Customer Reviews

Mugai Ryu: The Classical Japanese Art of Drawing the Sword

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book has been a waste of my money and I will return it as soon as possible. I have an MA in Japanese Studies and have lived several years in Japan, while studying Japanese history as well as practicing martial arts. The main reason for this unfortunate judgement lies in the fact that Mr. Craig should not have attempted to bring Japanese history into his story about the Mugai Ryu. He has consistently misinterpreted, as well as misunderstood, Japanese history in it's factual reality. Furthermore, he has not been very consistent in making his mistakes by, for example, stating that the battle of Sekigahara took place in 1601 (page 3) while the correct date is 1600 (which date is used later on in the text). Another one of the inconsistencies is the date of passing of his kendo teacher, Nakamura Takeshi. On page 111 Mr. Craig writes underneath a picture of Nakamura sensei the year 1997, while on page 113 the same Nakamura sensei is said to have passed away in 1996! This is surely not the way to honor the memory of his teacher. Elsewhere in the text Mr. Craig makes the historically completely incorrect statement that Toyotomi Hideyoshi "became a teacher of martial strategy to all the retainers of the Tokugawa shogun" (page 70). This would have been an extremely strong feat, since Toyotomi Hideyoshi died in 1598 and the Tokugawa family only became historically third in line to be bestowed the title of shogun in 1603! Therefore, the afore-mentioned Hideyoshi could never have become a teacher of anything to the retainers of the Tokugawa, not to mention that Hideyoshi actually was the one person who united Japan under his rule in 1590 after his own overlord Oda Nobunaga, who began the unification process during the late 60's of the 16th century, had been murdered by one of his vassals in 1582. This makes it absolutely impossible to defend that someone in Hideyoshi's position of power would have been teaching anyone at all. Next, Mr. Craig is going completely over his head when he attempts an interpretation of the so-called "heino bunri", which he himself persistently calls "nohei bunri" (pages 4-6). Here he states that "nohei bunri" was an experiment by the Tokugawa to create a peasant army, while in fact the system, called correctly "heino bunri", was the attempt to separate the warriors from the peasants and this process was started, actually, by Hideyoshi in the 80's of the 16th century. In doing so, initially only in the domains under his direct control, Hideyoshi created a standing professional army of warriors! Not peasants! The whole matter has nothing at all to do with creating a peasant army and wasn't even a Tokugawa experiment! The Tokugawa, after coming into power, only capitalised on this earlier institutional novelty introduced, as mentioned, by Hideyoshi. These are just a few of the historical and factual mistakes contained in this book, by which it is rendered wholly untrustworthy for any reference purposes whatsoever. However, should Mr. Craig someday decide to write an autobiographical work on his experiences in the world of Japanese martial arts, I would seriously consider buying it since this part of his book was the only one worth reading to me.

I found this book helpful and informative regarding one form of mugai ryu. I recommend adding the book to your collection if you're interested in iaido (or like to collect Mr. Craig's great martial art stories).

I also found the majority of reviews below helpful. As noted by some, this book isn't a history book, and it clearly doesn't apply to all forms of mugai ryu. I, too, found a few typos, but I find them everywhere and won't condemn a book for that.

I happened to have traveled to Japan with this book and was happy to show it to a well-respected kendo instructor - who admired the book profusely. Of course, the sensei landed up with the book! Now you know why I need another copy!

I found this book enjoyable, however it would have been better if the author had focused on Mugai Ryu like the title would indicate. At many points in the book the author elaborates what his sensei from Hokoshin Itto Ryu had to say. Going into the history of that style. I bought this book to learn about Mugai Ryu history and tradition. It did NOT cover very much of that at all. In fact, the founder (Tsuji Gettan Tsukimochi) is only briefly discussed in one chapter. Overall there is very little discussion of Mugai Ryu. The title of the book is misleading. Much that was included in this book did not belong. It was disapointing that so little of the book focused on the proposed subject matter.

