Passing my grading and moving forward

So yesterday I passed my sankyu 3rd level brown belt grading. It was a very humid evening and the hall was stuffy. The humidity and the heat were a little oppressive and made gripping difficult as both mine and my uke's skin became slipperly with sweat. The waza section of the grading seemed to go on for hours as techniques were called out from the head Shihan which we performed and then repeated until he was happy to move on. I felt sorry for my uke as I performed Yoko Katata Osae Dori over and over again, a half-standing technique involving applying a painful wrist lock before throwing them to the ground. The standing waza felt similarly protracted and by the time we had finished I was feeling a little dejected at the thought of completing 50 more techniques for my variations.

Nevertheless I persevered as I went through each section of the variations starting with Hakko Dori (escape from an opening) through the Kotegaeshi and Shodan wrist locks and onto the Otoshi's (throws) and Nihonages (four-directional throws) before finishing with Ube Doris (finger locks) and shimites (strangles and constriction). As my uke withered under the intensity and heat I eased up on my atemis and tried to keep my finishes simple, something that frustrated me as I was torn between trying to look as good as possible and remaining in control of the techniques.

When I had completed all of the techniques needed for my grading I left the mat tired and disappointed. As there is no competition in Aiki-Jujutsu the grading is one of the most important ways in which to gain experience of reacting under pressure. The techniques are meant to be executed with skill and penache and your level of control - both over your uke and your emotions is meant to improve. From that perspective the grading was good experience; comparing how I composed myself compared to my blue belt grading I do think I have made progress - I was much calmer and the techniques came more easily to memory. It gives me encouragement that the techniques are beginning to set into my muscle memory and the many variations required come far more naturally to me now than when I first began training in them for my green belt a year ago.

I am happy in myself that I can see the progress I am making. My martial arts experience is far from complete but I am another step closer to achieving my goal of becoming a well-rounded and competent martial artist. The success I have enjoyed in Aiki-Jujutsu has given me the confidence and the passion to expand my horizons and seek to fulfil my potential in other arts, especially combat sports such as Judo or Karate. Together through the combination of traditional bujutsu/budos and combat sports I believe I will gain the skills, techniques and experience to be able to reasonably protect myself and grow as a human being, becoming more respectful, disciplined and compassionate.

Incidently passing my sankyu brown belt grading also gives me the right to wear the Hakama, which I have always seen as a symbol both of the art's heritage and of excellence. I am proud to be able to train in the Hakama, another connection to the Samurai roots of the art as well as an incentive to be worthy of the rank. I am a role model and example to the more junior students and therefore should embody and train to the standard of excellence that the Hakama represents.

From Bujutsu to Budo a shift in perspective

It has occurred to me that all forms of Japanese Budos are actually derived from Bujutsu's. Take Judo and Aikido for example: Professor Jigoro Kano founder of Kodokan Judo developed the art from Jujutsu. An educationalist by profession, Professor Kano designed Judo to be practiced for the benefit of health and well being and became part of the Japanese physical education programme in schools; Judo also became the art of choice for the Tokyo police. Professor Kano removed some of the more lethal Jujutsu techniques in order for the art to be practiced vigorously but safely. Similarly Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba developed his art by adapting the empty hand techniques of Aiki-Jujutsu and the weapons techniques of Kenjutsu and Bojutsu. Ueshiba, a religious man and devout follower of the Shinto cult of Omoto-Kyo believed fighting was out of harmony with the universe and designed Aikido as an art of peace not war. By blending their energy with that of their attacker, Aikido practitioners absorb and redirect an attacker's energy.

Conversely, in both cases Jigoro Kano and Morihei Ueshiba were both masters of Bujutsu. This may seem like an extremely unoriginal observation as these facts are general knowledge but I have been reflecting on the implications of this in my own Jujutsu journey. Before we learn to run we must first learn to walk. The ideals of defending oneself without seriously injuring your opponent are very noble and commendable but may not be of much practical value if one does not understand or is not capable of defeating an opponent. Judo has become an Olympic sport and Aikido a highly stylised art form that sometimes resembles a dance more than a fight. In the former case a Judoka wins by cleanly throwing their opponent upon their back (ippon) or by successfully pinning them for 25 seconds or by submitted them through arm bar or choke hold. However, although there is a great chance that if someone was thrown cleanly in the street they would suffer concussion and even broken ribs Judo is not practiced as self-defence and street fights do not end when one person is on their back (just look at the lack of success many high level Judokas have had in MMA). A strong willed or physically powerful person may continue to resist and fight back and that is if you can throw them in the first place without first being knocked out by punches or kicks. In the latter case Aikido waza (techniques) are practiced in choreographed form involving uke and tori. Uke simulates the attack and tori defends. These attacks are often derived from Kenjutsu sword cuts and the angles of deflection used in Aikido are based on those principles. In the street though attacks are not choreographed and the angles of attack will vary dramatically, especially since most people will not have a working knowledge of Kenjutsu.

