Living over 600km away from the epicenter I was far from danger. As you know, however, many many people were not so fortunate. I was able – via facebook mainly – to determine that all my kendo friends are ok (some are contributors to this site, and others are Eikenkai members). My thoughts are with those that were not so lucky… to those that lost family members, friends, colleagues, their livelihoods, and that went – and are still going through – this nightmare.

If you want to find out more information or to donate, please check out the Google critical response page: http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/japanquake2011.html

If you are looking for someone, please use Google person finder (in Japanese): http://japan.person-finder.appspot.com/

- George
Osaka

Please check out regular kenshi247.net contributor Richards great pics from this years Kyoto taikai. Kendo, iaido, jodo, koryu… something for everyone!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/oroshi/collections/72157624000341357/

SHOGO (称号) in Japanese translates simply as “title” or “rank,” and the word can be used in many areas, for example formal titles of nobility, military ranks, scholarly ranks, etc, and informally in the sporting world, between friends, etc.

The use of the word that I will look at here is of-course that to do with the budo world, and specifically the usage promoted by the Dai Nippon Butokukai (1895-1946), and that continues today in one of its spiritual heirs, the Zen Nippon Kendo Renmei (All Japan kendo federation). Please note that the Butokukai information presented here relates to Kendo (variously called gekkiken and kenjutsu) but that eventually all arts under the Butokukai ended up using the system (kyudo, jukendo, et al).

Although this article is meant to be focusing on the shogo titles, I could not ignore the DANI (段位) system during my investigation. The dani system used by the Butokukai was obviously heavily influenced by the system used in Judo that was instigated by Kano and used at Kodokan. Amongst other things, Kano was the principal of Tokyo Higher Normal school between 1893 – 1920 and Takano Sasaburo began working there as a kendo teacher in 1908. Of-course Kano was influential in many circles (including governmental ones) but I don’t think its illogical to suppose that he had a large and a direct influence on Takano’s thought in this matter. Takano, of-course, went on to become a kendo leader in Japan, and a senior member of the Butokukai.

Also worthy of mention (and some details are included in the list below) is that Keishicho (the Tokyo Metropolitan police department) established their own dani system which ran separately from the Butokukai one. There was obviously some strong collaboration between Keishicho and the Butokukai (in fact, the government issued a writ expressly forbidding keishicho from meddling too much in Butokukai affairs).

Anyway, here is a breakdown of the most important events that went into the system that we have today. Items of particular interest are highlighted in bold.

At the end of the breakdown I have taken two or three key areas and expanded them a little bit more.

Significant events in the creation/history of the shogo (and dani) system rendered chronologically

Seirensho (精練証)

Of particular interest is the SEIRENSHO award. This was awarded for the first time at the 1st Kyoto Taikai in October 1895 to 15 highly experienced kenshi out of the 386 participants (the picture at the top of the article shows 12 of them). This award is the forerunner to the RENSHI title and would be continued to be used until 1934, when the former replaced it.

Since these were the first ever shogo awarded by the Butokukai (It would be a further 8 years until the titles of kyoshi and hanshi were created), its hard to guess exactly the worth of the title. My personal feeling is that it was an exceptional honour awarded to individuals with great prowess and who commanded respect within the Butokukai community.

The first people to receive the award were (name, style):

Ishiyama (Itto-ryu), Hagiwara (Jikishinkage-ryu), Hara (Tenji-ryu), Tokuno Sekishiro (Jikishinkage-ryu), Okamura Sakonta (Jikishinkage-ryu, shin nitto-ryu), Kagawa (Muto-ryu. The tallest guy in the back row in the picture above), Yoshida (Seitoku taishi-ryu), Negishi Shigoro (Shinto mumen-ryu, Nakayama Hakudo’s teacher. hanshi 1906), Umezaki (Shinkage-ryu), Matsuzaki Namishiro (Shinkage-ryu. Long white beard in the picture above), Takayama Minesaburo (Jikishinkage-ryu), Mamiya (Ono-ha itto-ryu. The picture above is his Seirensho), Kominami (Muto-ryu), Abe (Jikishinkage-ryu), Mitsuhashi (Musashi-ryu).

