Why don't kenjutsu guys practice free sparring?

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>>1237956
Some styles do. The reason you see styles that do not are manifold and somewhat complex

The oldest kenjutsu schools were founded in the sengoku, at the time the shinai had not been invented and the bokken was the closest thing to a safety weapon they had. A duel or sparring match with a bokken will not necessarily end in death or injury, but it significantly raises the odds of that.

kata training allowed a way to past down essential information about timing, distancing and techniques with a modicum of safety.

Once things like the shinai were invented they took awhile to catch on. Musashi famouly criticized their use in the book of five rings. At first were used for "duels" or to do kata at higher intensity, It was about 1700, that some teachers grew dissatisfied with the lack of real experience from wars and duels, and decided to use mock armor and bamboo swords as a substitute.

While conservatives criticized the new form of training as unrealistic, it became extremely popular and was in fact the norm during the 19th century. styles that did not engage in such training tended to be rural styles, often preserving the older ways of fighting from the sengoku. In Edo and other urban centers, the abilty to win in matches with shinai is what often made or broke an instructor.

The emphasis on shinai sparring let to some trends which are still viewed negatively in kenjutsu circles today. People used extra long shinai and techniques which would be difficult or impossible with a real sword.

After the fights of the boshin and seinen wars, and the formation of the meiji government, kenjutsu went into sharp decline. It evetually saw a revival and was adapted for police training. The popular edo styles that manage to survive led the way in this. eventually the butokukai was established and standardized rules and kata were put into place. Many of the popular schools adopted these standards and became part of kendo.

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>>1240504
The styles that did not do shiai, or resisted standardization, AND somehow survived are the ones you see today. Some of them only survive as preservation societies, others still train very hard, even taking risks in training, and their methods are very effective and viable, The attitude towards free sparring varies between them.

>>1240504
very interesting comment, thanks

>People used extra long shinai and techniques which would be difficult or impossible with a real sword.
could you expound on this? or direct me to some source reading

>>1241552
Not the same anon but I could tell something like that which goes the other way around.
Because a nihonto has a curve and a shinai doesn't, there a lot of binding techniques, pushes mainly that can't be used with a shinai. When you rest the blades crossed, because of the curve (it will be enhance the bigger the curve), it's possible to push a sword aside with a simple direct linear push, the movement to the side being done mechanically by the curve instead of being done manually by the fighter.
Another point is that a tsuka is elliptic and not round like most shinai's "tsuka", therefore, many beatings and deflections done with the side and back of the blade (shinogi and mune) are hard to reproduce with a shinai, if not impossible, this means an entire repertoire of techniques that are "lost" (and if you know just a bit of HEMA for instance, you should know how the much the back of the blade can be used).

Also, a longer handle (and shinai can routinely have a 1/3 longer handle) means different leverage sensations, more snapping cuts, which are not possible with a shorter handle and a heavier weapon, well not as easily that is. With a shinai, you can also do slips and rebounds you wouldn't be able to do with a sharp blade.

This is all on the top of my head though...

>>1241552
There are records of shinai six feet long. Now there were nodachi that long, but they were somewhat rare. You also saw things like one handed thrusts which would be very difficult with a real sword, especially a long one.

Kendo today shows some of this, alot of cuts are done with the wrists and arms rather than the hips or tanden. Its a much quicker way to cut but does not translate well to a real sword.