The kendō is a Japanese martial art evolved from the fighting techniques with the katana used by the samurai in the kenjutsu. Kendō literally means "The Way (Dō) of the sword (Ken)".
The kendō, "the Way of the Sword", expresses the essence of the Japanese fighting arts. Kendō was developed under the influence of Zen Buddhism, whereby the samurai felt the indifference of their life in the midst of the battle, which was considered necessary for the victory in individual fights.
Kendō is a way in which the individual cultivates one's own mind (the self) by shin-ki-ryoku-itchi (unification of the mind, spirit, and technique) using shinai. The "sword-shinai" should not only be directed to an opponent, but also to themselves.
Therefore, the main objective of teaching is to foster the unification of mind, body and shinai through the training of this discipline.
An old Kendō Master said: When a body is young and strong, it can replace experience with aggression and agility while the old man fights with the experience.
In the Kendō study, one has to take into account the three important concepts named by the Japanese Shin, Waza, and Tai, namely spirit, technique and body. Which of the three is the most important? In all martial arts, knowing the technique is paramount. When the body is young, it is strong, compensates for lack of experience with aggressiveness and agility.
Instead, by age, spirit and technique need to replace the loss of strength, and these two concepts perhaps the most important is the spirit (Shin) without which, body and technique are nothing.
The technique makes the body respond appropriately to the orders of the spirit. Probably in other sports (such as boxing, weight lifting and fighting), physical strength is prevalent, but not in martial arts.
The body must be formed and dominated, but the intuition required for the use of force comes only from technique and spirit.
