As a guitar player and teacher I always advise left handed people who wants to start guitar to play right handed because they can achieve the same results and as a bonus will not have a limited choice of instruments that left handed players usually have

@magdolyn

14 күн бұрын

Same for violin.

@scarletbard6511

14 күн бұрын

Great, I'm only just *NOW* learning this.

@CPSPD

11 күн бұрын

I’m fully left handed and I play guitar right-handed no problem, use the PC and play shooter games with the right hand all my life no problem. Imagining having to use a katana right handed feels like it would suck but I guess since both of these were possible then the katana is too.

Those rules are probably why Musashi rebelled and mastered 2 swords at once and became unstoppable

@a_very_burnt_steak

14 күн бұрын

Not necessarily, but it was one of the reasons.

@Tanno_Buchino

14 күн бұрын

That was one of the reasons. The others were his pride as the strongest swordsman and his pilgrimage as a ronin.

As a primary lefty thay grew up in Tokyo, this is very much a japanese if not asian thing. I used to get scolded a lot for eating left-handed and writing, not to mention my kendo instructor 😂. I obviously did learn right-handed, but... i secretly taught myself left-handed when no one was looking 🤫

@LUIS-ox1bv

14 күн бұрын

It prevails throughout Asia. Just like wearing robes, where the left is always worn over the right,and there are no exceptions, unless you're dead.

@Leftyotism

14 күн бұрын

Funny, in the west usually the fork is used in the left hand and the knife in the right hand. Even though I like to use the fork in my right hand and the knife in my left hand as a right-handed person. Maybe it's time a left-handed Sensei will mirror all the forms properly and create a new branch of Iaido. You would not lose the original form. 🥰

@mikerouch416

14 күн бұрын

I think that's why Miyamoto went to two katana. Because his dominant hand was his left.

@mackkuklinski6932

14 күн бұрын

In school in America during school in the 50's and 60's nuns would hit my dad's knuckles when he used his left hand. Until my grandparents finally said something

@DavidCruickshank

13 күн бұрын

In the west, left handedness wasn't accepted until the late 1900's/ 2000s. It seems left handed people were just not accepted anywhere.

Many right handers end up with too much power from their right hand when cutting. This is a problem we left handers don't face as often. There are subtle advantages to being left handed when using a katana.

Honestly: I think the tradition of it mostly being taught right-handed these days, is because just that: Tradition. And also because left-handedness is, even nowadays still, rare. It is just logical to teach the right-handed things as standard. Because (my theory is) traditionally, you were basically forced to learn it right-handed, because they were not allowed to use their left hand as their “main hand” for the left hand’s association with bad luck in most Asian cultures. There also would have to be a LOT of work done to develop or change Iai to cater to left-handed people (and with Katana’s worn on the right side). As all techniques are developed and practiced as a right-hander. It would be so much effort that the whole Iaido community probably wouldn’t want to put into it and all for a still very~ small amount of people. They probably do not see the worth in such effort.

@susannagarlitz792

14 күн бұрын

The Left-hand version of all of those techniques should be the mirror image of the Right-hand technique, so it's not that difficult. Also, at least in America, 10% of the population is Left-handed. While small, it's not so small as to justify the exclusion that is proposed here. If being Left-handed in baseball is an advantage then it should also be an advantage in swordplay.

@samlevi4744

14 күн бұрын

10% of humanity isn’t exactly rare.

@samlevi4744

14 күн бұрын

@@susannagarlitz792yeah, especially given that the primary reason for why the sword being on the left had to do with carrying it on the street.

@stefthorman8548

14 күн бұрын

@@samlevi4744 if you don't care for the traditional way of using an sword, why do you want to learn traditional swordsmanship?

@susannagarlitz792

14 күн бұрын

@@stefthorman8548 I don't know if you were trying to reply to me or not, but I'm interested in watching videos about traditional swordplay, not in actually learning the swordplay. I don't catch them all, usually just the video shorts, but I do care about other lefties who are learning.

No wonder Miyamoto went to two katana. It was the only way to get a katana in his dominant hand.

