Spotlight: Nakamura Eishi

Author: Bret Gordon​

One of only six men to receive the Shihan Menkyo from Horikawa Kodo, Nakamura Eishi is a rather obscure figure in Daito Ryu history with not much known about him. During the 1960s, Nakamura began the study of Daito Ryu Kodokai under the art’s founder, Horikawa Kodo. His classmates and training partners included Okamoto Seigo, founder of Daito Ryu Roppokai, and Inoue Yusuke, Menkyo Kaiden. It was through Horikawa that Nakamura would also meet Shioda Gozo, founder of Yoshinkan Aikido and fellow student of Kodo in the late 1970s. ​

As one of Horikawa's highest ranking students, Nakamura would often accompany him when traveling to give demonstrations and seminars, one of the most famous is the 1973 NHK Documentary on Daito Ryu Aiki Jujutsu (picture below).

In 1978, Nakamura would visit the Daito Ryu Kodokai North American Hombu in California under the direction of Kiyama Hayawo. After Horikawa's death in 1980, Nakamura began teaching Daito Ryu independently of the Kodokai and traveling across Japan. Although not much is publicly available about Nakamura sensei, given his close relationship to Horikawa Kodo and his prominence in the Kodokai we feel it's important to let the world know about this highly skilled aikijujutsuka.

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