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Post by tajima on Jun 7, 2007 21:48:49 GMT
Hey, I took my sword to the dojo yesterday and my Sensei set up a cutting test - a single belt hanging from a pole with no weight on it. He told me to cut the belt. After one failed slice, which batted the weightless belt out of the way and made the blade cause a slice in the foam mat I stood on, I picked up the blade and knew this time I would not be using strength but speed. So I hoisted me gi pants and made a mighty swing - slicing the belt clean in half. After three attempts Sensei could not manage to get further than halfway through in a slice and then my black belt Sempai tried - batting it away twice. He let me take another swing, but I only managed half way through this time. We then tried Kendo with Shinai - hell, I whacked the poo out of that guy! PICS: Forgive the bad quality, I couldn't be bothered to make a box and all that. School morning, y'know?
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Post by rammstein on Jun 7, 2007 22:09:55 GMT
Schools out for me. Ended late may. But neat cut
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Post by randomnobody on Jun 7, 2007 23:28:42 GMT
In my old MA school, cutting a belt would have been blasphemy.
Great test, though, really. What sword were you using?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2007 2:53:35 GMT
In my old MA school, cutting a belt would have been blasphemy. Great test, though, really. What sword were you using? Why the Blasphemy for ? The coloured belt thingy was invented for the sake of westerners learning martial arts. Originally Japanese MA were only taught using Kata, but most westerners need to feel an regular, visual accomplishment to justify their learning( also for dodgy instructors to make money from gradings out of their students). So the coloured belt thingy came into place. The belt systems colours follow exactly the same order as Snooker balls, which are to be hit in at the end of a snooker game in a colour coordinated order. I forget who it was that implemented this ? This is why I do not say that I do a martial art, I do a Koryu. We still learn in the old way of Kata. Where as Tajima said his teacher is "sensei", my teachers get offended if I term them as that. My instructors are 'sempai', with the only True Sensei of Shinto Muso ryu is in Japan. He is 86, and his name is Nishioka-sensei, to me and others doing the same art. There are only about four grades in my Koryu, these are marked with scrolls not belts. Also I feel the term 'Sensei' is a very overused term and doesn't always reflect the knowledge of the particular intsructor. Tajima, when you termed "gi" pants that you hoisted up do you mean 'Hakama'(split skirt) ? Or was it your belt you cut in half ! ;D
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Post by randomnobody on Jun 8, 2007 3:26:02 GMT
Perhaps the western ideal of personal achievement is a little overdone, but nevertheless we held our own achievements and progress in our own learning, represented in the belts we so proudly wore, and showed the same level of respect some give their sword, and treated our belts as extensions of our own body, mind, and spirit. In those belts can (and often was) seen the sweat and blood we devoted to ourselves and our art, in the name of...well, our selves and our art. They were a symbol of where we'd come to thus far, and how much further we had to go. It made sense to us, back then. Kinda silly now. This was, by the way, some seven or eight years ago. I was young then.
We never referred to anybody as "sensei" or "sen(m)pai," there were only the "instructors," those who were presently...instructing. The most advanced person in our own system was a level 9 black belt (pardon me for not knowing all the fancy words) out of 10 levels. I got to meet him twice.
I've never experienced the joys of wearing hakama. We wore those wacky pants suits with the overlapping shirts that were otherwise normal clothing.
Anyway, HEY, MAN, NICE CUT!!
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Post by tajima on Jun 8, 2007 6:16:58 GMT
We do not use Orange. I am using the marked-white belt in traditional form. For younger (adolescent) black belts, we call them Sempais. The main taker of the class is Sensei, and our overall "boss" is Shihan.
And I didn't have the traditional hakama on at the time. I was only wearing the plain white karate gi, as it was just after warm up. We were just about to get changed
We cut the belt because it is surplus in the shed. We are taught it does contain a spirit, but this belt is a good 20 year old and had never been used in the dojo.
The sword was my mighty Musashi Swords "Wind" Katana.
Randomnobody, they are gi (shortened name - the full name is escaping me). We wear them for karate, under the hakama so we have something to change out of.
Hope that answers your questions/queries.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2007 9:44:05 GMT
they are gi (shortened name - the full name is escaping me). We wear them for karate, under the hakama so we have something to change out of. 'gi' is usually short for Kendogi.
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Post by randomnobody on Jun 8, 2007 18:30:20 GMT
We wore the gi at all times while within the school. We didn't call it "dojo" too often, either. We were not to wear our overcoats (lol terminology eludes me again) or belt outside. It was improper and disrespectful. We didn't handle weapons much.
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Post by tajima on Jun 8, 2007 23:03:24 GMT
We do not handle weapons during karate, only Kobudo. Yes! Kendogi! That is it And I don't wear my gi outside of the dojo - unless home-training.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2007 21:57:59 GMT
Doesn't your sensei know about tameshigiri with tatami omote?
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Post by tajima on Jun 12, 2007 4:31:53 GMT
Yes, but he reserves it for grading. His best sword is 440...(Well, that is the sempai). My sensei has a 1040/1060 folded steel (100k layers) which is very nice.
He enjoys pool noodles. Heh.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2007 4:49:03 GMT
Actually, the more general term is "keikogi", which literally means "practice clothing". You substitute the "keiko" with the name of whatever style you are practicing, such as "karategi" or of course, "kendogi".
Sorry to drag up the old thread, but I felt that it had to be mentioned.
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