The Iaido Newsletter
A publication of shared distribution dedicated to the Japanese sword arts, Iaido, Kendo and the Koryu A Sei Do Kai Publication (Incorporating the OKF News) http://www.uoguelph.ca/~iaido	Vol 10/12 #97 Dec 1998 $5.00 per issue PHOTOCOPY AND SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER! http://www.uoguelph.ca/~kataylor

AUSTRALIA David Kolb, 30 Neville St. Kangaroo Point, Qld. 4169 Australia.

BALTICS Tonis Kunnus, Kalatsova kula, Meremae EE2751, Voru maakond, Estonia.

BELGIUM: Erik Pooters Wittestraat 9 Kiel, Antwerpen 2020 Belgie.

CANADA CENTRAL Sandra Jorgenson, 77 Harbour Sq. #3310 Toronto Ont. M5J 2S2.

CANADA EAST Robert Miller, 45 Cedar Cr. Beaconsfield, Quebec H9W 4S9.

CANADA WEST Barry Wiseman, 11038 Greenwood Dr. Mission B.C. V4S 1A9.

CENTRAL EUROPE Zsolt Balassy, H-1046 Budapest, Toth A. u. 19. Hungary.

DENMARK Bjarne Blichfeldt Katholm 210 3670 Vekso Denmark.

ENGLAND Douglas Evans 10 Daglish Close, New Romney, Kent TN28 8XF.

FINLAND Pasi Hellsten, Luuvaniementie 4 D 126, SF-00350 Helsinki, Finland.

GERMANY Klaus Wissmath, Rathenaustrasse 9A, D-91052 Erlangen.

HOLLAND Johan Smits, Dunant Straat 866 Zoetermeer Netherlands 2713 XJ.

JAPAN Colin Hyakutake, Matsubara 4 Chome 6-19, Saga City, Saga Ken, Japan 840.

NEW ZEALAND Hamish Robison 15 Logan Tce. Parnell, Auckland.

SWEDEN Arne Oster, Akerogatan 2, S-417 28 Goteborg.

SWITZERLAND Nicolae G. Bialokur, 18 ch. Champ-Soleil, 1012 Lausanne, Suisse.

USA EAST J.S.S. PO Box 1116 Rockefeller Stn. New York, NY USA 10185.

USA HAWAII Hunter Armstrong, 315 Foothills Dr., Sedona, AZ 86336.

USA S-CENTRAL John Ray, 1909 Archer Trail, Denton TX, 76201.

USA WEST COAST Bill Howell, 2525 NE 23rd St. Portland Oregon, 97212.

COMING EVENTS

GUELPH EVENTS

May 22-26, Spring seminar in Guelph, Haruna, Ide, Oshita sensei teaching Iai, Jo, and Niten Ichi-ryu.

July 16-19 Guelph School of Japanese Sword Arts, Martial Arts section: koryu, shiai, iai, academic presentations.

July 24-28 Guelph School of Japanese Sword Arts, Crafts section: Sword polishing, habaki, saya, bokuto making, handle wrapping, saya repair.

See http://www.uoguelph.ca/~iaido for details.

FEATURE INTERVIEW

Pasi Hellsten:

INTERVIEW OF DAITO RYU AIKIJUJUTSU TEACHER UMEI SHINICHIRO SENSEI

There was a Daito ryu aikijujutsu seminar in Helsinki, Finland on August 8th thru 11th, 1998. The instructor was Umei Shinichiro sensei (4th dan). In the course of this seminar Umei Sensei also instructed lessons of Ono-ha Itto ryu kenjutsu, which is studied inside the Daito ryu group.

A short interview of Umei Sensei follows here:

When and where were you born?

- In Japan, Osaka. In 1956. I still live in Osaka.

Do you have another occupation besides being a budo teacher?

- I teach aikijujutsu, but I am not professional budo teacher. I am, however, a teacher even in my "civilian" life. In Japan the school system differs from the Western one. Many students study in daytime in public school and in the evenings they will study in a private school. I teach in a private evening school English, social history and sometimes our national language, Japanese.

When did you start learning budo?

- I started in the junior high school with kendo. But kendo is a very hard sport. Many kendoka work till their 30's but after that they will "retire" or be kendo teachers.

