Bujinkan Santa Monica

Water Sunset, Tokyo. photo by xxspecialsherylxx I don't spend a lot of time in front of a mirror. Those of your who know me may think, "that's obvious." But when I do get in front of a mirror, after I get over the shock of my appearance and really look to see what is reflected there, it makes me smile. The smile comes from a recognition of my own spirit reflected back at me. Thankfully, that is a happy reflection. In training it is said that we are polishing each other's hearts so they are clear like a mirror. If we get this natural clarity we will have 平常心 heijōshin and reflect the hearts of our training partners (or opponents) back to them. One of the songs of the gokui says, "If you possess a heart like clear water, the opponent is reflected as though in a mirror."  This state of mind is like 無念無想明鏡止水 munen muso meikyōshisui,  "Without worldly thoughts, clear and serene as a polished mirror or still water." This is very powerful...

Sugimoto-dera temple, Kamakura. photo by Flowizm I took the concept of In and Yo for granted. I had heard about this idea since I first began studying the Bujinkan in the mid '80's. But my mind always glossed over it. I was like yeah, yeah, In Yo - dark and light, yin and yang, positive negative - i get it. They are opposite but the same. Now show me that cool sword draw again! But I didn't get it.  Maybe I needed more life experience to understand. Maybe I needed a teacher who could do more than just talk about the concept but one who actually lived it. Whatever it was, I now find myself feeling like a beginner being inspired by this concept as if for the first time. One of the songs of the Gokui that Hatsumi Sensei has shared with us: "The two guardian gods take the form of In and Yo. The movement of their fists, and also the breath." Hatsumi Sensei changes the kanji to help us understand that this sacred song (seika 聖歌), can only be understood if we mak...

Purple Grid - Yokohama, Japan photo by OiMax Many of you have seen Hatsumi Sensei's purple hair. Everyone wants to know what that is about. Iro 色 (color) is a very important symbol in Japanese culture and martial arts. Let's look at that idea first, then Soke's hairstyle. In martial arts Iro 色 is something that can be observed. For example: the color of your face, color of your sword, color of your attack, color of your Kamae, etc. The opponent's attack or his desire to win is often times described as Iro. I describe hearing Sensei refer to this on my blog post, Beyond Striking and Kiai Into the Mysteries of Toate No Jutsu: I was at a Friday night class with Hatsumi Sensei in the Hombu Dojo when Soke described toate no jutsu as a kiai or projection of spirit (maybe 気迫 kihaku?). Sensei said it was like the color of your heart projecting into space. That color comes from your character or can be that which you decide to project. He said all this with his purple ha...

Paul Masse Santa Monica Training We had some great training with Paul Masse last weekend. One idea that Paul shared with us is: 強弱柔剛あるべからず　故にこの心から離れ　空という一字に悟り　 体また無しとして　之に配す Neither strong or weak, soft or hard, separate from the heart of these and enlighten yourself to the one character of nothingness. Make your body nothingness and reside therein. This comes to us from Toda Shinzaburo Masahide of the Togakure ryu. Another translation of this phrase can be found in Hatsumi Sensei's book, "The Way of the Ninja," "One should be neither strong nor weak, neither soft nor hard. Leave such thoughts behind, awaken to the Void, and make your body Null to abide by this." Paul had us exploring these ideas through 虚実 kyojitsu, 無心 mushin, and 縁 connection. Paul explained that for kyojitsu to be effective you have to sell it. He likened it to a magician performing an illusion. In order to sell it, he has to believe in it himself. In the world of magicians this is cal...

