Kyudo and Zen.

A coincidence through
misunderstanding.
Dr. Pablo Perez Goodwyn
Tbingen University Center for Japanese Language at Doshisha University
pablogoodwyn@yahoo.com.ar

Brief History of Kyudo

Japanese archery has been covered with myth and legend, making it difficult to
assemble a completely accurate account of its development. For many people Kyudo
evokes the practice of Zen, even to the point of being named Zen Archery (just try any
search engine in the web, and is guaranteed not less than 8000 pages!). Still, before the
second World War (here the Great West Asian war), there seems to be no direct
connection between these two extremely old disciplines. The development of Japanese
archery may be divided into five historical stages: Prehistoric (7,000 B.C to A.D. 330),
Ancient (330-1192), Feudal (1192-1603), Transitional (1603-1912), and Modern (1912 to
the present).
The Prehistoric Period
The earliest known inhabitants of the Japanese islands, the hunter-gatherer culture of
the Jomon people, used bows which were of different lengths but were the short,
center-gripped type common to other primitive cultures. From around 250 B.C to A.D.
330 the Yayoi culture flourished. A written account compiled by the Chinese in the third
century (ca. 297AD) describes the Japanese soldiers using a bow with upper and lower
limbs of differing length, so it is highly likely that the unique asymmetrical design of
the Japanese bow was adopted during the this period. During this time the bow came to
be used as a symbol of political power. Legend says that Japan's first ruler was Emperor
Jimmu, (ascended to the throne in 660 B.C.), who is depicted in paintings and
descriptions always holding a long asymmetric bow.
The Ancient Period
During this period Japan was strongly influenced by Chinese culture. It was then that
ceremonial archery became an important part of the court system. The Japanese

bowmakers also began to borrow the composite construction (wood and bamboo
laminating) used by the Chinese and by the tenth century. The Ancient period also saw
the rise of the samurai, or warrior class, and the bow saw even greater use as a weapon
of war as the samurai struggled to establish themselves as a powerful new social class.
The Feudal Period
In 1192 Minamoto no Yoritomo was granted the title of shogun, and established stricter
standards for his warriors. As part of that training, Ogasawara Nagakiyo (1162-1242),
was instructed to teach mounted archery in a more formal manner. He taught the
ceremonial bow shooting on foot and riding on horseback. During the Muromachi period,
his teachings were lost, and many Daimyo () were using this name and stating they
were the descendants of Ogasawara Nagakiyo. Tokugawa Yoshimune (8th Tokugawa
Shogun, 1648-1751), collected wrintngs concerning archery throughout Japan, and
ordered Ogasawara Heibei Tsuneharu (1666-1747) to study, revive and teach the
ceremonials of equestrian and foot archery. In this way he became as the today regarded
founder of the Ogasawara-ryu (), still in practice today.
It was during the Onin War (beginning 1467) time that the kyujutsu ryu, the schools of
archery technique developed independently. One of the most influential archers of the
time was Heki Danjo Masatsugu (1443 to 1502), a probably mythological archer, who
taught Yoshida Shigekata, who found the style () Heki Ryu (). He is
credited with standardizing the training of kyujutsu which no doubt assured its
continued growth and development, even into modern times. It was during the Feudal
period that the construction of the Japanese bow reached its peak. By the late sixteenth
century it was regarded as being near perfect in design, so that the bamboo and wood
laminate bows used in modern kyudo are nearly identical to those made four hundred
years ago. The end of the sixteenth century also spelled the end of the bow's usefulness
as a weapon of war when Oda Nobunaga, commanding conscripts armed with muskets,
defeated the opposing force of kyujutsu archers in a major battle in 1575.
From the technical point of view, Japanese archery can be divided in two main
disciplines: Reisha () ceremonial shooting, and busha () war/warrior shooting.
is concerned with the ritual, self consciousness and concentration of the kyujutsu.
is the shooting under extreme stress conditions, during the battle, where one life is
in risk, and shooting bows powerful to penetrate kill another warrior`s amour. This can
be divided in foot archery hosha and equestrian (on horseback) archery, kisha
, and temple archery dousha .
is requires accuracy to hit a target not bigger than a human chest at a range of

about 30 meters, with a very quick readying of the bow and aiming.

