Kamiizumi Nobutsuna
Encyclopedia
Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara-no-Nobutsuna (上泉伊勢守藤原信綱 1508(?) - ???) was a samurai in Japan’s Sengoku Period
famous for creating the Shinkage-ryū
school of combat.
(modern day Maebashi
, Gunma Prefecture
). His family were minor landed lords in the service of the Yamanouchi branch of the Uesugi clan
. At the time of his birth, Kōzuke Province was being contested by the Uesugi, the Hōjō
, and the Takeda clans. His family was originally a branch of the Ōgo clan that moved to nearby Kaigayagō Kamiizumi and took its name for their own. When the main Ōgo clan moved to Musashi Province
, the Kamiizumi family took over Ōgo Castle, at the southern foot of Mount Akagi
.
From the age of 13 or 14, Kamiizumi was tutored by a Zen
roshi
named Tenmyō in Zen Buddhism and other Eastern philosophy. In his youth, he went to nearby Shimōsa Province (modern day Chiba Prefecture
) and began studying Nen-ryū
, and Shintō-ryū
. Later he went to Hitachi Province
(modern day Ibaraki Prefecture
) and studied Kage-ryū
. It is not clear who Kamiizumi’s teachers were; in all of his later writings, he marks the start of lineal transmission of his art from himself. He was a younger contemporary of Tsukahara Bokuden
. The lineage of Jikishinkage-ryū
puts Kamiizumi second after Matsumoto Bizen-no-kami. The lineage of Hikita Kage-ryū puts Kamiizumi second or third after Aisu Ikōsai. In Yagyū Shinkage-ryū
, it is believed that Kamiizumi learned Kage-ryū from Ikōsai, receiving full transmission around the age of 23. A few years later, Kamiizumi learned battle strategy and divination from a man named Ogasawara Ujitaka.
In the Empi-no-Tachi scrolls that Kamiizumi gave to Yagyū Munetoshi and Marume Nagayoshi, he wrote that he had studied Nen-ryū, Shintō-ryū, Kage-ryū, and others, and had developed a new innovation from Kage-ryū, and thus named his school Shinkage-ryū (New Kage-ryū). In his book Shōden Shinkage-ryū, Yagyū Toshinaga surmised that Kamiizumi created Shinkage-ryū in his mid-30s.
ordered an attack on Ōgo castle, now commanded by Kamiizumi. Kamiizumi surrendered the castle without a fight, and joined Ujiyasu. This same year, Uesugi Kenshin
invaded western Kōzuke in order to re-take Hirai Castle. Kamiizumi abandoned the Hōjō side, and sent messages to the Uesugi. He became one of Uesugi's generals, and helped the Uesugi drive out the Hōjō forces. Kenshin seized total control of Kōzuke, installed Nagano Narimasa as governor in Minowa Castle
, and returned to his base in Echigo.
Kamiizumi joined Nagano's service, and quickly became one of the "Sixteen Spears of Nagano House". In particular he distinguished himself when Nagano attacked Yamanaka Castle, and became known as "the best spearsman of Kōzuke." Nagano held off attacks from Takeda Shingen for seven years from Minowa Castle, but he died in 1561. His heir, Ukyō-no-shin Narimori, was only 16 years old, so Nagano’s death was kept secret as long as possible. Shingen eventually found out, and in 1563 (some sources suggest 1566), he invaded western Kōzuke with a force of over 10,000 Kai soldiers. The Kōyō Gunkan dates the invasion to 1563, while the records of Chōnenji, the temple where Nagano was buried, dates it to 1566. Minowa Castle was completely surrounded and besieged. Narimori took his own life on February 22, morale fell, and the castle followed on the 28th.
