Nanseikan Kendo Club 剣道クラブ南西館

pic (c) Chris Panagopoulos Last Saturday, as part of the 2006 Australia-Japan Year of Exchange, a group of armourers and martial artists from Japan gave a demonstration of battlefield techniques and technology from medieval Japan. There were also demonstrations of kendo and iaido from members of the VKR. Josh Orth and Chris Panagopoulos both have posted pics of the day. Chris' pics are here: http://www.users.on.net/~watari/ Josh's pics are here: http://pics.livejournal.com/nuwishas_tail/gallery/0001yad1 Enjoy! b

Kendo - TWOS (The Way Of The Sword) This the video that Russell made att Nanseikan (and other places) last year. The Nanseikan sequence is near the end. Enjoy! =) b

Here is the poster for the 2006 VKC. Nanseikan members please feel free to copy it and print it out to put up at school. b

http://www.nishinippon.co.jp/nsp/kendo/tama/live/index.shtml Paste this link into a new browser window for a great site that has heaps of video of the annual Gyokuryuki high school kendo tournament in Japan. The site's in Japanese, but if you just try clicking on some different things, you'll soon find the videos. :) b

真冬に梅花をつける．．． The plum blossoms in the depth of winter. They inspire us because we can see spring in on its way. They also bloom while it is still very cold, thus showing their hardiness. We should aspire to be like the plum blossoms, inspiring others by our own example and effort. b

2.3.5 6 kyu Technical Requirements Kihon-waza to be executed with Motodachi, candidates wearing Tare and Do. • Correct Hakama & Keikogi • Correct Bogu • Rei and Sonkyo • Ashi-sabaki • Kihon Men • Kihon Kote • Kihon Do • Kihon Kote-Men (Delete) • Kihon Kote-Do (Delete) • Kiri-Kaeshi (Delete) 2.3.6 5 kyu Grading Technical Requirements Kihon-waza to be executed with Motodachi, candidates wearing Tare and Do. • Correct Hakama & Keikogi • Correct Bogu • Rei and Sonkyo • Ashi-sabaki • Kihon Men • Kihon Kote • Kihon Do • Kihon Kote-Men (Delete) • Kihon Kote-Do (Delete) • Kiri-Kaeshi 2.3.7 4 kyu Grading Technical Requirements Candidates wearing full Bogu and demonstrating against each other. • Correct Hakama & Keikogi • Correct Bogu • Kihon Men • Kihon Kote • Kihon Do • Nidan-waza • Kihon Kote-Men • Kihon Kote-Do • Sandan-waza (Delete) • Kiri-Kaeshi • Kiri-Kaeshi as Uchidachi • Uchi-komi Geiko 2.3.8 3 kyu Grading Technical Requirements Candidates wearing full Bogu and demonstratin...

Here's a pic of last year's Kangeiko with UMKC at Ballarat. For a larger version you can print, go to http://www.deviantart.com/view/18488304/ Thanks to Viet at UMKC for the pic. (B

Below are the details of the next grading. Remember, you need to submit an application form to me and have my signed permission before you can go for the grading. b :) KENDO GRADING EXAMINATIONS Sunday the 28th of May 2006 To be held in two sections…… 4th Kyu to 1st Kyu Kendo 1st Dan to 3rd Dan 1 pm start Gradings will be held at the Kenshikan Dojo, 91 Rosslyn Street, West Melbourne. INTRODUCTION The VKR will be conducting a grading examination for Kendo grades 4th Kyu to 3rd Dan on Sunday 28th May 2006. The grading examination is open to current financial members of the VKR, AKR or IKF affiliates. In keeping with the policy set forth in the AKR Manual of Documents : As such, beginners should be financial members of the AKR, registered for the applicable art for the 2005/2006 financial year. Applicants who are not financial members as of this current financial year 2005/2006 will not be considered. Application should be made on the grading form/s included with this letter.

Dates for term two April 1st, 8th, 22nd and 29th ( this incorporates easter break ) May 6th, 13, 20, and 27 June 3rd and 10th ( school holidays commence the following weekend) (B

We will demonstrating again at Syd Rd Fest this year, on Sunday 5 March. The venue will be the Community Stage, cnr Michael St and Sydney Rd. Assemble at 12 noon, start atg 12.35pm, demo goes for 20 min.

