Pair of Japanese sabres, typically comprising a katana and a wakisashi, or a tashi and a tant?
Not to be confused with
Taish?
.
The
daish?
(
大小
,
daish?
)
?"large and small"
[1]
?is a
Japanese
term for a matched pair of traditionally made
Japanese swords
(
nihonto
)
worn by the
samurai
class in
feudal Japan
.
The etymology of the word
daish?
becomes apparent when the terms
dait?
, meaning long sword, and
sh?t?
, meaning short sword, are used;
dai
t?
+
sh?
t?
=
daish?
.
[2]
A
daish?
is typically depicted as a
katana
and
wakizashi
(or a
tant?
) mounted in matching
koshirae
, but originally the
daish?
was the wearing of any long and short
katana
together.
[3]
The
katana/wakizashi
pairing is not the only
daish?
combination as generally any longer sword paired with a
tant?
is considered to be a
daish?
.
Daish?
eventually came to mean two swords having a
matched set of fittings
. A
daish?
could also have matching blades made by the same
swordsmith
, but this was in fact uncommon and not necessary for two swords to be considered to be a
daish?
, as it would have been more expensive for a samurai.
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
History
[
edit
]
The concept of the
daisho
originated with the pairing of a short sword with whatever long sword was being worn during a particular time period. The
tachi
would be paired with a
tant?
, and later the
katana
would be paired with another shorter katana called a
chiisagatana
. With the advent of the
katana
, the
wakizashi
eventually was chosen by samurai as the short sword over the
tant?
. Kanzan Sat?, in his book titled
The Japanese Sword
, notes that there did not seem to be any particular need for the
wakizashi
and suggests that the
wakizashi
may have become more popular than the
tant?
as the
wakizashi
was more suited for indoor fighting. He mentions the custom of leaving the
katana
at the door of a castle or palace when entering while continuing to wear the
wakizashi
inside.
[8]
Daish?
may have become popular around the end of the
Muromachi period
(1336 to 1573)
[4]
as several early examples date from the late 16th century.
[9]
An edict in 1629 defining the duties of a samurai required that
daish?
be worn when on official duty.
[10]
Wearing
daish?
was limited to the
samurai
class in 1683, and became a symbol of their rank
[11]
Samurai could wear decorative swords in daily life, but the Tokugawa shogunate regulated the appearance of swords for formal attire such as when samurai came to a castle. The daisho for formal attire was limited to the scabbard in solid black, the hilt winding thread and the hilt wrapped with white ray skin.
[12]
According to most traditional
kenjutsu
schools, only one sword of the
daisho
would have been used in combat. However, in the first half of the 17th century, the famous swordsman
Miyamoto Musashi
promoted the use of a one-handed grip, which allowed both swords to be used simultaneously. This technique, called
nit?ken
, is a main element of the
Niten Ichi-ry?
style of swordsmanship that Musashi founded.
[13]
During the
Meiji period
an edict was passed in 1871 abolishing the requirement that
daish?
be worn by samurai, and in 1876 wearing swords in public by most of Japan's population was banned; thus ended the use of the
daish?
as the symbol of the samurai. The samurai class was abolished soon after the sword ban.
[14]
[15]
[16]
Gallery
[
edit
]
-
Daish?
, black waxed scabbards. 19th century, Edo period.
Tokyo Fuji Art Museum
.
-
19th century, Edo period. Tokyo National Museum.
-
Antique Japanese (samurai)
daisho
, showing the matched set of mounts
(
koshirae
)
.
-
An
Edo-period
daish? koshirae
on its stand. The long-sword is generally stored above the
wakizashi
, curving downwards. When hung for display, the tip points to the right.
-
Black lacquered
hanamaru
mon
maki-e
raden
daish? koshirae
(sword mounting). Meiji period.
-
Daisho kashira
(
pommel
)
-
Daisho habaki
(wedge-shaped collar)
-
Daisho tsuba
and
fuchi
(hand guard and hilt collar)
-
-
A 19th century samurai wearing his
daisho
-
A print depicting the fictional encounter between swordsmen
Miyamoto Musashi
and
Tsukahara Bokuden
, the former using both swords in the
Niten Ichi-ry?
style.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
The Japanese sword
, Kanzan Sat?, Kodansha International, 1983 p.68
- ^
The connoisseur's book of Japanese swords
, K?kan Nagayama, Kodansha International, 1998 p.62
- ^
The Japanese sword
, Kanzan Sat?, Kodansha International, 1983
- ^
a
b
Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior, Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 p.53
- ^
Classical weaponry of Japan: special weapons and tactics of the martial arts, Serge Mol, Kodansha International, 2003 p.18
- ^
The Japanese sword
, Kanzan Sat?, Kodansha International, 1983 ? Antiques & Collectibles ? 210P.68
- ^
Katana: The Samurai Sword: 950?1877, Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2010 P.20
- ^
The Japanese sword
, Kanzan Sat?, Kodansha International, 1983 P.68
- ^
The Japanese sword
, Kanzan Sat?, Kodansha International, 1983 p.68 & p.84
- ^
Cutting Edge: Japanese Swords in the British Museum
, Victor Harris, Tuttle Pub., 2005 p.26
- ^
刀の明治維新: 「?刀」は武士の特?か?
, 尾脇秀和,2018
- ^
Kazuhiko Inada (2020),
Encyclopedia of the Japanese Swords
. p46.
ISBN
978-4651200408
- ^
Serge Mol, 2003,
Classical Weaponry of Japan: Special Weapons and Tactics of the Martial Arts
Kodansha International Ltd,
ISBN
4-7700-2941-1
(pp. 22?23)
- ^
Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior
, Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 p.58
- ^
New directions in the study of Meiji Japan
, Helen Hardacre, Adam L. Kern, BRILL, 1997 p.418
- ^
Katana: The Samurai Sword: 950?1877
, Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2010 P.28
External links
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Daisho
.
Japanese weapons, armour and equipment
|
---|
Swords
| |
---|
Knives and daggers
| |
---|
Polearms and spears
| |
---|
Practice weapons
| |
---|
Armour
| |
---|
Clothing
| |
---|
Samurai accoutrements
| |
---|
Chain and rope weapons
| |
---|
Clubs and truncheons
| |
---|
Staff weapons
| |
---|
Projectile and throwing weapons
| |
---|
Firearms
and guns
| |
---|
Improvised and other weapons
| |
---|
Signal devices
| |
---|
Users
| |
---|
|