Overview: The First Five Kata
Ipponme
Nihonme
Sanbonme
Yohonme
Gohonme
Performance Dynamics
Part Five: Void
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
No book is perfect and, with a subject as complex as Kendo, I am sure that this work is no exception. The faults contained here are the product of the author's personal limitations and in no way reflect on the kind assistance I have had from various groups and individuals.
Gratitude is owed to all the people and groups who have assisted (wittingly and otherwise) in this project. First, my thanks go to those (often anonymous) Kendoka who have assisted me in my exploration of this art by their example and their patient teaching. Special acknowledgment is made to Kataoka Noboru Sensei, who serves as a guide for those of us studying Kendo in Western New York today. My thanks go as well to the members of the Buffalo Kendo Club, fellow travelers on this martial path. I am deeply indebted to Kimura Hiroaki Sensei for his warm yet demanding instruction.
Above all, I appreciate the love and support of my wife Kitty and my children Erin and Owen, to whom this book is dedicated.
INTRODUCTION
Kendo (literally the "Way of the Sword") seems to some observers to be the modern martial art that has the most overt links to traditional Japanese culture. Its etiquette, training methods, equipment, and techniques are the product of a long historical development. The philosophical concepts that have helped shape the art and that lie behind its practice are central to Japanese culture. The art of Kendo is not only an exciting and profound discipline on a personal level, it is also an opportunity to gain a great deal of insight into the Japanese character.
What is Kendo? Kendo is the modern, ritualized version of Japanese fencing. There are many Japanese sword arts in existence today. They span the range from true classically-oriented combat systems that attempt to train individuals in traditional Japanese military skills (often termed bujutsu) to more modern, specialized systems such as iaido, which focuses on the technique and esthetics of drawing the long sword. As a generic term, in fact, Kendo can refer to any system of Japanese swordsmanship. As I use it here, "Kendo" refers to the modern martial art referred to as Nippon Kendo. It can be considered a sport, as well as a physical and mental discipline. It is, in some sense, all of these things. When properly and conscientiously practiced, Kendo is a Do, a path or way that can lead the trainee to self-cultivation. It combines the stress and excitement of competition with the potentially profound insights that can be gained from the practice of the Japanese martial arts.
Kendo is not, however, the same art that was practiced by the feudal swordsmen of Japan, the bushi or samurai. It is a modern system that developed out of these arts, but it is very different. Kendo has rules, combat does not. The restriction of Kendo blows to eight areas has led to a noticeable change in Kendo bogu (armor) when compared to the war armor of the samurai. The shinai, the bamboo foil used in Kendo, is used differently from a real sword, and is shaped and balanced differently from the katana, or long sword of the samurai. Kendo's stance and movements have been conditioned by the fact that Kendoka (Kendo practitioners) typically train indoors on a hardwood floor. Feudal warriors fought on battlefields. These are a few examples of technical considerations that have decisively affected the evolution of technique and equipment in Kendo.
All modern budo (martial ways) are substantially changed from their feudal predecessors. This does not mean, however, that they are not worth our study or interest. Like any aspect of culture, a martial art such as Kendo is valuable because it is a vivid reminder of the past. It also continues to contribute to human life in the present precisely because of the changes it has undergone in its adaptation to modern conditions. Kendo has its roots in Japan's feudal age, but endures in the modern era precisely because these roots have made it strong enough to bend in the winds of history, and yet to endure. Kendo is linked to the feudal samurai not in substance, but in spirit.
I have consciously attempted to underscore that link by creating a structure for this book that echoes that of Miyamoto Musashi's Go Rin no Sho (Book of Five Rings). Musashi's work is widely interpreted in the West today as a book about swordsmanship that is more than just a book about swordsmanship. It has, many feel, applications for strategic thinking and action in numerous disciplines. Musashi himself clearly felt that the insights he gleaned from the events of a violent life had implications for a wide variety of people.
From our perspective today we can argue about the real merits of Musashi's life—one concerned with a seemingly compulsive search for conflict and conquest that left him alone at the end of his life, holed up in a cave, penning notes for unknown generations. We can acknowledge, however, that we can benefit from his experience, even as we question his wisdom. In this sense, I have seen merit in organizing this book into five headings that echo Musashi's chapters—Ground, Water, Fire, Wind, Void.
The reader will note an interpretive tone to this book. This is due to my background. I first became interested in Kendo while conducting research on Japanese culture. I have also trained in a wide variety of Japanese martial arts: karate-do, judo, aikido, and iaido. My professional studies as an anthropologist (someone who specializes in the description and interpretation of foreign cultures and societies) nicely blended with my personal interest in budo as a vehicle for physical and spiritual cultivation. I found that my studies in Japanese history, language, and culture, combined with the insight generated from the discipline of anthropology, substantially enhanced both my appreciation and understanding of the martial arts.
This advantage was made even more evident when I began to study Kendo. This art is highly formalized, heavily symbolic, and still very strongly linked to traditional Japanese culture. It has been molded by the Japanese historical and intellectual experience.
Very little written material on Kendo is available to nonspecialists outside of Japan, when we compare it to other martial arts. What are available are works of a primarily technical nature, or works on philosophy and the martial arts in general. Comprehensive yet accessible texts dealing with Kendo are rare. One of the many aims of this book is to attempt to partially fill this void concerning Kendo literature in English. In particular, as I put this book together, I kept in mind the questions I had when I began the study of Kendo, the concepts that seemed to help me, and the images that helped me make some sense out of my dojo experience. In many ways, then, this is a book that attempts to serve as a basic guide for beginning Kendoka.
I make no claims that this is a definitive work in a technical sense. Kendoka look primarily to their sensei for guidance in training. This book is in no way meant to replace the absolutely vital technical and spiritual guidance that the trainee receives in the dojo. At the same time, however, many of my fellow trainees, who were attracted to the art precisely because of its philosophical and cultural depth, lament the absence of any holistic treatment of Kendo.
In the final analysis, I am convinced that the insights I have gleaned as an anthropologist—a grasp of Japanese history, culture, and philosophy, and an understanding of how they relate to the martial arts in general, and to Kendo in particular—could help other martial artists and those interested in Japanese culture come to a deeper appreciation of Kendo.
So this book is "comprehensive" in the sense that I have attempted to provide as complete and balanced a treatment as I could. I do not mean to imply that this will (or should) be the final word on the subject. I do hope, however, that it gives the many people interested in Kendo a clear picture of what the art is and what benefits it provides. If this little book helps in this regard, I shall be very pleased. The Way is long, its significance profound, and I have but begun to walk this path. I would, however, like to share some of the insights I have gained along the journey so far.