Tennen Rishin-ryu
天然理心流Sword school from the late 18th century where Kondo Isami and other Shinsengumi men studied. Training uses a thick wooden sword weighing up to two kilograms.
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About Tennen Rishin-ryu
Tennen Rishin-ryu is a swordsmanship school founded, according to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, around 1790 by Kondo Kuranosuke. The dictionary Kokugo daijiten dates it to the Kansei years (1789–1801). According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the founder is known only to have come from Totomi province. He travelled the provinces and studied Kashima Shinto-ryu, then founded his own school and, according to the dictionary Nihon Jinmei Daijiten Plus, opened a dojo in Edo. The encyclopedia Nipponica gives his death as 1813, Jinmei Plus as 1807. According to Nipponica, the school spread around Tama and Sagami. The dictionary Daijisen Plus states that most main figures of the Shinsengumi studied in it, among them Kondo Isami and Hijikata Toshizo. In the genealogy of the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Kondo Isami is the fourth holder. According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, practice uses a thick wooden sword weighing 1.8 to 2 kilograms, and opponents clash until their strength runs out. Besides swordsmanship the school teaches jujutsu and the combat staff, and the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai calls it plain swordsmanship for real combat. Today, according to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the 10th holder leads it in Mita, Tokyo, and the Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai lists another line with an 8th holder in Ushiku.
History
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai states that Tennen Rishin-ryu was founded around 1790 by Kondo Kuranosuke, known only to have come from Totomi province. He travelled the provinces, studied Kashima Shinto-ryu, and then founded his own school. The dictionary Nihon Jinmei Daijiten Plus states that he studied the Shinto-ryu of Iizasa Choisai, added his own changes, and opened a dojo in Edo. The encyclopedia Nipponica places his death in 1813, Jinmei Plus in 1807. According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the school's name expresses that swordsmanship should not go against nature and should take heaven and earth as its model. Nipponica describes the school as a new current of swordsmanship that arose in the Kanto region, and states that besides swordsmanship it taught jujutsu and the combat staff. According to Nipponica, the third holder led a dojo in Edo, where Kondo Isami studied, and adopted him in 1849. In the genealogy of the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Kondo Isami is the fourth holder. In 1863, according to Nipponica and the Kyodo news agency, a detachment of ronin left Edo for Kyoto, and Kondo Isami and others stayed in Kyoto, where the predecessor of the Shinsengumi arose. The dictionary Daijisen Plus states that most main figures of the Shinsengumi studied in Tennen Rishin-ryu.
How it differs
Several lines pass on the school today. The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai leads a line whose genealogy runs through Kondo Isami, the Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai another with its own numbering of holders. Japanese Wikipedia states that several groups claim the main line of the Kondo family and researchers dispute it. According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the founder came out of Kashima Shinto-ryu and then founded his own school, which besides swordsmanship teaches jujutsu and the combat staff.
Technique
The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai describes Tennen Rishin-ryu as plain swordsmanship for real combat: a shout subdues the opponent and a technique follows. Practice uses a thick sword, opponents clash until their strength runs out, and finally a coup de grace is dealt. According to the same source, one technique joins swordsmanship with jujutsu, and another part of the teaching includes the combat staff. Japanese Wikipedia calls it a composite martial art whose swordsmanship and iai come from the Kashima Shinto-ryu line and jujutsu from the Takenouchi-ryu line, and which includes fighting with sticks of three lengths.
Training
The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai states that the school's wooden sword weighs 1.8 to 2 kilograms. The encyclopedia Nipponica adds that the school stressed real combat and fighting spirit. Japanese Wikipedia states that, according to present-day research, the fifth holder hardly practised forms and focused mainly on swordsmanship with the bamboo sword.
Ranks and progression
The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists among the surviving documents a mokuroku menkyo licence from the Taisho years. Japanese Wikipedia enumerates the grades from kirigami through mokuroku to menkyo, shinan menkyo and inka, and states that shinan menkyo permitted one to become independent and open one's own dojo.
Today
According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the school is led by the 10th holder with a dojo in Mita, Tokyo. The Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai lists a line led by the 8th holder in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture. The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai says it is not a cultural property.
Did you know
The encyclopedia Nipponica states that the school also taught country people, and so gained followers around Tama and Sagami. According to Nipponica and the dictionary Nihon Jinmei Daijiten Plus, Okita Soji studied in the dojo of the third holder and later became his head pupil.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Tennen Rishin-ryu?
According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Kondo Kuranosuke of Totomi province around 1790. The dictionary Kokugo daijiten places its origin in the Kansei years (1789–1801).
How is Tennen Rishin-ryu connected to the Shinsengumi?
The dictionary Daijisen Plus states that most of the main figures of the Shinsengumi studied in this school. In the genealogy of the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, Kondo Isami is its fourth holder.
How heavy is the wooden sword in Tennen Rishin-ryu?
According to the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, it weighs 1.8 to 2 kilograms. The same source states that practice uses a thick sword.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.