Takeuchi Ryu and life...

Okay..

 So a loooong time and nada written here at all..

 Let me see, basically over a year since the last blog?Great..Well done Ben..

 Umm...Lot's has happened..But I can't remember it all...So it's probably not worth talking about anyway..

However, what IS worth talking about is my love life..

 I met Sayaka Jinsenji at a friends party a few months back, and we have been pretty inseperable since then...She is the most amazing woman I have ever met..The relationship we share is more honest than any other I have ever had...She is smart, beautiful, wonderful to be with, and an incredible cook..And spending time in her arms is the best thing I have ever done..

 So, basically, I'm dating a Goddess, have the same job until August 2009 and am not doing badly at all..

 Sorry for the year off, but if you read this blog then I would suggest heading over to Facebook.com where the REAL stuff happens...Besides, it's easier there...

 

 RECAP;

 Lovelife- Amazing.

 Work-  Same

 Body- Same, bigger and maybe more injured.

 Training- Same, and more gym

 Smile- Twice as big..

 

 Basically..

Recently the major thing I have managed to do is to gain another visa to stay in Japan and work here.. I was given another three year visa which means that I shall be covered for at least one year after my current contract is exhausted, this is good because it gives me the time and the ability to find a job quickly.

 Companies generally prefer those working for them to already have a current and valid visa as it cuts down the work they need to do to get the new visa for the employee (A major hassle here actually)..So, having the visa already makes the job less of a pain and along with certain other things makes it easier to find a decent job after this one is finished..

 All in I'm rather happy with the visa, and training and all else, life certainly twists too often to say what will happen, but so far I have been treated fairly with it all and I am happy in general..

 That along with the fact that this year I should be able to test for my Shodan in Takeuchi Ryu and get a shiny new belt to sweat all over means that I am rather chuffed with it all..

 

 Not much else has happened..I bought the new Spurs shirt for the 2007-2008 season..Really nice this year as they are celebrating 125 years of losing to other teams, so it's classic white and the crest has a "125 Years" logo under it..Classy I reckon.

 

 Dad has been sick and I am a little worried for him but I spoke to him last week and he sounded very chirpy...He assured me it was the result of overtraining in hot weather (Cycling) but of course, I can't possibly understand that because it's entirely alien to me and what I do...I mean, never being happy training until you can't stand up at the end? Sweating so much you might as well strip to shorts and swim home? Passing out after good sessions and waking up thinking that it really WAS a good day? Nah...No way is that a family trait..

 

 Otherwise all good, need to go to Tachikawa City hall tomorrow to get the card changed for Gaijin visa-ship and that's about all..

 

 Oh, we are all on a website now with a short introduction and I was asked to promote the site and introductions to people around the world..So the website is below..Visit if your life is as bad as it can be and you need to smile..

 

 http://www.city.musashimurayama.tokyo.jp/kyouiku/shido/alt.html

 

I haven't bothered writing here recently, there has been a few things going on and not much free time to sit and do this blog, or rather there has been time, but not time that I thought would be best used writing about it here..

 Recently met up with Ted Taylor from the Chofukan Dojo, along with a few other guys who live and train in the Tokyo area, in either Yoga or koryu of some sort.. Zach and his wife were nice people to meet and I was glad to get the opportunity to chat to them all.. We ate in what looked like a lovely Pizza resturant, and one I'll have to remember if I ever find a woman who likes Pizza a lot.. Kichijoji is always good for places like that and it was nice to find one that was so good.. I didn't eat as my blood sugars were not too stable.. Recently I have had to switch my Insulin over from the type I was using in the UK and the switch has meant that I need to be a little more careful until I calm back down again.. I have almost passed out once, and seem to be having a few issues with the stability of the sugar levels right now, but that's almost all par for the course and I am holding up fairly well all things considered..

 Yesterday was possibly the closest that Japan has so far come to looking like changing from winter to the summer.. It was a beautifully hot day and I spent it at the Kameido Katori Jinja ( 亀戸香取神社 ) in Kameido (Suprisingly), near Ryogoku in eastern Tokyo. Steve and Russ Ebert demoed there (Sosuishitsu Ryu 双水執流小具足腰の廻り , an offshoot of the Takeuchi Ryu) and it was interesting to see more similarities between what is done there and how we do it in our la famiglia..

  Life is still cool and I still need more sleep.. And money.... But training is keeping me sane.... I'm happy..But too tired to smile much.. Maybe next week I can slowly attempt that..

Okay..Just back at work for Friday this week, as we spent both Wednesday and Thursday morning in Shinjuku Tocho building (Central government operations for Tokyo building), having a meeting with the other JET's that work here in Tokyo prefecture, nice to see them all and be introduced to the new girls.. Brenda, Paulette and Rebecca, as well as Andrea who we all met last year at the conference..Good to see them and refreshing to have some new faces to chat to about the odd things that we do as part of life here in Japan..

