* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Matsubayashi Henyasai
松林蝙也斎
Founder of the Musō Gan-ryū, Nicknamed "the Bat" for His Freely Leaping Swordsmanship
Description
Origins
Matsubayashi Henyasai is said to have been born in 1593 in Kaizu, Shinano Province (present-day Matsushiro, Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture), as the son of Matsubayashi Nagatsune, a retainer of the Uesugi family.
Swordsmanship Training and the Founding of Musō Gan-ryū
Henyasai is said to have traveled the provinces to train in swordsmanship, spear, and naginata, and to have also studied under Musō Gonnojō. Adding his own innovations to these teachings, he founded a unique school, Musō Gan-ryū.
A Remarkable Feat Before Tokugawa Iemitsu
Henyasai is said to have displayed light, agile movements before the third shogun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, including leaping onto an opponent's blade. Iemitsu praised the lightness of his body as "like a bat," and Henyasai took this praise as an honor; he is said to have thereafter called himself "Henyasai."
Later Reputation
Known for his freely leaping movements and distinctive principles of swordsmanship, Matsubayashi Henyasai is remembered as one of the most individualistic swordsmen of the early Edo period, and his exploits are passed down in the swordsmanship lore of various regions.
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