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A Janpanese Martial Arts -Kendo

Martial Arts Clubs

A Janpanese Martial Arts -KendoBy Leslie T.

Kendo is a Japanese style of fencing derived during the Meiji period in Japan (1868-1912), from the two-handed sword fighting techniques of the samurai. Today kendo, which means "way of the sword", is practiced with shinai (bamboo swords), and fighters wear protective equipment covering the target areas: the head, wrists, and abdomen. The bogu (protective gear) consists of a men (face mask), a do (breastplate), kote (fencing gloves), and the tare, a kind of apron to protect the stomach and hips. Under the protective gear, kendoka (students of kendo) wear a hakama, or wide split skirt, reaching the ankles. The weapon used in Kendo is the shinai, or bamboo sword. The shinai is approximately four feet in length and is made of four carefully formed bamboo slats bound together to form hollow cylinder. A cord runs along the length of the shinai. To make a valid cut a player must strike his opponent with the side opposite the cord. In addition the point must be struck with the top third of the shinai.

Kendo is not very well suited as self-defense - quite the contrary, it is a very aggressive martial art! There are no blocking techniques which are not counter-attacks: you must attack quicker than your opponent to defend yourself! Kendo is a full-contact martial art - unlike most other martial arts, the cuts are not just marked, however they are delivered with only a minimum of restraint. Still, injuries (other than occasional blisters on the soles of the feet) are very rare. The injury frequency is in fact equal to the one in curling.

To avoid injuries, the kendokas use protecting armor (bogu). The different parts of the bogu are:

Men- a fencing mask combined with shoulder flaps for protection of the head, face, throat and shoulders.

Do - a breastplate, covering the torso and stomach.

Kote - a pair of padded gloves for the hands and the wrists.

Tare - an apron which is worn around the hips to protect the thighs and the groin.

The concept of Kendo is to discipline the human character through the application of the principles of the Katana. The purpose of practicing Kendo is:

To mold the mind and body,

To cultivate a 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 to forever pursue the cultivation of oneself.

Thus will one be able to love his country and society,

To contribue to the development of culture,

And to promote peace and prosperity among all people.

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Introduction to Laido

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Introduction to LaidoBy Leslie T

Most people are not familiar with the word iaido. Like judo, karate and aikido, iaido is a Japanese budo art. It differs from the other three essentially, for iaido is an art where a weapon is used for practice. One trains alone, without a partner, with a samurai sword, katana. Iaido is actually an art in which one learns how to draw one's sword from its scabbard.

What is Iaido?

Iaido is one of the Japanese traditional Budo concerned with drawing the blade and cutting in the same motion. (Budo means martial arts or military arts in Japan). A typical form consists of the draw and cut, a finishing cut, cleaning the blade and returning it to the scabbard, all without looking away from the imaginary opponent.

Iaido dealt more with everyday situation rather than those on the battlefield. The term "Iai" is taken from the Japanese phrase: "Tsune ni ite, kyu ni awasu". The meaning of this is, whatever we may be doing or wherever we may be, we must always be prepared from any eventually.

Iaido Styles

There are many styles of Iaido, many ways to cut, to move, and as one learns one improves technically. However, we train not only to learn techniques, however also to cultivate the heart and spirit. With this respect all "styles" will lead to the same goal.

Currently, the most practiced styles of iaido are the Muso Shinden Ryu and the Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu, presumed to be branches of the original style of batto jutsu founded by Hayashizaki (Taylor and Ohmi 1997: 83). Currently in Japan, however, there are over 400 schools (Ryu) of iaijutsu and iaido, though the majority of these are quite small. (Alexanian, 2000, n.p.)

History and School Founder

Iaido began in the mid-1500's. Hayashizaki Jinsuke Shigenobu (1542 - 1621) is widely accepted as the founder of Iaido.

There were many (probably several thousand of) Koryu ( traditional schools), though only a small proportionremain today. Almost all of them also study older school established during 16-17th century, like Muso-Shinden-ryu, Hoki-ryu, Muso-Jikiden-Eishin-ryu, Shinto-Munen-ryu, Tamiya-ryu, Yagyu-Shinkage-ryu, Mugai-ryu, Sekiguchi-ryu, and so on.

