PUBLIC MARKS with tags kata & kendo

In 1906 the Butokukai made its first research into making a set of standardised kata for teaching its students (standardised kata for teaching had already been made in Tokyo shihan-gakko – Takano Sasaburo‘s gogyo-no-kata – and Keishicho – keishi-ryu). 17 members were selected from various ryu-ha, and a set of 3 kata were created called the Butokukai kenjutsu kata (武徳会剣術型). The individual kata names were: TEN (天 heaven), CHI (地 earth), and JIN (人 human). For some unknown reason, the kata were not popular or were not implemented successfully, and they disappeared. The photo below was taken on the 10th of August 1906 and shows the people involved in the creation of the kata. Names are given below.

"Even if your foe is greatly evil, don't draw your sword, or let your foe draw theirs. Don't cut and don't be cut. Don't kill, and don't be killed. Help them transform into a good person. If they still won't comply, then send them to the next world."

Supplied by Jumpei Matsumoto Chief National Kendo Coach From the original writing of Noboru Shigeoka Hanshi 9th Dan

We apply different kind of breathing in kata. The other methods introduced concentrate on exhaling but this breathing concentrates on "holding the air".

So kendo kata definitely contains old style kenjutsu moves and they are different from kendo with shinai (shinai kendo). That is why we have to learn these forms. Maybe because kata does not seem very practical to many people for shinai kendo, many people see kata as something they have to do for their promotion exam (grading). But as all the high rank senseis say, it must be studied more often than it is now.

Kata training in kendo nowadays is had via the well known and respected “nihon kendo no kata,” and it has played an important part in keeping the “sword” element of kendo alive to this day. We also have the newly introduced “bokuto ni yoru kihon keiko-ho” (although they not officially called “kata”) which is a method of teaching shinai-kendo techniques using a bokuto. But before both these sets of kata, there were precursory attempts to create kata for teaching to kendo people. These forms are still practised in the Japanese kendo community today, although rare.