I began reading another book by this author "Japan's Ultimate Martial Art... Jujitsu Before 1882 The Classical Japanese Art of Self- Defense"; I enjoyed the book so much that I looked for another book written by this author(Darrell Max Craig). I found the book "Mugai Ryu...The Classical Japanese Art of Drawing the Sword" to be complete; in the sense that he really pulls you back into the time period of fuedal Japan when the sword was the weapon of the Japanese warrior. It brings a sense of reading a history novel, a fantasy (as in I was swept away within this book), but mostly real application of the sword. Everything was explained in his very down to earth way, which I so appreciated. This book was another great find and worth every cent. I would recommend this book to any one who is interested in the Japanese sword.

I lived in Houston, Texas at one time. I was never a student of Mr. Craig's, but having in an interest in the martial arts, this is how I came to know about Darrell Craig's dojo and his books. He is well know and respected in not only the Houston martial arts and law enforcement communities, but he is well known (and quite credible) in the writing and television communities too. He is well know for his festival appearances and relationships in the Japanese community. I have enjoyed all of his previous books and this one is certainly the best.

What Mr. Craig writes in his books is apparently basically what he practices. No one disputes Mr. Craig's over thirty years of experience. He makes it very clear in this book about Mugai ryu that (while the reviewer from the Netherlands disingenuously does not), there are as many as five different claims and several different "soke's" to the one all true form of this type of Japanese swordmanship called Mugai ryu. So, apparently any claim to "authority on Mugai ryu" is an immediate contradiction.

Also, as far as I can tell, Mr. Craig does not claim that this is a history book, and I don't know anything about Japanese history to care enough about a several year mistake. Of course the movements are different in the book than the movements practiced by others worldwide, Mr. Craig did not learn and does not teach the movements of this particular reviewer from the Netherlands. I think the reviewer's one-star review was less of a review and more of a commercial.

I can't practice the beautiful and fascinating art of Iai, but at least I can read about it from Mr. Craig's book. He consistently provides fantastic glimpses into an art form that most westerners find absolutely mysterious. Six stars.

As far as I can tell, if you want to know about Mugai Ryu Iaido, this is the only game in town unless you are good at reading Japanese. Author offers info on the history, philosophy and katas of Mugai Ryu and shows some wazas from some of the old kenjutsu ryus. ALso shows some advanced Mugai Ryu techniques in addition to the katas. It would have been nice if there had been more on the bunkai behind the katas.

excellent book on mugairyu iaido,but i think photo,s would have helped with understanding the kata more easily,i do understand the reasoning for figure drawings!

This book was fantastic! I started reading this authors books with "The Art Of Kendo" which was equally as rewarding! I liked this book so much I hunted down the Mugai Ryu video which I could not find on Amazon. I found it through the publisher([...])but I am sure you can probably get it through the author. Darrell Craig's HOUSTON BUDOKAN Dojo can be found on the web. My wife is reading "Japan's Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882 the Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense" and it has helped her greatly in her Jujitsu study! This book is not a history lesson, he gives a little history in the first chapter so you will understand what it is you are studying. This book has opened a whole new world to me that I didn't even know was there!

Darrell Max Craig is a student of Karate under Sensei Z. Shimbuku, and holder of a 6th Dan in Karate & Jujitsu, a 5th Dan in Kobudo & Kendo, and a 4th Dan in Iaido, Judo & Aikido. In Mugai Ryu: The Classical Samurai Art Of Drawing The Sword Craig has compiled and written a single volume, 314-page presentation (with illustrations) history of the Samurai code of Bushido. In doing so, Craig draws upon his personal encounters with the descendants of famous samurai of the past to accurately depict the many rituals of the Samurai sword, including how these swords were made, cared for, and tested. Very highly recommended reading for martial arts students and aspiring swordsmen, Mugai Ryu provides the reader with complete instructions for more than twenty traditional sword-drawing techniques and sparring routines, including the "one cut" techniques of the ancient Samurai of feudal era Japan.

I bought this book because it is quite rare to find any book in English on the subject of Mugai Ryu. I have a specific interest in this school of Iaido which I have trained and studied together with Muso Ryu Jodo in Japan. Apart from the historical errors described in one of the other reviews, there are also quite a number of inconsistencies with the kata I know.
If the historical accounts are not correct and the technical descriptions of the movements differ from the actual Mugai Ryu kata, I wonder what the purpose of this book is, and indeed why anyone would consider buying the book.