Kendo · Iaido · Vancouver
The way of the sword.
Kendo, the art of the bamboo sword, and iaido, the art of drawing the blade — taught to adults and juniors by sensei who have trained for decades. Watch a class first; then join one.
Every class begins and ends on the knees, facing the people who taught you.
The Bow
Kendo is the oldest way of keeping a sword art alive: the bamboo shinai and the armour let two people strike at full speed, with full intent, and both go home. It is loud, honest and physical. Iaido is its quiet twin — the drawing and cutting of a blade, alone, until every movement is necessary and nothing is wasted.
- Rei — respect For your partner, your teachers and the floor you train on.
- Kiai — spirit The shout that carries intention through the strike.
- Zanshin — awareness The readiness that remains after the cut.
One is a conversation at full speed. The other is a conversation with yourself.
Two Swords
Kendo
The bamboo shinai, the bogu armour and the strike called with a shout. Two people, full speed, full intent — and everybody bows at the end.
Iaido
Drawing an unsharpened blade from its saya, cutting and returning it, in solo kata. Precision, posture and stillness, at any age.
01Kendo beginnersFootwork, the bamboo shinai, the strikes and the shout — in keikogi and hakama, without armour, until your body knows the basics. Then the bogu.Ten weeks · Tue · Thu · no armour yet
02Kendo keikoPractice in full armour: kirikaeshi, drills and free sparring with every grade on the floor. Loud, exhausting, and the best kind of humbling.Adults · bogu · four evenings
03IaidoDrawing, cutting and sheathing an unsharpened blade in the twelve Seitei kata. No opponent but your own attention; the quietest class in the building.Solo kata · iaito · Wed · Sat
04Juniors kendoThe same art, scaled for younger bodies: footwork, etiquette and focus, with armour introduced slowly and sparring always supervised.Ages 10–16 · Saturdays
05Shinsa preparationTwo months of focused work before a grading — the kata, the examination keiko, and the written part — with a sensei who has sat on the panel.Before every grading · by invitation
Grades are examined by panels of senior sensei, never by your own teacher.
The Path
6 kyū → 1 kyū
The student grades, examined twice a year. Most adults reach 1 kyū in about two years.
Shodan — 1st dan
The first black-belt grade: the basics are yours, and the real study begins.
Nidan — 2nd dan
At least one year after shodan. Your kendo starts to have intention behind it.
Sandan — 3rd dan
Two years after nidan. Many members teach the beginners from here.
Yondan & godan
Three, then four years more. Spirit and timing, judged by senior panels.
Rokudan and beyond
Renshi, kyoshi — titles of teaching. A lifetime, and the reason the art has no finish line.
There is no belt in kendo and no colour on the uniform — your grade lives on a certificate and in the way you hold the sword. Most of our members sit their first grading within a year.
The dojo floor is open six days a week.
The Week
Kendo beginnersTue · Thu 18:30
No armour · keikogi lent
Kendo keikoTue · Thu 19:45
Bogu · all grades
Morning keikoMon · Fri 6:30
Bogu · 2 kyū and above
IaidoWed 19:00
Seitei kata · iaito lent
Kendo — kataWed 20:15
Nihon kendo kata
Juniors kendoSat 9:00
Ages 10–16
Kendo keikoSat 10:30
Bogu · all grades
IaidoSat 12:15
All levels · koryu on request
Open keikoSun 10:00
Visitors from other dojo welcome
Shinsa preparationSun 11:45
Before gradings · by invitation
Beginners come in loose clothes for the first class; a keikogi and hakama are lent until you buy your own. Armour is lent for your first six months in bogu.
Seven sensei teach on the floor. Every one of them still trains.
The Teachers
Haruki Sato
Chief instructor · kendo 7th dan kyoshi
Trained at a university dojo in Kyoto before founding Kensei in 1994. Still takes the Monday morning keiko, and still strikes first.
Emily Takeda
Iaido · 6th dan renshi
A former national iaido champion who leads the Wednesday and Saturday classes. Patient, exact, and the quietest voice in the building.
Daniel Ruiz
Juniors & beginners · kendo 5th dan
Came to kendo at nineteen with no martial arts at all. Now runs the beginner course and the juniors, and remembers exactly how hard the first months are.
I came to watch one class and stayed nine years. Nothing else in my week asks me to be so completely present.
Iaido at fifty-eight has given me back my posture and my patience. Takeda-sensei corrects the angle of a wrist from across the room.
Our son was nervous of the armour. Now he puts it on faster than his father ties a tie.
Membership is monthly, and the first class is to watch.
The Cost
Beginner course
$240ten weeks
- Twenty classes, Tue · Thu
- Shinai and keikogi lent
- A sensei for every four students
- Credited to your first month
New courses start every January, April and September.
Full member
$129per month
- Every kendo and iaido class
- Morning keiko and open keiko
- Bogu lent for six months
- Shinsa preparation
Federation membership and grading fees are separate.
Juniors
$79per month
- Saturday juniors class
- Saturday keiko once ready
- Junior armour lent
- Siblings $59 each
Ages 10–16.
Iaido only is $95 a month, with an iaito lent until you choose your own. Students and anyone over sixty-five pay $20 less on any monthly plan.
Questions
Do I need to buy armour?
Not for a long time. Beginners train without armour for the first ten weeks, and the dojo lends bogu for your first six months after that.
How long before I wear bogu?
Usually after the ten-week beginner course, once your footwork and strikes are safe for a partner.
Does it hurt?
Strikes land on armour and are aimed at four targets only. You will be tired and occasionally bruised on the wrists; injuries are rare.
Is iaido done with a real sword?
With an iaito — a blade with no edge, made for practice. Live blades are only for senior grades, and never in a group class.
Am I too old to start?
Our oldest beginner in kendo was sixty-one; in iaido, seventy-four. Both are still training.
What should I wear to watch?
Anything. Sit quietly at the side, and bow when you come in. A sensei will talk to you afterwards about the beginner course.
Sit at the side of the floor for an evening. Then decide.
Your First Class
Tell us when you can come and which art draws you. We will save you a place to watch keiko, introduce you to a sensei afterwards, and hold a spot on the next beginner course.