Is Kendo Realistic?

[Shu2jack]

Hello everyone,

I am looking into learning how to properly use a japanese sword and have been looking into Kendo. The reason for learning to use a sword is because I love asian culture and for the love of the weapon. Back when man first came into being, the biggest ran things because he had such a overwhelming advantage. Nowadays it doesn't matter how good of a warrior you are. A 4 year old with a gun can kill the "best" fighter the world has ever known. I find the sword to be the balance. Size does not matter because if you are cut by a sword you are dead. A 4 year old with a sword would lose going up against another guy with a sword because it requires skill to use. I find it to be a warrior's weapon.

Sorry about the babble, but here is my question. How realistic is Kendo in terms of how one would actually use the weapon in war or single combat? Yes, I know I will never use a sword to defend myself, but for me if I am going to learn, I want to learn to use it realistically. How realistic is the "sparring"?

As a martial artist (Tae Kwon Do) I realise there is a slight (not much) difference between how you perform techinques in terms of forms, board breaking, sparring, and self-defense. Even in watching the Pride fights (supposedly "real" fighting) they hold back. I watch them and see on so many occasions techinques that one who studys a tradional martial art practices that could be used, but cannot because it would seriously injure/kill your opponent. (That is part of the reason I think "traditional martial arts do not do as well in those type of competitions. If they truly had "no holds barred" and they had a desire to seriously injure the other person, they would do SO much better.) So what I am asking I guess is if Kendo "changes" techinques or teachs a different way of sword fighting that is not as combat effective because it is safer.

Thank you all for your time.

[mystic_kendoka]

kendo IS sword fighting, but is still completely different from real japanese sword fighting, it at first originated from kenjutsu, which was this sort of safe training/practice for warriors. nowadays kendo has evolved into wat it is now because it has been adapted to a sport. it's all about scoring points etc. also, the shinai (sword used in kendo) is straight and not curved, if u hacked with a japanese sword, it would not work as well compared to if you sliced with it, with a shinai you never slice, you ALWAYS hack or sometimes poke.

so kendo isnt really the sport for you if you want to learn to use a sword, you should better look for iaido, which uses the bokuto with is more like a real sword than kendo, but i dont like iaido because you hardly ever hit you opponent, whereas in kendo you do. so if you want to have fun, do kendo, if you want to learn the ways of the sword, do iaido

[SirFingerLickin]

As said above, Kendo doesnt stress the true mechanics of cutting. Iaido and probably Kenjutsu stress the art of actual cutting, but they dont spar against opponents so there isnt any real experience against opponents which kendo does give you.

[Hiryu]

True swordsmanship...Hmm Difficult to define. True swordsmanship (I believe)comprises many different components, and each sword art, Kendo, Iaido, Batto, Kenjutsu, etc, posess only part of the "whole", and the last part I don't think we want to touch...Ill get to that at the bottom of the post.

The previous posts have some flaws, in that it is not nessecary to "Slice" when cutting with a Japanese blade, this is why the curvature is there. Only in some circumstances do you need to "Slice" or pull the blade. In Iaido, you better NOT hit someone!

Kendo deals with intent, use of distance, perception of openings, "Reading" your opponent and much more. The biggest thing to me that kendo deals with is the mental attitude while facing another person, which Iaido and Batto do not. Kendo does not deal with the finer points of using a sword which Iaido teaches, and it does not teach you how to cut.

Iaido teaches perfection of form and concentration in the face of a perceived opponent, proper sword handeling, how to turn a sword during use..kiriage to kesagiri, or tsubamagaeshi (sp?) concentration and balance among many other things. An Iaido practitioner is closer to cutting than a kendoka, but to assume that because someone can cut air, they can cut even a stationary target is flawed. Put a real sword in many Iaido practioners hands and they do strrrrange things. This is also not to say that there are not Iaido practioners out there who can cut the first time you put a real blade in their hands. on a continueum(ok sp again ?) Iaido ka are closer to cutting than kendoka. Iaido does not teach you how to use distance, the intent to strike a real person staring you down, or to cut a real person staring you down with a sword in their hands. It does not teach you intent in the face of a real person.

Batto, or cutting, teaches just that, how to cut a stationary or moving target, proper handeling of the blade, footwork, proper hasuji, and a lot of proper blade handeling....cant make the same mistakes you can in Iaido without feeling a bit-O- pain at the least, (Assuming use of an Iaito in Iai. as many people use shinken.)

