GN #39 June 2010

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GAMBATTENE
Newsletter for the advancement ofBujinkan studies - Takamatsuden
June 2010, Volume # 39
No Dojo Politics.. .No Hype. ..No Bull
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2
r.IASE KIUDAIU KINO J\1ASA-AKI.
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At tbe timo of his death be WMsixty two years old. He was a rigbteous and failhful man. W~en in the semce
fo Alaho his office wa1!that oCbend of police.
When t.he dominion of Akaho became extinct, be removed t4 Naniwa, and from thence frequently "iailed Oishi
at his count ry .eat in Yamashinn, and deliberated with him npon the pIan of revenge.
One night as he was retnrning from Oishi'. home. he saw, on tbe way said, !!eversl frogs aUaeking one larl!" /)ne.
At first tho large frog managed to repnlse the attacks of the smaller traga, but at last he was over powered and was
bitten to deatb by his enemies.
Ma.sa.al<i wa.sgreatly encouraged by the result of the combat of the nogs, and mentiound the circumstances to
Oishi on hi. next visit
Ue told him that it was a good omen of their course, aud hurried him all for tho day of re:venge
He seon aftor removed to Kanto (Tokio), .,hero be endured many hardships and privatioll8 wailillg for the day ot
reveuge. At la8t the long waited day arrived, and he heroically executed bis long cberished piM.
..
" 11
#2 of the 47 Ronin
3
This month
It's been a busy month for me as usual. The
older I get, the more there seems to be done?
Sorry I'm late again, but as the French say "C'est
la vie!" (That's life).
This month I've included an ancient manuscript,
which was known throughout China, by it's
warring generals. I was presented a copy of the
manuscript years ago but the translation wasn't
as good as the copy which is presented here for
you. I found it on-line in Wikipedia. I hope you
enjoy it and find a few new insights. If you find
nothing and think it's crap, that's ok too.
Everyone has a different perspective and level of
understanding.
Keep training and keep well.
Peace man!
Nevin Zeljko Broz
Shidoshi-ho
Bujinkan Seishin Ronin Dojo
nindja
[email protected]
Soke speaks
(To a befuddled practitioner) "The reason why
you cannot get this technique is because you are
good. But if you were not good. YOll could never
get it. ..
Soke Masaaki Hatsumi
Takenfrom "Quotations From Soke - Part IV"
by Benjamin Cole
36 Military Strategies of Ancient
China
The Thirty-Six Stratagems was a Chinese essay
used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in
politics, war, as well as in civil interaction, often
through unorthodox or deceptive means. They
were first published in the Western world by the
Swiss scholar Harro von Senger after he heard
the Chinese proverb "If all else fails, retreat" at
Taipei University.
The Stratagems are often misnamed as strategies;
however, stratagem (synonymous with ruse) has
nothing to do with strategy (being a long-term
plan or outline).
The name of the collection comes from the Book
of Qi, in its seventh biographical volume,
Biography of Wang Jingze. Wang was a general
who had served Southern Qi since the first
Emperor Gao of the dynasty. When Emperor
Ming came to power and executed many
members of the court and royal family for fear
that they would threaten his reign, Wang
believed that he would be targeted next and
rebelled. As Wang received news that Xiao
Baojuan, son and crown prince of Emperor
Ming, had escaped in haste after learning of the
rebellion, he commented which can be translated
literally as "of the thirty-six stratagems of Lord
Tan, retreat was his best, you father and son
should run for sure". Lord Tan here refers to
general Tan Daoji of the Liu Song Dynasty, who
was forced to retreat after his failed attack on
Northern Wei, and Wang mentioned his name in
contempt as an example of cowardice.
It should be noted that the number thirty-six was
used by Wang 'as afigl!r~.ofspeech in this
context, and is meant to denote numerous
stratagems instead of any specific number.
Wang's choice of this term was in reference to
the I Ching, where six is the number ofYin that
shared many characteristics with the dark
schemes involved in military strategy. As thirtysix is the square of six, it therefore acted as a
metaphor for numerous strategies. Since Wang
was not referring to any thirty-six specific
stratagems however, the thirty-six proverbs and
their connection to military strategies and tactics
are likely to have been created after the fact, with
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the collection only borrowing its name from
Wang's saying.
The Thirty-Six Stratagems have variably been
attributed to Sun Tzu from the Spring and
Autumn Period of China, or Zhuge Liang ofthe
Three Kingdoms period. but neither are regarded
as the true author by historians. Instead. the
prevailing view is that the Thirty-Six Stratagems
may have originated in both written and oral
history. with many different versions compiled
by different authors throughout Chinese history.
