Hon'inbō Shūsaku
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Honinbo Shusaku | |
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Honinbo Shuwa | |
Rank | 7 dan pro |
Shusaku (本因坊秀策, Yasuda Eisai, Kuwahara Shusaku, Invincible Shusaku, born Kuwabara Torajiro (桑原虎次郎); June 6, 1829 – September 3, 1862) was a Japanese
Biography
He was nicknamed "Invincible" after he earned a perfect score for 19 straight wins in the annual
Only two other people have been given the title "Go Sage" (
Early years
He was born on the island of
In 1837, at age 8, Shusaku was already almost a player of professional caliber. He left home to join the Honinbō school (the most important institute in the game of Go in Japan at the time having produced the Go Saint Dosaku and many Meijins) officially as a student of Honinbo Jowa but his study would mainly be with senior students. On January 3, 1840, he received his shodan (first dan) professional diploma.
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The "ear-reddening" move |
Meteoric rise
In 1840 Shusaku left
Returning to Edo, Shusaku was not only promoted to 5-dan, but he was also made the official heir of
Sanjubango
In 1853, a group of players gathered in a mansion in Edo. The players were Yasui Sanchi, Ito Showa, Sakaguchi Sentoku, Hattori Seitetsu, and Ōta Yūzo. They were discussing Shusaku, to the point where they had come to the idea that Shusaku was the strongest player of the time, but Ota did not agree. He said he was in the middle of a series of games with Shusaku, tied at 3 apiece. Akai Gorosaku, who was a famous sponsor of Go during the time, had heard this and decided to sponsor an unheard of 30-game go competition (a Sanjubango) between Ota and Shusaku. The series had begun in 1853, when Ota was 46 and a 7 dan, while Shusaku was 24 years old and a 6 dan. The games were played once a week, faster than a typical 10-game match. Ota was doing well until the 11th game, when Shusaku started to fight back. Ota was behind by 4 games after the 17th game. The 21st game was played in July, but the 22nd game was not played until October of that year, a reason of which is not known. The 22nd game was played in Ota's house, which was different from the others, considering they were played in more neutral venues. Ota had lost once more, and the venue was changed to a more neutral one. It is believed, however, the 23rd game, was fixed. It had lasted almost 24 straight hours, and had resulted in a tie. It saved Ota from embarrassment. It was thought as a great achievement, having a tie after taking white, so much that it was used, along with Shusaku's calling up for the castle games, as an excuse to adjourn the match.
Death and legacy
In 1862, a cholera epidemic swept through Japan. Shusaku tended the patients within the Honinbō house, and fell ill himself, dying of it on September 3 at the age of 33.
Shusaku's name is connected to the
Shusaku is also remembered by the
On 6 June 2014, a
Fiction
In the manga and anime series Hikaru no Go, Shusaku discovered the spirit of fictional Go player Fujiwara-no-Sai. Shusaku became the medium through which Sai played the great games ascribed to Shusaku.
References
- ^ Williams, Rhiannon (June 6, 2014), "Google apologises over D-Day Doodle blunder", The Telegraph, retrieved June 6, 2014
- ^ "Google blunder over D-Day doodle", BBC News, June 6, 2014, retrieved June 6, 2014
Further reading
- John Power, Invincible: The Games of Shusaku, ISBN 4-906574-01-7
- Honinbo Shusaku – Complete Game Collection, ISBN 7-80548-915-7
External links
- Sensei's Library
- Daily Yomiuri article Archived October 12, 1999, at the Wayback Machine
- Game collection (SGFs)
- Gobase player stats and games listing