Japanese Polearms
When the earth was still very young, the heavenly deity Izanagi, one day took his spear and approached the primeval soup that formed the world. He dipped his spear into the soup and several droplets coagulated on its blade. These were the same droplets that when they fell to earth, formed the islands of Japan. It is said that the Japanese people that came to inhabit these islands, realised from this, that the spear was a holy weapon of great importance to them, as they owed to it the very formation of their homeland.
Elsewhere, the spear is one of the oldest weapons in the world, dating back to cave men that both hunted and made war with it. For centuries it was the main weapon of the warrior, from darkest Africa to the legionaries of Rome. There were obvious advantages in having a long pole between you and the target, but, of course, the Japanese version was peculiarly Japanese and a reflection of the fighting techniques of those ancient times. By the early 9th century, the tactics of massed spearman had been perfected in the battles against the Ainu, the aboriginal inhabitants of the Japanese islands. As sword making techniques from continental Asia had by now been completely absorbed and improved upon, they were easily modified in the production of yari (spears). Principally, the blades of these yari were straight (su-yari) and of course they had a sharp point, but both of the parallel sides were also sharpened. This indicates that as well as stabbing or thrusting, the sharpened sides could be employed for cutting or slashing, adding a further range of techniques to the spearman' s repertoire.
The quenched and hardened edge that we are familiar with on Japanese swords, known as the hamon, was incorporated in the manufacture of yari. It ill be remembered that the hamon is present in order that the cutting-edge is able to take and retain a hard and sharpened edge, which has less of a risk of chipping and breaking. The forging also mimicked that of the swords, but significantly the grain of the body of the yari (the jihada) is usually masame or straight grained. I say significantly, as this is considered a characteristic of the swordsmiths of Yamato province and as the 8th century capital of the country was at Nara in Yamato province, it is clear from where the original yari-makers came.
The yari, in ancient times, was the weapon of the lower class foot soldier and only rarely the favoured weapon of the more noble samurai. However, in these early days, approximately from 800 to 1200 AD, another significant military body was a force to reckon with. The importation of Buddhism between 600 and 750 AD attracted many militant warrior monks, known as Sohei. The ancient imperial capital of Nara, followed by Kyoto, was the centre of this religious movement and many monasteries were built there. As the frontier was moved back, further monasteries were built in the newly acquired territories and needed defending. All such establishments enjoyed tax free status enshrined in an Imperial mandate and such privileges often required spirited defence.
The warrior monks were highly skilled at the martial arts and were frequently to be found wearing swords and full armour. They employed and retained skilled swordsmiths and virtually all those of Yamato-den (one of the five main schools or traditions of swordmaking) were retained by these monastic organisations. Such was their prowess at warfare, that the samurai lords of the time would employ these fearsome warriors. Certainly in the legendary wars fought in the late 12th century between the opposing clans, the Minamoto and the Taira, (the Gempei Wars) both sides employed many warrior monks. Probably the most famous was chief retainer of the Minamoto hero Yoshitsune, who was the warrior monk, Saito-Musashi-bo-Benkei.
The favoured weapon of these gentlemen, including Benkei, was called the naginata. This was a halberd with a large curved blade and a single cutting edge, mounted on poles of varying lengths. Actually the naginata was developed from an agricultural implement called a "nata" and the addition of the adjective "Nagi" simply means "long". Of course, these were also made by the sword and yari makers of the Yamato-den tradition, as well as those of Bizen province. A certain technique, whereby a figure of 8 was described in a whirling action, was apparently almost impossible to counter at close quarters and gave the users a sense of invulnerability. The famous story of a monk named Gochima-no-Tajima illustrates this well. The Minamoto warriors were under immense pressure at a river named Ujigawa, which was close to Kyoto and Tajima was ordered to defend the bridge and prevent the enemy's advance. According to the Heike Monogatari (The Tales of the Heike or Taira), "Gochima-no-Tajima, throwing away the sheath of his long naginata, strode onto the bridge, whereupon the Heike shot at him fast and furious. Tajima, not at all perturbed, ducking to avoid the higher ones and leaping over those that flew low, cut through those that flew straight with his whirling halberd, so that even the enemy looked upon him with admiration. Thus it was he was dubbed "Tajima the arrow cutter." The hero Tajima was subsequently represented in many art forms including prints and ivory carvings.