So you can get an idea about how many were issued in the early years, here is a quick breakdown of the numbers awarded over the first 6 years (still prior to the issuance of kyoshi, hanshi):

Year (number of Butokusai participants / number of seirensho awarded) :

1895 (386/15); 1896 (472/15); 1897 (482/6 including Naito Takaharu); 1899 (766/8); 1900 (493/7); 1901 (825/8).

Kyoshi, hanshi (教士・範士)

In 1903 four Kyoshi and seven Hanshi titles were awarded for the first time. The first ever hanshi were:

[name (style, prefecture, age)]

- Ishikawa (Itto-ryu, Kochi, 74)
- Takao (Tecchu-ryu, Nagasaki, 73)
- Shibue (Shinto munen-ryu, Nagasaki, 68)
- Sakabe (Kyoshin mechi-ryu, Aiichi, 66)
- Watanabe (Shinto munen-ryu, Tokyo, 66)
- Mitsuhashi (Musashi-ryu, Tokyo, 62)
- Tokuno (Jikishinkage-ryu, Tokyo, 61)

Hanshi became the top title you could get in the Butokukai and an age limit of 60 was set (that rule was broken in 1913 when kenshi including Naito Takaharu and Takano Sasaburo got it at an earlier age). Nowadays hanshi is still the highest title that can be achieved in kendo, with the very earliest you can get it being 54 years old.

Rokudan and above (六段〜十段)

Starting from 1937 the grades rokudan and above began to be used. There were 5 kyudans, 5 hachidans, and 20 nanadans appointed at this time. However it was still common to use the shogo-title above godan, and not the dan. The first ever kyudans were:

- Ogawa Kinnosuke
- Naito Takaharu
- Saimura Goro
- Shimatani Yasuhachi
- Mochida Moriji

In 1957 it was decided to award grades as far as judan, and the following people received the honour:

- Ogawa Kinnosuke
- Mochida Moriji
- Saimura Goro
- Nakano Sosuke

In 1962 a further – and last – judan was appointed: Oasa Yuji (pictured).

Although there are a number of kyudan sensei alive and practising in Japan today, the last living judan – Mochida Moriji – passed away in 1974. Nowadays, the highest obtainable level is hanshi hachidan.

This article started as a brief introduction into the development of the shogo system but kind of expanded into looking at how the dani system in kendo evolved as well. I pondered about talking more about the meaning behind the shogo system as I think its very misunderstood, but I have decided to leave that for another day. What I will say is that I do believe the shogo titles have an important role to play in the culture of kendo.

Nowadays in Japan you have to sit exams – both physical and on paper – to get renshi and kyoshi. Hanshi, however, is awarded by the ZNKR on recommendation by your local associations president and – I believe – this top award is not given automatically nor lightly. In that way, the difference between a kyoshi hachidan, and a hanshi hachidan is huge.

Note

Please remember I am not a professional translator, nor have studied Japanese at university nor in an institution. Any errors in fact, misunderstandings in the reading of the text, errors in translations, etc, are all my own. I can but apologise in advance.

Sources
全日本剣道演武大会のあゆみ：明治期にみる武徳際大演武会（通算100回大会記念出版）。全日本剣道連盟。2004年。
剣道を知る事典。日本武道学会剣道専門分科会。平成21年。
日本の武道（日本武道協会設立30周年記念）。日本武道館。平成19年。

It’s kind of odd at times how all of us are connected. We all remember our first time walking into a dojo. The odd sights, the sounds, the feeling. Many of us probably didn’t know exactly how to react to it at first.

Starting kendo in the states was a culture shock several hours a week at a time for me. At first it was fascinating, then later frustrating Then I believe it became the glove which I preferred to wear. My sempai told me once when he was teaching kendo in the states, ‘’I have to teach Japanese common sense. It is the most difficult thing’’. I didn’t really know what he meant by that till I started my own club.

People without any sort of Japanese cultural influence can be in for a surprise when they first get into a dojo. As an instructor at that point, I had to try to teach that Japanese common sense and then explain it at times. Why is there no talking during class? Why must you run everywhere? Why does the equipment need to be in a line when we line up? Why must I hear a reply when I speak? What is with the pseudo-military attitude?

For me, stepping into a dojo in the states was like stepping into a small piece of Japan.

Later in my life when I moved to Japan, I realized that stepping into a dojo was like stepping into a small piece of America.

