The Use of Weapons

After a few repeats of kesa giri I made it my learning point to look at losing the tension in my hands and arms. I needed to make the cut flow naturally and fluidly. I was minded that the fencing tutors told us to hold the foil handle like it were a small bird: too tight and we'd crush it, too lightly and it'd fly away. For the next ten or so repetitions of kesa giri I just concentrated on that and loosing my shoulders which led to some improvement but still not the lightness of touch I wanted or expected. The sword and I were two different processes and I was starting to experience a certain level of discomfort and unease. Relaxation of the grip and arms eluded me so I eased off, stood there and waited. It was cold but I took the time to breathe and waited for the draw to begin which it did. I drew and cut and re-sheathed in one (fairly) smooth line.

And then I waited.

Another draw with less tension- without focusing on the problem areas I was allowing the sword to follow its path more 'naturally' and inhibiting it less in it's flow. De-focusing or working on the core element of relaxation helped me connect better with the nature of the sword and of the cuts.

Following from this I took up the bo to continue training with this relaxed attitude which had worked just fine with the sword. I have a beautiful, traditional red oak bo staff which, while not being heavy as such, is substantial enough to lead to tight forearms after a while of training. I was looking for this lightness that I had found in the iai practice. It followed on nicely while executing simple low blocks, turns and strikes. Not grasping at the technique helped me flow and integrate better with the movement rather than fighting against it with my mind.

Wish I'd brought me sword

It doesn't happen often but this morning I've finished my house chores in good time, have little design work to do and find myself at a loose end. Being faced with this moment to myself I decided to make the most of it and drove to Anglesey Abbey for a cup of good coffee and to read a book or two. It's a very foggy day and makes the grounds look really atmospheric-wish I'd brought my sword. I'd love to practice some iai in this freezing fog in beautiful surroundings. Not sure though. It might spook the silver haired visitors to the Abbey grounds!

I find having time for oneself is very important. I *love* being with my family but sometimes I just need a bit of air and time to be with my thoughts. Or even better with no thoughts at all! There's a great chapter in the super little book about zen by Joe Hyams called Zen in the Martial Arts about a fencing master who would have 'do nothing' days. On those days he would not make appointments, reply to calls or even listen to the radio. A good time for him to be comfortable being himself and being with himself. Yesterday on the radio there was an interesting debate about whether 'me time' as an institution or whether really it should be woven into our lives seamlessly so that when we do have calmer moments we can reflect deeply at that point and not need for longer periods of being completely withdrawn from everyone around us. After all we (mostly) live in an increasingly crowded society so getting that 'away' time when you can find absolute solitude is pretty difficult.

I suppose that's why I wish I'd brought my sword! Nothing better than meditation through iai on a cold foggy morning. I did satisfy my longing for meditation by walking through the wooded area concentrating on my footsteps one after the other, breathing with each step. This is pretty useful stuff as when done enough you can learn to slow down, calm yourself and meditate anywhere.

With respect to swords

I have enjoyed my fencing beginner's course with Cambridge Sword but something I find amazing, shocking and at the same time fascinating is the complete disregard for the weapon as an object of beauty, of spirit and as something to be respected.

At the start of the lesson we collect our equipment from the main 'Salle' and transport it over to the smaller one. This entails bringing a bunch of foils which are more often than not unceremoniously dumped on the floor and sometimes kicked into a corner! I understand that in fencing this is simply seen as another piece of equipment but having trained in iaido where the blade should be shown respect it shocks me a little.

The katana or indeed the iaito can be something of beauty and article to be loved in some way. Respect must be shown not only for spiritual reasons but for practical reasons: it's a weapon and deadly! Cleaning, caring and ensuring safety is paramount. The idea of using the sword sensibly is referred to as Satsu jin ken, katsu jin ken or life giving sword, life taking sword. A sword irresponsibly wielded can lead to death and destruction whereas a sword user with good intentions can use his or her sword to 'give' life.

High Speed Martial Arts

Don't try this at home.

No, really...don't.

...and one for fans of iai:

Saya construction

The saya is the scabbard of a sword in Japanese. The saya has a beautiful finish to it and is very often so highly lacquered that one might think it was plastic! It is, in fact, traditionally made from magnolia (ho) which is easy to work, has very little sap and is said to have oils wihtin it to help preserve the blade (An introduction to japanese Swords, I. Bottomley). 

