I would say this is the REAL Kyudo, meant like the way of the bow. Notice his slowliness, his emptiness. There are many other clips with people who shot too fast, sometimes quite ridiculous too, especially in competitions. Kyudo is not a competition, it is a way to zen as far as meditating, or preparing tea, or making ikebana can be. I wish I could see a clip showing the same sensei from a longer distance.

there seems no before, no after, only during, totally in the moment and the shooting leaves no trace behind. no blinking at all and even upon release with the arrow and the string passing there is absolute calmness in the face. really amazing also for me as I practice Kyudo now since quite some time. thank you for posting

i love it. there was no anticipation on his face at all and no reaction afterwards to the shot.

The ideea of emptiness reffers to the mind of the archer, and it doesn't really mean "no mind", but rather "not-to-fill-one's-mind-with-anything-more-than-one-have-to-think-about-when-performing-the-act-of-shooting". On the other hand, japanese language is tricky for our western ways of thinking, and many translations does not reveal the true meaning of a japanese word. Oh, and this video is not about zen archery, but about a shooting of a great sensei. One of the best videos, by the way.

Simply beautiful. The song fits it perfectly. I agree with baco82, this is the real Kyudo.

Well you can tell that the arrow hit the target by the sound it made! :) But I agree that it would have been nice to have a shot of the whole body.

The music fits wonderfull to this great video.

Ah ok, that is good to know because the context is certainly important to the style of shooting.

The arrow is supposed to lean against the cheek. It is one of the main points to be checked before the release.

That's normal ANKF style shomen kyudo with a three finger glove. In fact that's the most common style practiced.

Poetry in Motion...

the music is by Saito Tadamitsu ak Idaki Shin. it can be ordered from the website. please do a search as I cannot display url's here.

excellent video

I have to point out that this is a ceremony and not normal practice. I don't want to debate about "real kyudo" but you have to consider the context ad the different schools/shooting styles. No one will ever shoot like this during a tournament or daily practice.

Remarkable 🙏

very very nice!!

Peaceful and sensual.

Very nice done! What kind of Kyudo is it? I´m surprised of the way he is grabbing the bow... Guess its a better way to accelerate the bow, while the shoot, but i´ve seen it this way before.

beautiful!!

There are certain reasons for not being relevant to show the target. One is that you can hear if the arrow hitted the target or not. Where exactly, it is really not important whatsoever. The concentric circles on the japanese target are meant to help aiming, not to measure accuracy. There is more. In kyudo, after the arrow is released the shooting is not yet finished. There are two more steps to be performed, as important as the others. If I watch a master shooting, I definitely want to see HIM.

@spartanical He does swallow two or three times after taking the shot : )

Kyudo isn`t really related to Zen, is it? What you perceive as Zen is merely the kind of mindset required in many martial arts/sports, it`s focus. Kyudo as Zen is something that became mainstream in the western world thanks to Herrigel`s book, but it hardly reflects the mechanical practise the sport actually requires.

Wow

素晴らしい射を勉強させていただきました。 ただ大三と会で先生にフラッシュが当たっているのは 残念です。

he's using a Yotsugake (4 finger glove), not a 3.

longbow looks like made of bamboo?

丁寧に使ってるから&皮質が上物だから綺麗なんだろ 帽子は真っ黒ジャン

thats a pretty far shot... judging from the time between Hanare and the sound of the arrow hitting the target.. i wonder if its the standart 28 meters or if it was further..

There are no "zen archers". Never were. Only in some people's mind. If you really want to know, read "Zen in the Art of Archery", than "The Myth of Zen in the Art of Archery". Or only the second cited. Now, on the battlefield there were archers. And, as you imagine, they were fast.

No reason to put the target further. Perhaps the bow is not very powerful.

Some practice judo, some visit Tokyo. C'mon man, if you are really informed -as I think you strive to, and I wish you to always be- you know by now that notorious japanese names or words can be romajized as above. Japanese themselves do so.

but i havent (!!) seen it this way before. -sry-

15-20kg.

i didnt think the music fit the spirit of kyudo at all....