is a style of sword-drawing art (iaido) founded by Nakayama Hakudō (中山博道) in 1932. Nakayama Hakudō studied under Hosokawa Yoshimasa, a master of the Shimomura branch (下村派) of Hasegawa Eishin-ryū, and Morimoto Tokumi, a fellow student of Ōe Masaji of the Tanimura branch (谷村派). The name Musō Shinden-ryū most likely comes from the name given to the Shimomura branch by Hosokawa, Musō Shinden Eishin-ryū (無雙神傳英信流). Particularities The kata from Musō Shinden-ryū have a number of differences from the kata of its sister art, Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū. Among the most visible are the manner in which the furikaburi (raising the sword overhead, sometimes called furikamuri) and the nōtō (sheathing) are done. Both arts also differ from many other iaijutsu schools in that the kiai is performed silently, without hassei (shouting). Furikaburi After striking with one hand, primarily on nukitsuke (cutting as one draws the sword out), the sword is brought to a position about ten centimeters above the left shoulder, blade edge up, and with the point facing backwards. The movement resembles a thrust to the rear. Unlike in Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū, the sword does not fall off behind the back but always stays over shoulder height. The right hand then raises the sword overhead while the left hand takes its place on the hilt, thus entering in the jōdan stance or kamae. The sword should now be right in the middle line of the body, with the tip raised forty-five degrees upward (Chuden) or level with the ground (Shoden) and your left hand hovering just above your forehead. Nōtō In Musō Shinden-ryū, the sheathing is performed horizontally with the blade outwards. Only when the sword is about two-thirds of the way in the saya is the edge turned to face upwards. The blade and saya should cross your center line at a forty-five degree angle while sheathing. Techniques Shoden (初伝) The word "Shoden", which can be translated as the "first transmission", consists of the kata of Ōmori-ryū iaijutsu plus one kata variation exclusive to Musō Shinden-ryū. The kata start from the seiza sitting posture. This series of kata became the first to be learned when the 17th headmaster of the Tanimura branch, Ōe Masamichi, reorganized and rationalized the curriculum of Hasegawa Eishin-ryū at the start of the 20th century. The kata Ryūtō, which involves the Ukenagashi technique, is often considered as the most difficult kata of the Omori set. The