Nanseikan Kendo Club 南西館剣道クラブ

 We welcomed back Nanseikan training last Saturday for the start of Term 3.  We had most of the members hoping to get their 6th Kyu hard at work practicing their reiho and suburi while the administration side is hard at work sorting out all the fine details for our first club grading.  Let's hope that it all goes smoothly.  ファイト! This term is a 10 week term, but we will be heading to Monash 30th Anniversary Taikai on the 30th July so there will be no training at Heidelberg West that day. Our twice-a-year beginners course will be starting on the 6th August at 9am.  I just sent out the information pack to everyone signed up and we're looking forward to welcoming you all.  If you haven't signed up yet and want to join in, please fill in the form here:  https://forms.gle/3Gty3cVRyYAE6R3g7   There is more information about the beginners course on our About page. Lastly, congratulations to Nick for winning the Fighting Spirit award at the Otsuka Memorial Taikai at the Kenshikan l

This July-August will be a busy time. The main things are the first club-based grading on Saturday 23rd July at 10am for 6th kyu to 4th kyu which Nanseikan will be hosting and also the grading the following day at Kenshikan for 3kyu to 1st kyu. The other big event is the Victorian Kendo Championships which is an entire weekend on the 13 & 14 August.  A reminder:  if you want to keep up with last minute changes and info, download the free smartphone app Signal and we can invite you to our two groups: Nanseikan Announcements and Nanseikan Casual. See below for what's coming up in detail:

  It is with great sadness that I pass on the news of the passing of Larry Mahaffy. Larry was not a Nanseikan member but he was a regular visitor to our dojo. He started Kendo late in life but had a rare passion and commitment for the art. He understood implicitly what it represented and how it fitted into his life. For a time he practiced with his son Finn at MBK-Kenshikan Dojo. Throughout his battle with cancer he continued to practice undaunted. During Covid lockdowns he regularly and enthusiastically attended our online Zoom trainings.  My last text message exchange with him was at the end of May and we were making plans for club members to go to his house and train with him, at whatever level he felt able to. He said the doctors had exhausted all treatment options. His last text was,  "I'd love to think I could manage a bit of suburi (walking around the block has been a struggle of late!) Stay warm!"  Two weeks later I texted to invite him to attend dinner at our Kan

This weekend just past saw the successful staging of our first ever, two-day gasshuku. Held right after the winter solstice, it was an appropriately chilly Kangeiko! The program was ambitious but we succeeded in covering everything on the schedule. Judging by the smiles and feedback, everyone got something out of the weekend. It was especially good to host kenshi from other dojos, whether they were dojo leaders or beginners. Nanseikan members did a wonderful job as hosts, being available not just to help but to take on various roles in the running of the weekend. Special shout-outs and thanks to Soon, Nick and Chie. Thanks also to William, Quinn and Chee for coming in on Friday to help set up. And thanks to everyone who helped with the most difficult part of the entire weekend - the clean-up afterwards! There were some important absences and apologies. Some of our own members were away because of illness or family commitments. Matsumoto sensei sent her apologies for not being able to a

  As mentioned tonight at training there have been developments in Japan regarding tsubazeriai. It is anticipated, although this is not confirmed yet, that tsubazeriai will remain tightly controlled from now on. This is building on the adjustments people have made to becoming accustomed to the 'provisional' Covid-safe restrictions around tsubazeriai.  The reason for these longer term changes is to limit the ability of shiaisha to use tsubazeriai as a resting or defensive position. This has previously been a major issue in Japan at high school and university level. And as a result, through the spread of Youtube, these 'trends' get taken up around the world. The worst use of tsubazeriai before now has been for the purpose of time-wasting: where a shiasha 'runs down the clock' once they have established an ippon lead in a match. This is from a post on George McCall's excellent kenshi247 blog. McCall sensei teaches Kendo at a high school in Osaka and is well-ve

 

  This year's VKR seminar and grading was a great success. Over 100 participants from around Australia and overseas came to Monash University Clayton campus to take part in two full days of training, culminating in a grading from 6th kyu to 4th dan. Congratulations to all those who participated and survived the gruelling sessions, and also to those who passed their gradings. Special thank you to Soon who gave up his own participation in the first morning of the seminar to run the beginners' course at our home dojo. Special events - lunch, 9 April Sean is organising our first 20th anniversary celebration event: a lunch after our last training for this term on Saturday 9th April. Please save the date. We will be going to a restaurant in High St Preston, the home of many excellent and cheap Vietnamese and Chinese restaurants. Details to follow. Sign up to our Signal groupchat (Nanseikan Casual) for updates. Special events - Zen workshop, 30 April On the first day back for term 2,

