Wikipedia

Muramasa

This article is about the 16th-century Japanese swordsmith. For the British DJ and record producer, seeMura Masa.For other uses, seeMuramasa (disambiguation).

Muramasa(Thôn chính,born before 1501),commonly known asSengo Muramasa(Sengo Muramasa),was a famousswordsmithwho founded the Muramasa school and lived during theMuromachi period(14th to 16th centuries) in Kuwana,Ise Province,Japan (currentKuwana, Mie).[1]

In spite of their original reputation as fine blades favored by theshōgunTokugawa Ieyasuand his vassals, thekatanaswords made by Muramasa gradually became a symbol of the anti-Tokugawamovement. Furthermore, in lore and popular culture from the 18th century, the swords have been regarded asyōtō(Yêu đao,"wicked katana" ).

Work

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Style

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Much like his unique reputation, Muramasa is known for some fairly unusual features in his work. These attributes are often called by terms prefixed with "Muramasa".

  • Muramasa-ba(Thôn chính nhận,"Muramasa-like edge" )—The first particular characteristic of his is the frequent use of a wave-shapedhamon.Thehamonof Muramasa is categorized asgunome-midare,that is, it forms randomized wave-like shapes. In particular, Muramasa'sgunome-midarehas very long, shallow valleys between a cluster ofgunomeshapes.[2]Furthermore, the front pattern and the back one often coincide well.[2]In regards tohataraki,or metallurgical patterns created through the differential heating and quenching process, his hamon are extremely clear cut with defined nioi. Muramasa's hamon are also known to be near exact symmetrical duplicates of one another, said to be extremely intricate and difficult in the process of the hamon creation process.
  • Muramasa-nakago(Thôn ngay trung tâm,"Muramasa-like tang" )—The other easily identifiable feature one will see on Muramasa blades is the fish-belly (tanagobara) shape of thenakago.[3][2]Hayashi Shigehide(Lâm trọng tú)in the 19th century often simulated this style.[2]

Notable works

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Although the school of Muramasa is extremely famous in popular culture, none of their swords are designated as aNational Treasureor anImportant Cultural Property.

Nabeshima Katsushige
Muramasa ( thế châu tang danh trụ thôn chính ) from theTokyo National Museum
Replica of the Tonbokiri, made in 1847, in theTokyo National Museum

Myōhō Muramasa(Diệu pháp thôn chính,"Muramasa ofthe Sublime Dharma")is the only sword officially designated as anImportant Artwork[ja].[4] Katana,length 66.4 cm, curvature 1.5 cm, bottom width 2.8 cm,shinogi-zukuri,iori-mune,andchū-kissaki nobi[4](see alsoGlossary of Japanese swords). The front side contains a sign of Muramasa and a mantra signmyōhō renge kyō(Diệu pháp liên hoa kinh)(a mantra fromNamu Myōhō Renge Kyōor theLotus SutraofNichiren Buddhism).[4] The back side contains a year sign vĩnh chính mười năm quỳ dậu ngày 13 tháng 10 (13th day of the 10th month ofEishō10, that is, 10th of November, 1513).[4]It is highly probable that the date was chosen because the high priestNichirendied on the 13th day of the 10th month ofKōan5 (1282).[4] Both sides contain beautiful engravings of Kurikara (Fudō Myō-ō's mythological sword empowered by a burning dragon).[4] The style of the engravings is similar to those of the swordsmith Heianjō Nagayoshi, so some scholars suggest Muramasa studied under Nagayoshi.[4] It is also silver-damascened with characters Nabeshin(Nồi tin),which suggests that the sword was once in possession ofNabeshima Katsushige(1580–1657), the firstdaimyōlord ofSaga Domain.[4] Later, this sword was given to Katsushige's sonNabeshima Motoshige,the first lord ofOgi Domain,and has been inherited by his successors.[4]

Muramasa's students made excellent weapons too. Fujiwara Masazane, a disciple of Muramasa, forgedTonbokiri,[5]one of theThree Great Spears of Japan. Masazane also forged a sword calledInoshishi-giri(Heo thiết,"boar-slayer" )whose name came from a legend thatSakai Tadatsugukilled a wild boar with this sword when accompanying Ieyasu in hunting.[6]

