Post by Jonathan Anderson on Nov 3, 2008 14:11:28 GMT -4
To everyone that still frequents these boards…
Jason’s friend John (whose last name I didn’t catch) had a question yesterday with regard to blocking in Kendo. I realized later in the day that I had really only partially answered the question by describing (loosely) some techniques and the notion of not “hiding behind one’s sword.”
To understand why the Japanese Sword Arts (JSA) don’t really focus much on defense, one must understand the kind of people that created them. The swordsmen of Bakumatsu-era Japan and prior truly were servants of their lords recognizing that their lives were not their own, and as such, when combat was joined, while they would naturally wish to survive the encounter, that longing was secondary to defeating/destroying their opponent, or serving their lord’s wishes. (Forgive me… I don’t know why I’ve recently had a fondness for the word “destroy.” Who’s for gi-keiko? ^_^) To wit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusunoki_Masashige Ultimately, one who fights with their own defense as their primary focus is fighting to “not lose,” while one who fights with the defeat of their opponent as their primary focus is fighting to “win.” In almost any confrontation in which one side fights to win, while the other fights to not lose, the side fighting to not lose is at a distinct disadvantage, even if they have superior numbers, equipment, etc. You’ll see an example of this here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Thermopylae Even if the one/side fighting to win dies, they are still triumphant if their goal is ultimately realized, and that of their enemy is denied.
Historical reasons aside, there are contemporary reasons for disregarding personal defense in Kendo. Kendo, as it exists today, is not designed or intended to make one into a competent, lethal swordsman as its primary goal. One could, possibly, attain that goal through Kendo training, but again, that’s not the point. Kendo exists as a method to develop oneself and to learn about oneself. The primary purpose of keiko is not to determine who “won” or “lost,” “lived” or “died.” (“I got you!” “Noyadint! I got YOU!”) While you are certainly testing your skill against another, of far greater importance is testing your spirit against another. You do this by willingly donning armor, stepping into the ring, and, in the words of Mel Gibson in Braveheart, picking a fight. The ultimate point is how fearlessly do you give and receive strikes? In fact, in your first few shinsa (promotion exam) in Kendo, you won’t be graded on technique all that much. Unless it’s clear that YOUR technique doesn’t reside on the same continent as Kendo technique, it really won’t play a part in the judge’s decision. This is largely the rule up to at least 1 kyu rank. What you are actually being graded on is your “fighting spirit.” How willing are you to get in the ring, hit your opponent, and be hit in return – and like it or not, you WILL get hit. (Michael and Jason, please feel free to chime in) Further, as you can only do one thing at any given moment, and given that all your actions must be executed with a single weapon, if you are blocking, you can’t be striking. Granted there are techniques (harai, suriage, etc) that allow for far greater economy of motion to include a defensive measure, everyone that sees Michael as sempai really shouldn’t be concerning themselves with anything that has a defensive aspect to it right now. The old saying that “The best defense is a good/strong offense,” is particularly suited to Kendo. If they’re attacking you, why waste time trying to block when you could be striking them?
Questions? Thoughts?
Jason’s friend John (whose last name I didn’t catch) had a question yesterday with regard to blocking in Kendo. I realized later in the day that I had really only partially answered the question by describing (loosely) some techniques and the notion of not “hiding behind one’s sword.”
To understand why the Japanese Sword Arts (JSA) don’t really focus much on defense, one must understand the kind of people that created them. The swordsmen of Bakumatsu-era Japan and prior truly were servants of their lords recognizing that their lives were not their own, and as such, when combat was joined, while they would naturally wish to survive the encounter, that longing was secondary to defeating/destroying their opponent, or serving their lord’s wishes. (Forgive me… I don’t know why I’ve recently had a fondness for the word “destroy.” Who’s for gi-keiko? ^_^) To wit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusunoki_Masashige Ultimately, one who fights with their own defense as their primary focus is fighting to “not lose,” while one who fights with the defeat of their opponent as their primary focus is fighting to “win.” In almost any confrontation in which one side fights to win, while the other fights to not lose, the side fighting to not lose is at a distinct disadvantage, even if they have superior numbers, equipment, etc. You’ll see an example of this here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Thermopylae Even if the one/side fighting to win dies, they are still triumphant if their goal is ultimately realized, and that of their enemy is denied.
Historical reasons aside, there are contemporary reasons for disregarding personal defense in Kendo. Kendo, as it exists today, is not designed or intended to make one into a competent, lethal swordsman as its primary goal. One could, possibly, attain that goal through Kendo training, but again, that’s not the point. Kendo exists as a method to develop oneself and to learn about oneself. The primary purpose of keiko is not to determine who “won” or “lost,” “lived” or “died.” (“I got you!” “Noyadint! I got YOU!”) While you are certainly testing your skill against another, of far greater importance is testing your spirit against another. You do this by willingly donning armor, stepping into the ring, and, in the words of Mel Gibson in Braveheart, picking a fight. The ultimate point is how fearlessly do you give and receive strikes? In fact, in your first few shinsa (promotion exam) in Kendo, you won’t be graded on technique all that much. Unless it’s clear that YOUR technique doesn’t reside on the same continent as Kendo technique, it really won’t play a part in the judge’s decision. This is largely the rule up to at least 1 kyu rank. What you are actually being graded on is your “fighting spirit.” How willing are you to get in the ring, hit your opponent, and be hit in return – and like it or not, you WILL get hit. (Michael and Jason, please feel free to chime in) Further, as you can only do one thing at any given moment, and given that all your actions must be executed with a single weapon, if you are blocking, you can’t be striking. Granted there are techniques (harai, suriage, etc) that allow for far greater economy of motion to include a defensive measure, everyone that sees Michael as sempai really shouldn’t be concerning themselves with anything that has a defensive aspect to it right now. The old saying that “The best defense is a good/strong offense,” is particularly suited to Kendo. If they’re attacking you, why waste time trying to block when you could be striking them?
Questions? Thoughts?