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Gyokushin-ryū

玉心流忍法
GYOKUSHIN-RYŪ NINPŌ

Sasaki Goemon Teruyoshi founded the Gyokushin-ryū school based on Gyokkō-ryū approximately 500 years ago.

玉 GYOKU : jewel, ball
心 SHIN : heart, mind, spirit, heart 
流 RYŪ : current, a sink, flow, forfeit
忍 NIN : endure, bear, put up with, conceal, secrete, spy, sneak
法 PŌ : method, law, rule, principle, model, system

It is believed that Sasaki Goemon Teruyoshi founded the school based on Gyokkō-ryū and it was taught around the Kishu and Takeda provinces for many generations. We don’t know much about the first 10 generations, not even their names. This shouldn’t be surprising since it was dangerous times, they didn’t keep records that could be confiscated and used against themselves.

After Tokugawa united Japan in 1603 the Edo Period started (1603-1867), now there was peace. Later in 1624-1644 it is recorded that the school was headed by Toda Seiryu Nobutsuna (24’th Sōke of Togakure-ryū). We don’t know how this school came to the Toda family.

If there still exist Densho with techniques they have not been taught officially by Hatsumi Sōke. I have seen only a few Taijutsu concepts, no Kata techniques. It might be that this school was more specialised in espionage and tactics and not so much fighting. We don’t know much about this school.

With the new Sōke maybe something will be revealed soon?

傳系 DENKEI

  1. 佐々木五部石衛門輝良
  2. 佐々木源太夫貞安
  3. ?
  4. ?
  5. ?
  6. ?
  7. ?
  8. ?
  9. ?
  10. ?
  11. 戸田盛柳信綱
  12. 戸田不動信近
  13. 戸田観五郎信安
  14. 戸田英三郎信正
  15. 戸田新兵衛正近
  16. 戸田新五郎正良
  17. 戸田大五郎近秀
  18. 戸田大三郎近繁
  19. 戸田真竜軒正光
  20. 高松寿嗣翊翁
  21. 初見良昭
  22. 菅純一

Sasaki Goeman Teruyoshi
Sasaki Gendayu Sadayasu
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Toda Seiryu Nobutsuna (1624-1644)
Toda Fudo Nobuchika (1658-1681)
Toda Kangoro Nobuyasu (1681-1704)
Toda Eisaburo Nobumasa (1704-1711)
Toda Shinbei Masachika (1711-1736)
Toda Shingoro Masayoshi (1736-1764)
Toda Daigoro Chikahide (1764-1804)
Toda Daisaburo Chikashige (1804-1824)
Toda Shinryuken Masamitsu (1824-1909)
Takamatsu Toshitsugu Uoh (1909-1972)
Hatsumi Masaaki (1972-2020)
Kan Junichi (2020-)