 In a Harajuku toystore I also managed to find a collection of the toys and books that have recently been allowed to be published in Japan, even though banned in most every other decent country because of their rascist slant..The book is Little Black Mambo...I've read it, and can't remember much about it other than it was quite possibly the worst stereotype any one has ever pushed onto anyone in public..Good thing we all outgrew such rascism eh?I say all meaning all except Japan, of course...Because the Japanese are special and can allow rascism because no one minds here...Well, I kinda do mind....The more you promote this being okay, the more you can allow...So I reckon it's bollocks..But I took a picture cause I couldn't really believe that this shite ever passed as legit...

 After work on Thursday we went out to Harajuku and Shibuya and I managed to get a few interesting pictures so I'll add those up here..

 Nothing else to talk about really...Not yet...

I recently heard from Takagi sensei that one of my friends from the Dojo had died, Nishida san was 32, and died at home on the 7th of January, I used to meet him before training each week and talk a little with him before we went into Nakano Taiikukan, he was a nice man, and a good student too, great to train with simply because he kept trying.. His death is a shock to me and makes me realise just how valuable this life should be, I often forget that because I am just doing it.. But I think we should all focus on what we love in this world in order to make the days we have left in it the best we could have. When we do eventually die, I would hope to have memories that I cherish totally, and a life that was entirely worthy of being lived. I don't believe that I can say that for myself now.

 I just wanted to write about his death here, he will be missed.

I found this recently on Youtube.com. This is David Haye, a boxer that I worked with a few years back before I came to Japan... One of the best interviews from the best British Boxer...

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wICl0VDIP0&mode=related&search=

 Pure class..

 

 

The Takeuchi Ryu

(Tradition and practice)

 

The Takeuchi Ryu (Or Takenouchi Ryu, as both readings are correct) is one of the oldest Japanese schools of martial arts still in existence. It is singular in it’s being the oldest to have contained a large repertoire of Jujutsu and Taijutsu, although perhaps not the first to have done so it remains the oldest school that has survived to the present age with such a focus.

 Indeed, the school is a special one in many regards, while the oldest Ryuha in Japan was the Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu and also quite possibly the most influential ryuha as well, the Takeuchi Ryu developed in isolation from the Shinto Ryu’s base of the area around modern Chiba/Ibaragi Prefectures. If the Shinto Ryu is to be considered the source of all Bujutsu in Eastern Japan, then the Takeuchi Ryu must be considered the same for Bujutsu in Western areas of Japan.

 The school was formed on the twenty fourth day of the sixth month of 1532, or the first year of Tenbun in the Japanese calendar ( 天文元年 ) by Takenouchi Nakatsudayu Hisamori, a nobleman and land owner in Mimasaka no Kuni ( 美作国 ), present day Okayama Prefecture.

Hisamori and the Takenouchi Family were direct descendants of the Minamoto line and held court rank and the castle of Ichinose ( 一の瀬城 ), high in the mountains of Sakushu. Nothing remains of the castle today except the mountain that it was built on. The road leading to the top is steep and overgrown but one can imagine the castle and it’s ideal location with a commanding view over the local area. This, however was not enough to prevent it’s fall to the forces of Ukita Ienao, a general under the command of Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

 After the loss of the family castle Hisamori retreated some 3 Kilometers north of the site and stopped at a shrine dedicated to Hachiman Okami, the tutelary God of the Minamoto family. Hisamori stayed at Sannomiya Shrine ( 三之宮神社 ) for several nights and is said to have trained rigorously with a bokuto in the mountains surrounding the shrine.

On the sixth night Hisamori had fallen asleep on the shrine grounds after training and in his dreams was visited by what he believed to have been the God Atago, who took the form of a yamabushi. The mountain ascetic looked so ferocious that Hisamori attacked him but was held tight. Hisamori realized that the yamabushi had incredible strength and ceased fighting, at which the yamabushi taught him five methods for the quick defeat of an opponent. These techniques became the Shinden Torite Gokajo of the Takeuchi Ryu.

The God then picked up Hisamori’s bokuto which was two “shaku” and four “sun” in length (or around 72 centimeters), and announcing the sword of that length to be useless broke it in half over his knee. The remaining length he passed to Hisamori with the instruction to use this shorter weapon thrust through the belt and instructed Hisamori on twenty five methods for using this shorter blade. The techniques Hisamori had learned were to become the basis of the school and were named Kogusoku Koshi No Mawari ( 小具足腰之廻 ), the Kogusoku being the blade itself and the Koshi No Mawari referring to the method shown to wear the sword, thrust through the belt at the hip.           