Tajima at Ujigawa
Also around in the Nambokucho period, were nagimaki. Essentially the same as the naginata, the nagimaki tended to have less of an exaggerated curve and owed more in shape to the sword. The blades were, therefore, longer and straighter and the pole tended to be shorter. In my own collection, there is a 19th century copy of an early nagimaki that is made in the Bizen style. This has a 51 cm blade and a nakago or tang of equal length. The pole is relatively short and bound like a sword handle for the last part and it also has a tsuba. The nagimaki was said to have been most effective when used to cut a horse's legs and dismount the rider!
The naginata and the warrior monks became less important as we enter the Muromachi period, and the prominence of the yari, re-asserted itself. The monks themselves seem to have quietened down over the first part of this era, but were known to have caused many problems to Oda Nobunaga in the latter half of the 16th century.
All poles were of a similar design. At the base an iron harumaki is found which, as well as acting as a counterweight to the blade and indeed may be used offensively, protects the base of the pole when grounding it. Some yari poles will also have a cross piece known as a hadome. This would be used for parrying swords or other spears or tripping an adversary. Towards the blade end of the pole may be found a hand stop made of whipped rattan or hemp cord.
"The naginata is inferior to the yari on the battlefield. With the yari you can take the initiative; the naginata is defensive. In the hands of one of two men of equal ability, the yari gives a little extra strength. Yari and naginata both have their uses but neither is very beneficial in confined spaces. They cannot be used for taking a prisoner. They are essentially for the field". In this way the famous swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi, described the essential strategic differences between naginata and yari in his definitive book, Go Rin no Sho.
A very common design of yari in the later part of the Muromachi period is popularly known as the Jumonji yari, named after the Japanese character for 10 which is JU and is a cross. The romantic story of its invention was that a master of the so-jitsu (spear fighting) was holding his su-yari and gazing at the reflection of the crescent moon in a pond. His su-yari bisected the moon's reflection and he was then inspired to commission the local swordsmith to make a Jumonji yari.
Jumonji yari by Hiromitsu, with saya
Naginata signed Hizen Kuni Tadayoshi
Actually, in the latter part of the Muromachi period, the yari seems to have become socially accepted by the higher class of samurai. There were even seven "famous spearmen of Japan". Kato Kiyomasa, a renowned general from Higo province in Kyushu, was part of Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea in the late 1500's and was well known for his expertise with his Jumonji style yari that had uneven lengths to both sides of the cross-section. This style variation is known as Katakamayari and, complete with its mother-of-pear shaft, is still preserved in the Tokyo National Museum. It was a popular story that Kato Kiyomasa actually killed a tiger with this yari in Korea during Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasion (1592-98).
Kato Kiyomasa killing a tiger in Korea with his yari
Another famous extant yari is known as Nippongo. It is 79 cm in length and was owned by the Kuroda family. It is a long su-yari with an elaborate horimono and was said to he been won by the samurai of the Kuroda clan in a sake drinking competition and is still in the pride of place in the Kuroda collection! Like Nippongo, Tombogiri (Dragon-fly Cutter) is considered as one of the eminent "Three Spears of Japan" and was the favourite weapon of Honda Hachiro Tadakatsu (1548-1610) a leading general of Tokugawa Ieyasu. It is of the Sasaho-zukuri shape and made by Fujiwara Masazane, it is 43.8 cm in length and part of a private collection in Japan.
Nippongo
Tombogiri (Dragon Fly Cutter)
Yari owned by Katao Kiyomasa
During the Edo period, both naginata and yari continued to be made by swordsmiths. And although there were a few specialists makers, most swordsmiths occasionally turned their hands to their manufacture. However, as the Edo period was one of peace, the necessity for functional weapons diminished and most naginata lost their relatively strong shape from the previous periods, although some special order pieces were very good. This may also be seen in the mounts of the polearms, which were required more for ceremonial use. Of special interest were the saya (scabbards) of yari. These were many and varied in design and the material in which they were made. Often they were ornately lacquered and I have one that is covered in black bear fur. The custom of regular attendance at Edo, imposed on the feudal lords by the Tokugawa shoguns, was an opportunity for the provincial daimyo to demonstrate their importance on the procession to Edo. Here, a position of great importance in the procession and a reflection of the lord's favour, was the position of yari-mochi or yari carrier who would be proudly carrying a yari displaying the clan's mon or device. Also many poles from the later Edo period are ornamented with aogai or mother-of-pearl. Unfortunately, this is rather frail and tends to flake off when handled now.