This is not a criticism of Judo or Aikido, this is an honest observation of the limitations inherent in all martial arts. But I believe honesty is incredibly important in the development of one's own experience and study of the martial arts. One may be drawn to Aikido because its philosophy of peace is appealing to the person's sense of moral conscience but what type of Aikido are they practising? Do they train in Aikido with the perspective of self-defence or are they practising Aikido for much the same reason people practice Yoga or Tai Chi, as a form of physical and spiritual well being? One may win several Judo tournaments but do they know how to respond to an assault in the street against strikes or weapons? It has been said that modern Budos are civilian arts and traditional Bujutsu's are martial arts used by soldiers in battle. In that case then all martial arts today are actually Budo because they are taught to the public. But there is still a difference, however minimal between Budo and Bujutsu.

As I've said before I am on a journey of learning and discovery; my views and philosophy may change again in 6 months time, but I believe that Bujutsu is the natural starting point for the life and practice of any martial artist. Budos are not developed from other Budos. The stress and emphasis on the 'do' as in way of life can only truly come about after one has mastered Bujutsu first. It is through the process of learning how to practically defend yourself that you begin to assimilate the techniques not just into your muscle memory but into your world view. As you practice and perfect the techniques you start to understand how they would be applied in the real world and only then can you adapt the waza to suit the situation that arises. Morihei Ueshiba developed Ikkjo waza from first mastering Ikkajo waza of Daito-Ryu Aiki-Jujutsu. Appropriation is the natural result of mastering any waza. To be a martial artist is not just to mindlessly mimic the waza textbook fashion but rather to make the waza your own, as Roy Dean founder of Roy Dean BJJ Academy in Oregon America explains it is "your expression of the technique". Of course everyone begins by learning the waza textbook fashion because we all need a base upon which to build our house.

I want to be able to successfully defend myself if ever I was in danger. However I could go along to my club practice the waza in their traditional forms go home and be none the wiser about how to actually protect myself in the street. That is why when I train in the traditional waza forms I am actually doing two things: 1. practising the technique in order to perfect the waza in accordance with the grading syllabus and 2. striving to reach a point where I can recognise I don't need a choreographed attack in order to actually apply the waza but that I can adapt the waza where appropriate to the situation. Budo is point B and Bujutsu is point A. However, what many Budos do not teach is how you get from point A to point B. Without taking that journey yourself you will never have the same profound understanding of the waza as the founders themselves.

My goal is to one day make my Aiki-Jujutsu into a Budo, not by taking up Aikido or even by changing its name but simply by fully understanding the art, appropriating the waza and then being able to use the least amount of force necessary if I was attacked. To believe you can practice the 'soft' styles of Budos and then apply them dojo fashion in a real life confrontation is niave. Niavity is dangerous because you are deluding yourself under a false sense of security. I do not want to hurt or injure another human being; I take no pleasure from causing another human being pain, but if it came to it and I was violently assaulted in the street I want to be able to defend myself even if that means having to break their arm or choke them unconscious. Bujutsu is the starting point of every martial artist, even those that take up Budos because the level of comprehension, execution and grace that the masters of these arts have takes decades of practice to achieve. You do not need to practice a Budo to make something Budo. Every Bujutsu can be turned into a Budo by the practitioner who has enough experience, skill and intelligence to be able to make the art their own personal expression.

An example of what I mean can be found on Roy Dean's dvd the white belt bible and the last chapter 'a shift in perspective'. You can watch the chapter on youtube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVITwO4-L6I

What is Aiki?

