Chigiriki is a Japanese type of mace used by the ninjas. It consists of about 60 cm wooden handle and 60 - 70 cm metal chain to it, with a ball with a spike at the end of the chain. There are chains that are simply fixed to the top of the rod, and those that are placed in a cavity inside the rod and are called swinging rods. There are uses such as hitting the opponent with a weight or winding to seal the movement. Most techniques for using chigiriki are included in chigiriki-jutsu practices, which is part of the training in araki-ryu koryu - an ancient martial art, founded in early 1570 by Araki Mujinsai Minamoto.

Kodachi is a Japanese sword shorter than Daito (long sword) and slightly longer than tanto. Its blade is 40 to 65 cm long. Its size allowed the samurai to pull it out very quickly. It was used where movements were restricted, or in a body-to-body attack. Preferred weapon by the samurai, who relied mainly on their speed. Very convenient for protection, therefore called "the sword that is a shield".

During the Edo Period, the Tokugawa Shogunate was also allowed to be worn by non-samurai, usually merchants.

Kodachi, unlike Wakizashi, has a fixed length, also the curve of the blade is larger and the handle is longer.

Tanto is a samurai dagger, which was designed and used primarily as a stabbing weapon but also for finishing off opponents, cutting off heads, etc. and never as a knife. The edge can be used for slashing as well. Sometimes tanto was worn in daishho as a second sword. Tantos were used mostly by samurai, but they were also worn by doctors and traders as a weapon of self-defense. High society women sometimes also wore small tantos (called kaiken) hidden in an obi (kimono belt) for self-defense or suicide. A dummy tanto with a wooden is used for training in such martial arts as aikido, judo and karate. According to modern rules in Japan, tanto is recognized as a national cultural treasure - one of the variants of the Japanese sword. 

Wakizashi is a short traditional Japanese sword. Mainly used by samurai and worn on the belt. The length of the blade is from 30 cm to 61 cm. The blade is sharpened on one side, slightly distorted. It is usually worn with a katana in the samurai's belt.

In ancient Japan, a sword with a blade length of more than two shaku (60.6 cm) was considered a katana, and less than 2 shaku - a wakizashi.

Wakizashi is made of various shapes and lengths, usually thinner than a katana. 

Samurai used wakizashi as a weapon when the katana was inaccessible or unusable.

Wakizashi were always carried as a samurai's personal weapon. Bushi often called this sword the "guardian."

Experienced samurai used wakizashi in battle as a second weapon - to strike unexpected blows. The katana was held in the main hand and served as the main weapon.

Wakizashi was also used to perform ritual suicide - sepuku, if the samurai did not have a specially designed dagger kusungobu.

Bodhidharma was a legendary Indian Buddhist teacher, a monk. He is considered the founder and first patriarch of the Chan School in China, as well as the 28th patriarch and direct successor of the Buddha in India, although there is no solid evidence of this. Although various written sources speak of the practice of various types of wrestling and martial arts since ancient times, the founder of modern martial arts is considered to be the legendary Bodhidharma. He was a Buddhist monk, the founder of the Zen teachings. He lived in the 6th century AD. He was born in India, which he left to proclaim his teachings around the world. He is believed to be the founder of the also legendary Shaolin Monastery. Bodhidharma opposed his teaching to Taoism, saying that in order to attain Enlightenment (Satori) you need to overcome your consciousness and gain complete control over it. And to do that, you first need to overcome your body. To this end, he created several sets of physical exercises that his students had to practice every day. These exercises later served as the basis for the first forms of martial arts.

Kano Jigoro is the creator of judo, the first Japanese martial art to gain widespread international recognition, and the first to be recognized as an official Olympic sport.

Educators of the new innovations presented to Jigoro Kano should be used on white and black belts and be introduced to the dans to show the relative seniority of the average sportsman given a martial art. Kano also introduces some well-known mottos such as: "Maximum efficiency with minimum improvement" and "Shared wealth and benefit".

He was born on October 28, 1860 in Mikage, in the Kobe region. In 1871, Jigoro's family moved to Tokyo. As a child, Jigoro was a weak and sickly, the diseases followed one after another. Despite the doctors' advice, Kano decided to do something to improve his health and at the same time learn to defend himself. At the age of 18, he began studying at the Fukuda Hachinosuke School in Tenjin Shin'yo-ryu Jujutsu. Tenjin Shin'yo-ryu is a soft martial art that emphasizes more harmony than fighting, but at the same time includes striking techniques and throwing techniques. In 1882 is when he created the Kodokan Judo.

