Kendo, Kenjutsu or Iaido? Understanding the Differences 

That's why I hate the sword fights in the live-action, Rurouni Kenshin. Kenshin is just flicking his enemies. I doubt he can even cut a half inch branch with those swings.

@@poloshirtsamuraithat’s the point of kenshins power

If you're hitting someone with a bamboo stick it will always be a "tap" or "flick". Kendo is stupid.

@MeliorIlle that sounds like something someone who had never taken a real hit would say. Go try a caning in Singapore and see how you feel.

@@conradseeto7506 LOL, yah I was never poked on the head by a stick, you got me.

*o h m y*

That’s the difference between a sport and a fight for your life. (...and I studied Iaido for a while)

@@chris_ackroyd . Personally, if you got into an actually fight with a sword (doubt it). Iaido will be more effective just with the fact that you use an actual sword fight But I don’t do any Japanese sword martial arts so I wouldn’t know. Iaido vs kendo I would say iaido makes more sense to take up as your main martial art and kendo for sparing.

@@IcejjfishTbone I don’t know... the reaction time on some of these kendo practitioners is quick enough where I think it could be useful in real life. For example, take a 5th dan kendo practitioner armed with a sturdy stick (doesn’t need to be a bokken) or cane, vs a perpetrator armed with a knife. In that scenario, I think that as soon as that perpetrator makes the slightest move, he’s getting hit, the strike is going to be hard, and it’s going to land before the perpetrator can close the distance. I say this because that kind of attack anticipation and rapid response is one of the things kendo practitioners do constantly.

@@RoyalFizzbin - thank you - you said it better than I could!

wrong guess

So Gladiators from Rome are just grasshoppers in Japan?

Uh oh

Miyamoto Musashi, often carried “only” a Bokken. They are deadly. Don’t kid yourself. Musashi is not grasshopper. That’s Kwai Chang Caine. 🙇

This post was made by samurai gang

Gee, next time someone tells me about Musashi, after Sekigahara, finding a wooden sword in the house of the two Moxa women, what'd he kill, 3 -4 armed bandits with that one and the several other duels he fought with the Yagyū (柳生氏), what was it that time, one broken skull and one fractured arm, I'll be sure to bring that up that someone said he's a grasshopper...Musashi would probably laugh and likely understand... I doubt many others would.

Daniel Avendaño Your teacher sounds cool :D

We speaks that in Japanese ” ひとつ”. My friend says that Karate comes from Katana movements and some Chinese material art comes from spear movement,so we can see the difference in the punch.

@darkwing dook hence kamae in aikido specifically yoshinkan

Well, as a kendoka I say, no, because there are a lot of things which make difference between kendo and iaido, starting from objective of these two budo. So, no, that's not true

Niccolò Cammilli, I think the point of the saying is that they came from the same origin but have differed from each other greatly. They’re of the same coin, but each side is either a head or a tail, they cannot be both

It is in fact, 4 sticks. But that doesnt mean you shouldn't take care of your equipment

Didn't see that coming 😂

davidy98 ahaha Thank you so much Davidy for your kind comment. I am indeed a gamer but I don't consider myself a master in history. European history is a passion I have and I consider myself an amateur more than a historian. Also I have practiced both kendo and sport fencing but there is no Hema club so all my experience in hema is organising a group of people and practice together from the treaties also watching schola gradiatoria's channel. I will get into hema eventually when I will move to another city. Only in the language and oriental culture part I feel I am a professional, because that's my job and I teach it for living (a part from youtube which is my hobby) all my academic studies where orientalism and languages in general ;) Thank you again for watching and commenting mate ^^

Metatron Thank you for replying! You still know more History than I do! XD Ever since I was a kid I've been in love with History, pretty much any kind of History, but mostly Ancient, Medieval and Japanese History. I'm still in high school, and I'm hoping to start college next year and major either in Military History or Medieval History (I'm not sure which one yet). Right now I practice Kendo, and I've just recently found out that there's a HEMA club in my region. I'd like to start practicing HEMA too, but I'm planing on building PC soon, so it will have to wait! Another thing is that I'm learning Japanese, I currently have classes, and you've inspired me to not give up on it! I'm also interest in dead languages such as Old Norse, Latin, Old and Middle English. Although It's very hard to find classes where I live, again thank you for replying and have a great day!

