Skip to content

Path to the Heart of the Flower (III)

From The Magick & The Mundane » Bujinkan by Shawn Gray

In Part I and II of this adventure, I wrote about how I made my way to Japan in 1990 to teach English, pursue Karate training, and look for ninja grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi. I had arrived in Japan in early August, and now, finally, in October, after getting settled into my apartment, teaching schedule, and Karate training, it was time to set off in search of the ninja master.

Getting information about ninja masters wasn’t as easy in 1990 as it is today. There was no Internet, at least not as we know it now. I remember writing letters home that would take a week to ten days to get from Japan to Canada, and a ten-minute phone conversation to connect with family cost me $100. The only information I had to base my search on was contained in two books on the ninja that I had brought with me to Japan. Both of these books were authored by the same American student of the grandmaster, and both of them pointed to the Iga region as the home of the ninja clans. Eager to meet Hatsumi Sensei for myself, I made plans to visit the area, the city of IgaUeno, located in present-day Mie Prefecture.

To plan the trip from Hiroshima to IgaUeno, which took around 6 hours at the time (I assume travel times have shortened in the time since), I went to the tourist information centre in Peace Park in central Hiroshima, about 200 metres from where the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945. (I had lived across the street from this location the first month I was in Japan, before relocating to the suburbs, and had been able to see ground zero out my kitchen window.) While the lovely ladies at the desk looked up train connection options, I watched televised footage of the carnage that was going on in Kuwait at the time. Saddam had torched the Kuwaiti oilfields, prompting George Bush Sr. to order the invasion that would drive him back to Baghdad.

Train information and tickets in hand, I was finally ready to make the trip. It was only a weekend trip, two days and one night, so I packed light, but made sure to take my two ninja books with me for reference. I got as early a start as possible, and made it to IgaUeno station early on the Saturday afternoon, images of the mystical ninja floating in my teenage head. Exiting the station, the reputation of the city as the home of the legendary shadow warriors was immediately apparent.

Iga-Ueno Station - October 1990

Iga-Ueno Station – October 1990

I couldn’t bring myself to pose behind the mask. I was looking for the real deal, not a propped up wooden cut-out for tourist photos.

From the station, I made my way to the ryokan inn where I would be spending the night, checked-in, and then excitedly made my way to the ninja museum, where I was sure to find the next clue in my search for Hatsumi Sensei. The ninja exhibit was fascinating, complete with purple-clad kunoichi female ninja agents, a creaking nightingale floor, hidden compartments, and trap doors. But I was really after information about the living master himself.

Proceeding into the museum proper, I slowly made my way past the many exotic artefacts, pausing to inspect them, unable to decipher the Japanese descriptions. Approaching one glass display case, I stopped in my tracks – I had seen something that I recognized. Underneath the glass was a partially unfurled makimono scroll. I had seen this very scroll before – there was a photo of it in one of the books I had brought with me! I excitedly ripped open my pack and quickly leafed through the book until I found the corresponding image. There was no mistake – the photo in the book was of exactly the same object I was looking at, as if I had taken it myself only moments before. This was a valuable clue in my search – it provided a link between what I had read about the ninja warriors and the exact place where I was physically standing in that moment. Surely a meeting with Hatsumi Sensei himself was only moments away!

I flagged down one of the few staff floating about the place, and in my awkward Japanese asked about Hatsumi Sensei. Her response was a blank expression. Hatsumi Sensei? Bujinkan? Another blank look. When I persisted, she wandered off to find a more senior person who might know more, and soon returned with an elderly gentleman. Between my dreadful Japanese and his attempts at English, he made it known in no uncertain terms that he knew nothing of the whereabouts of Hatsumi Sensei or of anything regarding the Bujinkan organization. I couldn’t believe my ears. I had come all this way to find him. And the photo in my book was proof that I was on the right track! How could the staff not know anything? I tried again to get more information from them, but they simply shrugged, and as the afternoon waned, I left the museum, crestfallen.

On the way back to the ryokan, I tried to make sense of what had happened. I was obviously at the right place – the photo in my book was proof of that. There could really be only one explanation. The staff had lied. There must have been some invisible, unspoken test that I had unknowingly failed and, having been deemed unfit for acceptance into ninja training, I had been sent away empty-handed. From what I had read of the elusive ninja in the books by the American student (who, by his own account, had managed to gain acceptance into the clan himself), it was likely that they were watching me right now, monitoring my movements. Maybe the ryokan staff themselves were also in the employ of the clan. Perhaps if I conducted myself well, someone would appear and tell me that I had passed the test after all. These were the thoughts of a 19-yr old from a small Canadian country town, brought up on fantastical ninja books and then transported into the mystical homeland of the ninja warriors, only to be denied in the end.

