Muramasa is the name of a family of swordsmiths in Kuwana, Ise Province (now Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture), and also the name of the Japanese swords they made. Another name is “Senko Muramasa”. At that time, all the swords made by the Muramasa family were called Muramasa. Later, due to historical reasons, some Japanese swords named Muramasa also appeared.
The Origin of Muramasa Sword
From the Muromachi period to the early Edo period, the Muramasa family in the Ise Kuwana area was a famous swordsmith, and they had cast many types of swords, from short swords to guns. The swords they cast were of good quality and were all named “Muramasa”. The first generation of Muramasa was named Saemon-no-no-no. The earliest existing Muramasa sword made by him was made in the first year of Bunki (1501). There is also a long inscription on this sword: “Seshu Kuwana Juemon-no-no-no Fujiwara Muramasa”. Among the existing Muramasa, the most famous sword is called “Myoho Muramasa”. This sword has a dragon engraved on the blade, and the part that is inserted into the scabbard is engraved with the words “Myoho Renge Kyo”. From this, it is inferred that Muramasa may have a deep connection with the Nichiren sect. This sword was cast in the tenth year of Eishล (1513), and it is estimated that it was the work of the third generation of Muramasa.
The legend of “Demon Sword Muramasa”
- When the Tokugawa family still used the surname “Matsudaira” from the Mikawa region, Tokugawa Ieyasu’s grandfather, Matsudaira Kiyokasa, was killed by his retainer Abe Yashichiro with the Muramasa sword “Senko Muramasa” during a battle with the Oda family at the end of 1535. It is said that he was chopped from the right shoulder to the left abdomen.
- Tokugawa Ieyasu’s father, Matsudaira Hirotada, was suddenly assassinated by his close retainer Iwamatsu Hachiya in 1545. Coincidentally, the sword Iwamatsu was holding was also a sword made by Muramasa.
- Ieyasu’s legitimate son Nobuyasu committed suicide by seppuku because Oda Nobunaga suspected him of colluding with the Takeda clan. The knife he used was Seishu Muramasa.
- Tokugawa Ieyasu had his finger cut by a spear made by Muramasa during the Battle of Sekigahara.
- The various experiences of the Tokugawa family led to Ieyasu ordering the abolition of weapons made by Muramasa and prohibiting their use, because Tokugawa Ieyasu believed that weapons made by Muramasa would be detrimental to the Tokugawa family, and that weapons made by Muramasa were cursing the Tokugawa family. The military commanders of this period were quite superstitious about this curse, so Muramasa’s sword was called “Muramasa Demon Sword.”
- Because the weapons made by Muramasa were still good works, some people changed their names to Masamune or Masahiro, or erased the name of Muramasa and continued to wear and use them, but it was still illegal at the time. The daimyo Fukushima Masanori and Sanada Yukimura, who were opposed to the Tokugawa shogunate, valued Muramasa very much and secretly collected it with the idea of โโ”overthrowing the shogunate.” At the end of the shogunate, the saying “the evil sword that haunts the Tokugawa family” was used by the anti-shogunate people, and they engraved the sword inscription “Muramasa” on their own swords. Among them, the most famous one was the Muramasa short sword presented by the anti-shogunate court noble Sanjo Sanetomi from Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine when he prayed for the overthrow of the shogunate. There is also an anecdote that Saigo Takamori used the Muramasa short sword and iron fan to protect himself.
- In fact, in terms of the quality of the weapon alone, Muramasa’s sword is extremely sharp and light, and can be called a first-class sword.
The truth of the legend
According to historical records, the origin of the Muramasa sword, Ise Province (now Mie Prefecture), is very close to Mikawa Province where the Tokugawa family is located. At that time, there were no other famous swords around except Muramasa, so many people used Muramasa swords, including the Tokugawa family. This explains why the Tokugawa family was often injured by Muramasa. Therefore, according to current views, it is quite normal that the weapons made by Muramasa have a high rate of accidents in the Tokugawa family.
Other short stories about the demon sword Muramasa
There are more and more Muramasa ghost stories that have nothing to do with the Tokugawa family. Our current impression of Muramasa as a demon sword was established at that time. It is impossible to verify whether the people at that time believed it and how widely it spread, but there are many books recording the incidents of Muramasa as the source of evil in the Edo period.
- According to records of an unknown time, a samurai named Matsudaira Gaiki went berserk, killed his friend, and then committed suicide. He used the Muramasa sword without a name engraved on it. (From “Half-day Chat”)
- A sword dealer got a Muramasa sword. He erased the name Muramasa and engraved the name Masamune on it. But for some reason, he used the sword to kill his wife. (From “Ear Bag”)
- A thief stole the Muramasa that had been passed down from generation to generation in a family, and then accidentally cut off his wrist with a knife. (From a folk legend in Fukui Prefecture)
- Before the war, Kotaro Honda, a doctor of engineering at Tohoku University, had a cutting sharpness measuring instrument for knives. Everyone thought it would be interesting to use it to measure famous swords from ancient times to the present. However, only the sword known as the demon sword Muramasa had inconsistent data each time it was measured. The scientific magazine “Newton” published this short story. Mr. Honda became a topic in the laboratory because of this incident: “This is the real Muramasa”, and the teacher made this joke. (Mura (ใใ) in Japanese is homophonic with madara, meaning “changeable, uncertain”)
- As a representative of Japanese demon swords, the image of Muramasa was “cultivated” by the people, and later evolved into the form of Murasame. Murasame appeared in Kyokutei Bakin’s “The Tale of the Eight Dogs of Minami-sato-sato”. When this sword is drawn to kill people, dew will appear on the murderous blade. After killing people, water will flow from the blade to wash away the blood. This scene is like rain and dew washing leaves, so it is called “Murasame”.
- Since Muramasa and Murasame differ by only one character, some novels, anime, and games link these two swords together and believe that Murasame is the evolved version of Muramasa. In fact, the two swords have no connection at all.