Some stratagems reference occurrences in the
time of Sun Bin, approx. 150years after Sun
Wu's death.
The original hand-copied paperback that is the
basis of the current version was believed to have
been discovered in China's Shaanxi province, of
an unknown date and author, and put into print
by a local publisher in 1941. The Thirty-Six
Stratagems only came to the public's attention
after a review of it was published in the Chinese
Communist Party's Guangming Daily newspaper
on September 16, 1961. It was subsequently
reprinted and distributed with growing
popularity.
Thirty-Six Stratagems
This stratagem references an episode in 643 AD,
when Tang emperor Tang Gaozong Li Simin,
baulked from crossing the sea to a campaign
against Koguryo. His General Xue Rengui
thought of a stratagem to get the Emperor across
and allay his fear of seasickness: on a clear day,
the Emperor was invited to meet a wise man.
They entered through a dark tunnel into a hall
where they feasted. After feasting several days,
the Emperor heard the sound of waves and
realised that he had been lured onto a ship!
General Xue drew aside the curtains to reveal the
ocean and confessed that they had already
crossed the sea: Upon discovering this, the
emperor decided to carry on and later completed
the successful campaign.
This stratagem means that you can mask your
real goals, by using the ruse of a fake goal that
everyone takes for granted, until the real goal is
achieved. Tactically, this is known as an "open
feint"; in front of everyone, you point west,
when your goal is actually in the east. By the
time everyone realised it, you have already
achieved your goal. Harro von Senger notes in
the German-Language "Die Liste" that to grasp
the full meaning, it would be something like "to
deceive the Holy Virgin Mary" in the West.
The Thirty-Six Stratagems are divided into a
preface, six chapters containing six stratagems
each, and an afterword that was incomplete with
missing text. The first three chapters generally
describe tactics for use in advantageous
situations. whereas the last three chapters contain
stratagems that are more suitable for
disadvantageous situations. The original text of
the Thirty-Six Stratagems has a laconic style that
is common to Classical Chinese.
This stratagem makes use of the human failing to
become unaware of common everyday activities.
or events that appear normal. The best secrets are
carried out in broad daylight. The best hoax is to
repeat it so often that people are convinced that
the next move is also a hoax. When this happens.
it is the best moment to carry out one's
previously hidden true objective.
Each proverb is accompanied by a short
comment, no longer than a sentence or two, that
explains how said proverb is applicable to
military tactics. These 36 Chinese proverbs are
related to 36 battle scenarios in Chinese history
and folklore, predominantly of the Warring
States Period and the Three Kingdoms Period.
When the enemy is too strong to be attacked
directly, then ~acksomething
he holds dear.
Know that he cannot 'be 'superior in all things.
Somewhere there is.a gap in the armour, a
weakness that can be attacked instead.
Chapter I: Winning Stratagems
Deceive the heavens to cross the ocean.
Prepare too much and you lose sight of the big
picture; what you see often you do not doubt.
Yin (the art of deception) is in Yang (acting in
open). Too much Yang (transparency) hides Yin
(true ruses).
Be~jegeWei to rescue Zhao
The origin of this proverb is from the Warring
States Period. The state ofWei attacked Zhao
and laid siege to its capital Handan. Zhao turned
to Qi for help, but the Qi general Sun Bin
determined it would be unwise to meet the army
ofWei head on, so he instead attacked their
capital at Daliang. The army ofWei retreated in
haste, and the tired troops were ambushed and
defeated at the Battle ofGuiling, with the Wei
general Pang Juan slain on the field. (Note that
5
this campaign is also described explicitly in the
Art of War of Master Sun Bin the younger.)
The idea here is to avoid a head on battle with a
strong enemy, and instead strike at his weakness
elsewhere. This will force the strong enemy to
retreat in order to support his weakness. Battling
against the now tired and low-morale enemy will
give a much higher chance of success.
Kill with a borrowed knife
Attack using the strength of another (in a
situation where using one's own strength is not
favourable). Trick an ally into attacking him,
bribe an official to turn traitor, or use the
enemy's own strength against him.
The idea here is to cause damage to the enemy
by getting a 3rd party to do the deed.
Leisurely await for the laboured
It is an advantage to choose the time and place
for battle. In this way you know when and where
the battle will take place, while your enemy does
not. Encourage your enemy to expend his energy
in futile quests while you conserve your strength.
When he is exhausted and confused, you attack
with energy and purpose.
