* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Onimaru Kunitsuna
鬼丸国綱
Also known as: Demon Destroyer
Description
Overview of the Blade
One of the Five Greatest Swords, a tachi that embodied the very authority of the Hōjō Tokusō clan as the guardian blade of the Kamakura shogunate. The blade length is said to be 2 shaku 5 sun 8 bu (approximately 78.2 cm), with a curvature of approximately 3.2 cm, and as an early Kamakura period tachi, it possesses a notably pronounced curve.
The Swordsmith
The smith Awataguchi Kunitsuna was an early Kamakura period swordsmith who lived in Awataguchi, Yamashiro Province, and is known as one of the six Awataguchi brothers.
Forging Method and Characteristics
The Awataguchi school was a representative group of Yamashiro-den smiths, unmatched by others in the refinement of the jigane and the nobility of its quality. Kunitsuna's forging style is distinguished among his brothers for combining the elegance of Yamashiro-den tradition with the robust strength favored by the samurai. The jigane of Onimaru Kunitsuna displays a tightly consolidated koitame grain pattern with delicate jigane-nie, revealing a clear, lustrous iron color. The hamon interweaves a straight-blade motif with subtle irregularities, presenting an elegant appearance with a bright, refined nioi-guchi. Legend holds that Hōjō Tokiyori, the first administrator of the Kamakura shogunate, was troubled by an imp that appeared in his dreams. When the tachi of its own volition toppled forward and cleaved away a demon necklace carved into the brazier stand, it received the name "Onimaru" (Demon Destroyer) from this supernatural tale. Thereafter, as the guardian blade of the Hōjō Tokusō clan, it symbolized the authority of the Kamakura shogunate, and following the fall of the shogunate, it passed through Nitta Yoshisada, the Ashikaga shōguns, Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu—moving literally with the hegemony of all Japan.
Provenance
Few swords in the history of Japanese swordcraft have passed through the hands of so many rulers, and its provenance is befitting of its alternative name, "the Guardian Blade of All Japan."
Current Ownership
Following the Meiji Restoration, it was presented to the Imperial Household and is currently managed by the Imperial Household Agency as an Imperial treasure (gyobutsu). Imperial treasures are exempt from National Treasure designation, and opportunities for public display are extremely limited, making direct viewing of the actual object exceedingly precious. That it remains the sole tachi among the Five Greatest Swords in Imperial possession testifies to the exalted status Onimaru Kunitsuna retains even today—transcending a mere masterwork to hold the position of "Guardian Blade of the Nation."
Legends & Stories
Legend and Lore The legend of Onimaru-Kunitsuna is among the most dramatic accounts of the spiritual power that dwells within a Japanese sword. Hōjō Tokimasa, the first regent of the Kamakura shogunate, suffered increasingly severe nightmares over a certain period. In his dreams, a small demon appeared and caused him torment. One night, a small spirit appeared in his dream and made this plea: "I am the spirit dwelling in the tachi forged by Awata-guchi Kunitsuna. Yet my scabbard has rusted shut, and I cannot draw forth to slay the demon that torments my lord. I implore you—cleanse my blade." Upon waking, Tokimasa promptly retrieved the tachi and carefully maintained it, removing the rust from the scabbard and placing it upon a sword stand. The tachi then fell of its own accord, as if possessing a will of its own, and cleanly severed a silver demon-head ornament carved into the base of the brazier that stood nearby. From that night onward, the nightmares that had plagued Tokimasa ceased entirely, and this tachi came to be known as "Onimaru," as recorded in the Taiheiki. A sword that slays demons by its own will—this extraordinary legend earned profound reverence among Kamakura warriors, and Onimaru-Kunitsuna came to be venerated as the guardian sword of the Hōjō Tokusō house. When the Kamakura shogunate fell in Genkou 3 (1333), Onimaru-Kunitsuna is said to have passed into the hands of Nitta Yoshisada. Yoshisada is also said to have worn this tachi during the assault on Kamakura, and thus the guardian sword of the Hōjō house underwent an ironic reversal of fortune, passing into the hands of the general who destroyed the Hōjō. Subsequently, it was transmitted through the Ashikaga shogunal house—first to Ashikaga Takauji, then to Ashikaga Yoshimasu—and during the Sengoku period came into the possession of Oda Nobunaga. From Nobunaga to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, from Hideyoshi to Tokugawa Ieyasu, with each transfer of supreme rule, this tachi passed to its new master. Like a blade that "questioned the qualifications of those who would govern the realm," it perpetually remained at the side of the supreme authority. After its presentation to the Meiji Emperor in Meiji 14 (1881), it has remained in the Imperial Collection to the present day. Among the Five Great Swords, Onimaru-Kunitsuna is spoken of as the sword with the most pronounced "will"; its mysterious journey—slaying demons of its own accord and seemingly selecting the rulers of the realm—embodies in its purest form the ancient Japanese belief that spiritual souls dwell within the Japanese sword.