Tag: Spirituality

From The Magick & The Mundane » Bujinkan by Shawn Gray

I. Recap

In the first part of this article we looked at some early uses of the term “demon” in the West in order to help us more fully understand some of the things that Sensei refers to when he talks about the demon motif in connection with the Bujinkan martial arts tradition of Kukishin-ryū (九鬼神流). We also looked into some psychological principles derived from the demon idea and how those principles can be used to make our lives happier and more balanced. In this final part of the article, we will look at principles of Japanese geomancy (fuu-sui, 風水) related to the demon motif, and give some very brief hints as to some ideas for application of these principles to the Kukishin-ryū taijutsu techniques Kimon (鬼門) and Ura Kimon (裏鬼門).

II. Geomancy

Geomancy is an ancient earth-based system of divination. The most commonly-known Eastern method of geomancy is the Chinese system of Feng-shui (pronounced fung-shway). The Japanese equivalent, known as “Fuu-sui” uses the same kanji characters as the Chinese system – the character for wind and the character for water (風水). The topic of geomancy as a whole goes far beyond the scope of this article, but in very basic terms it refers to the use of geography (both directions and location/placement of geographical features) in divination.

Edo Castle -> Ayase -> Noda -> Mitsukaido

A) SouthWest to NorthEast

One of the geomantic aspects which is connected with Kukishin-ryū is the cardinal direction known as Kimon (鬼門) – “Demon Gate.” This term originates in the Sengaikyo document, which was written in China during Japan’s Warring States Period, the Sengoku-jidai, “a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century”. Most Bujinkan practitioners are probably more familiar with the pressure point (kyusho, 急所) of the same name, which is located on the chest muscle structure a few centimeters above the nipple. This pressure point actually derives its name from a direction, or trajectory, on the Fuu-sui compass – the direction of Kimon (鬼門), which is associated with the Northeast. Traditionally, the center of the Fuu-sui compass is located at the political center the land. In the case of Japan, from the Edo Period onward, this was Edo Castle (Edo, 江戸, is the old name of Tokyo), so the direction of Kimon in this case would be a line drawn in a Northeast direction from Edo Castle. Moving along the line North-East, one moves towards the Kimon. One interesting point to note before moving on is that Hatsumi Sensei’s weekly Tuesday classes at the Tokyo Budokan are in Ayase, which lies in the Northeast direction from Edo Castle, as does the Bujinkan Honbu Dojo in the town of Noda if you move farther out in the direction of the Kimon, as does Hatsumi Sensei’s home in Mitsukaido if you move yet farther out from the center along that same Northeast line. (This is not an exact straight line of course, but close enough to make it interesting.)

B) Geopolitical Expansion of the Early Japanese

Were Tengu actually early Russians?

Another interesting point comes when we look at the overall geographic orientation of the Japanese islands themselves – they are generally oriented in a Southwest – Northeast configuration. One image comes to mind of the early invaders of these islands (the ancestors of modern Japanese) fighting the native Ainu population back up to their retreat in the northern island of Hokkaido as they fought their way up from the Southwest corner of the island chain up to the Northeast – a procession from the Ura Kimon to Kimon. Yet another image that comes to mind is that of the red-faced, big-nosed Tengu demon which, according to one theory, may originate from early skirmishes with or sightings of the long-nosed, red-faced peoples of what is now Russia as the Japanese invaders moved up into the Northeast end of the island chain. The reason that the Kimon was drawn from SouthWest to NorthEast may have been because, to the ancestors of the modern Japanese people who settled the islands, expanding from the SouthWest to the NorthEast, their rivals and enemies would have been the Ainu and the inhabitants of what is now Russia, to the far NorthEast. This is the direction from which their enemies would have attacked, and the direction in which the ancient Japanese had to expand in order to secure the islands for themselves. Another, more modern, example of the term is used in relation to the general Northeast direction of the Joban Line, a Japan Rail train line. This line is sometimes referred to as “the railway Kimon” because of its extension out from central Tokyo in a Northeast direction.