Egg same

you should aim much higher. this guy is an idiot

Not to mention all the geisha sex, and hentai jerk off sessions.

DREXIAN yea, you cant end him rightly..

DREXIAN Remove the tsuba with a hammer and throw it

Good ol' Daley Thank you

+davidy98 wouldn't it be easier to just untie the fuchi.

Neither do sabers, which is the only good European sword.

Wrestling is a super important part of freeform melee fighting of any sort, I've seen several longsword sparring rounds end when one of the fighters gets a bit too comfortable, lets the other guy get close and is thrown to the floor. Hell, even in modern militaries they teach everyone some unarmed combat, because wrestling situations happen frequently even with an effective weapon range of hundreds of metres

Yes. Hence that's why kendo came about. In the Edo period, because there were no major wars to be fought anymore, samurai started experimenting with bamboo swords and armour and engaged in inter ryu sparring matches to see if their techniques could work or be improved upon. The sparring eventually evolved into the modern sport of kendo where only certain areas could be hit and techniques with the bamboo sword became very very modified from its original purpose. Today's kendo has very little in common with the classical ryu but the fighting spirit and culture nevertheless is still there.

Of course they did. Many duels (with and without sharp blades) were fought as training and teaching matches. What do you think we do in dojo aside from form and 2-5 (randori above 3) person practice? We do live sparring with safety equipment (at the lower to mid-grades). At the high grades, we often practice kenjutsu more slowly with bokken (bokuto) and minimal, if any, armour. But that is ONLY at the higher grades due to better control and ability to manage risk at higher speeds with one's training partners. Kendo is a good place (as is SCA or HEMA halls, etc) to practice your footwork, timing and distance, and entering with minimal risk for injury. It's where I practiced my skills at a good speed with people who meant to defeat me outright by fighting with the idea of life/death. It's also a fun community.

Have you read the book of 5 Ring's (I will teach you how to defeat 10 men as easily as you can defeat 1)

@@howarddavis165 well at my school, we try to cut a piece of newspaper in mid air with boken after practice

@@nhatnguyenminh9369 Interesting... bokken cannot cut anything. They're wooden.

U really did. any updates?

@@Takezoo sadly no it was years ago even by the time I made that post. I do SCA fencing now, but I haven’t authorized to do cut and thrust fencing yet and finding an uchigatana with enough flex for safety standards is tough.

yea that's definitely a weird dojo

Sounds like gekiken or gekken. It’s more of a practical application of Japanese swordsmanship that encompasses kenjustu techniques and Iaido practices like paired waza and such.

gawd! i wish i can find a sparring partner, they just dont last

agreed

how have u been 3rd kyu for 4 years? kyu just covers the basics of kendo

Same as wedding in western. :))

Iaido is essentially how to survive in the Japanese hood lol.

Well said and agree

Correct. Iaijutsu is the art of drawing and cutting from positions that hinder you. If your opponent draws and attacks during a discussion. You need to be able to draw while sitting and cut quickly.

Blank- blade Very true :3

I can't wait to get to that point! I'm new and I get so frustrated still :(

fevermoon Keep on doing it. Dont think too much about it. Its just like in every art, like riding or fencing. At the beginning you think too much what to do and how to act that your mind gets clouded and youre stressing yourself. Thats normal. Its experience that gets rid of that. And this has to be earned ^^ At least that would be my take on it.

Thank you!!! I have a serious problem with over thinking... I do the same thing with aikido... I'm gonna keep at it.

fevermoon Its the same with european fencing and riding i can tell as an example ^^ Do so :) ! I wish the best of luck! And success.

+Nate Wynd (ThatNateGuy) Hi, thank you very much. Yes I have learnt English in England, and Japanese in Japan :D

+Metatron Learnt* Sorry I just had to :(

Super Noob Typing mistake ;)

+Metatron why are you so awesome?

Agreed. He's actually starting to approach the outskirts of my level of greatness.