Each art holds a certain portion of the truth, you could study all of them and still not be a real swordsman.

What is a "Real Swordsman?" someone that knows how to use a sword? someone that knows how to cut? someone that knows how to kantei a blade?
Lets say you know all of this.... In my mind, your not a real swordsman untill you have once faced another person who holds both a live blade and the intent to kill you in his heart and you have lived to tell the story. It is for this reason that I think looking for "Real" swordsmanship classes, or considering oneself a "Real swordsman" is unrealistic in todays age, unless you consider certain groups of the modern military.
Study your art, understand its advantages, benefits,and disadvantages and don't be deluded or disalusioned with it.

[ben]

so if you want to have fun, do kendo, if you want to learn the ways of the sword, do iaido

Or do both.

:)

B

[kgh]

I agree 100% with everything Hiryu stated.
To be perfectly honest, if you want to learn how to use a sword in a "realistic" manner, it would be just as good for you to take up western fencing. (I can hear the growls already as sites are set on the blasphemer).
Why would I say this?

Besides some variations in weight (and the odd pistol grip), the swords (Foil, epee, sabre),used in competition are far less different than the real thing, when compared to the differences between a shinai and shinken.

A 4 year old with a gun can kill the "best" fighter the world has ever known. I find the sword to be the balance. Size does not matter because if you are cut by a sword you are dead. A 4 year old with a sword would lose going up against another guy with a sword because it requires skill to use. I find it to be a warrior's weapon.

I would suggest to not over romanticize the Japanese sword. Both a gun and sword are weapons of a "warrior", one simply carries out the task of killing in a more efficient manner. On the battlefields of the past, it was the bow and spear that were prevalant, with the sword being a backup weapon.

If you look at your comment in a different manner, it is the gun that provided the balance..how else are a 4 year old and "the best fighter in the world" on nearly even ground?

Finally, simply being cut by a sword does not mean you are dead.

[mystic_kendoka]

i've done fencing for a while, but in my taste, it wasn't that good, so after a year, i looked for kendo, and now i've stuck with it :) but many people prefer fencing... its all up to the individual...

[Shiro]

I totally agree with Hiryu there.

"Real" swordsmen are a thing of the past and there is no way to bring it back. The closest you can get to it (imho) is combining Kendo and Iaido.

Besides, Kendo is not essentially about knowing how to fight, to me it's about cultivating the right attitude.
Iaido puts way more emphasis on the cut, but I think (correct me if I'm wrong) Iaido is more like a form of active meditation.

[Soliber]

Kendo is very realistic! Although a shinai can never simulate the experience of holding a real katana, it's almost essential to begin kenjutsu with a shinai. If you were to combine the factors of never having held a real katana (which can be a pain in the ass due to the suprising weight) and your lack of experience, techniques, self-controll, muscles, etc, etc accidents would be sure to occur. With a real katana in training, you also can't go all-out since even by accident you could seriously injure or even kill your sparring partner. Therefor it's considered safer to learn when to strike and how and to learn how to controll yourself with a shinai first, and when you have excelled to an advanced level, you can start using a katana (if not in training, then practise your techniques with a katana at home). By that time you will also have grown muscles, so the wielding of a katana should also be even a little bit easier. The downside to this is, what kendoka's have been arguing about since the sword carrying prohibition enforced since the beginning of the Meiji era, if the new generation of kendoka's study kenjutsu with the same devotion and purity as the "old-school kendoka's. Many of the people who start with kendo, do it only beacause they want to enhance their spirit and body, but more in a way like going to the gym. In a way kenjutsu may have grown a tiny little bit weaker due to the not using of real swords, but in exchange kenjutsu has opened up to a wider rang of people, instead of a smal group of people. And even kendo as it stands today is an excellent means of self-defence as well as a way to learn the old values like honnour and integrity. An advanced kendoka can anticipate the mouvements of his or her opponents, and often also the trajectory of bullets. So with or without a sword, wether it would be real one or not, a kendoka can defend himself to a local thug, even with a gun...

[mystic_kendoka]

i'd do anything to have a katana... even if i could afford it, my parents would pay $20 bucks for the nearest binmen to take it away...

[Soliber]

Why if I may ask?

[AlexM]

An advanced kendoka can anticipate the mouvements of his or her opponents, and often also the trajectory of bullets. So with or without a sword, wether it would be real one or not, a kendoka can defend himself to a local thug, even with a gun...

