Yagyū Shinkage-ryū
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is one of the oldest
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ese schools of swordsmanship (''
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 o ...
''). 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 added his own name to the school. Today, the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū remains one of the most renowned schools of Japanese swordsmanship. Its name roughly means ''Yagyū New Shadow School''.


Feudal Japan and birth of the Shinkage school

At the time of the school's founding by Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, the superiority of a school was determined through
duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...
s. Basic postures were distinct; a very low stance was maintained, in the interest of protecting the body. The idea of winning at any price was deeply ingrained in the schools of the time, as were the concepts of ''Isatsu-no-tachi'' (the school of the sword that kills only once) or ''Ichi-no-tachi'' (the sword of only one cut). A great deal of importance was placed on the technology of
sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...
s and
armor Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...
themselves. However, with the arrival of muskets (
arquebus An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier. The term ''arquebus'' was applied to many different forms of firearms ...
es) and other elements of modern warfare, these traditional techniques were no longer sufficient. Nobutsuna, with the creation of the Shinkage-ryū (New Shadow School), changed basic postures by raising them slightly. He also changed the manner of holding the sword. The swords themselves were changed; in an era in which a sword could be two meters, Nobutsuna shortened the length of the blade. Most importantly, he perfected a new method of teaching to make the study and practice of the Way of the Sword easier. Before Nobutsuna, practice was carried out with either a very hard wooden sword (a ''
bokken A ''bokken'' (, , 'wood', and ''ken'', '(double-edged) sword') or ''bokutō'' (, , 'wood', and ''tō'', '(single-edged) sword') is a Japanese wooden sword used for training in kenjutsu. It is usually the size and shape of a ''katana'', but is so ...
'') or one with a dulled steel blade. The practitioners had to therefore stop their blows during teaching to avoid hurting themselves or their students. It is claimed that Kamiizumi created the practice sword called the ''fukuro shinai'' (frog bamboo sword), which is made of strips of
bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of mostly evergreen perennial plant, perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily (biology), subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family, in th ...
similar to a kendo
shinai A is a Japanese sword typically made of bamboo used for practice and competition in '' kendō''. ''Shinai'' are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from ''kendō shinai'', and represented with different characters. ...
but covered inside a leather pouch. The shinai allowed striking with quickness, fluidity and potency without causing serious or disabling wounds as one would with the wooden sword, and without having to stop the attacks. Nobutsuna, sensing the changes in the ways of war at the time, re-thought his methods of martial arts ('' bujutsu''), and began to advocate the utilization of light armour during training. The face of war was being transformed, and as it was necessary to move faster than before. Nobutsuna perfected a style of sword fighting that was freer in its movements, more sparse, more restrained, more adapted to brawls and to duels, than to the fields of large scale battles. Nobutsuna created the ancient schools of sword known as ''satsujin-ken'', or the killing swords. These are characterized by postures and offensive techniques, designed to win at any price. He wanted to establish ''tatsujin-ken''—the sword of an accomplished man, an Expert. The art of the sword of the Shinkage school takes into account and adapts to the opponent's weaponry, contrary to the former sword styles which taught to impose dominance without taking into account the opponent. The strategy of the Shinkage school takes into account the geography of the terrain, the hour of battle, and other parameters. For instance, to utilize the technique named ''empi'', one must understand a deeper, secret level (''gokui'') of battle. In ''empi'', (meaning, the "Swallow takes Flight") one uses a technique of spearing an opponent with a thrown sword. To do this, one learns to use the sword not only to defend his position but to also have the "power of adaptability" in facing different individuals, much as a captain must consider the winds and change sails in order to travel in the best direction to reach his objective. It is similar to a hunting hawk, which must constantly reconsider the best trajectory in which to strike effectively. Like the raptor, it is necessary to be able to anticipate, to be able to assess and definitively act. "Move with the mind, in order to move with the body" is one of the central tenets of the school. Another sword style is called ''Katsujin-ken'' (the One who preserves Life, the Sword of the Victor). ''Katsujin-ken'' teaches that, if one's sword does not stop the movement of the enemy, then one may try to fit to the ''opponent's'' rhythm, thus entering into the mind of the adversary to find his weakness.


