#49: Additional Thoughts to Kiai

Before I go head and write more, I would like to re-state that what you find here in my blog are my opinions only. They are not of any others, and unless I am in a country that does not permit me to the freedom of speaking my opinion openly, you the reader do not have to continue reading if you do not want to.

Yes, what I write reflects my ideals, attitudes and beliefs. But, Kendo is a self-journey, and how I see things and how I believe is up to me. There is no real "right" or "wrong" in this I believe.

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During our training yesterday, the issue of kiai was accentuated. We have beginners and non beginners in our club, and while doing basics, it was noticeable that the seniors were not using as loud kiai as the beginners were. The person leading training though that this was not the way it should be, and punished the seniors by making us do fifty hayasuburi each time our kiai was not louder than the non-seniors.

For me, at my stage of development in Kendo, and how I see things, Kiai is no longer an issue of volume. Nor is it an issue of duration (i.e. the length of time the kiai goes for). The development of Kiai for me now is the actual generation of real "ki" in the kiai. The energy, the force, the spirit of my intent to cut and kill.

Having seen a lot of Dan players in competition, I have come to see that many of them do not have excessively loud kiai, nor very long or sharp sounding kiai, but instead, the kiai has "emotion" in it. That raw energy of the ki they put into it. That is what I am hoping to acheive, not just some loud boorish "meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!" which lacks actual energy except for sounding like a big bull mooing.

Am I wrong to be thinking in this way? I do not think so.

We teach beginners to have loud and long kiai for the purpose to break them free from their inhibition of using kiai and for a beginner that works well. But once you get past that, and you learn when to use it, it becomes time to learn how to use it. Some of the players I also have watched, and whom I respect, they barely even kiai during training. One of them hardly ever kiais unless they are playing ippon match or shiai practice.

So, then what is the situation to be? Will I work on my own, and be punished for it because my philosophy differs to the person leading? Do I walk out on them if they demand that I must follow their rigid structure? What to do?