is a ''battō'' style created by Nakamura Taizaburō (1912–2003).

Nakamura Taizaburō

Nakamura Taizaburō (中村泰三郎) was born in 1912 in

Yamagata Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Yamagata Prefecture has a population of 1,079,950 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 9,325 km² (3,600 sq mi). Yamagata Prefecture borders Akita Prefecture to the north, ...

. He resided in Tsurumi,

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

, where he presided over the International Iai-Battōdō Federation and taught ''battōdō'' for the Kakuseikai until his death in 2003. Nakamura was awarded 10th dan ''hanshi battōdō'' by the

International Martial Arts Federation (IMAF) is the oldest continuously operating Japanese organization promoting international Budō.''Journal of Combat Sports and Martial Arts''. MEDSPORTPRESS, 2011; 1(2); Vol. 2, page 50. The organization, founded in 1952, has headquarters in Toky ...

, 7th dan ''kyōshi'' by the All Japan Kendō Federation, 8th dan ''hanshi'', Jukendō and 8th dan ''hanshi'', Tankendō. In 1973 he was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure in recognition for his services in promoting the martial arts.

History

Nakamura developed '' battōdō'' while teaching ''

kenjutsu is an umbrella term for all ('' ko-budō'') schools of Japanese swordsmanship, in particular those that predate the Meiji Restoration. Some modern styles of kendo and iaido that were established in the 20th century also included modern forms of ...

'' in northern China. He was inspired by the idea that the '' eiji happō'' (the eight principles of writing ''

kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...

'') could be applied to swordsmanship. He began to organize his understandings into a system of practical swordsmanship in which non-martial techniques were discarded (much like the practical

Toyama-ryū established in 1925 by a committee of senior experts of several sword traditions for the curriculum of the Rikugun Toyama Gakkō. The special school for training army personnel founded in 1873, called Rikugun Toyama Gakkō or " Toyama Army Aca ...

of the early 20th century). The system is based on Nakamura's studies whilst teaching Toyama-ryū: bringing the sword blade to a halt after a cut, parrying, progressing to the next combative posture using the sword's kinetic energy. It also makes use of what, through his researches, Nakamura found absent from many other schools of ''

iaidō , abbreviated , is a Japanese martial art that emphasizes being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.Christensen, Karen and Allen Guttmann et.al (2001) ''International Encyclopedia of Women and Sports ...

'', ''

kendō is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords (shinai) as well as protective armor (bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spread ...

'', and ''

battōjutsu ("the craft of drawing out the sword") is an old term for iaijutsu (居合術). Battōjutsu is often used interchangeably with the terms '' iaijutsu'' and ''battō'' (抜刀).Armstrong, Hunter B. (1995) "The Koryu Bujutsu Experience" in ''Koryu ...

'': the ''kesagiri'', a cut he thought extremely useful.''Kesa'' ( sa, kaśaya) is the Japanese term for the upper robe worn by a Buddhist monk. Because the way in which it is worn covers the left shoulder but leaves the right shoulder uncovered, the robe's upper edge passes diagonally across the front (and back) of the torso; hence, ''kesagiri'' is a cut made diagonally up or down the body, from approximately the hip to the opposite shoulder, or vice versa. A diagonal cut to the face, etc., is also sometimes called ''kesagiri''.

The style

The cutting techniques of the Nakamura-ryū are effective in their simplicity: the thrust (either single- or double-handed), the downward vertical cut, left downward diagonal cut, right upward diagonal cut, right downward diagonal cut, left upward diagonal cut, left horizontal cut, and right horizontal cut. The eight cutting techniques are derived from the ''eiji happō''. Eight ''

chiburi , also called ''chiburi'', is the process by which one symbolically removes blood from a sword blade. The term chiburui can thus be translated as "shaking off the blood". In the Japanese martial art of ''iaidō'', this is done before '' nōtō'' ...

'' were then incorporated into the system. The basic ''chiburi'' used in both Toyama-ryū iaidō and Nakamura-ryū ''battōdō'' is actually an ''en garde'' position: the sword is snapped down, its point slightly elevated at knee level; from this position, one can maintain ''

zanshin ''Zanshin'' ( ja, 残心) is a state of awareness, of relaxed alertness, in Japanese martial arts. A literal translation of ''zanshin'' is "remaining mind".

'' as well as convert easily to a thrust, should the need arise. Nakamura added seven more ''chiburi'', notably from

Ōmori-ryū is a iaijutsu koryū founded by Ōmori Masamitsu, Ōmori Rokurōzaemon Masamitsu (大森六郎左衛門正光), probably in the latter half of the seventeenth century. The techniques developed by Masamitsu were later incorporated into Hasegawa ...

and

Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū Written as 天眞正傳香取神道流 before adoption (1946) of Tōyō kanji. is one of the oldest extant Japanese martial arts, and an exemplar of '' bujutsu''. The Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū was founded by Iizasa Ienao, born in 13 ...

''kenjutsu''. The five ''kamae'' of kendō/iaidō were also incorporated into the style, to which were added the left-side versions of ''waki kamae'' and ''hasso kamae'', and right ''jodan kamae'', making eight ''kamae'' altogether.

Nakamura Taizaburō

History

The style

Notes

Related links