Hokushin Itto-ryu
北辰一刀流A sword school founded by Chiba Shusaku at the end of the shogunate. According to Heibonsha, it had the greatest influence of all sword schools on the system and theory of modern kendo.
Quick Facts
JapanCharacter & Origin
Training
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
Editorial rating on a 0–3 scale, based on how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
About Hokushin Itto-ryu
Hokushin Itto-ryu is a sword school that, according to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, was founded by Chiba Shusaku at the end of the shogunate, and the same source says it is the youngest of the hundreds of old schools. The Nipponica encyclopedia states that in 1822 Chiba merged his family's Hokushin-ryu with Itto-ryu, began using the name Hokushin Itto-ryu and opened a dojo in Edo. The guide koryu.com places its origin around 1830. Nipponica reads the founder's name as Chiba Shusaku Narimasa, koryu.com as Shigemasa, and dictionaries give his year of death as 1855 or 1856.
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The Heibonsha encyclopedia writes that Chiba reformed the licensing system and the system of techniques into their modern form, and that of all sword schools it had the greatest influence on the technical system and theory of modern kendo. Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists paired forms: 43 with the long sword, 5 with the short, 6 ai-kodachi and 11 with habiki. According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Chiba's dojo in Edo had about three thousand students. At the invitation of Tokugawa Nariaki, lord of Mito, Chiba became a sword teacher at the domain school Kodokan, and so the school took root in Mito. According to the Daijisen Plus dictionary, Sakamoto Ryoma was among the students. Today Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists the line from Mito, which it gives as an intangible cultural property of the city of Mito. The guide koryu.com lists a line in Ibaraki Prefecture.
History
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai states that by tradition Hokushin Itto-ryu is the youngest of hundreds of old schools and that it was founded by Chiba Shusaku, who, having mastered the secrets of Itto-ryu in Edo, toured dojo nationwide and named the school after the North Star. The Nipponica encyclopedia writes that he learned his family's Hokushin-ryu from his father, settled with his family in Matsudo at fifteen and joined one of Itto-ryu's branches. In 1820, according to Nipponica, he set out to travel the provinces, and in 1822 he merged the two schools and opened a dojo in Nihonbashi, later moved to Kanda. The Heibonsha encyclopedia states that Chiba reformed the licence system and the technique system into modern form. According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai his dojo had about three thousand students, and the Kyodo news agency and the Daijisen Plus dictionary rank it among the three great dojo of Edo. At the invitation of Tokugawa Nariaki, lord of Mito, Chiba became a sword teacher at the domain school Kodokan, and the school took root in Mito. The Nipponica and Heibonsha encyclopedias and the Kokugo daijiten dictionary give the founder's death year as 1855, the Daijisen and Nihon Jinmei Daijiten Plus dictionaries as 1856.
How it differs
The Nipponica encyclopedia and Daijisen Plus dictionary state that the school arose from merging family Hokushin-ryu with Itto-ryu. The Heibonsha encyclopedia writes that of all sword schools it had the greatest influence on the technical system and theory of modern kendo, and Guy Buyens on koryu.com states that with Ono-ha Itto-ryu it served as a model for kendo forms. Japanese Wikipedia states that its dojo today do not belong to the kendo federation and have their own grades.
Technique
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists paired forms: 43 with the long sword, 5 with the short, 6 ai-kodachi and 11 with habiki. It describes the school's character as constant attack: move onto the opponent's sword, beat it down and strike as his movement begins. The same source quotes a school verse saying the heart should be calm, the body light, the eyes clear and the technique fierce. Japanese Wikipedia states that the forms resemble Itto-ryu's and that Chiba also arranged the naginata forms of his family's Hokushin-ryu. English Wikipedia states that the school stresses the centre line and kiriotoshi.
Training
Japanese Wikipedia states that instruction is divided into practice with the bamboo sword and paired forms, that Chiba compiled a set of 68 techniques for bamboo sword practice, and that in the forms the uchidachi wears thick gloves, as in Ono-ha Itto-ryu. English Wikipedia adds that the school still practices forms with the wooden sword.
Ranks and progression
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists among the school's documents the papers of the first mokuroku and licences of the middle and great mokuroku. The Nipponica encyclopedia mentions flexible teaching and simpler progression through grades. Japanese Wikipedia states that Chiba cut Ono-ha Itto-ryu's eight licence grades to three, lowering the gifts to the teacher so that even the poor could advance.
Today
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists the line from Mito with a genealogy from the founder through the Mito holders, and gives it as an intangible cultural property of Mito city. Japanese Wikipedia states that this line was interrupted, that around 2006 the forms were reconstructed from video footage, and that the city registered it in 2013. The guide koryu.com lists a line in Ibaraki Prefecture with representative Kozawa Kiyoko. Japanese Wikipedia also mentions other lines, among them one in Otaru. We have not found the school in the list of Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai.
Did you know
The Nipponica encyclopedia states that a votive tablet the Chiba family gave to Asakusa Kannon temple bore about 3600 names of family members and students. The Daijisen Plus dictionary lists Sakamoto Ryoma and Yamanami Keisuke of the Shinsengumi among the students.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Hokushin Itto-ryu?
According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Chiba Shusaku at the end of the shogunate. The Nipponica encyclopedia says he opened his Edo dojo in 1822.
What influence did Hokushin Itto-ryu have on kendo?
The Heibonsha encyclopedia writes that of all sword schools it had the greatest influence on the technical system and theory of modern kendo. Guy Buyens on koryu.com states that it served as a model for kendo forms.
Who studied in Hokushin Itto-ryu?
The Daijisen Plus dictionary lists Sakamoto Ryoma and Yamanami Keisuke of the Shinsengumi among the students.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.