Biscuit asked:


and what does the “NIB” stands for in some swords?

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Aadam v asked:


this cleaning kit has to consist of Oil: Traditional, Japanese clove oil known as choji abura is best; however, a fine grade of camellia oil, tsubaki abura, may be used as well. Avoid any heavy oil as it will have a tendency to collect inside the saya and gather dust.
Soft cotton cloth: Soft, white flannel works well, but be sure to wash it before using it.
Small container: This is to hold the oil cloth so that it doesn’t make a mess inside the cleaning kit. Any small container with a tightly fitting lid can be used: film canisters, clean compact cases, pill boxes with the dividers removed, etc.
Cleaning paper: Japanese washi, also known as nugui-gami can be bought which is especially designed for this purpose, but it can be expensive. Any soft ****** tissue that is fragrance and lotion free may be used as a substitute.
Uchiko: Made from finely powered polishing stone, it comes tightly wrapped in a cloth bag attached to a stick. Some sources suggest using substitutes, but as uchiko is now readily available on the market, substitutions are not wise. Even the real thing badly ground can scratch a blade and ruin the polish; therefore, it is safest to buy only the best quality uchiko and not to risk any possible damage caused by materials not originally designed for sword cleaning.
Mekugi-nuki: This is the little hammer-shaped tool that is used to insert and remove retaining pegs.

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billiardjay asked:


Masatoshi Nakayama, the author of many well-regarded books about Shotokan karate and the founder and visionary behind the JKA, spent almost a decade in China during the Japanese Empire’s invasion, occupation, and subjugation of mainland Asia.

While this subject is taboo among members of the JKA, rumors abound about Nakayama’s treatment of Chinese prisoners of war during this time. It is rumored that he practiced his karate on condemned prisoners — beating several of them to death in attempts to perfect his ippon techniques and develop them to be as effective as his “one strike/one kill” philosophy of karate espoused.

While there are many well-documented instances of Japanese officers perfecting their samurai-sword technique on condemned prisoners (a favorite method of execution was to slice the prisoner completely in half through the pelvis, demonstrating the sharpness of the blade), I can find no online mention of Nakayama’s alleged activities. Does anyone have any info?

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