Ninja and Samurai Martial Arts Dojo

Posts Tagged ‘Ninjutsu’

Martial Arts Class - Bowing In and Out

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There are number of ways and meanings of bowing in and out of a traditional martial art school and there are differing mantras or sayings as well. At Poway Samurai Martial Arts, we use the bow in before class to state a mantra that is really more of a promise to keep each other safe and honor the tradition handed down to us just as those who proceeded us in the arts did. At the end, we bow out and thank the instructor and each other for the training and keeping each other safe.

Remember the kanji for “Nin” in ninjutsu (or ninpo as it is more aptly called today) is the sword over the heart, symbolizing patience, persistence and a guarding of one’s heart against the things that would do it harm or lead it to evil or wrong actions. It is through our discipline and patience that we learn the essence of our art both in the physical skills and the greater meaning.

See you in the Dojo.
Tony Whetstine (The Bushido Guy)
Poway Samurai Martial Arts

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Here we go again, a new movie about ninja martial arts is coming to the big screen and from the previews it looks to be an action packed ride of a martial arts movie. It also looks like it is going to be a fictional work with all of inaccuracies that modern practitioners of ninjutsu have to explain the truth about when students inquire about such training.

The reality is that there really isn’t very much legitimate ninjutsu around anymore. There are some traces in a few koryu (old school) Japanese martial arts and there is only one recognized unbroken lineage of a “ninjutsu” school still in practice, the Togakure Ryu, which I teach (although depending on who discusses the matter, there is debate on this too… but then again we are talking about ninjutsu so this is to be expected I suppose).

While teaching this school, among others, a lot of new students or even just casual inquirers have come to believe the “Hollywood” stereotype, based on the more popular Japanese anime and comic book portrayals, is the truth. The most gratifying return, for me as a practitioner and instructor is how well received the real training is once a student gives it a chance. Like most mythology, there are grains of truth as the seeds in the myths but understanding the reality vs. the fiction offers a very unique perspective on martial arts training and in life in general. It would be way too difficult to go into every detail of such a discussion of truth and myth in a blog but I am always willing to discuss these things in detail. If you are in the greater San Diego area feel to come and visit.

If you like a good martial arts movie with lots of “ninja” action, go see the new film Ninja Assassin. It looks like it will have plenty of it. If your motivated about martial arts and ninjutsu training, before or after seeing this film, feel free to contact me. If you do not live in San Diego, I will help you get in touch with a reputable instructor in your area.

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Whether the Ninjutsu is a Koryu martial art is a question I’ve read and been asked many times and there a plethora of opinions about this. A very common cited source for one opinion is Koryu.com and I have been asked my thoughts on this site.

In the interest of full disclosure, at my dojo, Poway Samurai Martial Arts, we practice the samurai and ninjutsu arts of the Takamatsuden as trained under the Jissen Kobudo Jinenkan.

It is important to recognize that despite the tremendous work and research done by Koryu.com and its primary sources of the Skoss’ and Dr. Karl Friday, they specifically state that they “Koryu.com” do not include ninjutsu and some related schools because they “…do not fall into OUR DEFINITION of the koryu bujutsu.” They go on to say “…just because we don’t share the same OPINION doesn’t mean that we are not all doing useful and good training.”

These are the key points. Neither the Skoss’ nor Dr. Friday have ever seen or examined the Takamatsuden related scrolls. Dr. Karl Friday, when confronted with the idea that he should ask Dr. Hatsumi to examine the documents for authenticity himself, said he was unqualified to make such a judgement.

The Kobudo arts of the Takamatsuden, have been recognized as Koryu by serveral Japanese organizations that are qualified to authenticate such scrolls, such as the Zen Nippon Todo Renmei among others.

The schools are listed in the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten, which is a catalogue of Koryu and Gendai Budo and due to its’ meticulous cataloging, formatting style and methods used in creating it, it has become THE standard academic reference for anyone doing research into the field of martial arts.

Basically what you have here are disagreeing opinions not unlike getting a Business Degree. For example, in California, the University of California has requirements that are different from the California State University system. Both are fully accredited but when transferring from one university to the other for the same business degree of study not all credits etc. transfer or are included in the curriculum of each university. Both have their own “opinions” of what a Business Degree requires and while there are differences there are typically more similarities.

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Wow, the last year has gone by fast! With that, it is time to turn our focus to a new sword school. We have been studying the sword work of the Kukishinden for the past year touching on the first scroll of the school in great depth. Those that have been with us for much of that year have blossomed beyond my wildest expectations. Having studied the “samurai” sword work for the past couple of years at Poway Samurai Martial Arts, we are now turning our attention to the sword work of the often misunderstood “ninja”.

Starting on August 4th, 2009, we will be spending the next few months studying the basics of the Togakure Ryu school’s “ninja” sword work to familiarize students with the understanding of its fundamentals and how it was used against “samurai” sword work. This is a rare opportunity to learn a historically accurate aspect of “ninja” training with the same kata taken directly from the scrolls the Tokagure Ryu Ninjutsu practioners used for hundreds of years. If you are sword enthusiast, samurai enthusiast, ninjutsu enthusiast or someone who wants to experience authentic ninjutsu training in the San Diego area, now is a rare opportunity to learn some material we will not cover again for two or three years!

See you in class!
Tony Whetstine (The Bushido Guy)
Poway Samurai Martial Arts

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