Further member comments

"I started my Kyudo training in Honolulu, in 1984.  In 1985 I participated in the 'Kanyaku Inmin Commemoration International Goodwill Tournament'.  I competed against archers that came from different Prefectures throughout Japan.

After relocating to Maui and then to Las Vegas in 1997, I had a difficult time finding a (Kyudo) Dojo.  With luck, a stranger pointed me in the direction of a Henderson Recreation Center....there I met Wudarski Sensei.

I am now a four-year member of Nevada Kyudo Kai, and happy to say that my new Kyudo family has filled that 'void' since my transition from the islands.

Those interested but unfamiliar with Japanese culture will discover that Japanese people go by practicing aesthetic (artistic) principles.  As an observer, you will not see the hidden complexities that Kyudo requires of an archer.  There is more to Kyudo than just going through the formality of movements in this 'Ceremony'.

Yes, 'Ceremony'.  Like Chado (Tea Ceremony), you don't practice Chado just to drink tea....Kyudo is the same, you don't practice Kyudo just to shoot arrows.

I enjoy Kyudo in all its entirety, although I think the most beautiful part of Kyudo is Hanare (the release).  The moment your arrow goes on its 'own will power'--called Kiai (most often compared to the exact moment a dew drop falls off a leaf)--is what I like to describe as 'the moment of truth'.  Mind, spirit, and energy, the result of everything working in unison.

Fujino Sensei of Hawaii Kyudo Kai once said, 'If you think you know everything there is to know about the Art of Kyudo, then it's time for you to move on to something else.'

That was twenty-eight years ago.  I am now sixty years old....and still learning."

--Karen, Ikkyu

Instruction at Yamaji Dojo

Because we cannot possibly learn Kyudo from books or even videos alone, those who practice Kyudo hold a deep and abiding respect for the generosity and dedication of our teachers.

At Yamaji Dojo, we are deeply thankful for the guidance and instruction given to us by Takako Matsui-Swain Sensei, of the Indiana Kyudo Renmei.  And we recognize the teachings she has passed down to us from her instructor, Makoto Matsuoka Sensei.

More comments on kyudo practice

"For most of my life I've held an interest in in Feudal Japan and the Samurai.  I've been involved in martial arts since high school, specifically Aikido and Iaido.  When I turned twenty-one I got started in Kyudo.

Those first few weeks were pretty frustrating.  As Sensei Wudarski showed me how to use the Japanese bow (Yumi), I discovered muscles I didn't know I had.  Despite my frustrations, I really enjoyed the art and determined to become proficient.

At the end of that first year, I attended my first Seminar and tested.  Due to a mix of excitement, frazzled nerves and an unfocused mind, I only made Ikkyu (first rank) instead of Shodan (first degree).  Though disappointed, I remembered the last line of the Raiki-Shagi:

"...this is an occasion to search for oneself."

At my second Seminar, being nervous and worried, Sensei continued to remind me to concentrate and focus on my form.  Heeding his advice and hearing his voice in the back of my head, I earned my rank of Shodan.

Even though I am now Nidan (second degree), I am still searching for my true self."

--Chris, Nidan


For those who may be interested, here is the full text of the Raiki-Shagi (Record of Etiquette-Truth of Shooting), which is one of the important historical texts describing Kyudo philosophy:

Raiki-Shagi  (Record of Etiquette-Truth of Shooting)

The shooting, with the round of moving forward or backward can never be without courtesy and propriety (Rei).

After having acquired the right inner intention and correctness in the outward appearance, the bow and arrow can be handled resolutely.

To shoot in this way is to perform the shooting with success, and through this shooting virtue will be evident.

Kyudo is the way of perfect virtue.  In the shooting, one must search for rightness in oneself.  With the rightness of self, shooting can be realized.

At the time when shooting fails, there should be no resentment towards those who win.  On the contrary, this is an occasion to search for oneself.

2012 American Kyudo Seminar

We would like to offer congratulations to our member Galen, for passing the rank examination for Shodan, at the 17th American Kyudo Seminar, hosted this year by the Northern California Kyudo Federation, in Davis, California.

Omedetou Gozaimasu!

Some thoughts from our members

We've asked our dojo members to share their thoughts on the practice of Kyudo.  Here are a couple of the comments so far:

1.
Why I joined archery

On a sunny spring morning in March of 2011, my PE class announced that we were going to practice archery for one week.  It has inspired me to join this Japanese archery class.  After almost a year, I still continue to participate in Japanese archery.  I have learned many, many things throughout Japanese archery. I have become a better and stronger archer through the past 13 months.

(--Jackie, Mudan)


2.

When I was first learning Kyudo, my favorite part to practice was yatsugae:  the sequence of nocking the arrows.  It's a precise series of steps, involving specific movements of the bow, the hands, the arrows, the direction of one's eye gaze, and even breathing.

So much of Kyudo is about patient attention to detail;  progressing through small steps in order, each at the proper time, until the whole of it can be seen.  And what I enjoyed so much about the steps of nocking arrows, is that it's so very clear how each movement has a purpose, there are no unnecessary motions.  As with Kyudo in general, yatsugae is both elegant and exact, and while working through that exactitude there was no room for my mind to wander.  It required me to be present and attentive through each detail of every step.

Which as it happens, is enormously calming, and not something I commonly find in everyday life.

There are any number of lessons and benefits one can take away from Kyudo;  it's no accident that the art has flourished this long, or that many practitioners devote their lives to it.  Kyudo always offers more to learn, further refinements, future challenges and progress yet to be made.  But there is also always that fundamental orderliness, it will always reward sincerity and patient attention to detail.  In this way, I find that the practice of Kyudo is very much its own reward.

(--Windy, Nidan)

Kyudo and Yamaji Dojo

KYUDO: "The Way of The Bow"

The oldest of Japan's traditional martial arts, its ultimate goals are SHIN (Truth), ZEN (Goodness), and BI (Beauty). These goals are based on a Confucian belief that through a person's archery, his or her true character can be determined.

Kyudo is practiced as a method of physical, moral, and spiritual development. Kyudo is a "way of life" and not a sport. One does not enter Kyudo to learn how to do it, and furthermore to excel in it; rather to receive from it the development of character, poise, and the control of oneself. Kyudo affords one a means of achieving a degree of concentration in order to create a style that expresses his or her perfect mental serenity. A "hit" on the target is proof of one's successful discipline to find and return to their original natural self.

SHIN (Truth) means the search for the truth and seeking a correct shooting method, striving to attain a correct hitting of the target.

ZEN (Goodness) refers to the morality of Kyudo, by practicing such things as etiquette guiding one's path, concentrating one's spirit, exercising great power through cooperation and harmony to create a practical life path with relevance to Kyudo and to life in society.

BI (Beauty) comes from the aforementioned truth and goodness. For example, if the shooter and his assistants harmonize well in a formal shooting ceremony, this will appear beautiful.

YAMAJI DOJO

We named our school Yamaji, which is the poetic form of the Mountain Path.  We chose it because studying Kyudo is like climbing a mountain whose summit is shrouded in clouds.  We don't know how far it is to the top.  There is aggravation and difficulty as one follows the road to understanding the essence of the path. We often need help to ascend the path on occasion need to help those following us. As a further reminder, we have several mountains close by, to remind us that this is the way.

--Sensei Don Wudarski

In the design of our mon, or emblem, of Yamaji dojo, you can see the mountain path and the clouds represented.  The five stones at the start of the path represent the five samurai virtues of Benevolence, Justice, Wisdom, Courtesy, and Sincerity.