I did a double take when I read this and almost soiled myself with laughter...

I believe Morpheus and Trinity are waiting for you Neo...

There's a major influx of neo-samurai around here all of a sudden (or people just claiming to be in order to troll a bit). The 1980s had neo-ninjas, looks like we're going to be innudated with neo-samurai... can't wait for that first class of the semester next Tuesday *sigh*....

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention: Kendo is not realistic sword combat. If you're the type of person that really wants to have 16th century Japanese "battlefield" expertise I suggest you grow up (or become a military historian or something).

Kendo is not kenjutsu.

[Neil Gendzwill]

Kendo is very realistic!
Yes, it simulates almost exactly combat with 46" long bamboo sticks. Except even that part is unrealistic, because we have all these safety rules.

it's almost essential to begin kenjutsu with a shinai
I guess you can provide that half-assed guess to all the koryu people who never train with shinai.

An advanced kendoka can anticipate the mouvements of his or her opponents, and often also the trajectory of bullets.
Man, and I thought I drank too much over Christmas...

[Soliber]

Yeah and eum how would you go about on giving a class of becoming a samourai? Samourai's are the equivalent of the medieval knights, it's not something you can learn in a class, it's a title wiseguy... Besides if you watch where the barrel of a gun is aimed, you can pretty much anticipate where the bullet's going to hit... It just takes quick thinking that's all... Or do you think all the people who are getting shot at, actually get shot? Some do jump away... That's what I meant with anticipitang a bullet's trajectory, most people just freeze, unable to think... And oh yeah keep your love for "the matrix" for yourself please, I don't actually care about it that much...

[AlexM]

Yeah and eum how would you go about on giving a class of becoming a samourai? Samourai's are the equivalent of the medieval knights, it's not something you can learn in a class, it's a title wiseguy...


I wouldn't go about trying to be a samurai. That's monumentaly pointless. I'm an adult afterall (well, in age only).



Besides if you watch where the barrel of a gun is aimed, you can pretty much anticipate where the bullet's going to hit... It just takes quick thinking that's all... Or do you think all the people who are getting shot at, actually get shot? Some do jump away... That's what I meant with anticipitang a bullet's trajectory, most people just freeze, unable to think...


Ok... :rolleyes: I don't know what to say except "guns don't kill people, people trying to dodge bullets kill themselves." I want you to think long and hard about what you wrote and consider body velocity vs. bullet velocity. I won't go into how being a kendoka will not in any way, shape or form help you to avoid gunfire. This is getting into the realm of the absurd: "That's right kids, you can dodge bullets too!"



And oh yeah keep your love for "the matrix" for yourself please, I don't actually care about it that much...


Whoa... You are the one.

Do you actually practice kendo? If you don't I suggest you try it out (at a good dojo).

The dumber the posts get around here the more laughter I'm getting out of them (the more I lower myself to that level :D ).

[litige]

Besides if you watch where the barrel of a gun is aimed, you can pretty much anticipate where the bullet's going to hit... It just takes quick thinking that's all

This is by far the most stupid comment I've ever read....
Have you ever read on ballistic or on human behavior when pointed by a gun before stating this??
Damn, you're so stupid, i can't even comment.

tell that to all the people who got killed by guns :"You should have looked at the barrel!."

Think twice before typing.

[Soliber]

Yes I do pratice kendo at a very good dojo... And would you kindly read what I'm saying please: I'm not talking about some stupid bullet dodging stuff like you can see in the matrix or max payne, I'm simply talking about jumping aside, like I said most people freeze, but since kendo gives you better reflexes, you'll atleast try to get out of the bullet's way. How else would you explain that Japanese soldiers are still practising kendo? It hasn't become completely useless you know. It's as good a martial arts as any...

[Ren Blade]

In regards to Kendo and real fighting, I have a friend who told me of a girl he knew that trains Kendo alot. This girl was young around her 20's and is short, around 5 feet. Her family ran a restaurant and she worked in it with them. One night a group of 4 or so young guys came in and got a table. They were being loud and rude to everyone. Her brother ask them to leave and they started pushing him around. She immediately grabbed a broom stick and attacked those guys. Beating them all fast and hard with Kendo techniques. And she didn't stop hitting til they all ran outta the restaurant. That must have been quite a sight. :)

Another incident with the same girl is that she and her boyfriend, who was bigger than her, got into an argument. It got a little physical and she retaliated by grabbing a magazine, rolling it up tight and attacked her boyfriend fast and hard. He was getting smacked around left and right and she rendered him helpless that he gave up. That must have been an even more interesting sight than the restaurant incident though I would've loved to have been there to see both.

