Budo

The nine disciplines recognised by the Japanese Budo Association differ widely in technique, but share the aim of training character through practice.

Kanō Jigorō (1860–1938), an educator, studied several jūjutsu schools and in 1882 founded the Kōdōkan in Tokyo, teaching judo as physical education and moral training. He introduced the kyū and dan ranking system and the principle of 'maximum efficiency, mutual welfare and benefit'. Kanō later became Japan's first member of the International Olympic Committee.

Kendo developed from sword schools that had used bamboo swords and armour for safe sparring since the eighteenth century. Karate came from the Ryukyu Kingdom, where it evolved from local fighting arts and Chinese boxing; Funakoshi Gichin demonstrated it in Tokyo in 1922, and the name was later written with the characters for 'empty hand'. Aikido was developed by Ueshiba Morihei from Daitō-ryū jūjutsu and spiritual practice between the 1920s and 1940s.

Practice takes place in a dōjō, literally 'place of the way', a term borrowed from Buddhism. Students bow on entering and leaving, bow to the front of the hall (shōmen) and to their teachers and partners at the beginning and end of practice, and keep the space clean, often cleaning the floor themselves. The saying 'budō begins and ends with rei (courtesy)' sums up this emphasis.

Concepts shared by many disciplines include shin-gi-tai, the unity of spirit, technique and body; zanshin, lingering alertness after an action; and kata, prescribed forms that transmit techniques and principles.

National championships and demonstrations are held at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, built for the judo competition of the 1964 Olympic Games. In Kyoto, the Butokuden, built in 1899 for the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai, hosts a major annual demonstration of martial arts in May. A long-distance archery contest has been held at Sanjūsangen-dō temple in Kyoto since the Edo period, and in its modern form draws young archers in kimono every January.

Many city and prefectural sports centres have budō halls, and some dōjō accept visitors to watch or join practice. Okinawa promotes karate as part of its heritage, with dedicated facilities and many traditional dōjō.