C) Sensei’s Garden

SW Corner

NE Corner

During a visit to Sensei’s country home in 2004, he treated me to a tour of his garden, pointing out the significance of each object not only in and of itself, but in its relationship to the objects around it and its position in the garden as a whole. One of the impressive features of this garden is an imposing stone monument located at the Southwest corner. Engraved into the stone are the characters for “Kuki”, and mounted upon it is a large demon mask. This stone demon monument stands at the Southwest corner, as a guard of the garden. Conversely, at the Northeast corner of the garden, almost hidden away in the grass behind a greenhouse, sits a rather unimposing rock with a couple of terra-cotta figurines standing in front of it. When asked if I understood this, I had to scratch my head and admit that I didn’t really see the significance. Sensei then made a joke related to the shape of the rock, which I then realized bore a striking resemblance to female genitalia. The clay terra-cotta figurines had exaggerated genitalia as well, marking this corner of the garden as a place of fertility and creation. Sensei said that traditionally, when a child was born to a family, they would fire off arrows into the Northeast in celebration. The juxtaposition of the opposing corners was quite striking – on one side, the ferocious guardian; on the other, the generative forces at work.

III. Kimon in Taijutsu

Sweden 2005 - Photo by Mats Hjelm

The Kimon and Ura Kimon techniques of the Kukishin-ryū tradition come from its Dakentaijutsu section. This section of the tradition’s curriculum deals with grappling in Japanese samurai armour, known as yoroi (鎧). As one can imagine, and as anyone who has actually worn and moved around in it knows very well, Japanese armour is heavy, awkward, and restricting in and of itself, let alone in a battlefield situation where there would have been weapons, opponents, and obstacles all around. Once someone in armour fell to the ground, it was a difficult and dangerous exercise to get up again, and in many situations one was probably considered quite lucky if he were able to get back onto his own two feet alive. Thus, it was paramount for one to maintain his own balance while fighting in armour, and equally advantageous to study the ways of unbalancing an armoured opponent.

In the first part of this article, we discussed the classical (Platonic) idea of demons and how the generic term (daemon or daimon) can refer to a part of the psyche which is neither good nor evil. Long after Plato, in Medieval Europe, several grimoires were written (such as The Lesser Key of Solomon) that describe demons as unbalanced (and unbalancing) forces. From a taijutsu perspective, if we interpret the idea of Kimon (“Demon Gate”) as a gateway for unbalancing force, its application to armoured taijutsu movement takes on a new meaning – both with regard to unbalancing someone else and to maintaining one’s own balance as well. (Also remember to think about this in terms of psychological balance…) The Kimon is an extremely effective point to use when taking the balance of someone in armour. It is a point where, when force is properly applied (right amount, right angle, etc.), the opponent’s balance can be taken quite easily. And as mentioned above, an unbalanced opponent is pretty close to a dead opponent, especially if he is wearing heavy armour.

Noguchi Sensei in Yoroi

When practicing in the dojo, the Kimon kyusho pressure point on the chest is often attacked with a painful thumb strike known as a boushiken (棒指拳). However, looking at the technique from a classical perspective where yoroi armour is being worn, the Kimon would be covered by the yoroi and thus protected from the thumb strike. In fact, striking with the thumb to this area in such a case would more likely damage the thumb of the striker than the Kimon of the opponent. Because of this, when looking at the Kimon and Ura Kimon techniques of Kukishin-ryū, it is best to not think only of the Kimon kyusho itself, but to consider the direction, or line of balance, in which the defender enters the attacker’s space and the direction in which the attacker is taken off balance.

Actual taijutsu techniques are much better explored in the physical realm under the guidance of a qualified instructor than in the realm of text on web blogs, so I am not going to go into a description of the techniques here, but if you mentally superimpose the fuu-sui compass directions on either the horizontal or vertical planes when practicing these techniques, you will be sure to notice interesting correlations to the Northeast/Southwest directions and the concepts of Kimon and Ura Kimon. The picture on the right above is one that I took of Noguchi Sensei wearing armour at a Daikomyosai a few years ago. I’ve drawn an arrow on the photo to point out the NorthEast and SouthWest “corners of balance”. If we were squaring off with an opponent wearing armour like this, the Kimon would be at his left chest/shoulder, in the direction of the arrow pointing to the NE. By striking or pushing in this direction, upward against the chest/shoulder, the opponent’s balance would be taken to his left back side – the Kimon direction. Conversely, if we were to take the opponent’s right wrist or forearm and draw it forward and down, in the direction of the SW, the SouthWest direction of the compass, his balance would be broken to his right front side. This would be an example of the Ura Kimon direction. I hope this illustration helps you to understand Kimon vs. Ura Kimon  in this context.

Best wishes in your study of Kukishin-ryū taijutsu, and I hope you have found this two-part article on the demon motif in Kukishin-ryū to have been helpful and informative.

From The Magick & The Mundane » Bujinkan by Shawn Gray

I. Intro

The Bujinkan martial arts training theme for 2007 was the Kukishin Ryu tradition. (There is some debate over which term is best to use, Kukishin Ryu or Kukishinden Ryu, and Hatsumi Sensei uses both of these seemingly at random.  I am going to use “Kukishin Ryu” in this article for the sake of convenience.)