I like many others moved to Japan to practice budo. Many times people will tell you this is a great thing, or I wish I did that when I was young, or you’ll have the time of your life. All these are both true and false. Coming here is full of sacrifices. The biggest one most people feel is the estrangement. A stranger in a strange land. No foreigners that come will ever be Japanese, and for me, I never want to be (Go Team U.S.A).

However, with all the misapprehensions that Japan and its people have about foreigners, there is one place where where you are from, what you look like, even what language you speak is of no consequence.

The only time I, and I’m sure a few others, ever feel like home in this country is when we are at practice.

Tsukahara Bokuden (1489/90-1571) is a renowned and well-known kenshi inside and outside of Japan, and is up there with the likes of Matsumoto bizen-no-kami, Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami, and Iisaza Chiosai in relation to his impact on systemising Japanese swordsmanship into the ryu-ha format.

He was born around 1489-1490 as the 2nd son of Urabe Akikata, one of the four retainers of Kashima shrine. As a young boy and teenager, Bokuden was taught the swordsmanship arts passed down within the shrine itself (Kashima Chuko-ryu) by his father, and later learned Tenshin Katori Shinto-ryu from his foster father (who was said to have studied under Iizasa Chiosai himself). It is also said that he learned Matsumoto Bizen-no-kami’s Shinkage-ryu as well, but whether that was from his foster father, or directly by himself is unknown. What is known, however, is that he fought his first duel with a live blade, and went on to fight many more during the duration of his three musha shugyo’s (around the ages of 20, 40, and 60). In total it was said that Bokuden took part in 39 battles and 19 duels with a live blade, never once being injured.

Bokuden lived a long life, and was a successful career swordsman, becoming a retainer of the then Ashikaga Shogunate. Although it is said he never gave a name to his own style (his students would go on to name it Kashima Shinto-ryu) he did pass on his full teachings to three students.

As part of my musha-shugyo this summer I made the trip to visit Bokudens grave. Based on the information I found on the internet, it was in Kashima city. After visiting Kashima shrine I looked at my map and decided – because it looked straight forward – decided to walk there.

Mistake.

It IS in the Kashima “city” precinct, but definitely not within the town itself. Its in a small village about 45mins-1 hours walk from the train station. After plodding through the Japanese summer heat, and without the aid of a single sign until you get within 5 mins of the area, I made it (I was determined not to give up!).

I am glad I battled my way to the site as there was not a single person to be seen and I could sit down and contemplate the mans life and journey (and my own) for a short while in silence.

Its a very inconvenient place to get to, but I do recommend that you give it ago, especially if you are in town to see Kashima shrine.

Getting there

Access: walk if you are stupid, get a taxi if you can afford it, or plan your trip in advance around the 3 or so buses a day that go to the area.
Open: All the time?
Cost: free.
English leaflet: no.

Its interesting to note that Kashima city is doing its best to promote Bokuden as a subject for NHK’s year long Taiga-drama series (when Musashi was the theme it had an impact on Musashi-related areas all over the country). If this happens, I assume the travelling situation to-and-from his grave will change!!

(p.s. I signed the petition to be sent to NHK!)

As part of my summer Musha Shugyo this year I visited the spiritual and historical center of budo in Japan: Kashima and Katori shrines, located in Ibaragi and Chiba prefectures respectively.

Their proximity to each other is very close, about 15 mins by train. Although 400 years ago there were no trains nor cars and travel was done by foot or horse, I can easily imagine kenshi of yore walking between these shrines as part of their musha shugyo.

From the aptly titled article “A bit of Background” please refer to this quote from Meik Skoss to understand the relationship between these shrines and budo culture:

The areas most famous for the development of the classical martial traditions (koryu) are located, as the saying goes, in the Kanto region, “Heiho wa Togoku kara”: heiho comes from the East, referring to the Kanto area surrounding Tokyo (heiho means martial or military arts; strategy). The Kashima and Katori Shrines lie on opposite sides of the Tone River in Ibaraki and Chiba Prefectures.

There are enshrined two of the most important Shinto martial deities: Takemikazuchi no Mikoto (Kashima Jingu) and Futsunushi no Kami (Katori Jingu). They, along with the Buddhist goddess, Marishiten, serve as the patron and protective deices for many of the martial traditions. Historical records show very clearly that young warriors gathered, or were sent by their masters, for advanced training at these shrines, which became centers for the martial arts after the end of the Heian era. Eventually this led to the foundation of the oldest known formal traditions in the martial arts, the Kashima Shinto-ryu and the Katori Shinto-ryu.

