MONTHLY NEWS
March 2003

Mad About Musashi

	Vagabond, a manga series starring Miyamoto Musashi (Asahi Shogakusei Shimbun)

Miyamoto Musashi was a famous Japanese swordsman who lived in the early part of the Edo period (1603-1868). Musashi, who is said to have been the strongest man in Japan's history, is a popular figure even today. Musashi fought more than 60 times in his life, and he never lost. Once he even took on 70 opponents at once. Musashi was always keen to take on opponents of greater skill than himself in order to improve his skills in the way of the sword. He is seen as a proud but lonely hero who confronts death and grows as a human being while overcoming self-doubt. This character has struck a chord with many people, and the story of Musashi has featured in numerous movies, novels, and TV shows.

The version that is most popular among young people now is a manga (comic) titled Bagabondo (Vagabond). This manga, which features Miyamoto Musashi as the main character, has appeared in serial form in the weekly comic magazine Shukan moningu since autumn 1998. Sixteen collected volumes of the manga have been published, of which a total of about 30 million copies have been sold. Also fueling the popularity of Musashi is the fact that NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) began airing an epic TV drama about his life in January.

Musashi, though, lived 400 years ago, so there are many things we do not know about his life. There are two different places where he is said to have been born, for example, and five separate graves for him in Kumamoto Prefecture alone, where he is believed to have died. In addition, little is known about either his fighting style or his opponents.

Even so, Japanese still share a common perception of Musashi. Why? The answer to this question lies in author Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Miyamoto Musashi, which was published in serial form in a newspaper over a period of four years beginning in 1935. The novel was later collected into six volumes and became a huge bestseller. It is still popular today. The manga and the TV series are both based on Yoshikawa's novel, which has been translated into 23 foreign languages. So why has Musashi suddenly become popular again? The chief producer of the NHK show says, "Japan is in a very gloomy mood at the moment. People are looking for a hero with spirit and individualism like Musashi."

The winning teams from Uzumasa Youth Kendo Club (Uzumasa Youth Kendo Club)

In Ohara City, Okayama Prefecture, which is believed to be the birthplace of Musashi, elementary and middle school students gather every year for a kendo tournament that celebrates his legacy. At last year's tournament, which was a national event for the first time, the group that took top honors in the upper-elementary and middle school boys division was the Uzumasa Youth Kendo Club in Kyoto. We asked some of the members of that club what they thought about Miyamoto Musashi.

Kazutaka Kobayashi, a third-year middle school student, said, "My impression, of course, is that he was strong. I really admire his spiritual strength." Naoya Yahagi, a sixth-year elementary school student, stated, "I think he was an incredible person, because he developed the style of fighting with two swords." Ayako Shimoi, also in the sixth grade in elementary school, shared her opinion: "He was incredibly powerful, but he was also kind of scary, because his eyes and personality changed completely when he held a sword."

	Kids from the club practice kendo (Uzumasa Youth Kendo Club)

"When I was interested in the Bushido that existed in Japan long ago, I read the novel Miyamoto Musashi," said second-year middle school student Katsuhiro Kinugawa as he explained why he took up kendo. "I like his spiritual strength, which can be seen in the fact that he fought more than 60 times and never lost. I also like his forward-looking attitude."

Second-year middle school student Yasuhiro Shimoi is the son of the group's instructor and the older brother of Ayako. Yasuhiro explained why he first took up kendo, saying, "I looked up to my father, because he is strong like Musashi. In the future, I want to teach kendo with my father and form the number-one kendo team in Japan together." Thanks to the enthusiasm of kids like Yasuhiro, more and more great swordsmen like Musashi are sure to develop in Japan.