THOUGHTS ON BUDO AT THE TURN OF A DECADE

The world has changed considerably since I first began to study Budō, several decades ago. It is now a much smaller world, due primarily to the innovations made in communications and computer technology. I can recall that in 1995, computers and the Internet were at best, an insignificant part of most people’s lives, and cell phones (mobile phones then) were large, cumbersome things: hardly anyone had one. In the ensuing fifteen years however, most of the industrialized world has been connected to the Internet and the phenomenon of mobile communications. Literally, billions of pages of information are at anyone’s fingertips with just a click of a computer mouse. Sadly, at the same time, the world has grown more violent and dangerous. In the United States, we witnessed firsthand the attack on the World Trade Center, the war in Iraq, the war in Afghanistan, countless terrorist attacks, and assassinations, not to mention innumerable homicides and heinous crimes here at home. Domestic and foreign terrorism, in all its forms, have become almost daily occurrences, and news of them is now almost instantaneous. We now see crime and violence even as it occurs, often graphically, from the comfort of our easy chairs. When examined, even superficially, the sum of all this tends to reinvorce my feeling that the need has never, in modern times, been greater for people to train in traditional martial arts, such as Kenjutsu and Iaijutsu.

I have no personal knowledge of any official study, however my own understanding is that few, if any people, classically trained in martial arts, have committed the types of violence and terrorism that fill our computer and television screens, as well as the front pages of our newspapers. Acts of terrorism and violence run counter to the very nature and intent of traditional martial arts programs. Classic Japanese martial arts, Budō if you will, is in fact the art of peacemaking. I continue to teach Kenjutsu and Iaijutsu, not simply because it trains one to perform acts of violence, but rather because it trains both mind and spirit to seek out peace and harmony while preparing one to defend against acts of violence; the end result of which is creating, in some small way, a more peaceful world for its practitioners.

While Kenjutsu and Iaijutsu, on the surface, would appear to have little application to contemporary ideas of self-defense, I cannot help but feel that it truly does have practical applications. A broomstick, a mop handle, a cane, with training, can be a real boon for a person threatened with attack. Beyond that, these arts are simple serene, and elegant, bereft of the splendid embellishments and gymnastics assigned them by the cinema and print media, such as manga. In a real sense, however, this simplicity, serenity, and elegance, and the absence of superficial flourishes, have at least in the United States, been self-defeating. It is difficult for the uneducated and the unsophisticated to see how Kenjutsu and Iaijutsu could be of any use in self-defense; thus, such arts have little attraction to those who are instead drawn to more brutal forms of “combat,” such as grappling, Brazilian Jiujitsu, and “mixed martial arts,” which many traditional instructors, including myself, regard as nothing more than fighting. Fighting is what is cool. Fighting is “in.” Fighting is power. Skill in fighting makes one a “tough guy,” which assists in maintaining the “thug is good” thinking, propagated by television and movies, manga, music videos, and worst of all, violent video games. Indeed, contemporary, violent video games occupy the minds and time of American youth far more than such mundane pastimes as study, reading, or active participation in sports. Absent are the enduring values and ethics of traditional Budō, now set aside for the less endearing and enduring values of contemporary “martial arts” training.

Sadly, I do not foresee much change in the way that the “samurai arts” will be presented in literature or the entertainment media. Looking back, I think that the contemporary view of Budō began with the larger-than-life, naïve, unworkable, and improbable portrayals of traditional martial arts by works of fantasy and fiction such as the Teenaged Mutant Nina Turtles. Since their inception, the media has inundated us with anime, manga, video games, television programs and feature films highlighting samurai-like characters that perform gross representations of sword and other martial techniques; which in turn, have created false impressions and therefore expectations, that make legitimate martial arts at least disappointing if not totally unattractive. I say disappointing in view of the large number of would-be students who are disenchanted early on in their training, or even before they begin training, when they come to a dojo in the hopes of learning the “moves” that they saw in some movie or video game, and the dojo is either unable, and often unwilling, to do so.