The idea is to have your troops well prepared for
battle, in the same time that the enemy is rushing
to fight against you. This will give your troops a
huge advantage in the upcoming battle, of which
you will get to select the time and place.
Loot a burning
When a country is beset by internal conflicts,
when disease and famine ravage the population,
when corruption and crime are rampant, then it
will be unable to deal with an outside threat.
This is the time to attack. Keep gathering
internal information about an enemy. If the
enemy is currently in its weakest state ever,
attack it without mercy and totally destroy it to
prevent future troubles.
Make a sound in the east, then strike in the
west
In any battle the element of surprise can provide
an overwhelming advantage. Even when face to
face with an enemy, surprise can still be
employed by attacking where he least expects it.
To do this you must create an expectation in the
enemy's mind through the use of a feint.
The idea here is to get the enemy to focus his
forces in a location, and then attack elsewhere
which would be weakly defended.
Chapter 2: Enemy Dealing Stratagems
Create something from nothing
A plain lie. Make somebody believe there was
something when there is in fact nothing.
One method of using this strategy is to create an
illusion of something's existence, while it does
not exist. Another method is to create an illusion
that something does not exist, while it does.
Openly repair the gallery roads, but sneak
through the passage of Chencang
Deceive the enemy with an obvious approach
that will take a very long time, while surprising
him by taking a shortcut and sneak up to him. As
the enemy concentrates on the decoy, he will
miss you sneaking up to him.
The phrase originated from the Chu-Han
contention, where Liu Bang retreated to the lands
of Sichuan to prepare for a confrontation with
Xiang Yu. Once he was fully prepared, Liu Bang
sent men to openly repair the gallery roads he
had destroyed earlier, while secretly moving his
troops towards Guanzhong through the small
town of Chencang instead. When Xiang Yu
received news of Liu Bang repairing the gallery
roads, he dislpissed the threat since he knew the
repairs would take years to complete. This
allowed Liu Bang to retake Guanzhong by
surprise, and eyentually led to his victory over
Xiang Yu and .the bh:t11of the Han Dynasty.
This tactic is an extension of the "Make a sound
in the east, then strike in the west" tactic. But
instead of simply spreading misinformation to
draw the enemy's attention, physical baits are
used to increase the enemy's certainty on the
misinformation. These baits must be easily seen
by the enemy, to ensure that they draw the
enemy's attention. At the same time, the baits
must act as if what they meant to do what they
were falsely doing, to avoid drawing the enemy's
suspicion.
6
Watch the fires burning across the river
Delay entering the field of battle until all the
other players have become exhausted fighting
amongst themselves. Then go in at full strength
and pick up the pieces.
Hide a knife behind a smile
Charm and ingratiate yourself to your enemy.
When you have gained his trust, move against
him in secret.
Sacrifice the plum tree to preserve the peach
tree
There are circumstances in which you must
sacrifice short-term objectives in order to gain
the long-term goal. This is the scapegoat strategy
whereby someone else suffers the consequences
so that the rest do not.
Take the opportunity to pilfer a goat
While carrying out your plans be flexible enough
to take advantage of any opportunity that
presents itself, however small, and avail yourself
of any profit, however slight.
Chapter 3: Attacking Stratagems
Stomp the grass to scare the snake
Do something unaimed, but spectacular ("hitting
the grass") to provoke a response of the enemy
("startle the snake"), thereby giving away his
plans or position, or just taunt him. Do
something unusual, strange, and unexpected as
this will arouse the enemy's suspicion and
disrupt his thinking. More widely used as "[Do
not] startle the snake by hitting the grass". An
imprudent act will give your position or
intentions away to the enemy.
Borrow a corpse to resurrect the soul
Take an institution, a technology, a method, or
even an ideology that has been forgotten or
discarded and appropriate it for your own
purpose. Revive something from the past by
giving it a new purpose or bring to life old ideas,
customs, or traditions and reinterpret them to fit
your purposes.
Entice the tiger to leave its mountain lair
Never directly attack an opponent whose
advantage is derived from its position. Instead
lure him away from his position thus separating
him from his source of strength.
In order to capture, one must let loose
Cornered prey will often mount a final desperate
attack. To prevent this you let the enemy believe
he still has a chance for freedom. His will to
fight is thus dampened by his desire to escape.
When in the end the freedom is proven a
falsehood the enemy's morale will be defeated
and he will surrender without a fight.
Tossing out a brick to get a jade gem
Bait someone by making him believe he gains
something or just make him react to it ("toss out
a brick") and obtain something valuable from
him in return ("get a jade gem").
