Gekken—Kenjutsu on Steroids

While the majority of techniques from the Ittō Tenshin-ryū® are what you might expect from a school of kenjutsu, there is one group of kata that most newcomers to the art find frightening, foreign, and fascinating: Gekken, the "Severe Sword."

During the Tokugawa Bakufu, duels with shinken were banned; fatal "training accidents" with bokken, however, were not cause for punishment. This resulted in the development of bokkenjutsu, the art of using a bokken as an actual weapon (instead of merely as a substitute for a real sword, used to avoid damaging a valuable blade). By the end of the Tokugawa Period, such dōjō duels were quite common and swordsmanship of this type, even if performed with shinai, was referred to as gekken.

As an example of how violent shinai kendō in the gekken-style was, one way of winning a match was to throw your opponent to the floor and rip off his mask. You may have heard this before, but have you ever considered just how much power it takes to rip off a kendō mask? It is tied on with heavy cords and you are likely to break your opponent's neck in the process.

Another example of kendō during this period was Takeda Sōkaku's trick of using a shinai that had a copper wire for a core. Many people have also heard this story, but never realized that the "copper wire" was from a high-tension line: it was about the thickness of your thumb, and more of a rod than a wire. 

The Gekken of the Ittō Tenshin-ryū are based on this heritage. The bokken is used as a weapon, not to simulate a real sword, and the goal is to teach a swordsman how to crush an opponent with a single strike.

Each of the Gekken kata is based on one of the 17 postures of the Haiku-gamae, so a word about them first...

Haiku-gamae

A new sword student is first introduced to the eight stances of the Happō-gamae. These are very basic, and are common to most schools of the sword. And, as there are over 300 kamae in the various schools of swordsmanship, the Happō-gamae obviously represent only the tip of the iceberg.

Students are normally taught the Haiku-gamae at the renshi level (chūden). As these stances are somewhat more relaxed and natural feeling than the Happō-gamae, it is felt that juniors need the discipline of the basic kamae to overcome bad posture.

The Haiku-gamae of the Ittō Tenshin-ryū receive their name because a haiku written by Bashō (Matsuo Munefusa, 1644 - 1694) is used as a mnemonic to aid in remembering the stances...

Kiku no ka ya!
Nara ni Wa, furuki
hotoke tachi.

"Ah! The smell of chrysanthemums.
In Nara (ancient capital of Japan)
there are many old Buddhas."

Each of the kamae is named with one syllable of this poem, and a student will quietly recite it as he cycles through the set. 

Each kamae has an oku (secret), also based on lines of the poem. For example, the first four kamae (migi and hidari chūdan, and migi and hidari ō-kasumi) are done with a feeling of quiet alertness, and the fifth (koryū jōdan) is done with intensity.

One interesting point about the set of stances is that many of them intentionally violate a standard rule of swordsmanship, a rule which states that you should never allow your opponent to see the side of your blade.

The Ittō Tenshin-ryū Bokken

The Haiku-gamae and the Gekken kata are practiced with a special bokken, unique to the Ittō Tenshin-ryū. Its measurements are, by tradition, exactly: length 3 shaku 6 sun (43.09"); thickness 1.5 sun (1.25"); height 1.8 sun (1.5"); mune, 5 bun (0.6"); mune-ji, 4 bun (0.48"). The cross-section is egg-shaped, with maximum thickness at the shinogi. The kissaki is square cut: top, 6 bun (0.72"); 1 sun 4 bun (1.68").

The wood used for the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken is normally ebony, although ironwood or some other equally exotic hardwood is permissible. (Oak is never used.) The weapon is polished with a mixture of choji oil and uchiko to produce a deep gloss.

An Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken is used only for the Gekken and Oku-tachi kata; it is never used for other kumitachi. (Our standard bokken, the one used for most kumitachi in the Ittō Tenshin-ryū, is 47" long and of the normal shape. This is called a bokken, as opposed to an Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken.) As it is a special weapon, the reishiki for its use is somewhat more involved than that for a normal bokken.

