Bujinkan Sonoma Dojo, Santa Rosa, CA (2026)

05/30/2026

Hatsumi sensei was told by Takamatsu sensei that he would not be a Meijin 名人( martial arts master ) but rather become a Tatsujin 達人( accomplished/completed human being ). At first, Hatsumi Sensei said he was disappointed and saddened by this. However, after some time, he came to the realisation of what a great compliment this was from Takamatsu Sensei.

Hatsumi Sensei has continually expressed that he is not teaching us how to fight, but rather, how to live. I think if people took the time to continually refresh their minds of this, than people would mature in their martial practice of Hatsumi Sensei’s Budô.

南虎

05/15/2026

“You must prove your rank.”
宗家Nagato
( April 13th 2024 )

If you understand, you understand.
If you don’t, you don’t.
It’s quite simple.

“It is not a matter of whether the degree ranks have value or not. Any perceived value is totally subjective anyway. Value is in the mind of the beholder. What is important here is to know the facts of just how the degree licenses are given out. It is also true that the time has come for certain people to feel embarrassed if they are satisfied with certificates of rank that were based solely on the premature hopes that those persons would someday develop skills worthy of the title they carry. Many highly-skilled Bujinkan Dōjō instructors are now moving out into the world. A person may claim that he has such-and-such a rank, but I can say that even though the rank is issued under my authority, it cannot be right. After that, it is up to the individual. It is up to his own effort to succeed or fail.
I do not even think about such things as the Bujinkan Dōjō reputation being disgraced because of my actions. The whole world is our training hall, so of course when certain students stumble or fail the whole world will see the Bujinkan tempering process in operation. If critics want to call that a disgrace, there is nothing that I can do about it.”
宗家Hatsumi

In the Bujinkan, rank has never been a single-dimensional measurement. It’s not purely for technical skill and understanding, and it’s not purely symbolic - it’s contextual, relational, deeply personal and often not following conventional norms thus at times, controversial to the misunderstood.

段位は終点ではなく、問いである。
Dan-i wa shūten de wa naku, toi de aru.
“Rank is not an endpoint, but a question.”

Practitioners must come to realise that Rank is not for just one thing - it is given for many things, and not always just for what they want to believe it’s for.

Some examples:

技術の評価 (Gijutsu no hyōka)
– evaluation of technical ability
信頼の証 (Shinrai no akashi)
– a sign of trust
貢献への感謝 (Kōken e no kansha)
– gratitude for contribution
関係性の表現 (Kankeisei no hyōgen)
– expression of relationship
成長の節目 (Seichō no fushime)
– a milestone in one’s path

At times, rank is also given if a teacher falls ill, and is forced to take action quickly for the sake of the Ryûha and lineage’s continuance.

Because of this, no two people with the same rank have necessarily arrived there for the same reasons, but often through very different “currents” along the same river.

Please think well.

南虎

04/22/2026

People who do not grasp the true nature of a martial artist may well go to some trouble to knock on my door and request training, but unless they search for the heart of a martial artist, my teachings will fall on deaf ears. Yes, let us write Budoka as
"Martial flower", and leave it as one solution to Kajo-chikusei, the puzzle of enlightenment that you are all questing after.

Now, as a Doctor of Human Sciences, I would like to analyze the symptoms and morphology of various diseases which people searching for combat techniques are prone to contract without being aware of it.

Number One type
A hypoplastic (underdeveloped) form; self-centred, fussy about grades, and always wanting to be "Number One". This is an awful type. They do not even know how bad they are, and could be killed before they realize ... a real nuisance.

Business type
A type which develops from the conception of earning a living by the martial arts; they forget the Budoka's heart, and theirs is transmuted into the heart of a merchant.
They may end up believing that someone with many students is great - and if a student runs away from them they may feel as though they have lost some money.
Furthermore, they do not notice that as a martial artist they are a failure. Let me clearly state that in my experience no Tatsujin (masters) of Bujutsu or Bugei ever develops from such a type.

Reporter type
Someone who comes to me, but finds "collecting materials" more important than training, and takes notes and photographs which they then sell once back in their country. This really is deplorable. They are already incapable of going beyond the amateur's view of the martial arts - the "kata" (set forms) or "this is right but that is wrong" mentality, etc. They do not even get as far as realizing they have fallen into such a state.