Kawachi no Kami Kunisuke naginata
Deep sori in a later example by Choshu Fujiwara Kiyoshige
The naginata generally became a much lighter weapon and often the degree of curvature at the point was very pronounced. Although, like the yari, these naginata might be carried in the daimyo processions to Edo, they became associated with women from the samurai class. Indeed, even today, the martial art of naginata-do is largely practised by women and I have experienced the amazing power and dexterity with which a relatively small Japanese lady, can overcome a much larger opponent with her naginata.
The main route for travel in old Japan was the highway between Kyoto and Edo, known as the Tokaido. Daimyo processions from the provinces, as well as many assorted civilians were constantly going back and forth along the Tokaido and the other main roads of Japan. However, the shogunate was constantly on the look out for those who might oppose their autocratic rule or were simply common criminals and so, along the length of the Tokaido were spaced 53 checkpoints or customs barriers. These were immortalised in Hiroshige's series of woodblock prints. Here the Tokugawa police monitored everyone moving along the road, especially those entering or leaving the capital. At each of the 53 stations, these police had a collection of weapons which were essentially restraining implements, rather than killing weapons, although they did have their fair share of swords and guns. Every station had a number of polearms known as sode-garami, literally "sleeve entanglers. Comprising of a series of spikes and hooks mounted on a long pole, some looking like garden rakes, these were made to entangle the loose sleeves common on the dress of those days. These implements would be kept on racks where they were immediately ready for use and today may be seen at places such as the Tokaido checkpoint at Hakone.
The sode-garami or sleeve entangler
As Musashi stated earlier in this essay, yari and naginata were weapons of the field and not much good in confined spaces. As there were no battles to be fought after the siege at Osaka castle in 1614, their use was mainly ceremonial as discussed earlier. However, another piece in my collection demonstrates a variation of the yari, specifically made to be used in a confined area. Mainly it is simply of smaller proportions overall and is known as a makura-yari (pillow yari) and kept by the bed. This has a red lacquered ribbed pole with an iron harumaki at the base. The small straight blade has a socket rather than a tang to secure it to the pole, which is actually a feature of very early yari but was occasionally made at other times. It is 1 meter 19cm overall of which the blade and socket account for 20.5 cm The swordsmith's signature is inscribed on the outside of the socket and reads: "Minamoto Nobukuni Kanetsugu" (about 1670).
Another Edo period variation on an old theme is the hokko. Ancient hokko usually have a small vertical blade and another that extends out at the side. This is of a hook like shape with the cutting edge on the lower part but there are many variations on this theme. Mine has a blade which although actually has a tang, appears to be socketed for effect. Further, the blade has no sharp edge at all and is lacquered completely black. On the pole there are two iron loops which appear to accommodate a banner of some description. I believe this to be a late Edo period fire-fighter's hokko, the function of which was to pull down the burning timbers of a house.
From the beginning of the Edo period, many naginata were shortened and converted to swords, loosing any signatures that may have been on the original nakago. Such blades are known as naginata-naoshi. Some swords were actually made to look like naginata-naoshi. Usually during the conversion, much of the curvature at the point must be reduced along the back edge and this would remove any kaeri or "turn-back" of the boshi or hamon at the point. The boshi left, therefore, will go straight off the back edge with no kaeri and so should be relatively easy to spot.
Naginata Naoshi with signature of Norinaga reinserted in the new nakago
Today, there are only a very few naginata or yari of exceptional quality available to the Western collector. Generally speaking, polearms are not rated to the same degree as sword blades, even when made by the same maker. In the past, this was understandable as it may have been very difficult to transport a weapon on an 8 foot pole right across the world, but this is hardly an insurmountable problem today. Of course, when considering the jumonji-yari has no less than six different cutting edges, they become a real problem for polishers, a significant number of whom refuse to polish them altogether. The difficulty in restoration and the premium price demanded for it, therefore, may be another negative factor. Whatever the reason, when compared with swords, polearms may be obtained at a healthy discount!
Adapted from an article written for Classic Arms & Militaria
Clive Sinclaire
July 2008