Kamiizumi fought his way out of the castle, and escaped to eastern Kōzuke, where he joined with Kiryū Ōinosuke Naotsuna. But Naotsuna died soon thereafter and his son Matajirō Shigetsuna took over. With this, Kamiizumi returned to Minowa Castle. It is not known why. One story is that he returned because of many friends still at the castle, and there he joined the service of Naitō Shūri-no-kami
, the governor appointed by Shingen. Or, another story is that, impressed by Kamiizumi's valor, Shingen invited him to join the Takeda side after Minowa Castle fell. How exactly it came about is not clear, but what is clear is that Kamiizumi became a minor official to the Takeda clan.
A common story is that in recognition of his tremendous ability in defense of the castle, Takeda Shingen allowed Kamiizumi the use of the 信 character (read as either “shin” in “Shingen”, or “nobu” as in “Harunobu”) in his name, and thereafter Kamiizumi was known as Nobutsuna. However, in the license of transmission given to Yagyū Munetoshi in 1565, Kamiizumi signs it as “Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara-no-Hidetsuna”, and in the scrolls given to Munetoshi the following year he signs “Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara-no-Nobutsuna.” If Minowa Castle fell in 1563, Kamiizumi was still using “Hidetsuna” two years later. If it fell in 1566, Kamiizumi was using Nobutsuna before Takeda Shingen attacked. Name changing was common in that era, and it’s likely that the change to Nobutsuna was unrelated to Takeda Shingen.
, then the capital. In 1558, he met a young Marume Nagayoshi there. While traveling to Kyoto in late 1563, he met Yagyū Munetoshi, and stayed in Yagyū Village
for about half a year before arriving at the capital in 1564. During one of these trips, Kamiizumi and Marume demonstrated Shinkage-ryū to the Shogun
Ashikaga Yoshiteru
. Yoshiteru wrote a certificate of admiration, declaring Kamiizumi’s school unparalleled in the land, and praising Marume's performance. The certificate is undated. Later, Kamiizumi would move to Kyoto, teaching Shinkage-ryū to various courtiers and noblement of the Ashikaga Shogunate.
Kamiizumi gathered a great many students. One source claims that he had 84 disciples with him when went to Kyoto in 1564, and in the following year Kamiizumi himself claims in his certificate to Munetoshi that he had hundreds of disciples, presumably spread all over Japan at that time. Among his famous students are Yagyū Munetoshi, whose line of Shinkage-ryū exists to this day; Hikita Bungorō
, Kamiizumi’s nephew and founder of Hikita Kage-ryū; Hōzōin In'ei, a monk who founded Hōzōin-ryū
sōjutsu
; Marume Nagayoshi, founder of Taisha-ryū; Nonaka Shinkura, founder of Shin Shinkage Ichiden-ryū; and Komagawa Kuniyoshi
, founder of Komagawa Kaishin-ryū
.
, and then traveled back to eastern Japan, with a letter of introduction from Yamashina to the Yuki clan in Shimōsa Province. The last known record of Kamiizumi is an entry in the records of Seirinji, a Soto Zen Buddhist temple in the town where Kamiizumi’s family castle once stood. The record notes that Kamiizumi helped establish the temple in 1577, erecting a gravestone and paying for services. The temple still stands in Maebashi
, Gunma Prefecture
.
It is not known when Kamiizumi died. One record notes that he died in 1572, but this is clearly contradicted by the Seirinji record noted above. Another record notes that he died in 1577 in Yagyū Village, but the Yagyū family have no records of this, and while there is a memorial to him there, there is no grave. One theory is that the gravestone and services held in 1577 were for Kamiizumi himself, while another is that the gravestone and services were for the 12th anniversary of his son’s death, a common rite in Japan. A document of Kiraku-ryū, a jujutsu school based in the Gunma area, says Kamiizumi died in Odawara
in 1577, while a document of the Kamiizumi family suggests he died in Odawara in 1582.
. Through his major students, numerous branch traditions were created and spread around Japan. Schools still extant today that claim Kamiizumi as a founder, co-founder, or progenitor include (Yagyū) Shinkage-ryū
, Jikishinkage-ryū
, Kashima Shin-ryū, Taisha-ryū, and Komagawa Kaishin-ryū
.
