The naginata has its origins with the earliest beginnings of the warrior classes in the seventh and eighth centuries A.D. The Japanese authorities date the oldest regular school of naginata technique back to 1168.
It began its history in feudal Japan as warlords vied for power over the land. The naginata was heavily relied upon due to its length and combined powers of cutting and thrusting. Opponents whether on foot or mounted on horseback were effectively neutralized, cut down by long swooping motions of the blade.
The naginata took several forms. The most common one had a socketed or tanged blade some 36 inches or more in length. The shaft was always stoutly banded and longer than the blade. A second form was the nagemaki, a heavy, very long sword mounted on a shorter sturdy shaft. Both weapons were very popular with warriors, especially in the turbulent monastic armies of the eleventh and twelfth centuries and increasingly so with the warrior class, or bushi, from the twelfth to the fifteenth century.
Gradually the character of warfare changed and military fashion favored the straight-bladed yari, or spear, as a lighter and more effective weapon against the sword, both on foot and on horseback. The large-scale use of infantry during the Onin War (1467-77) finally established the yari at the expense of the naginata and the use of the later soon became limited to certain religious sects and to ladies of the Bushi class, as a household weapon.
It was during the Edo Period, a time of relative peace that the naginata declined in popularity as a weapon of war, and was taken up by the women to train as a means of self defense. It was a way to fend off marauders that occasionally attacked viIlages while their men were in the field or away in combat.There is a story that women of Kagoshima, of the island of Kyushu, mounted the last great naginata defense in the Satsuma Rebellion. This was a battle against the government's overwhelming cavalry. l've not yet been able to find what the outcomes of this confrontation was, but it does indicate that with skilled use the naginata is a formidable weapon.Naginata developed many different schools in its long history - 425 to be precise. Many of these were interrelated with other martial arts disciplines, especially kenjutsu, yari-jutsu and bojutsu. The oldest was Ko-Ryu but perhaps the most famous were the Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto- Ryu (the Heaven-revealed Divine Style), the Jiki-Shinkage-Ryu and the Tendo Ryu.The techniques of these schools were often materially different and probably much more drastic than the modern style, which is mainly practiced by women. There are only a few men, often of advanced kendo rank, within the art. Like other tradition-conscious martial arts several of the older systems are still preserved in private dojo or halls that are extremely difficult to locate, let alone enter.In early centuries the naginata or nagemake was wielded in strong arcs, often with the intention to maim the enemy's horse before dealing with the fallen rider. Naginata-jutsu required great stamina in order to swing the heavy weapon along accurate interchanging curves making the fullest use of the blade, the shaft, and the vicious iron ferrule at the butt. The technique of rapidly whirling the weapon was known as Ha-kaeshi. Some of the terms still used in naginata are evocative of these Ha-kaeshi techniques. We have, for example the Mizu-guruma-gaishi (Waterwheel cut), the Kazu-guruma-gaeshi (Windmill cut), and the Cho-gaeshi (Butterfly cut).Ha-kaeshi, coupled with a greatly increased distance from an opposing swordsman, gave the spearman a real advantage. Since the naginata is essentially a slashing spear using open lines of attack (those outside the body width) counter-attacks can only be effectively made as the swirl commences. The swordsman must close the distance by rushing into the attack. The root of the problem in fighting against the naginata is not the techniques that are employed by the spearman, though these are important. It is more the extreme ma-ai, or interval, that forces the swordsman to fight at a distance approaching twice the normal. If the naginata is wielded at a speed equal to normal sword technique, the swordsman must move at almost twice this speed to close the distance and cut effectively. Thus practice against an expert naginata-ka can be very exhausting. The swordsman has to time the exact moment to attack; he must always be on the alert and ready to rush in with his cut. Conversely, the spear can be used to create a chance for a devastating counter-move against an over-eager opponent.
Kendo is a martial art developed from the fencing techniques practiced by the Japanese samurai knights. Today it is a highly disciplined and physical sport, in which the two combatants (kendokas) use bamboo swords (shinai) representing Japanese two-hand swords.Kendo is not to be mistaken for different stick-fighting martial arts (such as jodo). It is a pure fencing sport and there are no kicks, fist punches or jumps involved.
The movements in Kendo are various rapid and well-timed cuts, slices and thrusts at certain points of the opponents body - the head, the wrists, the throat and the sides of the body.Kendo is not very well suited as self-defense - quite the contrary, it is a very aggressive martial art! There are no blocking techniques which are not counter-attacks: you must attack quicker than your opponent to defend yourself! Kendo is a full-contact martial art - unlike most other martial arts, the cuts are not just marked, but they are delivered with only a minimum of restraint. Still, injuries (other than occasional blisters on the soles of the feet) are very rare. The injury frequency is in fact equal to the one in curling.