I wouldn’t say I’ve mastered it yet, but learning both hands has definitely been beneficial.

I suppose since we are no longer training sword skills for combat purposes this makes sense. But it’s a problem k have with western swordsmanship as well, it feels as though we are stuck in the past and can’t advance further

@raixira27

8 күн бұрын

I won't speak for Japanese swordsmanship. But I have _some_ HEMA experience, and one of my friends who's in the SCA is a lefty. He trains both sides: The right so he can teach others, who are mostly right-handed; and the left, so he has an advantage in tournaments, since most people only fight against right-handed people.

@yamiyomizuki

2 күн бұрын

advance towards what? swords are not really used anymore and training with them is largely a form of cultural preservation rather than practical self defense. I suppose you could advance as a sport but realistically once something becomes a sport there's no need for it to evolve. a sport is about wining within the rules, no matter how restrictive they might be. if the sport of swordsmanship has a rule that says you must fight like people did historically then so. e it.b

People gotta remember that back in the day almost universally left handed people were not allowed to act naturally with their left hands. Even just a couple generations ago some places.

Mastering both hands is so important! 🥰 Some things my right hand can do better, but other things my left hand can do better! And in the end they both work together. 🥰🙏

Zoro be breaking every Katana Custom there ever was

This stems from an Edo Period edict for walking around in public wearing daisho..

I didn't know Musashi was left handed. That's so cool

@nachot6592

8 күн бұрын

That's probably the reason he was unparalleled; going against an opponent with mirrored attacks might confuse you if you can't adapt and react in real time.

@yamiyomizuki

2 күн бұрын

neither did I and I would really like to know his source for that.

I am left handed and agree with the sentiment of different starting points. You can learn anything with both hands with practice.

@CheekieCharlie

4 күн бұрын

But as someone who can write with both hands my left hand can draw realism and my right can't draw more than cartoons. I think it's important to learn to master both hands but problematic to force lefties to blend in

Master the right to master the left

Long time didn't saw your videos. Miss them.

That makes sense...in the army (US) we always saluted with our right hand, no matter what ...if we had something in our right hand, we moved to the left, then saluted with the right hand If you think about it this actually gives left-handed people an ADVANTAGE over right-handers. When you move an object to your left hand to salute (or draw a katana), the burden of managing that object is now on your left hand If you've saluted once, you've probably saluted 1000 times...if you've drawn a katana, you've probably drawn it 1000 times It's second nature at this point ...so the right hand has the easy task ...but...say something happens and you're right-handed...let's say for example, while you're eating a sandwich with your right hand, and you have to draw a katana.... You react immediately...you pass the sandwich to the other hand and draw the sword ...oh but wait ....your left hand fumbles with the sandwich, and drops it ....now there's a big mess on the ground and you wasted your lunch! It definitely pays to be left-handed sometimes 😁

Now I understand Why Nintendo made Link left handed

It depends on whether you are speaking as a martial artist or not, so i guess in this case not so im confused

I asked my sensei this question, and he said no. I wouldn't even try to use my left now.

As a left handed person learning some of the best sword fighters are also left handed makes me double down on learning sword martial art.

Im left handed and im proud ✊

Ok, that answers the question I asked in comments on another of your short vids.

I'm left handed and play guitar right handed. I just learned through practice. Probably the same for katana sheathing/unsheathing.

Wow! Musashi was a leftie? Now I like him even more!

Fun fact: no matter your dominant hand, you can become ambidextrous in certain things if you practice enough. You might find writing with your dominant hand is easier, but playing the guitar or shuffling cards or even using the mouse for a computer with your opposite hand might be easier or better. So training with a katana using both hands, no matter the dominant hand, will eventually pay off.

Thank you for answering my question.

Being left handed is better for iaido since the main vector decider hand is left and right hand is the one who just follows and add forces but even left handed you draw with right and hold same

Before Edo Jidai, there were no rules for left or right. You should - as always - train your off hand a bit more than your main hand. Also realise, that if your wounded on your main hand, you should have learned left AND right. Before Edo Jidai, the only thing that counted for a samurai was to be as proficient a fighter as possible.