He is popularly credited as the inventor of the fukuro-shinai, a practice sword made from split-bamboo in a leather sleeve, allowing practitioners to practice together and swing with full-force without fear of death or major injury. The particular version used in Yagyū Shinkage-ryū is called a hikihada-shinai, "toad-skin shinai". The leather sleeve is made of cow or horse hide, but after being lacquered Kamakura Red, it resembles the skin of a hikigaeru
.
The Honchō Bugei Shōden, a mid-Edo period
collection of historical stories, related one of Kamiizumi travelling to Myōkōji Temple, in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture
. An insane man had kidnapped a child and was hiding in a barn with a sword. Kamiizumi shaved his head, borrowed a kesa
from a priest, and approached the barn with two rice balls. Kamiizumi used the rice balls to lull the man into dropping his guard, and then quickly seized him and saved the child. This episode was later used by writer/director Akira Kurosawa
in his film, The Seven Samurai
.
In 2008, the city of Maebashi celebrated the 500th anniversary of Kamiizumi’s birth with a festival. Services were held at the Kamiizumi gravesite, and a 2.5 meter tall bronze statue of Kamiizumi, holding a fukuro-shinai, was unveiled. Yagyū Koichi, a lineal descendant of Kamiizumi’s student Yagyū Munetoshi, demonstrated Shinkage-ryū with his students.
Sengoku period
The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...
famous for creating the Shinkage-ryū
Shinkage-ryu
' meaning "new shadow school", is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts, founded by Kamiizumi Ise-no-Kami Nobutsuna in the mid-sixteenth century...
school of combat.
Early life
Kamiizumi was born as Kamiizumi Hidetsuna in his family castle in Kōzuke ProvinceKozuke Province
was an old province located in the Tōsandō of Japan, which today comprises Gunma Prefecture. It is nicknamed as or .The ancient provincial capital was near modern Maebashi. During the Sengoku period, Kōzuke was controlled variously by Takeda Shingen, Uesugi Kenshin, the late Hōjō clan, and...
(modern day Maebashi
Maebashi, Gunma
is the capital city of Gunma Prefecture, Japan.The city was founded on April 1, 1892, by the samurai Makuba Kawai.On December 5, 2004 the town of Ōgo, and the villages of Kasukawa and Miyagi, all from Seta District, were merged into Maebashi....
, Gunma Prefecture
Gunma Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the northwest corner of the Kantō region on Honshu island. Its capital is Maebashi.- History :The remains of a Paleolithic man were found at Iwajuku, Gunma Prefecture, in the early 20th century and there is a public museum there.Japan was without horses until...
). His family were minor landed lords in the service of the Yamanouchi branch of the Uesugi clan
Uesugi clan
The was a Japanese samurai clan, descended from the Fujiwara clan and particularly notable for their power in the Muromachi and Sengoku periods ....
. At the time of his birth, Kōzuke Province was being contested by the Uesugi, the Hōjō
Hojo clan
See the late Hōjō clan for the Hōjō clan of the Sengoku Period.The in the history of Japan was a family who controlled the hereditary title of shikken of the Kamakura Shogunate. In practice, the family had actual governmental power, many times dictatorial, rather than Kamakura shoguns, or the...
, and the Takeda clans. His family was originally a branch of the Ōgo clan that moved to nearby Kaigayagō Kamiizumi and took its name for their own. When the main Ōgo clan moved to Musashi Province
Musashi Province
was a province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo Prefecture, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki and Yokohama...
, the Kamiizumi family took over Ōgo Castle, at the southern foot of Mount Akagi
Mount Akagi
is a mountain in Gunma Prefecture, Japan.The broad, low dominantly andesitic stratovolcano rises above the northern end of the Kanto Plain. It contains an elliptical, 3 x 4 km summit caldera with post-caldera lava domes arranged along a NW-SE line. Lake Ono is located at the NE end of the...
.