When did you start aikijujutsu?

- When I was 25 years old.

Who was your teacher at that time?

- Kobayashi Kiyohiro sensei, who lives in Osaka.

How about Ono-ha Itto ryu kenjutsu?

- I was 30 years old when I started that. This was not at Kobayashi Sensei's but at a different dojo, though in the same style aikijujutsu. My teacher was Araki Masunori, who is also a Daito ryu teacher.

Do you practice some other budo art?

- Nowadays? Sometimes iai.

I think you have trained Eishin ryu. Is that correct?

- Yes, I have studied it a little. But I got teaching only for one year. After that I have learned by myself.

Where did you start this iai?

- In Osaka, but at different dojo and with another teacher. I met an iaido teacher by accident. I had to use a kendo dojo and my partner asked one very old sensei, who was there for one year, to teach us iai. So we were instructed for one year and after that we have trained alone. I was very lucky because Kamiya sensei was a very good teacher. He belongs to Iaido Renmei in Hyoogo prefecture. I learned from him privately so the teaching was from one to one; or one to two. Because I know kendo and kenjutsu I could do and understand the basic style very quickly, and after that he taught me high-class techniques.

Was/is there someone else in your family who has trained budo?

- No.

Are there many in Daito ryu people who train Ono-ha Itto ryu kenjutsu?

- Only a few people. But at every dojo the situation is different. I wanted to train kenjutsu, but my teacher Kobayashi Sensei does not train that, so I had to go to another dojo to learn kenjutsu.

And why must I learn kenjutsu? You know Takeda Sokaku, who was master of Daito ryu. Initially he trained Itto ryu kenjutsu for a very long time and after that (or at the same time, I don't know) he did Daito ryu. So his technique is strongly influenced by Itto ryu kenjutsu. In the beginning I sometimes did not understand some jujutsu technique: which way was the correct way to do that technique, but after I learned Itto ryu techniques which are similar, I can understand easily. It is easier to understand Daitoryu jujutsu if you train Ono-ha Itto ryu kenjutsu.

Do you think that in the Daito ryu techniques the basics are from kenjutsu?

- All japanese jujutsu is based on kenjutsu. With Daito ryu it is the same. In the old days samurai had to learn first sword techniques.

Do you teach also Ono-ha Itto ryu in Japan?

- Only at my dojo. A few people are doing kenjutsu.

Is your Itto ryu identical with or close to the main style of Ono-ha Itto ryu?

- My Itto ryu is of the Ono-ha Itto ryu style, but Ono-ha Itto ryu Soke's technique is different from the Ono-ha Itto ryu of Daito ryu. That is because Takeda Sokaku's Ono-ha Itto ryu was a little bit mixed with some other style kenjutsu, and that he taught to his son. So nowadays, if you compare Takeda Sokaku's Ono-ha Itto ryu and Soke's Ono-ha Itto ryu there are some little differences; some parts are different.

Is there some head teacher for the Ono-ha Ittoryu in Daito ryu?

- It does not matter Daito ryu or Ono-ha Ittoryu. Our Ono-ha Itto ryu is practiced only inside our group. We do not open our school to other people for them to learn just Ono-ha Itto ryu. We teach it only to the Daito ryu students, who want to learn also kenjutsu. Our main style is jujutsu, kenjutsu is a sub-style.

So people first start Daito ryu jujutsu, and if they want, they can start also kenjutsu?

- Yes, at my dojo there is training once a week for two hours. The first one and a half hours are for jujutsu and then half an hour for kenjutsu. The beginners are of course first taught how to handle a sword. After that comes some basic training, how to swing the sword and so on. Next we teach kata.

Do you use the kendo kata also?

- Yes, when I teach beginners I first teach kendo kata. But nowadays some people have gone level up and to them I teach Itto ryu, so I must teach Itto ryu also to beginners.

Are there only techniques for a long sword in Ono-ha Itto ryu?

- No, there are also kodachi techniques after you have mastered tachi.

Do you use protectors in your training?

- Ah, in Soke's Itto ryu they use protectors (onigote) but we do not. Soke's Itto ryu and ours are different, and this is one of the points in which they differ. In Soke's Itto ryu they use very big protectors.