In history

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Origin

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The exact origin of the Muramasa school is unknown. The oldest extant sword equipped with both a name sign Muramasa and a date sign shows the yearBunki1 (1501).[4][7][8] Scholars, however, assert several swords signed with Muramasa (but without year signs) are slightly older than 1501 in light of their styles.[4][7] It is generally thought that the school of Muramasa spanned at least three generations.[4] It is hardly clear when the school disappeared, but some Muramasa swords contain the year signKanbun(1661–1673).[7]

Lores in the late Muromachi period (early 16th century–1573) stated that Muramasa I was a student ofMasamune(c. 1300), the greatest swordsmith in Japan's history, and theHon'ami family(family dynasty of swordpolishers and sword connoisseurs) commented that hisfloruitwas theJōjiera (1362–1368).[9] Scholars from the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1573–1600) to modern days, however, have dismissed the relationship of Masamune and Muramasa as fantasy because all of extant Muramasa swords are too new to support this theory.[9] Another theory states that Muramasa I was a student of Heianjō Nagayoshi, a prominentKyotoswordsmith known for spears and engravings.[4][10] The school of Masashige(Chính trọng),a notable branch of the Muramasa school, records Masashige I died in 1456, so Muramasa I was active before 1456 if we believe the record.[7]

Sengo(Ngàn tử),the epithet of Muramasa, is also covered with myths. A common belief states Muramasa I was born in a place called Sengo, but there is no such a place near Kuwana in reality.[7] Another popular legend says the mother of Muramasa I worshipped thebodhisattvaSenju Kannonand thus he was called Sengo, a shortened form of Senju no ko(Thiên thủ の tử,"son of Senju" ).[7]

Kanzan Sato claims that the starting year of Muramasa I wasEntokuandMeiō(1489–1501), that of Muramasa II wasTenbun(1532–1539), and that of Muramasa III wasTenshō(1573–1591).[4] On the other hand, Suiken Fukunaga considers the floruit of Muramasa I was aroundShōchō(1428–1429) and the 1501 sword was forged by Muramasa III.[7]

Relationship to the Tokugawa dynasty

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Because of their exquisite sharpness, Muramasa swords were favored especially by the samurai ofMikawa(led byTokugawa Ieyasu,the founder of theTokugawa shogunate,and his ancestors).[11][5] Naturally, when a misfortune happens in the Tokugawa clan, it is often related to Muramasa, definitely not because they are "cursed," but simply because most Mikawa samurai used these swords.[5] Matsudaira Kiyoyasu,a grandfather of Ieyasu, was mistakenly killed by his own vassal Abe Masatoyo with a Muramasa.[11] Ieyasu's fatherMatsudaira Hirotadawas also stabbed with a Muramasa by Iwamatsu Hachiya, who lost his mind by excessive drinking.[11] When Ieyasu's first sonMatsudaira Nobuyasuwas forced to commit suicide (seppuku), his beheader (kaishakunin) Amagata Michitsuna used a Muramasa.[11]

In spite of these unfortunate incidents, Tokugawa Ieyasu and his generation seemed to greatly appreciate Muramasa weapons.[5] Ieyasu himself owned two swords forged by Muramasa and left them to his family; as of 2013, theOwari-Tokugawa familystill holds one of the two as an heirloom.[5] Honda Tadakatsu,one ofthe Four Greatest Generals under Ieyasu,wieldedTonbogiri,a legendary spear forged by Fujiwara Masazane, who studied under the Muramasa school.[5] Sakai Tadatsugu,another of the Four, wielded Inoshishi-giri, a sword forged by Masazane.[6]

Later generations in the shogunate, however, gradually came to think of Muramasa as sinister items. Arai Hakuseki,the officialscholar-bureaucratof the shogunate, commented "Muramasa is associated with not a few sinister events."[5] EvenTokugawa Jikki[ja](1849), the official history book published from the shogunate, citesKashiwazaki Monogatari(Bách kỳ vật ngữ,1787),which tells a legend that Ieyasu regarded Muramasa as cursed items and banned them from his family,[12]although it is clearly a fabricated story considering the heirloom of the Owari-Tokugawa family.

