Kyudo martial art of Japanese Archery

Posted in Sports on Mar 25th, 2008 | 0 comments

Kyudo, which literally means The Way of the Bow, is considered by many to be the purest of all the martial ways. In the past, the Japanese bow was used for hunting, war, court ceremonies, games, and contests of skill.

The original word for Japanese archery was kyujutsu (bow technique) which encompassed the skills and techniques of the warrior archer. Some of the ancient schools, known as ryu, survive today, along with the  ancient ceremonies and games, but the days where the Japanese bow was used as a weapon are long past. Modern kyudo is practiced primarily as a method of physical, moral, and spiritual development.

Kyūdō (弓道:きゅうどう, Kyūdō), literally meaning “way of the bow”, is the Japanese art of archery. It is a modern Japanese martial art (gendai budō). It is estimated that there are approximately half a million practitioners of kyūdō today. Kyūdō is a rare sport in the sense that it is not dependent on age or sex. If the practitioner is dedicated, male or female, they can learn at any age. It’s never too early or too late to learn Kyūdō. Although one could learn Kyūdō at any point in their life, it can take a lifetime to perfect.

No one knows exactly when the term kyudo came into being but it was not until the late nineteenth century when practice centered almost exclusively around individual practice that the term gained general acceptance. The essence of modern kyudo is said to be synonymous with the pursuit of truth, goodness, and beauty.

Truth in kyudo is manifested in shooting that is pure and right-minded, where the three elements of attitude, movement, and technique unite in a state of perfect harmony. A true shot in kyudo is not just one that hits the center of the target, but one where the arrow can be said to exist in the target before its release.

Goodness encompasses such qualities as courtesy, compassion, morality, and non-aggression. In kyudo, goodness is shown by displaying proper attitude and behavior in all situations. A good kyudo archer is a person who maintains his or her composure and grace even in times of great stress or conflict.

Beauty both enhances life and stimulates the spirit. In kyudo, truth and goodness, themselves, are considered beautiful. Beauty can also be found in the exquisite grace and artistry of the Japanese bow and the elegance of the traditional archer’s attire. It is also present in the refined etiquette that surrounds the kyudo ceremony. Etiquette, which is simply common courtesy and respect for others, is an essential element of kyudo  practice.

Much has been written about the philosophical connections of kyudo. Perhaps most known is the book Zen in the Art of Archery by Eugen Herrigel. In his book Mr. Herrigel sets forth his experiences with kyudo in the 1930’s. It was a beautifully written account that has been translated into many languages, giving people worldwide their first glimpse of the art. Unfortunately, the book was very one-sided in its description of kyudo as a Zen art and is responsible for a lot of the current misconception surrounding the practice of kyudo as a religious activity.

While kyudo is not a religion it has been influenced by two schools of Eastern philosophy: The previously mentioned Zen, a form of Buddhism imported from China, and Shintoism, the indigenous faith of Japan. Of the two, the influence of Shintoism is much older. Ritualistic use of the bow and arrows have been a part of Shintoism for over two thousand years. Much of the kyudo ceremony, the attire worn by the archers, and the ritual respect shown for the equipment and shooting place are derived from ancient Shinto practice.

The influence of Zen, on the other hand, is more recent, dating back to the Kamakura Period (1185-1333) when the warrior archers adopted Zen as their preferred method of moral training. Zen’s influence on kyudo became even greater in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries when Japan, as a whole, experienced a period of civil peace.

During that time the practice of kyudo took on a definite philosophical leaning. This is  the period when sayings like “one shot, one life” and “shooting should be like flowing water” were associated with the teaching of kyudo. Because of its long and varied past, modern Japanese archery will exhibit a wide variety of influences.

Today, at any given kyudojo (practice hall), one can find people practicing ancient kyujutsu, ceremonial court games, rituals with religious connections, and contests of skill. The key to understanding kyudo is to keep an open mind and realize that any style of kyudo you see or practice is but a small part of a greater whole, and that each style has its own history and philosophical underpinnings which make them all equally interesting and important.

