Our Instructors

  • Daniel T. Ebihara

    Chief Instructor
    Kendo
    7-dan, Kyoshi

  • Koji Takahashi

    Head Instructor
    Kendo
    7-dan, Kyoshi

  • Pam Parker

    Chief Instructor
    Iaido
    7-dan, Kyoshi

  • Katie Roche

    Chief Instructor
    Naginata
    Renshi

  • Efrem Ibragimov

    Head Instructor
    Yagyu Shinkage-Ryu

  • Evan Nava

    Assistant Instructor
    Kendo
    5-dan

  • Mark Bieri

    Dojo Manager
    Assistant Instructor
    Kendo
    4-dan

  • David Bressler

    Dojo Administrator
    Iaido
    6-dan

Ken to wa kokoro nari

  • 剣とは心なり

    剣とは心なり。
    心正しければその剣正し。
    心正しからざればその剣もまた正しからず。
    剣を学ばんとするものはすべからくその心を学べ。
    — 島田虎之助

  • Ken to wa kokoro nari

    Koroko tadashi kereba sono ken tadashi.
    Kokoro tadashi karazareba sono ken mo mata tadashi karazu.
    Ken wo manaban to suru mono wa subekaraku sono kokoro wo manabe.

    - Shimada Toranosuke

  • The sword is the mind

    When the mind is right, the sword it right.
    When the mind is not right, the sword is also not right.
    If you wish to study the sword, first study the mind.
    — Shimada Toranosuke

Make It

Welcome to Ken-Zen Institute— New York’s oldest Japanese swordsmanship dojo since 1959.

Ken-Zen Institute blends authentic Japanese martial arts with Zen philosophy to cultivate the mind, body, and spirit. Explore Kendo, Iaido, Jodo, Naginata, and classical sword arts in Manhattan’s TriBeCa.

A dojo built on purpose, not for profit

Ken-Zen Institute operates as a not-for-profit organization. Our mission is to preserve and promote authentic Japanese martial arts for the enrichment of our community. All proceeds from membership fees and donations go directly toward maintaining the dojo, upgrading training equipment, and supporting educational programs. Our instructors volunteer their time out of deep dedication to their arts and students.

Training everyday