Do you teach at many dojos?

- I have some dojos, where there is training every day. Sometimes I go to other dojos. And when I go to Kawabe Sensei's dojo, I have to teach practically every time. At my dojo I teach once a week, but as some of my students want to practice more, I practice privately with them every morning.

Are there people who want to practice kenjutsu every day?

- When we are practicing privately in the mornings, we have first half an hour kenjutsu and after that jujutsu. Every day the same system.

Are you alsousing swords in Daito ryu jujutsu techniques?

- Yes, sometimes, but actually seldom. In basic training wefirst train basic jujutsu. And as mine is a jujutsu club so we have to train jujutsu more.

You showed us quite a few sword techniques today. How many techniques are there in Ono-ha Itto ryu?

- Today we studied some techniques from first group. There are many technique groups in Ono-ha Itto-ryu. There are 50 basic techniques, though some teachers say 60, some 65. I don't know which is right. Anyway, after these come more, kodachi and some similar to iai techniques.

Thank you sensei. It was very kind of you to give this interview for our Iaido Magazine.

IAIDO PRACTICE TOPS

100% cotton, sized to you and supplied at cost through the Sei Do Kai. $70 (includes postage). Black or white, other colours may be extra. Measure the chest size at nipple height, shoulder point to shoulder point, and from neck to mid-thigh. Send your measurements to Sei Do Kai. 44 Inkerman St. Guelph, Ontario Canada N1H 3C5.

SUGINO DOJO: STUDYING KATORI SHINTO RYU IN JAPAN

ed. note, this article is a couple years old, it got lost on my hard drive somewhere. I even lost the author's name, something for which I deeply apologize. -Kim.

I began training at Sugino Dojo in Kawasaki, the dojo of the well-known Yoshino Sugino, in September of 1993. I'd been given the phone number and the address of the dojo by my sensei in Calgary, who'd introduced me to iaithree years previously.

My first day is one I will never forget. Anyone who has ever tried to find a place in Japan armed only with an address and an almost complete lack of Japanese can appreciate the frustration I felt looking for the dojo. I spent nearly an hour wandering the back streets of Kawasaki, withstanding the curious attention of housewives airing out their futons. Eventually I asked one of them, showed her my slip of paper with the address, but she just shook her head and smiled. I was about to turn away but instead I asked her, "Dojo? Sugino Dojo?"

Immediately her face cleared and she nodded, smiling. "Ah, Sugino Dojo! So, so so..." She launched into a verbose explanation in Japanese, but in the course of this torrent I managed to get her to draw me a map and with that I was able to find the place.

I came up to the door (one I'd been past several times already), and knocked. The door was opened by a smiling little old man who bowed and ushered me in. Sugino Sensei himself. He beamed the entire time I was there, shaking my hand and bowing so often I thought my back would give out from keeping up. He produced a TV set and a VCR and fumbled with cables and connections. Flicked the on and off button a few times but nothing happened.

It's comforting to know that even one of the finest swordsmen in the world is just as confused by VCR technology as I am.

He did get the contraption working finally, and we watched (sitting on the tatami floor of the dojo) a video of Katori techniques. Sugino Sensei watched my reactions closely. I think he wanted to make sure I understood what this school was all about, that it was not self-defense or beating people up or even a sport, like kendo. When I nodded my enthusiasm his beaming took on an even more euphoric quality.

I cannot claim to know Sugino Sensei very well. My Japanese has improved dramatically since that day, but there is still a major barrier to communication. In all my experiences with him, however, he has been unfailingly kind, courteous and friendly. He treats everyone the same way he treated me: big smiles and good-natured appreciation for anyone who tries hard. I have never seen him show the slightest sign of anger or irritation, not even when I clonked him on the elbow when I mistakenly performed yokomen instead of yokodo. He just laughed and told me to try it again.

Likewise, I will not claim to be more than shakily familiar with Katori Shinto Ryu. I have learned a variety of kata and study more all the time, but my understanding is purely physical. I know what the moves are, but only very slowly do I learn or figure out the reasons for them.

A typical training session at Sugino Dojo runs about two-and-a-half hours. We begin with the double bow and double handclap associated with Shinto worship, then practise *maku-uchi men* in two rows facing each other.

