EVERETT The students bow as they walk into the gym, bending the top halves of their bodies in a sign of respect for their practice area.
The practice of the Japanese martial arts iaido and kendo begins with “reigi,” a demonstration of respect not only for the art, but also for its participants and the practice area.
“Martial arts are a way of purifying yourself,” said Tom Bolling, a sensei for the Iaido class. Sensei is Japanese for teacher. “The idea is to create the sense that this is a clean space.”
Iaido, or Japanese swordsmanship, and kendo, or Japanese fencing, are classes offered by Everett Community College. The classes are taught through the Everett Kendo and Iaido Club.
Both focus on combining mind, body and spirit in every movement, bringing purpose to the art. Students aren’t just hacking away at each other, Bolling said. Neither art is used to harm someone; both assume students are being attacked and must protect themselves.
Iaido students are all initially taught 12 forms, or kata, Bolling explained. Kata are a scripted battles that are practiced solo to teach correct fighting positions and to polish the spirit.
Iaido is like a waltz, its kata controlled by smooth and graceful precision. The nearly silent gym complements the peaceful feeling of watching its practice.
There’s softness in the way students draw swords from their scabbards. But the sharp, quick cuts that follow define the art, making it one of intimidating accuracy.
Students practice with wooden swords, called bokuto or bokken, as well as iaito, unsharpened metal swords specifically designed for practicing Japanese sword-drawing techniques. All of the training swords represent katana, the Japanese swords carried by samurai, and the equivalent to a 4-foot straight razor, Bolling said.
But this razor would take off your cheek along with your face stubble.
“It’s hella sharp,” Bolling said. “If you attack, you won’t survive.”
Kendo is the tango to iaido’s waltz, full of hot-blooded passion contained in a tight space. There’s still a graceful precision about the art, but an air of heightened tension elevates it to a controlled frenzy of emotion.
Sensei Dick Anderson said kendo springs from the same sword traditions as iaido, but in a form that allows hitting with full power and speed. Anderson, who is also an iaido sensei, has a long history of being involved in martial arts, dating back to his college days at the University of Washington.
“Kendo is iaido with swords drawn,” Anderson said. “Here, we’ve agreed to fight.”
Kendo students use swords called shinai, made of bamboo slats. Where there is little vocal noise in iaido, kendo students shout with each stroke of the sword. This shouting, called kiai, is the harnessing of one’s energy and is used in part to throw an opponent off balance.
The footwork in kendo is tediously precise, much like in iaido. One student stops to stretch his calf muscles during his practice of kendo’s kata. Anderson jokes that feet don’t get tired, just hot.
David Vogel, 18, of Everett started training in iaido and kendo because he was interested in sword fighting His first class gave him more than he bargained for.
The etiquette, all the bowing and kneeling, confused Vogel. He’s spent the past four years practicing both arts, and learning all that tricky etiquette.
“It’s the only exercise I get all week,” Vogel said. “In iaido, you focus a lot on form and etiquette. I think that transfers over to kendo.”
Vogel’s classmates tease him about being the bully in kendo class. He protests before admitting there’s some truth to their jests.
“I don’t like to beat up people,” he said. “I like to have good form, and then use that to beat other people.”
Brian Blomquist has been practicing kendo and iaido for eight years. His first class left him with sore muscles but a desire to learn more. He now helps lead classes.
At first, the footwork and skills used in kendo and iaido seem different from each other, Blomquist said. But after realizing the similarities, it can be confusing to keep them separate.
“As you go along, you realize how similar they are,” he said. “But they also complicate each other. They’re two halves of something.”
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