Kenjutsu Sparring?

[kegage]

Hi ya’ll,

I have been trying to find the answer to this question for years, and have never gotten any sort of a clear answer, and believe me I’ve tried.

The Question: Are there any dojos in the U.S. that practice real time freestyle kenjutsu sparring?

 

[pgsmith]

I have been trying to find the answer to this question for years, and have never gotten any sort of a clear answer, and believe me I’ve tried.

The Question: Are there any dojos in the U.S. that practice real time freestyle kenjutsu sparring?

I can attempt to explain why you've not gotten a clear answer. That may, in the end, answer your original question.

The traditional Japanese sword arts are taught through the use of kata. In the iaido schools, the majority of kata are performed solo. In most of the koryu kenjutsu schools, the majority of the kata involve two people. These kata are a carefully choreographed set of movements that are designed to instill the basic movements and responses in the school's practitioners without getting them seriously injured or killed. Once a practitioner has attained a high enough level of skill, the people performing the kata will usually begin introducing changes. To see two high level practitioners performing kata in the dojo amounts to pretty much the same thing as "free sparring". Therefore, while most koryu schools will indeed have a certain amount of "free sparring" done by those of a very high level, lesser students are required to stick to the kata. To attempt to "free spar" before having internalized all of the proper movements and responses of the ryu is basically self-defeating. Your body will not know how to respond properly, and so will muddle your ability to learn properly.

That's the outlook, as I understand it, of the koryu kenjutsu schools with which I have some familiarity. No doubt there are other opinions, but this would explain why you have a hard time getting a clear answer.

 

[Langenschwert]

There are some kendoka who spar in a ring with blunt steel. Very awesome stuff. Tough guys, I'd love to spar them.

Best regards,

-Mark