Bujinkan Dojo

Quite a statement and one that often stimulates people to think about what they are thinking about on a daily basis.

A close friend of mine didn’t truly get this statement when I posed it to him as his reply was “I think I am going to be a women! As that is what I am thinking about most!!!(LOL) But to get back on track here, what are you thinking about when you are training? How about when you are driving to work? Or even in your free time?  Most of us are all over the place as life keeps us bouncing from one fire to the next. Yet when you actively start to apply yourself to a particular project, task or idea you can make it happen in a blink of an eye. So you might be asking what does this have to do with my training, and I say just about everything!! (more…)

“A certain swordsman in his declining years said the following:

In one’s life, there are levels in the pursuit of study. In the lowest level, a person studies but nothing comes of it, and he feels that both he and others are unskillful. At this point he is worthless. In the middle level he is still useless but is aware of his own insufficiencies and can also see the insufficiencies of others. In a higher level he has pride concerning his own ability, rejoices in praise from others, and laments the lack of ability in his fellows. This man has worth. In the highest level a man has the look of knowing nothing. (more…)

” Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.”
Mahatma Gandhi (more…)

Discipline, as defined by Webster’s Dictionary, is “Training expected to produce a specific type of pattern or behavior, esp. training that produces moral or mental improvement.” So in most cases we look to an outside source for training that will improve what we are trying to learn. In the Martial arts we learn that “Discipline” is a by product of our training. This usually takes place by someone pushing us or prodding us to do better, or just one more repetition, or even correcting and improving a particular aspect of a form, drill or training method. But, the drive and will to do better than we have is truly not something one can just get through training, it is self- discipline. The internal drive to push yourself to improve, to do just one more repetition, to search for knowledge to improve one’s self, to always be pushing yourself the extra mile, even when no one else is looking or telling you to so, that is self discipline. How does one practice or improve self discipline? There is no easy way to do this. It is only through the choices, or decisions you make each and every day, can you enhance your self discipline. Look at the choices that face us every day, the easy and quick stop at MacDonalds, Wendy’s, Burger King, or a healthy well thought out meal that you make at home. How about our own training? There is a T.V. show I really wanted to watch tonight or should I go to class and do 1000 repetitions of drill? Are you pushing yourself to read more, train smarter, improve how you do things, willing to accept others criticisms in order to improve a skill, if you are not, can you honestly tell yourself why? Do we really want to hear the answer? (more…)

Did the title pull you in to learn unknown secrets of the ancient ones? You know the secrets that will make you invincible, invisible, kill at a distance and all that stuff? Well, to bad because that is not what you are going to learn here. This series of articles will cover only proven methods of improving your martial arts skills. I will be pulling this information from many different sources, any one of which could be a course of study. Here is our first item to look at. (more…)

Over the years I have watched many students and practitioners of the martial arts come and go. I have also witnessed the many work out fads and get in shape now programs come and go. The most common thing noticed in all of these people and or programs was the lack of “persistence”. (more…)

The term “warrior” evokes many different images to people. Maybe it is one man fighting against an overwhelming number of foes, or a great field of battle between two opposing armies. One of my favorites is a common farmer working everyday to protect, feed and clothe his family. Many true warriors were of the later type more than we think. Who is the truest to the warrior that you first thought of? So what is the Path of the Warrior? Read on…. (more…)

What causes people to believe that in order to gain the mental attributes associated with the martial arts, that they do not have to train in the physical? The martial arts media has propagated a myth, and practitioners wanting some higher mystical aspect have fallen for it , hook ,line and sinker. I am no better than anyone else, for when the original Kung Fu series started, I wanted to be that calm, philosopher, warrior Shaolin monk. Over the years I have undergone many aspects of training and have developed many new skills, but I have gained most of these mental aspects through hard physical training. Let’s look at just a few to start: Discipline, awareness, and emotional control. (more…)