Maku-uchi is the foundation stroke of Katori Shinto Ryu. It is a straight cut to the head, but whereas shomen uchi brings the sword first up to jodan and then back and forward directly above the head, maku-uchi cuts from the side. From *seigan*, or chudan no kamae, the front foot is drawn back until just before the rear one, and the tip of the sword is brought behind the left shoulder, the back of the blade actually resting on the left upper arm. The wrists are crossed above the forehead, the left hand thrusting skyward. The cut is made with the left hand, and the tip of the sword whips up and around and down. This cut originated from the need to cut powerfully while avoiding the crested helm that most samurai wore. A cut from jodan is difficult because the crest makes it impossible to take the sword back enough.

We practise maku-uchi for a few hundred strokes, depending on the whim of Sensei, and then practise yoko-men, -do, and a yoko cut to the feet whose name I've never quite caught. By the end of this everyone is usually well winded. We practise the ten basic kamae, and then break up to begin kata practise.

The kata of Katori Shinto, and in fact Katori consists only of kata, are very long. The beginning set (four kata, katana vs. katana), for example, number up to twenty separate cuts or attacks for each side. The idea is that the student comes to understand the many possibilities for dealing with a given attack by working their way through a simulated combat where they are attacked several times with the same technique, and learn different ways of defending this technique, while at the same time learning the counter-techniques.

Everyone practises with everyone else, and the pecking order is not very carefully maintained. If the senior student training with me makes a mistake, I feel perfectly comfortable questioning him, and I welcome the questions of junior students (when I can understand them). Nobody sits exclusively in seiza while waiting for a turn (only two pairs can practise at once), but instead we move about the room, laugh and complain about how hot or cold it is. There are usually some children present, the grandchildren of Sugino Sensei, who practise but also lend a touch of comic relief here and there.

Most of the training these days is handled by the son of Yoshino Sugino, Yukihiro. We refer to him as Wakasensei, "Younger Sensei." He is a burly, cheerful man who can nonetheless frighten the wits out of any inattentive students (I can vouch for that one personally) with his speed and the force of his technique. He also has a habit of forgetting which kata he's teaching, which adds to the general sense of laughter and camaraderie around the place.

I cannot emphasize enough how comfortable and fun this dojo is. I remember going to the Yoshinkai Hombu Dojo in Ochiai, and while I found the level of instruction there excellent and the people were friendly enough, it lacked the sense of "family" that Sugino Dojo has. Last week I joined the local summer festival and helped carry a massive shrine around the neighborhood (to the lasting agony of my shoulders) and in two weeks we're taking a tour of the Kirin Beer brewery. We train rigorously, and are told in no uncertain manner when we make a mistake (once I had my bokuto sent flying across the tatami because I didn't withdraw it quickly enough for the fortieth time), but nobody is ever "told off" or made to feel foolish by anything except their own mistakes.

Katori Shinto Ryu Iaido is characteristically powerful, direct and simple. I think the trademark technique is suwatte-iai, sankajo: "Nuki-uchi no tachi." This kata begins in iai-goshi (as do all the suwatte-iai techniques), and is nothing but a straight cut to the head. The difficult bit, besides whipping your sword out and cutting without lopping off an arm, is that you have to spring up and make the cut in mid-air, landing just at the moment you finish your cut. To see a proficient swordman perform this is awe-inspiring.

Although I have learned many things in my two years at Sugino Dojo, I know I have barely begun to acquire the skills of a swordsman. The experience has nevertheless been an astounding one, and I will always be grateful to the kind people at Sugino Dojo who have not let the language barrier prevent them from teaching me invaluable lessons on the sword, Japanese life and my own character. I wish I could thank them appropriately.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

RYUKYU KOBUDO VS NIHON KOBUDO

Q.

In Karate we have kobudo, but it seems to be different from the kobudo the Japanese talk about. Can someone explain the difference?

