The age of the sword masters - Miyamoto Musaschi Kendo - Miyamoto Musashi Miyamoto Musashi
was one of the great masters of Japanese fencing, since his fame at the same level of that of Bokuden Tsukahara. The old storytellers tell how Bokuden diverted with a poker a heart attack launched from Musashi, but this story is impossible if we consider the two different eras in which they lived, and has no historical credibility. However, the mere fact that these stories were popular shows how great a reputation both as a master swordsman. Both can be seen the greatest fencers of all Japanese history. The distinctive style of fighting Musashi involved the use of a sword in both hands, and is called Nito-ryu. His techniques are still practiced today in the Niten-ichi-ryu.
The puzzling career of Eiji Yoshikawa Musashi
wrote the novel "Miyamoto Musashi", which further enhances its reputation, but what he wrote about the life of Musashi is pure fiction and the entire contents of the book is historically unreliable. Despite what many people continue to mistakenly regard the novel as a narrative of what actually took place. No warrior is more famous Musashi throughout Japan, but there are many aspects of his life unexplained or doubtful. The most popular theory is that Musashi was born in 1584, but many argue that his birth date was 1582, there are also several lines of thought regarding the place of his birth, with some supporting and others Mimasaka is Harima. I am a theorist who was born in 1584 and was used a dating system common at the time that added a year to the date of birth. He won his first duel to the death to 13 years against the Kihei Arima Shinto-ryu. At seventeen he fought in the Battle of Sekigahara, one of the most important battles in Japanese history. At the age of twenty-one came to Kyoto and became involved in numerous fights in which he was never defeated. At that time he won three consecutive duels with students Yoshioka, considered skilled swordsmen. Twenty-nine defeated Sasaki Kojiro in the famous duel at Ganryu-Jima. Thirteen years from the onset with Kojiro he participated in over 60 duels and was never defeated, winning it all, but after that no longer participates in any other fight. Thirty years Musashi came to the view that the skill that not all attributed to him was genuine, and decided to devote himself to an ascetic life, even if the truth about this choice is not known. Musashi claims to have achieved the true essence of fencing at the age fifty years, but nobody knows what he did in the twenty years that it took to reach its completion. Compared with the first half of his life, the second is by no means spectacular, until he found work at fifty-seven, when the Daymi Hosokawa Tadatoshi invited him to his court. It seems that Musashi has greatly appreciated the kindness of Tadatoshi, writing for him, his teachings of fencing in the Treaty Strategy in thirty-five articles. " Tadatoshi died soon after, leaving Musashi in a state of deep bitterness. At the age of sixty years, Musashi wrote his famous treatise Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings) in the cave set in the Keigo mountains, but even that was a point of controversy in recent years, and the truth is uncertain. At the age of sixty years, he gathered his remaining strength to write Dokkodo (the street of solitude) and died shortly after.
The mystery surrounding the Gorin-no-sho
the Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings) is famous not only in Japan but around the
ndo m and consists of five chapters: earth , water, fire, air and vacuum. The text is incomplete in many respects, but it is an explanation of technical knowledge and science of martial Musashi developed during actual combat experience, and thus is of great importance. Musashi is said to have composed it in 1645, but the text that he wrote no more, and having lost the original all that exists today are copies. Recently some scholars have begun to consider the hypothesis that the Gorin-no-sho is not the work of Musashi. "Strategy in thirty-five articles" is the basis of the content of Gorin-no-sho, and no doubt was written by Musashi, so it is possible that a pupil of Musashi or someone else has written the Gorin-no-sho based on the first text, Musashi or have written a draft and that his disciple has completed and organized in a systematic way. In both cases the truth about the treaty is a mystery, but the Gorin-no-sho is undoubtedly a discussion focusing on techniques and ideals of Musashi.
