isshinryuronin
Senior Master
Chris, that was a lot more detail than I could have provided, thanks for all the specifics. But my intention was (perhaps mistakenly) to use more general terms just to get my point across. And yes, "Samurai sword" is NOT a term that would be used in an iai dojo, but again, I thought I was addressing a more general group. No disrespect meant to the Iaido art. For the purpose of the discussion, I felt using "shinken" referring to a live blade was sufficient to differentiate it from a bamboo shinai.
Musashi wrote (and I am paraphrasing here from memory) ":...that the long sword should be wielded broadly....you should be intent on cutting...even if you kill your opponent [while using a less skillful technique] it is not cutting." My emphasis here was to contrast "hitting" in kendo vs "cutting" with zanshin in iaido. Whether cutting in the 1600's or the 1900's, I think the concept is the same.
Am I mistaken that some various iai styles do not share the basic katas such as mae, ushiro, uke-nagashi, tsuka, etc? And do not different styles have some katas specific to them?
Kendo (no saya to draw from) and Iaido (drawing and noto with a scabbard) do have different scope as you said. That was my point. They are different as well as having some complimentary skills, while each can be learned as its own discipline.
Not to pick on each comment, but wanted to clarify some points to rescue a bit of my rep. Your knowledge of kenjitsu seem strong. My apologies for any inaccuracies due to sloppy generalization or actual mistakes, although I stand by the idea that the feel and mindset of the two ares are unique.
Musashi wrote (and I am paraphrasing here from memory) ":...that the long sword should be wielded broadly....you should be intent on cutting...even if you kill your opponent [while using a less skillful technique] it is not cutting." My emphasis here was to contrast "hitting" in kendo vs "cutting" with zanshin in iaido. Whether cutting in the 1600's or the 1900's, I think the concept is the same.
Am I mistaken that some various iai styles do not share the basic katas such as mae, ushiro, uke-nagashi, tsuka, etc? And do not different styles have some katas specific to them?
Kendo (no saya to draw from) and Iaido (drawing and noto with a scabbard) do have different scope as you said. That was my point. They are different as well as having some complimentary skills, while each can be learned as its own discipline.
Not to pick on each comment, but wanted to clarify some points to rescue a bit of my rep. Your knowledge of kenjitsu seem strong. My apologies for any inaccuracies due to sloppy generalization or actual mistakes, although I stand by the idea that the feel and mindset of the two ares are unique.
