Another newbie enters stage right

[Rose Warrior]

This is my first post, and, as an insomniac, I have spent some time reading this board. First I will give you a brief background, and then my questions. Please note that I am a writer and that “brief” means I do two drafts, and that the second is 10% shorter than the first, but by no means a typical-length post. I apologize in advance.

I have always, always been interested in martial arts, but I have never lived in a place where a dojo is easily accessible. I have, however, been able to acquire several practice weapons. I started out with western medieval type (partially because I am a historian with a keen interest in the early medieval period, and partially because that is what I was offered.) I was told that I had definite skill - I cannot say for sure.

One day at the armoury they were testing various weapons (just for the heck of it - probably not a good idea,) and they invited me to give it a try. At first I refused, and then I fell in love. I saw a katana. To me a katana is the absolute pinnacle of art, grace, and sheer lethal effectiveness. I agreed to give it a try. I picked up the weapon as if it were something sacred. My target (a four-litre milk jug filled with water) sat before me. A horizontal blow was my only option because of how things were set up. I took a stance, concentrated, and delivered the blow. I remember that everybody was silent, and that the water jug seemed to be in one piece, and then someone touched the top, and it fell in two. I was more deeply in love.

I got myself a practice katana (not a bokken, it is actually high performance aluminium) and started doing what I could do with what little knowledge I had (and have.) People tell me that I am good, but what do people know when you're a teenager, right?

Fear not, for there is a point to all of this.

I am getting married next year, and it is to be a fantasy/medieval wedding. I will be wearing my armour, and also a sword. I was going to simply stuff my battered and well-loved practice katana (with its custom made saya) into my sash. This is partially because I have always known that I do not possess the training to carry a real blade, nor have I ever seen myself as worthy of such an honour. (Yeah, kinda geeky, maybe a little too intense, but I am very serious on Japanese culture, history, etc.) A friend of mine told me that he would get me a real katana instead. I told him that such a gift was far too extravagant (which meant that I am not worthy of such a thing.) Then he said something that I'm not sure I believe.

"You are a true swordsman, and you deserve a true sword."

Needless to say that I was not sure how to respond. He said it with absolute earnestly, almost reverence.

Last part of the story, I promise:

I will finally be living in a place where there are dojos, and I am currently shaking with excitement (while trying to keep that composed warrior outer shell) at the fact that I will be able to access the culture and all that it has to offer: physical fitness, concentration, further discipline, kindred spirits, a really cool outfit etc. etc. Finally something to hone what people around me describe as my "warrior spirit." Pff, whatever.

Now to the questions. Only two, I promise... maybe three.

First off: I will be living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Does anyone know of a dojo for kenjutsu and aikido? (Please, oh please.)

Second: My friend said he is going to get me a "Paul Chen Practical Professional Katana." I have never heard of this. Can anyone offer a review?

Third and lastly (no, really): Should I refuse a true blade from my friend until I am deemed ready (i.e. worthy) of even having such a magnificent thing in my possession? Perhaps there is something else that he can offer me if he is that adamant? Perhaps I think about it too much, but I have always seen the way of the sword as practical, but also highly spiritual.

Thank you so very, very much. I posted here because I have come to respect the opinions and advice of many (perhaps all) of the people here.


Kenson,

RW

P.S. Terribly sorry about the length!

[ezzthetic]

As far as your more direct questions go, I have no answers.

However, I think that you should find yourself a good martial arts teacher (any discipline) and simply learn to practice. Subjectively, I think you could use the perspective.

[Charles Mahan]

I'm not saying this is a good place for you to train. You seem to have a lot of preconceptions, maybe that's just this post. These folks are a big organization in the western end of Canada. Perhaps they can point you towards oppurtunities in your area.

http://www.iaido.ca

[Rose Warrior]

You seem to have a lot of preconceptions, maybe that's just this post.

Can you define what these preconceptions are?