From the age of 13 or 14, Kamiizumi was tutored by a Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
roshi
Roshi
is a Japanese honorific title used in Zen Buddhism that literally means "old teacher" or "elder master" and sometimes denotes a person who gives spiritual guidance to a Zen sangha or congregation...
named Tenmyō in Zen Buddhism and other Eastern philosophy. In his youth, he went to nearby Shimōsa Province (modern day Chiba Prefecture
Chiba Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region and the Greater Tokyo Area. Its capital is Chiba City.- History :Chiba Prefecture was established on June 15, 1873 with the merger of Kisarazu Prefecture and Inba Prefecture...
) and began studying Nen-ryū
Nen-ryu
is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts founded in 1368 CE by the samurai Sōma Shiro Yoshimoto in modern day Nagano Prefecture, where Yoshimoto is said to have taught only fourteen students until his death.-Teachings:...
, and Shintō-ryū
Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-ryu
is one of the oldest extant Japanese martial arts, and an exemplar of koryū bujutsu. The Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū was founded by Iizasa Ienao, born 1387 in Iizasa village , who was living near Katori Shrine at the time...
. Later he went to Hitachi Province
Hitachi Province
was an old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Iwashiro, Iwaki, Shimousa, and Shimotsuke Provinces....
(modern day Ibaraki Prefecture
Ibaraki Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan, located in the Kantō region on the main island of Honshu. The capital is Mito.-History:Ibaraki Prefecture was previously known as Hitachi Province...
) and studied Kage-ryū
Kage-ryu
is a Japanese koryu martial art founded in the late Muromachi period ca 1550 by Yamamoto Hisaya Masakatsu.The system teaches battojutsu using very long swords known as choken....
. It is not clear who Kamiizumi’s teachers were; in all of his later writings, he marks the start of lineal transmission of his art from himself. He was a younger contemporary of Tsukahara Bokuden
Tsukahara Bokuden
was a famous swordsman of the early Sengoku period. He was widely regarded as a kensei . He was the founder of a new Kashima style of fencing, and served as an instructor of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru and Ise provincial governor Tomonori Kitabatake....
. The lineage of Jikishinkage-ryū
Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage-ryu
, often referred to simply as Jikishinkage-ryū or Kashima Shinden, is a traditional school of the Japanese martial art of swordsmanship...
puts Kamiizumi second after Matsumoto Bizen-no-kami. The lineage of Hikita Kage-ryū puts Kamiizumi second or third after Aisu Ikōsai. In Yagyū Shinkage-ryū
Yagyu Shinkage-ryu
is one of the oldest Japanese schools of swordsmanship . 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...
, it is believed that Kamiizumi learned Kage-ryū from Ikōsai, receiving full transmission around the age of 23. A few years later, Kamiizumi learned battle strategy and divination from a man named Ogasawara Ujitaka.
In the Empi-no-Tachi scrolls that Kamiizumi gave to Yagyū Munetoshi and Marume Nagayoshi, he wrote that he had studied Nen-ryū, Shintō-ryū, Kage-ryū, and others, and had developed a new innovation from Kage-ryū, and thus named his school Shinkage-ryū (New Kage-ryū). In his book Shōden Shinkage-ryū, Yagyū Toshinaga surmised that Kamiizumi created Shinkage-ryū in his mid-30s.
As a general
In 1555, Hōjō UjiyasuHojo Ujiyasu
was the son of Hōjō Ujitsuna and a daimyō of the Odawara Hōjō clan.Upon his father's death in 1541, a number of the Hōjō's enemies sought to take advantage of the opportunity to seize major Hōjō strongholds...
ordered an attack on Ōgo castle, now commanded by Kamiizumi. Kamiizumi surrendered the castle without a fight, and joined Ujiyasu. This same year, Uesugi Kenshin
Uesugi Kenshin
was a daimyo who ruled Echigo province in the Sengoku period of Japan.He was one of the most powerful lords of the Sengoku period. While chiefly remembered for his prowess on the battlefield, Kenshin is also regarded as an extremely skillful administrator who fostered the growth of local industries...
invaded western Kōzuke in order to re-take Hirai Castle. Kamiizumi abandoned the Hōjō side, and sent messages to the Uesugi. He became one of Uesugi's generals, and helped the Uesugi drive out the Hōjō forces. Kenshin seized total control of Kōzuke, installed Nagano Narimasa as governor in Minowa Castle
Minowa Castle
is a castle located in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, Japan.-History:Minowa Castle was built in 1526 by Nagano Narimasa from the Nagano clan based out of Nagano in Kozuke Province...
