Matsu family
From L5r: Legend of the Five Rings
| Matsu family
| |
|---|---|
| Clan: | Lion Clan |
| Founded: | Pre-calendar |
| Daimyo: | Matsu Kenji |
The Matsu are a tall, proud family, who rarely dye their dark hair like others in their clan. Their ancestress, the Lady Matsu was the last to join the Kami Akodo, and she was the only follower Akodo sought out.
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[edit] Marriage and the Matsu
When a man marries into the Matsu family, he takes the Matsu name, and all men who marry outside of the family must forever forsake their Matsu name. The Lady Matsu began this tradition upon her wedding day, when she married the fourth follower of Akodo. It is said that Akodo came to her and asked why she chose this man of him, and she replied "For if I marry you, I will be the wife of Akodo. If I marry him, then he shall be the husband of Matsu". The fifth house of the Lion, who were recorded only briefly in only the earliest Ikoma family texts, were completely absorbed into the Matsu.
[edit] Temperament of the Matsu
Whereas members of the Akodo family are said to be the brain of the Lion, the Matsu are said to be the heart, for it is the Matsu who charge onto the battleground and direct the troops.
All Matsu are hot-tempered, emotional, strong willed and intractable, just like their founder, but they are also highly courageous, loyal, dedicated and fierce. The Matsu are the epitome of every other Clan's view of the Lion, good and bad.
[edit] Leadership among the Matsu
Matsu leaders are chosen more for their skill with a katana and combat prowess than their ability to break down an enemy strategy. As has been shown time and again, even the best laid plans often fall like rice paper to a katana when faced with the furious charge of the Matsu. In addition to this fire within, the Matsu live for the purity of honor. The Matsu believe that the purity of a samurai's soul is often as potent a weapon as his blade. Often, with the Matsu's ancestors guiding his blade, a samurai's purity of soul becomes more important, for even the dullest blade will cut deeper than the sharpest blade that has been turned aside. The Matsu ancestors will guide the killing blow and guard the samurai from harm if he is filled with a pure, noble soul.
[edit] Place of the Matsu
Since the beginning, the Matsu have stood beside the Akodo family, providing the Akodo's tactical foresight with the feirceness to succeed. There have been time when the leadership of the clan has been uneasy, and even open anarchy between the two houses.
The Matsu family represent some of the greatest warriors in Rokugan, and not even the Crab ignore the threat presented by the mighty Matsu army. No sane man would ever knowingly question the honor of a Matsu, for honor is more than a word and more than a record of a person's standing in the Empire. To a Matsu, honor is the link that ties them to their ancestors, and the blood that links them to their oath. Since the first Matsu, they have never faltered in their duty to protect the Empire.
[edit] Matsu customs
[edit] Gempukku
In the Matsu family, the gempukku ceremony is not a time of celebration and joy, like in other families in Rokugan, but one of trial. The Matsu gempukku is the time when a samurai must prove his worth to the family and clan, rather than a time to be acknowledged for his previous accomplishments. Like other traditions of the Matsu, their gempukku ceremony is harsh, rigid, and unforgiving, but it is also a great honor, for those who survive can count themselves among the greatest warriors the Empire has to offer.
The gempukku is a series of tests, each designed to showcase and test a particular part of the samurai's character. The initial tests are intellectual or martial in focus, and are said to be the easiest to pass. They often involve reciting passages of Akodo's Leadership from memory and demonstrating a working knowledge of at least twenty weapons. Other tests may include the quartering of pomegranates before they hit the ground or some other means of testing the samurai's skill with a katana.
To test the samurai's endurance, he is struck repeatedly -- up to 400 times -- with a bamboo rod. Although these blows will cause no permenant damage, they are incredibly painful and drain the reciever's stamina. The Matsu is expected to remain concious and upright throughout every blow. Failure results in dishonor and seppuku.
The next test involves the samurai's wisdom, patience, and his ability to set aside his own earthly desires for the good of the Lion Clan. He is placed in a room surrounded by plates of steaming food, wherein he must fast for three days. At the end of these three days, he is given a bowl of gruel, which he must completely consume and lick clean, all the while surrounded by delicious meals. In doing so he shows he will never take from the Lion more than he is due.
The final test is often regarded as the most harsh. A white-hot poker shaped in the Matsu crest is pressed into the samurai's skin, forever branding them a Matsu. Although the process only lasts a few seconds, the pain lingers on, and expressing any discomfort will result in the samurai being forced to commit seppuku. (SoLion, pp. 43-46)
[edit] Matsu Daimyo
The following is a listing of the known daimyo of the Matsu family:
| Matsu | ? - 42 |
| Matsu Tusun | (c. 827) |
| Matsu Tsuko | ? - 1125 |
| Matsu Ketsui | 1125 - 1166 |
| Matsu Kenji | 1166 - Present |
[edit] Major References
Way of the Lion Pages 34-36.
