How to Master the Japanese Art of the Sword

Co-authored by John Graden

Last Updated: December 6, 2024

Handling swords is not an easy thing to master, it takes years of instruction to use one correctly, and even then you will still make some mistakes. Set short term goals in swordsmanship, with your long term goal always being to improve yourself. Please note, a knowledge of physics and geometry will only make this easier. Also, this is a very technical article, intended for people who are actually interested.

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Clear up a few myths. Ninja swords were straight and shorter than the curved katana a samurai used. Although every sword is different, and the Ninja had their own specifications like any other sword school, they are all Katana (Nihonto), they were either forged as Koto (old sword) Shinto (new sword) or Shinsakuto (New Revival Sword). It is in recent years that people have begun to believe that ninjas used secret techniques and special swords. It IS true that they had their own fighting systems with a sword, but keeping sword techniques a secret was the regular practice of almost all japanese sword schools. If you want to learn Ninjutsu, Study with a Qualified Bujinkan Instructor.
- There is a saying: "the sword that saves man kills man ." The sword is a tool for killing . No matter whose hands it is in. If you want to master a sword, then you must be at peace with death, both your own and someone else's.
- You cannot move at superhuman speeds just because you know how to use a sword. It does not make you faster or give you some kind of power. A sword is a special chunk of metal . The skills you learn after many hours of practice with a qualified teacher do not open up a floodgate of secret energy within you. Nothing, not even the samurai, is unbound by the laws of Physics and Geometry when a sword is used correctly.
- You can't cut through trees in one slice. And if you try you'll probably ruin your sword, the cutting you see in movies is either faked or done with bamboo, which can be cut at such.
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Study all of the eight directions. Yes, the compass directions. ^{[1]
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- Stand facing forward, you can define four quadrants easily (think of this as though you're facing north, even if your not): north, south, east, and west. Now think about the four sub-quadrants, called octants: Northwest, northeast southwest, and southeast. These make up a total of eight ways. You can do a simple exercise to learn them, too.
- Stand with your right foot forward, left foot back, pointed out to your left, they shouldn't be too far apart, but they shouldn't be too close together, either. Now step with your right foot and bring your left foot so that you're exactly like you were before. That's one, or north.
- Here comes the hard part: the pivoting technique. Examine your stance, with as little effort as possible, turn to the stronger side. In swordsmanship, a strong-side turn is simply turning to the side that will make you use lesser amount of effort when compared to the otherwise. (Whilst turning otherwise is called back-turn or weak-side turn.) If your right foot is forward, pivot back to your left, vice versa.
- Now step in with your leading foot and turn back to your first direction. That's called Zango. Two directions of movement, and that's also how you do the eight ways. Move through on a strong side pivot to 3, which comes instead of the redirect north. Do zango. 5, 6, 7, and 8 are a little different. From 4, turn 45 degrees to your strong side by sliding your back foot (in this case, your right) in to face the fifth way. Zango from this and do the same to reach 7 and 8. When you hit 8, you should be easily be able to turn back to one. Do that 1000 times. If you want something a little more interesting, try stepping backwards instead of forwards. Then combine the two by doing both. That is Hachi Kata (Method of Doing 8 [ways], or Hachi Do (lit. Eight way).
It will pass your eyes and ears often. It's a simple phonetic language and can be learned easily. Ask a native speaker to teach you to pronounce, or watch some subtitled anime.
No matter how hard you try, you can't master the sword on your own, or with videos. Try for any style done pre-17th century. Try to stay away from Kendo, it's a sport and you are not likely to do any real cutting, but if that's all you can find go for it. ^{[2]
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Stand with your body squared (just as though you're standing with friends, but your shoulders need to be in line with your hips, and your back straight), feet should be shoulder width apart. ^{[3]
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- Take the sword (still sheathed) in your left hand, blade side up (outside of the curve facing up) and by the upper part of the saya (sheath). Pull it up against your left side as though it were in your Obi (belt).
- Grasp (don't grab) the Nakago (hilt) right below the Tsuba (hand-guard), and pull straight out, as though you were using the Nakagojiri (very end of the hilt, the end cap) to hit your opponents stomach.
- STOP THERE. Imagine yourself in samurai armor. How would you stop from cutting your webbing and/or arm?
- Step your left foot back as you draw out and move the sword in an arc over, and point the tip as though you were pointing it at the chest of an enemy as tall as you.
- Set the saya aside and put your left hand on the nakagojiri, so the the bottom of your hand ends at the end of the sword.
- To look like you know what you're doing, rotate the blade to the Ura (left) by a few degrees. Congrats, you're now in right-foot-forward-center(or middle)-guard position.
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Learn the Six Ways. ^{[4]
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1. Stand in Center guard with your right foot lead. Now raise the sword up, so that it's blade points about 45 degrees behind you (i.e. straight up would be 90, straight back would be 0). This is Right foot forward upper position .
2. Stand in right foot upper, and move the blade down, until it forms a 45 degree angle pointing down, don't move your shoulders off your center. This is right foot lower position .
3. Move to right foot upper and step your left foot in so that it is in the lead and your right foot is pointed to your right side, do this without moving the sword. This is left foot upper .
4. Move the sword out to the side of your head, pointed about 15 degrees off of the 90, but don't hold it right next to your head, because you're still wearing a helmet, and a wide one at that. This is left foot lead, middle .
5. Square up your body, while still keeping your right foot behind, and your left foot forward, move the handle of the sword to your center, while the blade is still pushed back. This is left foot forward lower .
They are merely springboards to your movements. Practice moving between these on your own, but not fast. Move slowly and fluidly, speed will come later. Then get a partner and have him move while you match, then match him a-symmetrically, by doing something different, but at the same rate. Be the shadow to the eagle. Then have your partner be the shadow to your eagle.
Start out in right foot lead, center guard. Raise the sword over your head into an upper-esque looking move, but not the same. Swing the sword down, and bring the handle to your center. That is called Shomen'uchi (downward cut to the head). Another thing to try is Yokomen'uchi, a downward cut to the side of the head or neck. (If your taking Aikido, all of these words will be falling into place shortly) The cut you just made is the primary technique of Japanese kenjutsu (swordsmanship) no matter what school. ^{[5]
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Kenjutsu is something that takes stamina, so you need to practice. Take the cut you just learned and do it 1000 times, sets of 5, 10, or 50. That burn your going to feel will teach you what you need to know. But remember, practice makes perfect, so if your doing it wrong, you'll keep doing it wrong. So join a dojo.
They can be made by a slide (actually, it's a step, but it's a step with your lead foot, that's why your sword stance needs to have your feet close) a step, or just standing. Just remember to index your cut from above your head. That means to pick it up over your head before you cut, because you might have to turn around and cut an enemy behind you before dealing with whoever is in front of you. Example of indexing is left foot lead, lower position. Your instinct is to deal with what's in front of you, so naturally you would draw the blade past your ear. Instead you need to pick it up over your head, pretty much into upper, then make your cut.
Do 10 sets of 10 of all of the cuts you can think of every day or so(remember to do downward cuts, not sweeps and thrusts) . You find it gets a lot easier over time, and you can move to heavier bokken (wooden sword), suburito(a heavier bokken, usually more than 6 pounds) , or iaito (an unsharpened katana).
When you do, you're on your way to becoming a skilled swordsman, but this is all I can teach you, you need to go find a school of kenjutsu in your area. If you can't, and your devoted enough, move. There are good schools all over America, and usually your local community college will offer classes in a Japanese Martial Art, if they don't teach Kenjutsu they might know someone who does.

