Читать книгу Martial Arts Training in Japan. A Guide for Westerners онлайн

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The point is to pick a road and begin the journey. Rome will be at the end of it somewhere, but that’s not the important point. The nature of the journey—the Way—is the primary concern.

The most popular Japanese martial arts in terms of numbers of students are karatedo (“the way of the empty hand”), judo (“the gentle way”), kendo (“the way of the sword”), and aikido (“the way of harmony”). These four warrior ways are also the most widespread and visible around the world. Most who travel to Japan to study martial arts will probably practice one of the four major arts. That being the case, I will offer a brief history of each art, a description of its physical appearance and practice goals, my observations concerning who would most and least benefit from the practice of that art, and instructions on how to find a suitable dojo that will serve your interests. I will also include information on training in iaido (“the way of drawing the sword”), jodo (“the way of the staff”), and naginatado (“the way of the halberd”): three archaic weapons arts that are widespread in Japan, but relatively little known outside that country. Finally, I will discuss training in ninjutsu (“the art of stealth”).