or — Toshitoshi (利厳) was the founder of the Owari mainline of the

Yagyū Shinkage-ryū is one of the oldest Japanese schools of swordsmanship (''kenjutsu''). Its primary founder was Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, who called the school Shinkage-ryū. In 1565, Nobutsuna bequeathed the school to his greatest student, Yagyū Munetoshi, who ...

style of swordsmanship in the early

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

. He was a son of Yagyū Toshikatsu and a grandson of Yagyū Muneyoshi (Sekishūsai). His name is sometimes mispronounced as Toshiyoshi, but the kanji 厳 reading was passed down as "toshi" in the Yagyū family. His ''Zokumyō'' (first name taken at the time of the

Genpuku is a public holiday in Japan held annually on the second Monday of January under the Happy Monday System. It is held in order to congratulate and encourage all those who have already reached the age of maturity between April 2 of the previou ...

) was originally Chūjirō, and his Kaimyō (

Dharma name A Dharma name is a new name acquired during both lay and monastic Buddhist initiation rituals in Mahayana Buddhism and Pabbajjā, monastic ordination in Theravada Buddhism (where it is more proper to call it Dhamma or Sangha name). The name is ...

) was Jo'un-sai ; though he is mostly remembered as Hyōgonosuke. He was favored by the old Sekishūsai over Munenori, who had been recommended to the Shōgun. From 1603 to 1607, he served

Katō Kiyomasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was . His name as a child was ''Yashamaru'', and first name was ''Toranosuke''. He was one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Hideyoshi's Seven ...

. Thereafter, he became an itinerant warrior. Beginning in 1615, he served

Tokugawa Yoshinao was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period. Biography Born the ninth son of Tokugawa Ieyasu with his concubine, Okame no Kata. His childhood name was Gorōtamaru (五郎太丸). While still a young child, he was appointed leader ...

, the founder of the Owari branch of the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

. He directly instructed Yoshinao in the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū.

In legend

While the famous swordsman

Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...

was staying in

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...

, Musashi noticed a certain warrior walking in the street, in with a way of carrying himself that was striking to Musashi. Musashi then approached Hyogonosuke, and Hyogonosuke did the same. Musashi asked, "''Aren't you Lord Yagyu Hyogonosuke?''" Hyogonosuke replied, "''I am. Aren't you Lord Miyamoto Musashi?''". Though Musashi and Hyogonosuke had never once met each other at any time in the past, because of the way he carried himself, along with the certain martial energy that he emanated, it could not have been anyone else but Hyogonosuke. So instead of measuring each other in combat, Hyogonosuke and Musashi instead conversed like old friends within the house of Yagyu. Hyogonusuke also appears in "Musashi" by Eiji Yoshikawa.

References

* ''Miyamoto Musashi - Life and Writings''

In legend

References

Further reading