Miyamoto mushashi isnt it the mc of vagabond, was he a real person

@Tanno_Buchino

14 күн бұрын

Yep, that was him. Many picture him as the best swordsman, and one that wrote The Book of the 5 Rings.

@digitaljanus

14 күн бұрын

The massive best-selling novel _Musashi_ by Eiji Yoshikawa, is a fictionalized account of the real Musashi's life, and was the basis for many other adaptations, including _Vagabond_ and Hiroshi Inagaki's Samurai trilogy films.

The accessibility really depends on if you focus on the "martial" or "art" side of things. If you want to prioritize the art and culture, then keep the sword on the left. If you want to actually be able to fight, using your dominant hand is the only way to go

In my opinion it isn’t really discrimination there were many reasons for it.

@haraffael7821

14 күн бұрын

To be fair, it wouldnt even make a real difference. But having it all the same is easier for training people too.

@naruomi9477

14 күн бұрын

@@haraffael7821 long time ago it did have some significance. And yeah pretty much would make it easier to train multiple people at once.

Fun fact: Hajime saito from rurouni kenshin is based on real life hajime saito.

I remember hearing that one of the other reasons was to mitigate the chances of a fight breaking out. So Samurai had to walk down the left side of the road with their katana on the left so their scabbards don't hit each other which would be considered a sign of disrespect.

Very well explained ✨✨

I mean it's a two handed weapon so it makes sense it shouldn't matter from which side you unsheath. And like you said the left moves as much and is just as important as the right in that process.

Agreed!

I remember hajime saito from rorouni kenshin. He's left handed style of gatotsu is powerful.

Thank you 🙏🏼🤔☯️♋️

Just like using a computer. You don't need to use the left-hand mode.

"Some people actually affected by this issue say it's discriminatory, but I, a person unaffected by it, think it's okay becauee it's tradition" isn't exactly a great look tho?

This isn't just with the katana. As a person who has used a bo staff, there's both the Northern and Southern kata. You had to learn both sides to fully learn the kata.

Being left handed comes with having to learn how to live and adapt to a right handed world. Medical issues/disabilities aside, this is the lot us lefties get in life. If some of the most famous samurai in history made it work as left handers, the rest of us are fine.

I think this is the big difference between HEMA and Kenjutsu. Kenjutsu, coming from an isolated nation that valued greatly its traditions, is more about maintaining form and honoring the methods of the past. It has this spiritual, respectful and ritualistic sense to it. HEMA, being the result of hundreds of years of studying European weaponry across many nations, is about understanding history and the context in which these weapons were used, yes, but it is also quite focused on practicality, adaptability and versatility, meaning that a HEMA practitioner will often do what works best, even if in occasion it does not align with tradition, because that mindset was responsible for creating so much progress and variety in Europen combat to begin with.

@nevisysbryd7450

10 күн бұрын

HEMA as a distinct-ish discipline is a few decades old. The difference is more that HEMA is (largely) not a continunous, unbroken lineage with traditions but a revival based on treatises and with no central authority or institutional structure. A lot of the Japanese stuff-including the material here-exist in a lineage with traditions, rules, and regulations, which are largely absent outside of a few individual HEMA groups.

It is discrimnatory. Thing is, historical Japan was quite discrimnatory. While you can reverse the setup for the practical concern of being left-handed, you inherently sacrifice a lot of the historicity of the practice in doing so. You ultimately have to choose which prioritize.

I use a bowie knife for bushcraft constantly and I could never use my left hand

I mean...it is discriminatory though. No real way to explain that away. The left handed swordsmen of the past HAD to do it. There is nothing saying it HAS to be done now besides an unnecessary adherence to tradition. Just because it's old doesn't mean it right.