This week I have been working a lot on the importance of foot work to Aiki. Now I practice Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu, which as I have explained before is based on the Hakko Ryu system of Aiki Jujutsu in Japan. Ours is an Aiki art but it is also very much a Jujutsu art as well. I was fortunate to work one-to-one with one of my instructors this week and we focussed, amongst other things, on the importance of foot work in applying Aiki. It can be generally argued as Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu is a Jutsu art that it would fall under the category of Japanese Bujutsu, meaning art or science of war. Generally speaking these arts place less emphasis on the ‘philosophy’ of the art, and focus more on the effectiveness of the techniques in combat. On a very simplistic level it could be said that Aiki-Jujutsu is Aikido without the philosophical connotations. Does then that change the nature of our use of Aiki as compared to Aikido? I have always understood Aiki to simply be the application of off-balancing your opponent as they attack. Indeed this is precisely the use of Aiki as found in Daito-Ryu Aiki Jujutsu, the predecessor to both Hakko Ryu Jujutsu and Aikido and a true Koryu (ancient art) of Japan.

In Daito-Ryu Aiki Jujutsu Aiki is the off-balancing of your attacker as they enter for an attack. Examples given included Tachiai Ippondori and Shihonage. Both of these techniques have their equivalents in Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu. Here Tachiai Ippondori relates to Uchi Komi Dori and Shihonage is the same. Let’s take Tachiai Ippondori (Uchi Komi Dori) – here the uke (attacker) raises their arm in an overhead strike, simulating a sword cut. At the moment the uke raises their arms over their head the tori makes the block with two straight arms before the uke has a chance to strike, thus breaking their posture. It is an extremely simple principle but it makes an enormous amount of difference compared to the straight forward Jujutsu version where the block is executed after the uke has made the strike. In the Jujutsu version the attacker is on posture when the technique is executed and is therefore much stronger. In the example of Shihonage the uke grabs the tori’s wrist with the intention of preventing them from drawing their sword. Here the tori leads the uke off-balance at the point of entry - the tori moves their hand back just as the uke is coming to grab making them over extend their reach just slightly, breaking their balance. Rather than the uke being static and contact being made before the technique is executed, in Aiki Jujutsu the hand is drawn back just before contact thus making the uke over extend their reach breaking their balance.

In both of these examples there is no mystical energy force being summoned just extremely precise reactions designed to break the person’s balance at the moment of attack. Once a person’s balance is taken their strength is negated. This does relate to energy, insofar as it is blending to a degree with the attacker’s energy, but blending is an expression of yielding the very principle at the heart of Jujutsu. Therefore Aiki is a natural extension of Jujutsu. From my experience of Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu and my study of Aiki as practised in Daito-Ryu Aiki Jujutsu, Aiki is a science, the science of taking posture in correlation to the successful execution of Jujutsu techniques. In this respect techniques using Aiki have the potential to be very powerful and effective and far more likely to be successful. However, developing the sharpness of perception and precision reaction times in order to off-balance your attacker at the moment of attack takes many, many hours of practice. This is the irony of the criticisms levelled at Aiki arts for being unrealistic for self-defence. It may require years of training but once you are able to off-balance your opponent at the moment of attack the likelihood of successfully defending yourself dramatically increases.

Posture before Technique

Posture before technique: three simple words but incredibly important to get them in the right order. Last night was an excellent session; it was the first lesson since passing my blue belt grading and I was really excited to get on the mat. Yet as it turned out I was not allowed even one week to bask in my blue belt glory! There was a sensei from another Dentokan dojo visiting whom I had trained with before on a couple of seminars. Almost from the outset of the lesson as we warmed up and I was knee walking as is customary at the start of every session he pointed out that I wasn’t using my hara (roughly translated ‘core’) adequately enough. Then we began the session proper with practicing standing Uchi Komi Dori (overhead strike defence). He invited me to demonstrate the technique on him to which I obliged followed immediately by a critique. Then he intimated that it was my turn to uke as he became tori. I raised my arm to simulate the strike and he executed the technique. It was very apparent that his technique was superior to my own in every way; his carried with it power and control that mine lacked. Thankfully he is a very good teacher and took me step by step through the parts of the technique and where I was going wrong. Similar to the nuances I needed to make to my knee walking, this time I needed to apply more body weight propelling myself forward as I blocked his strike while keeping myself straight and centred. I mimicked his movement trying to get my body position right before attempting the technique again. After his tuition I performed the technique again feeling much more power this time and feeling far more confident I was in control.

