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[[Image:Hayashizaki.jpg|thumb|right|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu.]]
[[Image:Hayashizaki.jpg|thumb|right|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu.]]
The founder of what is today known as [[Iaido]] was a man named either Hojo Jinsuke Shigenobu or Hayashizaki Jinsuke Shigenobu. His life is shrouded in obscurity and, as a result, many more legends exist than fact. It is known that he was born in [[Sagami province]] sometime during the middle of the sixteenth century, from there it is believed that he lived in [[Mutsu province]].
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple.jpg|thumb|left|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple.jpg|thumb|left|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
According to legend, his father was murdered while Shigenobu was still young. Swearing revenge, he took to either the Shinmei or Hiyoshi [[Shinto]] [[jinja]] where he prayed and meditated for many days. After an extended period of prayer and meditation he was struck with a divine dream wherein he was imparted with the techniques of [[battojutsu]].
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple2.jpg|thumb|right|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
It is not known just exactly how skilled of a swordsman he actually was, but he it is known that he studied swordsmanship intensively during the approximate years of [[1596]] – [[1601]] and, thereafter, devised a series of [[iaijutsu]] techniques which he called battojutsu. His style came to be known by various different names: [[Junpaku Den]], [[Hayashizaki Ryu]], [[Shin Muso Hayashizaki Ryu]], [[Shigenobu Ryu]], et cetera.
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple3.jpg|thumb|left|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
It is also known that he made a tour of Japan in [[Musha Shugyo]] (warrior pilgrimage) fashion, and at that time he attracted many disciples to his system. The exact techniques that he transmitted to his students remain a mystery, but it is believed that they must have been relatively simple, practical, and highly combative.
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple2.jpg|thumb|right|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
Supposedly in [[1616]], at the age of 73, he made a second tour of Japan, during which, he apparently disappeared. Under his pioneering influence, many different schools emerged.
[[Image:Hayashizaki_temple3.jpg|thumb|left|Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Minamoto no) Shigenobu Iai Temple in Yamagata prefecture.]]
After his death, the tradition of the Shin Muso Hayashizaki Ryu was carried on by [[Tamiya Narimasa|Tamiya Taira-no-Hyoe Narimasa]] who, it is believed to be the teacher of [[Tokugawa leyasu]], [[Tokugawa Hidetada|Hidetada]] and [[Tokugawa Iemitsu|lemitsu]]. If this is true then it would certainly contribute to the popularity of this style.
==Notes==
Derived from: Shewan, Malcolm T. ''Iai, the Art of Japanese Swordsmanship.'' Cannes, 1983.
[[Category:Sengoku Period]]
[[Category:Sengoku Period]]
[[Category:Samurai]]