Stephen K. Hayes

09/26/2026

To-Shin Do is constantly evolving. After all these years, An-shu Stephen K. Hayes and An-shu Rumiko U. Hayes are still refining their technique, asking challenging questions, and sharing their latest discoveries and insights. Top instructors, James Kentoshi Norris, Scott Akitoshi Bragg, and Bryan Toutoshi Griffin also shared some new twists on familiar techniques.

Big congratulations to Jeremy Teitoshi Park of Newbury Park Martial Arts Center on a successful sakki test and promotion to 5th Degree! (And a congrats and good luck to Kaitlin Dantoshi Voith of Quest Martial Arts Raleigh, who also passed her sakki test, but will be undergoing a final gauntlet at her home dojo's upcoming LAKE QUEST event.)

Special shout out to Tampa Quest for bringing a big crew, and much respect to all of our friends, like Dale Akitoshi Hesketh and Jay Celat, who braved long overseas flights to join us! And check out the awesome tengu mask and feather fan that Leo Dokutoshi Pimental acquired from an artisan in Japan as birthday gifts for the An-shu!

We're already working on plans for 2027—make sure to keep an eye on the EVENTS page at To-Shin Do Online!

09/02/2026

07/27/2026

07/06/2026

Wishing His Holiness the Dalai Lama a wonderful 91st birthday. Happy to have discovered this footage on some old tapes of our To-Shin Do founder, Stephen K. Hayes, back in 1993 working as a security es**rt for his dear friend and mentor. Stephen K. Hayes shared today on his own page how much he treasured the years they traveled together.

07/06/2026

Celebrating HH Dalai Lama's 91st birthday, and remembering my years traveling at his side

07/03/2026

Another Mountain Quest for the books. ⛰️

This past weekend An-shu Stephen K. Hayes Hayes delivered an incredible training experience deep in the stunning Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina.

During Friday's Yamabushi hike, we practiced kuji-5 intention perception exercises, followed by a powerful waterfall immersion and an evening of meditation in the dojo (while some powerful and much-needed rain rolled through).

Over the weekend we dug into our To-Shin Do training, working on both foundational concepts and defense as well as advanced locks and down-right mystifying escapes!

A crew of determined To-Shin Do practitioners pushed through trials of perseverance and skill to earn their black belts. (Check the video from our Mountain Quest hosts, Quest Jiu-Jitsu and Self Defense in the comments for a detailed wrap-up!)

Special thanks to all of the additional instructors who shared their knowledge: Bryan Griffin, Scott Bragg, Hardee Merritt, Leo Pimentel, and Anthony Daniels for guest instructing. And a huge thanks as always to Hardee, Rachel, and the rest of the Chapel Hill Quest team for all of your hard work in facilitating another awesome event!

Can't wait for next year's Mountain Quest!

[ Credit to Ren Zatopek for filming & Sarah Reuning for photography. ]

06/29/2026

Mountain Quest 26!

05/12/2026

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04/29/2026

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04/17/2026

An-shu Stephen K. Hayes and An-shu Rumiko Hayes hosted another energizing weekend of training at the To-Shin Do Hombu, their home dojo in Ohio. For this gathering, we focused on the Kukishinden Ryu Shoden scroll. An-shu Hayes expertly brought the historical combat principles to life in modern self-defense context. He also shared 2nd Kuji practices for balancing and re-vitalizing the body's natural energy centers. On Sunday we enjoyed the beautiful and bright spring day with sword training and meditation down by the river.

Phenomenal training partners from all over (as far as Hawaii!) came together for this special event. Many have several decades of training and teaching experience. It's easy to get comfortable with our familiar training partners and friends in our local training groups. Too often, we fall into a routine or pattern with our practice. Gatherings like this are so essential for sparking new ideas that keep things fresh, exciting, and challenging. Everyone leaves motivated to work on a few new things when they return home!

With more than 50 years training and teaching this art, An-shu Stephen and Rumiko Hayes' presentations keep getting better and better. It's inspiring to see them mixing in with training groups and practicing the techniques alongside everyone. It is a gift to watch your teachers demonstrating how to be students. A reminder to maintain the spirit of the beginner, forever seeking deeper understanding and refinement in our practices. The journey never ends! 🔥