiving a guest, but they are usually kept nearby on
a sword rack.

It is extremely impolite to step over someone’s sword instead of circling around it or to touch it without the owner’s
permission. Samurai whose scabbards clash (saya ate) in the crowded city streets often draw their swords immediately
and try to kill one another to wipe out the insult.

When samurai enters a theater or the geisha district, they usually leave their swords outside (much as Westerners check
their coats at the door of a nightclub).

A samurai’s sword is sometimes spoken of as his soul, just as a woman’s mirror is her soul. Certainly, a samurai’s
katana and wakizashi are usually the gift of his clan lord, either directly to him or inherited from an ancestor who had
received such a gift directly. Losing one’s sword or having it stolen is a social disgrace that can be wiped out only by
recovering the missing sword or by suicide.