Giho 61 Overview of Kenjutsu II Preparation and Maai/ 剣術の概要 弐 稽古準備と間合いについて
Kenjutsu Overview II – About Training Preparations and Maai
When practising Tenshinryuu’s kenjutsu, one first learns 刀法 (touhou – lit. “sword method”).
刀法 (touhou) refers to an accumulation of one-shot techniques whose number exceeds one hundred.
Yet even having learnt a multitude of 刀法 (touhou), they are not techniques that easily used in real combat.
Combining several of those 刀法 (touhou) to create 勢法 (kata), we practise until we are able to utilize the 刀法 (touhou) freely.
Explanation
When practising kenjutsu, please make sure to, as far as possible, perform the preparations that we are now going to explain.
We perform them from bottom to top.
First is the hakama.
1. Get the momodachi
Get the 相引止 (aibikidomari) through the hakama strings to retrieve the 股立ち (momodachi).
Doing so will give your legs more freedom to move around.
2. Put on the tasuki
Next, put on the 襷 (tasuki).
When actively moving around, your kimono’s or nagagi’s sleeves might get in the way.
Because of that, by putting on the 襷 (tasuki) we can secure our sleeves and as a result move more easily.
3. Put on the hachimaki
Next, put on the 鉢巻 (hachimaki).
A multitude of literature from back then has survived that document how, after war or combat, ears and fingers were lying around on the ground.
In Tenshinryuu a teaching has been passed down that tells us to hide our ears when wearing a 鉢巻 (hachimaki) in order to make it harder to get them removed – as such, please keep that in mind and be sure to wear a 鉢巻 (hachimaki).
About the maai
Please allow me to elaborate on the maai during 刀法 (touhou) practice.
In a narrow space take a maai of nine shaku, i.e. around 270 cm and commence the training.
At this maai, if you take step forward with your right foot, both kissaki are just at the right distance where they almost (or barely) touch. From there begin the 刀法 (touhou) practice.
We call the maai at which both kissaki touch each other 截間 (kirima – lit. “cut-off distance”) or 截間境 (zanmazakai – lit. “cut-off distance border”).
In case you can practise in a wide open space, get a maai of twelve or thirteen shaku, i.e. around 360-3⑨0 cm.
Then shorten the maai bit by bit.
Once both kissaki almost (or barely) come in contact, begin the 刀法 (touhou) practice from there.