Waikato Kendo Club

Saturday 7th January 2023 Keiko Reflection - Janet As the new year begins, it signals a new beginning for us to have new resolutions or goals to aspire to. Don’t be scared from pressures of grading or just life in general & try turning these challenges into healthy motivations & positive drivers for change & opportunities for bettering ourselves by having better awareness of oneself to actively reflect upon to improve constantly. This way it will certainly make our otherwise dull repetitive everyday lives more interesting & meaningful. The first half of the Keiko today consisted of Bokuto Keikohou   (AJKF) & Nihon Kendo Kata   (AJKF)   number 1 & 2. We also had the privilege to observe Leo & Joyce senpais demonstrating all Katas. In total there are 10 Katas & 9 Bokuto Keikohou techniques we will eventually learn throughout the course of our kendo journey. So make sure we come to Keiko regularly & make the most of the opportunities to l...

2022-05-28 Saturday  Confidence comes from discipline and training. Saturday Keiko reflection for beginners & Kyu grades - Janet During Saturdays keiko, sensei emphasised the importance of learning Kihon basics for strikes in the following order : 1. To go Big (such as big Men & Kote, to ensure we rotate our shoulders fully and correctly during each strike) 2. To go Strong (using predominantly the left arm to generate enough power) 3. To go Fast (connect all the movements from shoulder rotation to extending elbow and wrist into one: Ichibyoshi ) 4. To go Light & small (such as small Men & Kote, & have more control of the strikes using correct Tenouchi to retain power while making it crispy & not heavy) Another emphasis today was on making the correct Kote strikes in particular the Harai Kote waza. In Harai & Suriage waza, we sweep or deflect the opponents Shinai off the centre with our Shinai to make an opening before striking. But remember we must k...

 On Kendo and Philosophy  by 小澤博 剣道教士八段 View of life equals view of kendo When I was in my 50s, I had the following conversation with one of my colleagues, professor S., who is a philosopher. I asked him, “Can you explain philosophy to me in a way that I can understand?” Professor S. replied: “What are you talking about? You practice philosophy every day when you think about kendō.” I replied: “ I only think about how I can do kendō better today than yesterday, tomorrow better than today, in a month, in a year… ” “That itself is philosophy”, said professor S. “Which means that I am a philosopher?” I asked. On Kendō and Philosophy Hiroshi Ozawa “Yes, you are a philosopher. A philosopher is not just someone who writes and lectures about Kant and Heidegger to introduce their teachings into daily life. Some people around me call me a philosopher, but to my embarrassment, I have to admit, I would not call myself that. What you are doing in Kendō is philosophy in practice. A dedicat...

Koboitchi 2019 Yamagami Sensei Seminar in New Zealand  Photo Credit: Auckland Kendo Club Original text in Chinese by Sam Tsai English Translation by David Pan  This is the fourth time I have had the pleasure of attending Yamagami Sensei’s Kendo seminar. In 2016, the seminar topic was about the fundamentals of kendo: The five sections of the shinai – Jin-Gi-Rei-Chi-Shin In 2017, the seminar topic was regarding the “heart(mind) of self-control”, namely:  克己心 / こっきしん / kokkishin : the mindset of overcoming the self 平常心 / へいじょうしん / heijoshin : everyday mind  不動心 / ふどうしん / fudoshin : immovable mind  In 2018, the seminar topic is 三殺法 / さんさっぽう / San-satsu-no-ho or San-sappo 「竹刀・太刀を殺す」: Kill the sword 「技を殺す」: Kill the waza 「気を殺す」: Kill the spirit The topic this year is 攻防一致 / Koboitchi . Most kenyu probably heard of it by the more classical term 懸待一致 / けんたいいっち / kentaiitchi , a realm or level of understanding which we hope to...

Best wishes to your anticancer pharmaceutical research project! * Life is full of obstacles and challenges but they shouldn’t stop you from moving forward, meaning, do not give up just because something is not going your way. In fact, they should be the driving forces of your progress . I don’t know everything about Kendo, only what my sensei(s) and my mother have told me. There are some steps which I can’t do but I still train because that is how a person makes progress. You cannot improve if you don’t do anything. Being the person I was and still am (a total weirdo), I never really understood what giving up meant before. I had never so-called given up on anything I started because I didn’t know what it was. It sounded like a silly human sentiment to me. How can you stop doing something that you have not mastered? Doesn’t it feel incomplete? Shouldn’t it motivate you to try harder because it feels good to master something or it enriches your life ie. makes your life more mean...

Yana - My Kendo Journey 24 December 2018 Beginning (general) Up until 2015 I was playing volleyball and lived through that sport. In January 2015 I got a really painful muscle spasm in my lower back. Then we found out I had scoliosis. I was 14 at that time, which is the latest age for fixing things like scoliosis, leaving me with little hope for playing sport in the future. This news meant I couldn't continue volleyball, as my spine simply couldn't support the pressure of jumping, landing and colliding. My mum forbade me from playing volleyball or doing any other type of sport from then on. This really made me despair, as a big chunk of my life was gone, and so is its social/physical benefits and the feeling of being alive. Sometime later I also got asthma (living in an old house), which made my physical exercise experiences even harder for me. Around the same time 2014-2016 I was reading a book series called " Young Samurai " which described a range of Jap...

Kendo for life We often hear the phrase ‘kendo journey’ and for each of us our kendo paths are different. And, depending on how long we have been studying and training in Kendo, it can so easily become part and parcel of our day to day lives. One such occasion happened a couple of weeks ago when I was preparing for a job interview . I am certain that my Kendo training played a key part in securing the position. These are some of the parallels I have been able to draw: Warm-up (Application) The initial application that I completed was the warm up for what was to come. In those documents I loosened up my prospective employer by letting them know who I was and what skills and experience I could bring to the role. Much like we do when we limber up at the start of each training session, this was an opportunity to show-case myself and prepare for the hard work that lay ahead.  Kamae (Basic assessments) The next phase of the recruitment process involved the completion...

A note after Chou sensei's visit on 17 January 2006 Sunday 29 January 2006 Dear All, I feel sorry to inform you that Chou sensei did not feel well after the six days intensive tour in the South Island and has changed the flight to today (30 January). He said the view in South Island is very beautiful but it was too long for him to stay in the car. And, don't worry, he still has good health. There are 4 Japanese sensei (one 8th Dan and three 7th Dan) are waiting for his return to visit Taiwan. He apologies that he need to go back to Taiwan ealier than his original plan. I just visited him saying Good-Bye and presented the Birthday card ( 84 years old ) and a small gift to him. He is pleased by the card you signed for him. He hopes that I can pass his appreciation to you. The sensei emphasised few things to me and I would like to share them with you. 1. As an instructor, I should always pay attention on the safety and healthy issues . For example, I should ask...