No ninja appeared at the ryokan that night. Or the next morning. There was little else to do but have a look around IgaUeno, including the castle. Photos were not allowed inside, but I did take a picture of an old palanquin from the doorway. This would have been carried on the shoulders of two retainers, the person of importance, such as a regional feudal daimyo lord, seated in the red box-like structure in the middle. I also got a shot out across one of the tiled roofs – tiled roofs are very exotic – and one of the castle moat, which conveys the mystique that I had come to associate with the image of the ninja through the books I had read.
Iga-Ueno Station - October 1990 Iga Ueno Castle - Palanquin Iga Castle - Roof Iga Castle - Moat
The day was passing and it was time to return to Hiroshima. No ninja having appeared, it was with a heavy sigh that I boarded the train and watched the misty mountains of Iga pass slowly out of sight.

I may have waited just a bit too long for the ninja to appear – I missed my connecting train in Kyoto. It was already late at night by this time. It was dark and the temples were closed. The only thing I found open was a portable ramen noodle stand close to the station. I had a bowl of hot noodles to console myself and, as I had little extra money, curled up to sleep on the concrete sidewalk in front of Kyoto station, using my pack as a pillow. It seemed an appropriate finalè to the ill-fated trip. I caught the first train back to Hiroshima the following morning and just managed to make it to my first English class on time. It would be another four-and-a-half years before I finally caught up with the legendary ninja master…


Secrets of 歩き Aruki

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael

Takayuki Ishihara photo By CobraVerde
A big "secret" in our training is so basic that it is hidden in plain sight. I can tell you what it is and you will very likely ignore it. People always nod their heads when it is explained to them, as if it were old news, and then begin training on something else. This secret is 歩き aruki or walking.

After typing this I already sense people clicking some other link. Looking for the next flashy blog post or training video. Or worse, being convinced they already understand this "secret." Sensei often reminds us that enlightenment is under our feet. This is like 脚下照顧 kyakkashouko, where the best way to begin to know yourself is to look where your own footsteps fall. So let's start walking.

We have many types of walking in the Bujinkan to consider. Some of these skills are called ashi. I've written about many of these types of walking before: Like a Walk Through Yūgen 幽玄
 
But today I want to explore some ways to make your footwork more dynamic. If you are ready to really learn, here are some drills you can begin with:

  • Use yoko aruki to lead into or out of sanshin striking. This will strengthen both your footwork and give you new insight into sanshin. Now do it in eight directions. 

  • Then yoko aruki evasions (with an attacker!) in eight directions transitioning into all varieties of kaiten, nagare and taihenjustsu. 

  • Then yoko aruki evade and strike before taking evasive ukemi. Striking after the aruki creates interesting distance and angling puzzles. Use many different fists and kicks to target specific kyusho. 

  • Do some 足馴らし ashinarashi walking practice. Focus on ukemi with 膝行 shikko transitions between each roll. I have found nothing as powerful as this to improve your kamae and overall ukemi ability. 

  • To really know how to move effectively, one should practice 膝行 shikko in all directions. Work on forward, backward, and sideways. Do ukemi from shikko with shikko transitions. 

  • Do shoshin gokei from shikko. Prepare for some sore and raw knees, especially with the pivoting required. 

  • Do taijhenjutsu and ukemi using yoko aruki footwork. Practice 3 timings: aruki before the roll, during, and after. Otens are particularly challenging depending on when you yoko aruki. 

  • 骨指基本三法 Kosshi Kihon Sanpō using yoko aruki. Look at the inside cross, then the back cross. And eight directions! Both of these have unique considerations for our kamae and structure in the kukan. 

All of these footwork drills can also be done with happo tenchi tobi. Leaping skills are a unique and fun type of footwork. They come from the basic footwork ability but with increased distance and energy.

  • Next add a grappling component starting with a drill called the Jūtaijutsu shuffle. Starting from kumiuchi, you may begin with a three step variation. for example, right foot forward, left to the side, and right foot back. There are many variations depending on the foot or direction of the steps. Each step breaks the uke's structure a little more till he is thrown. This drill is about setting the footwork to take the uke's balance for the throw. 

All of these drills should also be done with weapons. As Soke often says, it is all based on walking. You can learn the most elaborate sword technique or have the quickest iai, but if you don't know how to walk it will be useless.

  • Train on basic sword kamae kihon. Do walking and drawing drills connected to each sword kamae. You must develop the proper rhythm to draw effectively while walking.

  • Practice all the different types of sword draws while walking in 膝行 shikko. When you have mastered these (:o) move on to aruki variations. Then combine aruki rolling and drawing.

This brief review of some basic walking drills should get you started. Many people walk in a stilted robotic fashion where they pose in the beginning, middle, and end positions of any technique. This is what happens when learned from a book or video or poor teaching. But if your teacher understands the nature of these aruki, then you can be more dynamic.

