Kendo/Iaido
Iaidō (居合道) can be described as the art of drawing the Japanese sword, katana. The original techniques of Iaidō were designed to be used in combat, but have now been replaced by other intentions. Iaidō is practiced alone against intended opponents according to carefully defined patterns of movement. For those practicing at an advanced level, it can rather be described as a kind of meditation in motion to practice intuitive action, to keep calm in stressful situations, balance, harmony with a lot of focus on concentration. Iaidō can be translated as “the path to harmony with the present” or “the path to harmonious presence”. Characteristic of iaidō is that the practitioner draws the sword and stabs in the same motion. This is called nuki-tsuke in Japanese. Kendo (剣道, Kendō, lit. 'sword way', 'sword path' or 'way of the sword') is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from swordsmanship (kenjutsu), that uses bamboo swords (shinai) as well as protective armor (bōgu).
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