Hijikata was a peasant by birth, a warrior by nature. It is reported that in his youth he planted arrow bamboo in the garden of his home and vowed to himself to become a samurai. Arrow bamboo consisted of short, straight shafts ideal for making arrows. Arrows, like swords, spears, and all other weapons, were traditionally restricted to the samurai class. The son of a peasant family, even a wealthy one such as Hijikata’s, had no business planting arrow bamboo. The very act, then, provides substance to the credibility of his reported vow.

[The photograph of Hijikata Toshizo is used in Shinsengumi: The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps, courtesy of the descendants of Sato Hikogoro and Hino-shi Furusato Hakubutsukan Museum.]

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