What is the difference between Battojutsu and Iaijutsu

I've built up my swordfighting skills using LARP weapons, since the local LARP group we used to have around here weren't just focusing on only writing decent plots and storyline, but also teaching and training every player how to use their weapons proficiently and properly, including sparring sessions, sometimes light, sometimes really intense. During these sessions, it became clear i leaned more towards a Samurai's way of fighting with a sword by default and that's the road i went down and specialized in. I never have worn the full heavy armor nor do i ever intend to. Shield? No thanks, absolurely not my thing. either. Despite the group falling apart a few years ago and having no real similar way to train like the group used to, i'm still practicing my skills every now and then. And i'm considering to try and pick up on Niito-Ryu training as well.

Loved it. Practiced it for 8 years. I went back to visit my sensei as well and you'll find a bond that goes beyond mere techniques or competitions.

just shot the dock op

First time put my Men on, i can see my health bar go down.

Thanks for watching and glad to help :)

What about Shi-to-ryu? Hold the 4th blade between your buttcheeks...

Bathtub Barracuda This comment made me laugh out loud

Grazie mille!

Matthew Crandall That sounds very interesting ^^

I have been practicing Kumdo for 7 yrs. I have done the sparring, the forms and the step sparring parts. My preference is the forms because of art of drawing the blade and the movements required. Except #9 not sure of purpose with cartwheel in middle. Good luck and enjoy Kumdo. It has a nice blend of all 3 sword arts that Metatron mentioned combined .

Matthew Crandall Haedong kumdo? I heard it's a rip off of the chinese version, which was prior to Kumdo. I was pretty dissapointed when i heard this, i really wanted to get into it

+Matt Belbin Thank you Matt I appreciate your comment. I wouldn't really know where to find a Iaijutsu dojo in Tokyo unfortunatly but I am sure there is a dojo somewhere there because it's such a huge city. You might want to look for it on google and get the address before going as I doubt most Japanese on the street will even know what Iaijutsu is.

Damn, in my area all you find is kendo, iaido and iaijutsu when I want to do kenjutsu

I take up iaido.

+Israel Wright I am glad my video was helpful ^^ and good luck on your enterprises ^^

+Israel Wright One cannot create a koryu kenjutsu system unless you have a linage to attach too and of course a license in which to open a school under said name. Example i practice yagyu shinkage-ryu bujutsu (which encampasses all of the arts the yagyu taught samurai such as iaijutsu, kenjutsu, sojutsu, jujutsu, and of course good old hojutsu) as such as i cannot open another kenjutsu school of the yagyu shinkage-ryu without a direct scroll given to me via its current headmaster. Now that is just paperwork and formalties the difference between kendo and kenjutsu is so vast that ill try to simplify it as best i can. In kenjutsu you are are only training your technique for one purpose and that is to kill your enemy and suffer no injury in the process this is called "Bujutsu" or literally "warrior technique" and iaijutsu, jujutsu, and of course so-jutsu all fall under "bujutsu" Kendo, iaido, aikido, kyudo, judo these are all "Gendai budo" their purpose is to train spiritually via technique through competition but under controlled enviorments to preserve sprituality in the art while older kenjutsu schools this notion is none existant and will get you killed if you try to practice it in combat or training. example in kendo you have limited targets, limited strikes, very little understanding of how to actually cut and of course terrible kamae (stances). In comparison kenjutsu i have no rules on where i am to strike (such as the thighs of which kendo is not allowed to do) as such if i see your throat is open i will bury the bottom of my katana handle via tsuka-ate (handle strike) into the windpipe of my oppenet if said technique is required to gain victory. If you want to know whether to call it kendo or kenjutsu is simple, if you strike with the intent of compeition via sparring you are falling under kendo and gendai budo. If your entire system from the waza to how it presents itself is that of a killing variety ( a school that trains in the "Jutsu" only) then you fall under kenjutsu. an iaido practioner for example cares about perfect position and harmony which holds no place in combat that changes every second. when i make use of iaijutsu my only concern in that moment is freeing my sword from its saya striking you and backing away before you even had a chance to grasp the tsuka or your sword.

