Jean Kodama:
Masters Ancient - and Male-Dominated – Japanese Martial Art of Kendo

By Daijiro Don Kanase

To an untrained onlooker, Jean Kodama appears as an unassuming Japanese American woman with a quiet and steady tone. But behind her reserved demeanor is a powerhouse to be reckoned with. Kodama is a master of kendo, which translates to “The Way of the Sword” and harkens back to the days feudal samurai warriors sparred with wooden and bamboo swords to hone their swordsmanship.

Kodama is an icon in the kendo community because of her exceptional performance at national and world championships, groundbreaking leadership roles in a male-dominated community, and apprenticeship under the kendo pioneers of the 20th century. She has undoubtedly changed the game and inspired America’s next generation.

“I never thought of myself as a groundbreaker,” Kodama said. “I just always try to do my best, whatever situation I’m in, or whatever role I’ve been given. Kendo is unique. You can win even if you are small, or very young, or even very old. It is about timing, technique, and most of all, heart.”

History of Kendo in America

The practice of kendo in America went through decades of adversity before finally arriving at Kodama’s childhood doorsteps. The martial art was kindled in the early 1900s, banished during World War II and revived again in the 1950s. From 1885 to 1924, the first generation of Japanese Issei immigrants entered the United States from Japan’s agricultural areas, such as Wakayama, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Kumamoto and Kagoshima. The Issei pioneers sought better opportunities in America due to the sociopolitical upheavals they experienced during Japan’s Meiji Restoration towards industrialization. Kodama’s grandparents were among the Issei pioneers who emigrated from Wakayama.

Before WWII, the Issei and Japanese kendo instructors had established kendo clubs throughout the United States. In 1929, a renowned instructor named Tokichi Nakamura founded Hokubei Butokukai (North American Martial Virtue Association), which amassed more than 10,000 kendo practitioners along the West Coast by the time he returned to Japan in 1937. One of Nakamura’s top disciples was Kodama’s uncle, Akio Hara. Hara traveled with Nakamura to teach kendo and establish dojos throughout California, Oregon and Washington. They also conducted several kendo seminars in Japan, Korea and China. By 1937, Hara served as head instructor for federations of kendo dojos in California, Oregon and Washington. Kendo quickly caught fire and flourished in the 1930s, but was abruptly banished upon the onset of WWII.

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, both Issei and Nisei kendo practitioners feared that their passion for kendo would be mistakenly interpreted as political ties with the Japanese government. Like other kendo practitioners at the time, Hara burned all of his kendo books, papers, clothing and equipment. Despite the futile attempt to burn and discard things of Japanese origin, the U.S. government sent Hara to the Poston Relocation Center in Arizona. After the war ended, Hara married a Nisei, Sachiko Kawagishi, whom he met at camp. They moved to Los Angeles in 1951 where Hara began practicing and teaching kendo once again. More than a decade later, Hara’s passion for kendo crossed paths with Kodama’s childhood upbringing.

Kendo’s Rendezvous with Jean Kodama

Kodama’s childhood as a third-generation Japanese American Sansei was a typical one by community standards during the postwar era. Kodama’s Nisei parents, Tomio Uwate and the former Mary Kawagishi, met and married after the war and moved to a chicken ranch in South Whittier, California. While Kodama’s father was a full-time gardener, the family raised chickens. Kodama’s mother was an active volunteer at the Southeast Japanese School and Community Center in the nearby city of Norwalk. She did what most Nisei mothers did, which involved taking their children to Japanese school. The community center provided a venue for Japanese Americans to interact with each other. Kodama’s father practiced bonsai, the art of cultivating miniature-scale trees, while her mother did ikebana flower arranging. During this time, Kodama spent a lot of time visiting her uncle, Hara, and fondly remembers her routine visits with “Uncle Bob.” Kodama looked up to her uncle from an early age.

In 1964, Kodama’s mother prompted Hara to establish a kendo dojo in Norwalk. When Kodama’s mother served as president of the Japanese School’s Parent-Teacher Association, her mother asked him to put on a kendo demonstration at the annual Japanese School carnival. Following that demonstration, Hara founded Norwalk Kendo Dojo at the Southeast Japanese School Community Center in 1964. Two talented brothers who started kendo in 1962, Takeshi and Makoto Yamaguchi, joined Hara as his assistants. With a dojo at the community center and assistant instructors, Hara now had everything he needed for new students to join.

Kodama was excited to learn kendo from her uncle. Norwalk Kendo Dojo’s original members came from two families that transferred from other dojos and the Uwate family: Kodama and her two younger brothers.

“My uncle was always one of my favorite people in the world. He was great with kids,” Kodama recalled. “I didn’t know what kendo was, but if my uncle was starting something, I wanted in!”

She was jubilant to embark on this new journey. Initially however, sexists discouraged her from doing kendo, but her family supported her.

“I wasn’t allowed to start kendo that first night with my brothers. Everyone said kendo was for boys,” she said. “Luckily, it wasn’t hard to convince them otherwise, and I was able to start the next week.” From an early age, she persisted towards equality and inclusion.

