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Gokui Training: Japan Report Two 令和6年

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael


I began this day by catching a train to the Bujinkan Honbu Dojo for a class with Furuta Sensei. In the past few years I’ve been able to train with him quite a bit. And each class gives me a little more insight into the gokui of 雲隠流 Kumogakure Ryū and Ninjutsu.

Furuta Sensei began class using 乱勝 Ranshō as a springboard to explore many ideas. He would use a dramatic drop or lean in his body to evade and upset his opponent’s balance. He also shifts this way to hide within the opponent’s movement.

When he called me to be his uke, he blocked my attack, but the way he held his other hand gave me the impression that I could attack again. Then Furuta Sensei encouraged me to hit him. I said, “are you sure?” But this was intentional because he was baiting me. So when I went for it, I fell into the space as he hit me with an unseen strike.

He used this same feeling to access hidden weapons. If you’ve trained with Furuta, you know he always has a couple of knives on him. One moment I thought I had gotten away from him, then I felt a knife hit me in the foot. He had thrown it from a distance during my ukemi.

He had us do some mutō dori techniques, but he surprised us because as we did the evasion, Furuta Sensei attacked us with another sword from behind! Then he shared some gokui for dealing with multiple opponents and this live type of Godan test.

極意 Gokui Training

I went to 長全寺 Chōzenji to reflect on where I am at with my current training approach. I am not focused on basic fighting or combat, but rather on the level of gokui. This is how I expand my training to match the feeling I get from Hatsumi Sensei.

One might ask, 霊魂よ、そこにいますか。Because when a student is defeated in the dojo, or even worse, in combat, that moment is overwhelming. And they start to wonder what went wrong or why they failed. When the spirit is full of these doubts, it is very difficult to find the essence or the gokui.

What is the essence of defeat? A big lesson is to get back up and move forward. Perseverance is the gokui of life.

It is difficult to communicate to someone who is focused on technique, fighting, or winning the nature of this type of training. But if someone trains with me in person, they might feel it. Or maybe they can learn from some Japanese Shihan who are teaching this way.

Even though I am a still tired from training and travel, I went to Noguchi Sensei’s evening class. I drank some tea for a boost because his classes are energetic. He usually jams through a bunch of kata and henka.

When he first arrived at the Honbu dojo, someone asked him about his busy schedule last year with many taikai around the world. He commented that even though he enjoyed it, he was getting old and he would probably retire next year. I hope this was just a daydream on his part.

My friend László gave Noguchi Sensei a photo calendar with pictures from his mountaineering expeditions. Noguchi Sensei really admired these photos of snow covered peaks. I said to him, “when you retire you can take up mountain climbing.” He laughed and said he would rather stay home and drink beer.

Noguchi Sensei taught from the 初伝型 Shoden Gata level of 虎倒流骨法術 Kotō Ryū Koppōjutsu. He surprised me because he only made it through maybe half of them. But that didn’t mean the class was slow.

He emphasized taking a cross step during the strikes and evasions. Then he changed levels from 上段 Jōdan to 中段 Chūdan, and then 下段 Gedan. He also showed ura and omote with each kata.

Noguchi Sensei did grappling techniques against punching attacks, or the reverse. These are some of the ways he finds henka. But I think he makes this teaching choice to expose the gokui found in each kata. I’ve trained with him for many years so I can see some of his strategy for teaching and exploring taijutsu.

In one of the techniques he did on me, he took a unique angle in his evasion that caused my second punch to catch air. In that moment when I was off balance, I felt him attack my upper thigh. And that sent me sprawling.

My training partner said he didn’t see that strike. But I felt it hidden within the movement. It was as if the angle of evasion was a type of strike! I spent the rest of the class trying to understand that angle.

As I sit here writing my notes, I look forward to some sleep. But I am excited to see what tomorrow brings here in Japan. You can watch the video about my experience in Japan Report Three 令和6年 coming soon.

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Japan Report Eleven 令和5年

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael

下谷神社 Shitaya Jinja, photo by Michael Glenn

I got up early to catch the train into Tokyo. I headed to 下谷神社 Shitaya Jinja to fill in my 集印帳 shūin-chō stamp book. But I also wanted to purchase some 御守 Omamori as gifts for my students back home.