The manufacture of Ganryu-jima
The climax of the legend of Musashi is the duel of Ganryu-jima, and was an official competition. At that time, Sasaki Kojiro was the master of kenjutsu in the province of Hosokawa, and was reputed to be the best swordsman in western Japan. Musashi received permission from the Lord of the province, Hosokawa Tadaoki, and one of his officers was present to witness the battle with Kojiro. The duel took place in an uninhabited island between Honshu and Kyushu, which later became known by the name of Ganryu-jima. The day of the duel Musashi stood idly very late after the time appointed, holding a bokuto (wooden sword) carved from an oar of the boat transporting him. Kojiro was extremely angry at the delay and the attitude of Musashi, and when he saw it he drew his sword to the ground on the beach throwing the slider. "Kojiro, you're defeated!" Musashi said that he wondered how anyone could be sure of winning the toss on the ground sheath of his sword. The duel ended in an instant: Kojiro attacked with a blow to the head vertical, and cut the bandana Musashi that flew in the air, but thought he had won just Kojiro, Musashi struck him in the bokuto smashing his head. This is the famous scene of the duel between Ganryu-jima. From this description we can see the winning strategy in Musashi infuriate the opponent with his attitude and his delay, but really like the duels were at that time? Musashi was really kind of fighter accustomed to using dishonorable means and unconventional? There are many doubts that Musashi was late on purpose or not, and it was suggested that this part of history has been deliberately built to artifice. When Eiji Yoshikawa wrote his novel about Musashi is referred to a document called Nitenki to interpret the behavior of Musashi, but this document was written in 1776, 130 years after the death of Musashi, and its content was considered pure fiction. In Contrast these stories with a pupil of Musashi, Iori, erected the Kokura-Ibun (a memorial stone on Musashi) nine years after his death. An inscription on the monument says that these two great warriors actually fought, and this is absolutely reliable source. Therefore, it is unlikely that Musashi deliberately spoil the outcome of a battle whose outcome was to be officially certified in the province of Hosokawa, leading to believe that this part of the story is actually an embellishment of fancy. Musashi fought honorably in a manner appropriate to the bush and did not try to win using strange tricks, but he lived his life according to the ancient code of Bushido.
was one of the great masters of Japanese fencing, since his fame at the same level of that of Bokuden Tsukahara. The old storytellers tell how Bokuden diverted with a poker a heart attack launched from Musashi, but this story is impossible if we consider the two different eras in which they lived, and has no historical credibility. However, the mere fact that these stories were popular shows how great a reputation both as a master swordsman. Both can be seen the greatest fencers of all Japanese history. The distinctive style of fighting Musashi involved the use of a sword in both hands, and is called Nito-ryu. His techniques are still practiced today in the Niten-ichi-ryu.
The puzzling career of Eiji Yoshikawa Musashi
wrote the novel "Miyamoto Musashi", which further enhances its reputation, but what he wrote about the life of Musashi is pure fiction and the entire contents of the book is historically unreliable. Despite what many people continue to mistakenly regard the novel as a narrative of what actually took place. No warrior is more famous Musashi throughout Japan, but there are many aspects of his life unexplained or doubtful. The most popular theory is that Musashi was born in 1584, but many argue that his birth date was 1582, there are also several lines of thought regarding the place of his birth, with some supporting and others Mimasaka is Harima. I am a theorist who was born in 1584 and was used a dating system common at the time that added a year to the date of birth. He won his first duel to the death to 13 years against the Kihei Arima Shinto-ryu. At seventeen he fought in the Battle of Sekigahara, one of the most important battles in Japanese history. At the age of twenty-one came to Kyoto and became involved in numerous fights in which he was never defeated. At that time he won three consecutive duels with students Yoshioka, considered skilled swordsmen. Twenty-nine defeated Sasaki Kojiro in the famous duel at Ganryu-Jima. Thirteen years from the onset with Kojiro he participated in over 60 duels and was never defeated, winning it all, but after that no longer participates in any other fight. Thirty years Musashi came to the view that the skill that not all attributed to him was genuine, and decided to devote himself to an ascetic life, even if the truth about this choice is not known. Musashi claims to have achieved the true essence of fencing at the age fifty years, but nobody knows what he did in the twenty years that it took to reach its completion. Compared with the first half of his life, the second is by no means spectacular, until he found work at fifty-seven, when the Daymi Hosokawa Tadatoshi invited him to his court. It seems that Musashi has greatly appreciated the kindness of Tadatoshi, writing for him, his teachings of fencing in the Treaty Strategy in thirty-five articles. " Tadatoshi died soon after, leaving Musashi in a state of deep bitterness. At the age of sixty years, Musashi wrote his famous treatise Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings) in the cave set in the Keigo mountains, but even that was a point of controversy in recent years, and the truth is uncertain. At the age of sixty years, he gathered his remaining strength to write Dokkodo (the street of solitude) and died shortly after.