, and returned to his base in Echigo.
Kamiizumi joined Nagano's service, and quickly became one of the "Sixteen Spears of Nagano House". In particular he distinguished himself when Nagano attacked Yamanaka Castle, and became known as "the best spearsman of Kōzuke." Nagano held off attacks from Takeda Shingen for seven years from Minowa Castle, but he died in 1561. His heir, Ukyō-no-shin Narimori, was only 16 years old, so Nagano’s death was kept secret as long as possible. Shingen eventually found out, and in 1563 (some sources suggest 1566), he invaded western Kōzuke with a force of over 10,000 Kai soldiers. The Kōyō Gunkan dates the invasion to 1563, while the records of Chōnenji, the temple where Nagano was buried, dates it to 1566. Minowa Castle was completely surrounded and besieged. Narimori took his own life on February 22, morale fell, and the castle followed on the 28th.
Kamiizumi fought his way out of the castle, and escaped to eastern Kōzuke, where he joined with Kiryū Ōinosuke Naotsuna. But Naotsuna died soon thereafter and his son Matajirō Shigetsuna took over. With this, Kamiizumi returned to Minowa Castle. It is not known why. One story is that he returned because of many friends still at the castle, and there he joined the service of Naitō Shūri-no-kami
Naito Masatoyo
' also known as was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period. As one of Takeda Shingen's most reliable generals, he fought in many of the Takeda clan's battles. Masatoyo was the second son of Takeda Nobutora's senior retainer, Kudō Toratoyo. He was first called Kudō Sukenaga...
, the governor appointed by Shingen. Or, another story is that, impressed by Kamiizumi's valor, Shingen invited him to join the Takeda side after Minowa Castle fell. How exactly it came about is not clear, but what is clear is that Kamiizumi became a minor official to the Takeda clan.
A common story is that in recognition of his tremendous ability in defense of the castle, Takeda Shingen allowed Kamiizumi the use of the 信 character (read as either “shin” in “Shingen”, or “nobu” as in “Harunobu”) in his name, and thereafter Kamiizumi was known as Nobutsuna. However, in the license of transmission given to Yagyū Munetoshi in 1565, Kamiizumi signs it as “Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara-no-Hidetsuna”, and in the scrolls given to Munetoshi the following year he signs “Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Fujiwara-no-Nobutsuna.” If Minowa Castle fell in 1563, Kamiizumi was still using “Hidetsuna” two years later. If it fell in 1566, Kamiizumi was using Nobutsuna before Takeda Shingen attacked. Name changing was common in that era, and it’s likely that the change to Nobutsuna was unrelated to Takeda Shingen.
Spreading Shinkage-ryū
After joining Nagano's service, Kamiizumi made a number of trips to KyotoKyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
, then the capital. In 1558, he met a young Marume Nagayoshi there. While traveling to Kyoto in late 1563, he met Yagyū Munetoshi, and stayed in Yagyū Village
Yagyu, Nara
is a quarter in the city of Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The center of Yagyū is about 20 km to the east, in the direction of Mie Prefecture on Route 369, from the center of the city of Nara. In the context of tourism, also used to include neighbouring area to Yagyū-chō, which were mostly former...
for about half a year before arriving at the capital in 1564. During one of these trips, Kamiizumi and Marume demonstrated Shinkage-ryū to the Shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
Ashikaga Yoshiteru
Ashikaga Yoshiteru
, also known as Yoshifushi or Yoshifuji, was the 13th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1546 to 1565 during the late Muromachi period of Japan. He was the eldest son of the 12th shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiharu; and his mother was a daughter of Konoe Taneie...
