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Iaido (or Iaijutsu) is the art of drawing the katana, chopping down
the opponent, flipping blood from the blade, and then re-sheathing the
katana in one fluid movement. The emphasis is on drawing the sword and
attacking as quickly as possible. Starting positions can be from combative
postures or from everyday sitting or standing positions. Practitioners could
expect a surprise attack at any time, and the ability to react quickly from
an everyday starting position was considered essential.
An original dater of 1200AD has been claimed, but some time during the
late 15th or early 16th century is more likely.
While not a hard and fast rule, frequently the word iaido is used to
refer to the modern self improvement oriented form taught by the ZNKR while
iaijutsu is used for the older, combative techniques of the koryu.
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