# outsider looking at kendo gonkyo and kumdo



## billc (Jun 11, 2011)

Okay, this is probably posted somewhere but as an outsider to kendo and kumdo, what is gonkyo and why do kendo people do it and kumdo people not do it.  I do Dekiti Tirsia Sirada kali, I have don Mugai Ryu Iaido, so I have literally no dog in this disagreement.  I am a fan of all things to do with swords, however, and the gonkyo thing came up in another post.  Why do it, why not do it?


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## kegage (Jul 12, 2011)

I have no practical experience at any of the above forms except for observation. Kendo and kumdo seem to almost be one and the same except for the names used to describe things and their respective histories. In the little amount of research I have done, even the practitioners of both acknowledge the similarities and historical connections.
Gonkyo, on the other hand is a complete mystery. I had never heard of it until your post. When I tried to research it, I either got techno style videos, or any mention of it on other martial arts forums, or sites, had been removed or moved leaving no trail. Now I am really curious. 

Kevin


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## pgsmith (Jul 13, 2011)

I believe you are referring to _sonkyo_ rather than gonkyo. As far as I know (I don't practice kendo), sonkyo is simply part of the etiquette of kendo, and the kumdo folks decided they didn't want to do it.

  If you do a Google search on sonkyo in kendo, you will probably find a lot of informtion, including numerous debates about why it's done in kendo but not in kumdo.


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## kegage (Jul 14, 2011)

Makes sense to me.

Kevin


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## Daniel Sullivan (Nov 28, 2011)

pgsmith said:


> I believe you are referring to _sonkyo_ rather than gonkyo. As far as I know (I don't practice kendo), sonkyo is simply part of the etiquette of kendo, and the kumdo folks decided they didn't want to do it.
> 
> If you do a Google search on sonkyo in kendo, you will probably find a lot of informtion, including numerous debates about why it's done in kendo but not in kumdo.


Spot on.  The only thing that I can add is that at the kumdo school where I trained for many years, they did perform sonkyo, and KKA kumdo schools should be performing it as well, as they are the Korean affiliate of the FIK.  They may not practice it in their dojangs, but at the WKC, they are practicing it.


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