2024 is the year of the dragon and Shitaya Jinja has a bit of a dragon theme. You might remember on a previous visit I was very lucky to be invited to enter the 拝殿 haiden. There, on the ceiling, is a painting of a dragon by 横山 大観 Yokoyama Taikan that was commissioned by the parishioners. I thought my students would appreciate omamori with a dragon motif.

After my visit to Shitaya Jinja, I had another train ride all the way back out to Noda-shi, and the Bujinkan Honbu Dojo. The first class was with Noguchi Sensei, and I was definitely ready to hear his laugh. I heard him as soon as I opened the door of the dojo. I was the second student to arrive and Noguchi gave me a cheerful welcome before I even stepped over the threshold. We had a great class which I will review in a minute.

First, I had to go pack and catch a train to Haneda airport. The commute was crazy busy, with the windows all steamed up, and the cars swaying with the weight of our bodies smashed together. A young man next to me used his finger to make drawings in the window condensation.

At the airport I had a little time to kill before my flight. And I like to walk a lot before my 12 hour flight across the Pacific ocean. As I strolled around Haneda, I discovered they had installed a scale replica of 日本橋 Nihonbashi.

The bridge is made of Japanese Cypress and has many wonderful details you can study as you cross or walk underneath. From their description, “The wall is decorated with Edo period folding screens from the National Museum of Japanese History that depict various famous locations throughout Edo… This pair of screens is one of only few historical artifacts that depict scenes from the time that Edo was founded. “

Since I still had time before my flight, I reviewed my notes from Noguchi Sensei’s class. He trained on the 天之型 ten no gata section from 神傳不動流 Shinden Fudō Ryū and he embraced the idea of sudden change. If you’ve trained with him, you know he moves fast. He covered all of the kata from the section along with a bunch of his own henka.

As he began with 日撃 Nichi Geki he explored different levels. The normal, chudan level might use a strike to 七抜 shichibatsu to stop the opponent’s throw. But he also showed variations for the jodan and gedan levels. He told us to make sure everything you do is a kamae.

月肝 Gekkan was all about the rhythm. Noguchi Sensei interrupted the opponent’s attack with his kick, taking their rhythm away. That deft set up flowed into a take down.

When we got to 風靡 Fubi, he didn’t want to do the leaping 胴締 dōjime. Even though I know he is capable because I saw him do it many times over the years. But since he is now in his eighties, He had some creative ways to express the kata without the risk of that move.

He kept telling us to “embrace our opponent with a loving feeling.” But his embrace attacked 腰 koshi. And it also disguised a 足起拳 sokki ken to 鈴 suzu. He said you crush them down.

During 雪耀 Setsuyaku he applied a 逆背負投 gyaku zeoi nage. But he did it almost without touching. He would set of the form of the lock and then drop the power out to send his opponent flying.

When he did it on me, what I felt was very surprising. The lock confused my body structure. Then as he dropped out, I went flying even though it didn’t feel like he did anything. This gave me some ideas to work on when I return home.

 With many of the techniques, but 霧散 Musan in particular, Noguchi Sensei would do the opposite of what you expect. The kata might say to take one side, but he would take the other. He would take one arm up, and one down. If you only take one, the opponent will sense what you are up to and try to counter.

Noguchi Sensei called one of his throws a 俵投げ tawara nage. This is like throwing a big bale of rice. He told us that one of the 47 Ronin was famous for doing this kind of throw.

You hoist them up and heave them over. For any normal person, it takes a lot of vigor to do a throw like this. But Noguchi Sensei did it without any force or power.

I really enjoyed Noguchi’s energy and good humor. He finished by rocking his uke with a 骨法拳 koppō ken where he swung the entire arm like a baseball bat. He laughed and said that he was like the baseball player, Shohei Ohtani.  

As I strolled around Haneda, I found an installation of 絵馬 Ema. An entire wall strung with these prayer plaques. You can purchase your own plaque and write a wish or prayer on the back to add it to the wall. The described purpose of the installation is to help heal travelers from Covid. The Japan tourism business was hit hard when they closed their borders for almost 3 years.

