Seppuku (??; 'stomach-cutting') is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai. Part of the samurai bushido honour code; seppuku was either used voluntarily by samurai to die with honour rather than fall into the hands of their enemies (and likely suffer torture); or as a form of capital punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses; or performed for other reasons that had brought shame to them.

The ceremonial disembowelment; which is usually part of a more elaborate ritual and performed in front of spectators; consists of plunging a short blade; traditionally a tanto; into the abdomen and moving the blade from left to right in a slicing motion Pictures From History