Thanks

[pgsmith]

Hi Justin,
As far as I know, the Calgary kendo and iaido club is your only choice for Japanese sword arts ... http://www.nucleus.com/~berar/

I will be a little more blunt than the two previous posters (bad habit of mine!:)) Leave all of the "soul of a warrior" mumbelty jumbo out of the dojo. It is fun stuff for anime fans and ren-faire groups. It won't cut it for an actual Japanese Sword Art. The PPK that your friend is talking about is NOT "such a magnificent thing". It is the very lowest rung of an actual, barely useable sword, just a very minor step above useless wall hangers. Most dojo won't allow them because too many corners are cut in order to mass produce them cheaply.

As Charles said, you have many preconceptions about what the Japanese sword arts are, and what they entail. Empty your mind of all of that and just strive to learn what you are taught, and ignore what you think you already know.

Good luck!

[Martin]

I am getting married next year, and it is to be a fantasy/medieval wedding. I will be wearing my armour, and also a sword. I was going to simply stuff my battered and well-loved practice katana (with its custom made saya) into my sash. This is partially because I have always known that I do not possess the training to carry a real blade, nor have I ever seen myself as worthy of such an honour. (Yeah, kinda geeky, maybe a little too intense, but I am very serious on Japanese culture, history, etc.) A friend of mine told me that he would get me a real katana instead. I told him that such a gift was far too extravagant (which meant that I am not worthy of such a thing.) Then he said something that I'm not sure I believe.

"You are a true swordsman, and you deserve a true sword."


Ok, whoah

I think 'perspective' is definitely the polite way of describing this. Wow.

OK then, one more question: Do you LARP?

If you intend to take an actual, effective MA, sword-based or otherwise, you will very likely find your untested 'skill' to be highly disappointing; I suspect you also might be disappointed by the reality of these arts.

The key here is reality.

[Charles Mahan]

Paul I think you're rubbing off on me. I don't mean to sound like such a curmudgeon. Let's put it this way.

What Iai is:
* Repetitive form based practice. The same patterns over and over and over again. Class after class. Week after week. Month after month. Year after year. Decade after decade. There are only 60 to 80 or so forms in Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu.
* Regular training is primarily solo work with unsharpened practice blades called Iaito.
* Amazingly detail oriented. The details can be as important as how to generate power from the hips, and as seemingly trivial as shifting the heel of your hand on the tsuka a quarter of an inch in one direction or the other. You will spend your entire training career seeking to correct very small aberrations in your technique.
* Repetitive in the extreme.
* Very efficient in movement, which means that there is very little of anything that anyone else would find flashy or exciting. As a result...
* Boring as all heck to watch for any length of time. Even for other practitioners. If there's someone really good performing a demonstration, then there are subtle details to look for, but to the uninitiated(all your friends) it will look amazingly dull.
* Repetitive practice designed to build certain patterns of movement into muscle memory so you don't have to think about them anymore.
* Repetitive
* Hard work. You'll come of the mat in sweating and sore. There's a good chance you'll develop a repetitive stress injury at some point. If you're flat footed, you're at risk for a plantar fascia injury in one foot or the other.
* Potentially very dangerous once you've graduated to a live blade. A guy over on another forum, trying to teach himself from a book, ran his left arm through with his sword. Nearly died after severing two arteries. Still doesn't have full use of that hand. Even the experienced folks have been known to take off their thumb or injure themselves or others in crippling ways. It's rare, but it happens.
* Repetitive beyond your wildest imagingings
* Very tedious
* Hard hard work
* Ultimately rewarding for those who stick with it
* Repetitive

Sense a pattern here?

What Iai is not:
* Iai will not allow you to free spar with other practitioners. There are two man forms in most styles, but you won't see them for years.
* It won't impress anyone. Trust me, other folks, even the geeky kind, pretty much won't get it.
* It won't keep you in especially good shape by itself. It will build certain muscle groups, some like the finger extensors in the right forearm to quite the extreme(ie you'll look like popeye eventually). It'll also build good strong legs, but it's not a cardio workout and is thus not sufficient to keep you thin.
* Not something you'll get to use to show off at any rate. It is unlikely your sensei will want you to continue your studies if you are constantly taking what you have learned and try to use it to show off. This is a pretty seirous endeavor and what you do outside the dojo still reflects on your sensei. Given the nature of the pursuit and it's inherant dangers there is no incentive for a sensei to keep students around who are disruptive or likely to end him in hot water with the local authorities or with higher ups within the organization.


