Itten Dojo

  The March edition of Sword and Spirit has been posted. In “Back to JMAC, Again,” Itten Dojo chief instructor Robert Wolfe reports on our February visit to the Japanese Martial Arts Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for an especially intense weekend of training with Suino Sensei and our iaido, jujutsu, and judo sempai. Download the newsletter by joining the Sword and Spirit group on Facebook, or directly from our website, at https://www.ittendojo.org/dbfiles/download/swordandspirit/pdf/89. All back issues of Sword and Spirit are available at https://www.ittendojo.org/articles/swordandspirit. #ittendojo #japanesemartialartscenter #iaido #jujutsu #judo #shodo

The February edition of Sword and Spirit has been posted. Guest contributor Edward Castillo (Salahuddin Muhammed) Sensei continues his series on dojo culture with “Dojo Health and the Sempai.” Download the newsletter by joining the Sword and Spirit group on Facebook, or directly from our website, at https://www.ittendojo.org/dbfiles/download/swordandspirit/pdf/88. All back issues of Sword and Spirit are available at https://www.ittendojo.org/articles/swordandspirit. #ittendojo #japanesemartialartscenter #iaido #jujutsu #judo #shodo

 A recent post that included video of an old iaido form called “So Makuri” (“Complete Resolution”) garnered a number of disparaging comments on Facebook, such as: “Won’t do much against a pistol.” “Please do tell me how your ( sic ) going to use a sword in a fight with those moves.” The solo forms of Muso Jikiden Eishin-ryu are not really about fighting. The forms are primarily studies in physical structure and the optimal generation and application of internal power, but also include encoded tactical insights from the Edo Period of Japanese history. There are paired forms using wooden swords that preserve the actual fighting techniques of the style — in our line we also do free-sparring with wooden swords to pressure test — and there are armed grappling (jujutsu) techniques, as well. We do tameshigiri (“test-cutting”) with shinken (“live,” i.e., sharpened steel swords). Although practical self-defense in a modern context is not the focus of this type of martial art, I do person...

  The January edition of Sword and Spirit has been posted. In “The Path to Becoming,” guest contributor Edward Castillo (Salahuddin Muhammed) Sensei kicks-off a series of essays focused on taking your training to the next level. “Becoming” is a conscious process that will expand the life-benefits of martial arts training far outside the dojo. Download the newsletter by joining the Sword and Spirit group on Facebook, or directly from our website, at https://www.ittendojo.org/dbfiles/download/swordandspirit/pdf/87. All back issues of Sword and Spirit are available at https://www.ittendojo.org/articles/swordandspirit. #ittendojo #japanesemartialartscenter #iaido #jujutsu #judo #shodo

  The December edition of Sword and Spirit has been posted. In “Koryu on the Battlefield,” guest contributor Jenyer Paez Sensei provides a detailed explanation of why koryu (old-style schools of martial arts) do not typically address large-scale military doctrine, focusing instead on individual or small-scale engagements. Download the newsletter by joining the Sword and Spirit group on Facebook, or directly from our website, at https://www.ittendojo.org/dbfiles/download/swordandspirit/pdf/86. All back issues of Sword and Spirit are available at https://www.ittendojo.org/articles/swordandspirit. #ittendojo #japanesemartialartscenter #iaido #jujutsu #judo #shodo

The November edition of Sword and Spirit has been posted. In “Happo-giri,” Itten Dojo chief instructor Robert Wolfe provides insights and a link to a video addressing “Eight-direction cutting,” Suino Sensei’s precursor drill laying the foundation for bokken fencing. Download the newsletter by joining the Sword and Spirit group on Facebook, or directly from our website, at https://www.ittendojo.org/dbfiles/download/swordandspirit/pdf/85. All back issues of Sword and Spirit are available at https://www.ittendojo.org/articles/swordandspirit. #ittendojo #japanesemartialartscenter #iaido #jujutsu #kenjutsu #shodo