The word budo is Japanese and consists of two kanji: the kanji bu ( :ぶ) meaning “warrior” or “conflict resolution” and the kanji do (:どう) meaning “the way” or “traditions.” When combined together, we have “warrior traditions” or “the way of conflict resolution.” I am Ed Glimme, head instructor of this modern school of Budo. I have chosen the word budo to sum up the essence of what I embody and
to pay homage to the Japanese arts that form the foundation of my studies. The idea of martial arts often conjures up images of running around kicking ass and taking names, but there is much more to being a true warrior. A “warrior” in the traditional Japanese culture is not the same as in the American culture. The Japanese believe that a warrior is someone who “maintains peace” and “ends conflicts”. They believe that by learning martial arts you are not learning how to win a fight, but instead learning how to prevent fights from ever occurring. In other ancient cultures the path to warriorship was two fold: external or internal. The external path to becoming a warrior was to leave your home and family to experience the world. Upon returning home after trialled travels one was considered Warrior. The internal path was to join the local religion and live on the path of spirituality. Battling and taming their inner demons, this was considered Warrior. A true warrior is someone who is much more concerned with personal development—internally and externally—striving to rise as a free individual by mastering one’s own mind and body instead of conquering another’s. Only through mastering one’s own mind and body is it possible to overcome any adversity that presents itself – from stress at work, to a full on physical attack. If your intention is to learn a martial art so that you can dominate another, then I strongly recommend that you seek elsewhere. Hiding your own fear through aggression and violence is not the way at Ed Glimme Budo. However, if you are interested in dominating yourself to overcome your fear, then you are ready to follow your path of Budo. With this goal as our mantra Ed Glimme Budo offers a variety of disciplines that you can participate in to further your own inner and outer warrior. Classes at Ed Glimme Budo are carefully designed to bring you back into your body and to lead you to a fuller, more enriched life. Taking on these body art disciplines is a journey of self, and only you can decide which art and intensity is right for you. Please browse around and visit the various facets of Ed Glimme Budo. Whether you are aware of it yet or not, you will learn more about budo than you first realized. Then you will be able to make an educated and thoughtful decision about experiencing first hand, budo.
