What is Shinkendo and how did I get here?

I have always been attracted to various forms of ritual or period combat.
As kids, my brother and I played it as entertainment with the kids we grew up with, hiding in the dark among the yards of the neighborhood homes and trying to find the enemies of our choose-up teams, but sometimes it was even every man for himself. I suppose it’s a boy thing, but at the time we took it as serious fun.

My interest in martial arts began in 1969, while I was in the Navy. During my training in Memphis, TN, I would take the one-hour bus ride two or three days a week to take instruction in Taekwondo. Martial art schools were not much back then and hard to find, but I was fascinated and wanted to see what this was all about. Following my introduction there, over the years I experimented with Judo, Kenpo, Kung Fu, but not being in one place for very long kept me from becoming proficient and developing my skills. I was competent enough, but as with all of us from time to time, life happens and my interest in martial arts had to take a back seat to working and making a life.

As I got back into it, I found that I also had an additional fascination with weapons. Not modern ones, but the traditional kind you only find if you look beyond the norm. And later, with my boys both in martial arts and their own interests being tested, I found that there was much more to be gained by learning early weapons through my curiosity. It required conditioning and concentration, and in turn gave me better reflexes, balance, confidence, and even better conditioning. I took up fencing, and archery, and even spent a while participating in the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism), where researching and re-creating the arts and skills of pre-17th-century is a way of life. I learned a great deal from the SCA, along with making my own armor and getting the thrill of real physical combat, but something was missing. Although my interest in the middle ages of Europe was enjoyable, something about the Far East was beckoning me.

Some number of years back I started looking for a Kendo school, but there was only one within an afternoon’s drive and they never returned my inquiries. I was just about to give up, when I found a school in Mesa, AZ on the internet that offered up something called Shinkendo. I figured… “What the heck”, and went to check it out. Jeff and Marlene Harris were sensei there and cheerfully welcomed me into the fold. It wasn’t always easy to grasp it, and early on I often found myself questioning whether I was going to “get it.” However, I hung in there and after my share of successes and malfunctions, I have gotten further with this than any other physical endeavor I’ve ever attempted. Like any physical activity it takes dedication and constant practice. Learning Shinkendo is a continuous and evolving training, which builds on itself as your proficiency increases. Any time I thought I was finally getting the hang of something, Jeff and Marlene changed it, adding new twists and turns with capricious regularity, to keep the challenge there as long as I was willing to reach for it. This was all done with the slightest detectable smile on the side, and a reminder not to get too used to doing something the way we learned it.

So what is Shinkendo anyway?

Shinkendo and the International Shinkendo Federation was founded by Toshishiro Obata, and dedicated to teaching authentic Japanese swordsmanship. He has schools scattered all over the United States, but has schools in nine other countries as well.

Shinkendo coalesces Japanese swordsmanship into a historically accurate method samurai once trained and fought, and no one is better qualified to do this than Obata Kaiso. His samurai family roots can be traced back to the time of Tokugawa Shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada. His swordsmanship knowledge is unequaled, and whenever the opportunity is available, it is always a thrill and an honor to train under him. His passion is evident, and he always seems to be searching for new ways to keep us pushing ourselves to the next level. (Now I know where Jeff and Marlene got it from.)

Shinkendo is based on five principal areas: Battoho, Tanrengata (or Kata), Suburi, Tachiuchi, and Tameshigiri. Each component laces together into an ever-expanding system of moves and combinations of moves that allows for flexibility and encourages innovation not found in most other martial arts. The depth of training, and the mental and physical toughness it gives you are well worth the journey.

In all the time that I have studied Shinkendo, I never imagined (or expected) to rise to my current level. I have made a lot of friends along the way, have a lot of people to thank for getting me there, and found it to be one of my most rewarding personal undertakings. However, my own personal trek with Shinkendo is still far from over. There are still plenty of summits to go for, which include opening a school of my own.

When you have a few minutes, travel out to: http://www.shinkendo.com. There you can get the complete story in detail, as well as meet some of the people who make all of this possible.