. Yoshiteru wrote a certificate of admiration, declaring Kamiizumi’s school unparalleled in the land, and praising Marume's performance. The certificate is undated. Later, Kamiizumi would move to Kyoto, teaching Shinkage-ryū to various courtiers and noblement of the Ashikaga Shogunate.
Kamiizumi gathered a great many students. One source claims that he had 84 disciples with him when went to Kyoto in 1564, and in the following year Kamiizumi himself claims in his certificate to Munetoshi that he had hundreds of disciples, presumably spread all over Japan at that time. Among his famous students are Yagyū Munetoshi, whose line of Shinkage-ryū exists to this day; Hikita Bungorō
Hikita Bungoro
was a swordsman during the Sengoku Period of the 16th century. Hikita Bungoro was the nephew of the famous swordsman Kamiizumi Hidetsuna, in which they were both very well versed in the ways of bujutsu. Another famous swordsman by the name of Yagyū Muneyoshi had seen the superb skills set by...
, Kamiizumi’s nephew and founder of Hikita Kage-ryū; Hōzōin In'ei, a monk who founded Hōzōin-ryū
Hozoin-ryu
is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts that specializes in the art of spearmanship . Hōzōin-ryū was founded by Hōzōin Kakuzenbō In'ei in c. 1560. In'ei was a Buddhist monk of Kōfuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan. He adored martial arts and trained in the art of swordsmanship...
sōjutsu
Sojutsu
, meaning "art of the spear" is the Japanese martial art of fighting with the Japanese .-Origins:Although the spear had a profound role in early Japanese mythology, where the islands of Japan themselves were said to be created by salt water dripping from the tip of a spear, as a weapon the first...
; Marume Nagayoshi, founder of Taisha-ryū; Nonaka Shinkura, founder of Shin Shinkage Ichiden-ryū; and Komagawa Kuniyoshi
Komagawa Tarozaemon
Komagawa Tarozaemon was a disciple under the famous Kamiizumi Ise no kami Nobutsuna, founder of Shinkage-ryūTarozaemon's Komagawa Kaishin-ryū was handed down through the Maeda clan of Kaga, where he taught the use of the tachi , kodachi , jitte , naginata and nito...
, founder of Komagawa Kaishin-ryū
Komagawa Kaishin-ryu
is a traditional Japanese martial art established by Komagawa Tarōzaemon Kuniyoshi based on the Shinkage-ryū of Kamiizumi Ise no kami Nobutsuna...
.
Later years and death
A councillor in Kyōto named Yamashina Tokitsugu wrote in his diary that Kamiizumi came to the capital in 1570. He stayed with Yamashina for about two years, teaching Shinkage-ryū, and serving Yamashina. During this time he was known as Kamiizumi Musashi-no-kami Nobutsuna, or sometimes Ōgo Musashi-no-kami. In 1572 he visited Yagyū VillageYagyu, Nara
is a quarter in the city of Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The center of Yagyū is about 20 km to the east, in the direction of Mie Prefecture on Route 369, from the center of the city of Nara. In the context of tourism, also used to include neighbouring area to Yagyū-chō, which were mostly former...
, and then traveled back to eastern Japan, with a letter of introduction from Yamashina to the Yuki clan in Shimōsa Province. The last known record of Kamiizumi is an entry in the records of Seirinji, a Soto Zen Buddhist temple in the town where Kamiizumi’s family castle once stood. The record notes that Kamiizumi helped establish the temple in 1577, erecting a gravestone and paying for services. The temple still stands in Maebashi
Maebashi, Gunma
is the capital city of Gunma Prefecture, Japan.The city was founded on April 1, 1892, by the samurai Makuba Kawai.On December 5, 2004 the town of Ōgo, and the villages of Kasukawa and Miyagi, all from Seta District, were merged into Maebashi....
, Gunma Prefecture
Gunma Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the northwest corner of the Kantō region on Honshu island. Its capital is Maebashi.- History :The remains of a Paleolithic man were found at Iwajuku, Gunma Prefecture, in the early 20th century and there is a public museum there.Japan was without horses until...
