Form & Function: An Evening at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
By Michael Shane
Videos by Stephen Bluto, Senior Collections Manager
On the evening of June 24th, 2024, Zentokan Dojo presented a demonstration of Toyama Ryu Battodo at The Metropolitan Museum of Art here in New York City. The Met has one of the country’s — if not the world’s — finest museum collections of Japanese Arms and Armor, and we were deeply honored to have the opportunity to place these objects in context by shedding some light on our budō in such a profound space.
Markus Sesko, Associate Curator of Asian Arms and Armor, asked us to prepare a presentation that would help illustrate how form and function unite in the Japanese sword. What makes it such a beautiful and effective weapon? How does the Japanese sword really work as a bladed weapon? How does that influence the practice of swordsmanship today? And why is it valuable to practice such an anachronistic art in the first place?
To set the tone for the evening, Michael began by sharing a passage from Nakamura Taisaburo’s book, The Spirit of the Sword:
“Viewed by a foreigner the cutting power of the Japanese sword may indeed make it appear a frightening weapon, but to us Japanese it is an object of reverence to the point of being a vessel for the divine. There is not a single classical ryuha of Japanese martial arts that does not have rituals of courtesy and respect towards the kami and the sword before and after its sword practices. That the expression of respect towards the sword is performed in the same way as it is towards the deities may appear to be strange at first glance, but when one remembers that the katana is a spiritual object and a divine vessel it is only right and natural.
To expound on this vital point, the Japanese sword exists for the purpose of cutting, but it does not exist only to cut. In short, the Japanese sword exists to perfect the heart and mind of its wielder through spiritual training, and it is taught that the sword that gives and enhances life must not become the sword that takes it.”
From left to right: Markus Sesko (Associate Curator of Asian Arms and Armor); Michael Shane; Anthony Deen; Nelson Pecora; Edward Hunter (Interim Curator and Conservator in Charge)
And so with regard to the Japanese sword as both an art object and a weapon, form and function are not two separate ideas.
In fact this is an essential element of our curriculum. Our style of swordsmanship teaches that we should be cutting for real at all times, and this is why we practice tameshigiri (試し斬り), which helps us cultivate the proper physical technique and mindset for real cutting. By placing ourselves mentally and emotionally in a life or death context while we use a live blade — shinken shobu (真剣勝負) — we grow as individuals. This philosophy of holistic training is at the root of Battodo.
The cutting capability of the Japanese sword is intrinsic to its beauty as an art object. Every Japanese sword in good condition, be it a newly made art sword that will never be used or an ancient blade that will never be used again, is kept razor sharp, decade after decade. On the other hand, when we do use a Japanese sword in the dojo, its unmistakable physical form — the gentle yet powerful curve, its graceful taper — is part of what makes it so effective as a practical cutting weapon.
To illustrate these ideas at the museum, we performed both kata and tameshigiri. Anthony and Nelson demonstrated two basic Toyama Ryu kata, simultaneously showing the kata with and without tameshigiri:
We also demonstrated more advanced kata to show how the cutting action remains the same, even as footwork and body movement become more complex:
And we showed how even without the prescribed steps of a formal kata, the way we move and the cutting action remain the same:
We were deeply honored to be invited to share our art in such a special place. As New Yorkers this was an especially meaningful experience for us. Zentokan Dojo extends its humble thanks to Markus Sesko, Edward Hunter, Stephen Bluto, Catherine Chesney Carotenuto, and the entire Met team for giving us the opportunity to share what we do.
