Kyudo

[Khabbi]

Is there any one here who does Kyudo ? , im looking to pick it up and would be fun to get some facts and stuff

thanx

[JSchmidt]

Is there any one here who does Kyudo ? , im looking to pick it up and would be fun to get some facts and stuff

thanx

I don't do it, but I know a little of it, as I was also looking into picking it up. (One of my kendo-teachers in London was a 5th Dan Kyudo). I might be able to help with some basic questions.

Jakob

[Khabbi]

ok , how many diff styles are there ( ryu ?) .

And how come you dident start Jakob ?

It looks like fun but im gonna have to ride the train to another county each lesson ( sounds worse then it realy is ) so is it worth it ?

thanx jakob , ppl

[JSchmidt]

As far as I know, there's only one 'official' style, but many of the older styles still exists.
I believe the variations are minor, at least to the un-educated eye.
I didnt start because it would overlap with one of my favourite kendo-sessions and also included 1 hour (public) transportation. (And the Saturday kendo dojo was only 10 mins walk away).

Jakob

[nodachi]

Is there any one here who does Kyudo ? , im looking to pick it up and would be fun to get some facts and stuff

thanx

I did it for a short while before I had to move. There are at least two styles. The differences are very slight. I can't personally go into detail on them, but from conversations, it is like small differences in movements through the form of shooting. Like slight changes in posture or where to point or hold as you go through the form. I know this is vague, but there are a couple different styles, but you won't notice a difference unless you've been doing it for a while or so I've been told.

You spend the first month or so learning how to sit down, stand up, and "shoot" nothing using a "rubber bow". You learn the basics of the form and when to breathe in and out. It is standing zen. The rubber bow is basically a handle just long enough to hold in your hand with a thick rubber band that you can draw and release to simulate the tension in the bow string.

After that, you move up to holding a real bow and shooting it into a makiwara (if I remember correctly), which is the big bundle of straw that you will fire into from like 2 or 3 feet away. This is important because the actual firing of the bow is the same in the form of using the rubber band but the bow has a different feel and the act of actually releasing the arrow is quite tricky to get down. You do this for a few months or until you seem to have it down. Then your sensei will move you somewhere else from there. I unfortunately had to move at this point so I only had exposure to kyudo for 2 or 3 months, multiple practices a week.

Some of the training is using a mirror to check your form. Lots of learning by watching to see what you are doing wrong from those who are doing it right. IT's a good time. A nice compliment to kendo, I thought. More action oriented budo along with very calming budo. I felt a happy balance when I did both.

I miss it.

You may be asked to sign a contract to promise not to use anything that you learn from kyudo in hunting. It is solely for standing zen type purposes. If you want to hunt, learn archery, not kyudo. And breaks are often done sitting in seiza and enjoying yummy green tea. I miss those days. Can be chilly in the winter in an actual kyudo dojo.

[R A Sosnowski]

Is there any one here who does Kyudo ? , im looking to pick it up and would be fun to get some facts and stuff

thanx

Yes, I do -- for the past six and a half years.

I have a web-article at
fightingarts.com

If you still have questions, send a PM.

[R A Sosnowski]

As far as I know, there's only one 'official' style, but many of the older styles still exists.
I believe the variations are minor, at least to the un-educated eye.
I didnt start because it would overlap with one of my favourite kendo-sessions and also included 1 hour (public) transportation. (And the Saturday kendo dojo was only 10 mins walk away).

Jakob

Your first statement is quite strong here -- it's equivalent to saying that Seitei Gata is the "offical" style of Iaido.

The "Seitei" form of Kyudo is used at Taikai and for Shinsa for members of the ANKF (All Nippon Kyudo Federation) and its international affiliates.

Some Koryu groups are members of ANKF (they teach their Koryu forms as well), and others are not (they only teach their Koryu forms but not "Seitei").

[Khabbi]

Thanx for the great info , sorry some of you had to quit

"You may be asked to sign a contract to promise not to use anything that you learn from kyudo in hunting"

Its cool , i have this weird thing that makes me not want to kill animals =) strange huh ? lol


Ill be sure to PM you after Ive read the article Mr Sosnowski

again , thanx

[JSchmidt]

"Your first statement is quite strong here"

Hey, I did put a couple of disclaimers in my posts

Jakob

[don quixote]

I know this thread is already old but I thought I'd add a few words anyway, as I hope more people will be interested in discussing kyudo here. I myself have only tried kyudo a couple of times but am planning to take it up later this year (provided it does not collide with my studies or kendo practice ).
Anyway, what i was told is that while there are several different ryu, they all practice a number of different forms for different occasions and purposes which are usually quite similar. The biggest and most obvious difference is how they lift the bow while drawing. Some ryu lift it straight up directly in front of the body, while others lift it to the left of the body. I was told that this difference stems from the days when bows were used either on the ground or on horseback: you obviously cannot hold the bow straight in front of the body while riding.
Also there seems to be some disagreement as to how important zen is in kyudo. Apparently much confusion was created by the writings of a german zen 'fanatic' who more or less introduced kyudo in Europe in the thirties. He had learnt kyudo in Japan whithout knowing japanese and with a preconcieved idea that kyudo was all about zen, which is not neccesarily the case.