Kodama revered her uncle, Hara. She remembered him as an amazing teacher and kendoist. “No one could touch him, especially when he was doing nitoryu (two sword technique),” she said. “Yet, he could fight you at a level just higher than your own, so no matter who was practicing with Hara sensei, they had fun and were challenged exactly the right amount.”

Inspired by Hara, Kodama had a promising future from a young age despite her circumstances as a girl in a male-dominated, niche society. She had to fight her way up, literally and figuratively, to earn every bit of respect and recognition.

World Class Athlete: Regional, State, National, and World Champion

Starting kendo at age 9, Kodama was a prodigy. She learned quickly and worked hard at the fundamentals. Hara showed no distinction between male and female fighters. He taught each person individually according to their needs and abilities, largely by example, not words. Her fervent training under his guidance paid off. She won her first trophy at a local tournament five months after starting kendo, and a few months later beat 11 opponents in a row. After that, boys dreaded the prospect of fighting her.

Kodama’s numerous victories as a regional, national and world champion were extraordinary. In 1981 at the U.S. national championships in Chicago, Kodama won 1st place and became a national champion. For the next 36 years with the exception of two breaks, she continued to compete in the national championships, including another gold medal performance in 1990. Kodama medaled a total of five times in her division, a record unmatched in any other national championship division. In addition to her individual record, her achievements included one silver medal in the women’s team division and five gold medals since 1987, when the national federation finally added the women’s division to the U.S. Championships.

Kodama became a world champion in 1985, when she won 1st place in the Women’s Goodwill division at the World Kendo Championships in Paris. She recalled that one of the proudest moments in her life was the playing of the “Star Spangled Banner” at the awards ceremony.

“I was overcome by an emotion I still cannot explain,” she said. “It was the first, and it turns out, the only time a national anthem for a country other than Japan ever played at a World Kendo Championships. I had never before felt the ‘American’ part of ‘Japanese-American’ so strongly.”

With many accolades and respect, Kodama’s endeavors did not end. Her responsibilities grew as she eventually took on the role as the team captain and subsequent coach and manager for Team USA.

Team Captain, Coach, and Manager of Team USA.

In 2000, Kodama was the women’s team captain for Team USA in the World Championships in Santa Clara, California. They received bronze medals after clashing with Team Japan in the semi-finals. Three years later in 2003, Kodama went on to serve as Team USA manager and coach for the 2003 World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.

“It was actually a far scarier experience,” she said of her leadership role at that time. “As a player, all you had to do was fight. The manager and coaches had huge responsibilities not only to the team, but to the nation we represented. It was intense.” Her sense of duty and care for others, as a team captain, coach, and manager were extraordinary.

Since the national and world championships were only held every three years, winning even a single championship can be an incredible accomplishment. For Kodama to win 19 various championships in a span of 35 years was a monumental feat. Yet she did not let up after her achievements as a champion at the regional, national and world levels or her service as captain for the regional and national teams for Team USA. She also gave back by teaching kendo and by spending countless hours at the regional federation level. 

“It takes an immense amount of effort to keep a dojo going, and an order of magnitude more to keep a federation going,” she said, explaining her dedication. “I hope everyone who continues kendo realizes this and steps up to do their part. But on top of that, because I am a Sansei, I feel I have a huge responsibility to carry forward the legacy and traditions of the Issei and Nisei generations.”

A Leader in the Kendo Community

Her sense of responsibility has continued in the organizational aspects of the kendo community.

Since the 1980s, Kodama has been, and continues to be, an active contributor to the Southern California Kendo Federation (SCKF), the largest kendo federation in the United States. She has helped modernize the antiquated processes in the kendo community, chairing a database committee to computerize membership information at the request of Yamaguchi sensei when he was federation president in the 1980s. She also has chaired the promotion committee since the 1990s and helped out with requests from other federation presidents, including serving in officer positions.

Kodama’s administrative contributions led her to become president of the federation’s Board of Directors. She served two terms despite an abhorrence of politics and being “an extreme introvert,” she said.

“I also believe in giving the ‘little guy’ a fair chance, not to mention making things run more efficiently. So, I do what I can,” she said.

In 2006, Kodama became the head instructor of Norwalk Dojo. She followed in the highly respected lineage of the great headmasters before her, starting with Akio Hara, followed by Takeshi Yamaguchi, and then others. Kodama holds the rank of Renshi 6 Dan in kendo, equivalent to “master” 6th degree black belt, as well as 4 Dan in iaido. She is currently the only female head instructor in the Southern California Kendo Federation.

 “I was very reluctant to take on the responsibilities of head instructor,” she said. “It is a huge effort to make sure everyone has the knowledge and skills needed for their current and next rank. Each person responds to a different way of teaching, so I need to mix things up and try new things. But also I maintain ties back to Hara sensei and the previous head instructors. For example, I try to be faithful to the kihon dosa (basic movement drills) as Hara sensei originally set and commanded it from the first days of the dojo.”

