| Things not looking right? Site Best Viewed with FireFox |
|
|
|
Kyudo (弓道, Kyudo, literally "Way of the Bow") is the Japanese art of archery. It is
a modern Japanese martial art (a gendai budo).
It is estimated that there are approximately half a million practitioners of kyudo
today. In Japan, by most accounts, the number of female kyudo practitioners is at
least equal to and probably greater than the number of male practitioners.
In its most pure form, kyudo is practiced as an art and as a means of moral and
spiritual development. Many archers practice kyudo as a sport, with
marksmanship being paramount. However, the highest ideal of kyudo is "seisha
seichu", "correct shooting is correct hitting". In kyudo the unique action of
expansion (nobiai) that results in a natural release, is strived for. When the spirit
and balance of the shooting is correct the result will be for the arrow to arrive in
the target. To give oneself completely to the shooting is the spiritual goal. In this
respect, many kyudo practitioners believe that competition, examination, and any
opportunity that places the archer in this uncompromising situation is important,
while other practitioners will avoid competitions or examinations of any kind.
The yumi (Japanese bow) is exceptionally tall (standing over two meters),
surpassing the height of the archer (kyudoka). Yumi are traditionally made of
bamboo, wood and leather using techniques which have not changed for
centuries, although some archers (particularly, those new to the art) may use
synthetic (i.e. laminated wood coated with glassfiber or carbon fiber) yumi. Even
advanced kyudoka may own non-bamboo yumi and ya due to the vulnerability of
bamboo equipment to extreme climates.
Ya (arrow) shafts were traditionally made of bamboo, with either eagle or hawk
feathers. Most ya shafts today are still made of bamboo (although some archers
will use shafts made of aluminum or carbon fibers), and ya feathers are now
obtained from non-endangered birds such as turkeys or swans. Every ya has a
gender (male ya are called haya; female ya, otoya); being made from feathers
from alternate sides of the bird, the haya spins clockwise upon release while the
otoya spins counter-clockwise. Kyudo archers usually shoot two ya per round,
with the haya being shot first.
The kyudo archer wears a glove on the right hand called a yugake. The yugake
is typically made of deerskin with a hardened thumb containing a groove at the
base used to pull the string (tsuru).
The kyudo archer will typically begin a practice session by shooting at a straw
target (makiwara) at very close range (about seven feet, or the length of the
archer's strung yumi when held horizontally from the centerline of his body).
Because the target is so close and the shot most certainly will hit, the archer can
concentrate on refining his technique rather than on worrying about where the
arrow will go. After warming up, the archer may then move on to longer
distances; shooting at a target called a mato. Mato sizes and shooting distances
vary, but most matos typically measure thirty-six centimeters (or 12 sun, a
traditional Japanese measurement equivalent to approximately 3.03cm) in
diameter and are shot at from a distance of twenty-eight meters.
a modern Japanese martial art (a gendai budo).
It is estimated that there are approximately half a million practitioners of kyudo
today. In Japan, by most accounts, the number of female kyudo practitioners is at
least equal to and probably greater than the number of male practitioners.
In its most pure form, kyudo is practiced as an art and as a means of moral and
spiritual development. Many archers practice kyudo as a sport, with
marksmanship being paramount. However, the highest ideal of kyudo is "seisha
seichu", "correct shooting is correct hitting". In kyudo the unique action of
expansion (nobiai) that results in a natural release, is strived for. When the spirit
and balance of the shooting is correct the result will be for the arrow to arrive in
the target. To give oneself completely to the shooting is the spiritual goal. In this
respect, many kyudo practitioners believe that competition, examination, and any
opportunity that places the archer in this uncompromising situation is important,
while other practitioners will avoid competitions or examinations of any kind.
The yumi (Japanese bow) is exceptionally tall (standing over two meters),
surpassing the height of the archer (kyudoka). Yumi are traditionally made of
bamboo, wood and leather using techniques which have not changed for
centuries, although some archers (particularly, those new to the art) may use
synthetic (i.e. laminated wood coated with glassfiber or carbon fiber) yumi. Even
advanced kyudoka may own non-bamboo yumi and ya due to the vulnerability of
bamboo equipment to extreme climates.
Ya (arrow) shafts were traditionally made of bamboo, with either eagle or hawk
feathers. Most ya shafts today are still made of bamboo (although some archers
will use shafts made of aluminum or carbon fibers), and ya feathers are now
obtained from non-endangered birds such as turkeys or swans. Every ya has a
gender (male ya are called haya; female ya, otoya); being made from feathers
from alternate sides of the bird, the haya spins clockwise upon release while the
otoya spins counter-clockwise. Kyudo archers usually shoot two ya per round,
with the haya being shot first.
The kyudo archer wears a glove on the right hand called a yugake. The yugake
is typically made of deerskin with a hardened thumb containing a groove at the
base used to pull the string (tsuru).
The kyudo archer will typically begin a practice session by shooting at a straw
target (makiwara) at very close range (about seven feet, or the length of the
archer's strung yumi when held horizontally from the centerline of his body).
Because the target is so close and the shot most certainly will hit, the archer can
concentrate on refining his technique rather than on worrying about where the
arrow will go. After warming up, the archer may then move on to longer
distances; shooting at a target called a mato. Mato sizes and shooting distances
vary, but most matos typically measure thirty-six centimeters (or 12 sun, a
traditional Japanese measurement equivalent to approximately 3.03cm) in
diameter and are shot at from a distance of twenty-eight meters.