A Plum Blossom Divination Ranking of Japan’s Ultimate Sword Saints
Japanese history is filled with legendary swordsmen.
But one question has never truly disappeared:
“Who was the strongest of them all?”
From the Sengoku era to the Bakumatsu, this debate has continued for centuries.
This time, I used the traditional method of Plum Blossom Divination (梅花心易 / Baika Shini) to spiritually examine twenty of Japan’s greatest sword legends and determine who emerged as the true “ultimate swordsman.”
The candidates included:
- Miyamoto Musashi
- Kamiizumi Nobutsuna
- Yagyu Munetoshi
- Ito Ittosai
- Tsukahara Bokuden
- Togo Shigekata
- Marume Nagayoshi
- Hikita Bungoro
- Sasaki Kojiro
- Yagyu Jubei
- Saito Hajime
- Okita Soji
- Chiba Shusaku
- Kani Saizo
- Tomita Seigen
- Otani Nobutomo
- Sakakibara Kenkichi
- Shimazu Yoshihiro
- Nagakura Shinpachi
- And even the countless unnamed samurai lost to history.
This was not simply a ranking based on duel victories.
The divination examined:
- Real combat capability
- Influence on swordsmanship
- Historical impact
- Spiritual presence
- The symbolic “weight” of the sword itself
Divination Formula
Date used:
May 23, 2026 — 23:56
Lunar calendar:
4th month, 7th day
Hour of the Rat
Resulting Hexagrams
Primary Hexagram:
Lake over Fire — “Revolution” (革)
Mutual Hexagram:
Heaven over Wind — “Encounter” (姤)
Resulting Hexagram:
Lake over Mountain — “Influence” (咸)
What These Hexagrams Mean
The key here was the hexagram “Revolution.”
This divination did not simply favor:
“the man who could kill the best.”
Instead, it favored:
“the man who changed the very nature of swordsmanship itself.”
The mutual hexagram “Encounter” symbolizes:
- Extraordinary individuals
- Sudden monsters appearing in history
- Men who transcend normal systems
Meanwhile, “Influence” represents:
- Spiritual impact
- Charisma
- Lasting influence over future generations
In other words:
This ranking favored swordsmen who transformed the meaning of the sword itself.
Top 5 Strongest Swordsmen
1st Place — Kamiizumi Nobutsuna
The divination crowned him the strongest.
Why?
Because he was not merely a master fighter.
He transformed Japanese swordsmanship from:
“raw killing power”
into:
“strategy, philosophy, and refined combat theory.”
He literally rewrote the operating system of Japanese swordsmanship.
In this divination, he surpassed even Musashi.
2nd Place — Miyamoto Musashi
An outlier.
A wanderer.
A combat monster.
Musashi perfectly embodied the “Encounter” hexagram.
A man who appeared suddenly, broke all conventions, and created his own path.
If this ranking were based purely on one-on-one combat, he might have been first.
But this divination valued historical transformation slightly more.
3rd Place — Tsukahara Bokuden
Perhaps the closest man to the title of “Sword Saint.”
Undefeated legend.
Mystical aura.
An almost religious level of authority.
The hexagram “Influence” strongly resonated with him, suggesting a swordsman whose spiritual impact reached far beyond his lifetime.
4th Place — Ito Ittosai
The embodiment of decisive killing intent.
This divination’s moving first line symbolized:
“the very first strike.”
And no swordsman matched that symbolism better than Ittosai.
One cut.
One victory.
Pure killing efficiency refined into philosophy.
5th Place — Togo Shigekata
Possibly the most terrifying of them all.
Jigen-ryu was built around one idea:
Kill instantly.
No hesitation.
No prolonged exchange.
No elegance.
Just overwhelming destruction in the first attack.
If this ranking had focused purely on real sword combat, he might have ranked even higher.
Final Thoughts
One of the most fascinating aspects of this divination was its reaction to:
“the unnamed samurai.”
History remembers only a handful of names.
But countless warriors:
- Died anonymously on battlefields
- Protected their lords without recognition
- Mastered the sword yet vanished from history
The final hexagram strongly suggested that the true spirit of the samurai may live just as much within those forgotten souls.
Because perhaps…
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