 Lastly the yamabushi cut a length of twine from the trees of the shrine and using it as rope demonstrated several ways to restrain an opponent and tie him up. These techniques became the basis of the Hayanawajutsu ( 早縄術 or “fast rope art”) used in the Takeuchi Ryu. Once he had taught these techniques to Hisamori the yamabushi disappeared in as dramatic a way as he had entered and Hisamori was left on his own in the shrine grounds.

 What had been taught to Hisamori became the basis for one of the biggest collections of techniques in Japanese Classical martial arts. The school currently has around five hundred or so techniques in it’s curriculum, starting with the Kogusoku Koshi No Mawari and including many of the weapons and skills that were used by the samurai in the era the school had been formed, the Muromachi Jidai, a time of constant warfare and battles fought without the use of the gun.

 However, the Takeuchi Ryu has not simply remained with what was originally taught. It continued to grow and expand its curriculum using newer weapons and methods as they were deemed necessary. The school currently trains in the use of Short dagger, long sword, Bo, Jo, Naginata, Spear, Kusarigama, Shuriken, Tessen, Hayanawa, Iaijutsu and the use of a saucepan lid or Nabefuta in self defense, as well as the various forms of hand to hand combat which in the Bichu Den Takeuchi Ryu are named Hade, Torite, and Komidare.

 The school is still taught in the same location in Okayama Prefecture and by the same family as it always has been. There are currently three branch lines of the school and all teach essentially the same techniques albeit with some small differences between them.

 The main family lines were split into the Sodenke ( 相伝家 ) and Soke ( 宗家 ) lines by the eighth head of the school, Takenouchi Toichiro Hisayoshi, the Soke line continuing to use the “Toichiro” name and the Sodenke line using the name “Tojuro”. Both the family lines still train in the Takenouchi family Dojo.

 The third line is the Bichu Shihanke or Bichu Den. This line was somewhat more removed from the other two lines and was practiced and taught in Bichu, the area now covered by Okayama City and Kurashiki. This line is the one that I am most familiar with and so I shall restrict myself to a discussion of the techniques used in the Bichu Den line, although the family lines can be assumed to be close enough.

 The Bichu Den lineage was split from the time of the third head of the family line, Takenouchi Kaganosuke Hisayoshi, and has been passed along to the incumbent head of the school Ono Yotaro, who teaches it in his Dojo in Kyoto.

 The basic techniques of the school are still essentially the same as the other two lines, but the order and divisions that they are practiced in have been changed slightly. It is my belief that this was done to separate the Bichu line from the others and also to protect what was being taught somewhat. The Bichu line did not have the seclusion that the other lines could rely on as it was taught in the Castle towns of Bichu and was developed in an area where it needed to adapt to the members it taught. This meant that the Jujutsu arts are somewhat more compacted. The Hade being taught in one big set rather than in several divisions as is done in the family lines for example. However, the essence of the school, the Kogusoku and the Weapons arts remained mainly untouched.

  Instruction today starts with training in the first 11 Kogusoku techniques and Bojutsu or Kenbo ( 剣棒 ), the use of the six foot staff, as it is believed that the usage of this weapon has the strongest relationship to the rest of the curricula.

 The Kogusoku is taught using the first half only until one has gained sufficient ability in the techniques, at which point the remaining half is practiced. The schools Iaijutsu is also taught at the beginning stages and provides a basic grounding in the usage of the sword. The sword used should be the same length as the founder, at two shaku four sun, or twice the length of the Kogusoku.

 The other weapons used in the school are taught gradually as the student gets to grips with the basics taught in Kenbo, Kogusoku and the Omote (Or “starting/face”) sections of the Jujutsu. There are eight techniques taught as Toshi Hade ( 通破手 ), which focus on strikes delivered to Kyusho or vital areas of an opponent who could be dressed in armour.

　After the Toshi Hade students can progress to the other sections of the Jujutsu/Taijutsu done in the school and these include Torite, Zaai, Kumiuchi and Komidare. Torite is a set designed to be used by someone in the position of having to arrest or detain another person. The emphasis is placed upon rapid apprehension and restraint of the opponent from a position where you would be walking in the street. The techniques train you in the timing and method of restraint to be used and could be adapted fairly easily into something done for modern police work.

The Takeuchi Ryu generally is divided into sets that cover the basic, omote forms (Often called “Shin” or “Mae” meaning “Basic/direct” and “first”) and from there students are taught the variations on the basic forms. There are generally three sets used for the first levels, those being “Shin” ( 真 “Direct”), “Gyo” ( 行 “Going”) and “So” ( 草 “Grass”), these three divisions in sets are taken from those used in Japanese Calligraphy and imply the ability to develop from the basic, formal and precise movements of “Shin” to the more flowing movements  of “Gyo” and from there to the spontaneous creation of “So”. This applies to the kata in a general sense and would roughly follow the “Shu-Ha-Ri” lines often mentioned in Japanese martial arts.

