Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-Ryū Berlin

Despite the rain, we were happy to take part in the Culture Meets Garden event at Gärten der Welt yesterday and give some insight into Katori Shintō-ryū, samurai culture, and the history of warfare in Japan.

A few curious visitors stopped by to learn about the basics of Japanese swordsmanship, try out some movements, and get a closer look at what this tradition is all about.

Thanks to the organizers for having us, and to our monjin who helped run the workshop and represent the dojo throughout the day. We’re looking forward to next time, hopefully with clearer skies!

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 9pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

✨ 一周年記念 ✨
Last week, we marked the first anniversary of Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin with a special training led by Shihandai Malte Stokhof. Alongside refining our kata, we had the opportunity to train in yoroi, deepening our understanding of how Katori Shintō-ryū techniques apply to armored combat and some basics of yawara.

A dojo is shaped by its students, and it was great to see everyone train with such focus and dedication. Following the advice given, we will extend our training time from this week on to build on what we learned.

Thank you to everyone who has supported us in this first year. 🙏
ありがとう ございます

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 9pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

The [iaijutsu] kata in kobudo traditions were designed as counters to a variety of potential attacks, but even though they are "fixed forms," their martial nature demands that they be practiced at blinding speed. Iaijutsu involves drawing and cutting with the blade in a mere fraction of a second at most, a movement called nuki-uchi. Since you should never return the sword to its sheath until the entire engagement is finished, a slow, careful sheathing action is more than adequate. Some practitioners of iagijutsu manage to cut themselves during practice as a result of sheathing their swords at dangerous speeds. Such foolishness should never be considered iaijutsu.

Source: Risuke Otake, Katori Shintō-ryū - Warrior Tradition, New Jersey, Koryu Books (2007)

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 8.30pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

Katori Shinto Ryu has always been open to students of any class. The only qualification needed is the will to continue studying. It takes real courage to practice the eloborate movements at speed. The bokken, the wooden swords and the other practice weapons, move dangerously fast very close to the face and body. A brief lapse in concentration that upsets the precision and rhtyhm of movements means, at the least, a painful blow.
There are three stages of knowledge in the art. A member's transition from one stage to another is marked by the giving of a scroll, hand-copied by the Master of the Ryu from the original writing of the deceased Founder. A diligent student will receive his first scroll after about five years. After this he may attend senior classes and study the use of the most advanced weapons, as well as digesting the first phase of the founder's esoteric knowledge of strategy, religion and medicine.
The second scroll is awarded after ten years or so, and the third, given to senior instructors only, is not usually granted until 15 years have been spent inside the Ryu. The distinguished American scholar, Donn Drager, auther of several definitive books on the Japanese martial arts and ways, is the only non-Japanese ever to have achieved this rank in the Ryu.

Source: Howard Reid & Michael Croucher, The Way of the Warrior, London, Century Publishing (1983)

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 8.30pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

SPECIAL TRAINING CLASS! This Friday evening (Mar 28), we have a special session where we’ll take a close look at a real samurai armor and dive into how warriors fought in and against armor on the battlefields of feudal Japan.

Normally, this kind of session is reserved for members, but we’re opening it up for first-time trials, giving newcomers the chance to learn more about Japan and experience our traditional training firsthand.

✍🏼If you're interested, sign up through the link in bio or send us a DM.

Spots are limited, so be sure to register early! Feel free to ask if you have any questions. Looking forward to seeing some of you there!

Japanese armor has as much artistic value, utility, and presence as the Japanese sword, and is a formidable product of the best technologies.
However, Japanese armor has, for the sake of greater ease of movement, unavoidable and exposed weak points, and it is this design defect that is targeted by the omote set of sword techniques in Katori Shintō-ryū.
Even the lightest armors weigh as much as ten kilograms, with some specimens exceeding twenty kilograms. When pairing off in such armor, it is extremely difficult to move around on the balls of the feet as they frequently do in modern sport kendo. Nevertheless, omote practice trains one to be able to move as quickly as possible in this attire.
A unique feature of the Katori Shintō-ryū is that kata, which in other traditions are ordinarily short and end quickly, have been organized as long practice sequences designed to increase stamina, and thus train for the tremendous endurance required on the battlefield.

Source: Risuke Otake, Katori Shintō-ryū - Warrior Tradition, New Jersey, Koryu Books (2007)
Pics: taken at

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 8.30pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

The meaning of Reihō or Rei can be translated as "etiquette," "respect," or "courtesy." It is a fundamental concept in Japanese culture, particularly in traditional martial arts. However, it is not merely a "ceremony" or "ritual"—terms that might suggest an empty or purely symbolic act. Instead, Rei embodies a deeply rooted code of conduct that extends into all aspects of Japanese life, from interactions at school, work, and home to everyday encounters, such as visiting a doctor.

Unlike in the West, where respect is often expressed verbally (e.g., "I respect you") and reserved for rare occasions, Rei in Japan is demonstrated through actions rather than words. Because it is deeply ingrained in Japanese culture, it is rarely explicitly taught—except, perhaps, to foreigners unfamiliar with its significance. This makes Rei a concept that can feel foreign to many Western practitioners of traditional Japanese martial arts.