Then his attention turned to critiquing the next part of the technique – the Shodan wrist lock. Once more he demonstrated on me allowing me to experience what it should feel like – his grip was powerful and firm but not to the point where he was crushing my hand and then he lifted my arm above my shoulder, driving his body weight through my shoulder and pinning me to the ground. My balance and strength had been completely broken and negated. In comparison my technique was weak and ineffective. His very simple advice to me was posture before technique: take the posture and then and only then execute the technique. Whereas before I had been trying to apply the technique without sufficiently taking my uke’s balance now I was able to see that this is bad practice. 

The rest of the night we trained in a few more techniques again following the same pattern of demonstration, deconstruction, critique and then reconstruction resulting in a much better technique.

It felt like a steep learning curve, especially the emphasis on the importance of hara in executing a technique; but it felt fantastic to be given so much attention. For a moment the thought passed through my mind “can’t I just enjoy being a blue belt for one week?!”  and then an even more profound and deeper truth dawned on me: at the end of the day, the reason his expectations were so high of me was because I was now a blue belt; that was the wonderfully empowering and reassuring truth behind all of his criticisms - I had reached the level in which the little mistakes can no longer be overlooked or tolerated because I am no longer still a beginner.  Now more is expected of me, more is asked of me, more is demanded of me and that feels good. Once I had realised this I didn’t want the lesson to end; I just wanted to continue learning. I want to be a good martial artist; a good Jujutsuka. The only way I am going to be able to achieve my ambition to become a Dan grade is to listen to my instructors, absorb their wisdom and to learn from my mistakes. Tonight I felt like a white belt – a complete novice compared to this visiting sensei and that is exactly the attitude I need to practice with week in week out.

Posture before technique.

Jujutsu as Budo

This may seem like an extremely obvious statement, but I believe it is so important to understand and practice Jujutsu as a pursuit of Budo. Last Wednesday at my Aiki-Jujutsu lesson I was practising for my imminent grading, focussing on my variations for the Hiji Dori techniques (elbow locks) and thought I was doing okay. I hadn’t spent much time working on my Hijis but was fairly confident I understood the mechanics. As I practised my sensei came over and inspected my form. Then he made a comment I wasn’t expecting – he said my technique looked “shit”! It was a humbling experience (and just a little disconcerting two days before my grading), but an important one. As I reflected upon his comment it opened my eyes to the importance of pursuing Jujutsu not just as a Martial Art for the dojo but as a Budo for self-protection. As my sensei stressed it must work on the street. If I am applying an atemi then I need to strike with a sense of conviction and power, not apathy. My technique should also be spontaneous, at the end of the day you can’t predict what happens on the street and an attacker is not always going to telegraph their attack or comply if your technique is too telegraphed.

           

 I have a long way to go before my Jujutsu becomes a fully practical Budo, but I now understand the path much more clearly. Mushin and Zanshin, the concepts of one-mindedness and alertness are two of the most fundamental principles in Martial Arts – they takes years of training, but are something to be developed for the improvement of one’s awareness and ability to react appropriately for your own safety. Ultimately you don’t want to over analyse the situation otherwise you will not be able to react in time: reaction is always slower than action. Jujutsu should flow naturally as an extension of yourself in response to the particular circumstances of the assault. Jujutsu means the art of yielding and so one’s self-defence should be in response to the attacker – their energy, their aggression and the nature of their attack. This at least is my current understanding of what it means to yield.

           

 The ability to yield and truly utilise the art of Jujutsu is the pursuit of Budo. Budo is the art of war – it is not sport, it is not about point scoring, competitions or medals; it is not for entertainment, it is about doing what is necessary for self-preservation. Jujutsu in its traditional Japanese form such as Aiki-Jujutsu whether a derivation of its Daito Ryu or Hakko Ryu form is Budo. Judo and BJJ have evolved into combat sports with rules and regulations. These have benefits in themselves but should not be mistaken for Budo. Budo is about living and dying in the moment – kill or be killed, there are no second chances, no tomorrow, no next week only the present.

