The Girl Samurai Master: Sasaki Rui

The story of 17th century swordswoman Rui-San

Kabukimono ancient cross dresser

Real-life samurai Sasaki Rui (佐々木 累), or Rui-San, was a Japanese swordswoman, Onna-musha and kenjutsu expert of the early Edo period (mid-17th century). She was known as the "Strangely Dressed Female Sword Master" [1, 2, 3].

Life of Sasaki Rui

Sasaki was born in Koga domain, located in Shimōsa province (modern-day Koga, Ibaraki), exact birthdate unknown. Her father Sasaki Uōto was a member of a clan of kenjutsu masters in service to Doi Toshikatsu and was thoroughly versed in the martial arts.

Samurai attacking on horseback (LACMA)

Crouch Tiger, Hide Dragon: Jen vs. Shu Lien sword fight (Michelle Yeoh)

Ancient samurai in his armor, 1860s

Since Rui-San had no brothers and her attempts to take a husband ended in divorce, upon her father's death from illness the Sasaki clan name became extinct [1, 2, 3].

Rui-San went to Edo, where she rented a house in present-day Asakusa and began teaching the martial arts.

At the same time that her teaching was becoming well-known, she began to be famous for her unusual dress:

Haori crepe formal Japanese jacket

She would leave the house wearing a black silk crepe haori (a man's garment at the time) emblazoned with the Sasaki family crest, her hair done up in an indoor style with hairpins, and wearing the samurai's long and short swords [1, 2, 3].

At that time, the ruffians known as kabukimono or hatamoto yakko were running rampant in Edo, and Rui-San began fighting with the "Shiroe" gang, among other groups [1, 2]. More

• Samurai women?

What was their religion?

Various samurai clans struggled for power during the Kamakura shogunate. Zen Buddhism spread among the samurai in the 13th century and helped shape their standards of conduct, particularly in overcoming the fear of death and [the wrongdoing of] killing. Among the general populace devotional Pure Land Buddhism was favored however. More

Marriage?

Samurai with wives and concubines, 1804

Samurai had arranged marriages, which were engineered by a go-between of the same or higher rank. While for those samurai in the upper ranks this was a necessity (as most had few opportunities to ever meet women), this was a formality for lower-ranked samurai.

Most samurai married women from a samurai family, but for lower-ranked samurai, marriages with commoners were permitted. In these marriages a dowry was brought by the woman and was used to set up the couple's new household.

A samurai could take concubines, but their backgrounds were checked by higher-ranked samurai. In many cases, taking a concubine was akin to a marriage. Kidnapping a concubine, although common in fiction, would have been shameful, if not criminal. More

How to stay calm in any confrontation

(Statue of Wisdom) Secrets to win: How to stay calm in any confrontation (Miyamoto Musashi)

• Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Rui-San (video); CC Liu, Ashley Wells, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly