The Budo Odyssey: Living and Training in Japan

So, I am putting up some of the information I have on Kurama Yoshin Ryu, a school that is still practiced down near Kyushu. This entry will hopefully change as I sort things out and get a clearer interpretation of things down the line.

Here goes:

Introduction:

Kurama Yoshin Ryu is a composite martial art school which consists of Jujutsu, Kenjutsu, Hojojutsu and Ninjutsu among other arts. It also seems to have (or had) auxiliary schools.

Information:

First, from the Kurama Yoshin Ryu Densho. As far as I can tell it reads like this:

"Yoshin Ryu Chuden Menjo"

Our ancestor Kiichi Hogen went to Mount Kurama and became a "monk' (religious disciple). Later on Minamoto no Ushiwakamaru (note: this is the childhood name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune) trained with him. Eventually, it ceased to be passed on to later generations (note: this means the lineage died out).

Then Akiyama Shirohyoei Yoshimasu climbed Mount Kurama where he found a treasure warehouse (note: treasure chest? something hidden or forgotten) and in it were eight scrolls (note: or documents) "Tora no Maki." Unable to understand them (note: it says improvise) on his own he pledged vows to many gates (note: that means he entered many schools, I think) to learn them. He had a inspired, divine dream where the school was revealed to him and trained harder. He then went traveling on "musha shugyo" where he founded Kurama ryu. (note: it says in the document that he founded Kurama Yoshin Ryu for one family treasure plate or bowl (??) but I think that is the gist of it and that's as far as I can go logically in the document right now.)

I cross reference this with the entry found in the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten:

Shioda Jindaiyu mixed Yoshin ryu and Suzuki ryu to found Kurama Yoshin Ryu. The school's lineage, however, shows the founder as Akiyama Shirohyoei.

Some other, general notes:
Additionally, there is an oral tradition that says that Shioda Jindaiyu learned from Nakata Hikozaemon in Bizen, who had already named the school "Kurama Yoshin Ryu Kenjutsu". Hikozaemon originally learned Hikata Shinkage Ryu Kenjutsu, Yoshin Ryu Jujutsu and the "nawa" of Namba Ippo ryu (Hojojutsu- this is a jujutsu school that is still active in Hiroshima*?*). He believed the legend that Yoshin Ryu originated in Kurama and so he named his school "Kurama Yoshin Ryu". Shioda Judaiyu learned from both Nakata Hikozaemon and his son Nakata Genzui.
(note: It has been "discovered" that Suzuki ryu has no connection to Kurama Yoshin Ryu based on research and interviews conducted with senior practitioners of Suzuki Ryu in Kurama Yoshin Ryu. This might mean Suzuki ryu is/was an auxiliary school).
Kurama Sojobo is supposedly the ancestor of Kurama Yoshin Ryu, who taught the school to Imadegawa Kiichi Hogen (Note: the Tengu that taught Minanoto no Yoshitsune) in Mount Kurama. In the Jisho year 4 (1181 CE), the ogi (secrets, oral traditions) of the ryu were taught to Minamoto no Ushiwakamaru (note: again, this is Minamoto no Yoshitsune's name as a youth). This school went extinct however the Kenjutsu is supposedly passed on as "Kurama" teachings through Kamiizumi Musashi no Kami Nobutsuna of Shinkage ryu, Hikita Bungaro and Sakai Hannosuke. In March of Anei year 9 (1781) in the Sashu Koshikijima area Shioda Jindaiyu received his menkyo kaiden from Nakata Genzui, who lived in Bizen Imazu. The period of Sakai Hannosuke and Shioda Jindaiyu is the 11th generation of Kurama Ryu Kuden and the 12th generation of Nanba Ippo ryu Hojo. (Note: they are counting the generations of the students here, not heads. That means a person can be from the 10th generation, have 20 students all of which are the 11th generation. This is not uncommon in budo).

In the Shioda family, the founder is Akiyama Shirohyoei, handed down to Shioda Kunitaka as the 11th. In Meiji year 12 (1879) the Police Kendo Association was formed and they allegedly used some of the techniques from Kurama Yoshin Ryu Kenjutsu. Supposedly Jigoro Kano also took some of the techniques from Kurama Yoshin ryu for Judo. During Showa year 23 (1948) Kitabatake Kiyotaka, a Judo Shihan from the Kagoshima prefecture police headquarters became the student of the "5th generation" of the Jindaiyu line. Kitabatake is credited for creating Keisatsu Taihojutsu (police arresting techniques) from Kurama Yoshin Ryu.