suemonogiri

KNIFE WORK

My initial attraction to martial arts was through the weapons as artifacts. I was entranced by the beauty of the swords at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.[1] I still covet and collect weapons but the pragmatist in me knows this is a servile and dangerous affliction. The importance isn’t the tool, it is theContinue reading “KNIFE WORK”

Tameshigiri, test cutting, is typically done using rolled straw mats that have been soaked in water to add density. The term “tameshi-giri” emphasizes the test of a blade’s sharpness – tameshi “to test” + giri “cut.” The older form was suemonogiri which focuses on the target; suemono “fixed/still object” + giri “cut.” A good explorationContinue reading “SUEMONOGIRI”