So those are 2 examples where it shows Kendo to be usefull to train aside for the art and love of it. Though you're not carrying a sword around with you, you can always grab something similar to the weapon you train with and execute the techniques that are ingrained into your muscle memory.

The only thing my friend said about Kendo in regards to real, he trained Kendo for a few years so he's familiar with it, is that one of the Kendo techniques where you hit your opponent on their head, that with a real sword, the blade would get stuck in their skull. And on the battlefield as you're trying to remove your sword, someone or people are coming up to attack you and you may get killed while trying to get your blade out of someone's skull. But how many of us are in the battlefield anyway with a Katana let alone carrying one around with us in everyday life?

All Martial Arts are good if learned from a good teacher. In a real fight, you don't have to perform and do things exactly the way you do in the training hall. Your training gives you some advantages in a fight. And when you fight, you do what you can do to survive regardless if you're in a proper stance or executing a perfect technique or not. Strive for perfection in your art in training, do what you can to survive when you are engaged in a real fight.

[Koushinkuma]

Smacking someone around with a magazine? Well, I imagine the effectiveness of the attack would have much to do with *which* magazine she used. McCall's or Redbook would simply not do, you would have to use Black Belt or Soldier of Fortune lol. Or maybe Kendo World! But honestly, when it comes down to it you don't look around for a shinai-like weapon, the first thing you do is use your God-given natural weaponry, hands and feet. Or one of those nifty little pepper spray keychains. Failing that, I always carry a loaded bazooka around in my pocket. :)

As far as dodging bullets...hmmm. A person can change where the gun is pointed a lot faster than you can move your body, and even if you can move, where are you gonna go? Do crazy backflips and rebound off walls to get behind them? Most guns that I know of have more than 1 round. Better not to get in a tussle at all, especially with someone packing heat. Heck, give them your wallet, it may hurt your pride but better than earning a one way trip to the Halls of Pluto.

[xvikingx]

After the sudden increase in wanna-be samurai and reading a number of posts like (but not as moronic as) the bullet dodging one, I realised that whether kendo is realistic or not is kind of a stupid question. Of course it is realistic. The question is, are you realistic? With all the different levels of commitment, ranging from a weekend hobby to an unhealthy obsession, how many people look at kendo (or budo in general) realistically? How many people out there really believe they are becoming sword swinging samurai?

[Onara]

I'm simply talking about jumping aside, like I said most people freeze, but since kendo gives you better reflexes, you'll atleast try to get out of the bullet's way. How else would you explain that Japanese soldiers are still practising kendo? ..

oooooooooooooooook then http://www.click-smilies.de/sammlung0903/alles_moegliche/mixed-smiley-016.gif

[litige]

How else would you explain that Japanese soldiers are still practising kendo? It hasn't become completely useless you know. It's as good a martial arts as any...

Like i said, think twice before typing.

[mingshi]

The question is, are you realistic?
Well said.

Thanks Tom Cruise again for the Samurai-wannabe virus.

As for the dude who thinks he can dodge bullets, give me some Uzi and I'll make sure you know where to jump.

Btw where do you happen to see some Japanese soldiers?

[Shiro]

Thanks Tom Cruise again for the Samurai-wannabe virus.

Tell me about it..... my dojo is doing a demo at a theater this week-end for the last samurai....... :) Good part is we'll probably get to see the movie for free :p

[Soliber]

Tom Cruise is nothing but a washed-up wanna be actor, and anyone who says different can go joine the lines of 14 year old screaming girls standing outside the cinema... Jeses, anyone with even a little self-respect, IF he goes to that movie, he'd go for the Japanese actors, who probably have just a little bit more of a clue to what they're doing. That fool nearly got his bloody head chopped off because he didn't watch what he was doing... Since I've never been to Japan, I haven't seen any soldiers. But I read in a magazine those soldiers still practise kendo...

[Koushinkuma]

Well, Tom Cruise may be washed up, and a wannabe actor, but he is laughing about it on the way to cash his paycheck.

[Will]

Jeses, anyone with even a little self-respect, IF he goes to that movie, he'd go for the Japanese actors, who probably have just a little bit more of a clue to what they're doing. That fool nearly got his bloody head chopped off because he didn't watch what he was doing...

