Beauty of the blade
The Yasukuni Swords
By Tom Kishida (Translated by Kenji Mishina)
The 8,100 swords manufactured in the grounds of the Yasukuni Shrine
between 1933 and 1945 are an exceptional legacy, as artifacts that
preserved not only time-honored forging methods but the aesthetic
and spiritual traditions of the samurai warrior.
No other weapon in the world can boast of possessing such a high
spiritual quality as the Japanese sword. For over a thousand years
the sword was revered as the very soul of the samurai warriors who
wielded it, commanding awe, respect, and an almost religious
devotion.
The tumultuous events of modern Japanese history and the nation's
relentless drive toward technological advancement, however,
irrevocably sealed the sword's fate, and, along with the samurai
class, the sword became an anachronism, both culturally and
militarily.
As Japan entered a period of unprecedented Imperial expansion in the
early twentieth century, the Japanese sword, despite its limited
practical effect, became a feature of the soldier's arsenal an
echo of the mythical status it enjoyed in feudal times. The Yasukuni
swords emerged during the build-up to World War II, in part to help
meet the huge demands of the Imperial Army, but more importantly out
of a desire to preserve time-honored forging methods, and to revive
the spirit of the samurai. For these reasons, they were notably
distinct from so-called "Showa-to," which were mass-produced and
inferior in quality and artistry.
All swords were banned in the immediate aftermath of World War II,
and the decades that followed have seen a decline in the popularity
of Yasukuni swords, largely because of their associations with that
war and the military. Another factor has been the stigma attached to
Showa-to, which has helped to stereotype wartime swords in general.
Recent years, however, have seen a renewed interest in the surviving
Yasukuni swords. Many collectors and appraisers have acknowledged
the workmanship of these swords as displaying a perfect blend of
technology and tradition, and a quality that can rival even that of
the great classical smiths.
In his tribute to the Yasukuni smiths, acclaimed photographer and
sword enthusiast Tom Kishida has compiled an extensive study of
these rare and exceptional swords, drawing on a variety of sources
to shed light on this often little-understood chapter of Japanese
sword history.
With his unique eye for capturing the beauty of the blades in his
photographs, he has provided the reader with the most lavishly
detailed book on Yasukuni swords to date. This will be an important
addition to the libraries of specialists and connoisseurs, and to
those who wish to deepen their understanding of these fascinating
wartime weapons.
September 9, 2004
The Yasukuni Swords by Tom Kishida (Translated by Kenji Mishina)
Published by Kodansha International
$45
4-7700-2754-0
http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=book&id=177