Like other kendo sensei, Kodama constantly reinforces the fundamentals. Throughout her achievements as a competitor, community leader and instructor, she also persevered through a slew of injuries.

From plantar fasciitis and a ruptured foot to shoulder and knee injuries and concussions, Kodama overcame many debilitating injuries during her career. Throughout her physical adversity, she maintained an optimistic outlook and practiced her philosophy of “never giving up.” As a true master of her art, she exploited her own adverse experiences to enlighten and encourage other injured students to overcome their difficulties. She constantly shared her creative and effective techniques to continue honing one’s kendo skills amid minor injuries. Especially for the more senior population of students who have suffered various injuries or ailments, Kodama has inspired them to continue kendo despite setbacks. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Kodama has even displayed that practitioners can still hone their skills without a bamboo sword and while staying at home.

Norwalk Kendo Dojo Today

A visit to Kodama’s kendo dojo in Norwalk triggers an overwhelming sense of the deep history of adversity and perseverance of the Japanese American pioneers who founded the establishment. Norwalk Kendo Dojo is part of the Southeast Japanese School and Community Center, which was founded in 1925. The community center is tucked away in an unassuming suburban neighborhood in Los Angeles County. Currently, Norwalk Kendo Dojo is a robust and vibrant home to more than 50 kendo practitioners from all walks of life, diverse generations, genders and ethnicities. 

Driving through the center’s gates, as kendo practitioners entered the hallowed grounds, a powerful aura seemed to surround patrons as if the spirits of past Japanese American pioneers were gathering like old times. Old photos of the three founders adorned the hallway. Kendo practitioners of various backgrounds, from corporate executives to small children, entered the building and changed into their ornate fighting gear. The dojo had a distinct smell that likely resonated from the old days of the samurai in feudal Japan. The fresh scent of bamboo and suede from the kendo weapons and the aromatic scent of the traditional aizome indigo dye from the kendo gear, combined to brew a special concoction for kendo training. A taiko drum sounded, calling everyone to line up in rank order and face an intimidating line of highly respected instructors. Kodama stood at the head of the line-up. Everyone exchanged bows, meditated and conducted various warm-up drills. After a grueling hour of fundamental and technique drills, students lined up to spar against the instructors.

Listening to the orchestra of two fighters simultaneously striking each other’s helmet was quite the musical experience. In addition to the distinct aroma of the dojo, the rich percussion sounds and dynamic vocals illuminated the scene. As kendo fighters faced each other, each gave a distinct war cry. One fighter shrieked in a high-pitched yell while the other gave a thunderous roar. The fighters used their war cries to intimidate their opponent while raising their own adrenaline. In an instant, both fighters fearlessly leaped toward each other while yelling out “men,” meaning “head strike.” Tightly wound bamboo swords firmly struck each other’s tough cotton helmet. The dual impacts pounced like two synchronized mallets pounding mochi. The deep foot stomps on the wooden floor reverberated throughout the dojo. The exchange of war cries, foot stomps and bamboo clashes was a rich and intense audial experience.

Students continued to spar their way up the chain of instructors until they finally faced and bowed to Kodama, who was at the end of the dojo. After a few short bursts of attacking and defending, she offered suggestions.

“Your last strike was good, but you didn’t follow through,” she calmly explained to one student. “Be more convincing that you made a solid strike with your kiai and commitment.”

A final taiko drum sounded, which ended the evening’s training. Everyone looked physically exhausted and spoke with panting breath. Paradoxically, they had smiles and seemed psychologically and spiritually uplifted, as adrenaline and endorphins surged during their sparring.

From graduating as the valedictorian of her high school, Kodama actualized her childhood potential as a leader, loving spouse, world-class athlete, innovator and entrepreneur. She received her Bachelor of Science degree and Master’s degree in electrical engineering from the prestigious California Institute of Technology (Caltech). There, she met her future husband, David, whom she married 43 years ago. Kodama had a long career as an electrical engineer. She held various patents and joined several start-up companies at the founder level. Now, she and her husband work at Echo Associates, the small company they started in the1980s. They consider themselves “semi-retired.” Kodama continues her passion in kendo and iaido while also sharing her husband’s passion for astronomy and astrophotography.

Conclusion

In a male-dominated community, Kodama’s competitive performance, leadership in the regional Board of Directors and head instructorship of Norwalk Dojo has clearly made her an iconic groundbreaker. She broke barriers that were once unimaginable just a few decades ago. The way she fights and teaches is poetry in motion. She combines finesse, strength and power in her techniques -- epitomizing the unadulterated, cultural performing art of kendo. Through her passion and perseverance, she inspires a diverse community of all generations, genders and ethnicities.

And she encapsulates the spirit of Issei and Nisei Americans – who are her own inspiration.

“I think of the Issei and Nisei, who lived through the Great Depression and World War II,” she said, when asked what motivates her. “They served on the battlefield and rebuilt their lives after the relocation camps. They stepped up to the life that was dealt them, facing one difficult challenge after the next. We need to be like them.”

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