             

And so I went to my grading trying to keep all this in perspective. I was far more nervous after my sensei’s comments two days before and was very self-conscious of my Hiji Dori techniques. The grading itself felt far more intense than I was anticipating, but I suspect that was because I felt very anxious. There were only six of us grading, four white belts and myself and a blue belt. After the Suware waza (sitting techniques) the white belts left the mat leaving just myself and the blue belt with our two ukes. Here was a perfect example of developing Mushin – the mat felt very empty as a dozen eyes scrutinized our form and technique. I did my best to block out the judges and the spectators and focus solely on my uke. Some techniques I struggled to remember more than others; as I was grading for my blue belt I had to perform a total of 30 variations (both left and right sided). I was very confident in my Kote-gaeshi wrist locks and in my Otoshi’s (throws) but my mind went blank on some of my Shodan wrist locks as well as my Aiki’s and my Hiji’s. Eventually they came to mind, but are not quite ingrained in the muscle memory as they need to be yet.

            

To my delight I passed my grading and again was given reassuring encouragement in my display and aptitude. What encouraged me the most was the most senior ranking Shihan took me to one side after the presentation of my certificate and told me that he was so impressed with my variations that he thought they were of a brown belt standard! I was blown away by such high praise after feeling so anxious about the whole evening. It feels great to make it to blue belt, I feel I have crossed a threshold on my path towards black belt but there is still a lot of room for improvement. I have achieved as much as I can physically achieve in my time in Jujutsu so far having made and passed every grading available to me; but it will take many more years of training to practice Jujutsu as Budo.

           

Practically what do I need to improve? My kata still needs refining; my foot movement needs much improvement and my centeredness - to be on-balance when executing a technique, finding my strength not from my limbs but from my core and taking my uke’s posture more are the priorities. It is exciting, even exhilarating to see my next steps to progress as a Jujutsuka and knowing how to reach my goals but it also requires humility and patience. Sometimes it’s hard not to get carried away with the culture of grading and obtaining your Dan grade but it is important to hold everything in perspective. Am I worthy of my rank? A black belt means nothing if you are not fit to wear it. I hope that when that day comes when I grade for my black belt that my Jujutsu will truly be Budo and not just a stylised art form that looks impressive but lacks real effectiveness.

Steven Seagal The Path Beyond Thought

Steven Seagal has become a controversial figure in the martial arts world since he took credit for teaching UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva 'that' Crane kick, which he spectacularly beat Vitor Belfort with. Whether or not Seagal is an MMA guru he is a bonafide Aikido master. Seagal is a 7th Dan Aikido black belt and holds the honorary title of Shihan meaning 'Master'. Steven Seagal's accolades in Aikido are even more impressive when one considers he was the first ever Westerner to run his own Aikido dojo in Japan.

The Path Beyond Thought is a documentary about Seagal as an Aikido instructor, as he was known in Japan as Take Sensei. The documentary features interviews with some of his former students both in Japan and America and their insights into his approach to teaching Aikido; as well as footage of Seagal's demonstrations and classes. The documentary covers many elements of Seagal's teaching as well as Aikido's fundamental techniques such as the importance of Ukemi (break falling) and Randori (three man attack). Of particular interest was their reflections on the Dan grading and Seagal's especially high expectations and pursuit of perfection. The very strong impression given from the documentary was the seriousness and commitment with which Seagal taught as one who strove to embody the true essence of Budo. Seagal's Aikido as testified by all his students was very practical and realistic. His classes were very physical and he pushed his students to their physical limits.

Seagal has his critics, some accuse him of abusing people, both stunt men in his films and his students on the matt. However, Aikido itself has its critics as being ineffective in real-life self-defence situations. Many observe that Aikido looks more like a dance than a fight. In contrast, the footage of Seagal demonstrating his Aikido techniques are incredibly inspirational as he executes each technique with the utmost conviction and puts 100% into them. Seagal's demonstrations are never sloppy, never half-hearted, never flowery - they always are effective, with an economy of movement. Basically Seagal practices his Aikido as if his life depended on it and truly captures how Aikido would work on the street. This is something to be admired about Seagal - he is a true martial artist.

After watching the documentary and footage of Seagal teaching, I have reflected upon my own experiences in Aiki-Jujutsu. Very often my Aiki-Jujutsu classes leave much to be desired, compared to Seagal's standards. Atemis are not performed with the proper conviction and there isn't the same emphasis on the importance of ukemi, not to mention the lack of real randori. One day I would like to teach my own Aiki-Jujutsu classes and Seagal's teaching model is one I am inclined to imitate. All I can do for now is continue to learn and do the best I can, making sure that I train to my own high standards and learn from masters such as Steven Seagal.