I had a great trip with many adventures and training discoveries. But every time I leave Japan I start making plans to return. You can expect more Japan Reports from me soon.
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Japan Report Nine 令和5年

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael

Noguchi Sensei and Michael Glenn toast Hatsumi Sensei on his birthday

There are no classes today 令和5年12月2日 because we are celebrating Hatsumi Sensei’s birthday. This day always makes me reflective and nostalgic. It has been four years since I last trained with Soke in the dojō because of his retirement. But every time I’ve seen him in the last four years it has felt like a celebration full of humor, joy, and good conversation.

When I arrived at the party Niigata-San informed us that Hatsumi Sensei was in the hospital with a fever and could not join us. They said he was busy pestering the nurses and trying to smuggle in some wine for his birthday.

We still celebrated in his honor. I got to see many friends including some that I only see once a year at his party. The new Soke in attendance made speeches and shared stories of their memories of training with Hatsumi Sensei.

Noguchi Sensei gave us some inspiration when he compared training to forging a Japanese sword. He spoke about training at different ages in life. He said you must strike the sword while it is hot. During this “hot” period is when you train hard and build good form, and forge a good heart. He said that he didn’t know how much longer he could keep training, but he wanted to continue enjoying the training because he appreciates us all and the energy we bring him.

By chance, I sat next to Daisuke-San who I had not met before. He is a policeman and he surprised me by producing a bottle of liquor. Then he took a small appetizer plate and poured some into the saucer. He said this was Japanese mafia style. We drank together from the saucer and he said now we are family!

People stood in line to offer their gifts for Hatsumi Sensei’s birthday while my friend Yabunaka-San filled out labels to mark each gift and who it was from. I stood nearby and he walked up and wrote a label and stuck it on my chest. He started laughing hysterically. The label basically said one extra large gaijin for Hatsumi Sensei. What a thoughtful present!

They distributed some note cards for us to write birthday messages to Hatsumi Sensei. I wished him happy birthday but I also thanked him for the way he inspired my life. My life would be very different without him. He has provided me a path in life as well as budō. He has often said we are not just doing martial arts, we are studying how to live.

The morning after Hatsumi Sensei’s birthday I went to the 丸の内 Marunouchi district. Which means it is “inside the moat” of Edo Castle. I find it remarkable that I am able to just wander in these grounds. Just a few generations ago, I would have been killed or arrested if I was caught wandering Daimyō alley.

But today, Mitsubishi bought much of the land for a central business district and surrounded the moat with skyscrapers. I did manage to find a few remnants of the moat and walls marking the castle grounds. I entered by crossing the moat on a bridge to 和田倉門 Wadakura mon.

This gate was built in 元和6 (1620). The name implies it was used as a storehouse. Goods transported from the bay to the 倉前 kuramae (the street of Imperial granaries and rice stores) and into the gate. Later, when the Meiji Emperor first came to Edo, he passed through this gate.

When I passed through the gate, I came into a courtyard surrounded by heavy walls to form a 枡形 masugata (a place for soldiers to assemble). The feeling of being surrounded by these stones reminded me of something Soke said.

During a class where he was teaching 破術九法 Hajutsu Kyūhō and the forms of 蹴返 keri kaeshi, he said,

And in that instant you’re surrounding and controlling the opponent. These four kicks become just one ring. Don’t think of it as four kicks, think of it as a trap that you’re setting in the process. You’re not just kicking it out with the opponent. Otherwise it ends up being just like a carpenter. And you lose the art of it. We’re studying life.

I don’t know why the heavy walls of the square reminded me of this idea of surrounding an opponent with kicks. But during that class Soke instructed us,

I’m not teaching punching or kicking. It’s not that simple. I’m teaching the ability to live within the kukan. To survive within the kukan.