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Is 11 too young to pursue kenjutsu?

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No, you are never too young to follow your dreams! But be careful that you don't tear or hurt your muscles when practicing.

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What are the three types of sword movements?

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Thrusting, slashing and parrying are the three types of sword movements.

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Should the left arm be used more than my right, even if I'm right-handed?

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It depends on how you feel more comfortable. Often a right-handed user will put their right hand on the handle and their left hand under it. It wouldn't hurt to work on becoming ambidextrous.

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Tips

Repetition is everything . If you're part of a school, do the suburi they give you; otherwise follow these with both left and right foot lead.

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Always follow your teacher's advice. They are your guides, and will help develop your skills.

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Going ahead is okay, but your teacher will know your pace. Don't go too far ahead, your body needs time to adapt to the new skills. You might pull or tear a muscle; don't strain yourself too much.

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Warnings

Check the laws in your area to make sure it's legal to own a katana, or practice in public, and try not to disturb the peace.

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Try not to hit yourself.

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And never EVER threaten any one else's life with it

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Don't carry a bladed weapon unless you have a license (i.e. you're a marine officer or a licensed bodyguard)

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Never threaten the thin blue line, they will taser you.

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Don't slash things with your sword/bokken it doesn't teach you anything.

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Never preform edge on edge combat, movie swords aren't sharpened and can be as thick as ¹ ⁄ ₂ inch (1.3 cm), a real sword vs real sword will ruin both. To block you use the mune (back) of the sword.

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Safety comes first, always wear protective gear before you ever touch a sword.

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Don't start with a live (a weapon with a ground and sharpened edge) blade right away, a bokken is the best, but if your dead set on steel, try an iaito (pronounced ee-i-toe), an unsharpened katana. They'll run you between 100 and 1000 dollars, and you can probably find some good ones on ebay, Bugei swords, are suggested they have the highest quality steels, and forging techniques, a simple Iaito will run you 600 bucks from them.

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If you're searching for professional instruction, Western Fencing and Kendo are two great ways to learn how to fight. Do your homework first and research the school.

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"Studying" a martial art without proper guidance and supervision from an experienced instructor can more often create more bad habits than any amount of skill to gain. Were it something you could easily teach yourself then there would not be people instructing.

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Things You'll Need

A bokken (recommended, but other blunt swords are good for practice too)
A large room with high ceilings or an outdoor space
Practice dummy

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