It's not a glamours pursuit by any stretch. In all liklihood, even the renfest folks won't respect you especially for studying a JSA seriously. It's up to you to decide whether or not I judged your preconceptions accurately or not. It's no skin off my teeth what you do.

[pgsmith]

Paul I think you're rubbing off on me. I don't mean to sound like such a curmudgeon.
Wow Charles!
I used to be the patient and explaining one on all of these forums, and you were the impatient and aggressive one. I think we've done a bit of role reversal lately. Heck, you were even agreeing with Dan the other day! I wonder if this is some sort of several year cycle we'll end up regularly going through! :D

[Charles Mahan]

Wow Charles!
I used to be the patient and explaining one on all of these forums, and you were the impatient and aggressive one. I think we've done a bit of role reversal lately. Heck, you were even agreeing with Dan the other day! I wonder if this is some sort of several year cycle we'll end up regularly going through! :D


Oh no no no. Dan was agreeing with me :cool:

[Blaster889]

I felt I needed to ask, for the sake of safety. I'm hardly knowledgable when it comes to such things, but I suppose I'll say what I think.

First, if you think the Chen PPK is extravagant, then I would assume your current blade was much cheaper?

Doesn't that probably constitute "wall-hanger" and shouldn't be swung around anyway?

Second, the general feeling I get from here and swordforum, is that if you haven't been properly trained ("I have never lived in a place where a dojo is easily accessible") then you probably don't know the correct way to weild a sword. And that random (or even book or video referenced) swinging will probably result in bad mechanics, which could lead to your or someone else getting hurt.

In recap, if it's a wallhanger (cheap 'katana/iaito'), put it down and walk away before it breaks and hurts someone. Find a dojo. If someone gives you a live blade, use some restraint and seek guidance before swinging.

Didn't mean to be harsh, just honest (of what I think is truth).

Kyle Chilcutt

[pgsmith]

Oh no no no. Dan was agreeing with me :D

There's one way to positively tell ... You know, I've heard that iaido is non-aggressive and just moving meditation rather than real swordsmanship. :laugh:

[David Anderson]

First off: I will be living in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Does anyone know of a dojo for kenjutsu and aikido? (Please, oh please.)

Second: My friend said he is going to get me a "Paul Chen Practical Professional Katana." I have never heard of this. Can anyone offer a review?

Third and lastly (no, really): Should I refuse a true blade from my friend until I am deemed ready (i.e. worthy) of even having such a magnificent thing in my possession? Perhaps there is something else that he can offer me if he is that adamant? Perhaps I think about it too much, but I have always seen the way of the sword as practical, but also highly spiritual.

Thank you so very, very much. I posted here because I have come to respect the opinions and advice of many (perhaps all) of the people here.



Justin -- In reply to your questions...

1] You would be quite welcome to attend the Nakayamakai dojo I attend. We do Aikido and a lot of sword work there...about an 80/20 ratio of taiho and kenho. When will you be moving to Calgary? What kind of Aikido experience do you have?

2] The Paul Chen [Hanwei] Practical Pro katana is a lower-priced monosteel katana [ie. an unfolded steel blade]. It is reasonably authentic in construction and appearance, and worth its price, but it has a lot to be modest about, so to speak. It would certainly do as a dojo sword until you wanted to buy a better one.

3] If a good friend wanted to present me with a decent sword, I'd be hard put to say no. Just remember to treat it with the utmost caution and respect. Swords are dangerous in untrained hands [and even trained ones can have mishaps] and it's not hard to damage the sword itself by fooling around with it [no more water-bottle cutting, okay?]. Personally, I regard swords with the same respect as a loaded gun...except that the sword can't be unloaded. Handle it safely, and store it safely, okay?.

Drop me a PM if you want to talk more privately...