The meaning of the term “Kukishin” is one that causes discomfort for some, as it involves a word usually translated into English as “demon,” – the term “Kukishin” being composed of the characters for “9 – Demon – Spirit[s] (九鬼神)”. Depending on your religious background and upbringing, this can be the source of a certain amount of trepidation. “See?” you’ll hear some say, “What further proof do we need that at the real heart of Japanese martial arts lurks all kinds of darkness and evil?” Unfortunately, the modern English term “demon” has taken on quite a different meaning from the way it was first used in past millennia, and it is this modern understanding of the word which causes some red flags to go up.

This article will first look at early uses of the term “demon” in the West in order to help us more fully understand some of the things that Sensei is referring to when he uses the corresponding Japanese term “oni” in training. We will next look into some psychological principles derived from the demon idea which we can use to make our lives happier and more balanced. (Yes, you read correctly.) In the final part of the article (Part II, separate post), we will look at principles of Japanese geomancy related to the demon motif, and some taijutsu ideas which can be interpreted in light of those principles.

II. From Daemon to Demon – And Back Again

In one of the first classes of 2007, Hatsumi Sensei pointed out that when he is talking about “oni,” he is referring not to an evil spirit, but to a neutral part of the human psyche which can be put to either good or negative use. This is essentially the same concept as that of the Greek term “daemon” (or another Latinized version, “daimon”), from which we get our modern word “demon.” Originally, the Greek term referred to both good and malevolent spirits. In early Christian times, “the usage of ‘daemon’ in the New Testament’s original Greek text caused the Greek word to be applied to a Judeo-Christian spirit by the early 2nd century AD.” In Greece and Rome, daemons could be either good or evil. Socrates claimed to have a daemon that served to warn him against mistakes. The Hellenistic Greeks called the good spirits kalodaemons and the evil spirits kakodaimons. The kalodaemons were a type of guardian angel which would watch over mortals. (“Thus eudaemonia, originally the state of having a eudaemon, came to mean ‘well-being’ or ‘happiness.’”) The Romans used the term genius to refer to the same type of benevolent, guiding and protecting spirit. In Plato’s Symposium, Socrates is taught that love itself is a good daemon. It wasn’t until the end of the 4^th century, when Christianity became the dominant force in the Roman world, that the meaning of the word was changed to refer only to forces of an evil nature. Sensei’s definition of “oni (鬼)” is thus very similar to the original neutral meaning of the English word daemon.

Though the word gradually took on an ominous meaning through the Middle Ages and into the 20^th century, modern technology has gone back to adopt the original usage in referring to certain pieces of computer software. These are familiar to anyone who works as a system administrator. In a computer server environment, a daemon is a program that runs continuously in the background, ready and waiting for the right conditions for it to begin performing its task. Normally the right condition is met by a request for its service, for example a network connection of some kind. When such a request is made, the daemon automatically goes to work and performs its assigned task, normally an intermediary role between a client and a server. It then switches back into stand-by mode when the task has been completed. The FreeBSD operating system has made use of this motif in the design of its mascot, a cute little red fellow with horns, a pointy tail, and a pitchfork – affectionately named Beastie.

III. Kill ‘Em With a Smile

As training opened for 2007, Sensei hung up a big piece of calligraphy at the front of the dojo, which read, “Kuki Taishou (九鬼大笑)”. The “Kuki” is the familiar “9 Demons,” and the kanji for “Taishou” have the meaning of “Big Smile (or Laugh)”. In explaining the meaning of this, Sensei pointed out that the word taishou can also be written with the kanji for “Commander (or General) (大将)” There were a few confused faces in the dojo – what is the connection between demons, a commander, and a big smile?

From the perspective of psychology, humans have daemons (in the classical neutral sense) as part of their psyche. In a manner similar to the daemons used in modern computer systems, the daemons of the psyche act as intermediaries between the conscious and the unconscious mind. When there is an external request for an internal resource, the daemon goes to work and sees to it that the particular emotional or psychological resource that it is responsible for is provided to the requester – normally an external stimuli of some kind. When someone insults you, a daemon can go and fetch an offended response. When someone compliments you, a daemon can go and fetch a  reaction that is either egotistical or humble. The type of reaction that the daemon returns with will depend on how that daemon has been “programmed.” We could perhaps define a daemon as a kalodaemon (“good” daemon) or a kakodaemon (“bad” daemon) depending on how it has been initially programmed and installed (its condition at birth) or how the program has been altered (by external or internal influences) since then. Daemons will do what they have been programmed to do. They will fetch the emotional reactions that they have been programmed or reprogrammed to fetch. What if one finds that he or she doesn’t like what the daemons are bringing out in response to external requests? A person can at this point choose to reprogram the daemon so that it responds as the person would like it to. Instead of returning an offended reaction to an insult, the daemon can be made to return a peacemaking response. Instead of returning an egotistical response, the daemon can be told to bring out a humble one. How does one reprogram the daemons and bring them under control like this?

