Yagyu Shingan-ryu Taijutsu
柳生心眼流体術Edo branch of the old Japanese school Yagyu Shingan-ryu, which Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists among the taijutsu schools. It names Araki Mataemon as founder.
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About Yagyu Shingan-ryu Taijutsu
Yagyu Shingan-ryu Taijutsu is the Edo branch of the old Japanese school Yagyu Shingan-ryu. The Nihon Kobudo Kyokai association of old schools lists it under number 069 in the taijutsu section and names Araki Mataemon as founder. It lists the Sendai branch of the same school under number 068 and names Takenaga Hayato as its founder. English Wikipedia traces the Edo line to Koyama Samon, the fourth holder of the Sendai tradition, and regards Araki Mataemon as its spiritual founder. The sources therefore disagree on who founded the Edo branch. According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, training begins with a year of jujutsu, and only then come weapons. We have not found a link between the school and ninjutsu in any source.
History
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists the school as Yagyu Shingan-ryu Taijutsu and names Araki Mataemon as its founder. Alongside him it names Yagyu Jubei. English Wikipedia traces the Edo line to Koyama Samon, giving him the years 1718 to 1800 and calling him the fourth holder of the Sendai tradition. It gives Araki Mataemon the years 1594 to 1634 and places the school's headquarters in Tochigi Prefecture. The Sendai branch, by contrast, begins according to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai with Takenaga Hayato and lists Koyama Samon as fourth in the succession. No source we have gone through links the school to ninjutsu or to the Bujinkan.
How it differs
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists the two branches of Yagyu Shingan-ryu separately, the Sendai branch under number 068 and the Edo branch under number 069, and gives each a different founder: Takenaga Hayato for Sendai, Araki Mataemon for Edo. According to English Wikipedia, the branches also differ on who permitted the use of the name Yagyu. The Sendai line names Yagyu Munenori, the Edo line Yagyu Jubei Mitsuyoshi, who per it gave permission to Araki Mataemon.
Technique
According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, training begins with fixed forms and moves on to training the mind without forms. The aim is, per the association, freedom of mind and body. Japanese Wikipedia states that the Edo transmission preserves old armored combat and techniques with the large sword.
Training
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai states that students practice jujutsu for a year before moving on to weapons. According to the association, the school has training sites in Tochigi, Kanagawa, Saitama and Hiroshima prefectures and in Tokyo.
Today
According to Nihon Kobudo Kyokai, the school is today passed on by its 11th soke, whose address is in Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture. The association lists training halls in Tochigi, Kanagawa, Saitama, Hiroshima and Tokyo. Japanese Wikipedia states that Kano Jigoro briefly studied bojutsu under a man it calls a modern ancestor of the Edo transmission, and adds that formal entry into the school is uncertain.
Frequently asked questions
Is Yagyu Shingan-ryu connected with ninjutsu?
No source we have gone through links the school to ninjutsu or to the Bujinkan. Nihon Kobudo Kyokai lists it among the old schools in the taijutsu section.
Who founded the Edo branch of Yagyu Shingan-ryu?
Nihon Kobudo Kyokai names Araki Mataemon as founder. English Wikipedia traces the Edo line to Koyama Samon and regards Araki as the spiritual founder.
Is Yagyu Shingan-ryu a branch of Yagyu Shinkage-ryu?
According to the Sendai tradition, which both Nihon Kobudo Kyokai and Miyagi Prefecture give, the founder Takenaga Hayato served under Yagyu Munenori and was allowed to use the name Yagyu. We have not found a documented comparison of the two schools.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.