Technique: All kyūdō archers hold the bow in their left hand and draw the string with their right, so that all archers face the higher position (kamiza) while shooting.

Unlike occidental archers (who, with some exceptions, draw the bow never further than the cheek bone), kyūdō archers draw the bow so that the drawing hand is held behind the ear. If done improperly, upon release the string may strike the archer’s ear or side of the face.

Resulting from the technique to release the shot, the bow will (for a practised archer) spin in the hand so that the string stops in front of the archer’s outer forearm. This action of “yugaeri” is a combination of technique and the natural working of the bow. It is unique to kyūdō.

Kyūdō technique is meticulously prescribed. The All Nippon Kyudo Federation (ANKF), the main governing body of kyūdō in Japan, has codified the hassetsu (or “eight stages of shooting”) in the Kyudo Kyohon (Kyudo Manual). The hassetsu consists of the following steps:

  • Ashibumi, placing the footing. The archer steps on to the line from where arrows are fired (known as the shai) and turns to face the kamiza, so that the left side of his body faces the target. He then sights from the target to his feet and sets his feet apart so that the distance between them is equal to his yatsuka, approximately half his body height. A line drawn between the archer’s toes should pass through the target after the completion of the ashibumi.
  • Dozukuri, forming the body. The archer verifies his balance and that his pelvis and the line between his shoulders are parallel to the line set up during ashibumi.
  • Yugamae, readying the bow. Yugamae consists of three phases:
  1. Torikake, gripping of the bowstring with the right hand.
  2. Tenouchi, the left hand is positioned for shooting on the bow’s grip.
  3. Monomi, the archer turns his head to gaze at the target.
  • Uchiokoshi, raising the bow. The archer raises the bow above his head to prepare for the draw.
  • Hikiwake, drawing apart. The archer starts bringing down the bow while spreading his arms, simultaneously pushing the bow with his left hand and drawing the string with the right, until the arrow is level with his eyebrows.
  • Kai, the full draw. The archer continues the movement started in the previous phase, until he reaches full draw with the arrow placed slightly below his cheekbone. The arrow points along the line set up during ashibumi.
  • Hanare, the release. The bowstring is released from the right hand.
  • Zanshin, “the remaining body or mind” or “the continuation of the shot”. The archer remains in the position reached after hanare while returning from the state of concentration associated with the shot.

While other schools’ shooting also conforms to the hassetsu outlined above, the naming of some steps and some details of the execution of the shot may differ.

Rankings: Using a system which is common to modern budō (martial art) practices, most kyūdō schools periodically hold examinations, which, if the archer passes, results in the conveying of a grade, which can be kyū or dan level.

Traditional schools, however, often rank students as a recognition of attaining instructor status using the older menkyo (license) system of koryū budō.

While kyūdō’s kyū and dan levels are similar to those of other budō practices, colored belts or similar external symbols of one’s level are not worn by kyūdō practitioners.

List of fictional kyūdō practitioners:

  • The character Shado first introduced in the DC Comics prestige format limited series Green Arrow The Longbow Hunters is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The character Kikyou from the anime InuYasha is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The characters Shizuka Dômeki and Haruka Dômeki from the manga/anime xxxHolic are practitioners of kyūdō.
  • The character Naoji from the anime and GBA game Meine Liebe is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The character Yukito Tsukishiro from the anime Cardcaptor Sakura is a practitioner of kyūdō, .
  • The character Arjuna from the anime Earth Girl Arjuna is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The character Chikane Himemiya from the anime Kannazuki no Miko is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The character Yoko Tsuno from the comic books by French Roger Leloup is practitioner of Kyūdō.
  • The character Suoh Takamura from the manga Clamp School Detectives is a practitioner of kyūdō.
  • The three-volume Shonen-Ai manga Rin! by Satoru Kannagi & Yukine Honami features characters who are all practitioners of kyūdō, and many of the events are set in a Kyūdō Dōjō or in tournaments.

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