Es Jayen

* For me free style cutting is defined by its intent, which is simply the control of your target with a bladed weapon. The intention is not for me to learn the techniques of swordsmanship to survive a battle. It is not to fulfill a fantasy of being an ancient warrior. Neither is it to replicate the moves from my favorite video game character. Instead, my intention is to control either the mat or the bottle I am cutting with complete confidence (a goal in which I am very far from completing).

Control over the target means that I am able to manipulate the target in anyway that I choose. Since we are talking about cutting a target, this means learning how to create cuts that will consistently cause the same reaction. For example, if I want my target to remain static after the cut is complete, then I will focus on how to make my body and blade work in harmony to leave the target standing. If my intention is to pop the target vertically into the air after the cut is complete, then I will need to take a different approach in regards to my blade and body mechanics. But my goal is always the same no matter the type of cut, the reaction of the mat, or the body mechanics involved—it is to have control over my target. Of course the root of controlling my target is control over my body and my blade.

To achieve control over my body and blade I commit myself to training my cuts with a definite goal in mind. Yet, I am not confined by any style. My goal is not to learn any recognized style of sword related martial arts, but to take everything I know and have learned, and utilize this knowledge to create cuts that achieve the goal of having complete control over the mat. In short, I will do whatever I have to do to get my sword through the mat and achieve the cut. No matter if it is a twist in the hips I learned from Kung Fu, or a hand technique I saw from a Korean sword master, I will adapt it and use it as needed to complete my goal.

Despite my personal preference of being self taught, which has a daunting number of disadvantages, free style cutting is not confined to only self taught backyard cutters. Any formally trained practitioner can also be a free style cutter. The key to being a free style cutter is the intent in your cutting.

It is important to note that this is my personal preference, and my intention in this article is not to dissuade people from formal training nor to disrespect tameshigiri in any way. I do understand the solemn and respectful approach that many traditionalists take to tameshigiri and can appreciate where they are coming from. Furthermore, I fully respect those individuals who go into the sword arts to learn combat tactics from the Samurai and the tradition, history, and culture of Japan, Korea or Europe; it is just not for me personally. For me everything boils down to the simple goal of controlling my body and my blade in order to control the mat.