The role of Iaido in modern Kendo

Even though the points of attack in modern Kendo are strictly limited, the strikes and attacks are performed with a freedom of will that inevitably leads to an element of competition. If this spirit of competition is given fuller reign, Kendo degenerates into a contest carried out solely for the sake of winning and loosing. When this happens, the purity of Kendo techniques is lost.

In comparison with shinai Kendo, Iaido concentrate on training to develop correct movements. For this reason, in terms of technical purity it occupies a level much higher than that of shinai Kendo. In short, Iaido can serve to improve and maintain technical purity in shinai Kendo. Iaido helps ensure that body movements are logical and effective because they are natural, accurate, and agile.

Iaido Training Facilities

Generally speaking, iaido is practiced indoors. Special requirements for iaido are similar to those for kendo: a wooden floor, ideally a sprung floor to protect the practitioners' joints, a high ceiling, and enough space to permit practitioners to train freely with swords without interfering with one another. Space may be borrowed, rented or owned, depending on availability and the finances of the dojo.

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(About-What Are) Martial Arts

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(About-What Are) Martial ArtsBy Ninos Mayne

Martial arts are always in the trend and the term originates from central Europe. There are different forms of martial arts, all with the main objective of defending one-self from attacks. Some martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are based on religious beliefs, such as Buddhism and Shinto. Apart from Asian culture, martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are also part of the western culture for instance Europe and America. These include sword fencing and wrestling. In the past and present, martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are being contested and are included in world sports such as the Olympics.

Martial arts were established for thousands of years, although currently the pioneer is still unknown. It was thought that in Asia, the Buddhist and Hindu started the trend long time ago. It is a speculation that the Asian martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are a blend of the two. Early writings have shown that martial strategy and belief were developed during the Warring period of the Chinese. The Asian style has a master-student relationship, where students are trained in a hierarchy way by a master.

In Europe, boxing is part of the Ancient Olympic Games. The old Greece has integrated sports into their life, making sports part of it. Extensive reconstruction is being carried out to bring back the ancient martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) in the Europe, for example sword and shield, jousting, halberd fighting or sparing and sword-fighting. All these are known as Western martial arts. The reconstruction groups are working based on survival of manuscripts and manuals from the past. However, the introduction of firearms and the easiness of using one has affected the popularity of martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) in Europe.

A mixture of bow, knife, lance and tomahawk is a characteristic of Okichitaw, which is a martial art in America. Another chic / stylish / trendy / hip / cool style, the Capoeira originates from Brazil and incorporates high degree of endurance and flexibility. The modernor contemporary (belonging to the present time) America introduced wrestling, fencing, archery, and Javelin, and all these are part of the Olympics Games.

Each martial art has its own style and character. Some may require strong physical and attacks, while some are softer in terms of energy use. Tae Kwon Do is one that requires high physical strength and stamina as it involves high energy kicks and hard styles. Tai Chi Chuan is suitable even for the elderly, as it is graceful and focuses on calmness and tranquility. Some may utilize weapons such as in sword fighting. Apart from these, there are martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) that incorporate dance and aerobics in them, an example being Capoeira which is a Brazilian art.

Martial arts can be divided into categories based on their styles. Weaponry includes fencing, Kendo, Kali and Jukendo. As the name implies all these are weapon-arts. Judo, Aikido, Jujutsu, Wrestling and Sambo are examples of grappling martial arts. All these tackle the opponent with the use of different grappling holds, choke holds and counters to attacks by the opponent. The fighters use throwing, pinning the opponents or joint locks to control the opponents. Boxing, Kung Fu, karate, Capoeira, Tae Kwon Do and Wing Chun are examples of striking martial arts. All these incorporate punching, kicking or knees in their styles of fighting.

Different people have different views of martial arts. Some practiced for health reasons, while others may do so for their own interest or as a hobby to fill free times.. The East are learning the Westerns culture, and vice versa. Furthermore, some may learn martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) to protect themselves from the danger of our society. No matter what the reasons are, martial arts (Martial arts are systems of codified practices and traditions of training for combat) are a global interest and it is still being practiced throughout the world.

Writen by NINOS of http://www.martialchat.com