Thank you for the knowledge sir. My lineage can be traced back to both the Yagyū Shingan-ryū and Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage-ryū styles. As for the paper work, I will not be claiming to teach a classical style but rather a modernized style which be first be judged and accepted (or not) by a sword master. This style will not only incorporate the traditional aspects of kenjutsu and iaiijutsu but can be translated into more common weapons such as batons, bats, machetes, and the like.

Wintermoon tsuba

I'm glad I have!

Sorry. :-D I was also under the impression that Kendo was a sport and in a previous video I made a very uneducated comment. Here, around 8:30 you made it very clear. So thank you!

I would recommend you check out Classical Budo, Classical Bujutsu, and Modern Bujutsu & Budo by Donn F. Draeger. (These should be available on Amazon, Modern specifically covers Kendo). These are much more comprehensive than what is presented here, and cover the whole range of Japanese history. The question was: how do I use a Katana? That depends for what. Kendo is a path to enlightenment, i.e. a practice of Zen. It is not a combat science (jutsu). It has been made safe and ritualized. The Shinai does not retain the curvature of the Katana, thus can't be used the same way. The sparring done in Kendo is highly stylized (only three allowed targets), and is difficult to compare with any other 'free' sparring I've seen or done. None of this is to say that Kendo isn't interesting, challenging or fun, just don't expect to go up against a HEMA guy with Kendo in your back pocket because nobody is going to wait for you to scream 'kote' and have the right zanshin when you try to hit the forearms. (But hey I could be wrong). On my own list of things to learn at this point, exactly in this area is jo jutusu also know as jodo. As a result of the fact that stick vs sword is taught, some proficiency with a sword is learned. Also when I was studying aiki-jujutsu many years ago the upper belts would practice with boken, as aiki was used in part to control an opponent before the sword was drawn and he was run through.

Being that we are in 2017, and the western world (especially U.S.), I would say Kendo is a good base for learning how to wield the katana, especially since traditional schools are extremely rare outside of Japan. I can't speak from experience, never participating in a Japanese martial art, but I am a JO-level epee fencer so I know a bit about this area in general. Learning footwork, distance, timing, and getting a feel for basic stances, technique, and the cuts that are IN kendo is a GREAT way to get started. You can always learn traditional cuts, stances, and parries and add them to your toolbox. :D

+Nishi Kaigan Iaido Dojo I'm curious, if thats the case why do they not class themselves iaijutsu?

It's just the term that came to be more common at the turn of the century as the country was becoming modernized along with the philosophy of Iaijutsu becoming more of a martial arts practice. Modern Iaidoka practice Seitei Iaido because it is standardized set of kata and is used by Kendo Federations around the world for testing, but those kata come from various schools such as Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu, which is a school that was founded just before the Edo period (1600ish).