Muso Gonnosuke Katsuyoshi, samurai of the early 17th century, launches a system that elevates the simple stick to one of Japan's favorite martial arts weapons called Jojutsu. He practiced in Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-ryu, then studied Kashima Jikishinkage-ryu, practicing their secret techniques called "ichi no tachi". According to legends, Gonnosuke took part in a large number of duels, winning them all until he met Miyamoto Musashi. If we can believe the legends, and there are more legends than real facts about these two masters - Muso Gonnosuke is the only person who had defeated Miyamoto Musashi in a duel. 

The first of the two legendary duels between Musashi and Gonnosuke took place in the beginning of 17th century. Gonnosuke had one day encountered Musashi and had challenged him to a duel. Musashi accepted and Gonnosuke, taking out his sword, immediately charged Musashi who with ease avoided Gonnosuke's strike and locked Gonnosuke's sword, using both his long and short sword. The loss made Gonnosuke take a path of exile at a shrine in Mount Hōman where he perfected his swordsmanship and developed Jojutsu. Gonnosuke defeated Musashi through the use of the jo's surperior length by keeping Musashi's swords out of range.

Miyamoto Musashi was a Japanese samurai and swordsman who became a legend. Musashi is known for his remarkable skill as a swordsman and the many duels he has won since his early teens. He is the founder of the Ni Ten Ichi Ryu school and the author of Go Rin No Sho ("The Book of Five Rings") - a book on strategy, tactics and philosophy, which is still read today.

Born in Mimaska ​​province to a middle-class family, Musashi learned the art of sword fighting from an early age. He won his first duel at the age of thirteen, when he challenged the qualities of a samurai and challenged him to a duel and managed to defeat him with a wooden sword. Throughout his life, he won over sixty duels, some of them against numerous enemies, and fought successfully in three major military attacks, including the defense of Osaka Castle.

Towards the end of his life, after perfecting his Ni Ten Ichi Ryu style, Musashi retired to the mountains and wrote his last treatise, entitled "The Book of Five Rings".

Masutatsu Oyama was born in Korea in 1923 and is the founder of Japan's most famous and widespread karate style in the world. At the age of 9, Mas Oyama learned Chinese kenpo in Manchuria and practiced judo and boxing as a teenager. All this leads to training in Okinawan karate, which serves as a basis for creating his own style, Kyokushin or "Absolute Truth". When he turned 20, Mas Oyama received a 4th dan in Okinawan karate and with the help of tireless work he also received a 4th dan in judo. 

Among Mas Oyama's many achievements, he is best known for introducing tameshiwari, or "breaking stones," into modern karate. Mas Oyama achieves this with intense training by making his arms as strong as hammers. By his logic, after a person can break stones with a hammer, he begins to learn and train to break boards, bricks and stones with his bare hands. He transformed this incredible power into his theory of karate, taking into account that if he could break stones, he could break human bones as well. His greatest contribution to Japanese karate is considered to be the introduction and popularization of full-contact karate. When he wins the biggest Okinawan-sponsored Shotokan karate tournament, he is often punished for fighting too hard, injuring his opponents. His experience, among other influences, led to the creation of Kyokushin Karate. Above all, Mas Oyama believes that karate is the art of fighting: Unless one goes to extremes involving breaking one's opponent's bones (applied in real life and fighting life and death), one will never understand one's true spiritual potential. of karate.

Choku zuki, one of the first attacks taught in Karate, is a straight punch in the solar plexus. You should use your whole body as one while doing choku zuki. Many practitioners will only use the arms when punching, but incredible power is created when whole body is used. Start the right arm punch from the right leg. Prepare the punching arm by squeezing the right rib cage down a little bit. You can improve this by lowering the right shoulder. Obviously, this lowering is not shown when doing choku zuki correctly. Push through the right leg, then drive with the hip, next use the rib cage and shoulder then finally the arm. So you do the punch with the whole body, not just the arm. Push through the right leg, then move along with the hip, use your rib cage and shoulder then finally the arm. So you do the punch with the body and not the arm. 

Ukemi training involves a whole host of fall techniques that are most practiced in grip martial arts and sports.

The word "ukemi" contains the idea of ​​protecting and accepting a force directed at us. From this point of view, you can see ukemi training only as a fall exercise, without integrating with self-defense training and learning about the opponent's attack, it is irrational.
There should not be a person, who recommends that you practice "martial arts" without knowing how to fall.

It is essential that:
- Ukemi should be trained on different types of flooring - tatami, parquet, grass, sand. 
- You have to search in order to gain strength from contact with your own forces and to fit in the direction of the attack of any country.
- To learn some basic things for protection and counterattack after the fall.

