WA (Peace) calligraphy by Kanjuro Shibata XX

“Kyudo is meditation. The main point of kyudo practice is to polish your heart, deeply. When someone hits the target, you can sometimes see happiness. In kyudo, you cut this happiness. That’s merely the enjoyment of ego. Whether you hit the target or not, whether you have a beautiful form or not, is not the true measure of your practice. In kendo, karate, judo, all these forms of fighting training, victory comes from cutting someone else. Kyudo is completely different. You cut yourself, your own ego. In this way, we can begin to create a peaceful world. We can make a big international WA, a circle of peace the whole world over. That is victory!”

-- Kanjuro Shibata XX, Sensei