There are many more types left. The "Sensei-Shihan" type, the "Mood" type, the
"Collector" type, the "Violent" type, the "Animal" type, the "Religious" type, the
"Philosophical" type...

The important thing is to understand that the true nature of the martial arts can only be perceived once these types have all been made transparent. The flow of Takamatsu Sensei's Bufu (martial way) started with framing in the transparent, beautiful and natural flow of Shinden Fudo-ryu. The beginning for me was following an invisible flow of light as it flowed through space, to knock on the door of Takamatsu Sensei's Bufu. My encounter with Takamatsu Sense in some ways resembled the old tale of the opening of the cave door on Shinshu Mt Togakushi'.
.The Bujinkan martial arts incorporate the flow of nine schools of martial ways, with a history of three thousand years. You should not torget that you are martial artists on a space shuttle. Do not be distracted from the framing; you must persevere to the end. "Single-mindedness" can be thought of through its sound “Sennen" as also meaning one thousand years. "If one thousand days pass the techniques will appear by themselves" is a common phrase in scrolls, and I believe that from this you can hear sounds joining you to a space beyond. If I also rewrite “Ikkan" not as perseverance but as joy, then the sound waves can spread out so that some gladness, health and happiness are discovered.

宗家Hatsumi

04/05/2026

A CERTIFICATE OF DEATH

When I give my students the writing of menkyo kaiden, I declare to them, "Take this menkyo kaiden as a certificate of death. You are dead from today on." In this case, death means to nullify one's self.
The self means earthly desires. In other words, you should become hotoke [Buddha] and heavenly.
A person who cannot eliminate earthly desires even after he receives menkyo kaiden can never cut his own body. Such a person is better off abandoning being a warrior and living honestly as an animal. After all, an animal is only an animal. In olden times, a Samurai used to inscribe hisetsu. This means to inhumanely cut off earthly desires.
Spiritual power cuts earthly desire like one swing of a sword. As stated in the document of ittoryodan [cut in half with a downswing], “There is a method to cut good from bad, to separate these two. This method is the essence of the way of the sword."

The one who has received the "certificate of death" must live for others and for society. It is natural for a bujin to instantly expel a person who cannot assume this obligation.

Masaaki Hatsumi
Ninpô: Wisdom for Life

03/18/2026

"In Budô, too, there are three important essentials:
first, seeing and knowing oneself, one's own strengths and limitations; second, the sword of discrimination, of decisiveness, for eliminating faults, weaknesses, and the unnecessary;
and last, the sincerity, feeling, devotion, insight, and understanding of the heart."

- 宗家 Hatsumi

03/18/2026

The Bujinkan Dōjō ranking system is largely misunderstood by the greater martial arts community.

Firstly, the system cannot be compared to more mainstream approaches used by Karate,Judo,Aikido etc, as it is not the same, even though it still is a Kyu / Dan process.
This is the greatest mistake other martial arts practitioners make as they blindly compare the system to their own. Maybe it is better for people to view the Bujinkan grading system from a ‘humanitarian’ perspective over only ‘martial skill development.’

“You will never become a Meijin ( martial arts master ) but you can become a Tatsujin ( completed / fully awakened human being ).”
- Takamatsu to Hatsumi

This statement from Takamatsu sensei to Hatsumi sensei may be indicative of how Hatsumi approaches ranking in the Bujinkan.
Rather than merely focusing on martial skill development to become masterful practitioners in the martial arts, students are given ranks for their present efforts and encouragement toward evolving further as better, more accomplished and awakened human beings.
When this is truly understood, then true growth with humility can begin. If students fail to grasp this essence, than they will demonstrate clearly their lack of understanding and create embarrassment for themselves and the Dōjō.
This is not the fault of Hatsumi sensei, but the immaturity an ignorance of those who try to follow the Bujinkan. It’s a tempering process that demonstrates over time that quite naturally, some people will develop correctly while others will not. This is where Hatsumi sensei stressed that students of Budô must have the ‘eyes of discernment’ to be able to see through the falsities or traps along the path to ensure they stay balanced along the stoney road.

