Editor: Well House, 13 Keere Street, Lewes, East Sussex, England No. 290 Autumn 2008 From our Archives The Kend ō Renmei a few years ago organised a whole series of Weekend Training Camps, held under canvas on Mill Laine Farm, Offham, near Lewes. Our records show that we staged seventeen of these and that they were always well-attended and valuable in that they greatly broadened everyone’s perspective of Kend ō besides giving many members a taste of Iai-jutsu, Naginata-dō, and occasionally, of S ō-jutsu. Such short training expeditions used to be very much part of the classical Bugei tradition, probably since at least the Muromachi period, and continue in some d ōjō groups to the present day. They are always irregular and private in nature, focussing on military training in the true sense. One could also term them ‘secret’ as they are completely different from the intermittent gasshuku training ‘camps’ usually held at some centre or other in modern times. The photograph above shows the yūdansha at one such camp held in June, 1981. Some senior members will know most of those forming this ‘19 th century’ group and the two Basset ‘guard- dogs’, Sally and Emma. Of the Japanese in the photo, Uchida Hirohisa (on the left of Roald Knutsen), is now probably hachidan kyoshi . In posing our camp groups we attempted to replicate the splendid posture styles seen in mid-Victorian military photographs. This shot was one of the best; however, who would have suspected that the Japanese would do the same, and in entirely the same spirit? Copyright © 2008 Eikoku Kendo Renmei Journal of the Eikoku Kend ō Renmei No. 290 Autumn 2008 This was taken in the Saga Kenseikai D ōjō during Phil Jupp’s time there. The only comment is that many people might think, looking at these case-hardened swordsmen, that the Japanese did indeed invent photography back in the late Ed ō period . o o o o o o o o o o o o o Poetry in the Martial Arts (Part II) by Jeff Dann, Ph.D., L.Ac. We continue here with the second part of the very interesting essay by Jeff Dann. Knowing that some members have knowledge of Japanese haiku , we would invite any observations or comments on these articles, or even short pieces for publication here. Why not put pen to paper? tada motsu to Simply holding utsu to wa nigiri and a striking grasp chigau nari are different. yoku mi yo mik ō no Look well at the temple virgin suzu no temoto wo as they ring their bells. The influence of Shint ō is clearly to be seen in this poem and the one below where the model for grasping the sword and striking is the mik ō, the shrine virgins. hito mina no Everyone kokoro ni nitaru reveals their heart surugi tachi in their sword. mikake wa koso Polish it well surudo kari keri clean and sharp (Both these poems were possibly composed by Takahashi Desshu) 2 Journal of the Eikoku Kend ō Renmei No. 290 Autumn 2008 Many poems of a directly Buddhist influence may be seen. Buddhism and particularly Zen, emphasised the transience of life, a concept which appealed to the Japanese spirit and especially to the warrior class. utsu hito mo Attacker utaruru hito mo and the attacked moro tomo ni together – tada karisome no simply the folly yūmei no tawamure of a transient dream (H ōzan-ry ū) The teachings of the bu emphasize that the highest state of mind is a totally natural one, a mind in harmony with itself and its environment. Shint ō, Zen, and Confucianism all instruct ones ‘natural’ or primal condition, be it the mind of the child, '‘no-mind'’ a symbol of nature. Kotoshi yori A fresh start – mitsu go to narite find the child’s mind ametsuchi no with cosmic blessings megumi ni sodatsu reared kami no futokuro in the bosom of the gods. izukuni ni mo Wherever kokoro tomaraba the mind stops sumi kae yo is where you dwell. nagareba mata If it flows moto no furusato your true birthplace appears (Shinkage-ry ū) The image of moonlight and natural, effortless ‘doing’ are persistant images in Japanese poetry and the Bud ō as well. The moonlight represents purity, a natural reflection of the eternal sun, it is symbolic of man’s soul. The moon is constant, it is the clouds of our own desire and weakness which cover it casting us into darkness. teki wo tada Don’t think blindly utsu to omou na only to strike the enemy mi mo mamore protect yourself. onozukare moru naturally moonlight shizugaya