Schedule is up!

From Sweden Taikai 2012 by alexander

The schedule is finished and can be found both in this post and on the information page. I’d also like to remind anyone that have NOT received an e-mail containing a unique number and payment instructions to PLEASE contact me ([email protected]) to sort it. We’d also like to ask you all to pay for the seminar as soon as possible!

 

Tai Kai Sweden 2012 Schedule

KAMON

From TENRYU by jorgevaccaro

KAMON

家紋

能ある鷹は、爪を隠す

“The virtuous hawk hides it’s nails”

Japanese Proberv.

During our trip to Japan on abril 2012, I brought Soke a present in gold painted wood, that I made off his “Kamon”

The Kamon is the japanese simbol highlighting the badges of the diverse clans that existed during the feudal period of Japan.

They correspond to symbols, most of them rounded, with designs of flowers, birds, plants, and nature phenomenons, even arrows, that represent the “trademark” of a family. Those designs are attached to history and philosophy of the ascendants. It is estimated that these days there are over 20.000 kinds of Kamon.

They go back to the Heian Era (794 a 1192) when it was simply used to distinguished the oxen floats from nobelty. Later on, the symbol was used on several family belongings.

Later, on the Kamakura era (1192-1333) the kamon showed up on flags and standarts that samurai used when they fought in mass and where riding horses. In the battlefield using armours and helmets (kabuto), the different emblems served to distinguish their own people. Some Kamon where also used on the chest of the armor or in the helmet. The emblems of war where more simple compared to those at home, because they had to be recognized from afar.

The Kamon 家紋, could also be called with other names like ”Mon 紋 “, ”Monshō 紋章 ” y ”Mondokoro 紋所 “.

The Mon of the family of Sôke Masaaki Hatsumi is designed with two hawk feathers crossed. The name of the Kamon is “Maruni chigai takanoha” 丸に違鷹羽. The hawk is a symbol of the samurai from ancient times.

Soke con el Kamon en su Kabuto

Image: Over the Kabuto (helmet) of Soke Hatsumi, one can appreciate the Kamon.

“Hawk Feather”, was used as decoration on the moments of thriumph and victories, as also for special ceremonies such as New Years Eve. On some ancient clans became to be one of the most important symbols on battle times.

This Kamon is also used by the family of Shihan Someya Kenichi, of Bujinkan Dojo.

All of the ancestors of the family of Sôke Masaaki Hatsumi, and also Shihan Someya Kenichi, are connected to ancient Samurai linages.

While we appreciated the Kamon, Shihan Someya told me that it’s also a symbol of his own family, he told me the information that the Kamon came from Daimyo Asano, from the Hiroshima area.

So with the investigation on the run about this Kamon, I truly found that there’s an enormeous inflouence at the zone of Hiroshima, that connects to Asano Naganori  (浅野長矩 1665 –1701) who was a Daimyo from the Akō Domain, a small feud between Okayama and Himeji, His Daimyo title was Takumi no Kami 内匠頭

Image of Asano Naganori with the Kamon on his Kimono

The Kamon is also registered within the family of the well known Saigō Takamori (西郷 隆盛 1828 -1877) who was a Samurai and Polititian, who lived during the last years of the Edo period and beginnings of the Meiji era. Initially, was one of the polititians who supported the elimination of the Tokugawa shogunato, and backed up the Meiji restoration, afterwards he got involved in the Meiji government. But in 1877, after the sistematic persecution of the samurai by the new government, he was in front of the Satsuma rebelion, that was going to be the last conflict headed by the samurai on Japanese History. To many people, Takamori is considered the true last samurai.

Image: original writing of Saigō Takamori – Soke Hatsumi collection.

There may be an interesting relation, because Sôke during 2011, showed us a caligraphy from the very Saigō Takamori

Three important points of connection:

1. The family of Asano ( 浅野氏 Asano-shi) where samurai names on the feudal times since the family that had control of the  “Han” (feude) of Hiroshima, centered in the castle of Hiroshima during great part of the Edo period . The Asano are descendants of the emperor Seiwa (850-880), of Minamoto no Yorimitsu (944-1021), and they’re a branch of the Toki family.

Minamoto no Mitsunobu, descendant of Yorimitsu in the 4th generation, established in Toki (Mino) and took the name of such place. The Toki where hereditary “Hugo” (governors) of the Mino province until the 16th century. The name of Asano maybe the most well known,as a result of the history of the 47 Ronin ( http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/47_r%C5%8Dnin) , whos lord was Asano Naganori , the leader of a branch of the feudal family in Ako.

