Overview of Japanese Fencing (Kendo)
One of Japan's martial arts employing techniques of fencing based on the two-handed sword of the samurai, kendo is now a system of mental and physical training practised using bamboo swords.
Historically, the art of kendo derives from sword skills cultivated by the warrior elite of the 12th century. From the 14th-16th centuries accomplished swordsmen opened schools to teach fighting skills with attack and parrying exercises. During the Edo period (1600-1868) when fighting was no longer needed for survival, the moral and spiritual elements of the practice came to the fore, and by the latter half of the 18th century there were more than 200 schools of kenjutsu (the art of the sword), teaching swordsmanship with emphasis on spiritual discipline. One of the most famous swordsmen of this period was Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645), who wrote a classic treatise on swordsmanship called The Book of Five Rings.
After a temporary decline due to the impact of Westernization at the end of the 19th century, a martial arts committee in 1912 created a body of kenjutsu training forms from the kata (forms) of the leading schools, and kendo (literally the way of the sword) was developed. Kendo was included in the physical education curriculum at elementary school level from 1939. The forms of practise, rules, and standards of competition are now under the control of the All Japan Kendo Federation, which has a multinational board of directors that oversees triennial international tournaments.
Kendoists practice using a bamboo sword. They wear a face mask and a uniform made of quilted cloth panels, with a sturdy chest protector, and loose skirt-like pants for easy movement.
In competition, points are scored for certain prescribed cuts or thrusts. These are cuts to the center of the head, or oblique cuts to the temple along with the call of "men!" (face!), cuts to either side of the trunk with the call of "do!" (chest!), cuts to the right flank at waist level, or when both hands are raised cuts to the wrist along with the call "kote." The only thrust movement is one made to the throat with the call "tsuki." A match lasts five minutes, with extensions possible. The winner is the first to score two of three points.