- Practicing ukemi gives many new possibilities to the body.
- Develop the vestibular apparatus and spatial orientation.

Shomen Giri

 Shomen Giri targets the skull at first. There is a potential for such a cut to glance off the rounded structure of the skull. It is primarily used to finish off the opontent.

Kotê 

Kotê is cut to the region of the palm in order to disarm and injure the opponent. There are variations of the cut, some of which are to threaten the opponent.

Yokomen Giri (left and right)

Yokomen Giri (also known as Yokomen-uchi) is strike on side of head. Depending on which side (left or right), the variant of the cut changes. The strike is completed at eye level.

Do Giri (left and right)

Dogiri is a cut aimed horizontally into the torso. Again, like Yokomen Giri, it can be done on both sides of the opponent - left and right. The way of cutting is the same on both sides.

Tsuki

A forward strike, piercing at the shortest distance. It is aimed at the solar plexus and the blade is twisted horizontally (sharp side facing opposite way of your position).

After becoming a disciple of Master Ryu Ryuko, Higaonna Sensei helped his master at his trade during the day as a craftsman of bamboo. Training look place after dark starting with the practice of Sanchin. Then, lifting the Nigiri-game (heavy ceramic jars), by their rims, a student would practice Unsokuho (a pattern of stepping movements). This exercise was practiced to strengthen the student's grip while developing the proper foot movements. The training continued with exercises using the Muchi-ishi (natural stone), then proceeded to Makiwara (striking post)—training where the elbows, fists, knife hand and the heel of the hand were struck repeatedly against a makiwam board. Training was also done in a large bamboo basket called an Uki. Two persons got into the basket and would practice close fighting and choking techniques.
Higaonna Sensei was fascinated by the tools and the instruments which he used for the first time at his master's dojo. Each new training technique that he learned served to increase his interest in karate even more. The strain of such harsh training though, look its toll and Higaonna Sensei's legs. hands and shoulders were always swollen from over exertion. Still, it was only through such harsh training that Higaonna Sensei was able to develop muscles like forged steel. After several years of hard training, Higaonna Sensei became Master Ryu Ryuko's most skillful disciple.

A Brief Biographical Sketch of Master Ryu Ryuko

Master Ryu Ryuko was a master of Shaolin Kempo of the Southern School. Originally, he was from the noble class of Foochow in Fukien province. Owing an internal rebellion, the family of Ryu Ryuko disguised themselves as commoners to save their lives. Thereafter, Master Ryu Ryuko worked as a carpenter. He also worked as a mason while still a young man.
Master Ryu Ryuko was quite old and had already retired from carpentry when Higaonna Sensei first became his disciple. At the time, Master Ryu Ryuko earned his living making bamboo baskets. He was over six foot tall and possessed extraordinary strength with muscle like forged steel. Master Ryu Ryuko was a well-known master of kempo in Fukien province. Everyone knew of him as a well trained and extra. ordinarily disciplined martial artist.
Once during Higaonna Sensei's apprenticeship, a young martial artist came to Master Ryu Ryuko's workshop to challenge him to a test of skill. At the time Master Ryu Ryuko was making a bamboo pole. The young man took the bamboo and crushed it in his hands. Astonished, Higaonna Sensei was rendered speechless. But the demonstration left Master Ryu Ryuko calm and undisturbed. Quietly he picked up the crushed pole of bamboo. Then, he pulled it apart. breaking the bamboo in two pieces. Higaonna Sensei could not believe his e

An Episode of Competition

The fame of Higaonna Kanryo Sensei as a great martial artist gradually spread throughout the city of Foochow. Once a discussion began between the students of Master Ryu Ryuko's dojo and another dojo of the same school over which dojo was superior in skill. The masters of the two dojo each chose their best student to demonstrate kam In China at that time, it was the practice to have a demonstration of kola instead of competition in free style fighting. In this way it was possible to choose a superior martial artist without anyone getting hurt.
Higaonna Sensei was chosen to represent Master Ryu Ryuko's dojo. At the competition the student from the other dojo went first, performing a Sanchin kale, followed by Higaonna Sensei who performed the same !cam. All the students from the other dojo watched with great attention as Higaonna Sensei per-formed the Sanchin kale. They were all struck with admiration at the performance of Higaonna Sensei. After the performance, the master of the other dojo admitted that the art of Master Ryu Ryuko was much superior to that of his own. After this competition, Higaonna Sensei's fame spread even further in Foochow. It is said that many martial artists tried to engage Higaonna Sensei in a fight to prove their bravery. But Higaonna Sensei kept the promise he made to Master Ryu Ryuko when he first became a personal disciple of the master of not to fight to show off his skill. Thus Higaonna Sensei always declined these gratuitous challenges.