As this quote states, these shrines did not only serve as centers for religious and psychological development of warriors, but were also places they could study the more physical aspects as well. Kashima in particular was noted for its training of swordsmen.

The most noteworthy and influential swordsmen to come out of that area during the 16th century included Matsumoto Bizenokami Naokatsu, Kamiizumi Isenokami Nobutsuna, Tsukuhara Bokuden, and Iizasa Choisai Ienao. Starting with Iizasa, these men would go on to systemise the basis of almost all modern extant sword-based koryu

Iizasa was the first (historically verifiable) person to create a structured combat system (physically and psychologically). There were older systems at that time but there form is unknown.

Let’s have a brief look at each shrine individually.

Kashima Jingu

Kashima Jingu’s deity is Takemikazuchi-no-mikoto (武甕槌大神). He appears in both the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki, the two oldest books detailing early Japanese history and mythology. A short description:

A kami produced from the blood adhering to the sword when Izanagi killed the fire kami Kagutsuchi. Together with Amanotorifune (Kojiki) or Futsunushi no kami (Nihongi), Takemikazuchi descended to the land of Izumo and entreated Ōkuninushi to transfer the land (kuniyuzuri) to the heavenly kami.

Kojiki adds that he engaged in a test of strength with Takeminakata, the child of Ōkuninushi, who had opposed the heavenly forces. Subduing Takeminaka, he drove him away to Suwa in the province of Shinano (present-day Nagano). On the occasion of Emperor Jinmu’s eastern campaign, Takemikazuchi deferred from descending to aid Jinmu, but in his place sent his sword Futsunomitama, in this way aiding Jinmu’s forces in their successful pacification of the land. Takemikazuchi is worshiped at Kashima, Kasuga and other shrines.
-Kadoya Atsushi. From the Encyclopedia of Shinto.

Personal Impression

I had long wanted to visit Kashima shrine and it was a joy to do so on a hot August morning. It’s very close to the station and its impossible to get lost. En-route there is a big statue of Tsukuhara Bokuden, reminding us of the kenshi that went before us.

The shrine itself is relatively spacious, though small compared to places in Nara or Wakayama. The deer here are don’t run free as they do in places like Miyajima so you can safely sit and eat a bento or a sandwich without being harassed!

Wandering through the area I noticed that this years Iaido hachidan competition results were posted and that reminded me that there is a dojo on-site. However, there was no practise going on when I was there. Next time I come, I think I will try to combine it with some keiko.

I spend a peaceful hour or two here, just wandering about, listening to the cicadas, and drinking water, I bought myself a budo omamori and headed on towards Katori Shrine (I did both of these shrines on the same day).

Getting there

Address: Kyuchu 2306-1, Kashima-shi, Ibaraki-ken 314-0031
Phone: 0299-82-1209
Train: Kashima Jingu station (from here walk 10mins to the shrine)
Homepage: http://www.bokuden.or.jp/~kashimaj/
Cost: free

Katori Jingu’s deity is Futsunushi-no-okami (経津主大神). He appears in the Nihon Shoki, but not in the Kojiki. A short description:

A tutelary kami of swords, interpreted by some as the divine personification of the sacred sword Futsu no mitama, and revered as one of the ancestral kami (sojin) of the Fujiwara clan. Futsunushi’s activities frequently overlap with those of the kami Takemikazuchi, such as when the latter joins the former in descending from heaven to pacify the Central Land of Reed Plains (Ashihara no Nakatsukuni). But accounts found in Izumo no kuni fudoki and Izumo no kuni no miyatsuko kan’yogoto portray Futsunushi descending alone. As a result, it is believed that Futsunushi was a martial tutelary of the warrior clan Mononobe, but with the rise of the Nakatomi clan, his divine attributes were gradually appropriated by Takemikazuchi. Futsunushi is the central kami (saijin) at Katori Jingū and other shrines.
-Kadoya Atsushi. From the Encyclopedia of Shinto.

Personal Impression

Katori shrine is accessible from Kashima shrine (and vice-versa) via a small local train line. There is only 1 train per hour so if you intend to do both shrines on the same day, be sure and time things correctly.