Kamiizumi Nobutsuna's legacy

The feudal lord Kamiizumi Nobutsuna led a simple life. Although he was not a
monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...
, he kept his head shaved, which was a sign of renunciation of the everyday world. He did not have children and left all his property to his student Yagyū Munetoshi. Munetoshi had gained his own renown as a remarkable swordsman even before Nobutsuna's passing. He began development of the ''mutō'' techniques of using bare hands against the sword and it is he who appended the name of his family (Yagyū) onto the name of the school, founding the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū. ''His'' son, Yagyū Munenori, later perfected the techniques of ''mutō'', and also created the techniques of ''
iaijutsu is a combative quick-draw sword technique. This art of drawing the Japanese sword, katana, is one of the Japanese ''ko-ryū'' martial art disciplines in the education of the classical warrior (samurai, bushi).Gordon Warner, Warner, Gordon and D ...
''. Upon Munetoshi's death in 1606, the school split into two. His grandson Yagyū Toshiyoshi took command of the Owari branch, while Munenori became the head of the
Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...
branch. Takenaga Hayato, the founder of the Yagyū Shingan Ryū Heiho was a student and received the gokui of the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū under Yagyū Munenori. The Edo branch, although no longer headed by a descendant of the Yagyū family, continues to be practiced by a small, faithful group of practitioners in
Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
under the direction of Sono Seigo. The Owari branch of
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 ...
continues under the guidance of a direct descendant of Munetoshi, Yagyū Kōichi Toshinobu. Munenori's son, Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi, contributed greatly, in turn, to the school. He was not only a master of sword, but also a strategist, an expert of ''
jujutsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...
-yawara'', ''
ninjutsu , and are terms for the techniques and skills used by spies and scouts in pre-modern Japan known as ninja. Some of these techniques are recorded in ninja scrolls, some which have been published and translated. The study of these scrolls have c ...
'', '' kempō'' and an
ascetic Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their pra ...
who went on musha shugyō, the warrior's ascetic journey. His sword technique was named ''chie-no-ken'' (sword of Transcendent Wisdom). The one who codified the techniques of the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū into its traditional form was the fifth ''soke'' (heir), Yagyū Toshikane. He codified all the basic instruction (''kihon-waza'') into a document known as ''Hassei-hō'' or more commonly ''Sei-hō''. These series were responsible for making understood the essential points of forms (''
kata ''Kata'' is a Japanese word ( 型 or 形) meaning "form". It refers to a detailed choreographed pattern of martial arts movements. It can also be reviewed within groups and in unison when training. It is practiced in Japanese martial arts ...
'') that had been transmitted by Munenori. Before the advent of modern ''kendō'', he created a form of free fighting in teaching with ''shinai''. Latter, the 5th
Sōke , pronounced , is a Japanese term that means "the head family ouse" In the realm of Japanese traditional arts, it is used synonymously with the term '' iemoto''. Thus, it is often used to indicate "headmaster" (or sometimes translated as "head o ...
, Yagyū Renya and his father, the 3rd headmaster Hyōgonosuke, invented the concept of ''Tsuttattaru-mi'' (art of war without armor) to adapt their style to the current era where samurai would fight in civilian clothes, unlike orthodox Katori Shintō-ryū whose students always fight with samurai armor protection and weak points in mind, even when they don't wear one for training. Then came the Meiji era, where all martial arts schools had trouble to continue to exist. Many faded away, especially little schools started by rōnin trying to make a living, and ''Ishi-Sōden'' family arts. But Meiji-Tennō directly ordered to Yagyū Toshichika-sōke to permanently preserve the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū, and so he did. The 20th headmaster, Toshinaga, even moved to Tokyo and became the instructor to the Imperial Guards and taught in Butokukai seminars in order to spread further Shinkage-ryū. The Owari dōjō in Nagoya that had existed since Edo period burned down during
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, but the school managed to survive.


Connection with Morihei Ueshiba

Nakai Masakatsu (中井 正勝,
fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...
1891–1908), a teacher whose own teachers had been proficient in Shinkage-ryū and Yagyū Shingan Ryū Taijutsu. As far as is known, Nakai taught
Morihei Ueshiba was a Japanese martial artist and founder of the Japanese martial art, martial art of aikido. He is often referred to as "the founder" or , "Great Teacher". The son of a landowner from Tanabe, Wakayama, Tanabe, Ueshiba studied a number of ...
(the founder of
aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...
) some of the taijutsu of Yagyu Shingan-ryū from 1903 to 1908, in his dojo in
Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its '' kofun'', keyhole-shaped burial mounds dating from the fifth century. The ''kofun ...
near
Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
. At the time, Ueshiba was serving in the 61st Regiment in the Japanese Army. In 1908 Masakatsu gave Ueshiba a mid level license in Gotōha Yagyū Shingan Ryū Taijutsu. In the 1920's, Ueshiba learned a small portion of Yagyu Shinkage-ryū from shihan, Gejo Kisaburo.


