In Tennen Rishin Ryū there are four progression levels: Kirigami, Mokuroku, Chūgokui-mokuroku, and Menkyo. Contrary to other modern martial arts (gendai budō) where ranking progression typically only happens when a practitioner passes an exam, our school allows for students to be awarded new levels of progression upon achieving a solid foundation of knowledge regarding our fundamental concepts. For which, a rank advancement is marked with a traditional makimono (martial scroll).
Kondō Isamu Sensei (commander of the Shinsengumi) is now typically considered a ‘4th sōke’ within our school; however, this concept did not exist in Tennen Rishin Ryū (and many other schools) at that time. Moreover, he was one of the 4th generational headmasters (‘yondaime’ in Japanese) within each school, for which several branches plus a dōjō existed. At that time, teachers collaborated to develop and to nurture capable swordsmen within each school in order to serve the government when necessary, and were awarded higher ranks at key moments.
The Tennen Rishin Ryū Bujutsu Hozonkai follows the same grading criteria: if a person is skilled in technique and possesses a proper attitude, a Menkyo can be achieved. Our goal is to nurture a multitude of students to eventually reach this final license. Awarding someone with a Menkyo cannot cause harm to a teacher regardless of whether a student decides to open a new dōjō because spreading the school is our main duty.
Tennen Rishin Ryū is an isshi fuden (translated as “no transmission to our own child”) school, which means ranks cannot be awarded to members of a teacher’s family solely due to blood relation. Despite some exceptions in the past, all teachers used to entrust their children to other Tennen Rishin Ryū teachers.
In accordance with the abovementioned rule, we are do not “recruit” the next generation of teachers amongst our children. Rather, we look forward to training and awarding teaching licenses to any worth practitioners, regardless of nationality.