Higaonna Kanryo as the Founder of Naha-te

Master Ryu Ryuko's house was a two story building. The master lived on the second floor while the workshop and Higaonna Sensei's room were located on the ground floor. The floor of the ground floor got very cold. Higaonna Sensei was woken up early every morning by the cold. Unable to sleep any longer, Higaonna Sensei got up and passed the early morning hours practicing kara in the yard. Master Ryu Ryuko also got up early and watched from upstairs as Higaonna Sensei practiced. Much later, shortly before Higaonna Kanryo Sensei returned to Okinawa, Master Ryu Ryuko told Higaonna Sensei not to over practice for he had to conserve his strength for the journey back to Okinawa. Master Ryu Ryuko always watched over Higaonna Sensei as if he were his own son.
Higaonna Sensei stayed as Master Ryu Ryuko's personal disciple for about thirteen years. After thirteen years of hard training, Higaonna Sensei left Master Ryu Ryuko and the city of Foochow to go back to Okinawa.
Immediately after returning home, Higaonna Sensei paid a visit to Udon Yoshimura, who had helped him go to China thirteen years earlier. Udon Yoshimura was very much impressed to see that Higaonna Sensei had grown up to be a person of modest but dignified character. Udon Yoshimura asked Higaonna Sensei to teach his sons some of the skills he had learned in China. Udon Yoshimura's second son, Yoshimura Chogi took a great interest in the martial arts and practiced eagerly.
Higaonna Sensei's fame rapidly spread throughout Naha and its vicinity after his return to the Ryukyus. The king of the Ryukyu Dynasty, King She Tai asked Higaonna Sensei to be the royal family's instructor in the martial arts. Thus for many years, Higaonna Sensei taught the martial arts to the members of the royal family as well as the family of Udon Yoshimura.
Following the Chinese teaching of humility, Higaonna Sensei was modest and quiet in his demeanor and never talked of his own skill and exploits as a martial artist. For a short time after coming home, Higaonna Sensei went back to his old job of selling goods on a boat. But the sailors, the merchants and the government officials who had been to China all talked about the talent and reknown of .Higaonna Sensei. Many came to Higaonna Sensei and asked to be taken on as personal disciples. But because the training was harsh, only a few remained with Hip. onna Sensei for long.
Higaonna Sensei opened up his house in Nishi. machi as a dojo. and started to teach his art without charging any tuition. Higaonna Sensei was quiet by nature, though in the dojo he seemed to take on a different personality. There, his eyes became piercing like those of an eagle and the students were almost afraid of standing too close to hint.
In 1905, Higaonna Sensei started to teach at a public high school in Naha twice a week at the request of the principal. Higaonna Sensei taught his art to the high school students for both its physical and spiritual value.
During the thirteen years of training in China, Higaonna Sensei mastered many traditional Chinese martial arts such as the art of the straight sword (chien), and the art of the broad sword (dao) and spear. Higaonna Sensei's technique in all of these various martial arts was truly art in motion. Thus, his fame quickly spread throughout Naha and throughout many other cities in Okinawa.
Higaonna Sensei was not a tall man at all. He was only five foot one inch tall. But he was very strongly built. His muscles were weU developed through the harsh training he underwent in China. His hands and legs possessed extraordinary spring. People called him, "Higaonna of the powerful kick" because his kicks were so strong and quick. His movements were also quick as lightning. People were surprised that one so small possessed such power and strength. People in Naha also called Higaonna Sensei "Kerner meaning "sacred fists." Gradually, the art of Higaonna Sensei came to be called "Naha-dee (te)" meaning "Naha hand (technique)." Today he is honored as the founder of Okinawan karate. 

Warming up is a process which elicits the acute physiological changes that prepare the organism for strenuous physical performance. To gain the greatest benefit from the warming-up procedure, the exer­cises should imitate as closely as possible the movements which are to be used in the event.

Warming up reduces the viscosity of a muscle, its resistance to its own movement. It improves performance and prevents injury in vigorous activities by two essential means:

1. A rehearsal of the skill before competition commences fixes in the athlete's neuromuscular coordinating system the exact nature of the impending task. It also heightens his kinesthetic senses.
2. The rise in body temperature facilitates the biochemical reactions supplying energy for muscular contractions. Elevated body temperature also shortens the periods of muscular relaxation and aids in reducing stiffness. 

As a result of these two processes, there is an improvement in accuracy, strength and speed of movement, and an increase in tissue elasticity which lessens the liability to injury.

