Welcome to the United Kingdom branch of Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū .
Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū was founded by Iizasa Choisai Ienaō Sensei during the mid Muromachi era (1336-1573) in the Katori region of Shimōsa province (present-day Katori city, Chiba prefecture), and is the source from which many Japanese martial arts have evolved.
At approximately sixty years of age, Iizasa Sensei undertook a thousand days of prayer and austere training in the grounds of the Katori Shrine. Tradition tells us the deity Futsunushi no Kami appeared to Iizasa Sensei, declared him the first amongst all other swordsmen under the sun and presented him with a divine scroll on the warrior arts. Since the art was received through divine transmission, Iizasa Sensei named it “Tenshinshō-den” (direct and authentic transmission from the deities) Katori Shintō-ryū.
The tradition has been carefully handed on across the centuries, through successive generations of master teachers, to the present day.
The practice of Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū in the United Kingdom follows the teachings passed down from Hayashi Sakuichirō Shihan to Hayashi Yazaemon Shihan, who was then succeeded by Ōtake Risuke Shihan (Shinbukan Dōjō founder). Practice is led by Ōtake Nobutoshi Shihan, in accordance with the sublime teachings of Ōtake Risuke Shihan (1926 -2021) of the Shinbukan Dōjō which is situated in the countryside near Narita City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan.
In 1960, through the efforts of Hayashi Yazaemon Shihan and Ōtake Risuke Shihan, Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryu was awarded the status of Intangible Cultural Asset of Chiba Prefecture. The tradition was the first martial art in Japan to be designated as a cultural asset. Both Ōtake Risuke Shihan (1926 - 2021) and Ōtake Nobutoshi Shihan hold the official title of Guardian, as designated by the authority of the Chiba Prefecture Office of Education.
Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū is preserved and transmitted both domestically and internationally as a classical Japanese warrior tradition unique to the Katori region.
If you are not based in the United Kingdom and would like to inquire about beginning training in the tradition, please visit the Shinbukan Dōjō website, using this link:
天真正伝香取神道流