Miyamoto Musashi

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Musashi fighting a giant lizard, woodcut by Kuniyoshi , around 1835
Musashi on the back of a whale, color woodcut by Kuniyoshi, around 1850

Miyamoto Musashi ( Japanese 宮本 武 蔵 ; * 1584 in the former village of Miyamoto , Mimasaka ; † June 13, 1645 in the Reigandō cave , Kumamoto ) was a Japanese Rōnin and founder of the Niten Ichiryū sword fighting school . Today he is best known for his work Gorin no Sho (German The Book of Five Rings ), which is primarily used as a source of wisdom and management strategies.

Life

Youth and origin

Miyamoto Musashi was born in 1584 in the village of the same name, Miyamoto, which is now a district of Mimasaka and was then part of the historic Mimasaka Province in Okayama Prefecture . Early on he was said to be wildly wild. He is said to have killed his first opponent, Arima Kihei, a samurai trained in fighting with sword and spear , because of a competition when he was just twelve years old . Arima, who had planted his banner confidently in the village square, boasted that he would defeat any opponent. The young Musashi - who was already very tall and strong for his age - threw the man to the ground and then smashed a stick on his head.

His father was the samurai Hirata Munisai, who married into the family of his wife Omasa, so that their family name took over and was then called Shinmen Munisai ( 新 免 無二 斎 ). The family derived their origins from the prestigious Fujiwara clan . Musashi's real name ( imina ) was Harunobu ( 玄 信 ), also read in Sino-Japanese as Genshin , his childhood name Bennosuke ( 辨 助 ) and his pseudonym Niten ( 二天 , German two skies ) or Niten Dōraku ( 二 天道 楽 ). In his book " Gorin no Sho " he gives his name as Shinmen Musashi no Kami Fujiwara Harunobu ( 新 免 武 蔵 守 藤原 玄 信 ), where Musashi no Kami is a court title that made him nominally governor of Musashi Province , so he was generally addressed as Musashi .

"Warrior pilgrimage"

At the age of about sixteen Musashi left his homeland to go on a "warrior pilgrimage" - a journey that took him across ancient Japan . From now on he called himself Miyamoto Musashi . After participating in six wars (including the famous Battle of Sekigahara ), fought several fights and allegedly won 60 duels, he laid down his swords in his late twenties and devoted himself to the search for a deeper meaning in his sword fighting art. Among other things, he now increasingly turned to religion, from which he had drawn strength earlier.

In most of the stories and reports about Musashi, his fighting style, which was unorthodox for the time, is mentioned in particular: In contrast to his opponents, Musashi often fought with two swords.

Since the Sengoku period (1467–1568) it was common for samurai ( bushi ) to carry two swords in the form of the Daishō pair (German: large-small ). The daisho consisted of the long sword katana and the short sword wakizashi , which was used for ritual purposes, for fighting in confined spaces and as a replacement for the katana if it was lost. The simultaneous use of both weapons was not unknown, but traditionally the "one-and-a-half-handed" guidance of the long sword remained. When performing a sword cut, the handle was usually gripped with both hands.

Musashi himself wrote about his fighting style:

" ... to become aware of the effectiveness of the two swords - that is what the Nito ryu is about ... because it is true that you should use all the weapons you have instead of throwing your life away. To die with an unused weapon in his belt would be unfortunate. "

Justification of one's own fighting style

He learned from the samurai and ronin who came to his village and studied many duels. He established his own fighting style and called it Niten Ichiryū .

Musashi's impetuous character fits the anecdote that one day he appeared at the Yoshioka school in the capital, Kyoto , to demand satisfaction that one of the Yoshioka masters had defeated Seijuro Kempo. The story goes that Musashi emerged victorious from this fight. Furthermore, he defeated the chain sickle expert Shishido Baiken on his travels . He also defeated one of the best samurai of his time, Sasaki Kojiro , with a spare oar of a boat that he carved into a wooden sword.