People talk about the lack of ‘quality control’ in the Bujinkan. This mindset is caught up with more mainstream approaches. As I said, the Bujinkan follows its own path. If students do not catch the Bufu ( martial wind ) they will become lost in a void and be unable to see the right way. This is often due to ego, as they are unable to go beyond their own desires to follow a greater process than their own. 自然行雲流水 Shizen Gyōun Ryūsui is the natural movements of drifting clouds and flowing water. Each generate their power through a greater strength - the universe. Thus their strength and beauty is generated from something more superior. In order to live as a martial artist of the Bujinkan, one must allow 神Kami to show them the way.

Bujinkan Dōjō Jugodan
武神館道場十五段

In feudal times in Japan, turning 15 years of age was a rite of passage to adulthood. A samurai boy was no longer considered a child and seen as a person of maturity who had survived the fragility of childhood. We need to remember that life expectancy was shorter in these times and thus the tradition of ShichiGoSan 七五三 ( 7,5,3 day ) was also celebrated.

The samurai boy prior to this age of 15 would carry Daishô ( long and short swords ) with real Koshirae ( fittings ) as a symbol of his Bushi status. However, the blades were not steel, but thin balsa wood.
Upon turning 15yrs of age, the wooden blades were changed to Shinken ( live steel blades ) to signify entering into adulthood.

Sôke Hatsumi said he created the 15 dan levels of the Bujinkan Dōjō with the same concept in mind. 15th dan is representative of a student having come of age in their study of Budô. Reaching the level of 15th dan doesn't mean one has become a master. The Jugodan ( 15th dan ) means one is a 15yr old samurai boy, simply recognising having 'survived' up to this point in time and an invitation/initiation to move forward and deepen ones study of the art to greater levels of maturity.

The ranking system of the Bujinkan Dōjō may be better observed through the lenses of a practitioner of Life and not just the martial arts.

🥋Kyu ranks = yet to be thought of by your parents/teacher.

🥋Shodan = s***m

🥋Godan = born

🥋Judan = puberty

🥋Ju Kugyo = 15yr old child ( in samurai culture a rite of passage to young adulthood, receiving live blades and now able to go into battle/live one’s own.

For Bujinkan practitioners and those of other arts who misunderstand and/or compare their ranking system to Hatsumi Sensei’s, I hope this helps clarify what these levels of achievement in the Bujinkan Dōjō truly mean.

南虎

02/04/2026

After class last night, Kai mentioned that he felt he couldn’t take ukemi well. I was happy to hear this. I said to him that in Budô, you actually apply techniques so your opponent cannot take ukemi.
Throws and locks are ultimately done in a way to disable,maim or kill. It is not a safe thing. The better the student gets, the more difficult the ukemi training will be. It’s to teach and learn about taking ukemi when you can’t take ukemi.

In training, people practice ukemi in such a way that when their training partner applies a technique, they flow with it with skillful ease and break their fall with a rehearsed form. We do this at our Dōjō with students working together to learn the fundamentals as safely as possible ( among other things ).

I feel many practitioners fail to remind themselves that this is elementary training, merely teaching ideal applications of falling when allowed. It needs to be addressed that there is a ‘safe training’ way to apply techniques and also an ‘unsafe’ way ( real approach) of technique application. The fundamental forms of rolling etc are also purely for ensuring practice can be performed as safely as possible in a relatively controlled and ‘padded’ environment.

It’s important not to become complacent or mindless when executing Ukemi in the Dōjō. There are no mats outside in the real world. It is concrete, gravel, uneven ground with glass, exposed roots and rocks etc. Ukemi is not necessarily a safe thing, it’s merely a way to more skillfully give you a chance of avoiding injury or death. Taking Ukemi may still hurt or injure you, especially if you are carrying items on you or being thrown into or through structures. This has to be clearly understood and accepted. True Ukemi is with the mindset of living, not just performing a perfect flip.

