Ninja and Samurai Martial Arts Dojo

Posts Tagged ‘kobudo’

For the 3rd year in a row, Poway Samurai Martial Arts is running a food drive to help needy families in San Diego. Residents and those who work in the Poway area, are encouraged to make donations of dry or canned goods. In return, the martial arts dojo is offering one free week of martial arts classes.

Food Drive for the San Diego Food Bank

Poway Samurai Martial Arts is located at 13160 Poway Road (across the street from the Poway Library). Donations are being accepted now through Dec. 18th. All food collected will go to support the San Diego food bank (sandiegofoodbank.org). Those who make donations will receive a certificate that they can redeem for a free week of classes for any program, any time before January 31st, 2011.

“We offer training in unarmed and sword martial arts of the Samurai (kobudo) and Ninja (Ninjutsu), as well as weekend Qi Gong classes for stress reduction and wellness. Our traditional methods are the basis for the modern martial arts of today. Regular practice can help strengthen all areas of a person’s life, including service to others,” says Tony Whetstine, Owner and Instructor.

“We encourage our kids and adults students to be involved in volunteering in the local community, as well as in supporting local charities”, says Whetstine. With the economy the way it is right now, we’re doing all we can to help those who really need it.”

For more information or to make a donation of dry and canned food items stop by Poway Samurai Martial Arts at 13160 Poway Road (in the Library Plaza Shopping Center) anytime between the hours of 10am – 5pm Mon through Friday or 9am – 12pm Saturdays. Or, you can call #858-486-0059.

For more information contact:
Tony Whetstine
#858-486-0059
13160 Poway Road, Poway, CA 92064

http://www.thesamuraischool.com

info (at) PowayMartialArtsSchool (dot) com

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Have you been thinking about martial arts classes for yourself or your kids? Could you use 3 months of FREE training? Just become a Poway Samurai Martial Arts Facebook Fan to enter our contest to win free training (up to a $300 value*)!

Here’s How It Works:
Login to Facebook (or quickly and easily create a free account) and go to the Poway Samurai Martial Arts Facebook Fan page. Click the button “Become a Fan” before Dec. 31, 2009, at 11:59 pm Pacific Time. While you’re in Facebook, post a comment on our wall telling us what you would do if you won the free training. We will select a winner at random on January 1, 2010. Winner will be announced on the Poway Samurai Martial Arts Facebook Fan page, the Samurai School blog, and the @bushidoguy Twitter page.

What You Can Win:
The Winner can choose from (1) one of the following (3) three training options:

1. Adults Basic Kobudo Martial Arts
   Kobudo is “Old Martial Arts” in Japanese. Students who take these classes find it fun, exciting and a great workout. In addition, the traditional martial arts training provides self reflection and this new focus and determination helps them succeed in all areas of their life, home and work. Three months of training is a $300 value!
2. Kids Martial Arts
   Kids ages 5 – 16 who take our classes find that they improve their focus and self esteem. They are not affected by peer pressure and can even get better grades in school, all while having fun in a supportive and safe environment. Your child may even discover leadership skills he /she didn’t know he had! Three months of training is a $300 value!
3. Qi Gong (Chi Kung)
   The practice of Qi Gong has innumerable health benefits. One area that effects most people’s lives is stress. Large amounts of stress to the body can cause “dis-ease” leading to poor health. Regular qigong practice can help prevent illness. Three months of training is a $180 value.

Just enter today by becoming a fan at http://www.facebook.com/PowaySamuraiMartialArts. We are the only martial arts school in San Diego teaching “Martial Arts with Meaning.” Come see how learning “Bushido”, the way of the Samurai, can change your life.

*Free training will occur at the dojo located at 13160 Poway Road. Uniforms and equipment (if applicable) are not included. Free training must be used before 1/31/10.

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Whether the Ninjutsu is a Koryu martial art is a question I’ve read and been asked many times and there a plethora of opinions about this. A very common cited source for one opinion is Koryu.com and I have been asked my thoughts on this site.

In the interest of full disclosure, at my dojo, Poway Samurai Martial Arts, we practice the samurai and ninjutsu arts of the Takamatsuden as trained under the Jissen Kobudo Jinenkan.

It is important to recognize that despite the tremendous work and research done by Koryu.com and its primary sources of the Skoss’ and Dr. Karl Friday, they specifically state that they “Koryu.com” do not include ninjutsu and some related schools because they “…do not fall into OUR DEFINITION of the koryu bujutsu.” They go on to say “…just because we don’t share the same OPINION doesn’t mean that we are not all doing useful and good training.”

These are the key points. Neither the Skoss’ nor Dr. Friday have ever seen or examined the Takamatsuden related scrolls. Dr. Karl Friday, when confronted with the idea that he should ask Dr. Hatsumi to examine the documents for authenticity himself, said he was unqualified to make such a judgement.

The Kobudo arts of the Takamatsuden, have been recognized as Koryu by serveral Japanese organizations that are qualified to authenticate such scrolls, such as the Zen Nippon Todo Renmei among others.

