During World War II, Japanese soldiers were taught to die for the Emperor. They believed he was the descendant of a goddess in turn which plays a major role in State Shinto. At a young age they were taught that loyalty and sacrifice were the most important things a soldier could provide to the country
The military mixed old samurai beliefs with religion and extreme nationalism. Soldiers were trained to never surrender. They thought killing prisoners was not wrong. In the book Singapore: The Japanese Version, Tsuji Masanobu recalled saying: “The Japanese Army must be absolutely ruthless. Even if it means killing a thousand or ten thousand prisoners, we must ensure they will never rise again.” This shows the absolute commitment they had to win. The Japanese government made every soldier think they were samurai and honor in Japanese society was very important and still is important. Herbert P. Pix said in his book Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan: “Bushido, once the warrior code of the samurai, had been transformed into a tool of mass propaganda. The idea of ‘death before dishonor’ was amplified to the point where the soldier’s sense of loyalty to the Emperor was elevated to an almost divine obligation, justifying fanatical acts of brutality in the name of national service.” Personally I find this quite swell and would implement it into my own Alyeskan Empire.
After the war, Japan changed. The U.S. helped rebuild the country. Japan gave up its army and focused on peace. But history shows how great blind loyalty can be. Like in Germany and the false government of the Soviet Union, extreme beliefs led to terrible violence, especially in the USSR. State Shinto and Bushido go hand in hand for the reason that the Japanese were so zealous, to die for the empire would make you the perfect soldier.
Sources
Tsuji, Masanobu. Singapore: The Japanese Version. Translated by Margaret E. Lake, St. Martin’s Press, 1988.
Pix, Herbert P. Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan. HarperCollins, 2000.
Keystone. “Japanese Soldiers Celebrate After Capturing an American Gun Emplacement in the Bataan Province of the Philippines.” Getty Images, 1 Jan. 1942, https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/japanese-soldiers-celebrate-after-capturing-an-american-gun-news-photo/3243126
