Katsuno Shintaro (Aichi Prefecture) I was taught that “you must show each other the best of yourselves” and to care for the harmony between yourself and your opponent. I recently was able to pass on my 10th attempt. As this examination is a great milestone for myself, I did not Read More
Shirota Masayuki (Saitama Prefecture) Take great care to control your physical health. It was after 9 years and 17 attempts from when I had first began taking the exam. The first few times I took it I tried not to be too conscious of it. I just cleared my mind Read More
On the night of July 8th, 1864, a stream of white and light blue haori jackets emblazoned with the kanji 誠 (Honesty) moved toward the Ikedaya Inn. It was situated just east of the famous Sanjo Bridge in the heart of Kyoto and these were the jackets of the famous Read More
These are MUST-VISIT places for Budoka Not only in kendo, but in any contest are decided not just on raw ability. “Luck” can also play an important part. There is a saying “do your best, and leave the rest to Providence.” In order to win, the basic idea is to Read More
The Tare- If the Tare-obi is thin or narrow it will burden your back The thickness and stuffing You may think that if a tare is thin then you could tie it tightly to make a good fit. As it is not struck as often as the men or kote, Read More
The Kote- Can you correctly grip the shinai from the top? Kote-buton and the kote-gashira As with the men, the stuffing of the kote-buton is very important. There are many items that lack adequate impact absorption in the kote-gashira (fist) area, and so you should be careful. Any futon that Read More
As we meet the new academic year, there are many people who have just begun kendo, are starting again as school begins, or just want to purchase a new bogu. But what kendogu should they get when there are so many to choose from? For those who find this all Read More
So that it could be employed in the regular curriculum under these conditions, a kind of ‘Bujutsu Calisthenics’ was developed. The responsibility for the instruction for these fell to Ozawa Unosuke. Ozawa would publish the ‘Bujutsu Calisthenic Method’ in the 30th year of Meiji (1897). By taking the then regular Read More
Still more, in the first year of Taisho (1912) the Great Imperial Japanese Kendo Kata (the modern Japanese Kendo Kata) were enacted and, as I’m sure you’re aware, only the right-do is used. In 1922, Kaneko Chikatsugu, having studied at Koshi, announced that the reason for left-do being omitted in Read More
Striking points like men and kote, the rules of shiai, how to have keiko, or perhaps the shape of the bogu, and etiquette…For everyone reading this, these are all common sense things when it comes to how kendo is and how it is to be done. Have you ever stopped Read More
