Equipped to the nines, completely in black, the kendokas are already training at the Casal Vistoso Municipal Sports Complex in Lisbon. There is a whole aesthetic to this Japanese martial art that fascinates those who watch it. Probably because kendo was inspired by ancient samurai, and if metal katanas were replaced with bamboo, the exacting code of ethics of ancient Japanese warriors was essentially passed on to today’s practitioners.
Among the practitioners moving nimbly through the pavilion is now a very special person: Makoto Ota, Ambassador of Japan to Portugal, who since presenting his credentials to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa in January, has been looking for Portuguese kendokas with who he could talk to. training during the hours freed up by diplomatic work, although in fact I still do diplomacy here.
“He made us feel completely comfortable from the first moment. He said he was not an ambassador here, but one of us,” says Luísa Lourenço, general secretary of the Lisbon Kendo Club and instructor. Miguel Godinho, team leader and instructor, also praises the diplomat’s enthusiasm for being able to train with Portuguese. And André Lúcio, who has been practicing this martial art for nine years, admits that he never thought he would have the privilege of regularly training with a high-level Japanese kendoka, as is now the case.
Luísa Lourenço and Miguel Godinho have already been to Japan, a dream for both, who quickly felt attracted to Japanese culture. She, a 37-year-old computer engineer, traveled this year for kendo training. “Of course, I also took a few days to visit the sights and absorb as much of Japanese culture as possible,” he says. As for Miguel Godinho, a 50-year-old sports coach, the trip to Japan took place in 2015 and then for a world championship, with the Portuguese team. He also liked the direct contact with Japan and its people. André Lúcio, 23 years old and a graduate in civil engineering, says that the trip is in his plans precisely because to practice kendo “it is important to understand the Japanese mentality, culture and history”. Miguel Godinho nods his head in agreement and recalls that if there is a country in Europe that has long had contact with Japan, it is Portugal. “In fact, this year we celebrate 480 years of relations,” with the arrival in 1543 of the first Portuguese merchants on the island from Tanegashima.
Miguel Godinho started watching Bruce Lee’s films, Luísa Lourenço recalls Karate child but also from Samurai, a Japanese series that aired on TVI and that also captivated André Lúcio. AND Samurai It wasn’t just about martial arts, it was about kendo, which Miguel Godinho insists is the most practiced martial art in Japan.
Time to equip yourself, including face protection, because the warm-up is about to start and the ambassador is already ready. I would like to take this opportunity to find out when you started your practice. “I started when I was about eight years old, when my parents encouraged me to practice kendo. Academic and professional commitments kept me away from kendo for a long time, but in recent years I have rediscovered its charm and resumed the practice,” responds the diplomat. But we are not just talking about a sport, but about a certain spirit, which Makoto Ota guarantees can be summarized in one word: “Bushido, that is, the development of the individual as a samurai. The ultimate goal of kendo is not winning, but perfecting a person’s character, starting and ending with politeness, for example. I think it has something in common with the spirit of European knights.”
Finally all equipped. Portuguese and Japanese, in the plural, because in addition to the head of mission, there is another member of the embassy who comes to train. After several months of joint training, Makoto Ota cannot hide his satisfaction with this interaction with the Portuguese: “Above all, I feel their enthusiasm for kendo. I admire their attitude towards learning kendo, not only as a sport, but as a spiritual discipline” . The Japanese diplomat also notes that the age factor, whether male or female, is “almost irrelevant” in this sport. Experience makes a difference, but kendo is not a strength competition. You can win the prize regardless of age or gender. opponent, if one has the necessary mental strength and skill.”
Miguel Godinho tells me that the Portuguese women’s kendo team has managed to reach the quarter-finals of a European Championship, and that it has the best male result, also the quarter-finals of a European Championship. The national coach is currently Taro Ariga, of Japanese descent, raised in Brazil and living in the United States, but who comes to Portugal twice a year for training. And once a year, Portuguese athletes also come to the United States for an internship.
Whether through martial arts films or TV series, articles in specialist magazines or publicity campaigns at events such as the Japan Festival in Lisbon and Iberanime in Porto, kendo has won over practitioners across the country in recent years. However, Miguel Godinho states that “there may be a before and after Ambassador Makoto Ota, a kendo enthusiast, who has kendo in his heart, and who with great humility came into contact with the Lisbon Kendo Club and built an excellent relationship with the Portuguese .It has helped our expansion tremendously.”
For the Japanese diplomat, kendo, like other martial arts such as judo and karate, is a way for Japanese culture to announce itself to the world. “In the Japanese language, ‘martial arts’ is translated as bu-do, where bu means ‘martial arts’ and do means ‘path’. One of the characteristics of Japanese culture is to set the goal of continuous self-improvement, as if it were a endless path. I hope many people around the world can understand Japanese culture through bu-do,” said Makoto Ota.
Source: DN