Arriving at Sawara station I realised that the area was pretty much completely countryside. With very little signs (there are a few in Japanese though) I somehow managed to find the shrine after a 20 minute walk. The place was almost empty and that left me free reign to wander about, take pictures, and pay my respects at the shrine.

Its much smaller that Kashima shrine but my feeling is its a much more defined shrine area. Buildings are grouped a little less haphazard and are beautifully kept.

There was no information available in English anywhere, so if you want to visit the small dojo in the area or Iizasa Choisai’s grave, you might have to ask someone.

Trudging slowly back in the scorching afternoon August heat I arrived at the station 3 minutes after my train left… leaving me stranded in the middle of nowhere for 57mins until the next train arrived!

Getting there

Train: Sawara station (from here walk 20mins to the shrine, or get a taxi)
Homepage: http://www.katori-jingu.or.jp/
Cost: free

This is just a small introductory article to introduce both shrines to those that either haven’t heard about them, or know little about them. If this spurs on your own personal research into these shrines or a pilgrimage of your own, then I will be very happy.

While I was in Kyoto for work at the end of July, I ended up swinging by a historical site that is associated with Miyamoto Musashi: Ichijoji.

Four years after Sekigahara the young Musashi came to the capital. Here he is said to have challenged the Yoshioka school to a duel. Musashi defeated the head of the school, then his successor. The Yoshioka – being one of the most famous schools in the city – could not stand the shame of defeat and asked for a rematch. This time his opponent would be the new head of the school – and the 3rd of three brothers (Musashi having defeated his two elder brothers). Leaving nothing to chance, the supporters of the school selected an isolated area on the outskirts of the town and prepared an ambush. The ambush of-course did not go as the Yoshioka group expected and Musashi not only survived unhurt, but defeated the last of the Yoshioka brothers as well. The shame of this defeat damaged the schools reputation so much that the school was effectively destroyed.

The place that this last ambush took place was – of course – Ichijoji.

As with almost everything associated with the life and times of Musashi, its often difficult to separate fact from fiction. At any rate, its a good romantic swordsmanship story!!

Nowadays Ichijoji temple doesn’t exist. There is a small area, however, dedicated to the dual and a pine tree grows under which it is said that the last battle fought. Of-course its not the exact same tree (its the 4th!), but a branch of the original tree is stored in Hachidai jinja, a short walk to the east.

Although the area is small and a little bit hard to get to, its a nice relaxing trip out of the always-tourist-swamped temples of Kyoto.

Getting there

Address: Kyoto Saikyoku Ichijojisagarimachi-cho
Bus: Its a 3 minute walk by City Bus from “Ichijojisagarimachi-cho.”
Train: Take the small Eizan train from Demachiyanagi station (its connected with the Keihan line) and get off at “Ichijoji” station. From there its about 6 minutes walk east.
Cost: free

Of the three great private dojo in Japan (日本の３大私塾道場) – Honma Dojo (Chiba), Shubukan (Hyogo), and Tobukan (Ibaragi) – two remain extant at the time of writing this article: Shubukan and Tobukan. Having been to Shubukan, I decided to take sometime out of my schedule and go to practise at the infamous Tobukan in Mito city, Ibaragi prefecture, and learn more about this influential dojo.

Tobukan was founded on the 1st of January 1874, just three years after the abolition of the domain system in Japan and creation of the modern prefectural system. Mito-han had been an extremely influential domain and was the home of many radical thinkers centered around the domain school Kodokan.

The founder of Tobukan was one Ozawa Torakichi, a Mito-han clansman who had been a kenjutsu instructor at Kodokan along with Chiba Shusaku (the founder of Hokushin-itto-ryu, and an extremely influential figure in kendo’s history). Before taking the post he studied Hokushin itto-ryu at Chiba’s dojo in Edo – Genbukan.

Tobukan turned out many famous kenshi over the years with the most influential being perhaps Naito Takaharu – keishicho gekkiken shihan, and later Busen shihan (Budo Senmon Gakko). He helped develop kendo no kata and counts amongst his students Saimura Goro, Mochida Moriji, and Ogawa Kinnosuke (none of whom need an introduction), to name a few. Famous kenshi that came out of Tobukan at the same time were Mona Tadashi (taught at Keishicho and Busen, took part in 2 tenran shiai (one as competitor, another as shimpan), and helped develop kendo no kata ) and Sasaki Masanobu (taught at Keishicho and Butokukai, as well as other prefectures like Saga and Kagoshima).

