Origin of swordsmanship “Tenshinshoden Katori Shinto ryu” 02
The Pioneer of Japanese swordsmanship
“Tenshinshoden Katori Shinto ryu”, created by Ienao Iizasa, is a pioneer of Japanese swordsmanship. Of course, swordsmanship existed in Japan before him, and he has learned and practiced the art of using swords since he was a child. However, the swordsmanship before him was not a well-organized technical system in which if 100 people learned it, 100 people would be able to do the same thing.
Ienao Iizasa combined his learned sword skills with his battlefield experience. And he systematized and arranged them to create a unified technical system. In this respect, he and his school can be said to be pioneers of Japanese swordsmanship.
Ienao Iizasa lived to be 102 years old, which is surprising for this era. In his lifetime, he fought more than 70 woodensword matchs and 3 serious matches and never lost. He is a legendary swordsmanship hero. But usually he was a very rational and calm person.He told his students, “Budo is the heart and the way of human. The right human heart is important. Use your Budo skills for the sake of others and for the sake of peace in the world."
He shared his skills and knowledge with many people, regardless of status, and trained many outstanding disciples. The seeds of swordsmanship he sowed have since grown and enriched the world of Japanese Budo.
