Sure you have seen powerful swordsman in popular anime, films, and the like. But it is really impeccable when one hears of a real life “manslayer”. Miyamoto Musashi certainly was a great swordsman and he is considered to be perhaps the greatest swordsman of all time. Musashi, as he is known, gained his fame by remaining triumphant throughout various duels in his lifetime.

Musashi was born in 1584; his father was a skilled martial artist and master of the sword. When he was young, he won two out of three matches against Master Swordsman Yoshioka. It was then that he was granted the title “Best in Japan”. So, at this point it is obvious that this swordsmanship runs in the family. In terms of schooling, Musashi studied at Yoshioka ryu school. And, according to his book: The Book of Five Rings, Musashi fought in his first duel at the age of 13 against Arima Kihei. This was also his first victory. After that, at the age of 15, Musashi started in his travels, at which he also took part in several duels.

At the age of 20, Musashi arrived at the Yoshioka School to duel. Legend has it that he defeated all three brothers, and masters of the school. After leaving the school and Kyoto, and traveled all over Japan in an effort to hone in on his skills. On April 14, 1612, at age 28 Musashi dueled his most famous duel of all time. He fought with Sasaki Kojiro who wielded a nodachi. A nodachi, is a very large field sword. Musashi quickly defeated his opponent with a bokken, a wooden training sword. From 1614 to 1615 Musahi also joined the service. He helped in the battle between the Toyotomi and the Tokugawa. Musahi fought for the Toyotomi.

In 1643, sensing his declining health, Musashi retired from his dueling days to become a hermit and write. It was at this time that he wrote The Book of Five Rings. He died in June 1645 because of thoracic cancer, which is notable in its own sense, because he did not die in battle. Musashi was certainly a famous swordsman, there have been, in fact 36 films made about him, and 6 of those with the title Miyamoto Musashi.