What the hell? First kendo people can dodge bullets and now...I can't make this rubbish out.... what the hell are you smoking? I want some...

[Soliber]

Well I saw something on the news about the movie, and they said that Tom Cruise nearly got his head chopped off. You Do understand english don't you? Who would be impressed by someone like that :p

[xvikingx]

You Do understand english don't you?
Funny, I was just wondering the same thing about you. You know what they say about people who live in glass houses right?

[Ren Blade]

the first thing you do is use your God-given natural weaponry, hands and feet. Or one of those nifty little pepper spray keychains. :)I didn't know those pepper spray keychains is a god-given natural weapon. What part of the body does that grow out of? :p Just kidding. :wink:

[Khabbi]

Well not to sound like a idiot , but it is posible to dodge a bullet . A few months ago there was some lawyer that was getting shot at on tv by his client , I think he got hit a few times but he dident die and alot of bullets missed . But this had nothing to do with Kendo or martial arts . People who actualy dodge bullets owe it all to good luck and a bad or "unlucky" shooter.
Like snipers in war , missing a target 700m's away because of wind and that the target moved a inch , just luck , no matrix stuff .

Im pretty sure the Japanes Army doesent practice Kendo to doge bullets.
no scratch that im 500% sure they dont .


Khabbi

[Ren Blade]

I think more logically it is not actually dodging the bullet itself, cause a bullet moves way faster than any human being can move, but it is just moving out of the line of fire or out of the way of where the barrel of the gun is pointing by an inch or whatever distance before the shooter pulls the trigger. That lawyer was pretty lucky that day. The shooter was obviously not a marksman. The lawyer's constant movement and the tree was an obstruction to the shooter. But alot of variables can goes into a shooting situation like the example Khabbi provided of like snipers in war, missing a target 700m's away because of wind and that the target moved a inch.

[mystic_kendoka]

you bunch of idiots, the whole point of doing kendo is not to dodge bullets! its to block the bullet and then hit doh! thats the whole and only reason we practise kaeshi doh!

if you dodge a bullet, the shimpans will not like it, block it and they will be pleased...

PS please dont try blocking a bullet... im only kidding...

[Ren Blade]

you bunch of idiots, the whole point of doing kendo is not to dodge bullets! its to block the bullet and then hit doh! thats the whole and only reason we practise kaeshi doh!

if you dodge a bullet, the shimpans will not like it, block it and they will be pleased...That's why I watch lots of Star Wars to study how the Jedi's block the lasers fired at them with their lightsabers.


PS please dont try blocking a bullet... im only kidding...Oh, :shocked: you were kidding. Um....me too. :nervous:

:p :wink:

[mystic_kendoka]

ive never figured out the jedis,,, they're holding lightsabres that are powerful/sharp enough to cut through blaster doors, and they're fighting without hand guards, and they never get cut on the hands......

[mingshi]

...and they never get cut on the hands......
HEY THEY DID!! TWICE!! Are you watching?!?

...But they didn't get the blades to slide upwards onto the handle area.
Guess when the laserblades crashes against each other they just get stuck :ko:

As for taking bullets... a lot of people didn't dodge bullets, instead they take it AND survived. For example, the boy in wheelchair, Mark Taylor, in "Bowling for Columbine", still got a few in his body. If I remember correctly one of them is right next to his aorta... Now that's realistic!

NEO
What? Are you trying to tell me that I can dodge bullets?

MORPHEUS
No, Neo. I'm trying to tell you that when you're ready, you won't have to.

:rolleyes:

[Katana]

I believe that influx you speak of is due to Kill Bill and The Last Samurai. I hate this, since I did Iaido then go into Kendo and everyone assumes your some sort of neo-samurai anime-loving otaku who wants to carry a sword everywhere they go.

[mystic_kendoka]

maybe they put super-glue onto their lightsabres...

hehe, new future advice for shinai maintenance,

pour down half a tube of quick drying adhesive on to the 10cm portion above the tsuba just before a shiai, the lightest glue is best as it will not make the shinai too heavy...

[Ren Blade]

I believe that influx you speak of is due to Kill Bill and The Last Samurai. I hate this, since I did Iaido then go into Kendo and everyone assumes your some sort of neo-samurai anime-loving otaku who wants to carry a sword everywhere they go.Just let people think whatever they want. Their opinions make them happy. Let their assumptions slide off your back. Practicing your art correctly is all that matters.