There's a difference in the term "kobudo" with regard to the way you chop-socky types (often? usually? always?) refer/think about it and the way we hack 'n slash guys do. The difference is that, in Japan, the Okinawan, or perhaps I should say Ryukyuan, weapons arts are referred to as Ryukyu kobudo or, sometimes, Okinawan kobudo. If you say "kobudo" per se, people think you mean the Japanese arts, those created by *bushi* before the Sword Abolishment Act of 1876 (might be one or two years off on the date). There's a difference between warrior arts like Chikubujima-ryu bojutsu and one like Ryukyu konpo/bojutsu: the former were meant for use against warriors armed with a sword and the latter was not. I'm NOT saying either is "better" or "stronger" than the other, only that they're different.

I've forgotten who the man was, but a story in the Oshima Nikki relates how a guard at Shuri Castle, part of the entourage of the Ryukyuan king (or was it a minister?) gave a demonstration of saijutsu at the shogunal court at Edo Castle. That's said to have been the first time Japanese bushi had glimpsed some of the Ryukyuan arts. They were interested, but more as a curiosity than as a "wow! I've *got* to learn that!" sort of thing. They thought that guy was pretty good, but that it wasn't terribly effective against their weapons.

Historically speaking, Okinawa te and Ryukyu kobudo existed in something of a vacuum, training pretty much in and among themselves. They did not study to fight/ practise against Japanese style weapons. Nor did they fight bushi in anything other than isolated cases. One of the more inane things that has cropped up in some recent demonstrations of Ryukyu kobudo is the use of sai, tonfa, nunchaku, ... against the katana.

It's like taking on an M-1 Abrams tank with a pop bottle filled with gasoline. Uh, roger that!... Maybe it's a possibility, but the likelihood of success ranks down there between slim and none. Historically? Nope, it didn't happen. The thing with an oar on the beach, giving rise to Chinen Shichanaka no kon, a fight where he flips sand into the swordsman's eyes, then whacks 'im? That is only a folktale and not verifiable at this time. The point I'm trying to make is this: Ryukyu kobudo and Japanese kobudo, are both martial arts, but are not exactly the same thing. Apples and oranges. Both are edible fruit: tasty, nutritious, pleasing to the eye. But they *are* different.

So, why, then, do teachers in Japan show karatedo and/or Ryukyu kobudo in demonstrations against the sword? Well, probably because the big-name people who have demonstrated karatedo and Ryukyu kobudo since WWII are the late Sakagami Ryusho, Inoue Motokatsu, Otsuka Hironori and Konishi Koyu Senseis, and Hayashi Teruo Sensei. Sakagami was a student of Mabuni Kenwa, Taira Shinken, and a very skilled swordsman to boot. He graduated from Kokushikan University with a degree in kendo and Chinese literature (so did Kato Takashi, headmaster of Tatsumi-ryu). He also studied iaido and jodo under well-known teachers and attained high levels of skill in all of them. Thus, he could demonstrate sai vs. tachi and not look like a total fool. But he was a rare man, an absolute budo professional, even among all the top-flight teachers in Japan, and there aren't many of *them* who could come close to his skill in even one of his arts. Inoue's initial training, based on what he's written and what he told me when I interviewed him, was with Fujita Sensei, in Japanese weapons, but he never showed the bo against a sword. Indeed, when I asked him about it at the Zoshukan Dojo, he laughed and said it wasn't something that was very plausible. I never saw Otsuka do waza *with* weapons, but he did demonstrate against tachi and tanto (most likely a result of his early training in Shinto Yoshin-ryu). I don't know much about Hayashi, other than that he also trained with Taira Shinken and is said to be very skillful, so I can't say too much about him. Konishi Koyu was an extremely important influence in Japanese karatedo, and was also a hanshi in kendo. While I'm unsure if he ever demonstrated Ryukyu kobudo against tachi, it may be he helped imbue Japanese karatedo with its odd "Japanese-style" mannerisms back in the '30s, when the art was first being established in mainland Japan. Talk to Okinawan teachers and get their takes on this. I discussed this with Toguchi Seikichi when I trained with him in Tokyo and he was not too enthralled with the way the art had changed from its original flavor and essence. Higaonna Morio, a Goju-ryu teacher, also talked about this odd aspect with Liam Keeley and Chip Armstrong when they trained at the Yoyogi Dojo, back in the late '70s and early '80s. Other teachers that've talked about this with me have said pretty much the same thing. So, it's not like there's no basis for the argument that there's a difference in approach between the Japanese and Okinawans.

