Comments for What does it take to practice Nito Kendo?

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Aug 28, 2014
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starstarstarstarstar 		Wants to do nito
by: Anzhou Yang

Hi everybody. I'm a mudan whos gonna be a shodan within a half a year. I was first thinking about learning Jodan-no-kamae, but then I also wish to learn nito.

So what I wish to know is: Is jodan proficiency necessary/recommended before the practice of nito.

Mind you that of course as a mudan I know perfectly well that I should not practice either nito- or jodan YET! But I'm just gathering information and planning ahead. When I have attained the rank of maybe ni-dan or san-dan I could start asking my sensei for permission for jodan or maybe even nito practice, (for nito I have to go to japan because here in Finland we don't have anybody who can perform nito).

So can anybody give me some information regarding this matter?

Kendo-Guide.Com: Thank you for your question. I believe that if you practice your footwork very well you will be almost there. And also you should switch your feet position when practicing footwork. You should be able to do footwork with your left foot forward and the right one back.

Also practice sidesteps as well.

Now you must coordinate the footwork and striking motion; one hand and both hands. Even when you decide not to take jodan or nito, those practice will help you with kendo.

Hope this helps.
Jun 05, 2013
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starstarstarstarstar 		Searching nito reference
by: Alejandro Robledo

Hi,

I´m Alejandro Robledo Bueno, Kenshi from Spain, teacher in Seishin no Ken (Iaido and Kendo Club in Madrid better Known as Makoto-Madrid) and nito practitioner.

I've been practicing Itto Kendo since 1999, and Nito since 2007, based in Toda sensei and Matthew Raymond videos and writings. Now I’m focusing more in nito practice and I’m searching for a proper teacher (i know there are no Senseis in Europe) nearby.

Please, if any knows about any good reference which I can contact to guide better not only me, but my dojo, in Nito practice, I should be very grateful.

You can find me on Facebook, just with my name ^^.

Thank you very much, and sorry about my English.

Alex.

<strong>Kendo-Guide.Com:</strong> Thanks for your comment. I do not know any guide for nito. Not sure if you can find any. But if I find, I will post Kendo For Life related pages!
Oct 24, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		Nito Teachers in japan
by: Manuel Mota

Hello, it's me again.

Of course there are Nito teacher in Japan, but not many. Real "teachers" are 3 in whole japan.


Toda Sensei, Nakamura Sensei and Sasaki Sensei.


Of course, there are some people that are studying under these people and they can show you nito ryu too.


But they don't call themselves Sensei. I went to Japan to study nito ryu, without any kendo experience at all. And they told me they would teach me. And again I have to say, Imafuji sensei is right!


it's so important to find a sensei that not just teaches you technique but also the "way" of kendo. To find your lifetime Sensei!


I went to Tokyo and found him. He's a member of Musashikai and teaches me nito ryu and itto. If you really want to try, and you want to go to Japan, you are welcome to contact me and I will introduce you to my teachers.


Hope I could help a little!
greetings,
Manu


Kendo-Guide.Com: Thank you for your post. Musashi-kai is one of the biggest nito ryu groups in Japan, just in case readers do not know what it is.


I do not know that there are only three teachers in Japan but I presume there aren't many. If I remember correctly, Toda sensei is one of those who wanted to preserve nito ryu in kendo so he, I think, volunteers to learn nito. So he had to learn nito from someone or he went through old writings.


As we all know he is well-known for one of the great nito practitioners all over the world. And we must know that he was well-known for one of the great jodan practitioners back in his old days.


Thank you, Maru, for your contribution. I am sure many of the readers want to learn nito when they go to Japan.
Sep 11, 2010
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starstarstarstarstar 		This article was really helpful!
by: Matt W.

I have personally been interested in practicing kendo in nito-no-kamae for many years. When fooling around with it in the dojo, something about it just feels right for me personally. I do not think this has to do with any desire to be "different" or "special", although i realize that those are the most common reasons for people taking up nito. The reason i want to learn it is simply the fact that it feels right and I believe it will help my kendo practice. However, I have been wondering when it would be a good idea to start.

The reason I write this comment is to ask for advice. I've been following this website since the beginning of its cyber-dojo days and have found this site invaluable to my kendo practice.

As an exposition to my question, I'm 22 and hold a san-dan and have been practicing for around 14 years now. It has been my dream to practice in Japan specifically to learn nito-no-kamae as there are no nito teachers where I currently live. There are a few self-taught nito users in my federation. One of whom holds a 5-dan but again, he's self-taught.

I have pretty much decided that upon graduating college (which may take a while ^_~), I will practice in Japan for at least a few months. But again, life often throws things at you that you never expect. While this is a dream, it may be unreasonable at the time.

I like to think that I know enough about kendo to understand that it is impossible (unless you're a genius) to become proficient in an advanced stance such as nito-no-kamae or jodan without a teacher.

So my question to Imafuji-sensei:

Do you think it would be a better idea to find a teacher in Japan who will teach a foreigner nito-no-kamae or nito-ryu if need be? If so, are there teachers who will teach me (or others)?

Or should I stick with what I have and ask my 5-dan friend to teach me?

Kendo-Guide.Com: Thank you for your post and having been with me for a long time! I think you have learned kendo long enough to start experimenting what attracts you. However, if you are thinking to go to Japan, you probably want to wait until you can learn from a good teacher.

It is always a good idea to learn a proper teacher. A proper teacher means that he can teach you not only techniques but also how kendo can help you in your life. In other words, you must find your life time teacher.

That is more important than just learning techniques. As I wrote somewhere, there is a saying in Japan; ?Seek an excellent teacher even if it would take you three years?. It basically indicates how important it is to learn from a good teacher.

Good luck and do go to Japan!
Dec 09, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		I'm a beginner
by: Anonymous

I 'practice' jodan when I'm paired off w/ someone taller than me only - otherwise, I wait for my sensei's opinion of when I should practice it.

I should master chudan first.

Kendo-Guide.Com: Yes, it is true that we should study chudan thoroughly.

Personally, I do not want my students take jodan if they are beginners because they cannot control shinai. But it sounds like you take jodan under good supervision.

If you are reading this and do not have a good instructor, I strongly recommend you should not take jodan.
Sep 05, 2009
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starstarstarstarstar 		Starting nito
by: Viany C.H

I would like to comment a little bit about this article, because I also wrote a similar question regarding nito.

Personally I strongly agree with sensei Imafuji.  First, you should have a sensei that can teach you nito but if you don't have one, you have to master the chudan no kamae first. Then you'll understand how to use jodan and nito.

I learned nito by myself but I have one person (7th dan in Kumdo, Korean kendo) who is my best friend that gave me some good points about how to take nito.

I started nito practice outside my regular keno classes and started jodan waza, which include footwork, grips and body movement as a whole integrated movement so I could execute the jodan techniques nicely. Then when I got the "feel" of jodan, I stated practicing nito.

In practicing nito, I follow the same steps I took as I practiced jodan (but with two swords, daito in my right and shoto in my left hand).  

Hope this will give you some points of view.

Kendo-Guide.Com: Thank you for your advice. It is always nice to have a friend who holds high rank :)

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