Gambatte Ne #4 Pt 2

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Test your knowledge
Think you know it all? In this space we will post
a picture of something dealing with our arts and
will invite you the reader to identify it. In
following issues we will post how many of you
were correct and share knowledge about the
item.
The winner in last month's contest is:
Adam Shaw of Mississauga. Congrats!
Here is this month's item.
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Send your answers to: [email protected]
Last month's item: Jum~i yari.
known as gyukaku-ugata (cow horn shaped)
jumonji-yari.
Many sword smiths included both yari and
naginata in their repertoire but the production of
jumonji-yari does not seem to have started before
the late Muromachi or Momoyama period (latter
half of the 16thcentury) when such schools as the
Kanabo (a late Yamato province school) made
something of a specialty of producing yari and
naginata.
It may be that the fencing techniques employing
the jumonji-yari were developed at this time by
the Hozoin school of spear fighting, which up
until this time only used su-yari (straight spears).
It is said that the leader of the school at that time,
Inei (1521-1607) was gazing into a calm pond
one moonlit night when the reflection of the
crescent moon crossed his yari and so inspired
the design of the jumonji-yari. The H6zoin
school then ordered many jumonji-yari tTom the
Kanabo sword smiths.
However, most of the extantjumonji-yari were
produced during the Edo period and were carried
in formal parades, especially daimyo
processions, where they became known as
mochi-yari (held-yari). It was considered a great
honour to be selected as the yari-mochi (spear
carrier) in such a cortege.
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Japanese
Part of understanding our tradition is
understanding at least a basic level of Japanese,
the original language of the ninja and samurai.
The cross shaped yari is known as a jumonji-yari
(tTomthe character for the number ten which in
Japanese is a cross).
There are a number of variations of the jumonjiyari, variously known as tsuki-gata (crescent
shaped), chidori-gata (plover shaped), kariganegata (goose shaped), and others. In this instance,
the sharply upturned side arms are said to
resemble the horns of a cow and it is therefore
Learning these basic phrases helps us to bridge
cultural gaps and helps us have a basic
understanding when training with Sensei who
might not speak our native tongues.
Here are some basic words, which you will
eventually come across in our art. Please
familiarize yourselves with these as well.
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EMPI KEN - elbow
FU -wind
FU - negativity
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FUDO - immoveable
FUDO KEN fist
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-immoveable
FUDOZA
FURl
- to swing,
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seat
spin
GAESHI turn, throw, free
GAKURE
-disappear,
hide
GAKUSEI - student
GANMEN - face
GANSEKI - cliff
GAT A - tech.
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GI honour, justice, uniform
GEDAN area below abdomen
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GENIN - troops (operative agent)
GEN JUTSU - art of illusions
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GI uniform for training, Honour
GIKAN desire for justice (truth)
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GO five
We should familiarize ourselves with as many
phrases and words, and try to build a large
vocabulary in Japanese.
NINJUTSU
The Art of Invisibili!y
This book came into my hands by a well
meaning individual who thought that I would
enjoy it. My wife. She found it in Chapters and
gave it to me for one of my birthdays. I usually
purchase my own books, this way eliminating
the myriads of fake ninja masters. Upon seeing
that it was written by Don Draeger I felt
somewhat better.
For those of you who don't know who he is, Don
Draeger was a very skilled and highly respected
martial artist. He traveled throughout Japan
studying many old styles ofbujutsu and brought
them into the open for westerners and even
Japanese to learn about through his many books.
Book / video review
Here we will review books and videos/movies on
the ninja and samurai arts.
This month we will be reviewing the
book,"Ninjutsu The Art of Invisibility", written
by the late Donn F. Draeger.
Published in 1989 by the Charles E. Tuttle Co.
Knowing that this author was a man who dealt
with the facts was intriguing. He never claimed
to be a ninja master or even a ninja. However I
had heard years ago that he had paid a visit to the
Bujinkan Dojo on one of his trips. On my last
trip to Japan I noticed a photograph hanging in
Ishizuka's dojo. I asked Ishizuka Shihan if it
was Don Draeger, and he replied that it was.
Reading through the book you see that he got
almost all of his information about the ninja
through Bujinkan sources. About 70-75% of his
info has been passed amongst the Bujinkan
instructors for the past 25 years or so. The other
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25-30% is drawn ftom some of the children's
books Hatsumi Sensei wrote which had make
believe ninja weapons, as well as ftom other
sources which have either little or no actual ninja
connections. He didn't seem like he was trying
to mislead people (like a lot of fake ninja
masters/writers do), it's just he didn't get
involved enough in the real deal to be able to
differentiate truth ftom fiction.
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POUC"'8KI! NOVINE
NOTICIAS
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I've given this book a two-shuriken rating. I
believe that Don wrote what he saw as truth.
However he never spent enough time checking
his facts and hastily wrote his book including
many mistakes.
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Rating:
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It's great to see one of our Bujinkan family being
so honoured. Keep up the good work Sensei
Rostohar.
Two senban shuriken!
Congratulations
Taijutsu Technique
Recently one of our Bujinkan Shihan was
featured in a Spanish Police magazine for his
skills.
Shihan Dean Rostohar 15thdan of Croatia was
featured with an expose in "NOTICIAS" while
training special police in Spain.
Sanshin no kata (elemental forms)
The following kata are based on elements in
nature and constitute the godai (great five
elements).