The key that Sensei referred to lies in both the reading of the kanji for taishou and also in the design of many traditional Japanese oni masks. The Commander (or General) reading of taishou (大将) tells us that we have to be in charge and in control of ourselves. It is our responsibility to take control of our lives and put our insides in order. Sensei stated that “we should become ten to control the nine.” Ten is a complete, balanced number and crowns the nine below it as a diadem on the head of a monarch. The daemons should be doing what we want them to – which may or may not align with the way they are currently operating. If they are not acting in accord with how we would like them to, it is our right and responsibility to invoke the role of Commander to impose the rule of order on the system of our Selves. Our personalities should work the way we want them to, so that we do not become the victim of our own vices, but so that we can instead live as complete and balanced human beings. This correlates closely to the Qabalistic idea of the 10 Sephiroth, or spheres, in which the flow of energy down to the lower spheres stems from and is, or should be, controlled by the higher spheres. In fact, on the Qabalistic glyph known as The Tree of Life (shown here on the right) , the highest sphere is called Kether, which means “crown”, and the lowest sphere is called Malkuth, which means “kingdom”. In the classic medieval grimoire known as The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, now translated as The Book of Abramelin, the aspirant is taught a method of establishing a relationship with a spiritual entity known as “the Holy Guardian Angel”, which some interpret to be the Higher, or Divine, Self. Once this relationship is established, the aspirant is then directed to conjure up a long list of demons and, under the authority of the Holy Guardian Angel, compel them to obedience and servitude. From the point of view of modern psychology, this can be interpreted as the integration of the personality and subsequent processing of complexes, neuroses, etc through the Light of this integration. The “Holy Guardian Angel” is of the same archetype as the Taishou Commander. It is that aspect that knows what our Path, the true course of our life, is meant to be, and which has the authority to bring all aspects of our lives into order and balance under it’s direction. By bringing all under the auspices of the the integrating and balancing forces of the Crown (Kether), the Kingdom (Malkuth) may be ruled with balance and equanimity.

The other reading of the word taishou describes how the role of Commander should be implemented – with “a great smile (taishou, 大笑).” When we look at Japanese oni masks, we most often see that they have big smiles. They thus offer us the key to their management and control. A genuine smile is the sign of a relaxed mind and a calm spirit. It also indicates flexibility in thinking. Conversely, a stern, stiff expression usually indicates inflexibility of thought, whether it is just at that moment or whether it is an indication of a general condition. When we find ourselves responding to things in a way that we don’t really want to, the response is often accompanied by a stress or tension of some kind, because it is in opposition to the way that we would really like to be reacting. When we smile, our expression softens and our mind relaxes, becoming more flexible and open to new ideas and thus more open to new and alternative ways of reacting to a given situation.

A smile gives us a calm heart and allows us to make even, solid, well-balanced judgments. This idea of a calm and tranquil heart in the face of trying circumstances is known in Japanese as heijoushin (平常心). Smiling helps us to achieve and maintain this state. Most often we smile in reaction to something positive. Something has made us happy, so we smile. This is well and good, but in this case the smile is a reactive response to something. Many people forget that we can also use the smile in a proactive way. In Commander mode, we can use a smile to proactively change ourselves in a positive way, both inside and outside. We are so used to smiling in connection with a happy feeling that the two have are inextricably linked. When we are happy, we smile. And so it is also that when we smile, we become happy. Even if something has happened that would cause us to have an adverse reaction, we can change our mental reaction if we smile. The next time something happens where you would usually get irritated, annoyed, or angry, force yourself to smile. You’ll find that the physical act of smiling tends to make you feel calm, balanced, and much more positive. No longer a victim of your own emotions, you have taken the daemon by the horns with your smile and made a proactive decision as Commander about what reaction the daemon is going to give to this particular circumstance. Like all things, it takes time and practice, but the more of a habit you make it, the more you will find your mental state characterized by the heijoushin principle and the more your personal daemons will act in accordance with your will and desired behavior.

This topic will be continued in Part II.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daemon_(mythology)
2. Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daemon_%28computer_software%29