THE GUTTER RONIN: How Darkness Overtakes Light

By Shifu Hayashi Tomio This story recounts a series of events that took place over a ten-year span from early 1970 to early 1980. It is not my intent to disparage anyone in this tale but rather to candidly portray the interplay of light and shadow in the soul. The...
NAGABOSHI TOMIO: The Buddhist Who Refused To Fight

NAGABOSHI TOMIO: The Buddhist Who Refused To Fight

Martial politics, personal rivalries and hate agendas, aimed to discredit a noted UK martial expert decades ago, reveal the dark side of human nature and obscure the teachings of a vital martial art. This piece is a collaboration of several martial artists who seek to...
NEIHANCHI: A Half Century Musing on the Kata of Okinawa

NEIHANCHI: A Half Century Musing on the Kata of Okinawa

I do not speak Okinawan, Japanese or Chinese but I am very fluent in a certain kind of foreign language—KATA, specifically the dialect of the physical movement patterns of Okinawan Karate. I have been speaking this language for fifty years and teaching others how to...
The  Other Way of Sanchin

The Other Way of Sanchin

Many karate systems teach the Sanchin kata as an external training method to strength-condition practitioners with a series of breath-controlled tensions. This mainstream understanding is a viable but topical explanation missing some of Sanchin’s other, more...
The Eight Levels of Meditation

The Eight Levels of Meditation

The real power of martial arts lies in linking one’s physical training to one’s meditation practices. Both adepts and neophytes alike, who practice various breathing and concentration exercises, will receive encouraging results for their efforts. Read...