[R A Sosnowski]

I know this thread is already old but I thought I'd add a few words anyway, as I hope more people will be interested in discussing kyudo here. I myself have only tried kyudo a couple of times but am planning to take it up later this year (provided it does not collide with my studies or kendo practice ).

Anyway, what i was told is that while there are several different ryu, they all practice a number of different forms for different occasions and purposes which are usually quite similar. The biggest and most obvious difference is how they lift the bow while drawing. Some ryu lift it straight up directly in front of the body, while others lift it to the left of the body. I was told that this difference stems from the days when bows were used either on the ground or on horseback: you obviously cannot hold the bow straight in front of the body while riding.

With Kyudo being so rare, if you can find a reputable Kyudojo at all, join. It is extremely rare in the US (and I suspect in other countries outside of Japan as well) to have a choice at all. Such rarities do occur in the DC area and the [San Francisco] Bay area.

After several years of dedicated practice, the differences won't seem so great. Know how your style is different from others, but do not get hung up on those differences. There are reasons for the differences, but they are just differences. Beware of the labels "right" and "wrong" when talking about other styles. "Right" and "wrong" occur only within the context of a particular style and its techniques.

Also there seems to be some disagreement as to how important zen is in kyudo. Apparently much confusion was created by the writings of a german zen 'fanatic' who more or less introduced kyudo in Europe in the thirties. He had learnt kyudo in Japan whithout knowing japanese and with a preconcieved idea that kyudo was all about zen, which is not neccesarily the case.

In Part II of my Kyudo web-article at fightingarts.com, there is a reference to a critique of the Herrigel book by Yamada at the bottom of the reference list. Read it, but also do so critically.

As for how important Zen is to a Kyudo practice, there is the offical Ryu-ha (school) version, and there is your own personal practice. Pay attention to the former, but do not let it interfere with the latter. In that sense, Kyudo is very internal; in my experience, Kyudo is 90% internal, and only 10% external. And the internal state is manifested in the external process, which is an idea that originated in China.

My teacher refers to Kyudo as "Ritsu Zen" (standing meditation); there are traditions of standing meditations as opposed to Zazen (seated meditation) in China and Japan.

As always, YMMV.

HTH.

[mystic_kendoka]

holy COW R A Sosnowski !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i read tht article a week ago... i read it like 3 times over and it got me interested in kyudo... so now im looking to buy a yumi and ya...

[R A Sosnowski]

holy COW R A Sosnowski !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i read tht article a week ago... i read it like 3 times over and it got me interested in kyudo... so now im looking to buy a yumi and ya...

I'm glad that you enjoyed it.

BR,

[Kaoru]

With Kyudo being so rare, if you can find a reputable Kyudojo at all, join. It is extremely rare in the US (and I suspect in other countries outside of Japan as well) to have a choice at all. Such rarities do occur in the DC area and the [San Francisco] Bay area.

I have a list of Kyudo dojos in the US and international, that I found by accident one day about 6 months ago, while hunting a kenjutsu dojo for somebody. So, I saved it and filed it away along with the rest of the dojos I have a list of, for future use. The US and international dojos listed are recognised by the All Nippon Kyudo Federation. There are others listed as well, of 5 US dojos not affiliated with the All Nippon Kyudo Federation. There is an explanation of that and then those 5 dojos on the site at the end of the main dojo list.

Here is the website:

http://www.kyudo.com/kyudo-r.html

I hope this is of help to everybody!

Gee... My font size went funny again and chose for itself the size... I can't change it! Sorry.

Kaoru

[R A Sosnowski]

I have a list of Kyudo dojos in the US and international, that I found by accident one day about 6 months ago, while hunting a kenjutsu dojo for somebody. So, I saved it and filed it away along with the rest of the dojos I have a list of, for future use. The US and international dojos listed are recognised by the All Nippon Kyudo Federation. There are others listed as well, of 5 US dojos not affiliated with the All Nippon Kyudo Federation. There is an explanation of that and then those 5 dojos on the site at the end of the main dojo list.

Here is the website:

http://www.kyudo.com/kyudo-r.html

I hope this is of help to everybody!

Gee... My font size went funny again and chose for itself the size... I can't change it! Sorry.

Kaoru

This link is very good for ANKF Kyudojo.

For Heki Ryu Bisshu Chikurin-ha Kyudo, go to http://www.zenko.org/contact.html for contacts in the US, Canada and Europe.

As for Chozen-ji, those are the only two schools I know of.

I know nothing about Muyoshingetsu Ryu.

HTH.