No fighter uses his leg violently until he warms it up carefully. The same principle is equally applicable to any muscles that are to be used so vigorously. The duration of the warm-up period varies with the event. In ballet, the dancers spend two hours before the performance, commencing with very light movements and gradu­ally increasing the intensity and range of motions until the moment before their appearance. This, they feel, reduces the risk of a pulled muscle which would destroy the perfection of their movements.

The athlete of more advanced years tends to warm up more slowly and for a longer time. This fact may be due to greater need for a longer warm-up period, or it may be because an athlete tends to get smarter as he gets older.

Right oblique posture is ordinarily required in Ken exercises. Conversely, empty-handed exer­cises require left oblique posture. The latter case is because the initial stance between the two partners is more than two steps apart so that when they mutually take one step forward with their right foot, they may come into contact with each other in the mutually right oblique posture.

An old saying goes that "the right shoulder is the key to Ken exercises, while the left shoulder is instrumental in empty-handed exercises". This piinciple holds good provided the right mutual stance is taken. It is only natural that one of the two hands which is more skilful than the other should prove more useful and effective at the time of contact with your partner. The fact that there are an overwhelmingly more right-handers may be accounted for by the natural tendency to protect the heart from attack.

The desired mutual stance calls for the tip of one sword barely touching that of another. Talcing too close a stance and engaging in a tip-to-tip skirmish with an eye to an opportunity for attack should be discouraged. Keep the tip of your sword as high as your throat. There is no need to direct the tip straight at the eye or throat of your partner.

When I was a small boy, my mother was a teacher at the same elementary school I attended. I remember how after school she would plunk me on her bicycle and start toward home. As we rode, we would pass farms where we would stop and buy the ingredients for our evening meal. First we would pick up vegetables from farmers who would pull them up from the muddy field and rinse them off quickly before handing them to us. 

Next we would go to the open market where they sold foods straight from the earth and water. What we couldn’t fit in our basket, we slung over our shoulders. We would buy fresh fish that was still jumping, shellfish that was still crawling. And we’d buy fruit: not the perfect, stackable apples you see today in the supermarket all covered with wax, but apples with blemishes that were tasty enough for the birds to fight over.

Today it’s unrealistic to imagine hopping on a bicycle and buying fresh food every day. Even when we do make it to the market and buy fruits and vegetables, we still have to soak them to remove the pesticides. Yes, there is still fresh food. But it’s not like when I was a little boy in Taiwan. Those memories of riding on my mother’s bike and picking up fresh food stay with me even now. It was a perfect world for me.
There’s really no other way around it: food is best in its natural state. In an ideal world, we’d all eat nothing but whole foods that are just as nature made them. But we do not live in an easy world. We run from one activity to another, trying to balance family and work and all the rest of the elements that make up our complicated lives. It’s no wonder we rely on convenience foods and so-called fast foods. What kinds of foods are you really getting when you head down that supermarket aisle? If you are relying heavily on frozen, processed, or canned foods, you might be serving your body foods that not only are lacking in nutrition but are also harmful to your health in the long run. What harms your health harms your fertility. Here are some of the biggest offenders.

Coffee 

Coffee is a natural stimulant. The caffeine it contains gives you a lift, helps you stay awake, and increases your concentration level—what could be wrong with that? The answer is plenty if you are trying to get pregnant.
The caffeine in coffee stimulates your nervous system, temporarily increasing your heart rate and raising your blood pressure. There is no problem with moderate occasional use. But if you drink coffee on a daily basis, especially as a substitute for a nutritious breakfast, you can compromise your blood sugar levels and create an energy deficit. When that happens, you run the risk of raising your adrenal gland activities as a way to compensate for this loss. That can spell trouble for your fertility, since chronic overactive adrenal glands, when combined with an overstimulated nervous system, can prohibit the proper function of uterine contractions, the tubal functions of transporting the egg, and finally, implantation itself. In short, it can have a suppressive effect on female hormones.
If you don’t drink coffee, don’t start now. If you drink more than a cup a day, cut back. And if you are over the age of thirty-five and trying to get pregnant, don’t drink coffee at all. 

Sugar

If sugar is so bad for you, then why are there so many delicious cookies, pastries, and candies in the world? The answer is simple: they taste good. But sugar also happens to be among the most addictive substances known to humankind. When you eat those cookies (simple sugar) or pastries (refined carbohydrates), your pancreas goes on high alert and starts to produce and release insulin. 