The mystery surrounding the Gorin-no-sho
the Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings) is famous not only in Japan but around the
ndo m and consists of five chapters: earth , water, fire, air and vacuum. The text is incomplete in many respects, but it is an explanation of technical knowledge and science of martial Musashi developed during actual combat experience, and thus is of great importance. Musashi is said to have composed it in 1645, but the text that he wrote no more, and having lost the original all that exists today are copies. Recently some scholars have begun to consider the hypothesis that the Gorin-no-sho is not the work of Musashi. "Strategy in thirty-five articles" is the basis of the content of Gorin-no-sho, and no doubt was written by Musashi, so it is possible that a pupil of Musashi or someone else has written the Gorin-no-sho based on the first text, Musashi or have written a draft and that his disciple has completed and organized in a systematic way. In both cases the truth about the treaty is a mystery, but the Gorin-no-sho is undoubtedly a discussion focusing on techniques and ideals of Musashi. The manufacture of Ganryu-jima
The climax of the legend of Musashi is the duel of Ganryu-jima, and was an official competition. At that time, Sasaki Kojiro was the master of kenjutsu in the province of Hosokawa, and was reputed to be the best swordsman in western Japan. Musashi received permission from the Lord of the province, Hosokawa Tadaoki, and one of his officers was present to witness the battle with Kojiro. The duel took place in an uninhabited island between Honshu and Kyushu, which later became known by the name of Ganryu-jima. The day of the duel Musashi stood idly very late after the time appointed, holding a bokuto (wooden sword) carved from an oar of the boat transporting him. Kojiro was extremely angry at the delay and the attitude of Musashi, and when he saw it he drew his sword to the ground on the beach throwing the slider. "Kojiro, you're defeated!" Musashi said that he wondered how anyone could be sure of winning the toss on the ground sheath of his sword. The duel ended in an instant: Kojiro attacked with a blow to the head vertical, and cut the bandana Musashi that flew in the air, but thought he had won just Kojiro, Musashi struck him in the bokuto smashing his head. This is the famous scene of the duel between Ganryu-jima. From this description we can see the winning strategy in Musashi infuriate the opponent with his attitude and his delay, but really like the duels were at that time? Musashi was really kind of fighter accustomed to using dishonorable means and unconventional? There are many doubts that Musashi was late on purpose or not, and it was suggested that this part of history has been deliberately built to artifice. When Eiji Yoshikawa wrote his novel about Musashi is referred to a document called Nitenki to interpret the behavior of Musashi, but this document was written in 1776, 130 years after the death of Musashi, and its content was considered pure fiction. In Contrast these stories with a pupil of Musashi, Iori, erected the Kokura-Ibun (a memorial stone on Musashi) nine years after his death. An inscription on the monument says that these two great warriors actually fought, and this is absolutely reliable source. Therefore, it is unlikely that Musashi deliberately spoil the outcome of a battle whose outcome was to be officially certified in the province of Hosokawa, leading to believe that this part of the story is actually an embellishment of fancy. Musashi fought honorably in a manner appropriate to the bush and did not try to win using strange tricks, but he lived his life according to the ancient code of Bushido.
English translation by Thomas Toschi
