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Dissipate Your 隙 Suki With 正願 Seigan

Bujinkan Santa MonicaFebruary 4, 2011February 4, 2011

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Bujinkan Santa Monica

Ginza Rat photo by OiMax

Suki are strange vermin. You think you see one, then it's gone. You train your ass off to get rid of them, then find they are all over, and in places you never looked! And if you ignore them, they seem to multiply.

What are these intransigent vermin and what can be done about them? 隙 "Suki" is the Japanese term for "opening" or "gap" and refers to a weakness in your or your opponent's defenses. Suki can present opportunities to attack or be presented to draw an attack. These suki can be found in the timing, distance, angle, mind, or even spirit. This is partly what Soke Hatsumi means about being Zero. He says,

"If one reaches to a higher rank, he need only eliminate his faults. It may sound easy, but eliminating faults is very difficult to accomplish, because we tend to think we are faultless. Faults can be translated into something different in Budo. They can be suki (unguarded points), or carelessness, presumption, arrogance, etc. - they all become our fault. No fault, zero condition is the best."

Suki 好き can also mean likes or preferences. So the things you like and your desires or attachments can become suki. The kamae seigan when done properly gives no easy opening. To defeat this kamae maybe you look for an opening of desire. This is why seigan is sometimes written as 正願 "correct desire," to help you purify your desires and give no 隙 suki.

We first try to learn about suki through kamae. An ideal kamae has no suki. No openings or opportunities for attack. It also means no wasted or futile movement.

Next we learn about suki through ukemi. Paraphrasing Jim Vance: we learn more through assuming the role of uke, the focus on receiving techniques or sutemi allows the uke to feel the connection between them and their partner, or how a particular technique affects them. The uke is feeling suki (openings) in the connection; the body can feel suki through ukemi, it is aware of suki through sutemi (there is no self and other, only the connected unit).

Hatsumi Sensei describes this:

Takamatsu-sensei often told me, 'Mr. Hatsumi, to receive techniques is to take a person in, to take in their whole being--in other words, if a person's capacity for generosity and courage are not great, they will not be able to do it. ' An uke who selfishly tries to escape is not an uke.

Suki discovered through kamae and ukemi are the basic suki. They appear during regular and consistent training. Suki such as "a weakness of the mind” or “a weakness of the spirit" are more difficult to ascertain. And more esoteric still are the suki of the kukan or the universe.

Ueshiba (the founder of Aikido) wrote: As your Bujutsu training approaches perfection you will be able to detect the [weakness in the enemy's technique], the suki, even before he can, and as if to satisfy some deficiency in him, you can fill the opening [weakness] with your technique."

There is a feeling when you take your opponent's suki as if you are filling a void. Just be careful not to be sucked in by the emptiness!

The Zen monk Takuan Soho wrote about avoiding “suki” by means of the “mind abiding nowhere.”

Hatsumi Sensei describes this as a point where there is no difference between attacker and defender. It is all one. The suki or opening is between your mind and his mind. Your body and his body. As you close that opening, you may sense his weakness and your own... and surely you know how to exploit that!

Soke also suggests to us that being shielded or having suki ultimately are inseparable concepts. He says that being connected in the Kukan can create Kukan no tate, where the kukan itself protects your openings. Further, there is Kukan no suki whereby your life is in the kukan and you open up a space (suki) for you to live.

Or, as Doug Wilson describes it, you "allow your shield to protect your openings and your openings to lower the shield of the opponent."

Don’t be Dekunobō 木偶の坊, Have Shinbo 辛抱 Instead.

Bujinkan Santa MonicaJanuary 28, 2011January 28, 2011

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Bujinkan Santa Monica

photo by roy costello

One night I was training in Hombu dojo with Hatsumi Sensei. It wasn't very crowded and he had us working with the bo which is definitely rare in the Hombu nowadays. He did a technique that left a very odd impression on his uke and those of us watching. It was as if he released the bo in the kukan, and the bo acted as his agent, throwing the attacker and tying him up. Wow. That was odd.

Soke seemed to notice the confused looks around the room, because he explained to us that this was Shinbo. The translator looked confused as well, so Soke pointed up above the kamidana to the picture of Takamatsu Sensei holding the bo. Sensei explained that was why he wrote Shinbo beneath that picture.

So what did Soke mean by Shinbo? I am probably more lost than the translator, but Soke has referenced that idea before.

There is a related concept called 花情竹性 "Kajo Chikusei where we strive to be as gentle as a flower, and as straight, or straightforward, as bamboo. In this idea, the heart of a warrior means having a sincere heart. Sensei says Ninjutsu is a great warrior's path open only to those whose heart is in the right place.

There is this interplay between being soft, gentle, and warm hearted or strong, brazen, and bold. Both qualities in balance. Soke says "It is not always the case that big techniques beat everything; it is a fact that sometimes small techniques can beat big ones."

Hatsumi Sensei encourages us to live upright like a bo. Honest and straightforward in heart. But this doesn't mean being naive. If you know how to use a bo, you know the tricks and deception possible with it's use. Meaning in your stance of being a straightforward person, you are ready for people who are not, and who may use deception against you.

Sensei says that when a young man appears to be a dekunobō 木偶の坊 or でくの坊 (wooden doll or useless stick), if he endures long enough he can become a strong man someday. This endurance can be seen as 辛抱一貫 Shinbo Ikkan.

As for the astonishing and inexplicable technique Hatsumi Sensei showed us that night, he says:

"Few people have been taught the Kasumi no Den ("message of the mist") known as Shinbo ("true, enduring stick"). You project a shadow image of yourself into the void.

Hmmm. One of me is too many. I'll have to make room for my shadow...