During my walk around this area, I came across a group of volunteers cleaning some stone monuments. I asked them what the monuments were for. They told me the one on the right was a 御製 Gyosei, or Imperial Poem written by Naruhito on his ascension to the throne. He wrote,

「学舎に　ひびかふ子らの　弾む声　さやけくあれと　ひたすら望む」When I hear the cheerful voices of children Resounding through their classrooms I hope from the bottom of my heart They have a bright and beautiful future ~ Emperor Naruhito

 Apparently every year the Imperial family composes poems in a ceremony they call 歌会始 utakai hajime. They have a reading broadcast on NHK to share with the public in Japan. Next to his monument there is also one for Naruhito’s Father, Akihito, written in 1991,

「いにしへ の人も守り 来し日の 本の森の栄え を共に願はむ」With the people I pray that the forests of our forefathers will be protected and may prosper in the Land of the Rising Sun. ~ Emperor Akihito

These are the “official” translations, and while they don’t match literally, they catch the spirit of the poetry. It was nice to see volunteers caring for these monuments. In what other country would poetry be displayed and looked after for so many decades? I am often amazed at the random depth of culture I discover just stumbling around Tokyo.
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Japan Report Seven 令和5年

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael


I began the morning in a hurry because I had to get to the dojo early. My days in Japan are very busy. I run and gun to fit in all of the classes, recording my video reports in between. And I still have to find time for food, laundry, sleep, as well as tourism and shopping. 

Today I planned three classes, Furuta Sensei, Nagase Sensei, and Noguchi Sensei. But I didn’t have time to review my notes until the next morning in a cafe. The coffee sure helped.

The FULL video review can be found here: https://www.rojodojo.com/japan-report-seven-reiwa-five/

The first class was at the Bujinkan Honbu dojo with Furuta Sensei. We began class wearing a lot of knives. He said you should wear at least 9 knives. He didn’t mean that literally but the number 9 implies an infinite amount. So you have the ability to respond or attack infinitely.

He kept hiding behind the attack of his opponents. I learned this approach from him a few years ago during our study of 雲隠流 Kumogakure Ryū in his home dojo. He said it is like hiding in the clouds as the name of the school suggests.

I have the understanding that he is often teaching from that school as he is the next Soke. He won’t always mention it directly, so if you aren’t paying attention you might miss the subtlety. Training with him is fun because it feels like we are on this journey together.

As an example, He told us a story about a class with Hatsumi Sensei when they were using the sword. Soke kept telling them to let go of the weapon. Furuta Sensei said they were all confused by this instruction. How do you use a weapon when you let go? But Soke only responded by saying, “class is finished.” They were all left wondering what he meant. Well, Furuta Sensei is still exploring the meaning of this in his own classes.

My next class was with Nagase Sensei. This was at the Honbu dojo, so the feeling of the class is different than when I visit his own dojo. Not sure how I would describe it exactly except it feels more pro forma.

He started the class with 武双捕 musō dori and used that to transition to 竹折 takeori. The takeori he applied to me were the most painful I have experienced. He had me dancing around the dojo and tapping out. That doesn’t happen a lot to me here in Japan. But Nagase Sensei had me flipping and flying because the pain was immense. And if I didn’t take ukemi I felt like I would break.

My training partner in that class was Xάρης Μήτρου from Greece. The pain was intense for both of us. At one point he asked me to ease off a bit. And I apologized because I felt like I was trying to copy Nagase Sensei. We went to dinner later that night and he wasn’t broken, so I guess it was ok.

After dinner was Noguchi Sensei’s class. Xάρης had requested that Noguchi Sensei share some 義鑑流 Gikan Ryū. If you have been following my posts you know I did a whole series of classes with Noguchi Sensei on this topic. And I made my own in depth videos on all 10 of the kata sharing everything I learned from my notes. So this was a refresher course for me.

But Noguchi Sensei rarely does things the same way twice. So the class was full of many surprises and hidden aspects of the kata which he chose to explore, including some ura waza! But I was surprised he didn’t do all 10 of the kata. Normally he moves very fast, but this class was a different feeling from him.

For example, he did a whole sidebar on 抱囲之構 Hōkō no Kamae. His focus was on the 虚実 kyojitsu of this kamae. He kept saying it was not a ホールドアップ Hōrudoappu, or hold up kamae like a mugging, but hōkō. And he would demonstrate the difference and laugh at his own joke.

