Kendo: The Warrior Way of the Sword

(Disclaimer: Some of these articles that I posted was taken from "Rapid Journal vol. 6 No. 4 page 2, year 2002". The said article was written by Mr. Jacob Reynoso. I do not own this and its ideas. All of this belongs to the author. Enjoy reading!)

Historical Development of Kendo

Kendo is the most respected form of the martial arts in modern Japan, most likely because, as a derivative of feudal sword arts, it is thought of as having tangible links to the samurai. Like most modern martial arts, Kendo can be thought of as a ritualized, sportive version of Japanese combat systems. It has evolved from combat arts of the past, but it has done so in a special way. Kendo has preserved the mental and physical stresses of fighting, but has done so in a system that eliminates the mortal danger of combat. The Way of the sword is the contemporary heir of a board spectrum of Japanese cultural influences that were embedded in the martial traditions of feudal warriors. For the reason, Kendo is considered by serious practitioners to be something more than just a form of exercise or competition, it approaches a type of spiritual disclipline.

Kendo Competition

The object of a Kendo contest is to land two scoring blows on a target area. There are eight target areas: center of the head (men); left side of the head (hidare-men); right side of the head (migi-men); left forerarm (hidare-kate); right forearm (migi-kate); left side of the ribcage (hidare-do); right side of the ribcage (migi-do); the throat (tsuki). All are attacked by cut except the throat, which can be threatend only by a lunge. Conpetition often uses only one withe two hands. All blows are called kiri (cuts) in which a kendoka attacks with the cutting edge of the shinai.

Goals of Training

Different people look for different things in Kendo training. Some seek the exhilaration of exercise and the challenge of hard physical training. Many Kendo students come to the art after exposure to other types of martial arts. They seek to broaden their knowledge of the martial way and, perhaps, to find a closer link to the samurai experience that they believe created these arts in the first pace.

There is room for all these motivations in Kendo. At base, however, it is a special type of martial art. A modern development, it is highly ritualized and codified. It has little immediately practical utility in self-defense. It is an excellent source of aerobic exercise and can present the trainee with an exciting tournament dimension. Most importantly, however, Kendo is a method for disciplining and refining the human spirit. It is this, above all, that it is designed to do.

An excellent summary of the goals of Kendo is provided by the All Japan Kendo Federation.

The concept of Kendo is to discipline the human character through the application of the principles of the katana.

The purpose of practice Kendo is: To mold the mind and body, To cultivate the vigorous spirit, And through correct and rigid training. To strive for improvement in the art of Kendo, To hold in esteem human courtesy and honor, To associate with others with sincerity, And forever pursue the cultivation of oneself.

Thus will one be able to love his country and society, to contribute to the development of culture, and to promote peace and prosperity among all peoples.

Kendo, in short, is not merely about what you can learn to do. It is about what you can learn to be.