 This is perhaps most apparent in the sets for Iaijutsu or Battojutsu, the drawing of the sword from the scabbard, cutting an imaginary opponent and returning the blade to it’s sheath or saya ( 鞘 ). Shin is the first kata in the set and provides a basic guide for all the Iai to follow it. The use of the hips to pull the saya clear to your left as you draw and the cut across the opponents body are basics taught in all Iai schools. From here the student needs to learn to bring the sword directly up in front of his head to a Jodan position and then down to cut vertically into the opponent, again a very basic cut and one designed to teach the method in as simple terms as possible. After the cut is made the students must perform Chiburi, or the cleaning of the blade from the blood and bones that would be left on it were a cut made. In Takeuchi Ryu the chiburi is a simple turn of the sword, sliding the right hand off the Tsuka and turning the blade as it pulls way and then striking softly onto the wrist to remove and shake any remaining matter off the blade. Noto (Or resheathing of the sword) is done directly to the front, allowing the student to develop the awareness that may be needed if the opponent had not yet died, and providing a cover of sorts with the tsuka if a further attack is made.

 The next form in the Iai is called “Gyo” and the set involves an Uke Nagashi type of movement to block and deflect the attackers sword off to the left before cutting down through the vertical again. Importance is placed on the speed at which you stand and draw the blade vertically, allowing a variation of the batto down vertically this time.

 The third kata is named “So” and as the name implies is a much quicker, more fluid form than the first, although it aims to cover much the same points. The draw is fast and horizontal and the hips are kept low while you move forwards to teach the acceleration needed to draw the blade fast. The cut is the same but there is no pause to collect yourself before you begin noto, you proceed to chiburi and then resheathe the blade. Simple and efficient. “Shu-ha-ri”.

 Indeed, that same pattern is one aspect of the whole of the ryuha. One starts with the basics and learns them well. From there you are expected to move well enough to handle somewhat more complex movements but the methods are often the same. The fundamental movements do not change, but are either added too or reduced to change the kata being done.

 The taijutsu used in Takeuchi Ryu is not especially complex. I believe this to be due to the need of the Muromachi period Samurai to have a basic and simple method that worked for a variety of different situations. The same idea should be able to adapt but to remain essentially the same throughout the whole situation and Takeuchi Ryu makes use of this repeatedly.

Another interesting method used by the school is the manner in which weapons are used and changed. Several sets include the use of either two or more weapons or one weapon and a segue to hand to hand combat. In Takeuchi Ryu the weapons used must be the most practical for the job. As soon as they cease to be so they are discarded and something else is found. This “something else” can include the opponents weapons as well and there are kata that teach this principle found in each set of the school.

          Takeuchi Ryu also focuses strongly on the need to close the gap between the opponent and yourself. This is even more paramount if that opponent is armed. The space must be reduced and you must still retain balance and the power to close the opponent off and smother his attacks. In Takeuchi Ryu this is one of the most vital points to learn.

　The Takeuchi Ryu is one of the biggest schools in terms of technique and of course this means one of the biggest in terms of variation as well. This variation is in fact a major strong point of the school as it allows the flexibility to be able to adapt as needed to a changing climate and still find something that works for the student in the curriculum of the Takeuchi Ryu. I believe that this is best shown by using the contests held in the late 1800’s against the new Kodokan Judo ( 講道館柔道 ) school headed by Jigoro Kano ( 加納次五郎 ). The contests were contended by many of the more traditional schools against the newer and brasher Kodokan school. The Takeuchi Ryu had several shihan participate in these contests and win several against the Judoka from the Kodokan. The techniques that were used may have been a contribution to the set of Bichu Den kata with the title “Kumiuchi” ( 組討 ), a series of kata starting from a ground grappling position and using chokes and locks to body parts that would be in basic accordance with the rules laid down with earlier Judo, these kata are of course still designed to cause pain, and several of them would be considered very illegal if tried in a modern Judo contest, however, that is what the Takeuchi Ryu embodies. If there are rules then work with them, and if you can break them and change them. This adaptability becomes a key asset to the students of this school in my opinion.

 In conclusion, Takeuchi Ryu is best considered the grandfather of the modern arts subsumed under the title “Judo” or “Jujutsu”, it is the earliest example of combat with and without weapons utilizing all that can be used. It probably wasn’t the oldest Ryuha to teach combative Jujutsu to it’s students, but it was the oldest one to have survived to the 21^st Century and for this alone is well worthy of appreciation

.

 Ben Sharples

 22^nd November 2006.