He wanted to start a martial art, searched, and found a dojo close to home. Ricardo Rodriguez went to try it once and knew quickly that this was the thing he had been looking for.
Way of Life #15, “You See Yourself in Kendo”, is a portrait of Ricardo Rodriguez (2-dan) at Senbukan Luzern. What follows is transcribed from the subtitles of the film — Ricardo Rodriguez’s own words, in the order they are spoken, under the chapters of the film.
Your flaws replicate themselves in your kendo. As you work on your kendo, and it gets better. You see the same things change in yourself.
It began by chance
It was a question of opportunity — I wanted to start a martial art. Researching, I found a kendo dojo close to home. So I decided to try it out.
And knew quickly — this was exactly what I was looking for. What makes kendo a bit special. Some martial arts go purely into the spiritual.
Others go purely physical — pure effectiveness. Kendo is a really good combination of the two.
The people in the dojo
The most important thing is the community you build. As you practice and struggle together, friendships grow. Even across dojos — the whole Swiss kendo community.
You see each other getting better, together. Even when life gets busy. You want to see the people again — to practice, to spar again.
A healthy hierarchy
Far more disciplined than the world outside. A healthy hierarchy — you always know who you can rely on. And your duty towards those who rely on you.
We're surrounded by the language — I tried to learn it too. To engage with that bottomless well — the Japanese sensei.
You see yourself in kendo
The most valuable thing to experience is that feeling of progress. We all get stuck — keep making the same mistakes. But inevitably, no matter what, you find the solution.
Your flaws replicate themselves in your kendo. As you work on your kendo, and it gets better. You see the same things change in yourself.
Say you're shy — you don't dare take space. You keep getting hit, because you don't dare be proactive. With time, you find confidence.
To be proud of who you are — to say: I like doing this.
About this series
Way of Life is a series of short portraits of people who live the way, filmed by KAIDO Inc. in dojos across Europe and Japan. One person, one word, a few minutes.