Japan History: Sasaki Kojirō
[:it]Sasaki Kojirō (1583 circa – 13 aprile 1612) nacque in un villaggio della provincia di Echizen. Noto come Sasaki Ganryū, è stato un importante spadaccino giapponese, principalmente ricordato per essere stato ucciso nel corso di un duello con Miyamoto Musashi. Sasaki Kojirō viene ricordato anche per indossare un haori di colore rosso e visse fra l’era Sengoku e l’inizio del periodo Edo.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
La sua vita
Vissuto a cavallo dell’epoca Sengoku e l’inizio del periodo Edo, da ragazzo incontra Toda Seigen, istruttore di arti marziali del clan Asakura, divenendo suo allievo. Questo tipo di addestramento lo porta lontano dallo stile di Seigen, avvicinandosi al il kodachi, e sviluppando una tecnica che fa uso di ōdachi denominata Ganryū (“Stile della Roccia”). Grazie alla sua katana chiamata Monohoshi Zao, sviluppa la tecnica Tsubame-Gaeshi ( “Contrattacco della Rondine”), ispirata al volo dell’uccello.
Nel 1610 apre un dojo a Kokura e la sua fama inizia ad attrarre numerosi studenti di arti marziali, tra i quali troviamo Miyamoto Musashi, uno spadaccino ventinovenne che nell’aprile del 1612 lo sfida ad un duello che diventa protagonista di molte leggende. Le versioni descrittive delle leggende riguardanti il duello tra Sasaki Kojirō e Miyamoto Musashi sono varie e differiscono molto per quanto riguarda i dettagli. Su una cosa le leggende sono tutte d’accordo ed è la fine del duello che vede Musashi come vincitore.
Il duello finale
Il duello avvenne il il 13 aprile 1612 su un’isola a pochi chilometri da Kokura. Prima di giungere nel luogo, Musashi costruì un bokken con un remo e si presentò con ben tre ore di ritardo, ovvero tra le 9 e le 11. Kojirō estrasse la sua spada arrabbiandosi molto con Musashi a causa del suo ritardo e lanciò il fodero nell’ acqua. Musashi uccise Kojirō con un colpo alla testa assestato dalla sua spada di legno. Avvenne tutto così’ velocemente senza lasciare il tempo a Kojirō di usare la sua tecnica.
photo credits: muza-chan.net
Le ipotesi della morte di Sasaki Kojirō
Le ipotesi riguardanti la vittoria di Miyamoto Musashi sono tante, tra cui si pensa anche che il ritardo fosse premeditato proprio per innervosire l’avversario. Durante le tre ore di ritardo infatti, Musashi si riposò mentre Kojirō perdeva completamente la concentrazione. In aggiunta, il suo abbigliamento non curato e la spada di legno contribuirono a fare arrabbiare Kojirō ancora di più. Si può dire che Musashi abbia vinto giocando sulla psicologia dell’avversario.
Un’altra ipotesi vede Musashi protrarre il ritardo appositamente per sfruttare l’effetto della luce solare tanto che potesse accecare l’avversario, un’altra ancora lo vede approfittare della bassa marea che gli avrebbe permesso di scappare più facilmente.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
Kojirō era (probabilmente) sordo da un orecchio, ma questo non ha mai contribuito alla sua perdita, nonostante tutto sembra che questo sia accaduto perchè Musashi sfruttò la maggior lunghezza del suo bokken rispetto alla spada del suo avversario.
L’isola che fu luogo del duello venne ribattezzata Ganryū-jima in onore di Sasaki Kojirō.[:en]Sasaki Kojiro (around 1583 – April 13, 1612) was born in a village in the province of Echizen. Known as Sasaki Ganryū, he was an important Japanese swordsman, mainly remembered for having been killed in a duel with Miyamoto Musashi. Sasaki Kojiro is also remembered for wearing a red haori and lived between the Sengoku era and the beginning of the Edo period.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
His life
He lived at the turn of the Sengoku period and the beginning of the Edo period, as a boy he met Toda Seigen, martial arts instructor of the Asakura clan, becoming his pupil. This type of training takes him away from Seigen’s style, approaching kodachi, and developing a technique that makes use of ōdachi called Ganryū (“Rock Style”). Thanks to his katana called Monohoshi Zao, he develops the Tsubame-Gaeshi (“Swallow Counterattack”) technique, inspired by the bird’s flight.
