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Birthday party / mini seminar in Riga, Latvia

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

Last weekend I was in Riga, Latvia. I was invited by my friend Juris attend his birthday party. The party was nice, and the food was excellent.

Riga

On the day after (Saturday) we also had some informal training. After the warm up with ukemi, we went through the nine Santo tonko techniques rather quickly. After the lunch break we did henka.

It’s nice to see the people in Latvia progressing, and always showing big interest in learning the art. Keep up the good spirit, and good luck with the new dojo!

Ganbatte kudasai :-)

Oh the “thing” I’m wearing on the photo is clothes to use when doing the sauna that the guys had put the 兜, Kabuto embroydery on. I found the helmet with horns specially funny :-D , thank you!…

Seminar in Gefle with Serrano Shihan

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

The past weekend I went to a seminar with Bujinkan Shihan Manuel Serrano from Spain. It was a very good seminar I wish that more people would have attended. Anyway there was about 35 people in total, Serrano brought seven students with him.

The first day Serrano taught variations of Taihenjutsu ukemi from Togakure-ryu. And some Taijutsu henka, along with (strange) fun and games. One guy in the middle was jumping on one leg and chasing everyone else and when he whip someone with the belt every one attacked the guy and whipping him with their belts until he got to the safe zone. Then it was his turn to chase the next victim.

The second day more games, and some techniques from Zanto Tonko no Kata. Also some interesting techniques using a rope, since most people didn’t have a rope we all used belts instead.

Thanks to Serrano Shihan for coming and Patrik Johansson and the staff at the Bujinkan Gefle Dojo for organizing this seminar.

You can see the pictures at http://kaigozan.se/album/ I also uploaded pictures from the last two seminars at Kaigozan this year.

This weekend I will be going to Riga, Latvia :-) …

The past Holger K seminar

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

We had a very good seminar here recently with Holger Kunzmann, I really encourage everyone to go to his seminars! On the extra training on Friday we had asked him to teach Kihon Happo, and he did. He went through all eight techniques on Friday extra training and Saturday morning. Sunday morning he did Sanshin no kata for warm up training.

But the main theme for the seminar was Togakure-ryu Santo Tonko no Kata.
- Three unarmed techniques against an unarmed opponent
- Three unarmed techniques against a sword attack
- Three armed techniques against several opponents

He taught many very good applications and said many interesting things. One thing related to all the past years of training themes is that if you take each theme and make a map of each theme you can clearly see each theme’s structure. Then make them all semi transparent and put them on top of each other and look through them all, this is what we are doing now in training.

Let’s take it even further, take all maps and put them together, press them together really hard (under heat and pressure) until it become a raw diamond. What we try to do next is to cut the diamond, so that we can look through each prism. This I would like to think is the Jewel of Bujinkan.

An interesting thought, right? Remember when Soke said 10 years ago or so that he was going away like a rocket from now on, and if people did not train with him frequently they would be left behind. If you honestly look in the mirror and ask yourself, only you know the true answer. What other people think of you is really not important, as long as you can stand in front of the mirror and see your own weaknesses and try to strengthen them, then it is ok. If you do that I say “ganbatte kudasai”, if not I’m sorry to say that you have completely misunderstood the Bujinkan training completely. Our training is about “masai” constantly polishing our art.

If you just started training or was left behind, don’t worry, just follow the rockets that is following the main rocket. Not all rockets is following the main rocket, so be careful :-D

Well, enough rambling for today… Keep on going!…

Bujinkan India: memories of a fantastic experience

From Shiro Kuma's Weblog by kumablog

Dear Buyu from India, I first want to deeply thank you for the profound sense of community I found here in Bangalore sharing my thoughts, interpretations and movements with you. I often give seminars around the world, but the quality of the depth of the commitment I encountered here, was really refreshing to me. And I want to thank you all for this as it is the promise of a successful future for the Bujinkan community of India.A Dojo is complex mix between a teacher and his students. If the teacher is evolving the students are improving, and a group of dedicated students evolving positively pushes the teacher to improve his skills even more. After such a small training time, you have achieved this mix better than in many Dojo I have been teaching to.Reading your comments about the seminar on the Shidoshikai forum, I found that many of you were expecting something different, maybe something including more pain. Pain is important in the learning phase of Budo but it is not the most important thing. Physical pain is an accepted consequence of the training but it is nothing compared to psychological pain. And maybe you have got a glimpse of that during these four days. This is the best lesson you could learn.

