I began my morning riding into Tokyo for some gift shopping along with a search for a few training items. I even relaxed at a Niwa in the heart of the city.
exploring the concept of 間が詳しい aida ga kuwashī. Hatsumi Sensei shared this idea with us of a good sense of timing by having a deep understanding of aida.
I began class with 風盂 Fūu. Muto dori that borders on mystical. But I shared a trick I learned recently from Soke to use your shako ken like totoku.
We warmed up with 雷光之剣 Raikō no Ken. I began class with 一撃 Ichigeki. This kata is all about control of space.
Many times in my advanced classes I use a kata as a starting place to draw in ideas from my training in Japan. For example, with 虚空 Koku, there is the use of the physical space, but also the metaphysical.
I got up early for a long train ride to 石神井城跡 Shakujiijō ato. I wanted to investigate the ruins of Shakujii castle. This also gave me some time for reflection on my training here in Japan and to add more detail to my training notes.
my Bujinkan video exploring the Bujinkan kata 一撃 Ichigeki. We began class with a warmup using 体変術無刀捕型 Taihenjutsu Mutōdori Gata. There are three of these, along with some natural henka.
all the way to what it means to be human. In this video I grapple with a type of take ori, and I discover a connection to 天地人 Tenchijin, a theory of the universe and our place in it.
Sensei’s expression of 以心伝心 ishin denshin, and his idea about 乗り替える norikaeru. These are from three separate classes because each class is a chance for discovery.