This proverb is based on a story involving two
famous poets of the Tang Dynasty. There was a
great poet named Zhao Gu and another lesser
poet by the name of Chang Jian. While Chang
Jian was travelling in Suzhou, he heard news that
Zhao Gu would be visiting a temple in the area.
Chang Jian wished to learn from the master poet,
so he devised a plan and went to the temple in
advance, then wrote a poem on the temple walls
with only two of the four lines completed,
hoping Zhao Gu would see it and finish the
poem. Zhao Gu acted as Chang Jian foresaw, and
from this story came the proverb.
Defeat the..enemy by capturing their chief
If the enemy's army is strong but is allied to the
commander only by money, superstition or
threats, then take aim"arthe leader. If the
commander falls the rest of the army will
disperse or come over to your side. If, however,
they are allied to the leader through loyalty then
beware, the army can continue to fight on after
his death out of vengeance.
Chapter 4: Chaos Stratagems
Remove the firewood from under the pot
If something must be destroyed, destroy the
source.
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Catch a fish while the water is disturbed
Create confusion and use this confusion to
further your own goals.
Slough off the cicada's golden shell
It's a strategy mainly used to escape from enemy
of a more superior force. One use this strategy by
slough off one's shell, which tricked the enemy
to believe to have grasped one's essential. Mask
yourself. Either leave flamboyant traits behind,
thus going incognito; or just masquerade
yourself and create an illusion to fit your goals
and distract others.
Shut the door to catch the thief
To capture your enemy, or more generally in
fighting wars, to deliver the final blow to your
enemy, you must plan prudently if you want to
succeed. Do not rush into action. Before you
"move in for the kill", first cut off your enemy's
escape routes, and cut off any routes through
which outside help can reach them.
Befriend a distant state while attacking a
neighbour
It is known that nations that border each other
become enemies while nations separated by
distance and obstacles make better allies. When
you are the strongest in one field, your greatest
threat is from the second strongest in your field,
not the strongest from another field.
Point at the mulberry tree while cursing the
locust tree
To discipline, control, or warn others whose
status or position excludes them from direct
confrontation; use analogy and innuendo.
Without directly naming names, those accused
cannot retaliate without revealing their
complicity.
Feign madness but keep your balance
Hide behind the mask of a fool, a drunk, or a
madman to create confusion about your
intentions and motivations. Lure your opponent
into underestimating your ability until,
overconfident, he drops his guard. Then you may
attack.
Remove the ladder when the enemy has
ascended to the roof
With baits and deceptions, lure your enemy into
treacherous terrain. Then cut off his lines of
communication and avenue of escape. To save
himself, he must fight both your own forces and
the elements of nature.
Deck the tree with false blossoms
Tying silk blossoms on a dead tree gives the
illusion that the tree is healthy. Through the use
of artifice and disguise, make something of no
value appear valuable; of no threat appear
dangerous; of no use appear useful. This is the
same stratagem as Potemkin villages.
Obtain safe passage to conquer the State of
Guo
Make tbe bost and the guest excbange roles
Borrow the resources of an ally to attack a
common enemy. Once the enemy is defeated, use
those resources to turn on the ally that lent you
them in the first place.
Usurp leadership in a situation where you are
normally subordinate. Infiltrate your target.
Initially, pretef.\!:1to be a guest to be accepted, but
develop from Inside ~I1d,become the owner later.
Chapter 5: Proximate Stratagems
Cbapter 6: Defeat Stratagems
Replace the beams with rotten timbers
The beauty trap (honey trap)
Disrupt the enemy's formations, interfere with
their methods of operations, change the rules in
which they are used to follow, go contrary to
their standard training. In this way you remove
the supporting pillar, the common link that
makes a group of men an effective fighting force.
Send your enemy beautiful women to cause
discord within his camp. This strategy can work
on three levels. First, the ruler becomes so
enamoured with the beauty that he neglects his
duties and allows his vigilance to wane. Second,
other males at court will begin to display
aggressive behaviour that inflames minor
differences hindering co-operation and
8
destroying morale. Third, other females at court,
motivated by jealousy and envy, begin to plot
intrigues further exacerbating the situation.
The empty fort strategy
When the enemy is superior in numbers and your
situation is such that you expect to be overrun at
any moment, then drop all presence of military
preparedness, act calmly and appear disrespect of
the enemy, so that the enemy will think you have
hidden huge power and you want to trap them
into the fort with your calm and easiness. This
has to be used when in most of the cases, you do
have huge power hidden under the disguise and
you only play the real empty rarely. Use this
against people who are really smart.
Let the enemy's own spy sow discord in the
enemy camp
Undermine your enemy's ability to fight by
secretly causing discord between him and his
friends, allies, advisors, family, commanders,
soldiers, and population. While he is preoccupied
settling internal disputes, his ability to attack or
defend, is compromised.
defeat. As long as you are not defeated, you still
have a chance.
Final Note: While preparing this newsletter I
spoke with one of my many Chinese friends
about this manuscript. He had been taught it
from his father who learned it in Vietnam during
the army.
Soke speaks
"It is very' important YOIi all have and protect the
'blldo' heart. YOIiare not to be politicians. YOIi
are not to be salesmen. You are to be, first and
foremost. martial artists. EvelY thing else is
secondary to that. That is my wish. "
Sake Masaaki Hatsllmi
-
Taken from "Quotations From Soke Part IV"
by Benjamin Cole
Health and Wellness
Inflict injury on oneselfto win the enemy's
trust
Pretending to be injured has two possible
applications. In the first, the enemy is lulled into
relaxing his guard since he no longer considers
you to be an immediate threat. The second is a
way of ingratiating yourself to your enemy by
pretending the injury was caused by a mutual
enemy.
Chain stratagems
In important matters, one should use several
stratagems applied simultaneously after another
as in a chain of stratagems. Keep different plans
operating in an overall scheme; however, in this
manner if anyone strategy fails, then the chain
breaks and the whole scheme fails.
If everything else fails, retreat
If it becomes obvious that your current course of
action will lead to defeat. then retreat and
regroup. When your side is losing, there are only
three choices remaining: surrender, compromise,
or escape. Surrender is complete defeat,
compromise is half defeat, but escape is not
Here is some information about a type of tree
found throughout Europe and North America. It
has many uses as an herb, tea etc... It's
commonly known to many of us as the Linden
tree, however it falls under the genus ofTilia.
Linden tree
The Tilia family consists of approximately 30 or
so species of trees, which are native throughout
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most of the Northern Hemisphere (Asia, Europe
and the eastern half of North America.
These types of trees are generally called lime in
Britain and linden or basswood in North
America.
Linden was originally the adjective, "made :trom
lime-wood" (equivalent to "wooden"), :tromthe
late 16th centuIy "linden" was also used as a
noun, probably influenced by translations of
German romance, as an adoption of Linden, the
plural of German Linde.
Neither the name nor the tree is related to the
citrus fruit called "lime".
Characteristics
The tree produces fragrant and nectar-producing
flowers, the medicinal herb lime blossom. They
are very important honey plants for beekeepers,
producing a very pale but richly flavoured
monofloral honey. The flowers are also used for
herbal tea, and this infusion is particularly
popular in Europe.
Linden tea has a pleasing taste, due to the
aromatic volatile oil found in the flowers.
Active ingredients in the Tilia flowers include
flavonoids (which act as antioxidants), volatile
oils, and mucilaginous constituents (which
soothe and reduce inflammation). The plant also
contains tannins that can act as an astringent.
Tilia flowers are used medicinally for colds,
cough, fever, infections, inflammation, high
blood pressure, headache (particularly migraine),
as a diuretic (increases urine production),
antispasmodic (reduces smooth muscle spasm
along the digestive tract), and sedative.
The flowers were added to baths to quell
hysteria, and steeped as a tea to relieve anxietyrelated indigestion, irregular heartbeat, and
vomiting, The leaves are used to promote
sweating to reduce fevers. The wood is used for
liver and gallbladder disorders and cellulitis
(inflammation of the skin and surrounding soft
tissue). That wood burned to charcoal is ingested
to treat intestinal disorders and used topically to
treat edema or infection such as cellulitis or
ulcers of the lower leg.
Slavic mythology
In old Slavic mythology, the Tilia (Iipa, as called
in all Slavic languages) was considered a sacred
tree. In Poland many villages have a name
"Swi~ta Lipka" (or similar) what literally means:
"Holy Lime". Lipa gave name to the traditional
Slavic name for the month of June (Croatian,
lipanj) or July (Polish, lipiec). It is also the root
for the German city of Leipzig. The Croatian
currency, kuna, consists of 100 lipa, which also
means Tilia. .
T. cordata is the preferred species for medical
use, having a high concentration of active
compounds. It is said to be good for calming
nerves, used by herbalists in treating restlessness,
hysteria, and headaches. Usually, the doubleflowered Tilias are used to make perfumes. The
leaf buds and young leaves are also edible raw.