My own experience recently is that interest in traditional Japanese martial arts, in the United States, does not support nor will it sustain classes in such subjects as Kenjutsu or Iaijutsu; individual, private students yes, but classes, no. In a country that would seem to pride itself and take comfort in its ignorance, obesity, and laziness, and its attraction to that which is crass, serious students are far between. Certainly, I have received inquiries from parents who want to enroll their children in classes; yet, what is the point when the child does not want to attend and has little or no interest beyond the “flash,” nor the common sense or sense of responsibility that goes with learning potentially dangerous techniques? There is none. Even parents are disappointed when they discover that it takes years upon years to achieve the proficiency to earn a black belt, the “holy grail” of American martial arts: not six months, not a year, but years. It is no better with potential students in their late teens or in their twenties; indeed, such students are almost totally absent. The discipline of mind and body that is required is simply not there. What few potentially good students there are tend to be over fifty, college educated, accomplished, and disciplined. Interestingly, these are mature people who potentially suffer more aches and pains then younger students; and yet, are more than willing to endure such discomforts, for the sake of the art.

What the coming decade will hold is of course a mystery. Perhaps, with the diminished American economy and the austerity that it demands, some small side effect will be a turn away from crassness, lack of discipline, and lack of responsibility, toward a new embracing of good, traditional values. Only time will tell.

THOUGHTS ON TECHNIQUE IN BUDO I

"One should train themself meticulously and then forget about it."

Ultimately, the reason one practices Budō or a martial art is so that one can make the art an integral part of one’s self. In order to achieve any degree of mastery, that is, competence as well as confidence, it is necessary for one to attain a state in which he or she is able to use the best possible techniques instinctively: without thinking. The only way that one can accomplish this is by learning to deal with every conceivable circumstance.

Alone, our imaginations are not always able to conceive of every possible situation; consequently, in the classes I have taught, as an unwritten adjunct to the curriculum, students are encouraged, actually they are expected, to bring possible variations to a situation up to the class, so that the other students may consider and discuss the circumstance and actively experiment with the various ways to deal with it: good and bad. They work out solutions and in a sense the student becomes a teacher. By doing this, it is possible, through slight variation or innovation, to transform one technique into ten.

One must, however, be wary of allowing their “soul to attach itself to a technique.” That is to say, one must not become obsessed, when for example engaged in combat or practice with a sword or shinai, to become solely focused on technique. If one is simply centered on technique, and not freeing up his mind, if one’s actions and reactions are not instinctive, then the opponent will ultimately have the opportunity to not only strike back but to win.

When in combat or practice, one should not think about “killing” their opponent or what technique will do the job, but rather merging and flowing with an opponent and allowing the techniques to select themselves.

Remember that no matter how wonderful one’s technique may be, if one is focused solely on that aspect of their art, then one, simply put, cannot win. Once techniques are learned, practice without thinking of simply striking, parrying, or thrusting. Let the mind go free so that the movements and techniques come freely from within one’s self.

It is a simple fact that once one has trained themself well, their body, arms, and legs will move automatically; that is, without any conscious effort. So, one’s mind will not be overcome by their physical movements and be able to make use of the techniques they have learned and practiced without having to think. Once this state of mind has been reached, no misgivings or wavering will occur. There is no enemy or opponent, not even a tengu or a demon, who will be able to find an opportunity to effectively attack.

One should train themself meticulously and then forget about it. One should toss aside their mind and thus follow the Way without actually being conscious of it. This is a obscurity of all ways and arts, be it Aikidō, Iaidō, Judō, Karate-Dō, Kendō, Aikijutsu, Iaijutsu, or Kenjutsu.

Copyright 2010 by Hayato Tokugawa, Sekishinkan Tokugawa Dojo, and Shisei-Do Publications. All rights reserved.

