Bushidō (武士道) and martial arts titles using shi (士): 錬士 (Renshi), 教士 (Kyoushi), 範士 (Hanshi)
Bushidō (武士道) and martial arts titles using shi (士): 錬士 (Renshi), 教士 (Kyoushi), 範士 (Hanshi)
On samurai, knights, and fancy titles
I recently put out articles related to common Japanese terms used in Japanese martial arts. These articles were on The meaning of 'Sensei' (先生）and The senpai (先輩)/kouhai (後輩) relationship. Whenever I put out an article on Japanese terminology, I inevitably get questions on Japanese terms, and this time the terms 錬士 (Renshi), 教士 (Kyoushi), 範士 (Hanshi) were brought up. It’s a bit difficult to talk about this term without explaining a bit of background related to the 士 (shi) kanji, so I’ll start this article with a bit of a tangent.
Note: This is an updated version of an article I previously wrote.
Regarding 武士道 (Bushidō/bushidou)
Pretty everyone who is interested in Japanese martial arts will come across the word 武士道 (Bushidō/bushidou) at some point. Bushido is one of those terms that people seem to just know the meaning of. In fact, the word bushido has become so well known in the Anglosphere that dictionaries have one definition of 武士道 as simply ‘bushidō’ in English. (Bushidō means bushidō isn’t helpful). There is a famous (but some might say controversial) book on the topic titled, Bushido: The Soul of Japan written by Nitobe Inazo in 1899 (a digital version of this book is available for free, here). When I say that it’s controversial I’m referencing the fact that the book seems to have been written for a western audience and focuses on making parallels between bushidō and western chivalry rather than simply explaining what bushidō actually is, but I’m not getting too deep into that argument today.
When we look at the three kanji in this word, we can see 武 (bu: warrior/military) which makes sense, 士 (shi: gentleman, scholar, and samurai) and 道 (dō/dou: road/way/path), which is something that is used in the name of this blog and in many martial arts like 空手道 (karate-dō), 柔道 (judō), 剣道 (kendō), etc. (The phonetic characters for 道 are どう (do u), which can be written as dō or dou).
A commonly cited translation for bushidō is ‘The Way of the Warrior’ (this can be confirmed here), but we don’t associate this concept of warrior with warriors in general. Bushidō is connected specifically to samurai (since it is an honor code used by samurai) and is not universally applicable to all ‘warriors.’
Back during the feudal period of Japan a professional warrior was referred to as a 武士 (bushi), which is synonymous with the word 侍 (Samurai). (侍 is the stand alone kanji for samurai. The 士 kanji is pretty much always paired with other kanji). I would like to emphasize the word ‘professional’ here. I know it sounds cool when people translate bushidō as ‘The Way of the Warrior’ but that doesn’t seem quite right to me, because warriors exist everywhere but bushidō is a “samurai thing.” (If you check the book Bushido: The Soul of Japan by Nitobe Inazo, the phrase, ‘The Way of the Warrior’ doesn’t appear in the work). It is a lot less cool to say it this way but, ‘The Way of the Professional Soldier Class of Feudal Japan,’ may be a more accurate but less satisfying translation.
Regarding 騎士道 (Kishidō)
I suspect that one of the reasons why Inazo made parallels between bushidō and chivalry is that there is some level of crossover.
The word 騎士道 (kishidō) is another one of those words containing the same ‘shi’ and the ‘dō’ kanji I already mentioned. The 騎 (ki) part might be new to you (but if you are a karate practitioner I’m sure you have practiced 騎馬立ち (kibadachi) before). 騎士 (Kishi) is the term used to refer to a warrior riding a horse (‘kibadachi’ is literally horse riding (騎馬: kiba) and 'stance' (立ち: tachi/dachi)). The word ‘kishidō’ is a Japanese word, which is used to refer to a class of foreign, horse riding warriors…knights. Which makes kishidō, ‘The Way of the Knight,’ also known as ‘chivalry.’ For a more long winded, less beautiful translation, ‘The Way of the Professional Horse Riding Soldier Class of Medieval Europe.’
Note: If you look at the etymology of the word chivalry, it has roots in the old French term chevalerie, which is related to cavalry. (The word horse (cheval) is one of the few words I remember from French class in school).
I took the video below at Castle Tintagel in Tokyo. This school has Kishidō and Bushidō classes for all of your swordsmanship needs:
Defining 士
Anyone who has studied European history will know that knights were essentially nobles with the wealth and resources to cover themselves in armor before riding into battle on their expensive warhorses and trampling any unfortunate foot-soldier the enemy would throw at them. Although the trampling of hapless peasants part isn’t exactly what we would call noble in this day and age, the hereditary aspect is. The samurai weren’t any different with regards to their hereditary system. The feudal system in Japan divided people into classes which can be neatly summarized in the four kanji arrangement of 士農工商 (shi nou kou shou: Warrior/Farmer/Artisan/Merchant) referring to classes that people were born into, with the warriors being the highest and the merchants being the lowest.
Although we have established that the ‘shi’ kanji is used in connection with samurai/warriors, it should also be noted that it can indicate both nobility (the samurai were after all a highly regarded class of noble warriors) or a profession/role that someone has studied for (like taking on the role of being a horseback warrior). The dictionary entry I shared above defines 士 as ‘gentleman, scholar, samurai.’ Since adding ‘samurai’ to some of the words below confuses the meaning I’m going to use the word ‘warrior’ instead (because although samurai are warriors, not all warriors are samurai).
