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Musō Shinden-ryū
is a style of sword-drawing art (''iaido'') founded by Nakayama Hakudō (中山博道) in 1932. Nakayama Hakudō studied under Hosokawa Yoshimasa, a master of the ''Shimomura'' branch (下村派) of Hasegawa Eishin-ryū, and Morimoto Tokumi, a fellow student of Ōe Masaji of the ''Tanimura'' branch (谷村派). The name Musō Shinden-ryū most likely comes from the name given to the ''Shimomura'' branch by Hosokawa, Musō Shinden Eishin-ryū (無雙神傳英信流). Particularities The ''kata'' from Musō Shinden-ryū have a number of differences from the ''kata'' of its sister art, Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū. Among the most visible are the manner in which the ''furikaburi'' (raising the sword overhead, sometimes called ''furikamuri'') and the ''nōtō'' (sheathing) are done. Both arts also differ from many other ''iaijutsu'' schools in that the ''kiai'' is performed silently, without ''hassei'' (shouting). Furikaburi After striking with one hand, primarily on ''nukitsuke'' (c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gordon Warner
Gordon Warner (October 24, 1912 – March 4, 2010) was an American one-legged swordsman who became the highest-ranked westerner in the Japanese martial art of kendo. He was also a world-record-holding breaststroke swimmer, a decorated World War II Marine officer, an academic in educational administration, and an author of books on kendo, the culture of Japan, and the history of the Ryukyu Islands. Early life and war service Warner grew up among Nisei in Long Beach, California, and began watching Samurai cinema and studying Japanese martial arts as a teenager. Tall and athletic, he became captain of the University of Southern California swim team, and lived in a Japanese dorm. On graduating in 1936 with a bachelor's degree in social science he joined the United States Marine Corps Reserve as a second lieutenant. At the urging of two senior officers, lieutenant colonel Anthony Biddle and captain Chesty Puller, he traveled to Tokyo in 1937 to continue his studies in Japanese marti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kamae
is a Japanese term used in martial arts and traditional theater. It translates approximately to "posture". The Kanji of this word means "base". The implied meaning is 'readiness' or 'be ready'. Kamae is to be differentiated from the word , used in Japanese martial arts to mean stance. While ''tachi'' (pronounced ''dachi'' when used in a compound) refers to the position of the body from the waist down, kamae refers to the posture of the entire body, as well as encompassing one's mental posture (i.e., one's attitude). These connected mental and physical aspects of readiness may be referred to individually as and , respectively. Although it is a generic term, context may mean there's a default specific posture which is being implicitly referred to. e.g. many modern styles use ''kamae'' by itself as shorthand usually for the style's basic stance for sparring or self-defense. As a further note, there are also related verbs, and adding ''te'' to the end of kamae makes the command ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Martial Arts
Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (''budō'', ''bujutsu'', and ''bugei'') are used interchangeably with the English phrase Japanese martial arts. The usage of the term ''budō'' (武道) to mean martial arts is a modern one: historically the term meant a way of life encompassing physical, spiritual and moral dimensions with a focus on self-improvement, fulfillment or personal growth. The terms ''bujutsu'' (武術) and ''bugei'' (武芸) have different meanings from ''budō'', at least historically speaking. ''Bujutsu'' refers specifically to the practical application of martial tactics and techniques in actual combat. ''Bugei'' refers to the adaptation or refinement of those tactics and techniques to facilitate systematic instruction and dissemination within a formal learning environment. History Each child who grew up in a samurai family was expected to be a warrior when he gre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ko-ryū Bujutsu
is a Japanese term for any kind of Japanese school of traditional arts. The term literally translates as " old school" (''ko''—'old', '' ryū''—'school') or "traditional school". It is sometimes also translated as "old style". Martial arts ''Ko-ryū'' is often used as a synonymous shorthand for , ancient Japanese martial arts that predate the Meiji Restoration of 1868.Draeger, Donn F. (1974) ''Modern Bujutsu and Budo''. New York: Weatherhill. Page 57. In English, the International Hoplology Society draws a distinction between ''Koryū'' and ''Kobudō'' martial arts based on their origin and the differences between their ranking of priorities concerning combat, morals, discipline, and/or aesthetic form. ''Ikebana'' (flower-arranging) ''Ko-ryū'' is one of the oldest and most traditional schools of ''Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It is also known as . The origin of ikebana can be traced back to the ancient Japanese custom of erecting Evergreen, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 of kenjutsu in their curriculum. Kenjutsu, which originated with the samurai class of feudal Japan, means "methods, techniques, and the art of the Japanese sword". This is opposed to kendo, which means "the way of the sword" and uses a bamboo sword ( shinai) and protective armour ( bōgu). The exact activities and conventions undertaken when practicing ''kenjutsu'' vary from school to school, where the word school here refers to the practice, methods, ethics, and metaphysics of a given tradition, yet commonly include practice of battlefield techniques without an opponent and techniques whereby two practitioners perform ''kata'' (featuring full contact strikes to the body in some styles and no body contact strikes permitted in others). Co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaishakunin
A ''kaishakunin'' (, ) is a man appointed to behead an individual who has performed seppuku, Japanese ritual suicide, at the moment of agony. The role played by the ''kaishakunin'' is called ''kaishaku''. Aside from being spared prolonged anguish until death, both the condemned and those on hand to observe are spared the spectacle of the writhing death throes that would ensue. The most recent ''kaishakunin'' of the 20th century was Hiroyasu Koga, who beheaded both the novelist Yukio Mishima and the political activist Masakatsu Morita during their seppuku. Ritual Still preserved in modern-day movements (''kata'') of the martial art Iaidō, the ritual of performing ''kaishaku'' varies very little between Japanese fencing schools, but all of them are bound to the following steps to be performed by the ''kaishakunin'': #First, the ''kaishakunin'' sits down in the upright (''seiza'') position, or remains standing, at the left side of the person about to commit ''seppuku'', at a pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seiza
'' Seiza '' ( or ; ; ) is the formal, traditional way of sitting in Japan. It involves a specific positioning and posture in a Kneeling, kneeled position so as to convey respect, particularly toward elders. It developed among samurai during the Edo period and was later widely adopted by the public. ''Seiza'' is associated with straw ''tatami'' flooring or ''zabuton'' pillows that allow for comfortable sitting, and it is commonly used in several Japanese practices, including Japanese martial arts and the Japanese tea ceremony. Sitting ''seiza''-style is often difficult for people who are not accustomed to it or for the physically infirm, such as injured people and the elderly. Sitting ''seiza''-style for long periods of time is associated with health problems, particularly those of the knees. ''Seiza'' may be compared to similar seated positions in other cultures, such as Indian Vajrasana (yoga), Vajrasana. Form To sit ''seiza''-style, one must first be kneeling on the floo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ōmori-ryū
is a iaijutsu koryū founded by Ōmori Rokurōzaemon Masamitsu (大森 六郎左衛門 正光), probably in the latter half of the seventeenth century. The techniques developed by Masamitsu were later incorporated into Hasegawa Eishin-ryū and continue to be taught to this day as the first series of ''kata'' in Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū and Musō Shinden-ryū. Development Ōmori Masamitsu first studied iaijutsu under the Hasegawa Eishin, the seventh headmaster of Shinmei Musō-ryū and founder of Hasegawa Eishin-ryū. He was later expelled for personal reasons and started to develop his own style. Masamitsu disagreed in particular on the use of '' tate-hiza'' and ''tachi-ai'' as practical sword drawing postures. He thus based his ''kata'' on the ''seiza'' posture as he had learned it in the Ogasawara-ryū, a school of etiquette or '' reishiki''. Though the form of the ''kata'' themselves were taken from what he had learned with Hasegawa, they were modified to conform to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saya (scabbard)
Japanese sword mountings are the various housings and associated fittings ('' tosogu'') that hold the blade of a Japanese sword when it is being worn or stored. refers to the ornate mountings of a Japanese sword (e.g. ''katana'') used when the sword blade is being worn by its owner, whereas the '' shirasaya'' is a plain undecorated wooden mounting composed of a '' saya'' and '' tsuka'' that the sword blade is stored in when not being used. Components *: The '' fuchi'' is a hilt collar between the '' tsuka'' and the ''tsuba''. *: The '' habaki'' is a wedge-shaped metal collar used to keep the sword from falling out of the '' saya'' and to support the fittings below; fitted at the ''ha-machi'' and ''mune-machi'' which precede the '' nakago''. *: A hook-shaped fitting used to lock the ''saya'' to the '' obi'' while drawing. *: The ''kashira'' is a butt cap (or pommel) on the end of the ''tsuka''. *: The '' kōgai'' is a spike for hair arranging carried sometimes as part of katan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jōdan
, which in a martial arts context means something like "high level", is one of the three heights commonly referred to in Japanese martial arts Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (''budō'', ''bujutsu'', and ''bugei'') are used interchangeably with the English phrase Japanese martial arts. The usage .... It refers to the upper part of the body, which includes the shoulders and above. See also * Chūdan * Gedan References Directional terms in Japanese martial arts {{Martialart-term-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nakayama Hakudō
, also known as Nakayama Hiromichi, was a Japanese martial artist and founder of the iaidō style Musō Shinden-ryū. He received hanshi (master instructor) ranks in kendō, iaidō, and jōdō from the All Japan Kendo Federation. In addition, he held an instructor's license in Shintō Musō-ryūMatsui, Kenji . 1993. ''The History of Shindo Muso Ryu Jojutsu'', translated by Hunter Armstrong (Kamuela, HI: International Hoplological Society) and a Menkyo kaiden in Shindō Munen-ryū making him the 7th ''sōke'' of that system. Nakayama was also one of the masters of the Shimomura-ha Musō Shinden Eishin-ryū, ''iaijutsu''. Biography Nakayama was born in 1872 in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. He moved to Tokyo when he was 19 years old and entered the ''dōjō'' of Negishi Shingorō of the Shindō Munen-ryū. In time, Nakayama became a master of Shindō Munen-ryū ''kenjutsu''. He taught at the Yushinkan Dojo, near Koishikawa-Kōrakuen The is a large urba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kiai
In Japanese martial arts a is a short shout uttered when performing an assault. Traditional Japanese dojo generally uses single syllables beginning with a vowel. The practice has become a part of Asian martial arts in popular culture, especially in martial arts films, in writing often rendered in variants such as ''Hi-yah!'', ''Aiyah!'', ''Eeee-yah!'' or ''Hyah!''. A ''kiai'' is usually not the word "''kiai''" itself. Etymology The term is a compound of '' ki'' (), meaning "energy" or "mood" and ''a(u)'' (, infinitive ''ai''), an emphatic marker. The same concept is known as ''kihap'' in many Korean martial arts, such as taekwondo and Tang Soo Do, ''ki'' being the ''energy'' and ''hap'' meaning ''to join'', ''to harmonize'' or ''to amplify'', based on the Korean reading of the same characters; its Hangul spelling is 기합. In the board game '' Go'', the term describes fighting spirit. Use in martial arts Students of Japanese martial arts such as aikido, karate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
