Besides physical well-being, learning Kendo can instill discipline, writes Stuart Danker
THERE’S a saying that when it comes to Kendo, you can spend your life learning the discipline but you will never be able to master it. This is exactly what drives Peter Chin Chee Min to strive at the sport, relishing the journey as much as the end result. He is also the executive producer and director of boutique production house Shiroku Production, and was previously the general manager and group creative director at Media Prima.
“I recall the first day I stepped into the dojo. I had no idea what the customs were. I wore my shoes inside and didn’t bow as I entered. One of the seniors reprimanded me and asked me to sit down and watch instead of disrupting the class. And that’s how my journey into Kendo began,” says Chin.
Nonetheless, he observed the class despite wanting to start waving a sword. Only after a period of time in practice did he realise that Kendo wasn’t about cool armour and sword swinging but a way of life.
The way a person handles his sword reflects a person’s personality, says Chin. He has made the country proud by winning several medals in a number of tournaments, snagging his first in 2007, at the 8th Asean Kendo Tournament (AKT) in Bangkok, Thailand, in the men’s individual category. Last year, he bagged the bronze medal in the men’s team category at the 10th AKT in Penang. AKT was first organised by Malaysia Kendo Association.
WAY OF LIFE
Before picking up the sport, Chin subscribed to living life large. He admits to selfish priorities from which a good day is measured on how many parties he attended and the number of people he counted as friends. His chance venture into Kendo drew him back towards a more purposeful way of life. He credits the meditative practices of the sport, where every aspect of the art seems to hone determination and focus.
“The act of swinging your sword while focusing at one point is one of the more meditative drills. It’s hard to execute that technique while maintaining focus for prolonged periods. In the same vein, everything in Kendo is focus-oriented. Our belts need to be tied a certain way, and the lengths have to align. Even packing for Kendo practice is a form of mental training. I’ve always been a stickler for detail anyway, so this is perfect for me,” Chin says.
Chin’s career and choice of sport actually complement each other. While attention to detail sometimes comes at a price for a visual storyteller like him — such as the hefty sum he paid to obtain period-accurate newspaper pages for a short film — Chin says that the extra five minutes of work usually saves hours of re-working later and it pays not to take shortcuts in life.
That’s not the only benefit of applying Kendo’s principles in life. Chin offers the example of initiating a strike.
“Basically, the person that hesitates tends to lose more than the ones who take action. Add this to the fact that there are many ways to hit targets, you get endless possibilities. How does this translate into my life? I find that I look for these ‘openings’ in life, and find ways to strike, instead of just waiting for things to happen.”
Something everyone with a passion and career faces is time limitation. Chin has a family and a demanding career. Then, he has to fit in the time to practice an art with no end to learning.
“It’s weird how I never ever entertained the thought of quitting Kendo. There were times where I just couldn’t get the time to train and when I don’t train for a couple of months, my skills regress substantially. When I need to refresh my muscle memory, I practise basic sword swings at my balcony. It’s amusing to see my neighbours staring at me while holding their mobile phones!” says Chin.
But like everything else in life, effort precedes success and time management is no different. The art of creating plans and sticking to them may be a discipline in itself. Chin shows that his passion for telling stories doesn’t mean that he needs to stop making his own.
A brief look
at Kendo
• Matches generally last five minutes
• Matches are won when a fighter scores two out of three points first. A “sudden death” is held in case of a tie
• Areas of attack to score points are slashes to the head, wrists, body, and a thrust to the throat
• Three referees— one lead and two assistant referees officiate the match, where awarding of points occurs when at least two referees agree with a ruling
• Penalties occur if a fighter steps outside the marked points or drops the sword