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In the end, Benkei and Yoshitsune were encircled in the castle of Koromogawa no tate. įrom 1185 until his death in 1189, Benkei accompanied Yoshitsune as an outlaw. Henceforth, he became Yoshitsune's retainer and fought with him in the Genpei War against the Taira clan. Not long after the duel, Benkei, frustrated and looking for revenge, waited for Yoshitsune at the Buddhist temple of Kiyomizu, where he lost yet again. Some sources claim that the fight took place not at the Gojo Bridge, but instead at Matsubara Bridge. Instead of dueling at the shrine itself, the two walked to Gojo Bridge in the city where the bigger Benkei ultimately lost to the smaller warrior, who happened to be Minamoto no Yoshitsune, a son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo. The much shorter man supposedly carried a gilded sword around his waist. After collecting 999 swords through duels and looking for his final prize, he met a young man playing a flute at Gojotenjin Shrine in Kyoto.
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Gojo Bridge, Kyotoīenkei was said to have wandered around Kyoto every night on a personal quest to take 1000 swords from samurai warriors, who he believed were arrogant and unworthy. The moonlight fight between Yoshitsune and Benkei. In addition to his sword, he carried a broad axe ( masakari), a rake ( kumade), a sickle ( nagigama), a wooden mallet ( hizuchi), a saw ( nokogiri), an iron staff ( tetsubō), and a Japanese glaive ( naginata). Seven weapons īenkei armed himself with seven weapons, and is often depicted carrying these on his back. Benkei was commonly depicted wearing a black cap that was a signature theme of such mountain ascetics. At this point, he left the monasteries, and became a yamabushi, a member of a sect of mountain ascetics. Like many other monks, Benkei was likely trained in the use of the naginata, the half-moon spear.Īt the age of seventeen, Benkei was said to have been 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall. During this period, monasteries were not only important centers of administration and culture, but also military powers in their own right, similar to the Roman Legions. He is said to have defeated 200 men in each battle he was personally involved in.īenkei chose to join the monastic establishment at an early age and traveled widely among the Buddhist monasteries of Japan. In his youth, Benkei may have been called Oniwaka ( 鬼若)-"demon/ogre child", and there are many famous ukiyo-e works themed on Oniwakamaru and his adventures. Many give him the attributes of a demon, a monster child with wild hair and long teeth. Another sees him as the offspring of a temple god. One tells how his father was the head of a temple shrine who had raped his mother, the daughter of a blacksmith. Stories about Benkei's birth vary considerably.