Origins of Seiza Kata in Iaido

According to pre- Edo warriors, seiza was a position from which he rarely would expect to draw his sword from and from the point of view of attacking, seiza is a dead position. It is also noted that a samurai would have rarely worn his sword indoors, as it was considered offensive to the host and would have proven useless for engaging an opponent due to low ceiling height and tight quarters. If this was case, then why it is that seiza katas are practiced today in modern Iaido?

To fully understand the reasoning behind the origins of seiza kata in Iaido we must take a closer look at the history of Iaido as it progressed through the Edo period. The development of battojutsu, better known today as Iaido, started early in the 17^th century by Hayashizaki Jinsuke, which founded Shimmei Muso Ryu, this ryuha would later become the bases for over 200 styles of Iaido. The beginning of the 17^th century also marked a period of great change throughout Japan under the leadership of the Tokugawa shogunate (1603- 1867), which brought peace to the entire country through a new form of centralized government. It was during this time that the warrior class, finding themselves without battles to fight, ventured deeper into the arts and philosophy. The primary focus of swordsmanship shifted from fighting to the development of spiritual enlightenment and art. It was during this time that Iaido would make its largest transformation and a man by the name of Omori Rokurozaemon Masamitsu would change the face of Iaido for the rest of time.

Masamitsu was a student of Rokudayu Morimasa (1661- 1732), 9^th headmaster of the Jinsuke Eishin line. During his studies with Morimasa he was expelled from the Eishin school for personal reasons. This led Masamitsu to pursue other styles of swordsmanship, which led him to Yagyu Shinkage Ryu, where he learned Saya Uchi Batto Gohan, the five forms of sword drawing techniques. He also became a student of the Ogaswara Ryu Reishiki, a school of etiquette and manners that derives from Japanese archery and horsemanship with principles deeply rooted in the teachings of Confucianism, it was also though these teachings that large emphasis was placed on seiza. Combining the teachings of Eishin with Yagyu Shinkage Ryu and Ogasawara Ryu Reshiki he developed a series of 11 seated katas and indicated that its teachings were primarily intended as a spiritual discipline rather than an effective combative form. The creation of these katas led to his reinstatement into the Jinsuke Eishin Line and to the formation of Omori Ryu Iaido.

These katas would later become part of the Jinsuke Eishin line’s unofficial curriculum with the naming of the 11^th headmaster, Oguro Motoemon Kiyokatsu, a direct student of Masamitsu. Kiyokatsu also took instruction from the 10^th headmaster, Hayashi Yasudayu Seisho, of the Eishin line, which was a student of Morimasa, 9^th headmaster. Upon Kiyokatsu becoming 11^th headmaster controversy arose regarding the inclusion of these techniques, which would later lead to divisions in the style. These divisions are known as the Tanimura- ha and the Shimomuro- ha, in which the Tanimura- ha became the main Eishin line and the Shimomura- ha would lead to the development of Muso Shinden Ryu.

However, these 11 katas would still not be officially introduced as part of the Jinsuke Eishin line until the Taira period (1912- 1926). The 17^th headmaster Oe Masamichi Shikei made significant changes to the line that would give Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu its current face. Shikei suggested that the Jinsuke Eishin line formally be taught under the name of Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu and that its techniques where to include those of the Omori Ryu. He renamed and classified these katas as Shoden, entry level, and reclassified the tate-hiza katas as chuden, middle level.

These modifications became permanent, answering the question as to why Iaido practitioners today perform katas from seiza, a position that pre- Edo warriors would have rarely encountered due to circumstance and procedure. We can now say with confidence that the development of seiza katas in Iaido was not developed for actual combat, but rather for spiritual enlightenment through arduous training and self-sacrifice.

Oe Masamichi Shikei

Iaido- Brief History

Iaido, the art of drawing the sword, can be traced back hundreds of years to its creator, Jinsuke Shigenobu, better known as Hayashizaki (Rinzaki) Jinsuke. Although much of his life’s tales have been highly developed, what is known is that he was most likely born in Sagami (Kanagawa Prefecture) in the mid- sixteenth century, around 1545, during a time of great conflict which may have consequently led to his interest in swordsmanship.