Again, I'm NOT slamming karatedo or Ryukyu kobudo, and I'm NOT saying a Japanese weapons art is necessarily better than anything else around. It is always a "case by case" situation (a favorite saying of several teachers), one where a strong system helps a weaker man, a strong man can use a weaker system.

Ideally, one would want to be competent, study a well-conceived/organized school or system, *and* have the time to train to one's heart's content. Did that happen often, "back when" men were men and tough men wore skirts? No, probably not. If you were a bushi in Japan, a chikudun pechin in Shuri, or something else somewhere else, you were busy making a living, fulfilling your official duties, taking care of business. Talk to Pat McCarthy about the conversations he had with the police in Naha. Very telling, what he heard...

On another subject, the idea of "creating" a kobudo kata, I think it was Pat Zalewski who mentioned how Taira, et alia, would sometimes create a form out of thin air. Again, it comes down to what you mean by "kobudo" and the context in which one uses the term. The major part of my training is in the Japanese arts, though I've trained in Goju-ryu karatedo (Toguchi Seikichi) and done a little bit of Ryukyu kobudo (Inoue Kisho, we used to work at the same company), so I'm essentially speaking from the point of view of the Japanese classical martial arts.

Basically, Japanese kobudo (or koryu) exponents think that they're doing a system that has come down over time and has a sort of venerability based upon its past history and the fact that it's old. Changes by individuals aren't something that are generally countenanced, particularly at this time. They do occur, but the people who have the authority to do this are going to work *very* closely with the headmaster and other senior students of the ryu and it's done only after very careful consideration. Two instances of this would be the introduction of the kihon waza, gohon no midare, and the Zen Nihon Kendo Renmei jodo seiteigata in Shinto Muso-ryu, and the betsuden waza in Toda-ha Buko-ryu.

The koryu bujutsu in Japan are based on the formation of discrete systems, ryuha, that were founded upon distinctive principles, manifested by unique techniques. Itto-ryu and Shinkage-ryu kenjutsu, though both use a long and short sword, are completely different. Same goes for jojutsu. There is *no* way you could confuse a Shinto Muso-ryu exponent with a student of Muhi Muteki-ryu. *Everything* is different, even the way one looks at combat. All of these systems trace their lineage back to specific founders, often with a detailed explanation of who developed what technique, when, where, under what circumstances. In cases where the term "tenshin shoden" is used, the ryu are considered to have derived from direct inspiration of one or another Shinto (or, very rarely, Buddhist) deity. The general feeling is that one does not mess around with stuff that's ancient, venerable, or has this provenance to back it up. Like I said, it does happen, but only occasionally and with lots of thought about it.

The formation of ryuha in Okinawan karate (I won't say karatedo, because that is in itself a Japanese thing) is very recent by comparison, dating from the early Showa period. During the Edo period, the arts of both Okinawa te and Ryukyu kobudo were taught on an individual basis. People studied with a teacher in a very private manner, most often with only a few other people. You learned the kata that the teacher knew. Perhaps (not always) he would send you to another teacher for additional training. Perhaps you would also learn some sort of weapons technique. If you were a chikudun pechin, a sort of palace guard or constable, you'd be more likely to learn bo and sai. If you were a farmer, it'd probably be a form for bo, kama, tonfa, whatever tool was at hand. I reckon tekko were used by bouncers in bars/brothels or the local bad guy. Timbe? Perhaps a farmer's basket, with a field knife for cutting sugar cane or a tool (called a hera) to winnow grain. Or, maybe, a fisherman's basket and a gaff for working with fish. That short spear used by Inoue's group, however, is something that most likely came in during the twentieth century. More of that "foreign" Japanese influence.

Kata are usually named after the person who created it (Sakugawa no kon), the district in which he lived (Tawada no sai), or some characteristic of the form itself (Chinen [person's name] Shichanaka [not sure of this, but I think it's a location] Sunakake [technical characteristic] no kon) in forms seen in Ryukyu kobudo. Okinawans have a different take on things from mainland Japanese (they're not quite as up-tight and anal, for one thing) and they're not nearly as likely to get as worked up over a person changing sacred writ. Or at least they weren't. As they become more and more closely integrated into Japanese society, they're becoming more like Japanese (which is not necessarily a good thing).

