[JohnBraden]

Isn't it true that Japanese as a whole view death in a different way than those in the West have been taught? I believe that Catholics are taught that if you commit suicide, you won't go to Heaven, yet in feudal Japan, ritual suicide was an honorable thing. I may be accused of generalizing or overly simplifying things, but I wonder if our views and their views of suicide aren't based on different ideologies.