Medicine
Most medicinal research has focused on Tilia
cordata although other species are also used
medicinally and somewhat interchangeably. The
dried flowers are mildly sweet and sticky, and
the fruit is somewhat sweet and mucilaginous.
'.
Soke speaks
..What happens if your leg hurts and you have
trouble moving? What happens {(you cannot
move one of your legs? Thenjust move like this.
(Keeps his left leg bolted to the floor and moves
his rightfoot around: Ollt to the right. backward.
behind the left one.) You need to be able to
adjust to your situation. ..
Soke Masaaki Hatsumi
10
-
Taken from "Quotations From Soke Part IV"
by Benjamin Cole Sake Masaaki Hafsumi
Taken from "Quotations From Soke - Part IV"
by BenjaminCole
Book / Video review
Here we will review books and videos/movies on
the ninja and samurai arts.
This month we will feature a short review on the
Book titled, "Qigong For Health and Martial
Arts", written by Dr. Yang Wing Ming
IGONG2HEALTH
AND
MARTIALARTSj
EXIRCISES
--
& MEDITATION
Qigong exercises and soothing massage
techniques to help you recover more quickly
from injury. In addition, Dr. Yang discusses
Qigong and health, and charts the major cavities
used in the martial arts.
* Develop explosive martial power.
* Recover quickly from injury.
* Choose from ten Qigong training sets.
* Easily integrated with any martial style.
* Over 200 photographs and illustrations.
Reviews: Many years ago, when I was sweating
and groaning my way through a daily karate
class, I was exposed to chi kung. This book was
my first text. The instruction, both text and
photo, is exceptionally clear. You will find the
Eight Piece Brocade and the Twelve Moving
Forms, each of which make a wonderful physical
work-out, even if you aren't particularly
interested in all that chi-stuff. There is also a set
of standing chi kung forms which are very good
for learning to notice and direct your chi. The
martial section was fun to read as was the section
on Chinese yoga.
I used to get pretty banged-up in that karate
program, because I was a middle-aged mom in
there with a bunch of teens and young men.
Every night. I would do these chi kung exercises
to get rid of the pain and bruises so I could get
back to class the next day. Yes...it works! I am
not doing karate any more, but have pursued chi
kung through the years. This book is a
magnificent introduction to the subject. It's all
business; no new age drivel anywhere.
Jon M. Perlin NC, USA
;..
..,
t
"Quick Overview"
Increase your strength, improve your health, and
-
develop explosive martial power with Qigong
the cultivation of your body's internal energy.
Renowned Qigong and martial arts master Dr.
Yang, Jwing-Ming explains how and why
Qigong can improve your martial training, and
presents ten complete sets of proven Qigong
exercises for martial artists and health seekers.
You'll gain muscular strength and vitality,
increase your fighting power, and learn
meditation training for improved concentration
and longevity. This book also includes healing
I bought this ,book while I was undergoing
acupuncture treatment for arthritis. The
acupuncturist was also a Kungfu Sifu who
recommended.111e exercises in this book, to
supplement his treatifi~nts. That was about one
year ago, today my arthritis is virtually gone and
whenever it acts up these exercises help me a lot.
XAM, NYC, USA
George Lucas' idea of the force is most certainly
real in the Asian martial arts. It is your chi or qi,
and this book shows you how to develop it.
These exercises combine breathing techniques to
build up your chi and increase overall health.
They are effective and draining, I was exhausted
after my first few forms even though they invole
little outward movement. The focus is inward
and you can feel the results, as your blood and
11
tendons tingle and heat up. The photos didn't
really confuse me at all and I have no prior
experience. They seem fairly straightforward and
along with the descriptions of the fom1 it is easy
for a novice to begin building up their 'force'.
Good thorough book.
Tllis review is from: Qigollgfor Healtll &
Martial Arts, Secolld Editioll: Exercises alld
Meditatioll (Qigollg, Healtll alld Healillg)
(Paperback):
http://www.mississaugabujinkan.com/ka
cem-zoughari-toronto
or
http://www.mississaugabujinkan.com
then click on .seminar link
Shihan Sveneric Bogsater
Flying shuriken rating.
8ujinkan seminar Wi~
Shlhan
Rating:
++++
Sveneric Bogsater
InPrague
2&-
Four senban shuriken!
June 26
Soke speaks
I
I
"Don't make the other person your opponent. If
you do that, you lose your awareness to other
-2~ Junll 2010
- 27th,
20 I 0
Prague,CzechRepublic
BujinkanTaijutsu-basicprinciplesof fighting
withknife
Info: [email protected],
tel: 736 208050
[email protected], tel: 736 534469
people. Taijutsuis notjust oneon one."
