K I H O N
Newsletter #23
Mar/Apr 2002 ISSN# 1534-1437
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An email newsletter focusing on Ninjutsu/Budo
Taijutsu training. Published by www.KIHON.com
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**** CONTENTS ****
>> Sempai Insights
>> Taijutsu Tips
>> Budo Quotes
>> Keiko Events
>> Shidoshi Comments
*** Sempai Insights *****
Your Own Worst Enemy
Don Houle, BNYD
In the course of our training, we sometimes become
frustrated and feel like we are up against a wall
- banging our heads but not progressing. One step
back follows each step forward, and nothing seems
to turn out right or go the way we expect.
Often, our frustration is due to our internal
struggles, rather than our physical difficulties.
Our teacher and sempai offer suggestions and
methods to improve our movement, but are we really
listening to their suggestions? Are we really
taking them to heart, or are we acknowledging them
at the time and continuing on in our own stubborn
ways? Sometimes this happens because we are so
accustomed to hearing our teacher give suggestions
that we begin to ignore the content, the intent of
the original point, and the words become just
background noise to our mental dialogue.
Sometimes, we just dont want to acknowledge that
the only way to advance is through continued
training and hard work.
Next time you are offered a helpful suggestion by
your teacher or sempai, take a few seconds to
really acknowledge the point, and make sure that
you are working to incorporate that point into
your movement. Become especially aware of how your
body is responding to the changes you made and
save any evaluation until after training. You will
probably find that if you consciously work in this
way, your self-created problems will simply
disappear.
*** Taijutsu Tips *****
Ninjutsu: A Few Years Later...
Glenn Catania, BNYD
I have been training a few years now, and Ive been
thinking about where it all began, and where it
has taken me. When I think about the development
of my training, my favorite quote is this: "First
mountains were mountains, and rivers were rivers.
Then mountains were not mountains, and rivers were
not rivers. Finally, mountains were mountains, and
rivers were rivers."
This might mean many different things to different
people, or it might not mean anything at all. This
quote always makes me think about the different
stages of training. Like most people (though they
probably wont admit it), I imagined a dark figure
roaming around in the shadows, fighting injustice
and protecting the innocent. That is what I
thought I was going to get when I first started
training, a kind of knight or Batman. As time went
on I realized that was not what it was at all. In
fact it was so much more, so much greater. I was
learning so much about my self and my
capabilities. I realized what it takes to work
together as a team. It became this incredible
thing I was learning, and understanding that
helped me learn so much more. When it hits you for
the first time (whatever "it" is to you), you will
never forget the feeling. Finally, all this
amazing stuff you are doing and learning becomes a
regular experience for you, and it is so much more
than you thought it could ever be. Finally,
mountains are mountains, and rivers are rivers.
*** Budo Quotes *****
A teacher is a teacher and a student
is a student. Do not forget to thank
your teacher and be respectful. I
found my purpose in life and passion
because of [my] sensei.
By Masaaki Hatsumi
[Ninpo: Wisdom for Life, Page 24]
http://www.kihon.com/ninpo/
*** Keiko Events *****
* New York Workshops and Events
http://www.kihon.com/dojo/events.html
* Bujinkan New York Dojo
http://www.kihon.com/dojo/ny.html
* Bujinkan Middlesex Shibu
http://www.kihon.com/dojo/nj.html
* Bujinkan Tai Kai (USA)
http://www.taikai.com/
*** Shidoshi Comments *****
Teacher and Parent
Joe Maurantonio, BNYD
If you want to learn the martial arts you will
have to find a teacher to help guide you along the
way. No amount of book learning, videotape
viewing, surfing the internet or attending monthly
seminars will make you more than a dedicated
dabbler. To deeply understand the martial arts you
will need to find a teacher with high standards
who is dedicated to the philosophy of the warrior
ways (perseverance, loyalty, wisdom, courage,
etc). Someone who has experiences you wish to
acquire; a person that is constantly honing their
own skills and advancing their personal training.
I hear many people compare martial arts teachers
to parents. This is true in the sense that a
teacher can help birth and nurture the martial
artist. A good teacher will demand more of you
then you demand of yourself. They will help you
rise to the occasion, cultivate your character and
assist you in refining yourself. Yet, unlike
familial bonds, the teacher-student relationship
is one of choice.
Parents provided their children with the breath of
life. They raise you through the years, providing
you with food and education. In Japanese culture,
simply being born incurs an endless debt to
ancestors. If your parents are honorable then your
debt is greater. If they are ill-mannered it is
your place to rise above this behavior and amend
their actions for your ancestors.
Your teacher directs you on your life's journey, a
journey you have chosen. He has a debt to his
ancestors and to his martial predecessors to
assure that you will not tarnish the tradition he
shares with you. With your teacher, you accumulate
continual debt due to the nature of the lessons
you are learning. Both you and your teacher can
sever this relationship should either not live up
to their obligations.
In Japan, the three most important relationships
you will have in your life are: Parent and child,
husband and wife, and teacher and student. As my
teacher says, please think this way.
_________________ KIHON Newsletter ______________
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KIHON Newsletter and all contents
Copyright (c) 1999, 2002 by Joe Maurantonio
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