I think its safe to say that what was studied by these kenshi as boys and young men in Tobukan probably had an impact on their kendo and their teaching later on in life, and influenced their students too . This impact and its mark on the development of modern kendo cannot, of course, be quantified, but it doesn’t take a stretch of the imagination to guess that it possibly could have been large.

Private ownership of Tobukan has continued to be passed down through the Ozawa family, and the tradition of practising kendo, iaido, and Hokushin itto-ryu is still alive 135 years after its founding (being a direct spiritual descendant of Kodokan you could cheekily add another 30 years to that!).

Keiko at Tobukan

Currently kendo, iaido, naginata, and Hokushin itto-ryu are practised at Tokbukan. There are at least two kendo hachidans, two iaido hachidans, and two naginata kyoshi’s.

Tobukan is open to anyone who wishes to practise. Simply get in touch before hand (via email or phone) and explain when you are planning to go. In the five days I was in Mito I managed to get to keiko three times with little fuss.

Impression

Tobukan is soaked with history. Now that the old Noma dojo was dismantled there are few places that are open to the public where you can practise kendo in a more traditional surrounding. I mentioned Noma Dojo, but Tobukan was built half a century earlier than that, when Samurai still existed and walked around carrying swords. Its a different feeling practising in this dojo compared with modern ones, and one that all serious kenshi should endevour to experience, at least once in their lives.

Getting there

Tobukan is an easy 10 minute walk from Mito station – even with your bogu bag.

For up to date schedule/contact information please visit their website: http://www.toubukan.or.jp/.

Background

The Mito-han was a highly influential domain during the entire Edo-period. As a senior branch of the Tokugawa clan their prestige was immense. Mito-han became one of the leading intellectual centers in Japan, and its daimyo and scholars became more and more vocal in challenging the central authority of the shogunate, eventually being instrumental in its dissolution. During the turbulent years leading up to civil war and the Emperors restoration, the domain school that produced these young intellectuals was Kodokan.

The following introductory text is taken from the English leaflet called “Kodokan” (I have slightly reworded sections of it). I will add my own thoughts at the end.

Kodokan: the biggest domain school in Japan

Kodokan was built by Tokugawa Nariaki (1800-1860), the ninth daimyo of the Mito-han in 1841. In those days the Mito-han was facing the fear of the baku-han system crumbling (centralised Shogunate relationship with the provincial clans/domains) and threat from foreign colonial powers. Nariaki initiated a reform of the han administration. As a part of this, he aimed at to introduce higher education for his clansmen. Kodokan was built to achieve this.

At the outset, the school site occupied 1800,000m squared, and its curricula included kangaku (Chinese studies), kokugaku (national learning), military arts, music, astronomy, geography, mathematics, and medicine. Both the size and the scope indicate how great an importance the Mito clan attached to education.

The mottos of Kodokan, described in the Kodokan-ki (the Chronicle of Kodokan), were the harmony of Shinto and Confucianism, and the concurrence of scholastic and military arts. There new concepts, which could be applied to creating a national unity under the rule of the Emperor, greatly influenced not only the Mito clansmen, but also many loyalists of the restoration period which were in other provinces.

Kodokan, once with its thundering reputation as the stronghold of Mitogaku and having exerted a great influence on the Meiji Restoration of 1868, was largely destroyed by fire during the restoration period. After turning out its last class, its 32 years of life came to an end. The remaining buildings are reminiscent of the spirit of the academic tradition of the Mito clan.

End of leaflet introduction

Bujutsu training at Kodokan

Kodokan had three dojo and a Taishijou (対試場) on its premises. The three dojo now no longer exist, but what was taught there was:

Gekkiken-jo: Hokushin itto-ryu, Suifuryu (水府流), Shintomunen-ryu (and presumably Gekkiken, i.e. kendo)
Sojutsu-jo: Hozoin-ryu, Saburi-ryu
Keiko-jo: Iai, Jujutsu, Naginata, etc

The Taishijou was for actual practise maches to be held, sometimes in the presence of officials. Even today kendo and Hokushin-itto ryu embu are held on it.

