Real Bujinkan Training (Where I Risk Everything to Inspire You)

Eastern Slope of Mount Fuji, photo by by ninja gecko

I'm going to take a risk here. I'm going to risk trying to inspire you. The reason I want to take this risk is because I am inspired every day in my training and I want anyone who trains to find that for themselves.

How do I get inspired? Remember what it felt like the FIRST time you trained? You were new and hopeful and open to try anything. As a new student your mind was just ready to open up. Almost every class with Hatsumi Sensei feels like that. At least for me it does.

Is Bujinkan just a martial art? As a student I can tell you that it has given me a lot more than the study of combat. And as a teacher I work for moments of clarity in training that open the training up so that it is more than just a martial art and expands to reflect the lives of me and my students.

If you don't believe this is possible in Bujinkan training, then why are you studying? You should answer that question. And the mystery to this is that the answer you come up with is based only on what you have learned about training so far. It is based on what you already know. If you leave it at that, then you don't even need to go to class anymore. If you want to learn, then you must risk going beyond what you already know.

In fact, the great fun of training is in discovering ideas and movement that lead you to that "aha moment." What makes you say, "Aha!" Or "yes" is that you felt there was something more and then a teacher shows you where it is. When that happens for me it is satisfying. And it keeps me coming back to see that teacher. It is also satisfying to help students have those aha moments. Because it reflects back to me and expands my own learning.

A good teacher can help you see past the edges of your own knowledge. A good Bujinkan class can open up your awareness to something bigger than yourself.

I hope you find teachers to provide insights that you cannot easily comprehend at this moment. Give them your trust and your training will accelerate to provide clarity in your life and expand what the meaning of training is for you.

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Japan Report One 令和5年

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Buki-mobile at 鎌倉・山海堂商店, photo by Michael Glenn Do you know the deepest levels of 虚実 kyojitsu lead down the path of 捨て身 sutemi? In a recent class I shared a dimension of kyojitsu that I’ve only ever heard expressed from Hatsumi Sensei. But is anyone willing to take this path? During my class demo, I shot the weight of the 鎖分銅 kusarifundō out into the face of my opponent. A surprise 中振 nakafuri strike, but my use of it was for kyojitsu. The sound of the chain and the weight act as 目潰し metsubushi and caught the opponent’s attention. These sensations hid my next move. It isn’t very safe to use a real kusarifundō in class. Unless your training partner likes dental work or a busted eyebrow, it is safer to use a short cord to practice. But then I noticed my students were missing a key aspect of this type of kyojitsu. Most people think of kyojitsu as being a feint or fake. You mislead and distract the opponent from your real strategy. Many students stop there by using a fake-out. But, for kyo

Bujinkan Santa Monica

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