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Iaido – drawing the Japanese Samurai sword

North Thompson Aikido instructor Bernd (Ben) Stütz is now offering a new training program at his Dixon Mountain Road facility in Barriere.
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North Thompson Aikido instructor Bernd (Ben) Stütz demonstrates Iaido - the art of drawing the Japanese Samurai sword.

North Thompson Aikido instructor Bernd (Ben) Stütz is now offering a new training program at his Dixon Mountain Road facility in Barriere.

Iaido (pronounced ‘ee’-‘yai’-‘doh’) is the traditional Japanese art of drawing, cutting, and retracting the Japanese samurai sword or ‘katana.’

The word Iaido literally translates as “the way of mental presence and immediate reaction.”

The art of Iaido is a product of Japan’s 17th and 18th century Edo-period, more commonly known by Americans as the era of the Shogun.

People choose to train Iaido for numerous and varied reasons. Here are some of the most common ones:

• You have always been enamored with samurai culture and you want to learn more about the art, philosophy, and discipline of Bushido.

• You want to forge a powerful spirit of self-confidence within yourself and take that spirit deeper into your personal and work life.

• You still want to practice a martial art, but think you may be too old or believe your body isn’t up for a more dynamic activity. You’re never too old or too out-of-shape to begin Iaido. There is no falling, no rolling, and no contact. So injury is very rare. This means you can still learn a fun, powerful martial art without having to go to the office the next morning covered in bruises!

• You want to strengthen your core muscles in your arms, back, torso, pelvis, legs and shoulder, but you want to do so in a fun way.

• You want to improve your hand-eye coordination, balance, and graceful economy of movement.

• You have a stressful work or home environment and you need a weekly mental escape.

• You’re looking for a martial art that you can practice just one evening per week.

Through Iaido training, you can learn to project a powerful aura in everyday situations. In time, you can cultivate a commanding confidence and demanding respect of and within yourself by mastering your physical body and projecting it to the world.

If you would like to learn more call Ben at 250-672-9768.