Hokushin itto-ryu was taught by Chiba Shusaku while he was a retainer of Nariaki (from 1835). Ozawa Torakichi studied Hokushin itto-ryu in Chiba’s dojo in Edo, Genbukan, before coming back to teach it at Kodokan. I think its fair to surmise that both these men also taught gekkiken here as well.

Three years after Kodokan was closed (1871) Ozawa opened Tobukan, a dojo from whom many influential kenshi graduated from (and that will be the subject of my next article).

Kodokan Today

Kodokan is just a short walk from Mito station and you could easily just stop of in Mito for an hour and see it. Mito is quite a small city, so there shouldn’t be large crowds. I went on a weekday morning in August and there was nobody there! It was quite relaxing and you could easily feel the places history.

Although the English leaflet says that it “was largely destroyed by fire during the restoration period” the main building is still intact and its definitely worth a visit.

Getting there

Access: 10 mins walk from Mito station.
Open: 9am – 5pm or 4:30pm.
Cost: adults 190 yen.
English leaflet: yes.
Home page: Mito Kodokan.

Often when an individual thinks of influential characters in kendo, more likely than not, that individual will think of Japanese kenshi like Mochida Moriji or Takano Sasaburo, or even present day heroes like Eiga or Miyazaki (rightfully so as these people have left a tremendous mark). However, few would think of an American named Dr Gordon Warner. Little information is readily available about Dr Warner and therefore his contributions go unnoticed for the most part. Dr Warner was a pioneer and is largely responsible for bridging the western world to Japanese kendo. In the following post I want to share what I discovered about Dr Warner and encourage those with personal knowledge to contribute below (and please correct any mistakes I may have made!).
 

As a young boy growing up in Southern California Dr Gordon Warner enjoyed watching chambara movies with his nisei friends, which at that time was very rare due to the absence of cultural understanding. Dr Warner often believed the people in the community thought he may have wandered into the theaters by mistake. It was this early exposure to Japanese culture that sparked his interest in Japanese history and eventually budo.

Dr Warner, a social studies major at the University of Southern California, was a large athletic man. Standing at 6’4″Dr Warner was on the varsity swim team. During this time he also decided to pursue judo and kendo at a local dojo. After graduating in June 1936, Dr Warner entered the United States Marine Corps as a 2nd lieutenant. It was during his time in basic training that Dr Warner met two officers Colonel Biddle (at the time a renowned fencer and foremost hand-to-hand combat instructor) and Captain Puller, who both encouraged him to continue studying budo, noting that kendoist were adept at parrying attacks during bayonet drills.

In 1937 Dr Warner returned to Los Angeles and continued his kendo training, this time under Mori Torao, who at the time was a business major at USC. Mori Torao and Dr Warner grew very close. Mori-sensei was impressed by Dr Warner’s physical ability and devotion to the intellectual study of the art.

Mori-sensei gave Dr Warner an invitation to his home dojo in Japan, with which he set sail, landing in Yokohama in September 1937. He presented the letter of invitation to Noma Seiji, founder of Kodansha ltd and the famed Noma Dojo. Under the direct tutelage of legendary men like Mochida Moriji and Masuda Shinsuke, Dr Warner received his shodan from the Dai Nippon Butokuden after two years of training at Noma Dojo. He also began to studying iaido during this time in Japan. Dr Warner returned to the United Stated in 1939, this time relocating to Hawaii breifly, where he continued his kendo training while working as a teacher. As a parting gift he was given a sword that was used in the battle of Sekigahara. That treasure today has been passed on to his children who also practice both kendo and iaido.

With America entering a long and brutal war in both Europe and the Pacific, Dr Warner received orders to report to the USMC school in Virginia, where he became a hand-to-hand combat instructor much like his friend Colonel Biddle. As the war escalated, Dr Warner was swept away to the Pacific theater. Dr Warner took part in the Bougainville campaign (Nov. 1st, 1943), being the first to raise the American flag on the island. Five days later after the initial landing, Dr Warner led an attack against a large force with a dug in position. Beginning at 6 AM the battle raged all day long, with Dr Warner’s company eventually over-running the Japanese opposition. Dr Warner used his Japanese language skills to help win the fight by confusing the enemy, by yelling false orders to those close enough to hear him. Toward the end of the battle, Dr Warner had taken command of a tank and led it into a clearing, where it came under heavy fire from two Japanese machine gun nests. The tank took many hits; some of these rounds penetrated the tank’s armor and hit Dr Warner in the left leg, shattering the bone. Dr Warner was awarded the Navy Cross for taking out the machine gun nests and he was recommended for the Medal of Honor for his actions that day.