[Gohanssj]

Hey guys im new here and going to my first kendo class tommorow :) cant wait to learn, another cool thing is that the teacher has a grand master over from japan going to our classes , i cant wait to start my own kendo world hehe and posibly learn iaido and kenjutsu aswell in the long run.

[Gohanssj]

Hey, just got back from class, man its cool me and only one other guy turned up since its storming heaps here, but it was awesome, the master as i thawt wasnt a master lol he was a 2nd dan, but the cool thing about this class is i learn kendo, aswell as kung fu, nunchaku, and meditation and relaxation, self control, heaps of different stuff and all soughts of weapons, i can see myself going very very far since the teacher is young but a awesome teacher hes got dans in all different kinds of arts.

[Ren Blade]

Does your school have a website?

[Gohanssj]

Im sorry no it doesnt, its not a really really big school, but its growing slowly, and its not a little "inexperienced" school either like some ive seen.

[Ren Blade]

Oh, I hope you didn't think I was assuming your school was an inexperienced one. I just wanted to probably see some pics and read on your school and teacher's background.

[Maasharu]

Hiryu is quite correct in almost all of what he/she said on the first page of this string. If you want to learn how to use a sword; study Iaido, Battou or Kenjutsu. In the upper levels of Kenjutsu you will be taught “tamashigiri”, test cutting. This is done on presoaked rolled up goza, tatami mats or Bamboo. Wet straw has the same resistance as cutting through human flesh. Each piece of straw is equal to a muscle fiber. Bamboo is hard and yet still able to chopped or sliced if fresh, it simulates bone quite well.

So if you want to learn the sword top to bottom; study Iaido, Battou and Kenjutsu. If you don’t want to spend the rest of your life studying martial arts; find a good Kenjutsu teacher. That will teach you how to handle a sword as if it were real combat and how to actually use a sword as if on a person. (Without hitting a person). If you really want to get into it, than put on all the appropriate Kendo gear and use Bokuto or Bokkens. Shinai weigh less than my foot, they can’t simulate swords at all. However, a bokken/bokuto carries weight and the approximate shape of a katana.

Extreme caution should be taken and the spar should also be supervised by a high ranking instructor. Before Kendo shinai were created they used Bokuto to spar with each other, to focus their skills in realistic combat. The only way to get closer to the real thing is to go at each other like a ‘highlander’ movie – and I don’t recommend it at all. One need only visit the Tsuki Kage dojo website to know the danger and mishaps that happen when some idiot with more skill than brains takes a shinken (live blade) and swings it at another person.

By the way: Shinkendo, created by 6 time All Japan Tamashigiri Champion Toshishiro Obata, combines battou, Kenjutsu and tamashigiri. And although they don’t spare it does have a sophisticated system of choreographed sparing sessions that simulate real battle. They also use Bokuto/bokkens and iaito rather than Shinai. Shinkendoka also treat the bokuto/bokken as if it were a real blade at all times, going through all the motions of drawing it from an imagined scabbard in left hand when doing Battou. I was impressed by the Shinkendo system – you should look into it.

~Maasharu

[canadasword]

In the upper levels of Kenjutsu you will be taught “tamashigiri”, test cutting. Careful not to generalize. Few styles of kenjutsu do this. Test cutting has little relevance to swordfighting except to make sure your sword is sharp and technique correct.


Wet straw has the same resistance as cutting through human flesh. Each piece of straw is equal to a muscle fiber. Bamboo is hard and yet still able to chopped or sliced if fresh, it simulates bone quite well.Nice but ultimately of no use. Will not teach you to avoid getting killed.



Shinkendo, created by 6 time All Japan Tamashigiri Champion Toshishiro Obata, combines battou, Kenjutsu and tamashigiri. Sounds like an all-in-one style. Get the best of all worlds...


They also use Bokuto/bokkens and iaito rather than Shinai. Most traditional kenjutsu styles use this.


...use choreographed sparing sessions... In Japanese, they call it "kata" and very common in traditional swordsmanship styles (kenjutsu).


I was impressed by the Shinkendo system – you should look into it.Maasharu, glad to hear you found something you like. But shinkendo is nothing new nor superior. Just the same stuff re-packaged in California to look new and exciting. If you want "real" kenjutsu, go to Japan. By the way shinkendo means "new kendo". So there you have it. Same stuff, new wrapper...