DVD review: Art of the Wristlock

Art of the Wristlock by Roy Dean Sensei is a very professionally put together instructional DVD. Roy Dean Sensei runs a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Oregon, America but also holds Dan Grades in Aikido, Judo and Seibukan Jujutsu. Thus Roy Dean is the complete package when it comes to the grappling arts of Japan and Brazil. It is this respect for and blending of both ancient and modern forms of Jujutsu that sets this DVD apart from other instructional DVDs I own. Disc 1 begins with Roy Dean’s own thoughts and philosophy on Jujutsu. This insight into the theory and application of Jujutsu from an instructor of Roy Dean’s experience and calibre is excellent and inspiring. A long time practitioner of Aikido, Roy Dean then began to explore the competitive world of grappling, namely through Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, testing his Jujutsu techniques and skills, honing them to become both practical and applicable for both competition and self-defence.

               

The wrist lock techniques on Disc 1 cover the Aikido techniques of Ikkyo, Nikyo, Sankyo, Yonkyo and Gokyo. Very similar techniques are found in Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu such as Shodan and Nidan, which relate to Ikkyo and Nikyo with the other Aikido techniques featuring in the Dan grade syllabus of Sandan and Yondan. The techniques are performed by Roy Dean in a traditional Japanese style dojo, which helps create an air of authenticity and professionalism to the quality of the DVD. I always find it especially inspiring to learn and train in a traditional Japanese setting. Roy Dean clearly explains the mechanics of the technique before demonstrating them first at a slow pace and then at a faster, more realistic pace. Thus this DVD is excellent for beginners to Jujutsu or Aikido.  Disc 1 also covers Shihonage (known in Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu as Nihonage) and Kotegaeshi. What sets this DVD apart is the nuances Roy brings to the techniques from Seibukan Jujutsu, showing Jujutsu variations to the techniques. There is much greater emphasis on the use of atemi's in traditional Jujutsu than in Aikido and these variations feel far more 'street' ready as a form of self-defence. I believe it is important to have a knowledge of all such variations for the different wrist lock techniques so that the Jujutsuka can apply them when and where appropriate, should they become necessary.

              

However, one of the best features of this DVD is Roy Dean’s own BJJ style variations of the wrist lock techniques for ground fighting. Dean is an experienced grappler having competed in many grappling contests where wrist locks are legal and demonstrates many of the techniques that he has had success with. Dean is an exceptionally innovative Jujutsuka and his development and adaptation of traditional Jujutsu wrist locks for ground fighting are inventive and effective. Bonus features on Disc 1 include several demonstrations of Aikido and Seibukan Jujutsu as well as trailers to his other BJJ DVDs. Particularly impressive from my perspective was Dean’s Seibukan Jujutsu Sandan demonstration.

Disc 2 features three seminars from the Yosokan Dojo in Monterey, California. The first two deals with aspects of Aikido principles and how they relate to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and the third is a seminar on leg locks and foot locks. The seminars all feature Roy Dean teaching and selected footage of his students training. Roy is a good communicator and his instructions are easy to follow. What makes Roy such a good instructor is his attention to the mechanics of the technique, breaking each technique down into their component parts and then reconstructing them to demonstrate the technique as it should be executed. His teaching style is also very incremental in as far as he starts with a basic technique and builds upon that technique to incorporate variations and adding more complex elements to the technique in line with the skill level and competency of the class. My only criticism (if you can call it that) is that the third seminar on leg locks seems strangely out of place for a wrist lock DVD and while having an overall ‘game’ is very important, I couldn’t help but feel it would have been better suited to a BJJ instructional DVD instead.

Overall I was very impressed with the quality and production of this DVD. Roy Dean is the epitome of the total Jujutsuka and his example is a strong source of inspiration to me in my Jujutsu journey. His dedication and commitment to Jujutsu in all its facets as well as his passion to teach and guide others in the wonderful art of Jujutsu is outstanding and highly motivational. I highly recommend this DVD for those practising a traditional form of Jujutsu/Aikido, especially for beginners and even for those studying BJJ who want to have an ‘edge’ over their friends and opponents in their club.