David

[Charles Mahan]

:D

There's one way to positively tell ... You know, I've heard that iaido is non-aggressive and just moving meditation rather than real swordsmanship. :laugh:

Yeah. Right. Like I'm falling for that. I'm not. No really. Stop laughing. I can hear you from here. Just quit it already. :P

[pgsmith]

You just made me snort tea onto my keyboard Charles! :D

[Kaoru]

Helo there, Rose-san.

You do not need a live blade or an Iaito yet. You first must get into a real dojo.

Mahan-san forgot to mention to you, that in the dojo, if a sensei accepts you, you will not use an Iaito for a while, perhaps, for 2-6 months at least from what I understand. You will only be allowed to use a bokuto.(wooden sword) This is for your safety, and the other dojo member's safety, since a non-trained new beginner has not the ability to properly use a sword with good control.

You may have been told you are good by your friends, but your friends also are not trained in a real JSA(japanese sword art). So, you cannot trust them to say what is correct. You haven't yet had any real instruction, so you do not know anything yet. Please do not rely on your untrained friends to know if you are good, though that was nice for them to say so. Go into the dojo with a curiosity and a willingness to unlearn all the bad habits you have created by teaching yourself. You will spend quite a while un-learning all the bad habits you have made.

Also, please do see my thread entitled:

Why a wallhanger is extremely dangerous, shown in photos. Please READ. (http://www.kendo-world.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6529)

regarding why the use of a wallhanger is VERY bad. I know you have a wallhanger. The one you are currently using is VERY VERY dangerous to you and those near you. I also explain why in other posts, why such a sword is so dangerous. Please take the time to read the entire thread. If you are serious about JSA, you will take the time to read this.

Also, using a sword can end up in the loss of a finger or even worse. Since you are not trained, you have a very high risk of this happening. I do not wish for you to have that happen. I am telling you all this for your safety.

Please do attend a dojo and please do not play with a sword anymore. I say play, because all an untrained person is really doing, is playing. Once you start to really learn in a dojo under a qualified sensei, you will begin to be able to call it doing Iaido. :)

Though this is a comic, please consider the reality of the thing:

http://www.junkertoons.com/images/MAshinken.jpg

Real swords are not toys.

I hope this is of help. Good luck!

[De_Franza]

Justin.
Don't disappear on us!
Your enthusiasm will serve you well when you start to train with a good teacher, so I'd hate to hear you are discouraged by the above posts.
Let us know how it's going.

[Charles Mahan]

You just made me snort tea onto my keyboard Charles! :D
I warned you to stop laughing... but would you listen???? Noooooo.

[Charles Mahan]

Justin.
Don't disappear on us!
Your enthusiasm will serve you well when you start to train with a good teacher, so I'd hate to hear you are discouraged by the above posts.
Let us know how it's going.

If what we've said has discouraged him, then he was not likely to stick around long term anyway. I suspect he isn't discouraged. Probably just thinking it over.

[Rose Warrior]

I am not sure where precisely I should begin.

The obvious, and perhaps most respectful, place would be to thank all of you for your opinions, advice, concerns, and, in those rare occasions :p encouragement.

You did in fact misread my preconceptions. I should not call it "misread," however, since I believe that you can only read what as say as well as I write it, yes? Also it is understandable to believe that I have these preconceptions for two reasons:

a) A lot of people do, and I am sure that you are used to a lot of "yahoos" coming here with a Hollywood image in their head

b) Because, as a writer, I have nasty habits. One of which is romanticizing my language, and the second is using what other people say to describe me, and not describing myself. (I attribute this to being discouraged from writing, and thus using passive voice etc. because I am not quite full of valour in the way of writing. "Quoting" someone else gives what I say more authority, or so the back of my mind says.)

Truly I must apologize for not just biting the bullet and telling you directly. Instead I will address it here. Ah yes, and keep in mind that I do romanticize just about everything – call it my eccentric, hopeless romantic nature.