General uses of 士
Warriors: People who practice kendo/iaido even today are referred to as 剣士 (Kenshi: Sword warrior). A sumo wrestler is not someone you would find on a battlefield, but sumo wrestlers can be referred to as 力士 (Rikishi: Power warriors). When black powder muskets became a thing in Japan, 銃士 (Juushi: Gun warriors) became a thing. It could also be said that a ‘kenshi’ is a person who studies swords (sword scholar) a ‘rikishi’ is a person who studies/is disciplined in a way to generate power (power scholar), and a ‘juushi’ (gun scholar) is a person who studies how to use and maintain a black powder musket (preferably without blowing their own face off).
Degree holders: If you have an academic degree you have been trained to a level where esteem is deserved. 学士 (Gakushi: Study scholar) is a bachelor’s degree holder, 修士 (shuushi: disciplined scholar) is a master’s degree holder, and 博士 (Hakashi/Hakase: esteemed scholar) is a doctorate holder.
Professionals: If you hold a professional certification and occupy a role in society you get your own ‘shi’ title. 弁護士 (Bengoshi: defence, scholar) is a lawyer, 飛行士 (Hikoushi: Flying scholar) is a pilot, and 運転士 (Untenshi: Driving scholar) is a driver (by profession). These seem to go on forever.
I’m going to give the next part its own section because that’s probably why people came for this article.
Martial arts titles with 士 (錬士 (Renshi), 教士 (Kyoushi), 範士 (Hanshi))
錬士 (Renshi): The 錬 (ren) in renshi is used to mean ‘tempered’ as in ‘trained, polished, refined.’ A tempered warrior/scholar is a rank that is third of three 称号 (shougou) titles that are given to martial arts practitioners. (Whether the renshi is a tempered individual or whether it is the responsibility of the renshi to do the tempering is up for interpretation). There is a horrendously inadequate Japanese Wikipedia page which translates ‘renshi’ as instructor but I don’t think it deserves such a simple explanation. Different styles have different rules for this title, which includes rank, time served in the style and the age of the practitioner (this applies to all three of these titles).
教士 (Kyoushi): The 教 (kyou/kyō) in kyoushi means ‘teach.’ So kyoushi is teaching warrior/scholar. I do however think the word ‘teacher’ is another hopelessly inadequate translation and ‘true teacher’ maybe something closer to the actual meaning. This is second of three ‘shougou.’
Note: The term 教師 (kyoushi) is pronounced exactly the same as 教士 (kyoushi) but refers to classroom teachers. There are many 教師 but few 教士. This is why I think some differentiation is needed.
範士 (Hanshi): The 範 (han) in hanshi is the same han as in shihan (師範). This han means 'model, example.' So hanshi is a model warrior/scholar. Being the highest of the shougou, I think it's understandable that this one has the meaning of an example or a model warrior/scholar that we should all aspire to be.
How do I get one of these cool titles?
Right now I’m practicing 夢想神伝流居合道 (Muso Shinden Ryu Iaido) which is under the umbrella of the 全日本剣道連盟 (Zen Nihon Kendō Renmei: All Japan Kendō Federation (JKF)).
The Japan Kendo Federation does award Renshi/Kyōshi/Hanshi 称号 (shougou) titles, but only at certain grades (6th, 7th, and 8th dan respectively). I’m currently a 4th dan in iaido and based on my current trajectory, even if I pass all of my upcoming gradings, it’s going to take me another 9 years to get to 6th dan.
Not all martial arts styles have Renshi/Kyoushi/Hanshi titles. I’ve seen people in the martial arts scene (outside of Japan) who have less experience than I do disappear from the scene for a while, only to come back with one of these titles from an organization no one has ever heard of.
I will do a follow up article on this at some point in the near future but ranks/positions/titles, no matter how impressive they sound are (in reality) only as impressive as the governing body issuing them. A PhD in medicine from a legitimate university will net you a “doctor” title, but so will a PhD from “Hollywood Upstairs Medical College.” (Bonus points if you get the reference).
I’m not here to judge anyone in this article (I’ll do that elsewhere), but my advice would be that if you want to get one of these titles, find a legitimate organization that awards them and start working on them today. It’s a minimum of 22 years to 6th dan in my iaido organization (and even then you don’t automatically become a renshi). Getting a hanshi title from “Hollywood Upstairs Kenjutsu Renmei” might fool a few but won’t be respected by anyone who knows about these things. That’s how you end up with a dragon problem. (See my article When you seek the attention of dragons, sometimes you get dragons for more details).
Final thoughts
Today I touched upon a bit of the linguistics surrounding the term 武士道 (bushidō), 騎士道 (kishidō) and the kanji 士 (shi) which refers to ‘gentlemen, scholars, and warriors.” I also touched upon the titles 錬士 (Renshi), 教士 (Kyōshi), and 範士 (Hanshi), which are known in some, but not all martial arts circles.
Personally, I’m not super into titles. I have a PhD in medicine (医学博士: Igaku Hakase), but I don’t demand anyone calls me doctor. My PhD is mostly something I use for paperwork. When I was studying I had the expectation that once I graduated everyone would start calling me doctor. But I realized after I graduated that no one really cares. These kinds of titles are important to people who care about them but not really anyone beyond that.
If you want a cool title I’d suggest that you follow a legitimate path in order to get one. But as someone who has a PhD already, and is working to one day have a title associated with my kenjutsu, I can confidently say that the reward isn’t having the title. It’s the journey. So…
常に兵法の道をはなれず。
Never stray from the way
- 宮本武蔵 (Miyamoto Musashi) - From the Dokkōdō (独行道)
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Osu!
Anthony