Further Reading
Comprehensive training in the sword has always involved developing both mind and body. These articles by members and friends of Zentokan Dojo offer a glimpse of our approach.
The Brush, the Sword, and the Principles of Eight
In his book, The Spirit and the Sword, the sword master Nakamura Taizaburo relates an epiphany he experienced while teaching in Northern China during the Great Pacific War. In his epiphany Nakamura sensei correlated sword study with the Eiji Happo of Japanese calligraphy (Shodo).
Locked Doors and Lethal Beauty: An Introduction to the World of Nihonto
The Japanese sword is a miracle. It is a miracle that the manufacture of these weapons was perfected beginning a thousand years ago – without metallurgical science or technology. And it is a miracle that today these blades survive at all, much less that many of them live on in healthy condition. That these majestic weapons have been safeguarded and cared for generation after generation — sometimes for centuries — indicates a level of appreciation beyond mere preservation. Nihonto are sacred objects.