Kage No Keiko: Don’t Ask a Shadow for Answers

Bujinkan Santa MonicaJanuary 7, 2011January 28, 2011

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Bujinkan Santa Monica

Photo by OiMax

There is an old tale about a teacher whose students asked him, "Where does your teaching come from? What is its source? Who is your teacher?"

The teacher replies,

You are not ready for my answer. If I say that my teaching is from inspiration, you will consider me crazy. If I say it is my own teaching and skill, some will worship me and never learn. If I name my teacher, many will turn to him to ask the same dumb questions while ignoring real study.

In the Bujinkan, Hatsumi Sensei has told us that training is a process of developing the eyes to be able to see true budo. Hatsumi Sensei talks about different types of keiko or training, even in dreams. He says that when he is training intensely, he will have weird dreams. He tells this story about his teacher Toshitsugu Takamatsu,

He would draw from 5:00 a.m. to noon every day. One day, he painted a picture of a dragon for his friend. A few nights later, my teacher dreamed about a dragon that had no eyes. The dragon said to him, "I want eyes." The next morning he called his friend and his friend told him that the painting of the dragon had no eyes.

Sensei says that this dream training comes when you are having a hard time mastering something. He says the "secrets of budo are introduced as "dreams from the gods." Soke tells us that the best way to train is to learn physically first, then understand the theory. Devote yourself to constant keiko. Have the feeling of Ninpo Ikkan.

He says that if you get stuck you can focus even though you cannot move forward. This is when you pass into kage no keiko (shadow training). I wrote about the phases of training and other types of keiko here: Beyond Godan Into Wakaranai-Keiko

The teacher from the old story continues, "If, after being told a hundred times that the teachers are all one and the techniques are meaningless you still look for the source, you will never find it."

The students ask, "Then what shall we do?"

The teacher responds,

"Stop imagining that, just because you can ask a question, you can perceive the answer without any of the foundation necessary for such a perception to occur."

Ninja Morality of Kogarashi Monjiro

Bujinkan Santa MonicaDecember 24, 2010January 28, 2011

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Bujinkan Santa Monica

This time of year is often spent helping, giving or thinking of others. There are many people who misinterpret the life of a ninja as one of a solitary, dark and shadowy existence. A lone wolf sneaking in and out of other's lives to accomplish some mission.

Sensei suggests to us that this is not a healthy view. He says that it is an ideal to have others depend on you. People think they are too busy to help others, but if you decide to ignore everyone else, trusting only yourself, you will soon become one of the busiest of all men. He continues,

To give a helping hand to poor people and to want to save them is the humanity of Japanese, and of a warrior's heart.

Hatsumi mentions the character Kogarashi Monjiro from the novel and 1970's TV series set in the Edo period, originally written by Saho Sasazawa. Acted by famous samurai actor Atsuo Nokamura. Monjiro lived the wandering life of a gambler. He had a nihilistic attitude and sought to eliminate and avoid involvement with others as much as possible.

The main character is said to have been born in a poor farming family in a village called Mikazuki (half-moon), Nittagori Country in Gunma Prefecture. When Monjiro turned 10, his family left their native soil and was separated. Why the lonesome Monjiro started to live as a homeless wanderer is unknown.
Monjiro’s typical posture includes a wooden toothpick between his teeth, and his nickname “Kogarashi” (the sound of a cold wind wailing) comes from the sound he makes when he breathes with the toothpick. He is a guy who knows no love for people, but cannot overlook evil deeds.
Soke says,

"It doesn't concern me," is a famous Monjiro quote that best represents today's irresponsible times. In reality, Monjiro never left without helping somebody. While he says, "It doesn't concern me," he still becomes involved and fights the villain. This is what is so very charming about the Monjiro character. He gives justice to people's morality.

Hatsumi Sensei continues with this advice,

You might be living in a nihilistic manner with a callous attitude but I would prefer you have the Japanese spirit deep in your heart. Compassionate people make others feel gracious and trustworthy

So please get into this wonderful ninja holiday spirit! But I don't suggest wearing your red, fur lined ninja/Santa Claus suit out in public...

Munenmusō 無念無想: Free From Worldly or Worthless Thoughts

Bujinkan Santa MonicaDecember 16, 2010January 28, 2011

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Bujinkan Santa Monica

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 dry by such knowledge, but one misses a world of loveliness. - Shakespeare

Sensei likened this to kareteka who used to train with iron geta. This is a similar principle to the modern fitness training with ankle weights. At first they are heavy, but eventually the wearer gets used to them and doesn't even notice the burden. But how freeing and light it will feel to remove them entirely!

I am amazed at people who attend classes or train at a seminar yet miss everything being taught because they are full of knowledge already. Their consciousness is heavy with what they know. Leaving no room for anything new.

A great example for us is the theme for 2011. How many people think they know kihon happo? There are teachers already teaching this theme or planning their seminars for 2011.
Alexander Pope shared this idea:

That a little knowledge is apt to puff up, and make men giddy, but a greater share of it will set them right, and bring them to low and humble thoughts of themselves.

I watched Hatsumi Sensei write the scroll with this theme for my teacher on November 23. He said it was the first time he had written the theme for next year. But the kanji were not the "normal" way kihon happo is written. This signifies Sensei's intention to take a fresh approach to the kihon. Or, at least, to get us to drop our preconceptions and learn it anew.

So what effort in learning can you make? Sensei suggests:

From nothing (not thinking), something (an action) comes forth, and the person who masters this idea is the one who can comprehend the secret teachings. This understanding in your heart is more important than the techniques. The mind of "munen muso" (no thought, no mind) in the heart is the real secret teaching rather than the waza.