I found a very interesting website outlining the main processes of making a saya:

• Kidori & Nakadoshi: Cutting & Splitting the Blank
• Kezuri-awase: Planing the Inner Surface
• Kaki-ire: Chiseling the Space for the Blade
• Norizuke: Gluing the Two Halves Together
• Arakezuri & Nakakezuri: Rough & Fine Planing the Outside
• Mekugi-ana-age: Drilling the Rivet Hole
• Shiagekezuri & Shiagemigaki: Finish Planing & Finish Polishing

Usually the hilt (tsuka) is also made from magnolia wood. I believe the ho wood is cut from the Japanese magnolia or Magnolia hypoleuca (possibly Magnolia liliiflora).

The saya is an important part of the sword in iai. Correct usage of the saya helps the drawing of the sword rendering the iai-to a two part weapon: sword and saya.

Iai-hiza hurts. It's Official!

Anyone familiar with iai will know that kneeling in seiza for long periods hurts like hell. Yes ok we all use knee pads but it still hurts the thighs (we can train that) and the joints of the knees, ankles and feet. Once we reach the fourth of the seitei iai kata, tsuka-ate, we reach a whole new level of pain. That pain is called iai-hiza.

Iai hiza is a seated position whereby the left leg is bent under oneself with the shin on the floor and the heel on your bum-hole (more or less) while the right foot rests on the floor with the leg bent upward. Ouch.

So when you're kneeling there wondering why, as a gaijin, you're even bothering to try to master this very Japanese martial art, you can rest assured that it's not your *fault* that it hurts. And it'll probably always hurt because we're just built differently. That's right we have different sized (and proportioned) lower legs! It's official too : I found this article called 'Anthropometric Comparison between Japanese and Caucasian American Male University Students' by Yasuto Nakanishi and Vincent Nethery. Their broad conculsion is that there are clear anthropometric differences between Japanese and Caucasian American males particularly Japanese having shorting standing height (ok I could've guessed that) and longer trunk to standing ratio. In a nutshell this means less in the leg department. Japanese calves are shorter but more importantly for iai-hiza their calf to height ratio is less than their American male counterparts. Hey presto: Japanese can sit more easily in iai-hiza (hey it was invented by them) while my gaijin lower legs protrude into my bum and stop me from sitting correctly.

Of course there are other issues too which I assume are common such as joint pain but at least we can know why we feel that pain in the ass.

Aw quit griping and keep practicing...

Ref: Anthropometric Comparison between Japanese and Caucasian

American Male University Students

Yasuto Nakanishi and Vincent Nethery

Department of Science, Kobe University.

He who hesitates is lost

Ok so I was going to make it (s)he who hesitates... but it sort of spoils the title bar...:-)

I find that London is never as busy as in Easter week. Kids are off school and there are thousands of French tourists. We added to the quota with our family and our French friends and we all bumbled around the sites enjoying the typically overcast-in-April day. When we arrived in Covent Garden we hit maximum crowdage. Couldn't move. Country bumpkin Littlefair, here,  didn't know where to turn. At one point I set off one way realised I was on a collision course with a commuter with a mean glint in her eye and thought twice about it so I did a bit of a jig, falling over myself and had to change course, twice in half a second. The hard-eyed commuter slightly changed her trajectory, readjusted and was off probably accustomed to this strange country dance that the bumpkins bring to the City.

Iai is about focus, as are many other martial arts. But especially iai. Focusing on your enemy and your strike is imperative. Sometimes you are aware of other attackers but you choose first and then  strike hard, with conviction and complete focus. Making this first cut your consuming aim is essential. If this first attacker isn't dealt with correctly and with all your attention then there won't be a chance to shift your focus to the second or the third. That's not to say you shouldn't have an all round awareness of the other attackers on the periphery but you must kill the first enemy with conviction. No dancing around or fumbling. No half committing to first attacker then half way in thinking maybe it's a mistake and dithering over the second attacker without having even finished the first. Bad idea. Strike forward with meaning, readjust strike out again.

Otherwise you might end up with a face full of commuter.

Blitz memorial at St Paul's Cathedral.

