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Kendoguy9
27th June 2000, 08:35
hello list,

i have recently become interested in the lineage of the various branches of the Itto-ryu during the Bakumatsu era and Meiji era. the famous kendo master Tesshu Yamaoka, seems to be smack dab in the middle of it all. from the book "The Sword of No-Sword" by John Stevens it seems Yamoaka first learned the Shinkage ryu of sword, as a boy (this doesn't have much bearing on my interest). after his family moved, he learned Ono-ha-Itto-ryu from Kiyotora Inoue . from there he moved to Tokyo and trained in the Kobukan, where i would assume he learned Jikishinkage-ryu. he then learned Nakanishi-ha-Itto-ryu from Yoshiaki Asari. in the book now, this is where it gets me confused/interested. it seems that Asari made Yamaoka, the 13th headmaster of the Nakanishi-ha-Itto-ryu. just a short time after that, he was designated as the 10th headmaster of the Ono-ha-Itto-ryu. because of both of these events, he created his own system he called Itto-Shoden-Muto-ryu, just prior to his mastery of Ono-ha, he simply called it Muto-ryu. what has me scrathing my head, is if Yamaoka was the head master of each of these schools, and he created his own school (i am assuming he taught only Muto-ryu) how is it that these schools, and their soke-ship, got passed on?!? the Muto-ryu it seems was passed on by one of his two menkyo-kaidens, but there is no mention of any of the other two schools. did he later resign from these schools, and give them to other students of these styles? i am assuming this Ono-ha and that of Takemi Sasamori are one in the same.

as a related side note, it seems Toma Shibuya was the Ono-ha-Itto-ryu teacher of Sokaku Takeda. does anyone know if he is at all related to Tesshu Yamaoka? they would have been contemporaries, as Yamoaka didn't die until 1888, and Shibuya began training Takeda in 1870. could they both have been students of the (unknown to me) 9th headmaster of the art? i know that Daito-ryu practices a form of Ono-ha-Itto-ryu that is supposed to be slightly different then that of Mr. Sasamori's group. are there other branches of Ono-ha-Itto-ryu? i hope this isn't as complex as the whole Muso-Jikiden-Eishin-ryu situation :).

gambatte!!!

Earl Hartman
27th June 2000, 18:06
Nope, it sounds more complex to me. Let us know what you find out.

Earl

Mokushin
27th June 2000, 22:54
Maybe I can help a little,

Tesshu passed the Muto-ryu on to Kagawa Zenjiro who passed it on to Ishikawa Ryuzo. Ishikawa passed the ryu on to the current headmaster, Murakami sensei.

Tesshu received the Shuin-tachi from Asari Gimei upon his designation as 13th headmaster of the Nakanishi-ha. Tesshu passed it to Koteta Yasumada, who passed it to Yanagita Ganjiro. Yanagita was the author of "Kendo Kyohan." I believe Yanagita passed the ryu on to Takano Kosei.

Ono Nario (Ono-ha) passed Tesshu the Kamewari-ken but Tesshu never passed it on. Therefore, I can't help you with the Ono-ha. However, a guess might be that one of Ono's kaiden students assumed control of the ryu (eventually passing it to Sasamori Junzo).

For what it's worth..

Ian Jones

shieldcaster
8th November 2004, 03:13
I'm just now reading The Sword of No-Sword, and find myself asking the same questions. Did this thread's questions ever get any closer to being answered?

fifthchamber
8th November 2004, 06:49
Hi Chris..
I would suggest a read of Sasamori Junzo's "Itto Ryu Gokui". It contains a detailed lineage map of the Itto Ryu and the other branch Ryuha of that school...And as such has the lines that you refer to.
From what I remember of the Ono ha line, it was taught in at least two major lines...The Ono family itself and also in the Tsurugaoka family (I think...Tsuru were in the name...But I dont have the book on me now to check....)...The Sasamori line, the standing extant line came from the Tsuru(gaoka?) family who were Menkyo Kaiden and had been alternating the headship between themselves and the Ono family...It was continued after Tesshu by one of that families members if I recall...Then was passed on to the Sasamori family who still maintain headship in Tokyo....
The lines were certainly confused though...I would get the book..Or at least a good copy of the Itto Ryu Keizu....And would not suggest the western language sources if you can avoid them...I have not yet seen a full copy of the lineage written in English...There may be one...But God knows where...Also, maybe a read of the article by Meik Skoss...I think he mentions the Ono ha split in there..
Sorry not to be of more help...
Yours.
Ben

YagyuJubei
14th June 2005, 21:42
Ono-ha itto ryu official website (there is lineage chart) (http://onohaittoryu.3.pro.tok2.com/main.html)

shieldcaster
15th June 2005, 07:38
Is that the Death Star in the wall-paper?

Thanks for the info.

fifthchamber
16th June 2005, 00:43
Heh,
No Matt....Now that's just being crazy...Heh...
The sign is the kamon of the Sasamori family...A line with a circle on the end...
And Sasamori Takemi is christian...So it obviously ain't an evil sign...
Regards.