Bushido Kyokai Outdoor Training: Into the Wild. Connect with Nature.

Kaicho in a black kimono with the left side undressed, wearing a striped hakama, standing in nature

I love our dojo. I really do. The floors, the mats, the way everything has its place. There's a reason we bow when we walk in. But lately, I've been thinking about something.

A lot of what we practice—Kyudo, Iaido, even hand-combat didn't start inside four walls. It started outside. On grass. Near trees. At sunrise. Samurai didn't have fancy dojos with AC and rubber flooring. They had dirt, grass, and whatever the weather gave them.

So from time to time, I take our training outside.Not to escape the dojo. To connect with something older.

And before you ask—yes, even in winter. Cold air, bare trees, snow on the ground. That's just another way to train.

• Kyudo in the Woods

Let me be honest about Kyudo for a second.

Most people think it's just archery. Stand, aim, shoot. But anyone who's practiced real Japanese archery knows it's not about the target at all. It's about your breath. Your posture. That split second when your hands know what to do before your brain catches up.

When I practice Kyudo indoors, I learn form. When I practice it in the woods with my classmate in Japan or here alone, I learn to connect with nature. The wind moves the trees, and I have to work with it, not fight it. A bird lands twenty feet away, and I can't flinch.

That's not a distraction. That's the whole point. You're not separate from the forest. You're part of it. And then there's Iaido.

Drawing a sword in a dojo feels clean and controlled. Drawing it in the woods feels... older. More real. Because it is real. This art wasn't invented for a gym. It was invented for the moment when you're standing on grass, the sun is low, and you have one chance to get it right.

When you practice Iaido in the woods through we connect with nature in a way you can't inside. The ground isn't perfectly flat. The light changes. The air moves. You have to adjust. You have to listen.

Winter makes you listen harder. Your breath fogs in front of you. The snow muffles every sound. Your fingers get cold, and you learn to move through it, not complain about it. That's training too. And honestly? Most of us need a little more listening in our lives. Winter or not.

What We're Keeping the Same

We're not throwing out discipline. Respect, focus, precision—those don't change just because we're standing on grass or snow instead of mats. If anything, they matter more outside. There's no wall to lean on. No line on the floor to tell you where to stand. Just you, your training, and the trees watching. hat's the heart of Bushido Kyokai outdoor training. Not flashy. Not loud. Just real. And real happens outside too—even when it's cold.

Who Should do it?

You don't need to be an expert. You don't even need to have tried Kyudo or Iaido before.

You just need to be curious, and serious. Open to connecting with nature in a way you haven't before—if you've never tried Bushido Kyokai outdoor training before, it's something worth considering.

One Last Thing

I'm not replacing the dojo. The dojo is home.

But sometimes home needs a little fresh air. And a little cold. And a little snow crunching under your feet.

— Kaicho Bushido Kyokai