Kyu Grading Requirements at Tsurugi Bashi

University of Cambridge Kendo Society

New rules from Michaelmas 2003

Tsurugi Bashi aims to hold 4 grading sessions per year: one for each academic term and one in the long vacation. Dates are not fixed and will be decided by the committee on an ad hoc basis, with the intention of having senior yudansha in Cambridge to oversee the examinations whenever possible.

People with no prior kendo experience are taken in as 6th kyu ("white belt" in other martial arts) when they join Tsurugi Bashi. The grades awarded by this dojo are from 5th kyu to 2nd kyu inclusive. Higher grades are not awarded locally: you will have to attend a BKA examination session.

Tsurugi Bashi requires the candidate to attend a minimum of 15 practice sessions between gradings. An attendance record is kept by the secretary for this purpose. Ensure that your name is recorded every time you attend.

The following list gives the detailed requirements for each kyu. The candidate for a given grade must fulfill all the requirements for that grade and all the ones before it, although not all of them will necessarily be tested on the day. The particular selection of points to be tested is at the discretion of the examiners, may vary from exam to exam and from candidate to candidate, and will not be communicated in advance. In other words, be ready for everything up to your chosen grade.

There is no charge to attempt the examination, so long as the candidate paid the standard term fee.

Kendoka shall obtain their own shinai as soon as possible. Wearing hakama and kendogi is allowed as soon as desired, but it is not compulsory before 5-kyu.

5-kyu exam: (after this, the kendoka shall wear hakama and kendogi, and have own bokuto)

• Having practiced for at least 15 sessions since 6-kyu (i.e. since joining)
• Being able to wear and fold hakama and keikogi in the proper way
• Being able to count from 1 to 10 in Japanese: ichi, ni, san, shi, go, roku, shichi, hachi, kyu, ju.
• Being able to perform the following types of suburi:
  1. Jo-ge suburi
  2. Zenshin-kotai-men suburi
  3. Zenshin-kotai-sa-yu-men suburi
  4. Sonkyo suburi
  5. Katate suburi
  6. Kote-men suburi
  7. Haya suburi
• Being able to perform men-uchi
• Being able to strip, reassemble and maintain the shinai (including tying the nakayui, but not the more elaborate knots in the tsuru)

4-kyu exam: (after this, the kendoka may and shall wear armour)

• Having practiced for at least 15 sessions since 5-kyu
• All the requirements for 5-kyu, plus:
• Being able to perform kote-uchi
• Being able to perform kirikaeshi
• Being able to perform tachi no kata no ipponme
• Being able to name the shinai parts in Japanese: chigiri, take, tsukagawa, tsuba, tsubadome, tsuru, nakayui, sakigawa, sakigomu.

3-kyu exam:

• Having practiced for at least 15 sessions since 4-kyu
• All the requirements for 4-kyu, plus:
• Being able to carry, wear and pack bogu properly
• Being able to perform do-uchi
• Being able to perform kote-men
• Being able to perform kirikaeshi as motodachi
• Being able to perform tachi no kata no nihonme
• Being able to perform a basic uchikomi-geiko sequence: men, kote, do, kote-men, kote-do, men

2-kyu exam:

• Having practiced for at least 15 sessions since 3-kyu
• All the requirements for 3-kyu, plus:
• Being able to perform sashi-men
• Being able to perform hiki-men
• Being able to perform tachi no kata no sanbonme
• Being able to demonstrate the 5 kamae
• Being able to show good form in ji-geiko against a senior
• Being able to perform the more difficult knots of shinai maintenance (e.g. tying a new tsuru to the sakigawa)
• Being able to perform the following uchikomi-geiko sequence: men, kote, do, kote-men, kote-do, men+tai-atari+hiki-men, men+tai-atari+hiki-kote, men+tai-atari+hiki-do, men

This page was last updated on 2004-06-27 by Frank Stajano

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