Seishin Dōjō

Some snapshots from recent full day training.

Some more photos from recent training sessions.

A couple of weeks ago some of us went to the Kowhai Forge in rural Waikato, New Zealand, for an experience of blacksmithing our own tools and art! This was a social activity for the dōjō and a great experience to see with our own eyes how blacksmithing works in the modern world and the smiths at the forge were great at showing and telling us about their craft. Then, under their guidance, we could try our own hand at making something. Awesome experience. They operate a proper coal fire forge and source the coal domestically in New Zealand.

In the practice of technical syllabus of traditional Japanese Ryūha it is important to pay attention to both sides of the technique: Tori (Defender) and Uke (Attacker). Sometimes it is easy to pay special attention only to the Tori (Defender), since he is the one learning the technique while viewing Uke (Attacker) as merely someone that provides the mechanical movement the Tori then learns to react to. In reality, the Uke's side is just as important and has just as many lessons for the Uke to learn. The Uke practices being on the offensive, which means he has to attack in such a way that the Tori will surely be defeated if he does not perform the technique correctly within the context of the kata. This means, having the correct foundations, mechanics and understanding of his attack as well as having the intention to attack (not just simply "going through the motions"). The Uke also learns to perform correct ukemi to save himself from Tori's technique.

An article by Sean Askew below:

Before Koto Ryū, There Is Gyokko Ryū

To truly understand and practice Koto Ryū Koppōjutsu correctly, one must first develop a strong foundation in Gyokko Ryū Kosshijutsu.

Koto Ryū is often seen as direct, powerful, sharp, and destructive. Its feeling is different from Gyokko Ryū, yet it is not separate from it. Koto Ryū is complementary to Gyokko Ryū and in many ways Gyokko Ryū can be seen as the mother school that gives Koto Ryū its deeper structure, distance, timing, and body method.

Before one can properly express the hard, percussive, feeling of Koto Ryū, one must first understand the evasive, circular, spacious, and strategic feeling of Gyokko Ryū.

For this reason, it is worth looking carefully at the very first kata of Gyokko Ryū:

Kokū 虚空

The word Kokū means “empty space,” “vast space,” or “the open void.” It is not simply “nothingness.” It is the space in which movement appears. It is the emptiness that receives, transforms, and gives birth to action.

This same word kokū appears in Kokūzō Bosatsu 虚空蔵菩薩, the Bodhisattva of the Treasury of Space, who is connected in Japanese esoteric Buddhism with wisdom, memory, insight, and the vast storehouse of awakened understanding. Whether or not the kata name was intended as a direct religious reference, the obvious symbolism is powerful.

Gyokko Ryū begins with Kokū because the first lesson is space.

Do not clash. Do not meet force with force. Do not stand where the enemy expects you to be.

The attacker enters, but you become empty to his attack. You remove the target, shift the angle, control the distance, and allow the counter to arise from the space he has created.
This is not passive emptiness. This is active emptiness.

It is the void that produces technique. It is the opening that becomes a trap.
It is the space where the opponent thinks he has found victory, only to discover that he has entered into your control.

This first kata sets the feeling for the entire ryū. Gyokko Ryū teaches that true power does not begin with strength. It begins with maai (distance), timing, angle, posture, and awareness. Before striking, before locking, before throwing, before breaking, one must first understand space.

And this is why Gyokko Ryū is essential for Koto Ryū.

Without Gyokko Ryū, Koto Ryū can easily become only hard striking and aggression. But with Gyokko Ryū as its foundation, Koto Ryū becomes something much deeper: precise, hidden, strategic, and alive.

So, when we look at the first kata, Kokū, we are not simply looking at a technique. We are looking at a doorway into the feeling of the entire tradition.

The first gate of Gyokko Ryū is not force.

It is space.

And within that space, the whole ryū begins to reveal itself.

Study of angles, timing, distance and rhythm is vital to understanding principles of safe movement. A good Uke will attack true and with intention, ensuring that the Tori will surely be struck if the Tori's movement is unsafe and inappropriate to the current circumstance. The Tori discreetly intercepts the initiative of the encounter by breaking the rhythm of Uke's attack after the Uke has committed to it and is certain that he has gained an upper hand and is about to emerge victorious. How can one discreetly intercept the initiative? This is a skill mastering which is essential to advancing along the path of Budō.

Taking care of training weapons for winter season to prevent damage. It is important for a Budōka to care after their tools and equipment as part of their daily practice.

An awesome shot capturing movement