Different Styles of Iaido Instruction:
Japan vs USA

 

My experience with Iaido began when I was a freshman during university in Japan.  Having practiced Kyudo, I was searching for another martial art to practice.  I was drawn to Iaido for reasons unknown to me.  It has been six years now, and I am still a practitioner.

I was taught by Takashi Kanamori and Kazuhiko Yokoyama at Nagano where the winter Olympics were held in 1998.  Keiko is 5 times a weeks.  But unlike the usual keiko where transmission of knowledge is one-way from the instructors to the students, students are encouraged to ask questions and develop individuality.  It was a teaching philosophy that provides a wonderful learning environment for Iaido.

After I graduated, I came to Ohio in the United States as an Au Pair in June of 2006.  I was extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend the national Iaido seminar, which also happened to be in Ohio.  At first, I was nervous because everyone was a stranger to me.  However, the common interest in Iaido allows the making of friends very easily.

One major difference at seminars between the two countries is the fact that in the United States, regardless of rank, anyone is welcomed to ask questions.  In Japan, beginners are expected to refrain from asking questions.  I connect very strongly with this characteristic teaching philosophy because it resembles that of my home dojo.

A few months later, I moved to Hudson Valley New York, where I was glad to reunite with people who I met during the seminar once again.  After various stays at different dojos, I finally settled down at Princeton Kendo Club, where I felt at home.  I would be asked to assist in teaching, where I happily answer all sorts of different questions from students of many backgrounds; they range from bowing etiquette and the difference between Heijo-shin and Fudo-shin.  It is an excellent opportunity for me to share my Iaido knowledge that I have gained in Japan, and to also learn from them.