Rei is the foundation of all traditional Japanese martial arts, regardless of their origin. Without Rei, martial arts would be nothing more than violence. In Katori Shintō-ryū, Rei is not just a formality but something that must be deeply ingrained in one's behavior—toward others and toward the symbols of our tradition: the kamiza, the founder’s grave in Japan, and Katori Jingū, the shrine where the art was passed down to our founder. Rei is not about blindly bowing to someone we believe deserves respect; it is about using our behavior and movement to express sincerity, respect, and consideration.

In Katori Shintō-ryū, Rei is directed toward everything around us—not just people, regardless of rank, gender, or background, but also animals, objects, and even the weapons we train with.

The practice of Reihō in Katori Shintō-ryū serves two essential purposes:

Paying respect – to the tradition, the teacher, and fellow students.
Ensuring safety – especially when training with weapons.

Everything in our training begins and ends with Reihō—from bowing when entering and leaving the dōjō to bowing toward the kamiza, our sensei, and fellow monjin.

Pic source: Risuke Otake, Katori Shintō-ryū - Warrior Tradition, New Jersey, Koryu Books (2007)

Tenshinshō-den Katori Shintō-ryū's blood pledge (Keppan) orders the disciples to submit to Futsunushi-no-Mikoto and accept Marish*ten's punishment if they acted against school rules. While devotions to Marish*ten predate Zen, they appear to be geared towards a similar meditative mode in order to enable the warrior to achieve a more heightened spiritual level, loing interest in the issues of victory or defeat (or life and death), thus transcending to a level becoming so empowered that they were freed from their own grasp on mortality. The end result was that they became a better warrior.

The worship of Marish*ten was to provide a way to achieve selflessness and compassion through Buddhist training by incorporating a passion for the mastery of the self. According to Ōtake Risuke the devotee aims at attaining this ideal state of muga - egolessness through practice of the rituals in which the warrior becomes identified with and empowered by the goddess.

Samurai would invoke a chant Marish*ten at sunrise to achieve victory on the battlefield or would invoke Marish*ten by other means to attain magical powers that would assist them in battle. An example of the martial characteristic was that Marish*ten could provide was the ability to confuse the enemy by preventing them from "seeing," effectively turning the invoker "invisible." Since Marish*ten means "light" or "mirage", she was regarded as the deification of mirages and was thus invisible or difficult to see and was thereby accordingly invoked to escape the notice of one's enemies.

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 8.30pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

本日、2月23日は今上陛下のお誕生日です。
February 23rd marks the birthday of the current Emperor of Japan. As Kōshinkan Dōjō (皇神館), this is a moment to reflect on the meaning of our name. The kanji 皇 (Kō) represents the Emperor, while 神 (Shin) stands for the divine. These symbols remind us of the deep historical and cultural roots of the Japanese martial tradition we practice. In his address today, his Majesty Emperor Naruhito stated:

"I believe it is important to strengthen our love for peace by deepening our understanding of the past and not forgetting those who lost their lives nor those who experienced hardship and sadness."

As practitioners of Katori Shintō-ryū, one of Japan’s oldest martial traditions, we honor this principle through our training—preserving the past while cultivating discipline, respect, and harmony in the present.
Let us reflect on these values today and every day.

Kōshinkan Dōjō Berlin - Kenjutsu Tenshin Shoden Katori Shintō-ryū
Training time: Every Mo, We & Fr from 7pm to 8.30pm
Addresse: Belziger Str. 25, 10823 Berlin
Contact: [email protected]
Phone: 0172 147 12 12
Website: www.katoriberlin.org



#殺陣 #侍 #日本 #武士 #日本

Zanshin: State of awareness (Zan: leave, left behind; Shin: mind)

The concept of Zhanshin is handed down in two stages. At the first stage, the beginner, completely unaware of what this concept might contain, will have to be content with copying only the external aspect. Attention concentrated on the opponent’s eyes, body position should be straight and firm, and there should be meticulous observance of distances - always just out of range. Energetic Kiai, a good control of the movements and proper timing add the final touch to the overall picture of Zhanshin. I have simply portrayed the important points of Zhanshin, but I would add that from it should emanate a feeling of powerful bearing and strong presence.

But this is only an image. If it does not reflect an inner Zhanshin, a Zhanshin much deeper, more real, then it is only a mock Zhanshin. The second stage consists of giving a deeper dimension to these right movements and correct attitudes; a much more arduous task than the first stage. It is a process of elimination, until one attains total inner emptiness. One can be completely receptive only when one is devoid of all subjective emotion. Alertness is not the same as a state in which worry, fear, anxiety and nerves rule. Neither it is an overwhelming state of calmness. If an attempt to at defining Zhanshin is to be advanced, it is the attitude of someone whose physique is in a latent state of alert and whose mind is totally emptied, and is hence receptive to the most subtle signal.

Zhanshin in its pure form is a state of grace where one feels totally ready. This is one of the most amazing experiences felt by a Budo trainee. From an undefinable vibratory phenomenon, Zhashin then becomes a practical reality. [..]

Source: Pascal Krieger, Jodō - The way of the stick