Yagyū Shinkage-ryū in the United States

Yagyū Shinkage-ryū was also taught in the United States from 1981-1988 by Yagyu Hideki. The authority to teach the art was given to Hideki's student-turned-adopted-son who runs a school near Kobe, Japan, and to his two top American students—one of whom (as of 2005) resides in China where he teaches the art, and the other in the United States who, as of 2012, is in training to return to teaching. Only Hideki's son and two top American students were issued permission to teach the art to anyone else. The Edo branch has a United States representative under Sono Seigo with permission to teach the art. Paul Manogue runs a group out of Philadelphia in Old City Aikido.


Lineage

Mainline *Founder - Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara Nobutsuna *2nd Headmaster- Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Munetoshi ( Yagyu Sekishusai) *3rd - Yagyū Hyōgonosuke Taira Toshitoshi (Jounsai) *4th - Owari Gondainagon Minamoto Yoshinao ( Tokugawa Yoshinao) *5th - Yagyū Hyōgo Taira Toshikane (Yagyū Renyasai) *6th - Owari Gondainagon Minamoto Mitsutomo *7th - Owari Gonchūnagon Minamoto Tsunanobu *8th - Yagyū Hyōgo Taira Toshinobu *9th - Owari Gonchūnagon Minamoto Yoshimichi *10th - Yagyū Rokurōbe Taira Toshitomo *11th - Yagyū Hyōsuke Taira Toshiharu *12th - Owari Saishochūjō Minamoto Haruyuki *13th - Yagyū Mataemon Taira Toshiyuki *14th - Yagyū Hyōsuke Taira Toshihisa *15th - Owari Gondainagon Minamoto Naritomo *16th - Yagyū Shinroku Taira Toshimasa *17th - Yagyū Chūjirō Taira Toshishige *18th - Owari Gondainagon Minamoto Yoshikumi *19th - Yagyū Sangorō Taira Toshichika *20th - Yagyū Kinji Taira Toshinaga *21st - Yagyū Nobuharu Taira Toshimichi *22nd - Yagyū Kōichi Taira Toshinobu (Yagyū Genshin) Edo line *1st - Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Munenori *2nd - Yagyū Jūbei Taira Mitsuyoshi *3rd - Yagyū Hida-no-kami Taira Munefuyu *4th - Yagyū Tsushima-no-kami Taira Muneari *5th - Yagyū Bizen-no-kami Taira Toshikata *6th - Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Toshihira *7th - Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Toshimine *8th - Yagyū Noto-no-kami Taira Toshinori *9th - Yagyū Hida-no-kami Taira Toshitoyo *10th - Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Toshiakira *11th - Yagyū Hida-no-kami Taira Toshiyoshi *12th - Yagyū Tsushima-no-kami Taira Toshimune *13th - Yagyū Tajima-no-kami Taira Toshimasu *14th - Yagyū Toshihisa *15th - Yamane Muneichiro & Saito Jizaburo *16th - Otani Genshu *17th - Sono Seigo *18th - Paul Manogue
Other Branches
''Kogenshakai'' *Edward Klogen (student of Yagyū Nobuharu) *David Alonso (student of Yagyū Nobuharu) *Matsumoto Takakazu *Matsumoto Kenichiro *Hironaga Kazunori ''Shūnpūkan'' *Kanbe Kinshichi (student of Yagyū Toshichika) *Katō Isao *Yukihiro Shimomura
''Arakidō'' *Ōtsubo Shihō (student of Yagyū Toshichika and Toshinaga) *Mutō Masao *Kajitsuka Yasushi
''Marobashikai'' *Watanabe Tadatoshi (student of Yagyū Toshichika and Toshinaga) *Watanabe Tadashige


References

4. Katana ZERO (Game), when Snow says that the protagonist studied in Shinkage Ryu school.


Further reading

* * * *


External links


Official Site


* ttp://ejmas.com/tin/2008tin/tinart_tong_0809kajitsuka2.html One on One with Kajitsuka Sensei (Ohtsubo branch of Owari Line, Yagyu Shinkage Ryu) Part Two: Yagyu Shinkage Ryu and The Living Sword
One on One with Kajitsuka Sensei (Ohtsubo branch of Owari Line, Yagyu Shinkage Ryu) Part Three: Teaching and LearningUSA New York City official school founded by Tadashige Wantanabe in 2002.Owari line - Hiromichi-ha of Nara Kogenshakai dôjô
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yagyu Shinkage-Ryu Yagyu Shinkage Ryu Japanese martial arts Yagyū clan