2. The Kikuchi clan ( 菊池氏) ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kikuchi_clan ) of the province of Higo was a poweful family of Daimyo within the zone of Higo, Kyushu. The Kikuchi linage was known of it’s brave service in defense of the emperor and against foreign invadors. The first clan was distinguished during the Kyushu inversion in 1019.

Image: Different evolution of the symbols of the Hawk feathers, until they became the known Kamon.

The Kikuchi family reached fame during the mongol invasion of Japan on 1281, when the Heroism of Kikuchi Takefusa helped to make the enemy back away.

This clan also had active partitipation during the Kenmu restauration (1333-1336), in the attempt to reaffirm the imperial authority by the emperor Go-Daigo against the Kamakura Shogunato. This also shows a tight relation with the history of the Kukishinden and the history of Kurando Yakushimaru on the rescue of the Godaigo emperor, well known history about the schools of Bujinkan.

3. Another of the odd but not surprising connections with this Kamon, comes from India, from the Handas Clan. The Handas, with other warrior clans as Kshatriya ( http://castesysteminindia.com/), have developed a crucial part  in the creation of India/Aria history. Aside of a very rich and prominent past in India, the Handas descendants can now be found in many parts of the world. Many Handa families are living in England, Canada, Japan, Australia, US, etc.

To finish, I’d like to remind everyone that Sôke with his teachings, have made of the Bujinkan a great family. Among the rules of the Shidoshikai of the Bujinkan Dojo, it’s authorized to wear just one Patch or Mon, on the left side (heart) of the Gi. The same is the symbol of the “Bujin” which identifies us as a part of the same family, a same linage.

Let us protect the family, training with enthusiasm and doing battle with the gestures of the heart.

By Christian Petroccello


Jutte with jabara ito

From Paart Budo Buki by buki stolar

Dear Buyus,
 
in line with the improving quality, here is more variations  of  truncheon called Jutte,
handles are bound with Jabbara ito.
Colors of bindings are now olive green, wine red and dark blue, there will be more.
 
As you see for the first time there is the octagonal Jutte,  it is possible to make a hexagonal, but I'll leave that for another project
 
more info soon 





17-18 November – Back from Japan seminar with Mats Hjelm at KGZ Dojo in Stockholm

Nyligen hemkommen från sin träningsresa till Japan i början av November kommer Mats att hålla ett träningsläger i Kaigozan Dojo. Om du har möjlighet att anmäla dig på Facebook så räcker det, annars är det bara att dyka upp och överraska oss.
Lördag 17/11 kl 11:00-18:00 (inkl 90 min lunch)
Söndag 18/11 kl 11:00-15:00 (ät frukost!)
Kostnad 350 kr för en eller båda dagarna.

Right after his return from a training trip to Japan in the beginning of November Mats will hold a seminar5 at Kaigozan Dojo in Stockholm. If you can sign up on facebook it is enough, or just show up unannounced and surprise us!
Saturday 17/11 at 11:00-18:00 (incl 90 min lunch)
Sunday 18/11 at 11:00-15:00 (eat breakfast!)
Price is 350 SEK for one or both days.…

VIDEO: Paul Masse 書道 Shodo and 水墨 Suiboku

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael


Besides training in the Bujinkan with Paul, I have had the privilege of many great discussions with him as an artist. I am an artist myself, so we connect easily on that level. We got together one afternoon during his visit to Santa Monica to discuss his artwork. If you can't view the video above, here is the link: Paul Masse 書道 Shodo and 水墨 Suiboku

If you didn't already know, Paul has studied Japanese Calligraphy or 書道 Shodo, Japanese Ink Painting or 水墨 Suiboku, and Japanese Pottery. He has even been reviewed by Hatsumi Sensei! Wait till you hear what Sensei said about his work…

He was kind enough to share some of the feeling behind his work as well as some tips for beginners at this style of art. If you train in the Bujinkan, or are an artist yourself, I know you will find a lot to be enthusiastic about in our video.

Large rokushaku Bo

From Paart Budo Buki by buki stolar

Hi to all,
 
if you follow the Soke 's books, then you surely saw this huge octagonal rod Bo.
  In the pictures below you can see the difference between the standard rod 3 cm thick and this thick.

White stick is made of hornbeam wood (weight is 3 kg)
a brown stick is from South American IPE lapacho wood (weight is 3.5 kg), they have not been varnished or oiled, so far.

If any of you decide for something like that, all the dimensions can be according to your wishes.
 
Such a big stick is good for training and for the fight (if you are strong enough and agile)

Why is it good for training?  Except the weight
that will force you to pay more attention to Kamae, and you will need more to look at a balance that would be disturbed by the movement of heavy rod
 
thickness plays another important role, because some Koryu schools in Japan have used this thick stick's and bokken's too.
thickness  it  changes the grip, in this way, fingertip taking most of the weight, because of the thickness we can not completely close the fist (see pic.)