teaching was

not kept except for a similar ceremonial shooting ( ) where shooters

must shoot three static targets riding a horse. is developed as a special
competition (), quite popular in the Tokugawa period, in which shooters
compete to find out who can shoot the most arrows the entire length of the
() the outside veranda in the () Temple in
Kyoto, approximately 120 long, in one day. This requires a relatively light bow and very
energy-economic shooting technique.
Both the equestrian archery and foot archery are practiced today. Equestrian as a
ceremony, held at the beginning of the Aoi Matsuri in Kyoto, in the Shimogamo jinja,
the Ogawasara ryu Yabusame. Foot as normal everyday Kyudo shooting, in which the
targest are 38 cm wide and are shot at 28 m away.
The Transitional Period
In the seventeenth century Japan's period of civil war ceased and the emphasis of
Japanese archery gradually changed from kyujutsu to kyudo, or, in other words, from
the technique of fighting with a bow to the way of personal development. The
Transitional period also saw the general public become more involved with the practice
of archery. As the twentieth century dawned, Honda Toshizane, a kyudo instructor at
Tokyo Imperial University, combined elements of the warrior and ceremonial styles to
create a hybrid form that came to be known as Honda Ryu. Although the traditional
schools were against the creation of this hybrid form, Honda Toshizane is widely
credited today with ensuring the survival of kyudo in the twentieth century.
The Modern Period
In the early 1930's it became evident that modern kyudo would need to be standardized
in some way to guarantee its continued growth. The issue was hotly debated and the
agreement that was reached in 1934 was tentative at best. After World War II, the
occupation forces banned the practice of kyudo, along with all other martial arts. It
wasn't until 1949 that final authorization was granted and the All Nippon Kyudo
Federation was formed. In 1953 the kyudo kyohon (manual) was published, establishing
the shooting procedures that are in common use today.
From the technical point of view, Japanese archery can be divided in two main
disciplines: Reisha () ceremonial shooting, and busha () war/warrior shooting.
is concerned with the ritual, self consciousness and concentration of the kyujutsu.

 is the shooting under extreme stress conditions, during the battle, where one life is
in risk, and shooting bows powerful to penetrate kill another warrior`s amour. This can
be divided in foot archery hosha and equestrian (on horseback) archery, kisha
, and temple archery dousha .
is requires accuracy to hit a target not bigger than a human chest at a range of
about 30 meters, with a very quick readying of the bow and aiming.

teaching was

not kept except for a similar ceremonial shooting ( ) where shooters

must shoot three static targets riding a horse. is developed as a special
competition (), quite popular in the Tokugawa period, in which shooters
compete to find out who can shoot the most arrows the entire length of the
() the outside veranda in the () Temple in
Kyoto, approximately 120 long, in one day. This requires a relatively light bow and very
energy-economic shooting technique.
Both the equestrian archery and foot archery are practiced today. Equestrian as a
ceremony, held at the beginning of the Aoi Matsuri in Kyoto, in the Shimogamo jinja,
the Ogawasara ryu Yabusame. Foot as normal everyday Kyudo shooting, in which the
targest are 38 cm wide and are shot at 28 m away.
Eugen Herrigel (1884-1955) and Awa Kenzo (1880-1939).
Satou Kenzo was born in Miyagi Prefecture Japan, 1880. Even though he attended only
elementary School, he opened a Chinese Character Writing School when he was 18
years old. At the age of 20 he married a woman of Awa family, and for being the eldest
son he adopted this surname. The next year he started learned Kyujutsu (the name for
the martial art, the technique for Bow Shooting; when we say Kyudo is implicit the
way of the Bow, as a modern complete art and for the development of inner awareness,
etc) from Heki-ryuu school. Early in his career, he was exceptionally accurate shooter,
reaching the rank that enabled him as a teacher only two years later. At the age of 30,
he moved to Sendai and opened an archery school, and as well taught at the Daini
Koutou gakkou. In 1920 (41 years old), he had an extrasensorial or sacred
experience (the great Explosion, according to Awa Kenzo). Since then he was regarded
as crazy, eccentric, even rejected in many traditional kyujutsu meetings and dojou.
Some years after (1927) he started his own bow shooting school, the Daishakoukyou (
), which almost mixed bowshooting with religion. During these years of maturing
the idea of the new way, Eugen Herrigel, a German philosopher from Freiburg, who
had a lecture in the University Tohouku Imperial University () (1924-29),

came in contact with him, and learned Kyudo. After his Lecture in Japan, he went back
to Germany, where he had a professorship in Erlangen, and wrote the book Zen in der
Kunst des Bogenschiessens. This book is still today a Best-Seller, and was translated to
many languages, including Japanese.
Eugen Herrigel had read extense bibliography regarding Mysticism and Religion in
Japan, but he was fascinated with Zen, especially after an experience he had when he
saw a Japanese sit down in deep Zen meditation and exterior easiness during an
earthquake. A friend, also German, and with no knowledge of Japanese, suggested to
get close to Zen, through some art expression, not directly practicing it. Herrigel himself
decided to learn Bow Shooting. A working mate from the University, Komachiya Souzou
( ) who was a former Awa`s student 12 years before, and was not aware in
the change to mysticism and religion of his old Master, accepted to act as interpreter
during the classes (Yamada, 2001).
Awa Kenzo was extremely obscure in his speech, making it confuse and difficult to
follow, contradictory sometimes and full of metaphors. Herrigel wanted to learn in a
more logical way, and every time he asked the way he should do certain practical thing
regarding bow shooting, the answer was so complicated with religious and metaphoric
details, that the interpreter himself made simplifications just to avoid being the whole
day translating complicated philosophy speeches (Komachiya, 1965).
Apparently the language barrier, the complicated language style used by Awa, and the
simplifications of the interpreter, made Herrigel think his own ideas regarding Kyudo
and Zen. Herrigel himself was fascinated with Zen, stating that all the Japanese arts