Thank you for pointing this out. Also studied mjer :D

www.kenjutsusweden.com Here is a splurge of info for whoever may be interested: The school of Yagyu Shinkage Ryu that I study is founded pre-Edo as is Katori Shinto Ryu and a variety of other sword schools are, as is Hayashizaki Ryu (which I was lucky to get to train as well when living in Japan) that Eishin Ryu is derived from and from what I have read in diaries from the Edo period, the words "iai/jutsu", "battou/jutsu", "ken" etc. appear, and the usage of "no michi" (essentially meaning the same as "dou"). Iaidou is a very late term, as the Iaidou federation wasn't formed before the mid 1950's. Up until the 1930's, the term "iaidou" was, looking at kendou records, not used by practitioners of the martial arts - they called i "iaijutsu" apparently. As the Kendou federation (formed in the 1920's) can't decide whether to let iaidou be a part or not, the iaijutsu schools that are part of the current Iaidou federation form their own federation in 1954, but fights over what schools are allowed into the Kendou federation continues - some go for Iaidou, some for Kendou. Nevertheless, those that most often call themselves Koryu today are those that do not accept the rules and dogma of the Iaidou or Kendou federations AND were formed either pre-Edo or during the Edo period. The generalizations that our dear friend Metatron are making are just very modern (but nowadays very proliferated especially amongst those training kendou and iaidou) and lack the context of the history of all Japanese martial schools, -that it isn't necessarily a question of what equipment you use or if you call it "dou" or "jutsu", but rather that some have decided to conform into modern sport rules (like kendou and iaidou (seitei iaidou)). One excellent example is Yagyu Shinkage Ryu: It uses shinai (hikihada-shinai), bokutou (Yagyu bokutou) and shinken swords as well. Like a range of other koryu schools, they also use bougu (protective gear) to a certain degree. And well, as for kendou and iaidou - they are not necessarily completely cut off from their historical roots just because of the sport rules - they were founded by people doing what we call koryu today, a lot of their practitioners do koryu like Nishi Kaigan Iaido Dojo points out above... ...and although it might come off as a very snarky remark, please just consider objectively that none of the different styles that Metatron mentions lack precision or possibilities for practical application: If your sensei isn't skilled enough, your precision will suffer (good kendou practitioners have awesome precision that becomes very apparent when you do koryu with them; likewise, even some iaidou considered "good" can lack in precision because they have all too seldom used a shinken sword or tried techniques on targets (be it a sparring partner or a tatami roll etc.). Also as for sparring - there are a lot of koryu practitioners who are reinventing and implementing gekiken nowadays, but they do not allow sparring before a student has proved that they have "formed their body/mind" to the traditional techniques of the school. www.kenjutsusweden.com

Brian Wright I know I have just got it xD My original shinai is still in Japan

+Brian Wright lol

BATTO, Chibrui, Noto. Bokuto is a wooden sword. Chiburi isn't always used in every form, some forms skip it, for uncertain reasons.

Bujinkan ninjutsu dabbles in them, however specific schools are few and far between. You may not fimd any unless you are in Japan. Sword schools don't usually teach forms with either, to my knowledge.

There is a naginatado dojo in Berkeley, California.

+梅キョア Exactly, Kendo is as much an outright martial art in the same way olympic fencing is.

+梅キョア Have to admit I find there is some degree of snobbery surrounding Martial Arts in general, there are not always the kind of club/style you want to learn nearby, so ppl make do with whatever they can good or bad, lot of ppl slagging Jon alexander, met and trained with him, gave me a letter of introduction to train with a guy in japan. Sparred with Jon I thought he was very good, but that just me, everyone might not share this opinion depending on whether they have sparred with him or not. Whatever the case may be. I think he has done very well to promote kenjutsu/kendo indirectly, Im sure many ppl who visit him have gone on to train in these clubs around UK, all the name dropping about who trained with who is relevant to a point, but the end result is "how good are you" was the training effective, only way to find out is sparring with others. Dont matter what grade you are, if you cant fight, your fucked.

+Satsaru bullshit... if you dont hit properly then you will not be awarded the point... touching does nothing for you ... you know as much about kendo as a sack of rice...

+梅キョア bullshit... kendo teaches body and sword control... you are supposed to perform a full force strike using tenouchi and holding the cutting line in order to perform a proper strike... also using ki ken tai ichi you most likely dont know these concepts which are by the way cross skills between kendo and iado ... meaning they are as important in kendo using a shinai as they are important in iado using a iato or shin ken --> you dont know jack shit about anything

Do you know why they stopped sparring with bokuto to begin with? Originally in kendo they did use wooden swords. Guess what it killed people. Thus shinai were invented to be more safe when the technology at the time was unable to make more effective training armor.

How did the check out of that school go? Did you stay? What did you experience? Was it fun?

"of course the technique needs to be exectued very well there is also etiquette there is also artistic form you also need to scream where you want to hit" Explanation: "you can't just hit anywhere you want, if you don't hit properly but you hit poorely your attack will not score a point, and to make sure you hit a certain area on purpose (i.e. the mask or the hand) you have to scream "Men! Kote!" which mean mask and hand protection to prove that your attack was not accidental and you actually ment it. Thank you for your work ;)

Nice! Thanks for your detailed explanation. Besides, my friend who have studied Kendo and now Yagyū Shinkage-ryū in Japan seems to hold different views on "whether Kendo is a sport". His Japanese teacher believes that Kendo should be considered a kind of sport. It seems that even Japanese people didn't on the same page in this matter. ^ ^

by the way，I would like to know from 12:44~12:46: “In Iaido you also have Seiza from Seiza", what is that mean? ”

Lico Deng Seiza正座 is the correct posture for the Japanese, in that part I first said in Iaido you also have seiza, but then I corrected myself with "from" because I ment to say that many of their techniques start from seiza and then they stand up etc.