Hi everyone, please details from the VKR below about the upcoming seminar on 12-13 March. Also, remember to register for the seminar here: https://www.revolutionise.com.au/vkr/events/130340/ Lastly, here are the grading requirements for 6kyu to 4kyu, since these people will be least familiar with what is required. I will finalise who will be grading at training this Saturday, so if you want to grade, please make sure you're there!   ATT: ALL KENDO Club Representatives / Administrators: Dear All, As a reminder the  VKR March Kendo Grading  is to be held on  Sunday, March 13, 2022. Please note the latest attached revised application for  Grading Form for Submission .  Click link to form below. Grading examinations will be held for: 6th Kyu to 1st Kyu 1st Dan to 4th Dan Date and Location Details Date & Time:  Sunday, March 13, 1:00 - 4:00pm Registration opens at 12:00pm  (Timing to be confirmed) Venue:  Monash Sport Stadium, Monash University, Clayton Campus Address:  42 Scenic Bl

Welcome to our 20th anniversary year! This year will hopefully see us back in the dojo first of all. Training is always the backbone of Kendo. Then, as things slowly move back to normal, we will be sharing our dojo with visitors, friends and family to help us celebrate this milestone. More to come when these events are finalised... Training starts back on Saturday 5 February. Full list of term dates for the year are here . Beginners course starts on 19 Feb. We will have a short meeting after training on 5 Feb to introduce some ideas, issues and tasks that we will be looking at in the first part of the year. Things like: admin roles club gradings communication pathways VKR portal invitation for people to become assistant instructors and the training requirements involved social and other events COVID guidelines have changed slightly. This page is being regularly updated to reflect the latest instructions around what we must do to stay as safe as possible in the dojo. As always, if you

Vale     藤家 教平様　 Fujiie  Kyohei   1953 - 2021 It is with great sadness that I must convey the passing of Mr Kyohei Fujiie, husband of Tomoko Fujiie, father of Rodan Fujiie and founder of Benalla Renshinkan Dojo. He died on 30 December in Shepparton Hospital from complications arising from COVID-19. Kyohei established Benalla Renshikan Kendo Club in 2008. Kyohei and Tomoko were regular visitors to Nanseikan in the intervening years, usually starting their journey at 5.00am to get to Nanseikan in time for training. In recent years he and Tomoko also trained in Tatsumi Ryu Hyoho with the Melbourne Koryu Kenkyukai. Outside of martial arts, Kyohei learned the guitar so that he could perform with Tomoko in the ensembles which are her passion.  Kyohei was a warm, thoughtful, compassionate, and eternally inquisitive man. He took the meaning of his given name “to teach peace” seriously.  His training was in youth counselling and education and he worked with young people with special needs, ofte

  Merry Christmas, happy Hannukah and happy holidays. After a difficult year, may 2022 be much better for all! Nanseikan will be closed for all of January. If you wish to train elsewhere in that time, please take care and I would strongly suggest going back to wearing a mask and/or face shield at all times when training. See you on 5 February for the start of our 20th anniversary year!

  As promised, here is a short video of what to do over the break if you're at home; or on holiday for that matter! A little bit of practice every day will keep your skills sharp. You'll even learn new things about your Kendo, I guarantee it! For experienced people with their own bogu, you are welcome to train at any VKR or AKR dojo in the meantime, so long as you contact the dojo first and you are fully vaxed or have a legit medical exemption. All VKR clubs' contact details are here: https://www.kendovictoria.asn.au/main/kendo-clubs/ And keep an eye on your email inbox for notification of some extra NSK trainings during January. Season's Greetings, stay safe, and here's to 2022 being a year when we can reconnect with those we have missed over the last two years.

 Take the night off! :)

   These two videos are well worth a look. Firstly, from a channel that is uploading lots of "Kendo vs..." videos lately, this is the first one I've seen where someone with a high level of Kendo skill is up against a fencer. I'm not sure if the epee-ist is as skilled but it is an interesting match.  This video is more interesting from a technical and cultural point of view. It shows a demonstration shiai at the 88th Kyoto Taikai held at the Butokuden in 1992. The two competitors are Sugawara Keizaburo (on left) and Nakakura Kiyoshi (the taller sensei, who featured in the story I told last Saturday at training). Both sensei were 9th dan. George McCall has a great article listing all the 9th dans  here , including the rationale and history behind the higher dan grades. What I love about this match is how spirited it is. There have been 'generational shifts' in Kendo (as George observes in the linked article) according to how and where the major Kendo teachers we

  Here is an important announcement from Macak sensei and the Victorian Kendo Technical Committee regarding changes to grading requirements. Please read carefully> To All VKR Kendo Clubs Kyu Grading Examinations in 2022 Given the achievement of the 80% double vaccinated target in Victoria most clubs are now either back to training, or soon will be. It looks like we are nearly back to normal, although none of us can foresee what lies in the future. There will be some significant changes to the way Kyu Grading Examinations will be conducted in Victoria in 2022 and Clubs and potential Grading Panellists should take the following items into consideration when they are planning for next year. VKR Seminar : As we did early this year, we will start the year off with a seminar currently scheduled for Sat/Sun 12/13 March. This is also the Labor Day long weekend, so please make a note in your calendar. It is expected that 3rd to 1st Kyu and 1st to 4th Dan Grading examinations will be schedule