is a Japanese sword art school specializing in the iai technique. Often referred to simply as "Eishin-ryà «," it claims an unbroken lineage dating back from the sixteenth century to the early 20th century. 17th undisputed headmaster, Oe Masaji, awarded at least 16 licenses of full transmission, resulting in the school fracturing into multiple legitimate branches.
The school takes its name from its seventh headmaster, Hasegawa Chikaranosuke Hidenobu (é·谷å·Â主ç¨Âå©èÂ񄨭), who had founded Hasegawa Eishin-ryà «. âÂÂMusà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «â means âÂÂpeerless, directly transmitted school of Eishin.â âÂÂEishinâ is an alternative pronunciation of âÂÂHidenobu.âÂÂ
The founder of the earlier school Eishin-ryà « was Hayashizaki Jinsuke Minamoto no Shigenobu (æÂÂå´ÂçÂÂå©æºÂã®éÂÂä¿¡). Hayashizaki was born in Dewa Province, à Âshà « (present-day Yamagata Prefecture). He lived c. 1546âÂÂ1621 in what is present-day Kanagawa Prefecture. Many of the historical details of Hayashizaki's life are suspect, since, like most famous martial artists in Japan, his story has been widely fictionalized. It seems that he grew up during a time of constant warfare in Japan and was exposed to sword-fighting methods from an early age. According to legend, Hayashizaki's father was killed and to take revenge he began training in earnest. He went to the Hayashizaki Meijin shrine to pray for guidance and received divine inspiration for a new technique of drawing the sword and attacking in one movement. Legend says that he eventually defeated his father's killer.
Following this, Hayashizaki continued on his martial arts pilgrimage, training with renowned swordsmen and attracting students of his own (such as Tamiya Heibei, founder of Tamiya-ryà « (Tsumaki)). Hayashizaki established his own style of swordsmanship, calling it Shinmei Musà Â-ryà « (ç¥ÂæÂÂç¡åÂÂæµÂ).
Hayashizaki's art has had many names since it was established, such as Hayashizaki-ryà « (æÂÂå´ÂæµÂ) or Jà «shin ryu (éÂÂä¿¡æµÂ). It is considered the foundation for many of the major styles of iai practised today, in particular Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « and Musà  Shinden-ryà «.
The seventh generation sà Âke of Hayashizaki's school, Hasegawa Chikaranosuke Hidenobu (Eishin), was one of its most important headmasters. He had a major influence on the school. In particular, he adapted techniques originally developed for the tachi to use the contemporary katana. He devised many new techniques, some of which now form the Tatehiza no Bu (Chà «den) set. Hasegawa's influence and adaptation led to the style being named Hasegawa Eishin-ryà «. It was also referred to as Hasegawa-ryà « or simply Eishin-ryà «.
Some regard Hasegawa as the primary founder of Eishin-ryà «, which would make him the first generation sà Âke rather than the seventh, and make Shinmei Musà Â-ryà « a parent school of Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «.
The ninth generation sà Âke was Hayashi Rokudayà « Morimasa. Hayashi introduced a set of techniques executed from the formal seated position seiza. These techniques are thought to have been developed by Hayashi's kenjutsu teacher, the Shinkage-ryà « swordsman à Âmori Rokurà Âzaemon, and are said to be influenced by Ogasawara-ryà « etiquette, hence starting from seiza. They were taught alongside Eishin-ryà « as à Âmori-ryà «. Hayashi was responsible for introducing the school to the Tosa Domain at the behest of the ruling Yamauchi family.
As the school took root in Tosa, it came to be referred to as Tosa Eishin-ryà «. Eishin-ryà « and à Âmori-ryà « were taught to the Yamauchi family, with a few peculiarities (such as exaggerated leg movement to account for long hakama).
After the death of the 11th headmaster, à Âguro Motozaemon, the school split into two branches. They later became known as the Tanimura-ha and Shimomura-ha (after their respective 15th and 14th headmasters, Tanimura Kamenojà  Takakatsu and Shimomura Shigeichi).
