The Shadow School of Sword | Eric Shahan

Aisu Kage Ryu, The Aisu Shadow School of Sword, was founded by Aisu Hisatada (1452-1537. ) It is considered to be one of Japan's Three Great Schools of Sword Fighting. Following its founding in the 1480's, the Shadow School of Sword began to spread all over the Kyushu Island and even the Wakou Japanese pirates that prowled the waters around the Korean Peninsula and the shores of China studied it. The Kenjutsu used by these Wakou Japanese pirates was apparently quite feared in China at the time. The purpose of this book is to present a translation of four 16th century scrolls from the Aisu Kage School in order to see the kind of documents passed down in this martial arts tradition. Scroll 1 Enpi Mokuroku : Leaping Monkey CatalogueA Mokuroku is a catalogue of techniques and by receiving it a student has been designated to have attained a certain level of proficiency. This scroll contains 11 techniques and begins with Enpi, Leaping Monkey. An earlier version of this scroll fell into the hands of the Chinese navy, who seized it from Wakou Japanese pirates that had been launching raids on the coastal areas. Apparently the fighting style of the pirates as well as the scroll made such an impression on the Chinese reproduced it in military strategy volumes for decades afterward. Scroll 2 Tengu no Maki : Tengu ScrollThis is a very exciting looking scroll. It does not have a title , however since it contains 12 techniques with a human figure paired with Tengu, Japanese Mountain goblins, I refer to it as The Tengu Scroll. The Tengu are not generalized, instead Tengu from all over Japan are included. The human figure holds a Tachi however the Tengu are armed with a variety of spears as well as two Kodachi, short swords. Scroll 3 Shiai no Tachi : The Dueling SwordThis scroll features humans holding a variety of weapons including Nagamaki, Tachi and Kodachi.