was a Buddhist monk, head of the Hōzōin

Hozoin-ryu

is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts that specializes in the art of spearmanship . Hōzōin-ryū was founded by Hōzōin Kakuzenbō In'ei in c. 1560. In'ei was a Buddhist monk of Kōfuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan. He adored martial arts and trained in the art of swordsmanship...

 temple, and guardian of all the temples of Nara

Nara, Nara

is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...

, who founded a school of Sōjutsu

Sojutsu

, meaning "art of the spear" is the Japanese martial art of fighting with the Japanese .-Origins:Although the spear had a profound role in early Japanese mythology, where the islands of Japan themselves were said to be created by salt water dripping from the tip of a spear, as a weapon the first...

 called Hōzōin-ryū

Hozoin-ryu

is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts that specializes in the art of spearmanship . Hōzōin-ryū was founded by Hōzōin Kakuzenbō In'ei in c. 1560. In'ei was a Buddhist monk of Kōfuku-ji Temple in Nara, Japan. He adored martial arts and trained in the art of swordsmanship...

. In'ei was a connoisseur of the martial arts, having practiced Nen-ryū

Nen-ryu

is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts founded in 1368 CE by the samurai Sōma Shiro Yoshimoto in modern day Nagano Prefecture, where Yoshimoto is said to have taught only fourteen students until his death.-Teachings:...

 under Toda Yosaemon and Iizasa Chōisai Ienao's Katori Shinto-ryū.
In'ei was noted for having arranged the meeting between Kamiizumi Ise no kami Nobutsuna and Yagyū Sekishusai Muneyoshi, being the catalyst for the creation of Yagyū Shinkage-ryū

Yagyu Shinkage-ryu

is one of the oldest Japanese schools of swordsmanship . Its primary founder was Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, who called the school Shinkage-ryū. In 1565, Nobutsuna bequeathed the school to his greatest student, Yagyū Munetoshi, who added his own name to the school. Today, the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū remains...

.

He passed on leadership of the school to other Buddhist monks of his order, including Hōzōin Inshun (1589-1648), Hōzōin Insei (1624-1689), Hōzōin Infū (1682-1731), and Hōzōin Inken (1746-1808).

The school was revived and updated in the nineteenth century by Takeda Sōkaku

Takeda Sokaku

was known as the founder of a school of jujutsu known as Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu.- Life :Born in the Aizu domain , Sōkaku grew up in a time of war and civil strife and was able to witness both first hand while still a young boy...

 (1858-1943), who introduced the use of bamboo practice swords (shinai

Shinai

is a weapon used for practice and competition in kendo representing a Japanese sword. Shinai are also used in other martial arts, but may be styled differently from kendo shinai, and represented with different characters....

).

In'ei and his school feature in the manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series "Vagabond

Vagabond (manga)

is an ongoing manga by Takehiko Inoue, portraying a fictionalized account of Miyamoto Musashi's life, on a loose adaptation of Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Musashi....

," where he had retired as master of Hōzōin-ryū only to train Miyamoto Musashi

Miyamoto Musashi

, also known as Shinmen Takezō, Miyamoto Bennosuke or, by his Buddhist name, Niten Dōraku, was a Japanese swordsman and rōnin. Musashi, as he was often simply known, became renowned through stories of his excellent swordsmanship in numerous duels, even from a very young age...

to defeat his successor.