One of the most important sà Âke was the seventeenth, . Born in Asahi (nakasuka) Tosa in 1852, in his youth à Âe studied Kokuri-ryà « and Oishi Shinkage-ryà « (大ç³ç¥Âå½±æµÂ)kenjutsu, along with Shimomura-ha Eishin-ryà « (Musà  Shinden Eishin-ryà «:ç¡éÂÂç¥Âå³è±信æµÂ). At the age of 15 he took part in the Battle of TobaâÂÂFushimi, following which he studied Tanimura-ha Eishin-ryà « under Gotà  Magobei. He also studied Eishin-ryà « bà Âjutsu under Itagaki Taisuke. à Âe inherited leadership of the Tanimura-ha, becoming its 17th headmaster. He combined the school's teachings with those of the Shimomura-ha and restructured its curriculum. à Âe reduced the number of from around 160, and reorganized them into the Seiza (Shoden), Tachihiza (Chà «den), Okuiai (Okuden) and kumitachi waza sets practised today. Although he retained the original techniques, he changed the names of some waza to aid understanding. à Âe named the reorganised school Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «, during the Taishà  era (1912-1926). In 1900 he began teaching kendo and Eishin-ryà « at the Kà Âchi branch of the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai and at local schools. In 1924 he became the second person (after Nakayama Hakudà Â) to be awarded hanshi in iaidà  by the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai. à Âe died at Enokuchi on April 18, 1926. His many students went on to spread Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « iai beyond Tosa and throughout Japan. 60 years after his death a memorial stone was raised to honour him on Mt Godaisan.
Eishin-ryà « uses a system of indiscriminate transmission (å®Âå ¨ç¸å³), allowing anyone in possession of full-transmission to award licenses to any number of his students. Therefore, it is possible that there were multiple, unlisted holders of menkyo kaiden, known in Eishin-ryà « as Kongen no Maki (æ ¹å Âä¹Âå·»), in any generation. Due in part to à Âe Masaji's more open and inclusive approach to teaching Eishin-ryà «, the lineages of groups practicing the art are fairly diverse and complex.
Following Kà Âno Hyakuren's death, the lineage of Eishin-ryu became contested again, with several individuals claiming to be the most senior representative. Who people consider sà Âke generally depends on the organization to which they belong. Some consider Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « to no longer have a sà Âke.
In addition to groups claiming to continue the above lineage, there are some branches of Eishin-ryà « that trace their lineage back to students of à Âe Masaji other than Hokiyama Namio, and which regard their leaders as the most senior member of the school.
There are a number of lines of transmission with direct links to à Âe Masaji but which do not make claims to hold leadership of Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «.
à Âe Masaji had many students who went on to spread Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « throughout Japan. Some established their own branches (æ´¾, ha). Seventeen of à Âe's most influential students, some with the branches they established, are listed below. This list is not inclusive. Some of these students were presented with menkyo kaiden although the exact number à Âe awarded is unknown. Most Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « taught today traces its lineage back to one or more of these men.
The techniques of Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « are broken up into sets based on the principal starting position of the and by skill level. The majority of the study is focused on these solo waza.
Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « has 45 solo waza and 45 paired waza; some of these paired waza are rarely taught. Certain lines contain additional waza, grouped under Bangai no Bu.
Solo waza use a single long sword (katana).
The word shoden (Ã¥ÂÂä¼Â) can be translated as âÂÂentry-transmission.â This set of techniques was derived from à Âmori-ryà «, and is still often referred to as âÂÂà Âmori-ryà «.â It is the first set of techniques taught. Seiza no Bu waza are performed from seiza, a formal kneeling position, with the general exception of Oikaze, which often begins standing.
Seiza no bu (æ£座ä¹Âé¨) contains the following techniques:
The word chà «den (ä¸Âä¼Â) can be translated as âÂÂmiddle-transmission.â This set was derived from techniques created by Hasegawa Eishin and is still commonly referred to as "Eishin-ryà «." It is the second set of techniques taught. Tatehiza no bu waza are performed from tatehiza, a half-seated position, with the exception of Makkà Â.
Tatehiza no bu (ç«ÂèÂÂä¹Âé¨) contains the following techniques:
The word Okuden (奥ä¼Â) can be translated as âÂÂinner transmission,â or âÂÂsecret transmission.â The Okuden sets contain advanced-level techniques. Okuiai Iwaza are performed from tatehiza. Okuiai Iwaza no Bu (奥屠åÂÂå± æ¥Âä¹Âé¨) contains the following techniques:
Okuiai Tachiwaza are performed from a standing position, with the exception of the three Itamagoi waza, which start from seiza. Okuiai Tachiwaza no Bu (奥屠åÂÂç«Âæ¥Âä¹Âé¨) contains the following techniques:
Bangai (çªå¤Â, lit. âÂÂextraâÂÂ) are extended tachiwaza. These waza are not koryà «, but were created by à Âe Masamichi, along with the Katate Hayanuki exercise.
