A Beginner's Point of View 399-400

Day 399:

No class today as I am not feeling well. I will rest and go to class tomorrow.

Day 400:

Today someone else showed up earlier than me. He wound up cleaning the floor before I was done changing into my uniform.

Since I did not move the furniture, I had lots of energy. I was able to do three full sets of kata before I was tired. My iaito was scraping out of the saya as I drew. I need to pull it back more fully.

I asked the instructor about the difference in the eleventh and twelfth katas. For each of their chiburi, they do something different with their right foot. In the eleventh kata, you stay firm. In the twelfth kata, you slide your right foot backwards. The instructor seemed amused at this question as he did not have an answer.

I practiced a few more kata at random until I decided to ask Sensei. I waited until he finished a kata. Then I asked him the question. He replied that Seitei Gata was a result of a mixing of the three main schools of Iaido. The difference in chiburi steps was a result of the mixing of styles and techniques. That’s very interesting. It’s no wonder that seeing a demonstration of Muso-Shinden Ryu shows similarities to Seitei Gata.