Shihan Jack Hoban
Soke Masaaki Hatsumi
Taken from "Quotations From Soke
by Benjamin Cole
I
- Part IV"
Seminars
Here we will keep you informed of upcoming
seminars, as well as reviews of those attended.
If you want to advertise your seminar here
contact us at: nindja
[email protected]
Kacem Zoughari
I
June 12,2010
Spring Lake, NJ, USA
Weapons training, Budo taijutsu,
DefendingOthers
_
'For more information:
http://www.winjutsu.com/seminars/hoba
.'
.
n-y.j:.htm
Buyu Camp West
June 18 - 20th, 20 I0
Many guest Shidoshi will participate and teach!
San Francisco, CA, USA
http://www.winjutsu.com/seminars/buyu
camp/index.htm
June 26/27, 2010
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Kukishinden Ryu Kusari Fundo (weighted
chain)
-
The Ethical Warrior Seminar
July l7'h, 20 I 0-06-04
12
..TheEthicalWarrior"
SpringLake,NJ, USA
Formoreinformation:
http://www.winjutsu.com/seminars/hoba
n-nj .htm
Aix en Provence / France
MINI-KAI #2 : Koto Ryu
Info: [email protected]
Shidoshi-ho Nedeljko Asanin
"Conflict Resolution: A Protector /
Defender Perspective"
July31, 2010
GrandRapids,MI
http://www.winjutsu.com/seminars/hoba
n~ray _ seminar.html
July 3rd_4'\ 2010
Bitola, Macedonia
Selfdefence using Kamae and Gogyo
Shihan Paul Richardson
Shihan Lubos Pokorny
June 5 - 6, 20 I0
Eastern Martial Arts Centre
Richmond, VA. USA
Taijutsu, Kyoketsu Shoge, Shuko, Kenjutsu and
Shinobi Gaeshi
Info: www.easternmartialartscenter.com
2th.- 10th.July20I0
SumavaNationalPark,CzechRepublic
19th,SummerSeminarBujinkanCzechDojo
[email protected]
Phone: 00420 603876802
Shihan Ed Lomax
October 2 - 3rd,20 I0
Dublin, Ireland
Tachi
Info: www.bujinkan.ie
www.fudochin.com/info
or mail
[email protected]
.
Shihan Andrej Jasenc
. June 12 - 13,2010
Banja Luka, Bosnia
Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu
Contact; 'sojo'[email protected]
.
}' ,.'
Kikanjyu
Shidoshi Agustin Martinez
Aug 27 -29,2010
Czech Republic
Lubos Pokorny, Paul Masse, Doug Wilson, Pete
Reynolds, Rob Renner
June 13,2010
www.bujinkandojo.eu/kikanju
13
Sword Appreciation Comer
Kamakura Period
(Outline)
The Kamakura Period had produced many
master smiths and they founded various schools
across the country. There is no doubt that the
Kamakura Period is the most impressive term
through the history of the Japanese sword. Main
production sites of the Japanese sword before the
Kamakura Period were Yamashiro, Bitchu, Hoki,
Chikugo, Bungo and Satsuma Provinces.
Entering the Kamakura Period, the sword
production site spread to Yamato, Sagami, Mino,
Mutsu, Etelm, Bingo, Suo, Chikuzen and Higo
Provinces, and so on. Bizen Province had thrived
most through up to the Kamakura Period then
Bizen smiths created gorgeous o-choji-midare in
thick
nioi-deki,
meanwhile
Masamune
accomplished peculiar forging method and
produced peculiar jigane with a lot of chikei.
The Japanese sword is inseparably related to
bushi therefore it is quite natural that the
Japanese sword made astonishing progress when
bushi expanded their power most. At the
beginning of the Kamakura Period, retired
Emperor Gotoba called up master smiths to his
palace and had them forge swords there. He
occasionally tempered by himself and his
enthusiasm encouraged swordsmiths very much.
There seem to be many errors in copying about
'Gotoba In Goban Kaji' (swordsmiths called up
by the Imperial order) described in 'Kanchi-in
Bon Mei Zukushi' and other old sword books.
Though, 'Jokyu Ki' says "Gotoba In (Retired
Emperor Gotoba) had Tsuguie and Tsugunobu
forge swords then quenched them by himself.
The swords quenched by him are called 'Goshoyaki'. Court nobles and 'Hokumen no bushi'
(Royal guards) loved to wear the gosho-yaki."
Japan was preparing for the invasion of
Mongolians at that times and I supposed that
swordsmith became to produce stout and
practical swords under such circumstances.
