Kenjutsu

Kenjutsu (剣術) generally describes all traditional schools (koryū) of Japanese swordsmanship, including the modern styles of Kendo and Iaido. Kenjutsu means “the method (or technique) of the sword.”

The exact activities undertaken when practicing Kenjutsu vary with school, but commonly include practice of basic techniques (kihon) without opponent and techniques where two persons paired kata (featuring full contact strikes in some styles). Historically schools incorporated sparring under a variety of conditions, from using solid wooden swords (bokutō), to leather-covered bamboo swords (fukuro shinai) and armor (bogu).

Kashima-Shinryū

Kashima-Shinryū (鹿島神流) is a nearly 500 years old traditional Japanese martial art that has been handed down through 21 generations of master instructors.

The origins of the Kashima-Shinryû lie in an exorcising ritual known as harai-tachi, the divinity celebrated at the Kashima Jingû (Grand Shrine), that is located in what is now Kashima City, Ibaraki Prefecture. According to tradition, a legendary 7th century attendant at the shrine developed from harai-tachi a series of techniques that he called shinmyô-ken (“sword of divine mystery”), a pure expression of shinbu – the summation of true and divine martial art, an ideal that at once epitomizes and transcends physical combat executed in a spirit of absolute impartiality and moral rectitude. The art that was developed became popularly known as Kashima-no-tachi, literally “the sword of Kashima.”

The art was popularized and reached a new peak of development and fame in the 20th century by Kunii Zen’ya, the 18th generation sôke/shihanke. Headmaster from 1914 until his death in 1966, Kunii Zen’ya devoted his entire being to the sword, combining the insights gleaned from a lifetime of severe physical and spiritual training to reexamine, revise and refine almost every aspect of Kashima-Shinryû technique and philosophy in harmony with the spirit of hôyô-dôka, “acceptance and resorption.”

The current sôke (Founder’s House) is 21st Generation Kunii Masakatsu. The line is still headed by the Kunii family, but is more or less honorific as the responsibility for the preservation and teaching of the ryū is instilled in a shihanke (Instructor’s House), currently represented by Seki Humitake.