Briton cuts to spiritual heart of Japanese swords

Paul Martin

Photos by Daily Yomiuri Photographer Makoto Miyazaki

By Ayako Hirayama

Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer

Paul Martin's career as a Japanese sword specialist started in an unusual way. About 15 years ago, Martin was captivated by the beauty of Japanese swords he saw at the British Museum--not as a visitor, but as a security guard at the museum.

"I saw Japanese swords close up for the first time. I didn't realize how beautiful they are," the 41-year-old Briton recalled. "When you view a Japanese sword properly, you'll find it very calming and thrilling.

"So I became very interested because they are very beautiful objects. They're not merely weapons."

As Martin's interest in Japanese swords grew, he began learning Japanese at night school. When a position for assistant curator at the museum's Japanese antiquities department became available, he applied for it. His basic language skills and knowledge of Japanese history and culture helped him land the position in 1998.

For the following five years, Martin made several trips to Japan, as a representative of the British Museum, to study swords at shrines, museums and workshops as well as to visit swordsmiths and polishers. After leaving the museum, he lived in Los Angeles for a year and eventually moved to Japan with his wife, Tiffany, in January 2004. Taking advantage of his connections with prominent figures in the field, he has since organized an exhibition, demonstrations and lectures on Japanese swords in the United States and Europe.

Martin's initial connection with Japan was karate. At the age of 7, he followed in his father's footsteps and became a student of karate. As a member of the national karate team and a three-time English champion, the London native spent much of his childhood focusing on karate. His growing fascination with Japanese culture then drew a teenage Martin to Japanese-themed movies, especially "The Yakuza" directed by Sydney Pollack, in which actor Ken Takakura practices kendo.

"Because of karate, I became aware of samurai, bushido, and as I got older, I wanted to do more. Once I retired from [karate] competitions, I always had an idea that I wanted to try kendo because of Takakura Ken-san," said Martin, who currently practices various Japanese martial arts and is ranked third dan in kendo and second dan in iaido swordsmanship.

As he learned more about swords, this further fueled his passion for this "symbol of Japanese culture."

"I think the beauty of Japanese swords is in the steel, but the strength of Japanese swords is spirituality," Martin said. "I think in the West, Japanese swords are often perceived just as cool weapons. But I've realized how important they are in Japanese society from the spiritual perspective. They give them to shrines as offerings for the gods or protection for the gods, or even as vessels for the gods to reside in."

"Spirituality gives it [a sword] a lot of depth rather than it just being a mere weapon," he added. "People feel the need to own one not because they want to use it as a weapon but because it makes you feel protected spiritually."

The fact that Japanese swords have survived for hundreds of years and are still being produced in this country--even though there are no samurai today--also has motivated Martin to study them further, he said.

According to "The New Generation of Japanese Swordsmiths," a book written by sword expert Tamio Tsuchiko, a total of 2.3 million swords are registered in Japan, and more than 650 swordsmiths have been licensed by the government since sword production, which had been banned by allied forces during the occupation, resumed in 1954. Half of them are still active, according to the book, which was published in 2002.

"Such a large number of Japanese swords would probably not have survived if they were regarded as nothing more than weapons," Tsuchiko wrote in his book. "Through its long and complex history, the Japanese sword has come to be recognized by people throughout the world as an object with spiritual, artistic and economic values, in addition to its original function as a weapon."

To explore these various aspects of Japanese swords and improve his appraisal skills, Martin currently attends kanteikai gatherings at which participants try to guess the period, province and school of swords by examining their structure, curvature, hamon (a pattern of crystalline lines along the edge of the blade) and other features. In November, Martin became the first non-Japanese to win an appraisal contest at the Tokyo branch of the Japanese Sword Museum.

Shuichi Inadome of Shuzan-Do, a Japanese sword shop in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, which holds a monthly appraisal gathering, admires Martin for his respectful attitude toward swords. "Paul-san looks at swords and treats them with great respect, perhaps more than any Japanese do here," Inadome said at last month's gathering.

Martin's life in Japan is not necessarily easy financially because he often provides translations, the main source of his income here, for free to sword organizations and museums.

But his passion for Japanese swords seems unlikely to fade.

"It's always very difficult [financially], but I'm trying to make the most of my time in Japan to learn as much as I can about swords rather than make a little bit more money," Martin said. "I just want to be the best I can be in my field. I'm a curator, so I just want to be able to educate Western audiences on Japanese swords correctly. I want to become a bridge between Japan and the West in giving good, solid information on Japanese swords."

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This is the last installment of the Cultural Inroads series.