Palm Beach Bujinkan Dojo

A wonderful weekend of training with this amazing man. It was 40 years ago that he and Charles Daniel awarded me Shodan. Every single time I’ve trained with him since I felt my mind and skills expand. I’m incredibly lucky to have such a remarkable teacher and mentor.

Training today at 4:00

Just because you’ve seen a teacher perform or teach a technique one way, it does not mean it is the only way.

I’ve seen Sōke and nearly every Japanese Shihan—whether in person or on video—perform what many would call “the correct way” differently on numerous occasions. Please think carefully about this.

If you become blinded into believing your teacher is perfect and that everything they do is the only way, this is one of the downfalls of the follower. The natural changes that occur in their movement are often teaching you the deeper truth of Kihon and technique. Many people become stuck because they lack the capacity to see this. They desperately want something to exist in only one way.

Hatsumi Sensei repeatedly taught his long-term students the importance of being able to vary their approach to Kihon Waza. Why? Because no two opponents are the same.

I once had a student who was struggling to perform Ichimonji no Kata on someone much taller than himself. He came to me and said, “I can’t do the kata.”

I replied, “Then you have to change.”

He looked confused and said, “But I thought that when I mastered the form, it would work on everyone?”

This is a common misunderstanding.

Do not become locked into believing that the way you practise a technique is appropriate for every person and every situation. Hatsumi Sensei has repeatedly addressed this mistake in both his classes and writings. Students become attached to a particular expression of a technique and mistake it for the technique itself.

Kihon Waza, whether in Taijutsu or Bukijutsu, are not a means to an end. As Hatsumi Sensei has often said, they are merely the place where real training and understanding begin. They are, by design, meant to be changeable.

A technique must be understood deeply enough that it can adapt while maintaining its effectiveness. If you have not developed this capacity, then you are still collecting kata. Sōke has often described this as a disease within Budō.

Only when this and other diseases of learning become transparent can true Budō begin to emerge.

For example, in my Dōjō we warm up using foundational solo drills that evolve as students progress. Within these drills we practise five different applications of Omote and Ura Shutō Uchi. Why? Because there is more than one way. The same principle applies to Tsuki and countless other techniques.

One must practise Kihon consistently, but not blindly. There must be a willingness to acknowledge, explore, and accept change. The teacher and practitioner alike should continually investigate both the strengths and weaknesses of a technique. Through this process it becomes clear that no single expression of a technique is quintessential.

Use the base form and its underlying principles as a vehicle to study the many ways it can be adapted. Through this process one begins to appreciate the true vastness of its application.

If one fails to do this, eventually a surprise will come—or hopefully, an awakening. Eg: If you have been told to stay on the line and that there is no circular movement, good luck against a charging Sumo wrestler!

Correct training is the continual movement toward living the teaching of:
Banpen Fugyō (万変不驚)
“Ten thousand changes, no surprises.”

Also. Take what you do seriously but not so much yourself.😆
南虎