Yamaoka Tesshū (June 10, 1836 – July 19, 1888), sometimes called Ono Tetsutarō or Yamaoka Tetsutarō, was a legendary samurai from the final days of Japan’s feudal era. He founded the Ittō Shōden Mutō-ryū school of swordsmaship. Known for his pivotal role in the Meiji Restoration, Tesshū stands out as a figure whose life straddled the old and new Japan. Born in 1836, he strode through the final days of the samurai, leaving his mark on the Meiji Restoration like a brushstroke across a blank canvas. He wasn’t just a swordsman of skill—he was a seeker. On the morning of March 30, 1880, at 45, he reached that mythical state of enlightenment. In meditation, Tesshū realized that “no-sword” was the true way; the enemy wasn’t some rival with a blade but the illusion of division itself. With that in mind, he cultivated a dojo focused not on clashing steel but on a style of pure, internal mastery. He channeled his Zen spirit into his art, leaving behind works that feel like meditations on life itself. He was a man of formidable paradox—both sword-wielding and serene—until he left the stage in 1888, as if he’d known precisely when his curtain call should come.