.
It is not known when Kamiizumi died. One record notes that he died in 1572, but this is clearly contradicted by the Seirinji record noted above. Another record notes that he died in 1577 in Yagyū Village, but the Yagyū family have no records of this, and while there is a memorial to him there, there is no grave. One theory is that the gravestone and services held in 1577 were for Kamiizumi himself, while another is that the gravestone and services were for the 12th anniversary of his son’s death, a common rite in Japan. A document of Kiraku-ryū, a jujutsu school based in the Gunma area, says Kamiizumi died in Odawara
Odawara, Kanagawa
is a city located in western Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 198,466 with a population density of 1,740 persons per km² . The total area was .-Geography:...
in 1577, while a document of the Kamiizumi family suggests he died in Odawara in 1582.
Impact
Kamiizumi is considered a major figure in the development of kenjutsuKenjutsu
, meaning "the method, or technique, of the sword." This is opposed to kendo, which means the way of the sword. Kenjutsu is the umbrella term for all traditional schools of Japanese swordsmanship, in particular those that predate the Meiji Restoration...
. Through his major students, numerous branch traditions were created and spread around Japan. Schools still extant today that claim Kamiizumi as a founder, co-founder, or progenitor include (Yagyū) Shinkage-ryū
Yagyu Shinkage-ryu
is one of the oldest Japanese schools of swordsmanship . 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...
, Jikishinkage-ryū
Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage-ryu
, often referred to simply as Jikishinkage-ryū or Kashima Shinden, is a traditional school of the Japanese martial art of swordsmanship...
, Kashima Shin-ryū, Taisha-ryū, and Komagawa Kaishin-ryū
Komagawa Kaishin-ryu
is a traditional Japanese martial art established by Komagawa Tarōzaemon Kuniyoshi based on the Shinkage-ryū of Kamiizumi Ise no kami Nobutsuna...
.
He is popularly credited as the inventor of the fukuro-shinai, a practice sword made from split-bamboo in a leather sleeve, allowing practitioners to practice together and swing with full-force without fear of death or major injury. The particular version used in Yagyū Shinkage-ryū is called a hikihada-shinai, "toad-skin shinai". The leather sleeve is made of cow or horse hide, but after being lacquered Kamakura Red, it resembles the skin of a hikigaeru
Japanese Common Toad
The Japanese Common Toad or Japanese Toad is a species of toad in the Bufonidae family.It is endemic to Japan....
.
The Honchō Bugei Shōden, a mid-Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
collection of historical stories, related one of Kamiizumi travelling to Myōkōji Temple, in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture
Aichi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :...
. An insane man had kidnapped a child and was hiding in a barn with a sword. Kamiizumi shaved his head, borrowed a kesa
Kesa (clothing)
Kāṣāya are the robes of Buddhist monks and nuns, named after a brown or saffron dye. In Sanskrit and Pali, these robes are also given the more general term cīvara, which references the robes without regard to color....
from a priest, and approached the barn with two rice balls. Kamiizumi used the rice balls to lull the man into dropping his guard, and then quickly seized him and saved the child. This episode was later used by writer/director Akira Kurosawa
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 filmsIn 1946, Kurosawa co-directed, with Hideo Sekigawa and Kajiro Yamamoto, the feature Those Who Make Tomorrow ;...
in his film, The Seven Samurai
The Seven Samurai
is a 1954 Japanese adventure drama film co-written, edited, and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The film takes place in 1587 during the Warring States Period of Japan...
.
In 2008, the city of Maebashi celebrated the 500th anniversary of Kamiizumi’s birth with a festival. Services were held at the Kamiizumi gravesite, and a 2.5 meter tall bronze statue of Kamiizumi, holding a fukuro-shinai, was unveiled. Yagyū Koichi, a lineal descendant of Kamiizumi’s student Yagyū Munetoshi, demonstrated Shinkage-ryū with his students.