Martial Arts Festival - iai

This demo was lead by Hanshi Mike Selvey and as well as some iaido kata the guys treated us to some iai-jutsu kata and koryu kata as well as some tameshigiri (test cutting)-always interesting to see! The dojo site can be found here: www.tenshin-ryu.co.uk

Martial Arts Festival, Leicester

as I pulled up at the Parklands leisure centre, Leicester, I realised the MAF-UK was going to be quite a big festival! There was a shuttle bus laid from the car park (which I had to pay another fiver for!) but it was well organised and ran smoothly so we were at the door soon after. Not sure what to expect I scanned the programme which seemed crammed! Two outdoor demo areas and one inside as well as two indoor seminar rooms meant there was plenty to see (although the indoor demo area was extremely impractical and you didn't get to see much!). 

It seemed a fairly nice atmosphere but there were plenty of guys strutting around looking like they'd had a ramrod inserted up their backs and that they were incapable of walking without swinging their shoulders forward outrageously. Strut, strut, strut. But this was, I'm glad to say, in the minority.

I made my way straight to the main hall and had only had made 5 steps in when I got chatting to a guy who was promoting his sensei and club: Wayne Swietoslawski of Waskido Ryu Ju Jitsu who was eager to tell me about his art. I took to Wayne and we got chatting about canes so he led me off to a seminar by canemasters: a self-defence programme based on walking canes. 

Following this I went straight to a Krav Maga seminar which focused on effective self-defence tools. this system struck me (unsurprisingly) similar to Systema but I guess experienced practitioners of either may disagree. Fundamentally it's quite a flexible and 'free' system with key principles underpinning different scenarios. We worked on stopping the attack early and ground work. As well as scanning for other opponents-very useful I thought.

Back in the main hall I bought my pair of Feivue's which I've been after for some time and saw Iain Abernethy on a stand! After I heard from his accent that he was a Northerner I had to stop and chat. What a friendly guy and although I didn't buy anything from him he still had time to chat with me about what he's up to, his dojo, Harry Cooke and the meaning of life. Great interlude to the day's seminars...

I strolled out into the sun to the outdoor arenas and watched capoeira, iai demo with some tameshigiri and finished the day by watching the krav maga demo.

A full day but I managed to have a cuppa in the sun and take lots of cool photos and meet some good folk. I'll document some of these things in more detail soon once I've downloaded photos and sorted them:

- Wayne Swietoslawski

- Canemasters

- Krav Maga

- Capoeira

- Iai

Despondent days

–adjective.
feeling or showing profound hopelessness, dejection, discouragement, or gloom.

Feeling sorry for myself as I've been getting more stick about my cutting technique in iai.
Cheesed off as it's been nearly 3 years since I started and it seems that I'm *still* not doing the basic cutting correctly. This is really the core of iai too!

So I spent 20 minutes in the garden the other day cutting into a punchbag posed atop the wheelie bin with a shinai. Gave me some succour, but I need to keep practising.

And I need to keep taking the criticism on the chin and working on it.

Still feel sorry for myself....

The Sword

I'm reading a book about signs and symbols. This is an are which fascinates me. For me it's linked to the development of communication and written language. How did we develop writing systems which were pictographic, or a picture of say a cow... to the written letters forming the word cow! Interestingly the letter 'a' which derives from the Hebrew aleph for bull doesn't feature in the word cow or bull!

Anyway- I digress... My eye alighted rather on the article in the book regarding swords! Swords which stand for power and virilty with their phallic form. He who holds the sword upright and threatens is to be feared! Perhaps I'm over-egging the virile element of a sword. After all, I'm not quite sure what other form a sword could take, other than phallic! There are some Bronoze Age Celtic swords which were 'leaf' shaped, but all in all it's a big metal stick with a pointy end :-)

Interestingly the sword is used when honouring Knights to bestow honour and authority but the book also says the sword can be seen as a symbol of purification. I wonder whether warriors of old thought of their swords as a purifier-cleaving the enemy in two to 'purify' them! Maybe. Maybe not....

The sword is often a violent symbol of death and power.

Japanese swordsmen do have, however, a slightly different take on this called Satsu Jin Ken / Katsu Jin Ken, or life-taking sword / life-giving sword. When the sword is applied without discipline it is destructive or Satsu Jin Ken but with experience and ability the master of the sword can resolve matters without the drawing of the sword, or by the re-sheathing of the sword to show an intention of peace. This is Katsu Jin Ken. Iaido is in fact a non-combatative mental discipline as much as it a physical one. Iaido is the art of drawing the sword but futhermore can be seen as "the way of mental presence and immediate reaction"(ref: wikipedia), thus we see the handling of the sword in a thoroughly peaceful way for the personal development of the practitioner.

Life taking and life giving sword.