What is Kendo

Kendo is a type of athletic contest in which practitioners wear kendo-gu (protective armor) and use shinai (bamboo swords) to strike each other.
However, kendo is a budo (martial way) that aims to forge the mind and body of practitioners and facilitate the development of character through continued keiko (practice).

The History of Kendo

The source of the term "Kendo" is the Chinese ancient book "Wuyue Chunqiu". Around 202 BC-220 AD, there was an exchange of weapons and smelting and casting technology between China and Japan.

At the same time, the two-handed swordsmanship inherited from China was transmitted to Japan during the Sui and Tang dynasties through official exchanges between the Japanese government and the Chinese mainland, as well as folk exchanges between the Korean peninsula and the coastal areas of the mainland and the Japanese archipelago, and the swordsmanship transmitted to Japan continued to evolve through the long years of warfare.

During the Edo period when Japan became more stable, the basic forms of kendo gauntlets and bamboo swords were made in imitation of Japanese armor, establishing the prototype of the future sports kendo.

Kendo is gaining interest all around the world. The International Kendo Federation (FIK) was established in 1970 and the first triennial World Kendo Championships (WKC) was held in the Nippon Budokan in the same year. The 17th World Kendo Championships were held in Incheon, South Korea, in September 2018 with competitors from 56 countries and regions participating.

The Concept of Kendo

The concept of kendo is to discipline the human character through the application of the principles of the katana (sword).

The Purpose of Practicing Kendo

The purpose of practicing kendo is:
To mold the mind and body,
To cultivate a vigorous spirit,
And through correct and rigid training,
To strive for improvement in the art of kendo,
To hold in esteem human courtesy and honour,
To associate with others with sincerity,
And to forever pursue the cultivation of oneself.
This will make one be able:
To love his/her country and society,
To contribute to the development of culture,
And to promote peace and prosperity among all peoples.