The old prohibition on weapons in Okinawa, while it appears not to have been as absolute as formerly thought, was pretty effective. You didn't have many people walking around with swords. A knife, sure. Ryukyu kobudo waza will work against a short-bladed weapon (up to about wakizashi length) just fine. But a sword? Nope... not a happenin' thing. Remember that pop bottle and the Abrams tank.

The last ten years of so, Uechi Seikichi of Motobu-ryu udundi (that's how it's said in Okinawan dialect, the characters read quite differently) has done a number of demonstrations that involve all manner of weapons. The major problem is (I'm looking at it from a Japanese weapons arts-trained point of view) though, that it looks really lame. Maybe they *did* actually train with a sword, glaive, spear like that. But if that were so, they sure never faced a trained warrior. If they had, the Motobu family line would've been nipped in the bud. The second problem is that there's very little historical evidence to back up his party line that it's a legitimate system that's been passed down over the years.

So, for what it's worth, at the expense of a lot of words (and I apologize for that), there's an essential difference between Japanese and Okinawan kobudo. Both are great stuff. Just way, way different.

Meik Skoss

Koryu Books

Yearly subscriptions (12 issues) to the Journal of Japanese Sword Arts are $36 cdn in Canada, $36 US in USA, and $48 overseas. Subscriptions, stories, news, views, and anything else should be sent to Kim Taylor Editor JJSA, 44 Inkerman St. Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1H 3C5.

519-836-4357

MEDIA REVIEWS

THE SECRETS OF AIKIDO

by John Stevens

Shambhala Publications

Reviewed by Mark Beghetto

John Stevens is Professor of Buddhist Studies and Aikido instructor at Tohoku Fukushi University in Sendai, Japan. He is author or translator of over 20 books.

This book was passed along to me for a review which, I believe, was belated before my acceptance. I then procrastinated about it myself. Reading the book was delightful, and I actually read it twice before reviewing it, and once again while writing this.

The reason for the procrastination was not that it is a technical, how-to book (parts of it are), but rather the nature of the writing and its topics. I'm not an Aikido student and this book is intended for those who want a deeper guide to development in this art. The chapters deal with practices for the mind and body, the Tantric dimensions of Aikido, the Aikido science of sound, and other verbal practices in various spiritual disciplines, breathing techniques for calming the spirit and returning to the source of life, and physical techniques based on spiritual principles that link us to a higher level of being.

When a martial artist talks about spiritual feelings (or the lack thereof) in a discussion, controversy arises. Maybe one person's descriptions do not match your own, but perhaps the feelings are the same and are just not conveyed accurately. It makes sense, however, that when one practices anything when angry, upset or tense, that technique's strength will not flow the same. In a similar way, different feelings will arise if we are indecisive, distracted or solemn. This book provides a wealth of knowledge to help center ourselves throughout our life as we grow and experience it. A balance must be sought so that techniques will flow, (even with our intervention).

"Morihei Ueshiba maintained that 'aiki is love', and that it is possible to handle aggression with a smile" according to Stevens. The text makes comparisons with dance, art, and music to link everyday life with these teachings contained within Aikido. Stevens uses a collection of stories, teachings, scrolls and icons drawn from Shinto and Buddhism, India, and Tibet, and even from Greek wrestling to illustrate the themes of the book, center, balance and posture.

The book stresses "there are no secret techniques in Aikido, constant training is required". "The key to the secrets of Aikido lies within - if your heart is true, your techniques will be true".

As I mentioned before, I'm not an Aikido student so I can only see what is written here. From my viewpoint, the book is worthwhile.

