Clear Lake Iaido

Links

We hope you find the following links useful in your study of the sword arts.

Other MJER Schools

The Dojo in Denton, Texas
Satellite schools under John Ray are located in:
Eishinkai Dojo in Northern Virginia and western North Carolina
Nishi Kaigan Iaido Dojo in Berkely, California
Hokusei Dojo in Everett, Washington (email Chris Gamel-sensei for contact info)
- River City Iaido & Kendo Kyokai in San Antonio, Texas
New England Iaido Kyokai in Boston, Massachussets (email John Ray-sensei for contact information)
Melsbroek dojo in Belgium
Canadian Iaido Association
Nanno-sensei's dojo in Kasugai City, Nagoya, Japan

Iaido Shopping

JapaneseSword.net: for all your iaito needs, and more
Aoi Budogu: for very nice montsuki, hanjuban, sageo, and more
Bugei: for hanjuban and other uwagi items
Bujin: for very nice sword cases. This site also features hakama in various sizes and materials, and has a line for women. They will do custom work. Their Iaido obi is 4 inches wide (the widest I've seen). Things to note: they cater to Aikidoka; the himo on their hakama is very long.
Daimyou Outfitters: for custom hanjuban, uwagi, and more at reasonable prices
Nine Circles: reasonably priced montsuki and plastic saya
Bogu Bag: nice inexpensive hakama, kaku obi, hanjuban, and other clothing items
Yamatoku
Ichiroya: good deals on used hakama, kaku obi, etc., however availability varies depending on stock.
Four Gates: This web site caters to practicing Buddhists, and sells clothing and other stuff for meditation practice. The clothing is made here in the US, and they will do custom orders. They do have a funny notion of Japanese clothing, as a tour of the web site will reveal. That being said, they do have a nice traditional plain black 100% cotton (light weight material) full-length kimono (in sizes) with nice big sleeves. Only problem is the sleeves tend to hang down in your face when your arms are raised for kirioroshi, due to a seam placed on the bottom of the large osode-style sleeves. I removed the seam on mine, and it's much better. This also come with a "traditional" velcro obi (not kidding).
Their han juban is one of the nicest I've had the pleasure to own, and it comes in white 100% cotton, but no opening in the armpit. They also sell a hakama, which I have seen, and it is literally a skirt (not divided at all), which makes it impractical for martial art use. However the web site does not warn you about this.
Sei Do Kai Supplies Catalog: They sell a video of John Ray-Sensei teaching a seminar at Guelph in 1995. They also sell uwagi, wooden weapons and will do custom work.
Bokunan-Do: lots of fun clothing items and accessories
Round Earth Publishing
Eastwind Art
Sewing Central: for patterns of hakama, kimono, tabi, and more
www.kimono-taizen.com/wear.htm: for pictures showing how to wear traditional clothing. Note: it's all in Japanese, but there are lots of pictures; just start clicking on links.
Tattoo Productions: This is the shop that produced our attractive Clear Lake Iaido silk-screened T-shirts.
Engrish.com: just for fun, has nothing to do with clothing

Recommended Books & Videos

NOTE: The following items are intended as reference material for those already under qualified instruction. Books and videos can not teach you anything. Nor can they correct you when you think you are doing the form correctly. Only a qualified instructor can do that.

Video (VHS or DVD):

The 1995 John Ray Seminar at University of Guelph - 1 & 2 (VID-10 & VID-11)
Techniques: Seiza, Toho, Tate Hiza, and Oku Iai Tachi Waza;
Available from: Sei Do Kai Supplies Catalog (see Training videos)

Book and DVD:

Title: Iai-Do: Japanese Sword Drawing Techniques and Spiritual Training
Author: Nanno, Teruhisa (Kyoshi Hachidan)
Techniques: Seiza, Batto Ho, Toho, Tate Hiza, Oku Iai Tachi Waza, Iwaza, Bangai
DVD is sold with the book; both book and DVD are in Japanese and English; text has numerous B&W photos, parts of the sword chart, glossary, descriptions of the techniques; also history, principles & concepts are touched upon.

Book:

Title: The Art of Japanese Swordsmanship: A Manual of Eishin-Ryu Iaido
Author: Suino, Nicklaus
Techniques: Seiza, Batto Ho, Toho, Tate Hiza, Oku Iai Tachi Waza, Iwaza, Bangai
Text has numerous drawn figures illustrating the techniques; includes glossary, bibliography, index, and parts of the sword chart; also history and basic principles & concepts are touched upon.

Other Interesting Sites