Due to the serious injury he sustained, Dr Warner lost his left leg, amputated just below the hip (leaving only approximately 6 inches of his femur remaining), and subsequently spent a long time recovering in the hospital. Despite of all of this Dr Warner remained in high spirits, shrugging it off as “merely a casualty of war” and “incidental”. All the while he attended classes to eventually receive his Master of Arts from USC in 1944. After the war he chose a career as an educator at the University of California, Berkeley, and began studying for his doctorate. He no longer practiced kendo formally because of the loss of his leg but continued to train on his own with a bokuto. Later Mori Torao would convince Dr Warner to begin training again at a dojo. The teacher and student spent time together carefully going over kihon again, until Dr Warner was able fight once more. He and fellow veteran and scholar Benjamin Hazard organized a kendo club at UC Berkeley, with full support from the university department of physical education. This club still exists today.

In 1954, he received his PhD and took a teaching position at Long Beach State College in Southern California. Two years later he would receive 3-dan from the AJKF. Around this time, Sasamori Junzo requested that Dr Warner come to Japan to take part in a four week US-Japan goodwill tournament that would be held in Tokyo, Yokohama, Kyoto, and Osaka. Dr Warner hikiwake-ed twice, lost once, and won his final match in Osaka. One year later (1957) Sasamori Junzo would tour the US with a 13 man an all Japan university team, performing exhibition matches, with Dr Warner’s Long Beach State College being the site of the final match.

Dr Warner would continue to visit Japan several times over the years. In 1959 he would meet and train with Higashiyama Kennosuke (Kendo instructor to the Wakayama prefecture police), who had lost his right leg above the ankle. That year he would continue to train all over Japan, visiting more than 20 different dojo, finalizing his trip with the Imperial Guards kendo training. He was later rewarded 5-dan, making him the highest ranked non-Japanese at the time. In 1961 Dr Warner took a year long sabbatical to return to Asia, traveling to various dojo again and to finish the first draft of his book “This is Kendo: The Art of Japanese Fencing” with his friend Sasamori Junzo. “This is Kendo”, which was eventually published in 1964, would be the first book of its kind in English, and remain one of the few English language resources for many years to come. He would later on publish “Japanese Swordsmanship: Technique and Practice” with Donn F. Draeger, along with many other books on Japanese culture and history. He was also the first editor of Black Belt magazine and wrote numerous articles.

Dr Warner would eventually take up residence in Okinawa, Japan, where he would spend the rest of his days. During his time in Japan, Dr Warner participated in many shiai, such as the all Japan high school and university teacher’s tournament and the all Japan medical doctor’s tournament, even winning some of his matches. Much to his delight people would remark on his excellent technique and not his handicap. Dr Warner obtained the rank of Kyoshi 7-dan in kendo and 6-dan in iaido, all (except shodan) were awarded directly from the All Japan Kendo Federation. Remarkably Dr Warner achieved all of this without the use of his left leg, and what’s more did so even though many Japanese believed that a foreigner could not possibly understand kendo let alone physical do it. Dr Warner never put great importance on grades or tournament results, chalking them up to a learning experience, despite his achievements. He was always intrigued by the philosophy of kendo and the direct effect training had on his life. When asked about rank Dr Warner said, “To me a dan [ranks] is nonsense. At that particular point, out of eight [judges] who are watching, they pass [me]. Tomorrow I may be absolutely worthless with someone [else], I may absolutely fail.”

Before airplane travel, at a time when overseas communication was limited to handwritten letters, in the face of limited cross culture understanding, Dr Gordon Warner achieved what only a handful are able to do today with modern conveniences and readily available resources. He traveled to and practiced at legendary dojos, some of which are no longer here today, with many famous kenshi, and established life long relationships with the most important men in kendo history. We as non-Japanese kenshi are directly influenced by his passion for kendo and should give thanks for the cultural bridges he established.