The schools are listed in the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten, which is a catalogue of Koryu and Gendai Budo and due to its’ meticulous cataloging, formatting style and methods used in creating it, it has become THE standard academic reference for anyone doing research into the field of martial arts.

Basically what you have here are disagreeing opinions not unlike getting a Business Degree. For example, in California, the University of California has requirements that are different from the California State University system. Both are fully accredited but when transferring from one university to the other for the same business degree of study not all credits etc. transfer or are included in the curriculum of each university. Both have their own “opinions” of what a Business Degree requires and while there are differences there are typically more similarities.

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We call ourselves The Samurai School because we maintain the heritage of the Samurai and Ninja lineage by teaching these Japanese arts directly from the ancient scrolls. This is different from any other school you will find offering Karate and Martial Arts in San Diego. Our teachings of kobudo (old martial arts) traditions harkens back to field combat tactics that involved large groups and complex strategies to win battles.

Too often the “modern” martial arts of today fail to provide much skill, focus or purpose in life other than to fight. They have thrown away the traditions, lessons and philosophies their arts were based on. The focus of the Japanese warriors was not simply to be a good fighter or warrior (bushi) but to temper those skills with the lessons and philosophies for a fundamentally more full, abundant and happy life. That is why Samurai means essentially “to serve” and Ninja essentially means “to persevere or be patient”.

When you choose to study the traditional and authentic Japanese martial arts of the Samurai and Ninja, you learn martial arts with meaning. By following Bushido, (the way of the samurai), our students find meaning in their lives they did not even know they were looking for. The traditional arts of the Samurai and Ninja teach effective skills for self defense and combat from techniques that have been practiced for hundreds of years. And, they also build character, self esteem, focus and self discipline skills which help increase mental agility. This can give those who practice it an advantage in the workplace and build a solid moral and ethical approach to life which leads to a safe and happy existence. Plus, as a physical activity, our training provides a non repetitive form of exercise that can relieve stress both physically and mentally.

Come to The Samurai School and train with us to change your life. It’s not just martial arts, it’s Bushido!

Tony Whetstine (The Bushido Guy)
Owner/Instructor of Poway Samurai Martial Arts

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There are a lot of martial arts today, from Karate to Mixed Martial Arts covering the distance between sport and art. Most of them have been created fairly recently from the late 19^th century to a combination of different arts into a so-called “real” martial art and of course sport fighting in the 20^th and 21^st centuries. There is no doubt that there are intrinsic values in each of these from physical skills to discipline, confidence, respect and other values.

It takes a lot of discipline and skill to be a MMA fighter and it is no less so to be skilled in karate, kenpo or any other marital art. However, going beyond the physical and the inherent discipline, etc., the real question is why train in these arts at all. Some train for physical fitness, some for self-defense skills and others for trophies and titles.

When training in the traditional martial arts, and speaking even more specifically to the kobudo arts we train at Poway Samurai Martial Arts, the teachings go beyond these concepts. Some mistakenly think of the samurai arts as being only the sword or weapon training. And it is true there is a diverse set of skills with weapons in kobudo training. However, traditional martial arts are the source for many of the modern unarmed martial arts. Kobudo is a very diverse training that builds the highest levels of discipline, dedication, confidence as well as leadership and focus.

What really sets kobudo apart is that it is what I call “Martial Arts with Meaning.” The samurai didn’t go “do” kobudo. It was how they lived. The samurai virtues were a code for their entire life and how they strived for the “ever appropriate response” to whatever situation they encountered. Above all the samurai lived a life of service.

Many with only a cursory knowledge of martial arts and the samurai, think only of their tremendous fighting prowess and martial skill. While those were present, what motivated these warriors were service and love of family, lord and their country. It was equally important for the samurai to be skilled in other arts to remain in balance. Whether it was painting, writing or any other number of forms of art, the samurai needed to live a full life in balance.

Now I do not mean to suggest that no other martial art form carries any lessons, philosophies or “meaning”. However, not all more modern schools do or focus on it. In kobudo that original purpose and the “meaning” is inherent and is such an integral part of the training, that Julian R. Fuller in the British Journal of Medical Psychology p.321 wrote that “Traditional martial arts training is more beneficial than modern martial arts training.” When comparing the samurai code of bushido and its principals and effective modern psychotherapy.

Michael E, Trulson, wrote (“Martial Arts Training: A Novel ‘Cure’ for Juvenile Delinquency, Human Relations, vol 38, no 12) “The majority of…schools teach only self-defense techniques, and our data reveals that this type of training enhances negative personality traits of people who are already delinquent…Traditional…martial art philosophy places great emphasis on respect for others, humility, confidence, responsibility, honesty, perseverance and honor.”

There are a number of reasons for training martial arts and choosing a school and there is no “correct” answer for everyone. When considering a martial arts program and school, what do you want most for you and your family?