Budo Lingo
This is a list of a few martial arts terms for the uneducated.
Amaterasu = Great Divinity Illuminating Heaven, The revered Shinto sun goddess from whom the Japanese imperial family claimed descent.
Arigato = Thank you
Ashigaru = light-foot, peasant infantry originally armed with long spears and later muskets.
Bakufu = tent government, originally the field headquarters of a general during war, later the name of the military government set up by the shoguns, also called the shogunate.
Buddhism = One of the major religions of China, the goal of which is to obtain spiritual perfection and thereby achieve nirvana
Budo = Martial way
Bujutsu or Bujitsu = Martial art
Bushi = Warrior
Bushido = Way of the warrior, the code of ethics/morals followed by the samurai.
Confucianism = A central Chinese philosophy based on the teachings of Confucius.
Daimyo = A lord, similar to the lords of feudal Europe.
Daisho = The combined pair of katana and wakizashi worn by the samurai.
Dojo = Place to practice the Way, generally martial arts schools.
Emperor = The #1 leader of Japan
Hachiman = The Shinto god of war, one of the most popular of the Shinto deities and the patron of all warriors.
Hakama = Skirt/ Trousers worn by samurai
Kabuki = A form of theater begun in the 17th century in Kyoto that originally featured songs and lively folk dances with rudimentary plots but changed over the years to include historical and domestic dramas interspersed with dance plays and songs.
Kami = In Shinto the vital forces of all things in nature and the native deities or spirits of Japan, including mythical figures or objects of nature as well as defied historical individuals.
Kamakaze = Divine Winds, the typhoons of 1274 and 1281 that helped save Japan from the Mongol invasion.
Kimono = A long, wide sleeved robe, often elaborately decorated and usually belted with an obi.
Mon = Family Crest
Musha-Shugyo = Warrior pilgrimage
Ronin = Wave man, a master less samurai
Ryu = Particular school or style of martial art.
Sake = Rice wine.
Samurai = One who serves, the warrior caste of Japan
Saya = Sword scabbard
Seiza = A formal kneeling posture, you are sitting on your feet, usually your ankles or toes are crossing one another.
Sempai = Senior student.
Sensei = Japanese word for teacher.
Seppuku = Ritual Suicide or abdomen cutting.
Shinto = The way of the gods, the native religion of Japan, an animistic system of beliefs developed from prehistoric practices characterized by a lack of formal doctrine and the belief that all things in nature have their own vital forces, spirits or gods, called kami, that must be worshiped.
Shogun = A warlord of japan
Sifu = Chinese word for teacher.
Taoism = A mystical philosophy and religion based on searching for harmony with the Tao (The Way).
Tsuba = Sword guard
Tsuka = Sword handle
Zen = Everything
Last Updated 3/28/00
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