Best products from r/Kyudo

Hey there, hi there, ho there! Get ready: paragraphs ahead!

Texas, huh? This situation's tough, and despite some elbow grease, Google hasn't got anything guaranteed to offer. Regardless, I've found a few possible locations that offer Kyudo lessons in Texas.

Before all else though: to the best of my ((very) limited) knowledge, yabusame is largely a ceremonial (rather than recreational) practice in current days, and as such, isn't so widely taught and practiced-- I don't think it's even something tested for in the examination to achieve "renshi" (teacher) rank with the International Kyudo Federation. You should not expect any given teacher or Kyudo practitioner outside of Japan to have a thorough knowledge of the process... much less be in a position to teach. I hope I'm wrong on this front, though. If I am, then your best bet for the nearest yabusame practitioner on-the-grid may very well be one of the highest ranking individuals in the four biggest states for Kyudo: California, Indiana, North Carolina (not "big" in so many words, but the two people who literally wrote the English book on Kyudo are a part of this renmei), or South Carolina. A long drive, to say the least! For now, I'd act optimistically but plan for the worst-case scenario.

There are three possible places where you might be able to learn Kyudo in Texas, as far as I can find.

There's the Texas Kyudo Renmei, associated with the American Kyudo Renmei (the nationwide organization that plays nice with the All Nippon (Japan) Kyudo Renmei and the International Kyudo Federation). I'm finding conflicting information on this group, however. On one hand, my 2013 edition copy of Kyudo: The Essence and Practice of Japanese Archery puts the group in De Soto, Texas with Michael Mason as president (email listed as masonmg@worldnet.att.net). The American Kyudo Renmei website (quite possibly out of date) shows the Texas Renmei as being situated in Dallas, though-- with a man by the name of Mark Wegmann running the show. I get the impression this Dallas group at least has folded-- the IKYF's site doesn't list Texas in their 2010 list of American Renmei, and the comment from one Liz here suggests Mark of Dallas has been unreachable for some time. Meanwhile, De Soto's quite the drive for you, huh... .__.;; You're free to try your luck with either of these options-- they might be able to tell you about any closer grassroots groups that don't have an internet presence, at least.

The remaining two places are the most likely to have something to your immediate advantage.

Austin, Texas has a place called the Austin Shambala Meditation Center. The meditation center advertises some form of Kyudo seminar, held twice a month with a $15 cost. I expect this is a get-your-feet-wet kind of program, rather than a group that meets regularly, and that might not be what you're looking for.

Second, an alternative Kyudo group named Zenko International that I'm honestly 100% unfamiliar with shows on their website two practicing groups in Texas-- one in Austin, one in San Antonio(!)-- with a name, email address, and phone number for each group. These two will be your best bet in my book.

Something to remember with places that aren't affiliated with the International Kyudo Federation, though, is that the teachers in such places will be operating outside the renmei system of ranks (dan) used to show progress and mastery of Kyudo principles and practices on the international stage. You should talk with the people who run these groups-- get to know them, where they learned the sport, what drives their interest in it, and if the style of Kyudo they have to teach (because there are different styles, hoo boy) is in line with the style that Zen in the Art of Archery prepared you for. So long as everything checks out by your eye-- that their answer to where they learned the sport is not "Well, I read this one book once..." and that the style is in line with what you're looking to learn-- you shouldn't worry about teachers outside the still pretty nascent American Renmei. The only advantages to learning with one of the IKYF affiliated renmei are if learning specifically the federation's style is a priority for you, if you hope to take and pass dan ranking exams, or participate in competitions or the renmei organization-- and the absence of these won't stop you from being able to learn Kyudo as a different style of archery. \^\^

In the event you can't find any yabusame teachers in Texas, you should email someone with the American Kyudo Renmei (contact info here) to ask about the state of yabusame in the United States, and what your options in that regard are. If you get any word back, positive or negative, let us know! That's the kind of info there ought to be available online what isn't, and it's always great to get updates from fellow kyudoka!

Setting aside the question of yabusame for a moment-- in the event you can't find any Kyudo teachers in Texas, you can still get your feet wet with Kyudo through the use of books and practice material. There's two books that have the greatest sway in English:

The first is Kyudo: The Essence and Practice of Japanese Archery, which is regarded as the most clear and detailed walk-through of general Kyudo practices, from firing from a standing, kneeling, and etc. stances with pictures and comments how holding the bow, common mistakes and how to recognize them (and fix them), and the principles taught with the mentality aspect of Kyudo. It's written originally in English by two high-ranking kyudoka who learned directly from one of the greatest Kyudo masters of the last century, rather than being a translation of Japanese material.

