Skip to main content

Japan Training: I got 無 nothing for you

無 mu near Kitasenju, photo by Michael Glenn
My classes with Hatsumi Sensei for the last week have had an intense energy. Not because he is more intense than usual. His training is of a high level and never fails to surprise. But the intensity comes in the form of my own resistance to what he is sharing.

He has been really emphasizing the 無 mu in muto dori. As some of you may know, muto dori has been a strong theme throughout training this year. After my other visits to Japan this year, I studied this from the feelings he gave us.

But the difficulty for me now is that when he embodies mu, I get nothing. He is not presenting any feeling that I can key in on. This is instructive yet difficult to parse. It cannot be broken down for study.

Soke is removing himself from the equation. He doesn't exist so he cannot be hit. But he seems to be doing this on a personal level too. Sensei made a very intricate and intense painting of a lion. He was asked, how long did it take? He said, "only a couple of minutes. But if I stopped to think about it it would have taken much longer."

There seem to be other things like this at work in the Bujinkan as well. Some key people have passed on. There is no Daikomyosai this year. But the hombu dojo still stands, despite all the other buildings around being dismantled. This is the mystery of mu.

But one day soon it will be gone too. Maybe the natural progression of the Bujinkan leads to this kind of dissolution. 

Soke said last night that the important things in life cannot be seen. This is where the life force or spirit is. When death happens the form is emptied. Where does the unseen go?

This kind of emptiness will never be cut by any sword. This is muto dori.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bujinkan Daikomyosai Party and Training Themes from Japan

What are the current Bujinkan Themes? For my second week of Japan training, I begin with a visit to 上野東照宮 Ueno Tōshōgū. This shrine was built in 1627, and enshrines Tokugawa Ieyasu. I have visited many times, but they did an extensive remodel a few years ago. This was my first time going beyond the 唐門 Karamon and into the grounds. The entire 本殿 Honden is covered in gold leaf and looks spectacular with the gingko leaves fluttering down around me. Michael Glenn at 上野東照宮 Ueno Tōshōgū Later that night, I arrived a bit early for Nagase Sensei’s class. He had moved the class time back 45 minutes so I took the opportunity to review my notes from the prior class. He has been working with 十方折衝 juppō sesshō and the directions for 天地人 Tenchijin and the sanshin within it. He described many aspects of Tenchijin. He would control his opponent at three points, high, middle, and low. He told us the Ten direction is 天照大御神 Amaterasu ōmikami. The Chi direction is 国常立尊 Kunitokotachi no mi

Japan Report One 令和5年

Every Bujinkan trip I make to Japan feels like a gift. And I always share that with you all in my Japan reports. This trip, I decided to video a lot. Like every day. So there will be quite a few of these. The only issue is that it takes me time to edit all of this video, so these Japan reports may spread out into next year. The first video is here:  Japan Report One 令和5年 The first day of any Bujinkan trip to Japan starts with a marathon. 20 hours of travel by Plane train, and automobile. Also, a lot of walking with a heavy backpack up and down stairs, through airports and train stations, and of course to the Honbu Dojo! Because I’m crazy, I arrived at the airport and went straight to Noguchi Sensei’s class. The class was smallish, maybe 20 people. I was a little shaky on my feet so I slammed some milk tea to get my energy back up. I partnered with Mario From Croatia. Noguchi began with 中伝之捌型 Chūden no Sabaki Gata from 高木揚心流 Takagi Yoshin Ryū. He put a lot of focus into what the opposit

The Sound of Bujinkan 変化 Henka

One Friday night back in the old Honbu Dojo, Hatsumi Sensei moved to a very high level of training right from the start. After he asked someone to demo, he immediately went into counter attacks using his fingertips. And he said to be playful. Hatsumi Sensei painted and hung a scroll in the corner of the dojo. He did this every year to express the yearly theme. This year it was 神韻武導 Shin'in Budō . You can read this as Budō of exceptional artistry. Or, when you look at the characters for Shin'in, it could be a Budō that expresses the sound of the heart, the soul, or even  the kami. 神韻武導 Shin'in Budō, Bujinkan Honbu. photo Michael Glenn   Earlier that afternoon, I had made a pilgrimage of sorts to visit 矢切の渡し Yagiri-no-Watashi. The ferry that has been taking passengers across the Edo river for nearly 400 years. The Tokugawa shogunate did not build bridges over rivers to protect Edo. Ferry boats leading to the highway were strictly controlled, but ferries for farmers who had fa