go back for their inner form to a common root, namely Buddism, . I mean Dhyana
Buddism, which is known in Japan as Zen (Herrigel, 1953). This kind of obtuse
thinking coupled with the above mentioned problems, made Herrigel interpret his
learning incorrectly (Yamada, 2001). Two of the most inspiring mystical episodes in
which the whole book is centered, were misinterpretations; one without interpreter and
the conversation remains in doubt, and the other just a language misinterpretation. The
episode of the target in darkness occurred when Herrigel had problems hitting the
target. Awa suggested him not to aim. Herrigel could not accept that one is able to hit
the target without aiming, so Kenzo invited Herrigel one evening to the Dojo. There, he
placed one incense stick in front of the target, and then shoot two arrows with no more
light than that. The first arrow hit the center, and the second struck the first splitting it
in two. Herrigel interpretation was this, putting these words in Awa You probably

think that after 30 years of shooting, hitting the center with the first shot would not
be a great feat. But what do you make of the second shot? Since it did not came from me,

it was not me who made the hitIt is possible to even aim in such darkness? Can you
still maintain that you cannot hit the target without aiming? Well let us stand in front
of the target with the same attitude as when we bow before the Buddha. There was no
interpreter then, and no whitness. Apparently Herrigel trusted a mind-to-mind
communication (Yamada, 2001). Years later, after Herrigel`s book was published,
Komachiya read it, and he published another book, in which he states that he asked
Awa about this episode in particular. Awa laughed and said you know, sometimes in

bow shooting strange things happen, and that day I had no intention to demonstrate
that, it was just a coincidence (Komachiya, 1965). Even Awa did not reveal this incident
to any of his disciples, except to his most advanced, Azawa Heijirou, who wrote a book
about the story of Awa Kenzo, which described the episode in a similar way.
The other episode Es Schiesst, Herrigel made the whole interpretation based upon the
assumption that the release of the bow string (, ) was to be made without
meaning to, as it would self release or self shoot. This happened after two years of
training shooting a two-meter away straw target. Herrigel could not release correctly no
matter how many times he shot, and the answer Awa gave was you must not release

the string yourself ! Herrigel questioned but how can I shoot if I do not do it? Awa
It shoots ! Herrigel And who or what is it? Awa Once you understood, there

would be no need of me. If I tried to give you a clue at the cost of your own experience, I
would be the worst of the teachers so lets keep on practicing ! but one day Awa
during Herrigel`s practice, bowed, congratulate him, and he said Es schiesst according
to Herrigel. In Japanese an exact translation could be . The real phrase
could have been which means that`s it or you`ve got it, (Hoff, 1994)
more or less old fashioned commonly used today. The translation of
could have been the third person pronoun Es. But the whole book of Herrigel was
based upon the Es schiesst Doctrine.
It is interesting to note some facts:
-

Awa Kenzo never practiced Zen, however he used a coined phrase (the
bow and Zen are one).

Herrigel never practiced Zen, or shared a long time with Zen monks, however he
had an extensive knowledge of the subject.

The language barrier was never overcome, even though Herrigel stayed 8 years in
Japan.

The book was re-written from a draft almost 12 years after Herrigel came back to
Germany.

The Japanese translation of the book revealed that most expressions and teachings
related by Herrigel are not used today in Kyudo.

Awa Kenzo was an eccentric teacher, who founded a mixture of new religion and
bowshooting, which disappeared after his death.

Herrigel was fascinated and stubborn regarding Zen.

Which altogether gave birth to the Myth of Zen in Bow shooting, which is specially
strong after the translation of Herrigel`s book to many languages. Even here in
Japan, this translated version is a Best-seller, and many Japanese students start
Kyudo learning to pursue Zen learning.
Literature cited
HERRIGEL,

EUGEN.

1948.

Zen

in

der

Kunst

des

Bogenschiessens.

Muenchen-Planegg: Otto-Wilhem Barth-Verlag.

HOFF, FELIKS F. 1994. Herrigel and the consequences. In: 1st International Kyudo
Sympossium Proceedings. Pp: 25-35. Hamburg, Kyudo Bund.
KOMACHIYA, SOUZOU. 1965. Zadankai: Awa Kenzo hakase to sono deshi Oigen
Herigeru hakase no koto wo Komachiya hakase ni kiku. Pt. 3 Kyuudou 183:4-7
MURAKAMI, H. TAKEUCHI, J. ISHIOKA, H. Eds. 1994. Kyudo manual. Vol. I.

Principles of shooting (Shahou). All Nippon Kyuudo Federation. Tokyo, Japan.

YAMADA, SHOUJI. 2001. The myth of Zen in the art of archery. Japanese Journal
of religiuois studies. 28 (1-2):1-30

Figures:
1. Japanese asymmetric bow, in full draw.
2. Long bow, typical European design (Robin Hood et at.), but in general most
ancient civilizations used more or less similar bows.
3. Recurved bow, based upon middle East design, the tips of the limbs are curver
more or less outwards, shorter and faster.
4. Modern high-tech compound bow, eccentric cams. Extremelly fast and
accurate.
Note from picture 1 to 4, the reduction in length of bows, and that the only
asymmetric one is the Japanese.