He showed us how to use it for 蝦蛄拳 shako ken. And he applied a powerful 逆武者捕 gyaku musha dori. He also showed a sneaky but powerful way to strike 歯止 hadome.

I survived my long day of training and made a lot of notes. Don’t tell anyone, but I might have slept in late the next morning. Stay tuned for my Japan Report Eight 令和5年.

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Japan Report Five 令和5年

From Bujinkan Santa Monica by Michael


Bujinkan training in Japan isn’t only about training. Sometimes it is about cultural experiences you might have there. And sometimes you might even find healing in the dojo!

I began this day in Japan with a visit to 美術刀剣松本 Bijutsu Tōken Matsumoto in 西葛西 Nishikasai with my teacher Peter Crocoll. He brought a tsuka from home to be refurbished with new 柄巻 tsukamaki and fittings. We had some nice tea while Peter and Matsumoto-san swapped stories about their experience at this year’s 大刀剣市 Dai Tōken Ichi sword show. While they chatted, I wandered the shop looking at all manner of swords and weapons for sale. By the time we left I was happy to still have my wallet!

This is a summary of the video I recorded in Japan which you can see here: Japan Report Five 令和5年

From there it was back to Noda-shi for training. On my way I shared a story from one of the classes I had with Hatsumi Sensei at the old Honbu dojo. Soke was teaching 無刀捕 mutōdori but reversed it to teach us a counter. In the video I demonstrate the grip change that he showed us. This grip is used for deception so your opponent cannot tell from which angle your sword will arrive. The cut appears to come straight down, but the grip change is hard to perceive for your opponent.

He told us when you cut, 相手の影成っている Aite no kage natte iru, you have to become the opponent’s shadow. Stick to him as his shadow. Mirror his position. Then, no matter how he tries to evade, he can’t escape his own shadow.

Hatsumi Sensei often shared small tips like this. These tips are the kind of thing you discover only by training with a teacher who has depth. I feel lucky to visit and train in Japan for these many years with Hatsumi Sensei.

Next, I arrived at the dojo for Noguchi Sensei’s class. He taught the 初伝型 Shoden Gata from 虎倒流 Kotō Ryū. After showing the basic form, he did many henka where he controlled the space by changing angles and levels.  

For example, with 押虚 Ōgyaku, after checking the opponent’s attempt to throw, he dropped to attack the knee or even the foot. During the kata 捕捉 Hosoku, he slid down the leg from 声 koe to the knee or ankle. I was training with Wakana and she is a lot smaller than me, so I really struggled to get low enough. And she had to stretch to get up high!

We had a lot of fun and Noguchi Sensei came over to help us often. He asked us if we had seen the viral 刺股 sasumata incident that had happened in Tokyo. Three men on scooters showed up to a jewelry store for a smash and grab robbery with hammers. An employee of the store grabbed a sasumata and started thrashing them with it. He even beat the hell out of the scooters! We had a great laugh with Noguchi Sensei about this.

Later that evening, I ran into a friend and asked him how he was. He had tears in his eyes and was really down. He had received some bad news from back home. I don’t want to give details because it is private. But during our conversation I suggested to him that if he went to class it could help and he might find healing in the dojo.

Anyone who has trained a long time can tell you that Bujinkan training can be like a form of therapy. Many times in my life when I struggled with emotional or physical problems, going to the dojo lifted my spirits. It seems odd that getting beat up has healing properties!

A long time ago during a class at Ayase, Hatsumi Sensei said that training is like 武道の鍼灸術 budō no shinkyū-jutsu. This is the budō of acupuncture. The idea was that just because you are causing pain doesn’t mean you are causing injury. He told us this as he attacked kyūsho. Then he said it was a form of healing.

Soke said that this is what 天津 蹈鞴 Amatsu Tatara is all about. You might use pain to promote healing. People show up to the dojo with all kinds of problems in life, both physical and mental. But through training they start to feel better. I thought about my friend and the pain he was in. And I hoped that through the pain, he might find healing in the dojo. 
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