Reishiki

A junior student brings two Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken to the center of the demonstration area, carrying the weapons at what a soldier would call "port arms"—in front of his chest, with the kissaki downward at a 45-degree angle. He places them point-to-point on the floor along the shimoseki-jōseki dōjō axis, with edges in opposite directions, such that they are in a perfect line with the mune side of both kissaki flush. The edge of the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken will be facing toward the left of the person picking it up.

The student does not bow to the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken and should position them as quietly and as unobtrusively as possible. He does not bow to the shinza or to any of the seniors, either before or after this action. (He is like the puppeteer in Bunraku; you are supposed to pretend he isn't there.)

The two people who are actually going to do the kata enter the training area from opposite sides of the dōjō. After a formal zarei to the shinza, they stand and face away from each other. 

Quickly, they tie back the sleeves of their kimono: both the action and the cord used to do this are called tasuki. Placing one end of the cord between his teeth, the swordsman loops the tasuki under his left arm, behind his back, over his right shoulder, under his right arm, across his back, over his left shoulder, and ties the ends in front of his left shoulder. The belt that comes with a yukata (cotton bath robe) is often used for tasuki. This entire sequence should only take about five seconds.

Next, they tuck up the legs of their hakama. This is done by tucking the thumbs into the side vents, folding the fingers under, and tucking a fold of the hakama under each side of the obi.

Now, both swordsmen tum to face the center. Assuming hachiji-dachi, they take a deep (and audible) breath—this looks a lot like the opening of a karate kata—and execute a very shallow ritsurei.

Maintaining intense concentration, both swordsmen slowly approach the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken. Upon reaching the weapons, the swordsmen sink to their right knees, touch the tips of the fingers of their right hands to the floor (as a second bow), and pick up their Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken.

Rising to their feet, they assume seigan-gamae: the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken are horizontal and the kissaki touch.

Finally, the swordsmen go to gedan-gamae, retreat five small steps (starting with the left foot), shift back to seigan-gamae, then advance with three larger steps (starting with the right foot) to their original positions.

Kiri-otoshi

The basic downward cut with a sword is called kiri-oroshi. Gekken uses a special cut called kiri-otoshi, and it has a unique theory and methodology. 

With kiri-oroshi, the primary sources of power are the triceps and pectoral muscles. The stroke is normally accompanied by a strong hip rotation, and great care is taken to ensure that proper balance is maintained throughout the action.

Kiri-otoshi uses the abdominal muscles as the prime mover. The Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken is brought high and well back, then the abdominals are suddenly clenched. Properly executed, this will result in a sharp, choked off, grunt of exertion.

The shoulders come well to the front, and balance is taken to the very edge: both heels should be off the mat, and the slightest touch would cause the swordsman to fall forward. (The traditional way of learning this is to stand with your back and heels firmly against a wall, with the heels lifted as high as possible, and cut downward strongly without stepping forward.)

The cut is never straight downward: the line is "temple to toe." This means that the stroke follows a line from the target's left temple to his right foot. This shallow angle generates much more power than a vertical stroke. (This fact, by the way, is one of the okuden of the Gekken kata.)

As the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken is much heavier than a normal bokken, a special grip is used. This is a hiden waza, and is taught only to members of the ryū.

Gekken Shō and Dai

There are two groups of Gekken kata, Shō and Dai. Gekken Shō contains a series of 17 kumitachi, each of which starts from one of the Haiku-gamae and defends against a kiri-otoshi. Gekken Dai contains 7 groups of 17 kumitachi, and each group defends against a stroke from one of the basic 7 cuts from Happō-gamae, with the defense starting  from each of the Haiku-gamae. (Only one of the jōdan-gamae from the Happō-gamae is used.) Each set starts slowly and accelerates, so completing the entire sequence requires great endurance.