There's also the translation of volume one of the All Nippon Kyudo Federation's original Kyudo manual (unavailable for purchase online near as far as I can tell). This is a wordy translation of the thorough manual used for practice and teaching in Japan-- it's through my Japanese high school Kyudo club adviser that I got my copy, in fact. Only the first volume of this manual ever got an English translation though, and I can can confirm that the first volume doesn't go into yabusame. The only way to get a copy of this is to talk to the All Nippon Kyudo Federation directly and arrange for a money order and shipping. The manual's been made available online freely though on this site, though the legality of uploading the manual seems like dubious ground to me (I doubt the ANKF, the copyright holders, did the uploading..). Reading the material there isn't illegal though, and you can certainly use it to determine if the manual's an investment you'd like to make. The back of my book says it cost 3,060 yen-- so the cost for you would-- or should-- be something like ~$30 + shipping.

I'm sorry I don't have anything guaranteed to share, especially about yabusame! Kyudo's still a massively new sport stateside, with no real foothold or tried-and-true infrastructure to go to to get definitive answers online for questions like these. If there's any further questions you've got, me or any other kyudoka on r/Kyudo here are sure to have an answer of some kind for you, even if just contact info on who to be asking.

Oh, that's too bad... In that case, if you can get a hold of the book Kyudo: The Essence and Practice of Japanese Archery, I think it would be a good primer before you go. It was written by Dan and Jackie DeProspero, two kyudo practitioners who live on the Eastern Seaboard of the US. From what I understand, Mr. DeProspero is one of the few western practitioners actually went to Japan and became a "live-in-apprentice" to one of the last generation's kyudo masters. His book is an easy read and gives a very good intro to Kyudo today.

In terms for advice on how to find a Dojo in Japan, I would refer you to Rick Beal Sensei of the Nanka Kyudo Kai, in Southern Calilfornia. More than any other sensei that I've met, he seemed more interested about "spreading the gospel" to anyone who might be interested about learning Kyudo. He is a very friendly and knowledgeable man who has gone to Japan many times and I'm sure that he may be able to refer you to a Dojo.

>Finally I am considering getting a bow as a souvenir, as I said I shoot traditional in the UK so I am used to shooting English longbows and other wooden bows but from what I've read during my research a bamboo yumi would be too delicate for regular outdoors shooting, especially in the british weather but I have seen that you can get fiber glass yumi and carbon fiber yumi, would either of these be suitable enough for regular outdoor use?
I understand that Kyudo is about more than just the bow but the yumi is such a stunning design I can't help but want one for myself.

I didn't actually see this part last night - Sorry for not addressing this. With one exception, I would highly discourage you from getting a bamboo bow (even though they are very beautiful. This is because of the construction...

Depending on your height, the length of the yumi (bow) that you would purchase can range from 212- 245 cm. The width and thickness usually do not range more than about 2.5 to 3 cm. Most bamboo bows are lamellated with an inner core consisting of several long and thin strips of hardwood. Because of this, the bows are actually rather delicate and if you draw the bow incorrectly (ie. A significant amount of tension in your hands which would cause torque at the distal tips of the bow), you can really cause the innards of your bow to splinter.

The exception would be if you bought a bow from Don Symanski sensei. He is another western kyudo practitioner who lives in Colorado, USA. Somewhat like DeProspero-sensei, he apprenticed himself to a bowmaker in Japan for a number of years. To my knowledge, he is really the only competent yumi-artisan in the USA at present. He does have a stylistic difference than bowmakers in Japan in that he will make Yumi with solid cores for beginner use. Usually, these are purchased by the Kyu-dojo to be used as a "general class bow". These are much more sturdy, but don't draw nearly as smoothly as the laminated bows.

Unless you really start practicing kyudo, I'd recommend that you go with a carbon-fiber or fiberglass bow (if you just want a bow to shoot for fun). The bamboo bows do require specialized care, especially the first several months after you buy it. The shape and curves of the bow are very prone to warp during the "break-in" period if you don't know what you're doing (and since you live rather far away from London, there may not be an experienced kyudo practitioner who can help fix the warping without damaging your bow). The damp weather probably won't help much either.

Anyway, I hope that helps you.