Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi

This article is about Jubei Yagyu. For other uses, see Jubei Yagyu (disambiguation).

Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi (柳生 十兵衞 三厳, 1607 – April 12, 1650) was one of the most famous and romanticized of the samurai in Japan's feudal era.

Life

Very little is known about the actual life of Yagyū Mitsuyoshi as the official records of his life are very sparse. Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi (born "Shichirō") grew up in his family's ancestral lands, Yagyū no Sato, now in Nara. He was the son of Yagyū Tajima no Kami Munenori, master swordsman of the Tokugawa Shoguns, especially Ieyasu and Tokugawa Iemitsu, who prized Munenori as one of his top counselors.

Munenori fought for the first Tokugawa shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, at the Battle of Sekigahara, expanding the Shogun's territory. For his efforts, Munenori was made the Shogun's sword instructor and a minor daimyo or provincial ruler, by extending his family hereditary domain up to 10,000 koku. Despite not being the heir of his father as the headmaster of the Yagyū style (and thus far from being an unrivaled swordsman under the Heaven), he received the post for it's importance in Japanese politics anc Court intrigues, at which Munenori was better than the other members of his clan. Munenori would go on to train three successive Shoguns: Ieyasu, Hidetada, and Iemitsu.

In 1616, Mitsuyoshi became an attendant in the court of the second Tokugawa Shōgun, Tokugawa Hidetada and became a sword instructor for the third Tokugawa Shōgun, Tokugawa Iemitsu, occasionally filling his father's role. Records of Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi, however, do not appear again until 1631, when Jūbei, by now regarded as the best swordsman from the Yagyū clan, is summarily and inexplicably dismissed by the Shōgun either due to Jūbei's boldness and brashness or his decision to embark on a Warrior's Pilgrimage (武者修行, Musha Shugyō).

His whereabouts are then unknown over the next twelve years—even the Yagyū clan's secret chronicles, which contained lengthy passages on numerous members, has little solid information on Jūbei—until Yagyū Jūbei reappears at the age of 36 at a demonstration of swordsmanship in front of the Shōgun. Following this exhibition, Jūbei was reinstated and serves for a short time as a government-inspector (御所印判, Gosho Inban), taking control over his father's lands until Yagyū Tajima no Kami Munenori's death in 1646.

Jūbei also authored a treatise known as Tsuki mi no Shou (月目之抄) or The Art of Looking at the Moon outlining his school of swordsmanship as well as teachings influenced by the monk Takuan Sōhō who was a friend of his father's. In this work he briefly provides hints on his whereabouts during his absence from Edo Castle from 1631 to 1643 - traveling the countryside in perfecting his skills.

Death

After residing in Edo for several years after his father's death, Jūbei left his government duties and returned to his home village where he died in early 1650 under uncertain circumstances. Some accounts say he died of a heart attack; others say he died while falcon hunting; some during fishing, while still others presume he was assassinated by his half-brother Yagyū Tomonori's attendants.

Jūbei was laid to rest in a small village called Ohkawahara Mura nearby his birthplace, which was also the resting grounds for Tomonori. In keeping with tradition, Yagyū Jūbei was buried alongside his grandfather, Yagyū Muneyoshi, and was survived by two daughters and his brother and successor Yagyū Munefuyu. Jūbei was given the Buddhist posthumous name of Sohgo.

Eyepatch legend

Legend has it that Yagyū Jūbei had the use of only one eye; most legends state that he lost it in a sword sparring session where his father, Yagyū Munenori, struck him accidentally. However, portraits from Jubei's time portray him as having both eyes. Several authors of late have chosen to portray Jūbei as having both eyes, though the classical "eyepatch" look remains standard. Others have chosen to have Jūbei lose an eye as an adult in order to incorporate the eyepatch legend.

Fictional Appearances

Due to Yagyū Jūbei's frequent disappearances and the fact of little existing records of his whereabouts, his life has bred speculation and interest and has been romanticized in popular fiction.

Notes

  1. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2323830/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_18

References/Sources

See also

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