Steel and STEM

So… this is the first post! In a nutshell, this is yet another Iaido-focused website. Nothing revolutionary. But, my admittedly grandiose plan is to document my thoughts and analyses on Iaido teachings and practices, specifically through a STEM-oriented lens. That said, let me state this clearly: everything you’ll read here reflects my own thoughts and interpretations. If what I write resonates with you, great. If not, that’s perfectly fine too. I’ll stick to my perspective, and you’re free to have yours.

Iaido is, like most martial arts, a practical discipline. That means the teachings we inherit must have, at their core, practical utility. After all these centuries, they’ve likely been refined, trimmed, and optimized to be as effective as possible. But what exactly are the real-world reasons that shaped these teachings? And how are those reasons encoded into the forms we practice?

Coming from the neurodivergent end of the spectrum, and with over 20 years of experience in STEM research, I’ve always needed things to make sense. The “what” and “how” matter to me. So, when I began Iaido, I found myself struggling with explanations like “this is just how it’s done” or “the sword cuts on its own.” The sword does not cut on its own. Leave a katana on the floor, and it won’t stand up and slash anything. Yes, I’m exaggerating, but you get the point.

When I couldn’t find someone who shared this urge to connect cryptic teachings to real mechanics, I started pulling on my own thread, following Ariadne’s path from abstraction and ambiguity to clarity and concrete reasoning. My goal is to uncover the physical, mechanical, and biomechanical principles hidden inside the poetic shell of traditional instruction.

I don’t claim to have the final word on anything. I’m not a master, I’m just a newbie in Iaido. But I do believe, and will argue, that Iaido is deeply practical, and that its teachings are grounded in real principles from physics, engineering, and biomechanics. And that’s what I’m here to explore.

If any part of that resonates with you, then hop aboard and let’s take this journey together.