"Legend" Musashi

Musashi with two bokken , color woodcut by Kuniyoshi, around 1850

Musashi was best known for his fighting techniques. As he became more and more a thorn in the eyes of the princes over time, several samurai were dispatched to kill him. However, Musashi killed all opposing swordsmen. Abandoned as he was, he must generally be regarded as a ronin . In combat, he used both swords of Daisho -Paares to attack or to defend. However, this only applies to fights with multiple participants. In duels, Musashi used both the bokutō and the katana , but always made of wood that he carved himself. He fought his first life-and-death duel at the age of 13. By the age of 28, he claimed to have fought more than 60 fights - including with some of the most talented martial arts experts (swordsmen, stick fighters, spearmen, etc.) in the country - and won them all. He fought his last fight against his equal Sasaki Kojirō . After Musashi laid down the sword, he devoted himself to building some schools and temples. He was considered extremely religious, among other things he mentions the value of religions in his book of the five rings . It remains to be seen whether Musashi was positive about Shintoism . About faith he said: "Respect Buddha and the gods without relying on their assistance."

Musashi as an artist and craftsman

Musashi later also worked as an artist and craftsman. His works are considered masterpieces in Japan . He painted wall screens and was a master of the art of writing , he made metalwork and founded a school of guard sheet manufacturers (Japanese tsuba ) who signed their pieces after him with "Niten". Typical of his work is the guard plate, often referred to as "Musashi-Tsuba", with two interlocking rings (sometimes also described as intertwined sea cucumbers).

death

Musashi's life ended on June 13, 1645 in the Reigandō Cave. He had retired there to write his Gorin no Sho , which he gave to his student Terao Magonojo a few weeks before his death. The Gorin no Sho still reaches many readers all over the world today.

reception

As intended by Musashi, his knowledge and tactical tenets are general enough to be applicable to other situations. So the book of the five rings z. B. quoted by American authors who write about the tactics of modern dogfighting, and also finds its place in modern management theory.

Miyamoto Musashi is remembered primarily for his bloody life story. But he is also venerated as a kensei , a sword saint . His teachings find today as well as z. B. Tsunetomos Hagakure as recognized guidelines and wisdom in all areas of life. He taught several students, his first students are Jotaro and Sannosuke Iori.

A romanticized and in many parts fictional version of Musashi's life story became so well known in modern times and especially in the West through the serial novel Musashi written by Yoshikawa Eiji that it largely obscured Musashi's real life story . Yoshikawa's novel later became the basis of the manga series Vagabond , which won the Tezuka Cultural Award in 2002. His life was also filmed for cinema and television, for example in the cinema trilogy Samurai with Toshirō Mifune as the leading actor from 1954–1956.

literature

  • William De Lange: The Real Musashi: Origins of a Legend , Floating World Editions, 2010. ISBN 978-1-891640-56-8
  • William De Lange: Miyamoto Musashi: A Life in Arms , Floating World Editions, 2013. ISBN 978-1-891640-62-9
  • Miyamoto Musashi: The book of the five rings: With a biography , RaBaKa-Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-3940185020
  • Miyamoto Musashi: The Book of the Five Rings. Classical Strategies from Ancient Japan , Piper, 2006. ISBN 978-3-492-04962-7
  • Miyamoto Musashi: The Book of the Five Rings. The classic guide for strategic action , Ullstein-Verlag, 2005. ISBN 978-3-548-36750-7
  • Miyamoto Musashi: The Book of Five Rings - The classic guide for strategic action . Econ publishing house. ISBN 3-430-16967-4
  • Roland Habersetzer : The Warriors of Ancient Japan - Famous Samurai , Rōnin and Ninja . Palisander Verlag, 1st edition 2008, ISBN 978-3-938305-07-2 . Contains among other things a narrative representation of the life of Miyamoto Musashi based on historical sources.
  • William Scott Wilson: The Lone Samurai - The Life of Miyamoto Musashi. Kodansha International, 2004. ISBN 4-7700-2942-X
  • Eiji Yoshikawa: Musashi . Munich: Droemer Knaur, 2000. Abridged paperback edition. ISBN 3-426-61648-3
  • Eiji Yoshikawa: Musashi . Munich: Droemer Knaur, 1984. ISBN 3-426-19109-1

References

  1. WSWilson: Lone Samurai. P. 206 ff.

Web links

Commons : Miyamoto Musashi  - collection of images, videos and audio files