"Caution. The simulated protective device was not safety device and offered no protection."                                               photo by Sam Howzit  鎧をつけている人は、転ぶと大きな音がする。 He who wears armor falls with a big crash! This saying reminds me of medieval knights of old, encased in metal, then falling off their horses, only to bellow on the ground like a sick overturned tortoise. anyone who has worn yoroi may have experienced similar sensations. But the armour that really weighs us down most often and acts against us is in our own hearts. We wear our pride or technique on our bodies like it will stop bullets. Ninniku offers us a different choice. In our Bujinkan training this is some of the most powerful armour available. Hatsumi Sensei has exp...

photo by London looks I was talking with Paul Masse about recent events in Japan. We were contemplating the appropriate "safe" distance from these disasters. Hatsumi Sensei often suggests to us that we evade by the width of a piece of paper. He gives us this image as a hint to take a small evasion, or, just as much space as needed. I have even heard him say that it should be the width of air. Now that seems risky for sure! But there is another way to evade that isn't evading. And Sensei does this but it is not easy to see. To open our eyes let's look at one example from nature and one from Hatsumi Sensei. While talking with Paul, I was reminded of a different kind of distance from a favorite poem. I shared this idea with Paul and he seemed to enjoy the feeling of it: The Little Duck -----  By Donald C. Babcock Now we are ready to look at something pretty special. It is a duck riding the ocean a hundred feet beyond the surf. No, it isn’t a gull. A gull alway...

Enso by Isan Shinko (1740-1815) I'm sure you've all studied kihon happo. But it's one thing to study those eight basic fundamentals and a entirely different thing to study the kihon OF the happo. Hatsumi Sensei says this idea can be expressed very simply with a common Zen symbol of Enso which I will share below, but what will it mean to us? Sensei has said that the word happo suggests infinity. He said that placing the number eight on its side gives us that symbol ∞. Soke goes on to explain that a technique does not have a beginning or end but just flows one into the other like the symbol. A simple way to consider this is with tai sabaki. In angling we often start with cardinal points for evasion or striking (please excuse my clumsy finger diagrams): Then we split those four directions to make 8:  Then split again: You can see how it begins to get infinite... especially if you add the up and down directions so any angle in space is possible leading to ...

Desi being shy. My dog Desiree died this week after being part of my family for almost 18 years. Although not unexpected, I definitely feel her absence. As I sit with this feeling, I am glad for the heart found in our training. Hatsumi Sensei said that Takamatsu Sensei gave him a calligraphy which read 我無し ware nashi or "no self." But there is another reading of that concept which can give us a different strategy in combat or life. And since this is a martial arts of distance, we can find a very intimate distance when erasing the self. Something sensei often repeats is that there is no difference between attacker and defender. So one reading of 我無し ware nashi is "no opponent" or "no enemy"... no we or no us. No separation. How do we get that distance? Sensei explained this once in a class at Ayase, "In training you have to understand the opponent's heart. If you don't read his heart, if you only read your own heart and do your own tech...

Kamaishi Search and Rescue By DVIDSHUB Like a lot of Bujinkan members worldwide, I have been watching the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan from afar. It is a helpless feeling. Reading the news and unable to do anything but hope things improve. If you are like me, you feel like you want to do something. To help in some way. Of course, we can donate money, but Hatsumi Sensei has a suggestion for us that can help in any situation. He reminds us of the Japanese saying 一隅を照らす Ichigu wo terasu, which means to light up a corner. Hatsumi Sensei says, "to be a light that brightens the surroundings." This phrase was brought to Japan from China by Saicho: From Wikipedia : Saichō (最澄, September 15, 767 – June 26, 822) was a Japanese Buddhist monk credited with founding the Tendai school in Japan, based around the Chinese Tiantai tradition he was exposed to during his trip to China beginning in 804. He founded the temple and headquarters of Tendai at Enryaku-ji on...

There is a Buddhist idea that when we kill another being we assert the radical difference between us and them. And this would ultimately be an incorrect assertion. But killing is all around us. It is part of the very fabric of nature. So what do fighters do with this? This is a great mystery in life and martial arts. One of the most mysterious secrets is that of 神妙剣 Shinmyoken  or the life giving sword. At its most basic level it is a technique for overpowering your opponent without injuring him with the sword. This simple idea contains many mysteries, the first being, why would you endeavor NOT to kill your opponent? This lesson comes to us in the form of a sword, but it could be any weapon. The sword clarifies the feeling of life and death because it is a very fine (and sharp) edge between the two. Hatsumi Sensei constantly reminds us not to kill. It takes a lot of control with such a dangerous weapon to use it without killing. Sensei tells us that the Ninja understood that u...

