- Yamaoka Tesshū
Yamaoka Tesshū (山岡鉄舟
June 10 ,1836 -July 19 ,1888 ) also known as Ono Tetsutaro, was a famousSamurai living during the period known as theMeiji Restoration and the founder of theItto Shoden Muto-ryu school of swordsmanship.Early life
He was born in
Edo (modern dayTokyo ) as Ono Tetsutaro on June 10, 1836. His father was a retainer of the Tokugawa government and his mother was the daughter of aShinto priest fromKashima Shrine . Yamaoka practicedkenjutsu from the age of nine, starting in theJikishinkage Ryu Tradition. Later his family moved toTakayama where he began the Ono Ha Itto-Ryu style offencing . When he was seventeen, he returned toEdo and joined the Kobukan Military Institute and the Yamaoka School ofSpear Fighting underYamaoka Seizan . Not long after Yamaoka had joined the dojo, Seizan died, Yamaoka went on to marry Seizan’s sister in order to carry on the Yamaoka name.From an early age, Yamaoka showed dedication and talent in the practice of
martial arts . As he grew up, Tesshu became well-known for several things: hisswordsmanship ,calligraphy ,drinking , andsleep ing.Enlightenment
Yamaoka studied the art of
Kendo thoroughly until the morning of March 30, 1880, at the age of 45, when he became enlightened while inmeditation . From this point on, Yamaoka worked to maintain adojo for his style of combat known as "no-sword" the point in which asamurai realizes that there is no-enemy and that the purity of the style is all that is needed.He is famous for his amazing range of Zen Art works, of which during his lifetime is estimated that he produced over 1 million works.
Death
Yamaoka died at the age of fifty-three on
July 19 ,1888 ofstomach cancer . Prior to his death, he allegedly composed hisdeath poem first, then sat formally and closed his eyes, slipping into death.Appearance in Koans
Although he lived well after the Golden Age of
Zen , Yamaoka appears in a handful of modernkoan s. Three popular koans featuring Yamaoka are listed below.
* [http://www.ashidakim.com/zenkoans/82nothingexists.html Nothing Exist] , featuring a young and precocious Yamaoka
* [http://www.ashidakim.com/zenkoans/66childrenofhismajesty.html Children of His Majesty] , featuring Yamoka as the Emperor's teacher
* [http://www.ashidakim.com/zenkoans/93storytellerszen.html Storyteller's Zen] , showing Yamaoka usingskillful means References
Recommended Reading
* [http://www.amazon.com/dp/1570620504 The Sword of No Sword: Life of Master Warrior Tesshu] by John Stevens
* [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0804831866 Zen Flesh, Zen Bones] by Paul Reps - contains the three koans listed above
* [http://www.tesshu.info Collected Academic Papers on Yamaoka Tesshu] (in Japanese only)
* [http://www.kendo-world.com/products.php?s%5Bid%5D=64&s%5Bcat%5D=4 Ken-Zen-Sho: The Zen Calligraphy and Painting of Yamaoka Tesshu]
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