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  • Table of Contents
    • A Table of Contents (Map of All Articles)
    • Body Maintenance & Development
    • For Beginners, For Kids
    • For Higher Levels
      • How to Strike (a Hit or Ippon)
      • Seme
    • Mechanics
      • Fumikomi
      • Gripping the Shinai
    • Mind Management
      • Managing Habits
      • Meditation, Mindfulness
      • Mushin, Flow-State
      • Wisdom, Quotes
    • Shinsa/Shiai
    • Stories
    • External Sites and Articles
      • Translations by Imoto Sensei
      • External – English Books, Articles and Sites on Kendo
      • External – Videos
      • External – Japanese Articles and Sites on Kendo (日本語での議事などのリンク)

KendoNotes

To Help Develop the Mind and Body

Story

Yamaoka Tesshu – the Swordsman, Calligrapher and Zen Teacher

January 14, 2020September 6, 2020kiaiLeave a comment

Thanks to a fellow kendo dojo member, I recently started reading the life story of Yamaoka Tesshu (山岡 鉄舟, 1836-1888), a master swordsman, calligrapher and Zen Continue reading →

StoriesCulture, Inspiration, Story

A Furry Three-Legged Trooper Named Duke and Heijoushin (平常心)

July 8, 2019November 3, 2019kiaiLeave a comment
Duke_Standing
The cool “Duke”.

I met and walked a three-legged dog named Duke with a friend a few evenings ago.  He is a cool “dude.”  He had lost Continue reading →

StoriesHeijoushin, Inspiration, Story, Suffering

Witnessing a Transformation in the Demeanor of a Child in Kendo

August 7, 2018July 7, 2019kiaiLeave a comment

The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled. – Plutarch

I recently witnessed something quite astonishing.  The demeanor of a young child, who had been learning kendo for at least several years, changed remarkably during a Continue reading →

For Beginners, For Kids, StoriesKids, Story, Transformation

On Fire in Shiai – An Anecdote on the Power of Music

March 26, 2018July 23, 2019kiaiLeave a comment

An old memory came to mind while watching some of the snowboarding events during the recent 2018 Winter Olympics.  I noticed how some of the athletes would rhythmically Continue reading →

StoriesMindfulness, Shiai, Shikai, Story

Kyudo and Kendo – “How Can They Be Identical?”

March 10, 2018August 31, 2020kiai2 Comments

This is a story of a learning experience I had, among many, thanks to a professor and teacher, Yokoyama Naoya (横山直也) sensei, years ago when I was a student in Japan. Continue reading →

StoriesAwareness, Heijoushin, Kyudo, Mindfulness, Story

Categories

  • A Table of Contents (Map of All Articles) (1)
  • Body Maintenance & Development (13)
  • External Sites and Articles (5)
    • Translations by Imoto Sensei (1)
  • For Beginners, For Kids (14)
  • For Higher Levels (21)
    • How to Strike (a Hit or Ippon) (7)
    • Seme (14)
  • Mechanics (17)
    • Fumikomi (5)
    • Gripping the Shinai (7)
    • Techniques, Exercises (5)
  • Mind Management (51)
    • Managing Habits (13)
    • Meditation, Mindfulness (9)
    • Mushin, Flow-State (17)
    • Wisdom, Quotes (10)
  • Shinsa/Shiai (10)
  • Stories (15)

Recent Posts

  • Sequential Breakdown of the Small Men-Uchi (小さい面打ち)
  • Games for Kids Big and Small Learning Kendo
  • A Story on Releasing Tension from the Shoulder to Produce Crisp Strikes
  • A Reminder to Myself: Chew, Chew, Chew, . . .
  • A Story on the Transformational Power of Kirikaeshi (切り返し)
  • Ten Habits for Health (健康十訓)
  • The Alexander Technique – Quotes and Resources
  • The Kensaki as a Floating Log (浮木)
  • Resources on Gyaku-Dou (逆胴)

Tags

Attention Awareness Beginners Body Development Body Maintenance Children Conditioning Consciousness Culture Death Eating Eiga Naoki Flow Footwork Fumikomi Getting Unstuck Grip Habits Hands Health Heijoushin Hikidasu Hikitsuke Inspiration Intuitive Eating John Yamamoto Kamae Kamei Toru Kiai Kids Kirikaeshi Kyudo Loss Massage Therapy Mechanics Meditation Mindfulness Mirror Mushin Nakaumura Sensei Open Focus Performance Posture Preparation Presence Programming Progresssive Relaxation Quotes Reflections Resource Resources Seeing Self-Inquiry Seme Setbacks Shiai Shikai Shinsa Slowing Down Sociology Soft Eyes Story Strike Opportunity Suffering Suri-Ashi Teachers Teaching Thesis Thinking Tips Transformation Translation Videos Waza Wisdom

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