Bujinkan Carroll Dojo

What is Bujinkan?

Bujinkan

The Bujinkan is a martial arts organisation practising the art commonly referred to as Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu. The art is widely considered to be the last legitimate ninpo, or ninja, martial art, particularly because of the influence of Togakure ryu. It is headed by the Soke of the school Masaaki Hatsumi, the lineage holder of the nine ryuha (ancestral schools) transferred to him in the middle of the 20th Century by his teacher Takamatsu Toshitsugu. The Bujinkan is specifically known for its koshijutsu, koppojutsu, jutaijutsu, dakentaijutsu, and happo hikenjutsu in addition to its higher elements of ninpo(ninjutsu).

Training

The training is generally referred to as taijutsu (body arts), and is composed of both armed and unarmed methods of fighting. Much of the basic taijutsu taught to beginners comes from six primary lineages in the Bujinkan compendium, namely Koto-ryu, Gyokko-ryu, Shinden Fudo-ryu, Takagi Yoshin-ryu, Kuki Shinden-ryu, and Togakure-ryu.

A large variety of weapons are taught, including swords such as daito, wakizashi and tanto, bamboo shinai, wooden bokken and staves of varying lengths (bo, jo), short staves called hanbo & hanjo . In training, weapons made from wood or soft modern materials are employed for safety. Practitioners are also introduced to a variety of other traditional implements such as fukuro shinai, nawa (rope), kusari-fundo (weighted chain), kusarigama (scythe with chain), yari (spear), kamayari (spear with curved scythe-like blades crossing the principal head), kagiyari (spear with 2 rearward hooks), bisento (known in Mandarin as 'kwandao'), kyoketsu shoge (similar to a kama except it has a dagger point and a rope of several feet attached to an iron ring), jutte (sword trapping truncheon), tessen (iron fan), naginata (Japanese glaive), kunai (a blunt digging tool), as well as various form of shuriken including bo-shuriken and senban shuriken.

Students are encouraged to be aware of their surroundings and environment and make use of common objects where available. The emphasis the Bujinkan places on stealth and deception makes it a valuable exercise when practicing awareness.

Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu practice does not include participation in competitions or contests.

Grade

The Bujinkan Dojo has a series of nine kyu (grades) below the level of shodan, starting with mukyu ("without grade") and then from kukyu (9 kyu) to ikkyu (1 kyu), with 9 kyu being the lowest rank and 1 kyu being the highest. Just like in other Japanese martial arts, such as karate and judo, unranked (mukyu) practitioners wear white belts, and those with ranks of shodan and above wear black belts. Kyu level practitioners wear colored belts, though the actual color of the belt varies from place to place. Furthermore, unlike other martial arts, the color has no relation to the actual kyu-level the practitioner holds. In Japan, it was once customary for kyu-level men to wear green belts and women to wear red belts; however, this practice has largely been abandoned. Now, both male and female Bujinkan practitioners wear green belts at most Japanese dojo. Outside of Japan, some countries still follow the green for men /red for women custom, while others use green for all practitioners.

There were originally 9 dan levels, as with many other martial arts using the kyu/dan system, but this was changed to 10 and later, 15 dan levels. The grades are divided into three groupings; 1-5 dan Ten (Heaven), 6-10 dan Chi (Earth), 11-15 dan Jin (Man, in the sense of Humanity). The Jin levels are further divided into the five elements of the Godai; chi (earth), sui (water), ka (fire), fu (wind) and ku (void). The practitioner's level is displayed by the color of the art's emblem, called wappen, inscribed with the kanji "bu" and "jin". There are four kinds of wappen (9 to 1 kyu, 1 to 4 dan, 5 to 9 dan, and 10 to 15 dan) sometimes augmented with up to four silver or gold stars (called hoshi) above or around the emblem, representing the individual ranks.

At 4 dan (yondan), practitioners submit to a test before the soke to establish that they are able to sense the presence of danger and evade it, considered to be a fundamental survival skill. This is called sakki. This is the test for 5 dan (godan). A practitioner with the level of godan or above is entitled to apply for a teaching license (shidoshi menkyo). A shidoshi is entitled to open his own dojo, and grade students up to the level of 4 dan. A practitioner with the level of between 1 dan to 4 dan may become a licensed "assistant teacher" (shidoshi-ho), if backed by and acting under the supervision of a shidoshi 5th to 9th dan or a person who holds the level of 10 dan (judan). In the Bujinkan a person who holds the level of between 10 dan and 15 dan is often referred to as a shihan. In addition to the kyu/dan system, a few practitioners have earned menkyo kaiden "licenses of complete transmission" in individual schools. These menkyo kaiden essentially establish that the master practitioner has learned all that there is to learn about the particular lineage. Whereas the kyu/dan ranks are often made public, those select practitioners who have earned menkyo kaiden rarely divulge their status, sometimes even being reluctant to recognize their actual dan ranking to outsiders.

What is Ninjutsu?...