When I said “soul of warrior” mumbo jumbo I meant (as usual) that is what others say. I think that they are full of ~insert expletive here~. I admit that I am somewhat of a restless spirit, but part of that is the fact that I have not been able to do a lot of things given the fact that I live in a somewhat out-of-the-way location. Soul of the Warrior, however, is something that I do not believe in, or at least not in the way I likely came across. I have a tremendous thirst for learning (for better or worse,) and that is pretty much where it ends.

As far as SCA, LARP etc. Well, let’s just say ~insert another expletive~. I cannot stand those things. It is far too phoney for me. Just madly hacking at each other for the most part. I have seen some good stuff in the SCA, but it turned out that it was actually guys from outside the SCA and they were doing proper study of medieval texts, and just using the SCA for what it’s good for – a (relatively) safe environment in which to test what they had learned. I will admit that I several high-strength performance weapons (one of which is a katana,) and that I love to throw on my armour and such. Mostly I love the awe on the faces of little kids actually. How dumb does that sound? I love to know that the interest and imagination is there, and what I love even more is when they come up and ask for a picture. I love to get people interested. Plus I proposed in my armour when my girlfriend had just stepped on her plane at Calgary International Airport. That is a story for an entirely different time. Along those same lines I remember meeting a guy who did performance medieval fighting, but was also fairly advanced in kenjutsu (cannot remember how far exactly.) I loved the fact that he could do both: fantasy play for people, and solid, proper training.

Once again another misunderstanding because of my unfortunate writing style: (One habit that I am currently breaking in record time, though.) I do not believe that I possess any real skill with a blade except that I am more agile and inventive than those with whom I fight. What I meant in my original post is that “they” say that I possess skill, and I think that they are full of ~expletive again~.

I agree that the sword arts look incredibly tedious, but, as sick as this might sound, I crave that tedious, detail-oriented work. I love it. I will spend hours painting on square inch only to find out that a millimetre of it was the wrong brushstroke, and I love it. If that doesn’t sound twisted, I’m not sure what does. I quite simply have an unquenchable thirst to learn, and I have little care for how long it takes. I seek the top of whatever I study (if there is such a thing – I highly doubt it.) Sword arts and other martial arts are the one area in which I have been insanely interested, but never had the chance to “seek through”, if you will. Truthfully I cannot wait to drag my sore, sweaty body off the floor after practice, and spend hours at home with my wooden sword trying something that I just learned from the master himself. I want all of that hard, tedious work. To me that’s kinda romantic… oops… sorry.

When I called the Practical Pro extravagant I meant in cost. To me my friend (a university student) probably shouldn’t be spending 500+ Canadian dollars on me. I would certainly have no intention of using it at all. I respect weapons of any kind (I work with firearms as well,) and especially those with a blade. I take safety extremely seriously, even with the blunt performance blades, and I would not take that sword off of the rack until it was time for real cutting exercises. I had a bad run-in with a deli slicer once. It wasn’t a serious wound – just took the very tip of my finger – but I learned then and there never to daydream ever again. It wasn’t serious, it didn’t even hurt actually, but I knew that it was an experience to teach me. I truly, truly thank you all for your concern over this issue. I swear to you all that I would never, ever use a live blade without first being trained in its proper use, and then being given the go-ahead to do so.

As you can see, I have no intention of disappearing. Although to be honest I did consider it. I have never had encouragement at all, and I thought that my enthusiasm would show through regardless of how stupid I sound (not that the stupid part has been corrected I’m sure.) As well I was perhaps far too excited to type a post. “Finally I can see about getting in,” I said, shaking like a leaf. If that is the case, then I accept any discouragement that came as my own fault entirely.

Evidently my enthusiasm did show through to someone. Perhaps it showed to all of you, but as I have told you, I did not say what I should have just damn well said – and misunderstandings abound. I thank those who did offer encouraging words, and they are possibly the reason why I am writing this now, and not just regretting the whole thing. I never used to get discouraged, but after years and years of it, and nothing to the contrary to show the hecklers, it wears on a person. No excuse, I know, but just my side of the story. In the end I have this to say about encouragement etc.: I appreciate your honesty, frankness, and concern when it comes to all aspects of this topic. On the other hand I could have really used any words of encouragement mixed in with that honesty. Anything other than “you don’t know what the hell you are doing/talking about” would have been nice. As I’ve said, I cannot blame you. You are all likely used to wannabes doing sword flips and cutting their arm off, and then asking you how to treat a katana wound.