IAIDO AT SEKISHINKAN TOKUGAWA DOJO

IAIDO AT SEKISHINKAN TOKUGAWA DOJO

Iaidō is a traditional form of Japanese Budo which is associated with the controlled, even movements of drawing the Japanese sword from its scabbard (saya), striking or cutting an opponent, removing blood from the blade, and ten returning the sword to the saya. Depending on the ryū (school), dojo, and/or instructor, a new student may begin to follow this Way with a wooden sword (bokken) or more commonly with an unsharpened sword or Iaitō, later progressing to a “live” or sharpened blade (shinken). Iaidō is an art requiring great personal discipline and perseverance and with its emphasis on its precise motions and contemplative or even meditative mindset, it is often referred to as “moving zen”.

The word Iaidō can be translated to something akin to “the way of mental presence and immediate reaction.” It should not be confused with Kendo, which does not include the drawing of a sword and utilizes a bamboo “sword” or shinai with no saya and which is basically a competitive sport. Iaidō is not competitive at all but rather, a matter of learning and perfecting one’s own movements and techniques.

Iaidō should also not be confused with Kenjutsu which involves parrying and striking an opponent with a sword that is already removed from its saya. Iaidō is also not to be confused with Battōjutsu, which encompasses both the practice of drawing a sword and cutting movements, but also tameshigiri or actual cutting.

There is an inherent emphasis in Iaidō upon the psychology or mindset of the practitioner with the actual drawing of the sword and performance of striking motions almost secondary

Although there are indeed a wide range of koryū or traditional/classical Iaidō styles practiced in Japan, the two most enduring and widely practiced styles are Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū and Musō Shinden-ryū They resemble each other quite strongly owing to their common heritage from the same parent, only separating in the late 18th century owing to philosophical differences.

The Sekishinkan Tokugawa offers a “continuing program” of training and practice in Musō Jikiden Eishin-ryū (more often just referred to as Eishin-ryū), conducted personally by H. Tokugawa-sensei, M. Yamamoto-sensei, and closely assisted by H. Yamamoto-sensei. Our course is referred to as a “continuing” program because even though one has learned the etiquette and techniques of Eishin-ryū, progress beyond that point depends on each individual student’s individual devotion to the art and practice. As long as a student is with us at Sekishinkan Tokugawa Dojo, we will endeavor to give them all of the individual encouragement, guidance, and coaching we can so that they may achieve there individual goals.

For those who are perhaps interested in a shorter course of study or who are also interested in tameshigiri, for example, a similar course is offered by Sekishinkan Tokugawa Dojo as part of its more comprehensive Amatai no Shugo-ryū Bujutsu program as Battōjutsu or Iaijutusu

Sentei Iaidō

Sentei Iaidō or Zen Nippon Kendo Renmei Iaidō is the official style of the All Japan Kendo Federation (AJKF), Zen Nippon Kendo Renmei or ZNKR. The twelve Seitei Iaidō forms (seitei-gata) are now the standard for promotion within Iaidō as dictated by the controlling kendo federations. Although not al dojos teach Seitei Iaidō, the AJKF does use Seitei as their standard for examinations and thus it is the most widely recognized form of Iaidō in both Japan as well as the rest of the world. Because the twelve Seitei forms match so well with the teachings of Eishin-ryū, they are taught as part of the Sekishinkan program.

Tōhō Iaidō

The All Japan Iaidō Federation (ZNIR, Zen Nihon Iaidō Renmei) which was founded in 1948) has its own set of five Iaidō forms referred to as Tōhō Iaidō. These are the ZNIR’s equivalent to Seitei but are derived from other ryū not so closely related to Eishin-ryū and thus are not taught at Sekishinkan Dojo.

If interested, please feel free to contact Mr. Tokugawa or Ms. Yamamoto at admin@takayamabudokai.com or leave a message here or at one of our dojo blog sites:

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