Chi no kata (earth techniques)
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IPAJI.JOL8KI!
POUCU8KE
NOVINI!
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Begin in a modified seigan no kamae with
the fist at the hip.
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Seminars
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Here we will keep you informed of upcoming
seminars, as well as reviews of those attended.
BUJINKAN SEISIDN CROATIA
Dean Rostohar
Shihan Ku~o
Happo Biken
1St Dan
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2 Take a step forward with the back leg.
Lower the front hand to protect the groin.
The backhand begins swinging forward,
similar to a pendulum on a clock.
March 24-25, 2007
3 Strike forward with sanshi ken (three
finger sword), having the entire force of
the body behind the strike, not just utilizing
ann strength.
Budapest, Hungary
Bujinkan Zanshin Dojo
(Magyar Attila Shidoshi-ho)
Kukishin Ryu Happo Biken Jutsu
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May 5 6, 2007
Wien (Vienna), Austria
Bujinkan Fushikaden Dojo
(Arnold StieWShidoshi)
Kukishin Ryu Happo Biken Jutsu
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May 17 28, 2007
Noda shi, Japan
Hatsumi Soke and Shihan's
(Shihan Dean Rostohar / Shihan Davor
Gasparovic)
Kukishin Ryu
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For more info contact
e-mail: [email protected]
For more info contact John
e-mail: [email protected]
[email protected]
For Sale
Carbon steel samurai sword. Black and red saya
and tsuka ito (handle wrapping). Sharp. Very
nice display piece. Does not have a full tang but
very good for doing test cutting on multiple
pieces of cardboard (have done this myself).
Retail price is $150 CDN. Will sell for $100
CDN to Bujinkan students. 4 left for sale. Take
all 4 for $300 ($75 each). Sword stand not
included.
mailto: nindial [email protected]
Mar 10 -11,2007
Zagreb, Croatia
Basic Rifle Course Level I / II
(Limited space)
Dean Rostohar & SPECWOG Team
Apr 1 - 29, 2007
Zagreb, Croatia
Parachuting Course
(Invitational)
Aero club Zagreb
May 12 - 13, 2007
Zagreb, Croatia
Pistol Course Level IV
(Limited space)
Dean Rostohar & SPECWOG Team
For more info contact
e-mail: [email protected]
Kacem Zoughari Seminar
April, 2007
Toronto, Canada
Kacem Zoughari
Shinken Kihon, Hanbo, Tanto
MythBusters "Ninja Special"
Written by Dale Seago.
The Discovery Channel TV show "MythBusters"
(http://en.wikipedia.orglwiki/MvthBusters)
is
doing an entire episode on fact vs. fiction about
"the Ninja", and they got in touch with me for
information (having done enough research to
realize that my teacher in Japan, Masaaki
Hatsumi, is the inheritor of the last known
historic ninjutsu traditions). I shot three
segments with them last Friday; was able to set
them straight on a lot of things, though I don't
know how much will get used that wasn't
actually in the filmed segments. (They're also
doing a lot of other stuff regarding "ninja
gadgetry" that I'm not involved with.)
Probably the most dramatic is going to be where
they explore the myth (?) that shuko hand claws
can stop a sword cut. None of my folks were
available at the time they wanted to shoot it (10
AM), but fortunately Joel Elliott, instructor for
the Sacramento dojo came out to help. It really
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wouldn't have been the same without him, as I
needed someone who really knew his way
around a sword to show the realism of it. And
fortunately I was able to first explain on-camera
the tactics that allow you to do something like
this. They were surprised to find that we were
going to be actually moving around, jockeying
for position, etc.
Insurers insisted we use a mogito
and try to kick my @$$ (his own words) and see
what happened. The results were predictable.
I should have the air date in about a week; right
now it looks like sometime in April.
Disclaimer
--steel blade
but not sharpened, which could still be really
nasty if it hits you. They also wanted me to wear
a helmet, but I declined and signed a release for
that.
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 dangerous activity.
The author or any contributors assume no
responsibility whatsoever for any misuse of this
knowledge. Please watch who and what you
teach.
Peace!
Nevin Zeljko Broz
Shidoshi-ho
Bujinkan Seishin Ninpo Ronin Dojo
Then we just did it. Cold, no rehearsal with each
other beforehand; and Joel was giving me such a
good "real fight" feeling that it didn't even occur
to me to just stop the sword
- I kept flowing
and
did the sort of thing I would have had it been a
real situation and "killed" him. We did about 20
takes of that, all with the same result, as they
wanted to get it from different angles.
Then they said they wanted to have one of their
crew try to get me with the sword. Much to my
surprise it turned out to be Kari Byron. Again,
we did it cold (but from a stationary start, and I
didn't "kill" her), though I did first show her how
to "get the distance" by placing the sword on my
head in the "finished" position and then taking a
step back. We did about ten or 12 takes on that
one, and what she lacked in form and technique
she made up for in sincerity as she tried to split
my skull.
In the afternoon we filmed some other stuff,
starting with Adam & Jamie coming in and
observing a class in session for a while, then
asking me some questions, and finally Adam
wanting to try some stuff out. I invited him to
play with the Kukishin ryu kata we were
working on, but he said he'd rather just attack me
Copyright 2007
Bujinkan Seishin Ninpo Ronin Dojo
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