no tsuki pierces through the thatched roof. (Itt ōry ū) utsuru to mo The moon doesn’t think tsuki wa omouwanu to be reflected utsu to mo neither does the water mizu mo omouwanu think to reflect Hirosawa-no-ike Pond at Hirosawa This (last) is a strongly Zen poem and represents the highest stage of mushin 1, a totally natural joining, no subject and no object, no plan and no door. 3 Journal of the Eikoku Kend ō Renmei No. 290 Autumn 2008 waza ni koso Technique ri wa areake to must know shiri nubeshi the dawn of Cosmic Order. sh ōji akereba slide the screen back - tsuki no sasu nari moonlight slips in. (Yagy ū-ry ū) One of the predominant mental postures in the study of bu is that a person must develop himself by his own efforts. Understanding and success are the personal achievements of one’s own discipline and effort. This is supported by the Zen notion of jiriki which states that one saves himself (finds his own Buddha nature) rather than salvation by faith or the grace of God. Shint ō also teaches that god is within. ni wa yashir ō The body is a shrine kokoro no kami no the god dwells within aru mono wo your own existence. soto wo inoru wa as for prayer outside oroka nari keri its wasted effort (Shint ō Munen-ry ū) yos ō ni aru Thinking mono to omou zo things to be outside mayoi naru you become lost. Hōtoke mo oni mo Buddha and the devil too kokoro nari keri are within your own heart kokoro da ni A true heart makoto mo michi ni when joined in kanainaba the path of sincerity inorazu totemo even without prayer kami ya mamoran receives divine protection Kaden or teaching poems have been written which deal with almost every aspect of one’s training, from the intangibles of attitude and spirit to technical points of waza (form). Here are three poems about the proper spirit in which to practice. (They are) songs of shugy ō. arais ō no In the pounding surf mokuz ō ga nami ni the seaweed by the waves utareru mo is beaten naosu kaesu but for every blow received makeji damashi it strikes back never losing spirit 4 Journal of the Eikoku Kend ō Renmei No. 290 Autumn 2008 arais ō no Pounding surf nami shiba shiba ni constant waves utsu tachi no no opening in ma nami nuki nashi the sword-beat of the waves mi mo tsukiawasu I can’t match its pace momi ni momi Flashing swords hibana chirashite crossed and drawn utsutachi ni jostling sparks – asemizuku tomo how the rivers of sweat nari ni keri ka na flow together Nevertheless, one can strive too hard, thus losing one’s natural state – the ability to use action and inaction, the hard and the soft; going and not-going, a natural effortlessness. naka naka ni Reached hitozato chikaku a village nari ni keri instead - amari ni yama no come too far oku o tazunete into the mountains tachi mukau Facing the enemy kokoro no uchi wa in one’s heart mōmō no mashi only the void – tada hito suji no simply a straight line tachi no mani mani they’re at the mercy of the sword mayou wasuru Forget confusion teki no me no mae ni look into the enemy’s eye ugokarazu without moving – kokoro miyaku z ō polishing the heart ken no michi naru this is the path of the sword hy ōho wo If your Way katsu to bakkari ni is only thoughts omounaba of winning ky ō no tsutome no daily service oroka narubeshi comes to naught (Shinkage-ry ū) (To be continued) o o o o o o o o o o o o o 5 Journal of the Eikoku Kend ō Renmei No. 290 Autumn 2008 Visit to Japan, April and May 2008 (Part Two) Miko at the Kumano Hongu Taisha Nachi-no-Otaki Reluctantly leaving Yoshino-yama in the glorious spring sunshine, I took the steep cable-car descent and then continued by train to G ōjō to catch the bus for the long winding road down through the high mountains to the Kumano Hongu-taisha then past the famous Yunomine-onsen and finally arrived at the Kawayu-onsen hot springs, in order to spend a couple of days recovering from what had already been a demanding schedule. Perhaps recovering is not quite the right description as it gave me a chance to review the previous week-and-a-half and write up my notes. Kawayu is built beside the rather attractive Oto River which hugs the bank nearest a short string of Japanese ryokan inns. On the opposite side is a wide shingle beach where the devotees of ō-furo dig themselves a shallow scrape, let it fill with hot volcanic water, and bathe – in full view of the inns opposite.