No traceable documentation has been found about Jinsuke’s childhood or about his martial arts training background up until the year 1595, where it is said that he resided in Bushu, present day Saitama Prefecture, for 18 years. It was during this time that Hayashizaki Jinsuke developed batto- jutsu.

Shimmei Muso Ryu or Junpaku- Den Batto- jutsu would become the bases for all modern noncombative iaido today.

Jinsuke’s batto- jutsu was founded on the Chinese theories of Yin and Yang (In and Yo in Japanese) and is a fighting system developed to quickly draw the katana while cutting the enemy in one stroke. His disciples would later call this style Shin Muso Hayashizaki Ryu, which today has evolved into over 200 schools of Iaido, the predominate ones being Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu and Muso Shinden Ryu.

After developing Shimmei Muso Ryu, Jinsuke headed out on musha- shugyo, dueling samurai to determine the greater fighting system. Along his tour he defeated many warriors and had many disciples. In around 1616, when he was about 73 years old, he toured for a second time and was never seen again. He is assumed to have passed away in 1621.

As batto- jutsu evolved through the Edo period, becoming iaijutsu, sword drawing art, so did the society around it. Batto- justu was watered down and started to become more of an art and a mechanism for spiritual enlightenment rather than an actual fighting form. During the Edo period the sword was not only a sign of the samurai class, but a vehicle in which the samurai could search for clarity and peace mind.

As time progressed into the Meiji Restoration period, the wearing of the katana in public was band, and iaijutsu made its final transition into Iaido, the way of drawing the sword. In this final stage Iaido lessened its emphasis on developing techniques to defeat opponents, and strived to become an art in which to seek spiritual clarity through diligent practice and perfection of technique.

Today, Iaido is still practiced by millions, and continues to fascinate even the most experienced of martial artists, as it provides us with a glimpse into the past and allows us to attempt to walk along the footsteps of the samurai.

Kendo- Brief History

Kendo, literally translated means” way of the sword”, and was developed over hundreds of years throughout Japan’s warring past in the form originally known as Kenjutsu, “Sword Art”. However, Kendo in its current form didn’t start to take its shape until the Tokugawa period, (1600- 1868), also known as the Modern Period.

During this time of peace those of the Samurai class were given time to reflect on the concepts of bushido and study the arts of calligraphy and tea ceremony amongst other arts. It was during this time that many new schools of swordsmanship started to develop based on theories and concepts created by past warriors. New training methods were developed, and since shinken shobu, live blade combat, for taryu- jiai, trial between two swordsman of different styles, required consent from the shogun, alternate methods had to be created for sword to sword combat. Due to these regulations, schools started to turn to the bokken, wooden sword, for these trials, but combat still led to crippling injuries and needless deaths. It wasn’t until Hikida Bungoro (1537- 1606), founder of Hikida Ryu, invented the first shinai, in which swordsmen were able to practice shinai- geiko, trial with shinai, at full capacity without fear of severe injury or death. In around 1711, Yamada Heizamon of Jikishin- Kage Ryu developed the first armor for shinai- geiko to eliminate injury and to focus more on waza, technique, and philosophy behind Kendo.

As time passed more rules were added, equipment refinements were made, and philosophies shifted from taking your enemy’s life to scoring and theoretically cutting your opponent which added a sport concept to the art while keeping its combative aspect. This eventually led to the creation of the Dai Nippon Budokai Bujutsu Senmei Gakko, Great Japan Martial Virtues Association Martial Arts Specialty School, which is responsible for systemizing the techniques and training methods of Kendo in 1895. In 1909 a university kendo federation was created and in 1911 the Ministry of Education made Kendo available in middle schools throughout Japan. In 1928, the Zen Nippon Kendo Renmei, All Japan Kendo Federation, was created to control and unify Kendo nationwide. And by 1941, Kendo was offered in all primary schools.

Today Kendo is governed worldwide by the International Kendo Federation (IKF) and the All Japan Kendo Federation. There are about 8 million Kendo practitioners worldwide, with about 3.5 million in Japan alone. Kendo is considered Japan’s third largest sport after Baseball and Judo.