Perfect Cut

TO-MAAI
At a distance of To-ma-ai (large distance were you or your opponent can not cut each other) you should have a good kamae (chudan, jodan etc).

KI-AI Pressure should be building up in your mind and body and so, when you kiai, this should be an expression of this integration (ai) which should be strong and loud, if the sound is low then the energy (ki) could well be weak.

After your kiai (at this point breathing in the same time as you kiai) you should hold your breath and then breath out slowly. When you have exhaled nearly all your breath but still have enough for an attack you should try to retreat to a safe distance with caution (to-maai) and breath in again, or try to disguise a quick intake of breath and then breath out slowly

Kiai is best used when

•the moment you come face to face with an opponent
•when being attacked by an opponent (oji waza)
•when you are attacking a certain target (shikake waza)
In the case of the first example -> When you are facing your opponent, my teacher said "you must hit your opponent with your mind" this is expressed through your Kiai. The purpose of Kiai is to rid the mind of fear, doubt and hesitation.

---->Points to watch

•You should always try to breath in at a safe distance (to-maai) because if you are at a distance were your opponent can reach you with his sword by taking one step, he knows that when you breath in at this stage it is difficult for you to attack. So now you have suki.
ISSOKU-ITTO-NO-MAAI
When you take a step forward towards your opponent from to-maai to issoku-itto-no-maai (one step one cut distance) you have to be ready to attack or counter attack your opponent because now you should be able to reach your opponent with your sword by taking one step forward, caution!! This is also the case for your opponent.

I think at Issoku-itto-no-maai this distance varies slightly with each individual, what I mean by this is although you should be able to hit your opponent with your sword by taking one step forward.

You may for example have to lean your upper body forward to reach your opponent so that now you have suki. If this is the case then you need to make your Ma-ai (Issoku-itto-no-maai) a bit closer. Your Maai is your personal preference, the important thing is try to make your ma-ai have no suki

SEME
When you are facing an opponent as soon as the fencing has started (at to-maai) you should be trying to do seme.

Watch how they move, do they have a pattern to their movement? How do they react to your movement when you move a certain way? So that if you do the same movement again you will know what your opponent's reaction will be.

When you are at issoku-itto-no-maai you will have sword contact with your opponent so you should be able to feel what your opponent is doing, as well as being able to see what he is doing.

If for example when you closed the distance from to-maai to issoku-itto-no-maai your opponent retreats by trying to step back into To-maai you should be able to feel this through the contact of your sword (my teacher said it is like the antenna of an insect feeling its way around) as well as through sight and so you will have a good chance to attack your opponent as he steps back.

Another example is when you step forward from to-maai to issoku-itto-no-maai again you should have sword contact, using the same principle as above (sight, feeling with sword). If your opponent decides to attack, you should again be able to feel this through your sword, as well as your sight and maybe attack your opponent by shikake waza (debana waza, hari waza), or oji-waza (suriage waza, kaeshi waza).

Other waza's to use to create suki in your opponent

•Uchiotoshi-waza (strike the opponents sword downwards)
•Maku (to wrap your sword around your opponents)

SUKI
Ideally you should strive in your kendo practice not to have suki. If for example you are getting hit regularly on the same target (men, kote, do, tsuki), chances are you have suki making it easy for your opponent to hit you.

Suki can appear any time while you are fencing from to-maai right through to finishing your attack and getting ready to start again but the reason why I have attached suki to seme is because this is where suki will be more apparent than anywhere else in Kendo.

A strong kamae leaves no opening for an attack, a Kendoka with no suki is usually a good fencer who's every movement has a meaning, and every movement he makes is done with a purpose either to try and create an opening or to cancel his opponents attempt at creating an opening.

His strategy therefore should have no suki. For example a Kendoka who is in chudan at a distance of issoku-itto-no-maai who just moves around not knowing why he moves this way or that way, will sooner or later have suki because he does not have insight into what is happening between him and his opponent.

However his opponent (who has no suki), at the same time can control his opponents movements and draw him into making an opening without him realizing he has done so, then attacks.

HIT OPPONENT 
When you hit your opponent with your sword you should do so with

•Good posture
•Correct footwork (Ashi-sabaki)
•Correct cutting action/path of the sword
•Correct grip of the sword and squeezing of the Tsuka as soon as your sword hits your opponent
•Good strong Kiai (Kote, men, Do, Tsuki)
•Good spirit (Ki)
These six points should be present when you attack and hit your opponent with your sword.

KIME
When you attack your opponent with your sword you should squeeze the tsuka at the moment your sword strikes the target (tenouchi).

This squeezing action is the same as wringing water from a wet towel. When you have applied tenouchi, for example if men was your target, Kendoka have an habit of raising their arms in the air so that the sword is pointing vertical above their head or even with the kensen pointing to the rear just after they have hit the target.

This is incorrect you should let the sword rise slightly off the target, unless you have missed and have to continue (Nidan or Sandan waza).

ZANSHIN
When you have hit your opponent there are a number of things you can do depending on the situation

•You can go through (past your opponent)
•Close the distance to tsuba-zariai
•if you have hit Kote, then maybe you can hold the Kensen of your sword at your opponents throat

What happens if you miss the target?

Two examples

•If you attack and miss your target, your opponent now has the advantage of the situation. So after your attack you must get out of your opponent range of attack, turn quickly and transform defense into offence.
•In this second example, again you attack and miss your target. This timeyou saw a second target (nidan/sandan waza) but you could not get it because you were not prepared for two or three strikes, only the one strike. In this instance you do not have Zanshin. You should never accept that one strike is enough, but to keep going until there are no more chances and still be ready to attack again as soon as you have a chance, never give up.

If you were to succeed in your attack you should still maintain zanshin. My teacher said "it is like a wheel that keeps turning until it has reached its destination" and so in Kendo you must maintain Zanshin until you are successful, even when you are tired after a hard practice, eventually you will reach your destination.

---->Point to watch

•Do not loose eye contact with your opponent.

SEME
Return to the point of SEME and continue the cycle.

Terms used in above:

KI-AI - To express and help to develop the unity of mind, body, spirit (ki).

KI- Energy, Spirit AI- Integration

SEMI-Pushing forward, looking to break your opponents guard, find a chance to cut your opponent, attacking spiritually as well as physically.

SUKI-A weakness in ones kamae (posture of chudan, jodan, gedan etc) and also weakness of the ma-ai (ones distance between you and your opponent), having an opening for an attack.

KIME-The techniques that make a strike valid. The action of gripping the shinai when striking.

ZANSHIN-Continued alertness