Good to know that. How should I give my subtitles to you?

My stick is better than bacon hmm-HMMM!

mAhaha-Hmmm you can't touch my stick

shinai 撓い means flexible.

I'd say its partially a sport. But 99% of the time you're not engaging in competitions. And most people do not train with the goal of entering competitions. Most people I know train for training's sake, For physical and mental self improvement. The shiai are just a nice bonus.

***** As far as I know bokuto and bokken are the same weapon, just two different names but I'll do further research on this and let you know ^^

Looking forward to seeing what you find.

***** Bokken and Bokuto are the same thing. Suburito is a heavy version for strength training. There is a lighter version of the bokuto, both tachi and kodachi, that are used for nito forms of kendo.

​@metatronyt What's you're opinion on Shinkendo? ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zyBYiT65r2E.htmlsi=cil-Q456qyVy0KlD ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dKEHY_jYpR0.htmlsi=yZvlZT2P7wWbywlC

manlysponge HEMA practitioner here. I've been told they exist, but I haven't seen them first hand. It might take some serious digging :-)

Bathrobe Warrior I've only heard of a few schools that spar with boken's. I've just started at my local HEMA club, and I've only done some slow sparring, but even still, it is so much fun, but more importantly, it gives you a real feel of how swordplay actually works. It's quite disapointing that there aren't many Japanese schools that follow HEMA's sparring philosophy, as I personally think it is a great way to learn.

manlysponge Yup. You simply can't learn proper martially applicable swordplay without sparring that involves as full a range of techniques as possible. It would be awesome to see something similar from Japanese martial arts, but to be honest HEMA and Kenjutsu are so similar technically that I'd happy with the former. After about a year of study including tons of sparring (after many years of sport fencing) I'd say I'm fairly confident that I'd do just fine with a katana or bokto using german/italian longsword techniques xP.

Bathrobe Warrior Yeah, I'd imagine how one uses a katana in actual battle wouldn't differ to greatly to how one would use a longsword. After all, the katana and longsword are designed for very similar uses.

manlysponge Yes what Bathrobe warrior says is true, a Hema practitioner with a katana would be a very effective warrior, although we have to consider a couple of things: first, the katana only cuts on one side so many techniques you are used to performe would not be effective with the katana. second, the Japanese always prefer to cut, no matter what. Thrust is seen in Japan as something you try not to do and only do when it would be the only effective option. So similarly if you give a long sword to a Japanese kenjutsu master he would probably use it like a katana, so still effective, but not to the full potential of that weapon.

I was about to write the same thing XD

3 things first he said he just bought it, his original one is still in japan second, he is in his house doing a youtube video not in a dojo. third, he is in his house doing a youtube video not in a dojo.

3 things first, pedantry second, pedantry third, pedantry

And in kamai you aim at the neck, as if you manage to perfect this, you will always win because before the opponent strikes you can just hit their tsuki

Are there any videos personating his techniques?

'cough, cough' (katana has a blunt side) 'cough cough' just saving ;)

Tim Van Roey if I put my katana on my shoulder, my sensei will definitely kick my ass

+Chengbo Li you probably know it better then me

Oh stop it, it's a piece of wood. Stop glorifying a piece of bamboo lol

Actually it is a weapon. and as such should be treated with more respect. he has a point. on the other hand its someones right to be nonchalant with a weapon if they chose to.

You could check my channel for authentic Japanese sword arts.

I know it's 3 years but still saying. Learning martial art (or sport in general) online is a bad idea. Should go to a center and practice for real. You can't tell when you do something wrong, need someone to point it out for you.

If you wanted to practice all the 3. Which one you should be practicing probably accordingly?