Hara = belly
Kiri = cut
Situations when it is supposed to be performed:
(1) prior to being captured by an enemy
(2) by the order of a lord or other superior
Requirements:
(1) A long sharp knife or sword.
(2) A "second" who decapitates the person once the proper cuts have been made.
Ritualistic cuts made while the person is kneeling:
(1) A horizontal cut across the abdomen at the level of the umbilicus.
(2) Sometimes a vertical upward cut in the midline.
Death is relatively rapid if the aorta or a major artery is transected. If the person does not bleed to death or if the person is not decapitated, then the bowel injury leads to peritonitis. The bowel wounds are survivable today but are associated with considerable morbidity.
Reasons for failure:
(1) A short knife.
(2) Abundant abdominal fat.
(3) A shallow cut not deep enough to hit a major artery.