Even if our seminar was dedicated to Ninpo, the theme for 2008, many comments speak about how this seminar has (or is going to) improve your basics in Ukemi, Uke Nagashi and Sanshin no Kata. In one of the many late discussions I had, we came to the understanding that everything we do in the Bujinkan has to be easy if we want it to be natural. Water will always find the simplest path to the sea; this is the same with our Budo. If you cannot do a movement it is often because your thinking process is blocking the way as a dam would do it to a small river flow.

Please don’t stop, keep going you are heading towards what real Budo is. Your energy and willingness to improve is an example for all Bujinkan members all over the world, be proud of it. The waythe group  has been structured and taught  explains it but without your willingness to learn, nothing would have been achieved so beautifully.

Someone quoting me wrote: “Noise on the mats is pain outside”. It seems to have been the seminar’s motto. The Dojo is the place where you can make all the mistakes you need to get things correctly. As we explained it several times, you are allowed to make mistakes in the Dojo in order to, hopefully, avoid them in Jissen (true fight) and in Jissen (real life). The Bujinkan is teaching us to become real human beings, living a full and happy life.

After a week in India with you, I came to understand even better the power of what Hatsumi Sensei is teaching us, life. Life is what struck me while I was there. India is a boiling, fast expanding and blooming country that is going to be of major importance for the world in a very near future.

This dynamism is also present in your training and I honestly loved teaching your group. I hope there will be more other seminars like that to follow this first one. I can say that I learnt as much as you did. This is the best lesson of “Shikin Haramitsu Daikomyo” I was ever given. Thank you all for this present.

I want to thank you all for your time and hospitality in Bangalore; for the many exchanges we have had during this week; and for making us feel at home. We feel richer after this trip than ever before.

Chukrya,

Arnaud Cousergue
Bujinkan Shihan


…

Kaigousuru 1997-2007 RIP …only 19 days left to the beginning of the end!

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

http://www.kaigozan.se/seminars/K2007/K2007.shtml

KAIGOUSURU PRESS RELEASE

1997-2007, 10 years of Bujinkan History

With world renowned instructors such as: Arnaud Cousergue (France), Dean Rostohar (Croatia), Elias Krzywacki (Sweden/Norway), Ed Martin (USA), Hans Nilsson (Sweden), Keith Porter (UK), Lauri Jokinen (Finland), Lubos Pokorny (Czech Republic), Mariette Van Der Vliet (Holland), Mark O’Brien (USA/Japan), Mats Brickman (Sweden), Mats Hjelm (Sweden), Michael Schjerling (Denmark), Pedro Fleitas (Spain), Peter Jonsson (Sweden), Rikard Sundelius (Sweden), Shawn Gray (Canada/Japan), Sheila Haddad (USA) 15th Dan, Steffen Fröhlich (Germany), Sveneric Bogsäter (Sweden/Holland), Thomas Franzen (Sweden), and many more..

Kaigousuru has become one of Europe’s finest Bujinkan seminars/gatherings. It is with not without sadness, that we announce that this year will mark the end of Kaigousuru. We have decided that after struggling for 10 years to make ends meet and meet all the demands of our participants, have taken its toll on us. We will therefore make this end a glorious one, for everyone attending, as it is as much a celebration as it is an end, for all of us.

This does not however, mark the end for us or our continued participation in Bujinkan activities. It is only the natural cause of things, that it has had its way, and that it now opens up for the beginning of something new. It is harder today for any organizer of Bujinkan events to make ends meet, with so many seminars and good instructors available all over the world.