In 1610 he opened a dojo in Kokura and his fame began to attract numerous martial arts students, among whom we find Miyamoto Musashi, a 29-year-old swordsman who in April 1612 challenged him to a duel that became the protagonist of many legends. The descriptive versions of the legends regarding the duel between Sasaki Kojirō and Miyamoto Musashi are varied and differ greatly in detail. On one thing the legends are all in agreement and it is the end of the duel that sees Musashi as the winner.
The final duel
The duel took place on April 13, 1612 on an island a few kilometers from Kokura. Before arriving at the place, Musashi built a bokken with an oar and showed up three hours late, that is between 9 and 11. Kojiro pulled out his sword getting very angry with Musashi because of his delay and threw the scabbard into the water. Musashi killed Kojiro with a blow to the head dealt by his wooden sword. It all happened so quickly without giving Kojiro time to use his technique.
photo credits: muza-chan.net
The hypotheses of the death of Sasaki Kojiro
There are many hypotheses regarding the victory of Miyamoto Musashi, among which it is also believed that the delay was premeditated precisely to annoy the opponent. During the three hours of delay, in fact, Musashi rested while Kojiro completely lost concentration. In addition, his untreated clothing and wooden sword contributed to anger Kojiro even more. Musashi can be said to have won by playing on the opponent’s psychology.
Another hypothesis sees Musashi extend the delay specifically to take advantage of the effect of sunlight so that it could blind the opponent, yet another sees him take advantage of the low tide that would have allowed him to escape more easily.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
Kojiro was (probably) deaf in one ear, but this never contributed to his loss, despite everything that seems to have happened because Musashi used the greater length of his bokken than his opponent’s sword.
The island that was the site of the duel was renamed Ganryū-jima in honor of Sasaki Kojirō.[:ja]Sasaki Kojiro (around 1583 – April 13, 1612) was born in a village in the province of Echizen. Known as Sasaki Ganryū, he was an important Japanese swordsman, mainly remembered for having been killed in a duel with Miyamoto Musashi. Sasaki Kojiro is also remembered for wearing a red haori and lived between the Sengoku era and the beginning of the Edo period.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
His life
He lived at the turn of the Sengoku period and the beginning of the Edo period, as a boy he met Toda Seigen, martial arts instructor of the Asakura clan, becoming his pupil. This type of training takes him away from Seigen’s style, approaching kodachi, and developing a technique that makes use of ōdachi called Ganryū (“Rock Style”). Thanks to his katana called Monohoshi Zao, he develops the Tsubame-Gaeshi (“Swallow Counterattack”) technique, inspired by the bird’s flight.
In 1610 he opened a dojo in Kokura and his fame began to attract numerous martial arts students, among whom we find Miyamoto Musashi, a 29-year-old swordsman who in April 1612 challenged him to a duel that became the protagonist of many legends. The descriptive versions of the legends regarding the duel between Sasaki Kojirō and Miyamoto Musashi are varied and differ greatly in detail. On one thing the legends are all in agreement and it is the end of the duel that sees Musashi as the winner.
The final duel
The duel took place on April 13, 1612 on an island a few kilometers from Kokura. Before arriving at the place, Musashi built a bokken with an oar and showed up three hours late, that is between 9 and 11. Kojiro pulled out his sword getting very angry with Musashi because of his delay and threw the scabbard into the water. Musashi killed Kojiro with a blow to the head dealt by his wooden sword. It all happened so quickly without giving Kojiro time to use his technique.
photo credits: muza-chan.net
The hypotheses of the death of Sasaki Kojiro
There are many hypotheses regarding the victory of Miyamoto Musashi, among which it is also believed that the delay was premeditated precisely to annoy the opponent. During the three hours of delay, in fact, Musashi rested while Kojiro completely lost concentration. In addition, his untreated clothing and wooden sword contributed to anger Kojiro even more. Musashi can be said to have won by playing on the opponent’s psychology.
Another hypothesis sees Musashi extend the delay specifically to take advantage of the effect of sunlight so that it could blind the opponent, yet another sees him take advantage of the low tide that would have allowed him to escape more easily.
photo credits: wikipedia.org
Kojiro was (probably) deaf in one ear, but this never contributed to his loss, despite everything that seems to have happened because Musashi used the greater length of his bokken than his opponent’s sword.
The island that was the site of the duel was renamed Ganryū-jima in honor of Sasaki Kojirō.[:]