Kendama Basics and Tricks
Kendama Basics and Tricks (1)
Grip
Kendama may appear easy, but you are likely to find that it is actually quite difficult once you try to play. A superb sense of balance is necessary, and it isn't just the hands that matter. The player must also use the rest of the body skillfully, especially the knees.
There are four basic grips of the kendama.
To perform the "ozara grip," use your thumb and index finger to hold the stick, place your middle finger and ring finger in the small cup and hold the kendama with the big cup facing up. For the "ken (stick) grip," you hold the stick so that the medium cup is at the bottom and the spike is at the top. The "rosoku (candle) grip" involves holding the stick with the spike facing down and the small cup facing you. To perform the "tama (ball) grip," hold the ball with the hole facing upwards.
While there are many other grips, players should master these four basic ones first.
Ozara (big cup) grip
Ken (stick) grip
Rosoku (candle) grip
Tama (ball) grip
Kendama Basics and Tricks (2)
Basic Stances
Posture plays an important role in mastering kendama. There is the "straight stance" and the "angle stance." In the straight stance, the stick is held in the hand and the ball dangles directly below. In the angle stance, the ball is held in one hand while the stick is held with the other at a 45-degree angle. In both stances, the feet are kept slightly closer together than shoulder width, and a right-handed player puts his or her right foot one step ahead of the left. (The reverse is true for a left-handed player.) It is important to keep your center of gravity forward, relax your shoulders, and stand naturally.
No matter which trick is performed, the player should follow a 1, 2, 3 rhythm. At first, bend the knees, then straighten the knees while the trick is being performed. Finally, bend the knees again when the ball is caught. This rhythm is the key to kendama.
Straight stance
Angle stance
Actions for the 1, 2, 3 rhythm.
Kendama Basics and Tricks (3)
Tricks
Once you've got the hang of the basic grips and stances, you can try a few tricks. Moving your knees properly is the key to success for all of these tricks.
Ozara (Big cup), Kozara (Small cup), and Chuzara (Medium cup)
Ozara (big cup), kozara (small cup), chuzara (medium cup) are the three most basic kendama tricks, in which the ball is caught in one of the three cups. The technique for catching the ball is the same for each cup. Start with the ball hanging below the stick, then pull the ball into the air and catch it in either the big, small, or medium cup. Use the ozara grip for the big cup (or an inverted ozara grip for the small cup), and the kozara grip for the medium cup. Try to catch the ball as though it were an egg, reducing the impact when you catch it.
Ozara (Big cup)
Kozara (Small cup)
Chuzara (Medium cup)
Tomeken (Spike/Pull up in)
Use the angle stance and hold the kendama in the ken grip with the ball hanging down below the stick. With the ball stationary, pull up and catch the hole of the ball on the spike. Try to keep the ball's hole facing down as you pull it straight up.
Hikoki (Airplane)
For this trick, hold the ball in the tama grip. Use the angle stance and hold the ball in your dominant hand with the hole facing upward. Use your other hand to hold the stick close to your body. Release your grip on the stick and swing it out in front of you, then pull the hand with the ball toward you, swinging the stick around in a loop. When the stick reaches the top of the loop and drops down, catch the spike with the hole in the ball. The secret to performing this trick is matching the movement of your knees with the arc of the swing, and catching the stick very gently.
Around Japan
This trick involves performing the kozara, ozara and tomeken tricks one after the other (though it does not matter if the ozara and kozara are performed in reverse order). Use the ken grip and let the ball hang down, then pull it up and catch it in the small cup. Next, toss it from the small cup and catch it in the big cup. Finally, toss it from the big cup and perform the tomeken by catching the ball on the spike. The key to successfully pulling off this trick lies in always keeping the ball's hole facing toward when catching the ball in the cups.
Reference Site
Related Links
Kendama (video)
Japanese: けん玉〜日本から世界へ広がる遊具〜
English: Kendama's Global Appeal
French: Attrait mondial du Kendama
Spanish: El atractivo mundial de kendama
Chinese: 剑玉~从日本走向世界的玩具~
Portuguese: Kendama, um Brinquedo do Japão para o Mundo
Arabic: كينداما تسحر العالم