Nerima-ku kendo renmei gashuku

This weekend was 練馬区剣道連盟合宿 (as the title says). It was my absolute privilege to see first-rate kendo. Recently, they have brought in bokuto kihon waza (木刀基本技), 9 fundamental kendo moves

men, ko-te, do, tsuki
ko-te -> men
harai men
tsuri age men
hi-ki men
nuki do
ko-te -> tsuri age men
depana ko-te
kaishi do
do -> ochi age men

In august we did this without bogu and no contact. On Saturday, full bogu and 思い切り打つ - er, strike with full force.

On Sunday kata renshu. Being only 2nd dan, I have only studied to 5hon-me. For gashuku, I read upto 7hon-me, but from pictures, text and DVD it's hard to get. A very kind 8th dan sensei led me through all 7 moves. Next year, I have to know them and the 3 kodachi moves. A challenge!

And then there was shinai kendo. My posture is still not good. Sometimes the feet are all over the place. I need to practice every day for consistancy. The really special thing was ai-men waza. At the very end of keiko on Saturday, we were doing just ai-men, it was getting faster. At the very end it was the fastest I've ever moved. Perception changed. There was almost God but I heard a voice call "Yame!" and I was't quite there. To put it in context I'm reading Takuan "The Unfetter Mind" and thinking about Zen. The older context is Ueshiba sensei's Budo - budo is the unifaction of the physical, mental and spiritual.

Keiko was quite short but the most intense I've done so far (Ueshiba-sensei's hell's dojo is my ambition!). I am very tired but I have very good motivation to continue. I am in their debt now.

Kendo 2nd Dan

On Sunday 7th Feb I passed Kendo 2nd dan exam. This is the result of three years of training and I'm very content. The exam is in three parts; three essay questions, shinai kendo and the kata. Today is Wednesday and I'm finally feeling alright. That exam took 100% effort. The essay question took about a month to think about and write. I'm extremely grateful to my wife and to Kaishin ken yukai kaicyou Kataoka-sensei for correcting each draft. I live in Japan and, taking this test in Tokyo, I want to write in Japanese. Later, I post them here.

The day before the test I visited Yagyu-ke gravesite. There was a little left-over snow. It was very cold at the gravesite. Strikingly, there was no sound at all. I wondered if it meant anything. 2nd dan is too low-level for Munenori-sama to acknowledge me ? On the morining of the exam I visited the local shinto shrine, Hakusan jinja. Passed the first torii is a registered tree, 1000 years old. That tree made more sound that Yagyu's grave. I wondered if it meant anything. Up the steps is dragon statue pouring water. The water in the trough was mostly fozen. I was washed my hands and face, threw 100 yen at the alter and said quitely "I want to pass with all my heart".

At the exam place, I needed a 100 yen coin for the locker. If I hadn't gone to the shrine, I'd have one. These little things just make me more nervous. After an hour and a half waiting, it was my turn to put on the tenegui and men. I was almost shaking. Munenori's silent grave and the noisy tree filled my mind. Silence, calm, centered. My shinai kendo must have been alright, but I still concerned about posture and feet position/movement. The kata could have been better. 3bon-me uchi-tachi is still awkward, and maybe I made a mistake in 5hon-me.

From today, everday i need to study for kendo and more Japanese language.