The is a traditional Japanese system of martial arts and etiquette, formalised and handed down by the

Ogasawara clan The was a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Seiwa Genji.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' – Ogasawara, pp. 44–45 Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon.'' (in Fren ...

History

The school was originally developed by

Ogasawara Nagakiyo was a Japanese samurai warlord of the late Heian and early Kamakura period. He is best known as the founder of Ogasawara clan. The history of ''kyūdō'' (Japanese archery) begins with this martial arts master. Life Nagakiyo was born on March ...

during the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...

(1185–1333). It specialised in horsemanship ('' bajutsu''), archery ('' kyujutsu''), mounted archery (''

yabusame is a type of mounted archery in traditional Japanese archery. An archer on a running horse shoots three special "turnip-headed" arrows successively at three wooden targets. This style of archery has its origins at the beginning of the Kama ...

'') and etiquette, with an emphasis on ceremonial and ritual practice. Nagakiyo was the first to be called Ogasawara after his own village and was from the

Minamoto clan was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during th ...

. His father, Minamoto Tomitsu was highly skilled in both literary and military arts. Due to his bravery during the suppression of the Taira Clan, he was given an honorary post. During the reign of

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Murom ...

, the first Ashikaga shōgun, Nagakiyo's descendant

Ogasawara Sadamune {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 {{Nihongo, Ogasawara Sadamune, 小笠原貞宗, , 1294–1350 was a Japanese nobleman and a major figure in the formation of the Ogasawara-ryū. A close ally of Ashikaga Takauji, Ogasawara was placed in charge ...

(1292–1347) was given responsibility for maintaining correct etiquette at Takauji's court, giving the Ogasawara-ryū official sanction. Sadamune was a student of Seisetsu Shōhō (Ch'ing-cho Ch'eng-cheng) and incorporated Seisetsu's

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

practices into the school. Three generations after Sadamune, Ogasawara Nagahide wrote the first manual of courtly etiquette, the ''Sangi Itto'' in 1380, after inheriting his father's post. The ''Sangi Itto'' also contained the Ogasawara family's teachings on horsemanship and archery. Despite this, the martial aspects of the school's teaching were largely lost by the end of the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

(1573), and the school survived only as a system of courtly manners. The Ogasawara style of mounted archery was eventually revived in 1724 by Ogasawara Heibei Tsuneharu. In the 1960s, Tadamune Ogasawara laid claim to the inheritance of the ''ryū's'' teachings on formal etiquette, and introduced these elements to the public for the first time. These teachings, under the title of ''Ogasawara Ryū Reihou'', are still in use today. The

Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Toyota. The Lexus brand is marketed in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide and is Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. It has ranked among the 10 largest Japanese ...

auto company trains its salespeople in Ogasawara Ryū Reihou. The Imperial House of Japan uses Ogasawara etiquette and the current master of ceremonies is an heiress of the 52nd Emperor of Japan.

Etiquette

The Ogasawara school laid the foundations for etiquette for the

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

class of Japan. These rules and practices covered bowing (the school's teachings describe nine different ways of performing a bow), eating, marriage and other aspects of everyday life, down to the minutiae of correctly opening or closing a door.

References

External links

* official home page {{DEFAULTSORT:Ogasawara-ryu Ko-ryū bujutsu