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Kashiwa Dojo

At Kashiwa Dojo London we practice Iaido (Muso Shinden Ryu), Jodo and Kendo under the tutelage of Sensei Vito Tattoli.At our Ramsgate dojo we practice Iaido (Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu) and Jodo under the tutelage of Sensei Peter Gibbens.

A brief history of Kendo

Kendo (or Kenjustsu) has been practised for a very long time, in fact at the end of the Tokugawa period (c. 1876) there were possibly over 200 schools of Kenjutsu.Originally Kenjutsu was practiced with live blades, but this practice with it's obvious dangers was soon restricted and practicioners began to use the live blades only for Tameshigiri (cutting practice) or in kata.Bokuto (wooden practice swords) were employed to reduce the danger inherent in the use of live or semi-live blades. However Bokuto (or Bokken) proved to be lethal in the hands or expert practicioners.As combat with Bokuto became more common place armour that resembled traditional Japanes war amour was used for protection. This is the origin of the armour (Bogu) we use today.Kendo as we know it today was devised to safely practice and gain an understanding of the sword without injuring one's training partner (or one self).Today we practice Kendo with Shinai for Jigeiko and Bokuto for Kendo Kata. The Shinai is made with four strips of Bamboo (or in some cases Carbon composite material) fastened together by cords to resemble a straight sword.Kendo is formalised today and consists of three basic ways of using the Shinai: Kiri (cutting), Tsuki (thrusting) and Katsugi (deflecting or parrying). The targets are also formalised and Kendoka can only hit the armoured areas of the opponents body: Men (the head), Do (the lower part of the trunk of the body), Kote (wrists) and the Nodo (throat area).Kendo should be practiced with a view to improving one's character and to foster self development. It's also a great way to make friends and keep fit.

A brief history of Iaido

Iaijutsu, the art of drawing and cutting with the blade, was seen as an art in it's own right and was practiced in parallel with Kenjutsu. Iaijutsu (today's Iaido) was developed for encounters in daily life where the sword would be drawn and used against one or more adversaries, the aim being to dispatch the opponent with the first (or at most second) strike.Iaijutsu can be seen to be specific to techniques performed by having to draw a sword from it's saya (scabbard or sheath). Training in Iaijutsu gave warriors the ability to act quickly, or, some would say instinctively to a situation without hesitation, drawing their swords, cutting and re-sheathing in one smooth motion.Iaijutsu was not without it's critics, however and people sometimes referred to the art as treacherous. Despite these criticisms the art grew as an effective way to quickly deal with opponents with mal-intent.Practice in Iaijutsu required warriors to learn specific techniques and practice them repeatedly and as such kata were easily formed, some of which are still practiced today. There were many schools of Iaijutsu and as such there were a variety of techniques, methods of striking, parrying and even re-sheathing the blade (some schools even made students take an oath to never pass on what they had learned so as to keep the techniques secret and therefore more effective in a fight).Today's Iaido is seen by some as a more spiritual pursuit, where stillness of mind and body are juxtaposed with explosive techniques and movements, teaching the practitioner balance, focus and grace in movement. The fighting spirit of Iaido cannot be ignored and students should train with an understanding that they are being taught an art developed for dangerous encounters.

Events

TimetableMonday8:00pm to 10:00pmKendo for beginnersWednesday8:00pm to 10:00pmIaido for all grades

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