I was indeed thinking it all over, albeit in a slightly discouraged manner sometimes. It is in my nature to spend a vast amount of time thinking, studying, deciding, and I can only hope that something good comes out of it.

It is my sincere belief that you are all magnificent men, and I speak no word of lie when I say that you have all helped me. Beating discouragement back with a big stick is yet another way for me to grow. Getting slapped into writing what I should be writing is a truly great gift, especially when given my “profession.”

Someone asked me when I am moving to Calgary. Here is their answer: Or is that my answer to them? In any case: I will be attending the University of Calgary this coming fall, and will likely be living there for the next three-four years since I am getting married next July and living with my wife (darn that sounds nice) just off of 16th Avenue. After that, who knows?

Once again I thank you all, and I eagerly await the next posts that come speeding my way with unerring accuracy to help shape my mind in ways large and slight.

Kenson,

J. Thurn

P.S. Another thing to keep in mind during reading is that I normally use extremely tongue-in-cheek humour. Ye be warned.

[Charles Mahan]

You talk the talk. Sadly, I still know of no Iaido in your area. Like I said earlier though, the CIA folks might be able to put you in touch with someone in your area http://www.iaido.org Someone higher up offered an Aikido dojo which does some swordwork as well. It might be your only option unless you are willing to move. Vancouver has a lot to offer, but that's a pretty big commitment.

[Neil Gendzwill]

There's two, actually. Chris Gilham is teaching through the Calgary Kendo and Iaido Club (http://www.nucleus.com/~berar/). Dave Rathnow is teaching at Shin Ken Kai Nobara (http://www.skknobara.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Nobara.woa/wa/homePage). Dave's yondan through CKF, which is an IKF affiliate. Chris is also associated with CKF, not sure what rank - at least a couple of dan, probably more by now.

Note - edited to fix mistake in Dave's federation affiliations.

[pgsmith]

I agree that the sword arts look incredibly tedious, but, as sick as this might sound, I crave that tedious, detail-oriented work.
Hi Justin,
Then you should fit right in. It is impossible to become proficient and endure years of iaido without being able to handle the tedium. It seems that you will actually have some some choices up in your neck of the woods. My advice would be to speak with each of the three schools that have been indicated, observe a class or two, and then decide which one you would rather be bored in. :)
Don't get discouraged. The sword arts require a long term commitment and the ability to push yourself for your own sake. As it was described to me quite a few years ago ... "Expect to be ignored if you're doing well. Recognize a grunt and no criticism as high praise."


Dave Rathnow is teaching at Shin Ken Kai Nobara.
Thanks Neil. I didn't know he was up there. Last that I heard about him, he was still in Vancouver. Then again, I don't hear about those guys often.

[Neil Gendzwill]

Messed up the affiliations, though. Both those guys are CKF, it's just that Chris is MSR and Dave is MJER. Dave's sensei is Ken Maneker who teaches in Vancouver, one of the few iaido rokudan guys in Canada.

[Charles Mahan]

Yeah. Ranks above Godan are pretty rare in Canada, and not all that common in the US either. The CIA just had a handful of instructors get their 5dan this year, but Davis-sensei(7dan) is the only guy in that organization with better than a 5dan rank.

I didn't know there were CKF guys in Vancouver. Shows what I know :)

Both CKF folks would be a good oppurtunity, although my bias would be with the MJER dojo. Not just because of my own MJER roots, but because it sounds like that dojo is closer to the 6thdan in Vancouver than the MSR dojo is to a comparably ranked MSR guy.