Bangai no bu (çªå¤Âä¹Âé¨) contains the following waza, performed from a standing position.
In addition to variations of Hayanami and Raiden, some lines contain additional Bangai waza.3
Komei-Juku (Yamauchi-ha) practices the following set of five bangai kata in addition to the aforementioned three:
Kokusai Nippon Budo Kai formerly JKI (Masoka-Den) practices one additional bangai kata in addition to the aforementioned mentioned three: 4.鬼 Akuma Barai (shihogiri)
Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «'s paired waza (kumitachi, çµÂ太åÂÂ, Kenjutsu) are often taught only to advanced students after years of study. Some of these sets are rarely seen outside of Japan. Some ryuha have the first set (tachi uchi no kurai) as part of their yudansha curriculum. There is a high incidence of grappling, striking, and disarms in these paired sets. Some waza use both long (à Âdachi) and short (kodachi) swords.
Some waza begin with swords drawn; others begin with swords sheathed and employ nukitsuke (drawing) techniques. Typically these forms are practiced using bokutà Â; however, it is also practiced at high levels with shinken. Each of these katachi (essence of kata) was created to promote practice of a key principle of Eishin Ryu under controlled yet reasonably realistic conditions.
Tachi Uchi no Kurai (太åÂÂæÂÂä¹Âä½Â) is first kumitachi waza set in Eishin-ryà «. Both practitioners use a single long sword. The techniques are performed from a standing position.
There are two versions of this set: the original set of 10 waza (Tachi Uchi no Kurai) and the revised set of 7 waza formulated by à Âe Masamichi (also known as Tachi Uchi no Kata). These two sets contain similar techniques.
This version of the set contains the following 10 techniques:
This version of the set contains the following 7 techniques:
Tsume Ai no Kurai (è©°åÂÂä¹Âä½Â) is the second kumitachi waza set in Eishin-ryà «. Both practitioners use a single long sword. The set includes the following techniques, performed from tatehiza and standing positions:
The following kumitachi sets (Daishà  Zume, Daishà  Tachi Zume and Daikendori) are rare but are still taught in some dojo.
Daishà  Zume (大å°Âè©°) is the third of the kumitachi sets. Shidachi wears an à Âdachi and uchidachi wears a kodachi. The set contains the following techniques, which start from tatehiza and seiza.
Daishà  Tachi Zume (大å°Âç«Âè©°) is the fourth of the kumitachi sets. Shidachi wears an à Âdachi and uchidachi wears a kodachi. The set contains the following techniques, which start from a standing position.
Daikentori (大å£åÂÂ) is the fifth kumitachi set and contains ten waza. The first four waza are kodachi (shidachi) vs. à Âdachi (uchidachi), while the next six are à Âdachi vs. à Âdachi.
Kà Âno Hyakuren, the 20th sà Âke of Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà «, added two sets of additional waza, called Dai Nippon Battà  Hà  (大æÂ¥æ¾ÂÂÃ¥ÂÂæ³Â). The Battà  Hà  are based on techniques from throughout the system, but are performed starting in a standing position. As these waza were added in the 20th century, they are not considered to be koryà «.
Eishin-ryà « lineages without a connection to Kà Âno Hyakuren do not generally practise these techniques. Therefore, these waza are only included in some lines of transmission.
These waza begin using the Okuiai walking pattern.
In his book Musà  Jikiden Eishin-ryà « Iai Heihà  Chi no Maki, Masaoka Katsutane states that there were once two auxiliary arts practised alongside Tosa Eishin-ryà «.
This subsumed art focused on the bà Â, or long staff. It featured 5 kata of bà  vs. bà  and 8 kata of bà  vs. sword.
This subsumed art focused on grappling techniques in a variety of circumstances: standing, kneeling, from behind, etc. The school was divided into 6 sets with 63 kata. Natsubara-ryà « seems to be no longer extant.
In addition to the bojutsu and yawara, Masaoka's book also makes mention of other techniques, such as torinawa (rope tying) and jà Âjutsu (short staff).