“Many people have a misconception concerning ukemi. Don’t feel that ukemi is a ‘safe thing.’ Many times, it is a very dangerous thing. You may land on glass or on a twig and really hurt yourself. There have been times when people have done ukemi to save themselves, only to kill themselves in the process. You must be aware of your surroundings at all times, and be able to avoid objects when you do your ukemi.”
宗家Masaaki Hatsumi

In the Ten Ryaku no Maki 天略の巻 at the end of the Ukemi Gata Taihenjutsu 受身体変術 ( body changing skill receiving art ) teaching fundamental skills, it says Shizen Ukemi 自然受身 or ‘natural receiving applications’. This can be interpreted and understood as ‘naturally receiving or changing ones body the best possible way to survive.’

In the Bujinkan, a wonderful teacher ( who will remain nameless in this post ) during a combat scenario, had stepped on a mine while under heavy gun fire. In an instant, he decided to take hicho kaiten ( diving roll ) off the mine. He lost one leg but was left with his life and back training a few months later.
This is a remarkable story and expresses the truth of Shizen Ukemi 自然受身.

“If all you are is Uke for your martial arts life and survive, you’ve succeeded a martial artist.”
先生Nagato

12/06/2025

The ability to keep going is decided by ones inherent depth of love and conviction for following the path. Eventually, most people that are with you will begin to disappear.

From experience, one reason is the lack of capacity or ability of people to adapt their training according to the changes in their lives. Also, as we get older, the only way to maintain one’s health is to become more disciplined.
This is an aspect of ‘control’ which is one of the six treasured transmissions or precepts of the Bujinkan Dōjō stipulated by Sôke Hatsumi.

Unfortunately, most people do not change their habits and this results in their health decline and thus an earlier than necessary retirement from training in Budô.

By nature, people often quickly take offence and refute these words as it strikes a nerve within them, as they are unable to accept their own truth. Rather than accept, people blame to protect their denial. As I said, it is to be expected.

Quite simply, Budô is a commitment of the entire being. If one aspect is neglected or there is an inbalance of character, this can become one’s shortcoming that unravels the ability to continue.

There is absolutely no way one can pursue an art form earnestly without constant personal reflection and being able to adapt to circumstances to remain on the path. However, even if one wholeheartedly enters a pursuit, there are never any guarantees of achieving success etc. This is where one’s mindset and heart has to clearly understand that it is about following a stoney path of moment to moment changes. The lessons of the journey are the rewards, not a predetermined future destination or achievement.

Many people hold within themselves the desire to achieve a rank or attain a mastery of certain skill sets. This is fine, however, this has nothing to do with truly living as a martial artist.

Budô is a path that in essence strives toward living a life of greater authenticity with a stronger spirit to cope with the struggles of life and protect one’s family and self from any type of threat or antagonism.

To enter a Dōjō expecting to be fulfilled, gain superb skills and always be entertained, is to have illusions of grandeur. True Budô is ultimately to come to terms with ones weaknesses. As a result, every class is austere practice toward discovering, accepting and weeding out ones shortcomings. This is not easy and definitely not always fun! Training is going to be boring,trialing and frustrating more often than not. If you do not have the heart of the Shugyosha, it will be very hard for you to endure, let alone accept the training. If this heart is absent, everything will seem an attack on your ego and identity. You will come to see the teacher as harsh or cruel, and the training pointless or archaic. Quite simply, not everyone is ready to enter the Dōjō to pursue Budô. As a result, bastardised versions are established to accomodate those who wish to fulfil a fantasy over discovering the real thing. For most people, the real thing is too frightening. As a result, they’d rather enter an environment that accommodates their level of requirements.

If you truly wish to enter a Dōjō, you must be prepared to bend to it, don’t expect it to bend to you! Nowadays, we are seeing this self entitled attitude being pushed on to many other professions and institutions. It’s creating weaker people, not stronger ones.

Budô requires a person to relinquish their ego enough to follow centuries of tradition and transmission to enter their heart correctly. If one does not have an open heart, there is no way one can come to understand the art they wish to learn.

The struggle is real, but most don’t want to experience it and just live in their own protected bubbles, never truly having the courage to venture into the unknown and expand their lives beyond limiting constructs, often unknowingly conditioned upon them.

I have come to recognise that I am quite a simple man with many weaknesses and vices. However, it seems that I’ve held enough conviction to make a life from something I fell in love with as a youth.

Please think well about how you are pursuing the martial arts and what it means to live as a martial artist.

南虎eseed

Bujinkan Sonoma Dojo

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