[Neil Gendzwill]

Yeah, Maneker-sensei has been teaching for some time. IIRC he started out as a student of Asaoka-sensei, but Asaoka-sensei doesn't do much iai these days and I'm not sure who Maneker looks to. Asaoka's instructor is Haga-sensei, who's pretty well known :). So some good lineage, there. Chris is a iaido-l veteran and I'm not sure who he gets instruction from these days. He travelled a lot and trained in a number of places in Japan and around the world.

[mdamignani]

There is now a Genbukan Ninpo dojo in calgary, there is some sword work as well much more, there is more at the higher levels, for info on the Genbukan in Canada go to genbukan.ca. May not be exactly what u are looking for but worth checking out.
sincerly Matthew Damignani

[Rose Warrior]

Thank you all for the input.

Kenson,

J. Thurn

[howard]

Mr. Mahan, imo this is an excellent summary of, and introduction to, Iaido. Justin, this gentleman knows what he's talking about, if I were you I'd listen to him.

For example, the points about MJER forms... many of them contain only two cuts, a drawing cut and a second cut. You will practice these simple patterns endlessly, striving to improve very small nuances each time you do.

Justin, as others have said, please try to seek out a quality sword school, as your enthusiasm definitely warrants it. But I think it's always a good idea to have a realistic view of what you should expect, and I think Mr. Mahan has done a great job of providing that.

Good luck...


Paul I think you're rubbing off on me. I don't mean to sound like such a curmudgeon. Let's put it this way.

What Iai is:
* Repetitive form based practice. The same patterns over and over and over again. Class after class. Week after week. Month after month. Year after year. Decade after decade. There are only 60 to 80 or so forms in Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu.
* Regular training is primarily solo work with unsharpened practice blades called Iaito.
* Amazingly detail oriented. The details can be as important as how to generate power from the hips, and as seemingly trivial as shifting the heel of your hand on the tsuka a quarter of an inch in one direction or the other. You will spend your entire training career seeking to correct very small aberrations in your technique.
* Repetitive in the extreme.
* Very efficient in movement, which means that there is very little of anything that anyone else would find flashy or exciting. As a result...
* Boring as all heck to watch for any length of time. Even for other practitioners. If there's someone really good performing a demonstration, then there are subtle details to look for, but to the uninitiated(all your friends) it will look amazingly dull.
* Repetitive practice designed to build certain patterns of movement into muscle memory so you don't have to think about them anymore.
* Repetitive
* Hard work. You'll come of the mat in sweating and sore. There's a good chance you'll develop a repetitive stress injury at some point. If you're flat footed, you're at risk for a plantar fascia injury in one foot or the other.
* Potentially very dangerous once you've graduated to a live blade. A guy over on another forum, trying to teach himself from a book, ran his left arm through with his sword. Nearly died after severing two arteries. Still doesn't have full use of that hand. Even the experienced folks have been known to take off their thumb or injure themselves or others in crippling ways. It's rare, but it happens.
* Repetitive beyond your wildest imagingings
* Very tedious
* Hard hard work
* Ultimately rewarding for those who stick with it
* Repetitive

Sense a pattern here?

What Iai is not:
* Iai will not allow you to free spar with other practitioners. There are two man forms in most styles, but you won't see them for years.
* It won't impress anyone. Trust me, other folks, even the geeky kind, pretty much won't get it.
* It won't keep you in especially good shape by itself. It will build certain muscle groups, some like the finger extensors in the right forearm to quite the extreme(ie you'll look like popeye eventually). It'll also build good strong legs, but it's not a cardio workout and is thus not sufficient to keep you thin.
* Not something you'll get to use to show off at any rate. It is unlikely your sensei will want you to continue your studies if you are constantly taking what you have learned and try to use it to show off. This is a pretty seirous endeavor and what you do outside the dojo still reflects on your sensei. Given the nature of the pursuit and it's inherant dangers there is no incentive for a sensei to keep students around who are disruptive or likely to end him in hot water with the local authorities or with higher ups within the organization.


It's not a glamours pursuit by any stretch. In all liklihood, even the renfest folks won't respect you especially for studying a JSA seriously. It's up to you to decide whether or not I judged your preconceptions accurately or not. It's no skin off my teeth what you do.