It has been a great time for us, who have organized and hosted The Kaigousuru event for all of you these last 10 years. We have had a great time, and hope that everyone who have attended have had the same.

We hope that Kaigousuru, as an idea, will continue to live on in your hearts, shaping Bujinkan into what it will be tomorrow.

We will end this by giving all of you a challenge.

Don´t miss out on this last event, the last of 10-years creative and familiar Bujinkan training parties!
April 27th, 28th and 29th, 2007

Register now, there is still space available.
http://www.kaigozan.se/seminars/K2007/K2007.shtml

Don’t miss out!

We hope to see you all at Kaigousuru, training and celebrating the end of the beginning with us!

The organizers of Kaigousuru
Mats Hjelm & David Rodriguez…

Bujinkan Kurokawa Seminar

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

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This weekend I visited Riga again for the third Bujinkan seminar in Latvia sponsored by Juris and the Bujinkan Kurokawa Dojo. It was good to see my old friends again. Also to see how they have grown in the art since last year.

My flight was a couple of hours delayed, so I had nothing else to do than read a good book about Yoga written 93 years ago, quite interesting, and have a couple of Hoegardens (my new favorite beverage).

On Friday there was an extra training in the dojo which is located in the middle of the old town in Riga. We started with basic warm up which in my way of teaching almost always includes Sanshin no kata, Taihenjutsu ukemi and Kihon-happo. Then after maybe 40 minutes, I let Ivars show a technique he wanted me to work on, this evening it was a defense technique against a straight punch to the nose. I did a few variations on it, both with the opponent trying to hit the face area with his fist, but also against a hidden weapon. For example a hidden knife hold reversed in the attackers hand.

fireworks

On Saturday we started the seminar with basic jodan-tsuki and jodan-uke drills, then we went in to ukemi, and then later Gekkan from Shindenfudo-ryu. Then it was time for lunch in the local food court at the shopping mall. In the afternoon, more training.

Later in the evening there was fireworks in the city. It was the national independence day and it was very crowded. We were a little late so we couldn’t get to the front row, but we could still enjoy the fireworks. After we went to a salsa club in old town for a few drinks, salsa is big in Riga now they said. We didn’t stay for long, there was training the day after to.

On Sunday we started with sword training, just the Jodan-giri cut. From Jodan no kamae down to Seigan no kamae, with both hands and also with only the right hand (like a cut with the tachi) but also with just the left hand for practice, that was difficult and good strength training for the arms. Then we did a shindenfudo-ryu technique (I forgotten now which one), then lunch. After lunch we did some Jutte training, just basic kata from Kukishin-ryu. Then in the afternoon we finished with a Nawa-jutsu technique and a few rope tricks.

the group

On Monday, my flight was promptly on time much to my surprise, and the trip home went smoothly.

A BIG thanks to Juris (on my right on the picture), Ivars (on my left on the picture) and all the other guys for taking so good care of me. I’m already looking forward to the next seminar, hopefully in August when the weather is a little better.

For more information about training in Latvia please check out the Bujinkan Kurokawa Dojo web site at w w w . k u r o k a v a . c o m web site.

Happy training!

/Mats…

Shizen, the cause of nature and adapting to it

From Kabutoshimen by Toryu

Hello!

We now have over 100 people signed up for this years Taikai. Many people from different countries, most notably is Czech Republic with 16 people and Finland with 15 people, the rest is spread evenly between 10 other countries.

Unfortunately Sveneric and Mariette can not come this year. Mariette had to remove one of her upper ribs 10 years ago. Over the years her shoulder have dropped down and caused impaired moveability and pain. And now she is going to do surgery to fix it. Both Sveneric and Mariette would have loved to come, but they can’t. We already invited them for next year and they have gladly accepted.

I know some of you will be disappointed but that is life. Shizen is also this years theme, things change naturally and we have to adopt to the changes naturally and do the best we can without looking back of what could have been. It will be a great Taikai regardless. We still have many other good instructors that will come. Maybe we will add more instructors or increase the remaining instructors teaching time.

However this will not affect the overall training quality or amount of training opportunity!…