PUBLIC MARKS from Takwann with tag japanese

The Journal of Japanese Sword Arts began life in 1989 as a monthly newsletter. More than 90 issues and almost ten years later it is still being produced. The Journal contains news, reviews, announcements, and in depth articles concerning all aspects of the Japanese sword. The Journal contains all the copy in The Iaido Newsletter, plus much more. Check out the JJSA Awards for sword related websites. The editor, publisher, and chief inking boy is Kim Taylor, a long time student of Japanese sword, and associate editor of the Journal of Asian Martial Arts.

The first line of each couplet describes a natural phenomenon and the following line makes the point for the first line’s statement. This poem is not haiku but has a similar structure that sets a scene and follows with an allusion to an iaijutsu waza. The placement of the poem after the listed description of the Chuden wazas in the makimono suggests that it is not intended to be descriptions of or technical advice about the Chuden wazas. Rather the poem’s purpose seems to be to communicate the spirit and attitude that the practice of iaijutsu should develop. Therefore the poem should lead to understanding the spirit of iaijutsu.

The term “Iai” is taken from the Japanese phrase: “Tsune ni itte, kyu ni awasu”. The kanji (character) “I” can also be read as “itte” and “ai” as “awasu”. The meaning of this is “whatever we may be doing or wherever we may be, we must always be prepared for any eventuality”.

Contents: * 1 Early History * 2 History of the Japanese sword in relation to Japanese historical periods o 2.1 Heian Era (794-1184) o 2.2 Kamakura Era (1184-1333) + 2.2.1 Early Kamakura (1184-1231) + 2.2.2 Middle Kamakura (1232 - 1287) + 2.2.3 Late Kamakura (1288 -1333) o 2.3 Nambokucho Era (1334-1393) o 2.4 Muromachi Era (1394-1595) + 2.4.1 Early Muromachi (1394-1466) + 2.4.2 Middle Muromachi (1467-1554) + 2.4.3 Late Muromachi (1555-1595) o 2.5 Edo Era + 2.5.1 Keigen-Shinto period (1596 - 1623) + 2.5.2 Kanbun-Shinto period (1658 -1683) + 2.5.3 Genroku-Shinto period (1684 -1763) + 2.5.4 First Half of Shinshinto (1764 - 1829) + 2.5.5 Latter half of Shinshinto (1830 - 1868) * 3 The Modern Era o 3.1 Post-WWII * 4 References

Online Nihonto Glossary with English and Japanese Text

By Fred Weissberg The term, uchigatana, is made up of two Japanese words. The word, uchi, comes from the verb, utsu, and means to strike. The word, gatana, is another reading of the word, katana, and means sword. Thus when these two words are used together, this term, uchigatana, means a sword that is suitable for striking an enemy. Used in the context, it means a sword that is worn with the cutting edge upward as opposed to a tachi that is worn with the cutting edge downward.

Just checked my glossary. "Motodachi" is indeed "the receiver". Guess it's something that outside of kendo, it's not a term used in everyday speech in Nihongo

We are a strange people. Us western iaidoka, that is. We are all part of a rich culture that goes back to Ancient Greece and to the Roman Empire. Were we only interested in the martial arts of the sword, we would still find a number of Western ones teaching European, Italian, and Scottish swordsmanship, and even more. Yet we have instead opted to study arts which come from the far east, from a land and a culture that is foreign to most of us. We try to understand the culture and philosophy of those who came before us through our practice. One way to help this along is through the study of the Japanese language, and I hope here to perhaps enlighten some of our practice through understanding the names of our kata. By 'our', I mean here the kata commonly practiced in Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu and the Zen Nihon Kendo Renmei. Let's get to it, shall we?

By Dave Lowry Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two part article entitled "Ittosai’s Test" which is an excerpt from Dave Lowry’s new book, “Clouds In The West.” It is about the eccentric but brilliant swordsman Ito Ittosai Kagehisa, the founder of the sword tradition of Itto ryu, and his efforts to find a successor. Itto ryu eventually grew to be one of the largest and most important schools of Japanese swordmanship. It was adopted by the military authority of Japan, the Tokugawa shogun, and other lords of feudal Japan, including the Aizu from which diato ryu aikjujutsu sprang through the legendary teacher Takeda Sokaku Sensei. Itto ryu also influenced the technical curriculum of kendo (the modern Japanese art of fencing that uses mock weapons made of bamboo). Today there are several separate traditions of Itto ryu practiced. Another important variant is Onoha Itto Ryu Sokaku Den, passed down through several daito ryu and aiki budo traditions.

