Iaido One of the Japanese
traditional Budo concerned with drawing the blade and cutting in the
same motion. (Budo means martial arts or military arts in Japan). A
typical form consists of the draw and cut, a finishing cut, cleaning
the blade and returning it to the scabbard, all without looking away
from the imaginary opponent. Most practice is solo, eventually with
shin-ken (a real blade). In contrast with Kendo, Iaido is performed
without protective coverings of any kind. Students must strive to
achieve power, precision and perfection in their form. Along the way
they learn balance, grace, and control both of the body and the
mind. Iaido dealt more with everyday situation rather than those on
the battlefield. The term "Iai" is taken from the Japanese phrase: "Tsune
ni ite, kyu ni awasu". The meaning of this is, whatever we may be
doing or wherever we may be, we must always be prepared from any
eventually. The techniques themselves dealt with many situations
such as a sudden attack by several opponents, a surprise attack
while bowing to someone, an enemy lying in wait behind a sliding
door or an attack in a darkened room. The permutations
(suppositions) were countless.