Copyright ©2010 by John Evans. All rights reserved. No portion of this book, except for brief review, may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without written permission of the publisher. For information contact Blue Snake Books c/o North Atlantic Books.
Published by Blue Snake Books
Blue Snake Books’ publications are distributed by
North Atlantic Books
P.O. Box 12327
Berkeley, California 94704
An earlier version of chapter 2 appeared in the Shudokan Martial Arts Association Journal 13, no. 4 (December 2008), and an earlier version of the introduction appeared in the Shudokan Martial Arts Association Journal 15, no. 4 (September 2010); both are reprinted here by permission.
Cover photo by Coneyl Jay
Cover and book design by Brad Greene
Kurikara: The Sword and the Serpent is sponsored by the Society for the Study of Native Arts and Sciences, a nonprofit educational corporation whose goals are to develop an educational and cross-cultural perspective linking various scientific, social, and artistic fields; to nurture a holistic view of arts, sciences, humanities, and healing; and to publish and distribute literature on the relationship of mind, body, and nature.
North Atlantic Books’ publications are available through most bookstores. For further information, call 800-733-3000 or visit our websites at www.northatlanticbooks.com. and www.bluesnakebooks.com.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Evans, John Maki, 1954–
Kurikara: the sword and the serpent, the eightfold way of the Japanese sword
/ John Maki Evans.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-1-58394-428-8
1. Swordplay—Japan. 2. Hand-to-hand fighting, Oriental—Japan. I. Title.
GV1150.E83 2010
796.86—dc22
2010023102
v3.1