Insulin is a hormone secreted by your pancreas that helps stabilize your blood sugar levels by regulating your metabolism. When you indulge yourself with a frequent intake of sweets, your pancreas must work overtime to secrete more insulin to catch up with the added sugar. After a while your body becomes accustomed to the elevated insulin state. When that happens, you become resistant to the effects of a normal amount of insulin. This temporary insulin resistance can decrease proper ovarian function and your fertility potential. Too much sugar can also potentially change the quality of your cervical mucus, making it more acidic and less conducive to retaining and protecting sperm. In men, it can actually reduce sperm motility, making sperm unable to swim well enough to meet the woman’s egg.

Refined sugar and processed sugars like corn syrup and fructose are just plain bad for you, particularly when you are trying to get pregnant. A snack bar, for example, might say “no added sugar” on the label. But read further and you may find the words “sweetened with fructose or fruit concentrate.” Don’t be fooled. White, brown, or in liquid form, sugar is sugar. Avoid it or at least reduce your consumption of it. If you are eating grains, fruits, and vegetables, you are already getting enough sugar in a natural form. You do not need more in a refined form. 

Processed Foods

Any foods that contain artificial flavor, artificial color, or artificial preservatives fall in the category of processed foods. Eliminate them from your diet altogether if you can. We know they are not good for your body in the long run; in the short run, they can actually place a chemical burden on it.

Think about what happens when you buy a new pair of shoes. The first time you wear them, they might get a little dusty. After a few more wearings, they start to pick up dirt. If you don’t clean your shoes at that point, the dirt and the dust will continue to pile up. Pretty soon, that dirt will start to affect both the material and the look of the shoes. At some point, the dirt will become like tar that you won’t be able to remove. It’s the same with your body. In health, your body is an efficient machine with the ability to detoxify itself. A small amount of chemicals will probably not create that much of a burden on your body’s organs and systems. But if you continue to accumulate them over a long period of time, these chemicals can potentially become endotoxic. In effect, they can poison your endocrine and other internal systems and decrease your body’s ability to cleanse itself. They can start to interfere with your metabolism and with the conversion of hormones.

So look at your supply of processed, frozen, and prepared foods. Get rid of that box of orange mac-and-cheese, those sodium- and chemical-laden soups, those dinners with artificial f lavoring. Read the labels, and don’t be fooled just because something comes from the health food store. If you see chemicals in the ingredients, be wary.

Alcohol 

I’ll be perfectly blunt: no alcohol. Recent scientific studies have suggested that even moderate drinking can decrease fertility potential in both males and females. 

Alcohol is hard on the liver. But that’s not the only reason for avoiding it while you are trying to get pregnant. In order to have good fertility, your hormones must work in a balanced fashion. Because the liver has a close relationship with both male and female sex hormones, any burden on the liver can change how it assists in the production of these hormones. Alcohol can affect your ovulation, causing it to become irregular. When consumed by your male partner, alcohol can be directly harmful to the sperm. It can weaken, slow, and damage all of the sperm parameters, including their shape, speed, structure, and liveliness. As if that’s not enough, drinking alcohol puts you and your baby at higher risk for a miscarriage, preterm birth, stillbirth, and other serious conditions.

You might use alcohol to relax your body and mind after a day of hard work. While I think it is a good idea to unwind on a daily basis, there are many better alternatives for achieving this. Taking a hot bath is one—just make sure it’s no more than fifteen minutes at a time. A walk after dinner, drinking noncaffeinated tea, and meditation are also good ways to put yourself at ease.

Monosodium Glutamate

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a unique food enhancer that is added to many of the foods we eat. Contrary to popular thinking, it is not just used in Japanese and Chinese restaurants. It can be found in many nonethnic restaurant dishes as well as in canned soup, potato chips, snack foods, and frozen dinners, just to name a few. While most people tolerate a small amount of MSG well, others can be extremely sensitive to it. Symptoms can include burning, numbness, tingling, flushing, or weakness in the face, neck, upper back, forearms, and chest, as well as rapid heartbeat, headache, nausea, and even difficulty breathing. We do know that infants are more sensitive to MSG because their nervous system is weaker and therefore more prone to overstimulation. Make a practice of reading food labels so that you can reduce your intake of MSG. 

Dairy

It’s true that dairy products are high in protein and calcium. But they are also high in fat. When women who are trying to get pregnant need to gain weight and increase their body fat, I recommend that they actually eat more dairy products. It is the quickest way I know to gain the protein and fat that are necessary for reproductive function. But if your weight is normal, or especially, if you are overweight or obese, keep dairy products to a minimum. If you feel you must eat dairy, go for low or non-fat products. Avoid dairy altogether if you have dairy intolerance marked by bloating, gas, or sinus congestion after consuming dairy products. Intestinal disturbance and allergies can and will interrupt proper endocrine function. Improper endocrine function can in turn cause a thickening of your cervical mucus, resulting in decreased sperm transportation, fertilization, and embryo implantation. 

