The katana is a certain type of curved sword with one edge, and is most commonly used by the Japanese samurai. This weapon was paired with the wakizashi because they were both nearly the same except for the lengths. This sword could also be partnered with the tanto because it has a very similar blade but is also much smaller. Two of these weapons together were called the daisho, which stood for social power and personal honor for the samurai. The katana, having its long blade, was used for open combat, while the shorter blades were called a side arm. The short blades were used for stabbing and for indoor combat. The scabbard of a katana was called a "Saya," which was the handguard piece, and had very complex works of arts on them very often. The katana was also a great sword because once they started moving towards swords, they found that a curved sword such as the three, the katana, the wakizashi, and the tanto, could be better for fighting. Since the blade is curved it was found that it could be pulled from the scabbard more easily and it would be better in a cut-fight situation. The katana was a great sword and was the heart and soul of the samurai.