The Japanese sword became to have
distinguished features trom the middle of
Kamakura Period, that is to say, wide mi-haba
and little tapering sugata also extended chukissaki in the late Kamakura period. In the
meantime, o-choji is tempered in the middle of
the Kamakura Period then gunome-midare and
notare-midare in the late Kamakura Period.
Choji, gunome and notare are also seen before
the middle of the Kamakura Period but hamon
became to be tempered on the basis of choji,
gunome and notare from the middle of the
Kamakura Period. The production of tanto was
in full swing and they have uchi-zori or no sori
and shorter ha-watari but they became to have
wide mi-haba and slight sori at the end of the
Kamakura Period.
More hi and religious horimono are seen on the
blades in this age including bo-hi with bo-hi,
futa-suji-bi, koshi-bi. bo-hi with soe-bi, bo-hi
with tsure-bi, naginata-bL goma-hashi, su-ken,
ken with sanko, bonji, fudomyo-o, kurikara,
names of gods and deities. Most of hi carved on
the shinogi-ji of tachi has kaki-nagashi end or
square end in the habaki area. Entering the
middle of the Kamakura Period, bo-hi became to
have round end and ascended hi-saki. Though,
bo-hi with descended hi-saki is also seen at the
end of the Kamakura Period.
There are some extant works of naginata made in
the Kamakura Period and has narrower mi-haba
in the upper part and shallower sori than those of
naginata made after the Nambokucho Period. We
have not confirmed the existence of genuine
hoko and yari made in the Heian and Kamakura
Periods but there are two yari (one of them has a
signature of 'Minamoto no Rai Kunitoshi') that
are a worthy of further study in their production
age. Both of them are short yari in hira-sankakuzukuri. A large sasaho-yari owned by the Nangu
Shrine is said to have been made by a Senjuin
smith but the ji and the ha are not visible since
the blade was half polished but not finished.
Inferring trom well-formed sugata and niku, the
yari is a wor~ of the Kamakura Period or no later
than that.
.
Ken was not:a practical weapon of bushi and
used for BudClhists1:rvice. There are only two
extant ken by Gojo Kanenaga and Kuninaga,
which we can confirm of the production age of
the Heian Period. There are a certain number of
ken made by famous smiths of the Kamakura
Period like Awataguchi Kuniyoshi, Yoshimitsu,
Niji Kunitoshi, Rai Kunitoshi, Rai Kunitsugu,
Hosho
Sadayoshi,
Osafune
Mitsutada,
Nagamitsu, Motoshige, Hatakeda Sanemori and
so on. Most of them are in ryo-shinogi-zukuri
then have short ha-watari and little tapering
sugata also their hamon are tempered on the
basis of sugu-ha. Also there are some mumei ken
that are said to have been made by Amakuni,
14
Shinsoku and Yukihira. Their hamon are
deformed and don't have particular pattern. They
include sai-ha blades but have something in
commonwith the hamonof the hoko conserved
in the Shoso-in Depository. These hamon appear
to suggest a quenching technique of very old ken
and hoko and further research is needed.
Taken from Token Bijutsu No.553, Nihon Koto
Shi (History of Koto)
Please watch who and what you
teach.
Peace!
Nevin Zeljko Broz
Shidoshi-ho
Bujinkan Seishin Ronin Dojo
By Dr. Honma Junji
Sake speaks
"Do not fall to the side and land on your hand
like this. YOllmay break YOllr wrist or forearm,
or jar the elbow or sholiider. This will lead to
troubles in YOllr sholiider and other joints as you
age. Please be careflii. ..
Soke Masaaki Hatsllmi
Copyright 20 I0
Bujinkan Seishin Ronin Dojo
-
Taken from "Quotations From Soke Part IV"
by Benjamin Cole
Disclaimer
It is highly recommended that medical advice be
sought before following any of the suggestions
written in this newsletter. It is also highly
recommended to seek out a qualified, competent
instructor to guide you safely before attempting
this or any other potential knowledge.
The purpose of publishing this newsletter is to
help serious students of the Bujinkan advance
their studies through a community effort. This
concept is reflected in the name of our
newsletter, "Gambatte ne", which means, "Keep
going". Please feel free to pass this information
among other Bujinkaners.
All content published here is for the exclusive
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have anything to contribute please e-mail it to
me and it will be considered for publication.
Any comments or questions will be welcomed.
The author or any contributors assume no
responsibility whatsoever for any misuse ofthe
information found in these pages.
This is NOT an official Bujinkan newsletter.
.
'.'