Both Shō and Dai contain an l8th kumitachi, known as ai-uchi, which is always the final technique demonstrated.

Gekken Dai is based on the principle of sen-no-sen-sente: shitachi starts to attack, uchitachi counters, then shitachi regains the initiative. Gekken Shō, on the other hand, is based on sen-sente: uchitachi attacks and shitachi regains the initiative.

In the first set of Gekken Dai, tsuki kumigata, the defender fights the attacker's Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken. In the remaining sets, he evades the stroke and fights the swordsman. 

Gekken Dai is normally practiced in its entirety, as a form of tanren-geiko (intensive training), to develop spirit. Gekken Shō, however, is much more technically sophisticated and normally only four kata are shown: a swordsman demonstrates two kata, uses ai-uchi to switch positions, and then his partner demonstrates two kata. A final ai-uchi returns the swordsmen to their original positions.

Ki-no-tachi

The first kata of Gekken Shō is Ki no-tachi, and it is executed as follows: 

1) Starting from ai-seigan, both swordsmen go to gedan-gamae, open the maai, and return to seigan-gamae.

2) Shitachi, with a settling feeling, shifts to ki-gamae. This is a relaxed chūdan-gamae from a narrow migi zenkutsu-dachi. His Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken points towards uchitachi's left eye-this is called chūdan-gasumi. 

3) Uchitachi lifts his heels slightly off the mat, settles, then attacks in the following manner: he slides his right foot forward, as far as it can go without shifting his balance; he steps forward with his left foot and goes to a deep jōdan. such that his back is deeply arched; he intends to step forward with his right foot and strike with kiri-otoshi, but is forestalled. 

4) As uchitachi completes his second step, shitachi springs forward with a thrust toward uchitachi's throat. Shitachi lands in hidari kake-dachi, to the left of the embusen—his Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken should be at a 15-degree angle to the line of attack. 

Test: Maai is critical. If uchitachi continues his attack, his throat should touch the tip of shitachi's Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken when his forearms have descended to a point about l" above the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken. If uchitachi's forearms touch before his throat does, shitachi is too far away; if uchitachi's forearms are more than 1" above shitachi's Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken when his throat touches, shitachi is too close. 

5) Uchitachi quickly retreats several steps and shifts to hassō-gamae.

Important: With a normal bokken, a stroke can easily be stopped just short of the target. Due to the weight of the weapon, this can not be done with an Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken. Uchitachi must, therefore, retreat very quickly, and far enough back that shitachi's counter-stroke misses by about three feet.

6) Shitachi shifts to musubi-dachi, facing across the embusen (with his left shoulder toward uchitachi). Slowly, shitachi brings his Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken to kata-garuma (behind his neck and across his shoulders), with his left hand on the kissaki and his right hand gripping the tsuka. Still moving slowly, and without distorting his posture, shitachi brings his left hand to the tsuka.

7) Briskly, shitachi turns and steps deeply toward uchitachi with his right foot, and strikes with kesa-giri (cutting for the tip of uchitachi's shoulder, toward the opposite hip). This must be a very powerful stroke, and the follow-through should take the Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken all the way to hidari hassō-gamae. Shitachi finishes in a deep migi zenkutsu-dachi, with his weight well forward and both heels raised.

8) Both swordsmen drop their Ittō Tenshin-ryū bokken toward katate-gedan, with a twirling action, while wiping their left hands on their hakama. The spinning motion is to release tension from the right wrist; the wiping is to dry the left (power) hand, in preparation for the next kata.

9) Maintaining katate-gedan, both swordsmen return to their initial positions and then resume seigan-gamae.

The Severe Sword

When observing many kumitachi—Ten-no-kata is an excellent example—your impression is generally one of speed: it's like a catfight, and many of the motions are done so quickly that you may not be sure exactly what happened.

With Gekken, on the other hand, the feeling is one of brute, raw, cruel, and extremely violent power delivered with a frightening intensity of spirit.

THE END