Kata training in kendo nowadays is had via the well known and respected “nihon kendo no kata,” and it has played an important part in keeping the “sword” element of kendo alive to this day. We also have the newly introduced “bokuto ni yoru kihon keiko-ho” (although they not officially called “kata”) which is a method of teaching shinai-kendo techniques using a bokuto. But before both these sets of kata, there were precursory attempts to create kata for teaching to kendo people. These forms are still practised in the Japanese kendo community today, although rare.

It was originally my intention to produce an issue of the Compleat Anachronist pamphlet series which would enable an armourer with fairly average skills to produce a good Japanese armour. The idea has grown to the point where it’s probably too unweildy for such a publication. Also, using the Web to present the information allows me to use color photographs and color illustrations to clarify things that are simply not well presented in a black-and-white printed document. There was another problem, though: specifically, the issue of what constitutes “proper” Japanese armour for use in the Society for Creative Anachronism. Unfortunately, many aspects of Japanese armour fly in the face of thirty-odd years of SCA-style combat. What this means is that, in many instances, a decision will have to be made — namely, are you making armour for combat or for dress? I will present dress armour primarily, as I am a firm believer in authenticity of appearance. Where concessions for SCA combat must be made, I will explain the necessary diversions and provide explanations on how to finish the armour in either functional or authentic form.

The gallery specialises in fine Japanese prints and paintings from the 1700's to the present day. Please feel free to browse through our stock of Prints and Paintings. We have included a section on Printmaking for those interested in the process, or for those less familiar with woodblock prints. There is also a section on Kabuki as historically, many prints draw on Japanese theatre and dance for their subject matter.

Yamato-e (大和絵 [jamatoꜜe]) is a style of Japanese painting inspired by Tang Dynasty paintings and developed in the late Heian period. It is considered the classical Japanese style. From the Muromachi period (15th century), the term Yamato-e has been used to distinguish work from contemporary Chinese style paintings (kara-e), which were inspired by Sung and Yuan Dynasty Zen Buddhism paintings.

UKIYO-E | MEIJI | SHIN HANGA | SOSAKU HANGA | MOGUL | PERSIAN

The Samurai Archives Wiki project is an attempt to create the most concise and detailed database of pre-20th century Japanese history on the internet. Although the SamuraiWiki is hosted on the Samurai Archives, this is a general resource intended for everyone interested in Japanese history. This wiki is in no way affiliated with Wikipedia.

This is the first in a continuing series of articles on the Japanese art of iaido the modern discipline or way of drawing the sword that was popularized in the 1930's. It was derived from iaijutsu, a sub-specialization of kenjutsu (sword arts) that was practiced by professional (samurai) warriors and involved methods of drawing the sword and cutting as a single motion. Future articles will focus on concepts that relate to practice and then on specific analyses of kata and basic techniques.

The following text has as its core a translation of a chapter in Nishioka Tsuneo's book Budo-teki na Mono no Kangaekata: Shu, Ha, Ri (Budo Way of Thinking: Shu, Ha, Ri). Direct translations from the Japanese are frequently problematic because of the ambiguity inherent in the traditional Japanese style of essay writing. In order to clarify the author's ideas and best present his thoughts in English, we have supplemented the original text with a series of personal conversations.[1] The result thus intentionally suggests the flavor of teachings passed down from master to disciple.

- Pronunciation Guide - Colors - Numbers - Ranks & Titles - Dojo Courtesies - Dojo Commands The following set of Japanese words is provided to give the Karate student a working vocabulary in the dojo. The brief definitions given are as they would be used in relation to Karate and not necessarily in general conversation. Many Japanese words do not have an exact English counterpart so more than one definition may be listed. An example of this is the word ãtsukiä which literally means to thrust but is generally given in English as punch.

This is a brief documentation of japanese sword making and histroy of the Katana brought to you by the dicovery channel program descive weapons.

KATANA TOGISHI - Japanese Traditional Sword Sharpner part 1

Proper etiquette for handling and examining the Japanese sword.