Watching a Test

Today was Yuko’s yon-dan test. I told her after I got my ni-dan that I would come and watch her test and cheer her on. I was really excited when my Sunday class got transferred to another teacher, because it meant I could go from the very early morning to watch from the beginning.

Unfortunately, as luck would have it, the new Sunday teacher got the flu on Saturday and couldn’t make it for Sunday, so I had to take over her class. The test usually lasts from 8 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon, however, so I could watch from 12:30.

When I got there, Yuko had already finished, and she happily told me that she passed!! She only had to do the shiai portion, because she took a three day seminar to be exempt from the kata and the written. She has tried for 6 years to get yon-dan, so understandably, today was a very happy day for her. She said she spent the whole morning before the exam telling herself that she could do it, and visualizing herself moving and striking. There’s a lot to be said about the visualization process before an endeavor. Involving your mind before you involve your body is, perhaps, a more effective warm up than actual suburi or drills. The mind is a very powerful tool in kendo.

Yuko wanted to wait until the end of the test in order to thank all of the sensei who had helped her along the way, which was fine for me, because I wanted to snap some pictures and watch the test.

Apparently, about 500 people were testing today. The gym was packed with people, and even a few foreigners. Yuko explained that in Kyoto for shodan through yon-dan, the test happens four times a year. Go-dan and roku-dan, it’s twice a year, and for nana-dan and hachi-dan, it’s only once a year. Therefore, it’s not uncommon for people to travel to another city to take a test, to maximize the number of times they can take a test in a year. In fact, Satou Sensei took his test today in Nagoya, and a few weeks back, Koyama san took his roku-dan test in Okayama.

In the end, the judges were really strict today. Only 72% of shodan passed, 73% of ni-dan, 76% of san-dan, 32% of yon-dan and 36% of go-dan. The reason stated was there wasn't strong enough kiai and kihon was really lacking. It was obvious that kiai was lacking. Voices were really weak and didn’t project at all. It’s good to remember that basic techniques and a good, strong kiai are the foundation of kendo and ought to never be forgotten.

At the end of the test, I took Yuko out for a celebration slice of cake. We’re going to have a celebration nabe party too, which I’m really looking forward too! For now, we both need to focus on the next step up on our journey, san-dan and go-dan. We can do it!