The left hand is responsible for the power behind. So i think it's a hidden advantage

I’m technically left handed, because I write with my left hand. But I am right handed for almost everything else. (Although depending on how tired I am, I sometimes swap.) But when I learnt Ninjutsu decades ago, and even though I could use a katana or ninja-to with either hand, I ALWAYS sheathed it on the left, so that if I had to hand the sheathed sword to someone, I could do it without offence, and in the correct manner. For those not in the know, that’s cutting edge facing me, handle pointing to my left, as it is nearly impossible for a right hander to then draw the sword to use it, while holding it in a position that allows the receiver full access to draw the blade and use it.

@CheekieCharlie

4 күн бұрын

Look up cross dominance in handedness, not common, but I have it as well.

I will agree to disagree, tradition impeding learning is an overapplication

"claim". It was 300 years ago, we just didn't talk about it.

One is not right or left handed. They just have to practice more untill they're balanced. So you wear swords correctly and train your other hand to use them

As a kenjutsu practitioner, having to draw the sword right-handed is far less inconvenient than having to sword-fight left-handed. In other words, it's not that big of a deal for me to wear the katana on my left waist and draw it right-handed even though I'm left-handed, as drawing the sword is not as important in kenjutsu as the sword forms (although there is a specific formalized drawing form that we learn).

I have read a lot about Musashi and I have never read that he was left handed. I would really like a source for that.

If I can master the right handed mouse, I can master the right handed sword

do the old customs refer only to the Edō period?

Most Left-handed people will say it is discriminatory while most Right-handed people will say it's not. That would be because Right-handed people don't have to deal with the problem. Just ask a Right-handed person to draw with the left hand and see what happens. By the way, many people of European ancestry will be particularly sensitive to this because in the past Left-handed people were forcibly switched to using the right hand because Left-handedness was supposedly a "sign of the devil". This practice was abandoned mostly because it was discovered that switching people can cause stuttering. So, in short, yes it is okay to have the Katana on the right and you should just get over it already. This is a losing battle and the history angle of your argument will just make it take longer for you to lose the argument. Other forms of discrimination have been abandoned, this needs to go too. (Edited to correct typos.)

@MrThistleMilk

14 күн бұрын

It is most definitely discriminatory, historically even in Asia there has always been a disdain for the left hand.

@tuluppampam

14 күн бұрын

While it could be considered discriminatory, given that it is a new activity that would be learnt, and that learning how to use the right hand is still very useful for left handed people (lots of things just aren't made for them), I don't think you need to be this dramatic about it.

@666DarkTommy

14 күн бұрын

yes and no. If this was about writing, chopsticks etc. I'd agree, but this is different. You really need control over both hands for using a 2-handed sword. Like a guitar (which I play), you need both hands. Sure, there are left-handed guitars but they are not really necessary. Either your left hand or your right hand needs more practice. Doesn't matter if you are right- or left-handed. In my opinion, the left hand needs to be a lot more precise when playing a sting instrument. Personally, I use the right hand for some movements (writing, using a knife) and my left hand for others (tossing the pan, using my phone, throwing things). So I'm not coming at this from a right-handed perspective.. But I agree that there, historically, has been a lot of anti-left-handed sentiment in much of the world. Tasks you do with 1 hand shouldn't be taught with a specific hand in mind. There is no "right" (ha) way to do these things.

@susannagarlitz792

14 күн бұрын

@@666DarkTommy 1. You don't have both hands on the sword when drawing it, one hand is on the sword and the other is on the sheath. 2. Handedness matters. To say otherwise is ignorant. 3. There are many two-handed tasks that have a dominant hand use including writing, the paper is held down with the non-dominant hand. 4. The guitar is interesting as an example because the fingerings for all of the notes on a Right-handed guitar are done with the left hand and the right hand is just strumming. Right-handed people got this one backwards and they're learning to do that task with the left hand.

@stefthorman8548

14 күн бұрын

@@susannagarlitz792 why are you trying to dilute and pervert traditional swordsmanship? they expressly forbid left handed swordsmanship, so if you do use it, you aren't practicing traditional swordsmanship.