WEB PAGES

Sei Do Kai Iaido homepage:

http://www.uoguelph.ca/~iaido/

Kim Taylor's webpages

http://www.uoguelph.ca/~kataylor/

Canadian Kendo Federatin:

http://www.uoguelph.ca/~kataylor/ckfindex.htm

Ontario Kendo Federation homepage

http://www.uoguelph.ca/~kataylor/okfindex.htm

IAIDO MANUALS

BBI-1 KIM'S BIG BOOK OF IAIDO (I):The Manual

8X11" 108 pgs. Kim Taylor:

BBI-2 KIM'S BBI (II): Seitei Gata

8x11" 100 pgs. Kim Taylor

BBI-3 KIM'S BBI (III): Omori Ryu

8x11" 94 pgs. Kim Taylor

BBI-4 KIM'S BBI (IV): Eishin Ryu

8x11" 127 pgs. Kim Taylor

BBI-5 KIM'S BBI (V): Oku Iai

8x11" 100 pgs. Kim Taylor

OTHER BOOKS

PH-1 SONGS OF THE SWORD

5X8" 100 pgs. by Kim Taylor

SD-1 RESISTING SEXUAL ASSAULT

8x11" 130 pgs. by Kim Taylor

SD-2 STUDENT GUIDE TO SELF DEFENCE

8x11" 150 pgs. by Kim Taylor

VIDEO TAPES

VHS/NTSC format only.

VID-1 SEITEI GATA IAI 1993

VID-2 SPRING SEMINAR/TACHI UCHI NO KURAI

VID-3 THE 1994 SENIOR CLASS, SEITEI GATA

VID-4 THE 1994 SENIOR CLASS, KORYU

VID-5 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1991, 1992

VID-6 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1993

VID-7 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1994

VID-8 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1995

VID-9 THE 1993 UG SUMMER IAIDO SEMINAR

VID-10 THE 1995 JOHN RAY SEMINAR AT UG - 1

VID-11 THE 1995 JOHN RAY SEMINAR AT UG - 2

VID-12 1994 SEMINAR WITH HARUNA SENSEI

VID-13 OMORI RYU AND SENIOR CLASS 1995

VID-14 1996 SEMINAR WITH HARUNA SENSEI

VID-15 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1996

VID-16 TACHI UCHI NO KURAI (includes material from VID-2)

VID-17 CKF YUDANSHA GRADINGS 1997

COMPANION VIDEO TAPES TO THE BBI MANUALS

VIDBBI-1 BEGINNING IAIDO I

VIDBBI-2 BEGINNING IAIDO II

VIDBBI-3 SEITEI GATA IAIDO

VIDBBI-4 MUSO JIKIDEN EISHIN RYU SEIZA NO BU

VIDBBI-5 MJER TATE HIZA NO BU

VIDBBI-6 MJER OKU IAI IWAZA

JJSA Journal of Japanese Sword Arts $36 Cdn in Canada,

$36 US in USA, $48 overseas.

JINX-1 IAI JINX WRITING CARDS

SEI DO KAI ORDER FORM

Please send me:

BBI-1. $30 __

BBI-2. $30 __

BBI-3. $30 __

BBI-4. $30 __

BBI-5. $30 __

BBI-SET. $120 __

JINX-1 $7 __

PH-1. $17 __

SD-1. $25 __

SD-2. $25 __

SD-SET. (1&2)$45 __

JJSA $36 __ Can/USA

$48 __ Overseas

VID-1. $25 __

VID-2. $25 __

VID-3. $25 __

VID-4. $25 __

VID-5. $25 __

VID-6. $25 __

VID-7. $25 __

VID-8. $25 __

VID-9. $25 __

VID-10. $25 __

VID-11. $25 __

VID-12. $25 __

VID-13. $25 __

VID-14. $25 __

VID-15. $25 __

VID-16. $25 __

VID-17. $25 __

Any 5 Vid tapes $100 __

VIDBBI-1. $25 __

VIDBBI-2. $25 __

VIDBBI-3. $25 __

VIDBBI-4. $25 __

VIDBBI-5. $25 __

VIDBBI-6. $25 __

VIDBBI-7. $25 __

7 Vidbbi tapes $175 __

TOTAL $_____

Address:

Prices include postage, Send order form to: Kim Taylor 44 Inkerman St. Guelph Ontario N1H 3C5. Payment in Canadian or US funds. Make checks or money orders payable to Kim Taylor or to Sei Do Kai Iaido.

For a catalogue, or price quotes on weapons contact Kim Taylor at the above address,

tel 519-836-4357, or email kataylor@uoguelph.ca