Takayanagi Matashirō

Takayanagi Matashirō (born Bunka 5 (1808); date of death unknown) was a swordsman of the late Edo period. He trained at the Nakanishi dōjō of the Nakanishi-ha Ittō-ryū, and was known by the epithet "Otonashi no Ken" ("the soundless sword") for his distinctive style, in which he won without allowing his opponent's shinai to touch him at all and without making any sound.

Origins and Training

According to one account, he was the second son of Takayanagi Sakyō-no-suke Sadakazu, a bannerman who served as intendant (gundai) of Hida. However, there are other theories about his origins: the Zoku Tokugawa Jikki records him as "child of the rice-granary magistrate Takayanagi Kumezō." The Takayanagi family had the Toda-ryū handed down as a family tradition, and it is said that Matashirō studied it in his youth. He then went to Edo to further master the sword and entered the Nakanishi dōjō of the Nakanishi-ha Ittō-ryū, under Nakanishi Shikei.

The Three Crows of the Nakanishi Dōjō

After the death of his teacher, Nakanishi Shikei, Matashirō took on the role of supporting the young fourth head of the dōjō, who had succeeded to the position, together with Terada Muneari and Shirai Tōru. The three were called the "three crows" of the Nakanishi dōjō.

Anecdotes of the "Soundless Sword"

No matter how fiercely his opponent attacked, Matashirō never let his own shinai be touched and decided matches without a sound. For this he was called "Otonashi no Ken" and "Otonashi no Shōbu" (the soundless match). His bout with Chiba Shūsaku ended in a draw, but it is said that Shūsaku himself, who in later years became a great swordsman, lamented, "I will never prevail against Matashirō-dono." On the other hand, there is also an anecdote that in a match against Ōishi Susumu, a swordsman of the Yanagawa domain of Chikugo who had swept the dōjō of Edo with long shinai, Matashirō acknowledged that his own shinai had made a sound as proof of his defeat, and showed a humble attitude.

Later Reputation

His unique style is said to have been the inspiration for the "soundless stance" (otonashi no kamae) of Tsukue Ryūnosuke, the protagonist of Nakazato Kaizan's historical novel Daibosatsu Tōge. He is remembered in both the history of swordsmanship and popular literature as one of the outstanding swordsmen of the Edo period.