Paul Masse, kickin' it in Santa Monica

Paul Masse puts Dante in some weird Yoga Bondage

I was lucky to organize some last minute training when Paul Masse called me a few days ago to say he was going to be in Santa Monica.

Paul has traveled to India recently and studied yoga in Rishikesh. He was overflowing with an abundant need to share (or torment) us with some of his unique yoga experiences. So we began with Paul's 柔軟体操 Juunantaisou by way of India.

In between our normal taijutsu study, Paul would insert yoga experiences throughout the day. At one point when I looked around at everyone who was groaning as they tried to get into a pretzel, I raised my fist and said, "damn you Paul! Why did you have to go to India?" Even though these yoga poses were difficult for me, I gained a lot from Paul's enthusiasm.

As far as the taijutsu went, it was fantastic. Paul moved very quickly through concepts and henka to present the feeling he wanted to convey. If I had to pinpoint a theme for the day, it would be that kyusho are everywhere in the kukan and we attack them with kyojitsu..

If you know the meaning of these words, then you may realize what a deep idea this becomes. Someone asked Paul what kyojitsu means, and he worked hard not to fall down an ontological rabbit hole as he tried to explain. Simply put it means the interplay of real and unreal, or true and false in the moment. But the hard part to get your head around is that the real and unreal exist simultaneously, all the time, and everywhere.

After a yoga break, or was it the neti break, or maybe the handstands break? Paul focused on using the hanbo. Or rather, not using the hanbo. He and I spoke in some detail about our experiences in "not using" weapons and he riffed on that for the rest of the day.

He described one end of the hanbo could be the kyo, and the other could be the jitsu. His uke's might get hit with either. He shared the concepts of 中途半端 chuuto hanpa, and 決まってない kimatenai with everyone as a way of "not using" the hanbo.

At the end Paul did some calligraphy for us. He brushed out kamiwaza for me and did a variety of others for everyone there. He shared some of his new artwork with us. To my eye it was more refined than ever. Some of it was based on gokui. This matched up with the whole day as Paul was dropping the gokui on us with gusto!

Thanks for your visit my friend...

Comments

Ride the Tiger: Japan Report Seven 令和6年

Michael tries cola flavor Ninja gummies, a gift from 中川将志 Nakagawa Shōshi I went out to do some laundry and grocery shopping before training. Along the way, I stopped in at the bookstore to find some inspiration from Hatsumi Sensei’s painting. As I flipped through the pages, my eyes settled on a painting of 毘沙門天 Bishamonten riding a tiger. Support my work and watch the FULL video: https://www.rojodojo.com/ride-the-tiger-japan-report-seven-reiwa6/ Hatsumi Sensei gave the painting the title of 坂上田村麻呂 Sakanoue no Tamuramaro. This historic figure was one of the first Shōgun in Japan. Legends around him grew over the centuries and he was considered an avatar of Bishamonten, a god of war, and warrior king. Hatsumi Sensei wrote some poetry from 虎倒流 Kotō Ryū on the painting. Soke said that when he visited Takamatsu Sensei, Takamatsu recited this poetry to him. The poem extols the virtues of a figure like Sakanoue, but I suspect Takamatsu Sensei was also honoring Hatsumi as h...

Behind the Black Gate: Japan Report Eight 令和6年

黒門 Kuromon: the Black Gate This morning I made my way into Tokyo to visit the 黒門 kuromon, or black gate. This was one of the few structures from 寛永寺 Kan’ei-ji that survived the battle of Ueno (上野戦争, Ueno Sensō). During the Boshin War (戊辰戦争, Boshin Sensō), and the gate marked the spot where the 彰義隊 Shōgitai lost a decisive battle against the Imperial troops. Today it is riddled with bullet holes and cannon scars. The Shōgitai were the last of the Tokugawa Samurai. They had swords, arrows, and spears. But they were no match for the 官軍 kangun, the Imperial army led by 西郷隆盛 Saigō Takamori, who used Snider rifles and Armstrong Cannons. 黒門の半分見へて春の雨 the Black Gate is only half visible – rain in spring 〜Kobayashi Issa, 1805 My visit to the black gate was marked by the gentle fall of Ginkgo leaves. A quiet peaceful morning helped me reflect on such a fierce battle. Maybe one of the reasons I am allowed to be here was because of this war which led to the end of the Tokugawa ...

Japan Report Six 令和5年

I was invited to Furuta Sensei’s home dojo out in the countryside. He is very generous and picked us up from the train station. The only problem is that he plays a Lady Gaga CD on repeat during the drive. Furuta’s home dojo is very rustic with traditional tatami mats. He started training with ukemi and my cotton tabi really slid across the straw! His exploration of 基本八法 Kihon Happō is influenced by his study of 雲隠流 Kumogakure Ryū. As the next Soke of Kumogakure Ryū, he is hard at work learning and studying this school. And I feel lucky to be part of this journey every time I study with him. At one point he showed a detail of how to attack the 急所 kyūsho 血止 chidome and 血ダメ chidame. The name of this kyūsho means to stop the blood. Obviously this would incapacitate an opponent if you pull it off. But Furuta Sensei used a hooking strike into chidome to unbalance with one finger. The kyūsho becomes a 支点 shiten. The pressure creates a pivot or a fulcrum to affect the oppon...

Bujinkan Santa Monica

Search This Blog