Calcium is an essential nutrient that your body needs to have strong bones, heart, muscles, and nerve functions. It’s important for follicular production and general reproductive functions in both men and women. While the best source of calcium is dairy products, there are alternatives such as orange juice or soy milk fortified with calcium, tofu made from calcium sulfate, dark green leafy vegetables, beans, and sardines.

The one dairy product that I absolutely recommend avoiding is butter. It is not a good source of fat. It can wreak havoc on your fertility by clogging up your arteries and decreasing your circulation.

Soda 

Soda contains sugar, preservatives, and other synthetic chemicals. Too much soda prohibits you from eating proper nutritive foods that might be good for your health and your fertility potential. 

Tap Water

I can hear you now. “No coffee, no sugar, no crunchy snack foods, no wine, no soda... and now, no water?” I am simply asking that you drink filtered or bottled water when you are trying to increase your fertility. Unfiltered tap water can contain chemicals. Scientists have told us that tap water is most likely safe to drink, but not all tap water is the same. While occasional consumption of plain tap water is not a problem in developed countries, filtered water is much better for your health in the long run.

Many women ask me how many glasses of water they should drink per day. Some studies recommend as many as eight glasses. I recommend moderation—no more than five glasses or so a day, since you should ideally be getting liquid from food sources like fruits and soup. If you drink too much water, you run the risk of excessive water syndrome, which could cause vital nutrients and trace minerals to be leached from your system.
Make sure the water you drink is not icy cold. As cold water goes down into your stomach, your body warms it up by using energy and circulation that could be put to better use in your pelvic area, your uterus, and your ovaries.

Seppuku should never be considered suicide, and similarly kaishaku should never be regarded as murder: both are rituals of bushido. Seppuku was committed only by warriors-commoners were deemed unworthy. There were several circumstances under which seppuku was carried out. One was to take personal responsibiliLy for a grave error. A samurai would also commit seppuku if his lord commanded him to do so. A further reason would be to take responsibility for someone dse's crime or error. In many cases, however, seppuku was carried out in combat when defeat was unavoid­able or had already occurred. A samurai could also commit seppuku after losing in battle to ensure that lhe lives of his wife, children, and retainers would be spared. 

Kaishaku was performed to assist the warrior committing seppuku. There were two types of kaishaku. The first was done to a samurai who had committed a crime: his head would be cut off completely. The second was done to a samu­rai who had not dishonored his status: a small section of skin at the front of his neck was left intact, so that his head would roll forward onto his arms while remaining attached to his neck, thus presenting his dignity. This was called "kakac-kubi."

Jujutsu, also known as kumiuchi, is in the basis of all martial arts. It is the fighting art with which one stops an opponent's attack without using weapons, and also includes counterattacks and methods to immobilize an opponent. Toward the end of the Sengoku period, it was considered proof of great skill to capture an opponent alive, and warriors who did this were appraised very highly by their superiors. Jujursu was therefore an essential skill for warriors on the battlefield. From the Edo period, jujutsu was used by the police to capture criminals, and it also became a method of self-defense for commoners. This highly skilled art has been preserved until today. 

Since the Tensho period (1573-92) of the Warring States period, the length of the tachi was from 2 shaku 2 sun to 2 shaku 3 or 4 sun at its longest. Incidentally, although it varied depending on the time and region, the average height of a Japanese male until the early part of the Meiji period was less than 160 cm (5 shaku 3 sun). According to the Tai­heiki, the tachi of Nawa Nagatoshi was 4 shaku 3 sun. Saji Magozaburo of Tanba carried a tachi of 5 shaku 3 sun. In the time of Emperor Gomurakami, Wada Masatomo's tachi was 4 shaku 5 sun, and it is said that Fujiwara no Yasunaga drew a tachi of 4 shaku sun. Tsumaga Nagamune carried a tachi of 5 shaku 3 sun. In the time of the battle of the Fuefuki Pass, Yazu Kojiro had a tachi of 6 shaku 3 sun. Akamatsu Ujinori carried a tachi of 5 shaku 7 sun. The sword of Togashi Masachika appears in the tales of storytellers as 9 shaku 3 sun.

The Ninja sword had a blade length of 1 shaku 6 to 7 sun. In the Tokugawa period, a blade longer than 2 shaku was called a katana. Up to 1 shaku 9 sun was called an o-wakizashi, up to 1 shaku 7 sun was called a chu-wakizashi, and up to 9 sun 9 bu was called a sho-wakizashi. The uchi-gatana that began to appear from the Muromachi period were initially 1 shaku 4 sun, but towards the end of the period went from shaku 7 or 8 sun to 2 shaku in length.