Saitō Hajime the famous protagonist of Like a Dragon: Ishin 👊😎🙏

I'm an odd one... I'm left-handed for most things, but I use a sword in my right hand (although I shoot left-handed)... I'm also right-footed...

Doesn't it also have something to do with how the katana was sharpened? As far as I know, it was only sharpened on one side.

Imagine starting a fight because your sheath bumped into another person's sheath all because you put placed your katana on your right side

,,the old customs must be followed at a certain level, otherwise the original form will be completly lost" think about it in terms of the western society, fellow internet user

*Sephiroth enters the chat*

The question is, why was it forbidden in the past?

@Antonqaz

9 күн бұрын

Bushido had a lot of rules in regards to where the katana should be in relation to you depending on whether the setting was peaceful or you were ready to fight. Specifically about carrying the katana on the left waist; a samurais katana was very important to them and there were examples of katanas bumping into each other when passing each other, and that leading to parties being offended and killing each other. To prevent that it was required to wear it on the left side and to walk on the left side of the road.

I would like to see the discriminatory argument being used in the Past. You can be left handed and learn how to use your right hand.

What if..... hypothetically, I create my own style that revolves around left handed wielding of an uchigatana

@haraffael7821

14 күн бұрын

Possible, but hard to be accepted into the world of Budo 😅

@paultack5893

14 күн бұрын

Already exists. Look up Gyaku Nito Kendo.

Wait, Saito was left-handed? I'm gonna have to rewatch Rurouni Kenhsin to see if they got that one right...

Is one part that the side is always the same that if you walk torwards another Samurai you guys don't bump Swords together by accident? I'm lefthanded and don't think it's discrimatory, it's not about me at all.

This would be like a lefty complaining about their first piano practice being with the right hand. The end result is the same smh.

In todays world thered be riots saying "THIS DISCRIMATORYYYY"

He kind of look like young sheldon

Shogo are you proficient at wielding the Tanto or Ninjato?

Anything done from the right can be done by the left. It's just being narrow-minded.

I didnt know this

i work fo a county EMS service in america, what do 911 EMS services look like in japan?

Why Zoro, tho 🤔

I like the answer, don’t dilute tradition and history.

Handedness isnt really real either. Theres no dominant hand just which one does precision movement and which ine does macro movement. Like a doctor cant not perform surgery just because he writes with his right hand. Both of their hands must be steady and able to make fine micro movements.

@pyrylehtonen-caponigro3198

14 күн бұрын

Most people have a dominant hand which does both better. That's why most people who write with their right hand also throw with their right hand.

@tuluppampam

14 күн бұрын

Handedness is real, but it's more about being used to one over the other than some genetic force (there is some genetic predisposition, but it matters little). People can learn (the body is very flexible) to use the other hand.

@pyrylehtonen-caponigro3198

14 күн бұрын

@@tuluppampam but you shouldn't try to force the usage of one hand over the other on a developing child, this that can lead to problems

@tuluppampam

14 күн бұрын

@@pyrylehtonen-caponigro3198 after reading more about the problems of forcing a specific hand, I feel like the problem is more on the way it is forced than actually changing the hand (there's the problem that psychology is in no way an exact science, so we can never know for certain). Disruptions to children development can create problems, but it isn't very clear what that could be (trauma, a bad environment, lack of proper nutrition...) The brain is malleable, it isn't incapable of switching, but it can suffer if so isn't done well. People also tend to do a variety of actions with the non dominant hand even if those actions are relatively complex, because it is more about the brain choosing a specific hand for that set of actions than preferring a hand for actions with a specific quality. Again, unfortunately, all of this falls under the scope of psychology, and so we may never know anything for sure.

@stefthorman8548

14 күн бұрын

@@pyrylehtonen-caponigro3198 Dunno, i bet those problems were caused by the beatings and shouting's, rather than merely learning to use the right hand, otherwise all of them would have those problems

Again with the whiners yelling discrimination don’t listen to them shogo tradition must survive!

I'm very early. 3rd commenters. 😂

I remember hajime saito from rorouni kenshin. He's left handed style of gatotsu is powerful.