In theBakumatsuperiod (1853–1868), Muramasa was somehow considered to be a curse bringer against the shogunate, and thusshishi(anti-Tokugawa activists) wished to acquire Muramasa blades.[4] Even though the school of Muramasa does not have an exalted or prestigious status to be used by the imperial family in ordinary times, a Muramasa was wielded byPrince Arisugawa Taruhito,the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Army against the Tokugawa shogunate during theBoshin War(1868–1869).[5] To satisfy growing demand, forgeries of Muramasa blades were also often made in this period.[4]

Cultural significance

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A Tale of Sano Jirōzaemon,Tsukioka Yoshitoshi,1886. People rumored that Jirōzaemon murdered his lover with a cursed sword. The kabuki dramaKago-tsurube Sato-no-Eizame(1888) claimed that his sword was forged by Muramasa.

In popular culture, Muramasa swords have been often depicted as cursed swords with demonic powers. Oscar Ratti and Adele Westbrook said that Muramasa "was a most skillful smith but a violent and ill-balanced mind verging on madness, that was supposed to have passed into his blades. They were popularly believed to hunger for blood and to impel their warrior to commit murder or suicide."[13] It has also been told that once drawn, a Muramasa blade has to draw blood before it can be returned to itsscabbard,even to the point of forcing its wielder to wound himself or commit suicide.[14] Thus, it is thought of as a demonic cursed blade that creates bloodlust in those who wield it.

These images date back to kabukidramas in the 18–19th century such as Katakiuchi Tenga Jaya Mura(Địch thảo thiên hạ trà phòng tụ)(1781), Hachiman Matsuri Yomiya no Nigiwai[ja](1860), Konoma no Hoshi Hakone no Shikabue(Mộc gian tinh rương căn lộc sáo)(1880), andKago-tsurube Sato-no-Eizame''[ja](1888).[2]

WhenMatsudaira Geki[ja]was driven mad because ofpower harassmentfrom his superiors and killed them inEdo Castlein the 6th year ofBunsei(1823), townspeople rumored that Geki used a Muramasa, although actually the sword had no sign and there was no evidence to support the rumor.[2] This incident shows how great the influence of kabuki dramas upon common people was.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^Fukunaga, 1993. vol. 5, pp. 166–167.
  2. ^abcdefgFukunaga, 1993. vol. 5, p. 169.
  3. ^[1]Muramasa.us/features
  4. ^abcdefghijklmnopSato, 1990. pp. 209-212.
  5. ^abcdefgh"“Đuôi trương đức xuyên gia の chí bảo” triển yêu đao vân nói から sử thật へ "[An Exhibition of the Great Treasures of the Owari-Tokugawa Family: Cursed Sword—From Legend to History].Nishinippon Shimbun(in Japanese). 2013-11-21.Retrieved2018-08-22.
  6. ^abFukunaga, 1993. vol. 1, pp. 107–108.
  7. ^abcdefgFukunaga, 1993. vol. 5, p. 167.
  8. ^"ISE - SENGO MURAMASA School".sho-shin.
  9. ^abFukunaga, 1993. vol. 5, p. 166.
  10. ^"Muramasa".shibuiswords.Retrieved2017-07-08.
  11. ^abcdFukunaga, 1993. vol. 5, p. 168.
  12. ^『 đức xuyên thật kỷ 』 đông chiếu cung ngự thật kỷ phụ lục quyển tam ([2],p. 162)
  13. ^Ratti, Oscar and Adele Westbrook (1991).Secrets of the Samurai: The Martial Arts of Feudal Japan.Tuttle Publishing. p. 263.ISBN978-0-8048-1684-7.
  14. ^Stone, George Cameron(1999).A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration, and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times.Dover Publications, Inc. p. 460.ISBN978-0-486-40726-5.

Bibliography

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  • Sato, Kanzan (1990) (in Japanese)New Selection of 100 Noteworthy Japanese Swords(Tân ・ Nhật Bản danh đao 100 tuyển,Shin Nihon Meitō Hyakusen).Akita Shoten.ISBN4-253-90009-7.
  • Fukunaga, Suiken (1993) (in Japanese)Encyclopedia of Japanese Swords(Nhật Bản đao đại bách khoa sự điển,Nihontō Daihyakka Jiten).Yūzankaku.ISBN4-639-01202-0.
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