With the daito and shoto (a pair of long and short swords), the long sword is sometimes made into a naginata or yari, and the long and short swords are used together as a pair. The short sword was also effective when used in confined spaces against multiple enemies. There is a prov­erb: "The short sword can be used as a long sword and the long sword as a short sword." 

Real common sense means, when in a fight, look with 'extraordi­nary eyes' (kime). Kime are also an example of "the eyes of god" (shingan); when in combat, this becomes kaname (another reading of shingan), also meaning the 'key' or 'main point,' said to be a very important insight. The 'key' to the incident in which Nasu no Yoi­chi played a crucial role for the Genji clan in defeating the Heike clan is contained in this idea. Yoichi was a famous archer who hit the ceremo­nial war fan of the invading Heike fleet at sea with an impossible shot, providing a symbolic prelude to the defeat that awaited them. 

When you think of using a weapon you are at once enslaved by it. It is important to consider not carrying a sword, not wielding a stick, but using what is available at the time as a weapon. Anything can become a weapon. Look at a thing's advantages and disadvantages as a weapon or at armor, shields, and horses-anything natural or manmade can be used as a weapon. 

"The way of the samurai is found in death." Time passes, seasons continue to change-the four seasons, shiki, phonetically share the same sounds as the timing of death, shiki; reminding us of the cyclic properties of life and death.

If you unravel the phrase "ni no tachi" (usually referring to the idea of two strikes, where the first is a setup for the second) into a first and second sword, you find the small and large swords of the daisho and the use of two swords in combination. You can also see that nito (two swords used together) can mean nito (two fights). The ni no tachi of fighting in armor is the kukan through which one enters the world of fighting; it is a method of thrusting through and entering the defences of an opponent. In the case that you and the opponent are not wearing armor, ni no tachi naturally changes. Two swords then become 'with sword' and 'without sword,' also 'serious' (shinken) or 'real sword' (shinken).

The sword, naginata, and yari change according to the times. In the secret scrolls of the Shinkage-ryu, Tengusho Hiden no Maki are the names of illustrations of techniques-Ransho, Kokyoku, Unsetsu, and Denko-and pictures of samurai using long and short :swords. Someone lacking knowl­edge in bufu would undoubtedly recall the image of the long and short swords being used in Miyamoto Musashi's Nito-ryu. Masters like Koizumi.lsenokami would probably have derided a Bugeisha with such a limited sense: they'd have explained that in such a picture, it is essential that the figure have a tachi in one hand, and a yari, naginata, or nagamaki in the other; explaining that it was a secret meaning. Thus, the picture Tengusho Hiden no Maki has a secret meaning, and people who are not familiar with the period of fighting with a tachi can never truly understand. The point is that the kodachi is not just a kodachi-a yoroidoshi (dagger), a spearhead, the blade of a naginata, and unarmed combat all have the same role; they are all used for the same purpose and are interchangeable. I urge you to see this as a fight scene depicting koteki ryoda of juppo sessho.

To the people of the Empire of Japan, the sword has a significance so profound as to be almost incomprehensible to people of other lands. Part of the Imperial Regalia (sanshu no jingi) the possesion of which is a necessary prerequisite for ruling our country, it signifies courage and power, characteristics much admired by the people of this nation. Since the earliest times, a fine sword has been considered a most appropriate offering for an act of religious devotion, combining as it does in the minds of the Japanese people, the qualities of rarity and great value. Add to this its ability to destroy evil which gives it a stainless purity, and you have literally a gift fit for the gods.

For families of the Samurai caste, fine swords were heirlooms of the greatest possible value, to be used during one's lifetime and passed on with honour to one's heirs. Some fine swords that have been handed down through countless generations of Japan's oldest families are literally national treasures, as is the case with the "Kogarasu-Maru" (little crow) made by Amakuni some time in the eighth century A.D. that was originally a treasure of the great Heike clan. This, together with the "Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi" (gathering clouds of heaven sword), which forms part of the Imperial Regalia, are now in the care of the Atsuta Shrine.

Some swords are even considered to have particular traits or characteristics. Swords by the brilliant but demented smith Muramasa Senzo while of the very highest quality, are thought to be thirsty for blood and capable of driving their owners to acts of violence.

Blades by certain other smiths are thought to bring happiness and prosperity. Suffice it to say that to the Japanese Nation, the sword has been an object of spiritual, religious and national significance since time immemorial.