Iaijutsu

Iaijutsu (居合術), a combative quick-draw sword techniques. This art of drawing the Japanese sword, katana, is one of the Japanese koryū martial art disciplines in the education of the classical warrior (bushi).

Purpose
Iaijutsu is a combative sword-drawing art but not necessarily an aggressive art because iaijutsu is also a counterattack-oriented art. Iaijutsu technique may be used aggressively to wage a premeditated surprise attack against an unsuspecting enemy. The formulation of iaijutsu as a component system of classical bujutsu was made less for the dynamic situations of the battlefield than for the relatively static applications of the warrior's daily life off the field of battle.

Etymology
Historically, it is unclear when the term "iaijutsu" accurately performed, and when techniques to draw katana from the scabbard was first practiced as decided form of exercise. The Japanese sword has existed since the Nara period (710-794), where techniques to draw the sword has been practiced under other names than 'iaijutsu'. The term 'iaijutsu' was first verified in connection with Iizasa Chōisai Ienao (c. 1387 - c. 1488), founder of the school Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū.

History
Archaeological excavations dated the oldest sword in Japan from at least as early as second century B.C.  The Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters) and the Nihon Shoki (History of Japan), ancient texts on early Japanese history and myth that were compiled in the eighth century A.D., describe iron swords and swordsmanship that pre-date recorded history, attributed to the mythological age of the gods (kami).

The development of Japanese swordsmanship as a component system of classical bujutsu created by and for professional warriors (bushi), begins only with the invention and widespread use of the Japanese sword, the curved, single-cutting-edged long sword. In its curved form, the sword is known to the Japanese as tachi in the eighth century. It evolved from and gained ascendancy over its straight-bladed prototype because years of battlefield experience proved that the curved form of sword was better suited to the needs of the bushi than the straight-bladed kind. Around the curved long sword the bushi built a mystique of fantastic dimensions, one that still influences Japanese culture today. The nature of the bushi's combative deployment, mounted as he was on horseback, required the classical warrior to reach out for his enemy, who might either be similarly mounted or otherwise ground-deployed.

During the Kamakura period (1185-1333) the Japanese sword smiths achieved the highest level of technical excellence and because the war between two influential families, the Minamoto and the Taira, made it possible to test and evaluate swords under the severest of conditions. By the end of the Kamakura period the tachi was superseded by a shorter weapon in a new form, called katana.

It was with the general widespread use of the curved sword mounted and worn as a katana that classical Japanese swordsmanship for infantry applications really begins. It is not until the fifteenth century that there are evidence in reliable documentary form to prove that the bushi practiced swordsmanship in a systematic manner. In this connection it is belief that kenjutsu, which deals with the art of swordsmanship as it is performed with a bokken that has already been brought into unsheathed position, is the senior form to iaijutsu.

Iaijutsu is extant today but there also exists a modern form for drawing the Japanese sword, called iaido. Iaido, the way of drawing the sword, appeared as a term in 1932.

Postures
According to Donn F. Draeger, iaijutsu is a combative art and, therefore, the warrior considered only two starting positions in the execution of a sword-drawing technique. The first techniques is from the low crouching posture, named iai-goshi. The other is the standing posture, named tachi-ai.

The seated posture, tate-hiza, is not used in iaijutsu because it does not permit all-around mobility. Seiza, the formal kneeling-sitting posture, is not used because it is a "dead" posture which is regarded by the warrior as less combatively efficient. It would be difficult for the swordsman using either of these two latter postures to go quickly into action in an emergency.

Koryū Schools
Ryū that still exist and include iaijutsu in their curriculum include. The school below are koryū, or arts developed before the Meiji era.:

Mugai ryu


Mugai ryu was once one of the more famous styles in Japan in the Edo period and was developed from a strong influence of Zen. It is characterized by short, direct movements. As it was developed in 1697 by Tsuji Gettan Sukemochi [or Sukeshige], a Zen practitioner, it has deep links with Zen Buddhism. The original style created by Gettan was a kenjutsu school rather than iaido. Today's Mugai ryu iaido was established by Takahashi Hachisuke Mitsusuke and his younger brother Hidezu in mid Edo period. They studied a style called Jikyo-ryū under the fifth and last generation headmasters Yamamura Masashige. There are several distinct lineages of Mugai ryu throughout Japan today.

Suiō-ryū
Suiō-ryū is a traditional style that specialises in sword drawing, both solo and paired, but other arts, like jōjutsu, naginatajutsu, kenpō and kusarigamajutsu are practised as well. It was founded by Mima Yoichizaemon Kagenobu c. 1615.

Other styles
Other styles that incorporate sword drawing in their curriculum are, for example, Shindō Munen-ryū, Shinkage-ryū, Hōki-ryū, Tatsumi-ryū, Tamiya-ryū, Takenouchi-ryū, Eishin-ryū and:
 * Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū—Traces back to the Hayashizaki-ryū Iai of Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Late 15th century)
 * Musō Shinden-ryū—Traces back to the Hayashizaki-ryū Iai of Hayashizaki Jinsuke (Late 15th century)
 * Suiō-ryū Iai Kenpō—Founded around 1600 by Mima Yoichizaemon Kagenobu
 * Shin Shin Sekiguchi-ryū—Sekiguchi-ryū was founded by Sekiguchi Yorokuuemon Ujimune.
 * Mugai-ryū—Founded in 1693 by Tsuji Gettan Sukemochi, who had previously learned Yamaguchi-ryū kenjutsu.
 * Jigen-ryū—Founded by Tōgō Hizen-no-kami Shigetada, its lineage traces back to the Shintō-ryū of Iizasa Chōisai Ienao.
 * Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū—Founded in the 15th Century by Iizasa Chōisai Ienao.
 * Tamiya Shinken-ryu—Founded by Tamiya Heibei Shigemasa in 16th Century.
 * Yagyū Seigo-ryu—Founded by Nagaoka Torei Fusashige in the 17th Century.
 * Yagyū Shinkage-ryū—From the Shinkage-ryū of Yagyū Muneyoshi, who studied under Kamiizumi Nobutsuna in the 16th Century.
 * Yoshin-ryū—from the Yoshin-ryū founded by Akiyama Shirobei Yoshitoki in the mid 17th Century.