Naginata-do - Martial Arts Forum

sirdarksol · #1 March 2nd, 2009, 09:45 AM

I got a chance to learn a tiny bit more about naginata-do. Because I'm on a mailing list from a class I took a few years ago, I got an e-mail about a naginata seminar being taught by Takami Tanner-sensei, who has been practicing naginata-do for twenty years (she also won in a US Naginata Federation division a couple of years ago).

The weapon is wielded in quite a different manner from the bo. Instead of using the naginata as an extension of your typical punch, you use torque and and the curvature of the weapon to slice through your opponent.

One of the most amazing things was when Tanner-sensei took on one of the students in a shiai (like kendo, but with naginata) match. She started out slow, scoring hits against the student, but letting him at least take a few attacks back at her (most of which she blocked or simply stepped away from.) Then, all of the sudden, she seemed to have taken the measure of her opponent, and she was done taking it easy on him. She exploded into motion, striking three times far more rapidly than I would have thought possible with a seven to eight foot weapon. She did this a couple more times before calling the "match."

She also showed us some of the traditional forms, which are naginata (as well as wakizashi and tanto) vs katana. Unfortunately, as nobody present knew the sword side of the forms, those weren't quite as impressive as they could have been, but they were still pretty neat to watch.

tkd4life · #2 March 2nd, 2009, 01:01 PM

that's really awesome. Is it somewhat wielded like the Kwan Dao?

sirdarksol · #3 March 2nd, 2009, 04:19 PM

I don't think so. I think the Kwan Dao was wielded more like a pole ax (not a poleax, which is a different weapon entirely), with brutal chopping motions.
Basically, the naginata relies upon finesse, the quality of the blade, and the curvature of the blade to cause its damage.
Weapons like the Kwan Dao rely upon the strength of the user (remember that the original was said to be far too heavy for a "normal" person to wield. I believe it was Guan Yu, who was supposedly a giant man with almost preternatural strength, who wielded the original), the technical skill (similar to finesse, in that finesse requires technical skill, but technical skill doesn't necessarily require finesse), and the weight of the weapon itself to cause its damage.

tkd4life · #4 March 2nd, 2009, 06:01 PM

the original weapon was 100 pounds, if i remember correctly. I understand what you are saying. I always liked watching the naginata. Do you know of any good videos of it?