Tuesday night trainings will now move to Wednesday. Same time: 5-6pm. Same place. Training fee is $7.00 per training, pay as you go. See you there! b =)

The first training for 2006 will be the first Saturday in February. See you all then! b :)

The next VKR Kendo Grading will take place on Saturday 11 February 2.30 pm at the Kenshikan, and it will be for candidates attempting 6kyu and 5 kyu only.

before... http://img448.imageshack.us/img448/909/vjkt05all9oy.jpg after... http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/1229/vjkt05nanseikan7uy.jpg

Last Saturday, 3 December, saw the running of the 2005 Victorian Junior Kendo Taikai: the first official VKR junior competition in more than 10 years. Seventeen competitors from four clubs showed just how much they have learned in three age divisions: 11 and under, 13 and under, and 15 and under. The results were as follows: 11 & under 1st - Robert Kelso (Nanseikan) 2nd - Michael Marinelli (Nanseikan) Luke Marinelli (Nanseikan) Patrick Brown (Ballarat) 3rd - Luke Arambasic (Nanseikan) 13 & under 1st - Christopher Brown (Ballarat) 2nd - Thomas Marinelli (Nanseikan) 3rd - A. Bricknell (Ballarat) 15 & under 1st - Eli Robey (Nanseikan) 2nd - Michael Trott (Fudoshin) 3rd - Thomas Eames (Melbourne Budokai) Matthew O'Rourke (Fudoshin) Unfortunately on the day there was some confusion about the results for the 15 and under. The scorers made a mistake as to who came where which I only found out when I went back and checked the results. My apologies...

Hi all, Sorry for the long break in posting. I've been very busy during the September school holidays. Also I went to Japan and Korea (woohoo!) and had a fantastic time, learning more about kendo and Japanese culture (and a little about Korean culture too - kamsamnida!) Nanseikan training will start for term 4 this Saturday morning 15th October. Tuesday night trainings will start the following Tuesday. This term we will be looking a shiai (competition), with a view to competing in the first Victorian junior kendo competition late in November. And a reminder to all parents, please forward your payment for this term's fees to Brunswick Neighbourhood House asap. Thanks! b :)

And we train every week until 3 September. *Yes, it's the same day as the Otsuka Championships, but they don't start until the afternoon. =] b

By popular demand (thanks Pei!) here are some more tenugui from my collection. I don't even know where this one is for, let alone what it says. The rope design is a common one in traditional Japanese culture. It represents the sacred rope used in Shinto to signify the presence of a deity or "kami-sama". This one is definitely a kendo tenugui and says "the Great Way with No Beginning". This one I can lay claim to myself, as I was asked to design it by Macak sensei for the 1997 National Champioships. The writing was done many, many times to get it "right"! The logo is the symbol for the Victorian Kendo Renmei which is based on the Southern Cross (Jap.- minami juji), the main component of the state coat of arms. I was very happy that this tenugui was made in Japan and so is "printed" on both sides. This one should be familiar to anyone who has visited the Kenshikan in Melbourne. It is the dojo joseki, and is by the late Nakakura sensei. It says ...

Here are some interesting tenugui designs. Not all of these are kendo tenugui, some were souvneirs of a particular place like we have souvenir tea-towels. This is definitely a kendo tenugui. It reads from right to left and says "sword heart/mind, bright way" meaning, I think that to develop a sharp mind like a sword makes your path in life clear and bright. I think this is beautiful shuji (calligraphy). This one was a souvenir from the famous Buddhist temple "Ryoanji" in Kyoto. The design depicts the reason the temple is so famous, its stone garden. This is the club tenugui of the Ryujokan dojo in Kumamoto. It was produced as a limited edition for the 1992 Australian Kendo Championships in Melbourne. It is based on the Ryujokan joseki, the character "ken" with a long 'tail'. Here it is sideways. This tenugui is a souvenir of Kagoshima in southern Kyushu. It has two of Kagoshima's most famous sons: Okubo Toshimichi and Takamori Saigo. Both men w...

Since we've been practicing this during second term, I thought it might be good to have it in writing too. Yuko datotsu means having everything correct in order to score a point in kendo. As you know, cutting in kendo involves more than just hitting. It is not enough to hit your opponent any old how. You must do it correctly. 1) You must use the correct part of the sword: the top one third, between the kensen (tip) and the nakayui. 2) You must hit the correct part of your opponent's armour. 3) You must use correct hasuji (angle of the blade). So you must cut only with the side of the shinai opposite the tsuru or string. 4) You must have full spirit and correct posture, showing ki-ken-tai-no-ichi. 5) You must show zanshin (following-through spirit). Yuko datotsu comes from what was required to use a real sword properly. This is why there are so many things to get right! b :)