Under blue skies, Japan Day took place for the 15th time in the state capital on June 21, 2016.
This year, up to 750,000 visitors came from all over Germany, and people even traveled from other European countries.

The Kyudoverein Neandertal e.V. was also present for the 15th time with its own shooting range in front of the state parliament building, where it was active all day long.

For safety reasons, demonstrations this year were held at a short distance.
The target was the so-called makiwara, a bale made of rice straw.
This was specifically to practice the technique that is crucial in Japanese archery.

Our members appeared both in their regular training attire and, for the ceremonial shooting, in kimonos.

In addition, both Kyudo styles—which can be learned at our club—were demonstrated.

On the one hand, the traditional form (Heki-Ryu Insai Ha), which originally stems from military archery.
Heki-Ryu Insai Ha is the most commonly practiced style in Germany.

And on the other hand, the more modern style (ANKF-Shomen), which emphasizes the values of truth, goodness, and beauty.
The ANKF-Shomen style is the most widely practiced in Japan.

Numerous spectators attended the demonstrations and had several questions about Kyudo.

Automatically translated by DeepL