noun
judo; jujutsu
Bound form used in compounds related to judo and jujutsu, such as 柔道 and 柔術. Not used as a standalone word.
「柔道」の「柔」は「やわら」と読むことがある。
The 柔 in 柔道 can be read as やわら.
古い文献では「柔術」を「やわら」と表記する例が見られる。
In old documents, there are examples where 柔術 is written as やわら.
Alternate kanji spelling; rarely used in practice.
The reading やわら is a native Japanese word meaning 'soft' or 'gentle', used as a bound form in martial arts terms. The exact historical derivation of this specific reading in the context of judo/jujutsu is uncertain.