Quote:
Originally Posted by CoolNard
Interesting... kenjutsu is similar to kendo.., but not quite... kenjutsu is the teaching of only waza(technique) of sword work, cutting, striking and sparring. kendo is the teaching of kenjutsu with the added aspect of teaching "Do", the way to seishin-ryoku(mental power?). The teaching of "Do" encompases all the mental aspects we associate with kendo; rei-gi, concepts of mushin, heijyoushin, kokoro-gamae, mokusou, zazen and all the others. So, rather than thinking about kendo and kenjutsu as two seperate arts, think of it as kenjutsu and kendo are the same, with kendo adding the extra mental aspect. 
If there's any difference, it would be the proper cutting with a sword, and the targets. Some targets are meant to be aimed at common(fuedal) armor weaknesses. Kendo cuts to the target, merely hitting it. Kenjutsu cuts through the target - quite apart from differences due to weight, length and shape of weapon and the restrictions on what is a valid target in kendo.
For example, in one of my friend's father's dojo, they wear bogu(a special protective armor in the martial arts) sometimes for sparring, as others do in kendo. But the difference comes in the fact that in kendo, they use the bogu as targets for attack, whereas in his school, they use bogu to learn how to cut around the armor. They also custom make their shinai(a bamboo sword used for practising purposes), which are completely different from a kendo shinai so they can execute their attacks without killing anyone. You can tell a kenjutsu school by its curriculum. Kenjutsu dojos were started in the fuedal times to teach the arts of war.
Well, after all that crap, guess I should contribute my two cents, as well. ^_^
An image of a katana
And for those of you who don't know the difference between a katana and a katar, I've specially taken five seconds to locate the picture of a katar =P
A scene in a kenjutsu school, I believe..
A 3 minute video demonstration on Aikido Iaido Yawara do "Tecniche di Kenjutsu". It's kinda cool. 
P.S. If there're any mistakes in my post, feel free to correct me. 
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Hello there!
I just joined this board to correct all of you since none of you know what you are talking about in regard to kenjutsu and kendo. There are a load of misconceptions here. I study kendo in a legitimate kendo dojo. I am a member of the AUSKF(All US Kendo Federation) and so is my dojo.
It is very late(No idea why I'm still awake.) so I will break this post down into bits later when I have had enough sleep so you all understand what these two arts are and are not.
Just so you all know. There is NOT sparring in legitimate kenjutsu. If you try to spar, you will kill someone or seriously injure them for life. Bokuto are wooden swords. They can kill and break bones. If you use live(sharp) blades, you will kill someone or maim them for life. You may die too.
I will expound more on this later.
Kaoru3