On the surface it looks like two people beating each other on the head with sticks. Kendo (or the Way of the Sword) is in fact a Japanese Martial Arts form practiced worldwide. It is essentially a form of fencing whose roots derive from the Samurai in Japan. Kendo's modern appearance first began in the 1700s with the introduction of armor (bogu) and bamboo and wooden swords (shinai and bokken, respectively). Kendo is now practiced internationally by children as well as adults as old as 80 years old.
In the modern age, sword fighting has little practical purpose against weapons like the pistol- so Kendo is really more of a form of self-improvement than a practical fighting form- or as the All Japan Kendo Federation (AJKF) puts it, Kendo is "the way of developing the person."The concept of Kendo is to discipline the human character through the application of the principles of the Katana.The purpose of practicing Kendo is:To mold the mind and body,
To cultivate a vigorous spirit,
And through correct and rigid training,
To strive for Improvement in the art of Kendo;
To hold in esteem human courtesy and honor,
To associate with others with sincerity,
And to forever pursue the cultivation of oneself.
Thus will one be able to love his country and society,
To contribue to the development of culture,
And to promote peace and prosperity among all people.
Yoshimitsu Yamada, a direct student of O Sensei for more than ten years, is an 8th dan and the chief instructor at the New York Aikikai. Currently, he is Chairman of the Board of the United States Aikido Federation and the Latin America Aikido Federation. He is the author of Aikido Complete and has made multiple aikido training tapes.Yamada Sensei is well known for his clear and strong basic technique. He teaches seminars all over the world where thousands of students attend his classes.Quote:"We must keep the spirit of budo no matter how we practice."
Yoshimitsu Yamada (b. February, 17, 1938, Tokyo) is an aikido master originally from Japan, living in the US. He is an 8th dan in the Aikikai and the chief instructor at the dojo (aikido club) New York Aikikai. Currently (2005), he is chairman of the board of the United States Aikido Federation and the Latin America Aikido Federation. He is the author of the book Aikido Complete, and has made multiple aikido training tapes, including the "Power and the Basics" series, which outlines the requirements for rank testing of all levels.Yamada is well known for his clear and strong basic technique. Beyond his technical ability, he also possesses a gift for passing on his knowledge. His students have become some of the most well-known and high-ranking aikidoka in the Americas. He teaches seminars all over the world where thousands of students attend his classes. He was a direct student of the founder of aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, for more than ten years.Yamada became interested in aikido through his "uncle" (actually his father's cousin), Tadashi Abe, who trained at Hombu Dojo and was a friend of Koichi Tohei. He entered Hombu Dojo as an uchi deshi in 1955 at the age of 17. His exposure to westerners and ability to speak english made him a natural choice to teach to American soldiers. In 1966 Yamada and his family hosted Virginia Mayhew, an aikido practitioner from New York. Although the original New York Aikikai was founded in 1961 and led by Yasuo O'Hara, when Yamada moved to New York he assumed control and move the Dojo from its 19th Steet local to its present location.In those days there was no other aikido teacher (with the exception of the original NY Aikikai founder Yasuo O'Hara) from Japan on the east coast of the US, and Yamada would travel weekly to Boston, with frequent trips to Philadelphia and points south as well. In 1966 some of the burden was relieved when he invited Mitsunari Kanai to take over the small group in Boston. Over time Yamada's students have grown to have students of their own, and have risen to ranks as high as 7th dan. In 1988 Yamada invtied Seiichi Sugano to join the dojo, making it one of the few dojo outside of Japan with two 8th dan shihan in residence. In 2004 the New York Aikikai celebrated its 40th anniversary with a summer camp at Colgate university with many shihan and Doshu Moriteru Ueshiba in attendance. Yamada continues to keep an active teaching and travelling schedule, holding seminars in the US as well as Latin America, Russia, France, Germany and other points around the world.
Seiichi Sugano Sensei (1939 - )Sugano Sensei is an 8th dan instructor at the New York Aikikai. He entered Hombu dojo in 1959 as a direct student of O Sensei. In 1965 he moved to Sydney, Australia and became the representative of Hombu in that country. He remained there for fifteen years. He has also taught extensively in the USA, Belgium, Luxembourg and France.