photo by ghindo In the Densho for Gyokko Ryu Kosshijutsu, one of the 9 schools we study in the Bujinkan, there is a precept which is expressed like this:  Bu Shin Wa O Toutonasu 武心和を尊 The heart of the warrior holds peace righteous, or, a warrior heart holds harmony as sacred.  Of course the idea of Wa or harmony is vital to understanding the physical aspects of our training. But there is something deeper in this idea. An idea that is deeply Japanese and connects us to the roots of our art and the history of Japan itself. Wa 倭 until the 8th century, when the Japanese replaced it with 和 is the oldest recorded name of Japan. The idea of harmony in Japan is expressed in art, the tea ceremony, philosophy and even in daily manners or enforced through law. Many of the codes of honor of the Samurai were the result of an attempt to preserve harmony. Honor of a bushi was most important in this code. Abusive language was punished by confiscation of the samurai's weapons and prope...

photo by katclay Understanding Ninpo Ikkan will unravel conflict and obstacles in a way that feels like 解脱 gedatsu (being liberated from earthly desires and the woes of man to reach nirvana). Does that seem unreachable to you? It is nearer than you think. Read on so I can explain where you may find it. What is Ninpo Ikkan exactly? Well, as with a lot of Japanese to English interpretations you will find many answers (an interesting lesson in itself).  A simple expression of Ninpo Ikkan is consistent devotion to the way of the ninja or the way of perseverance. Ninpo 忍法 being the way of the ninja, or as Soke sometimes writes,  忍宝 NinPo, or the treasure of nin. Where is the treasure? First, to find the treasure, you must empty yourself so that Isshi Soden becomes possible. You cannot receive this direct transmission of knowledge from a teacher or from nature unless you are free from your own life. Soke says that Bushido means "to die." This is sutemi. Throwing your life ...

photo by Frogman! There is a common saying that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.  We see this all the time in training.  People begin to grow in their skill with taijutsu and two things often occur: They injure themselves or others. Or... they stop learning because they think they got it already. This blind spot is very dangerous, because by their nature the person that is full of "knowledge" is unaware that they are ignorant.  And sometimes they convince others that they know something or have "secrets". Hatsumi Sensei talks about this knowledge as if it is a burden.  A weight that should be shed.  Soke said that people want to possess the densho or secret scrolls.  But that when people learn the secrets they were searching for, they become too tense to move freely.  They are burdened with the knowledge and trying to use it correctly. I am sure it is a great mistake always to know enough to go in when it rains. One may keep snug and...

Photo by judepics There are various types of awareness we use to gather information.  Maintaining good situational awareness is key to succeeding in any complex environment or encounter.  Once, when we were studying taihenjutsu and ukemi with Soke Hatsumi, he made reference to the term 探り回る (Sagurimawaru) which translates roughly as "to grope for, or fumble." But Hatsumi Sensei didn't talk about this in a way us English speakers might normally consider the term fumble, as some kind of clumsy, unskilled, movement.  He spoke of it more as a exploration and a searching about the environment to see what you may discover.  It was a process of discovery. So if we fumble about the Japanese language and look at other related terms in our art or just in the Japanese idiom, we may discover something: You may have heard about the Ashinami Jukka Jo- The ten ways of walking according to the Ninpo book Shoninki, but we also have 探り足 Saguri Ashi and Saguri Aruki which are ...

When I was a kid, I played ninja.  I lurked around my neighborhood, and ambushed my little brother.  I was goofy and unaware that Hatsumi Sensei was also playing in his early visits to the U.S.  during that same time.  I now know that this sense of play is what drives the art we study as Bujinkan.  Let me use a playfully silly example to explore this: A Bujinkan formula: K(p+t)(s)=K Let's ignore K (ku) for a minute because I'm not sure that can be taught.  I suggest that: PLAY = SHIZEN. so p+t=h combined with s OR, PLAY using TAIJUTSU to produce HENKA from a state of SHIZEN. If that hurts your brain let's forget it and consider this: When I was 13 years old, Sensei stated while teaching in America: My techniques are adaptable to any situation.  It is from improvising action as it flashes into my mind.  My techniques are natural techniques. Improvisation creates natural techniques.  And now that I am 40, Sensei is still saying ...