Bujinkan Overberg Dojo

23/10/2022

13/06/2022

As uke, you must protect your teacher. You must see your role as a protector or guardian of the martial ways. You are assisting your teacher in transmitting traditions rich in culture and humanity for the next generation and yourself. Uke is about being selfless and understanding the role of giving.
The more you give and trust, free from desire or ego, the more you shall receive in spirit ( shin den ) body ( tai den ) and mind ( ku den ).
Empty your cup at the door. Enter the dojo with an open heart and a body ready to be forged like a sword.
If you cannot do this, don`t enter.
南虎

28/05/2022

The more I train, the more I discover my lack of training. Like Soke says, "You will come to understand when you are my age."
頑張ってください！
Keep Going!

05/05/2022

Entering the Dōjō, you must be prepared for pain. If you don’t want to experience discomfort and want to stay in your comfort zone, don’t come. Martial arts is pain. If anyone says you can learn Budô without discomfort to your entire being, they themselves don’t understand the martial path.
Martial arts is fighting. You are learning the arts of mortal combat with and without weapons. To think you can learn without experiencing pain turns it into a mere solo dance or exercise with a partner.
It’s only through blood,sweat and tears that you will come to understand the heart of the martial artist. If you are not prepared to accept this, it’s better that you do not come to the Dōjō. If you understand and accept this, your training will become enjoyable as you develop the mind,body and heart of the martial artist.
It’s important that you understand the context here. Pain is not only physical, but the pain of feeling awkward,weak,fragile etc. Growth in Budô comes from personal challenge. Your teacher and partners are there to help you confront, w**d out, and overcome your weaknesses. This itself can be hard and painful on the ego, as well as the body.
Budô is tanren ( forging the mind,body and spirit ).
If you don’t understand, than go to the Dōjō and train.
南虎

03/04/2022

The Dōjō has to hold a special place in your heart where it transforms your mind,spirit and body into a person of single minded conviction toward a pursuit of self mastery through austere training.

If not, it’s just an empty hall full of people with no real focus and direction.

南虎

23/03/2022

“Training is a promise. You trust that your partner won’t hurt you, and you do so in return. Take things slow and practice them properly. It will do you no good to create bad habits by practicing improperly. There are countless ways to punch, but as uke, you should punch straight and true for the benefit of your tori—none of those tracking, missile-like punches that float all over the place. That type of punching does not benefit anyone. Just punch straight, and if your tori does not move at the right time and at the right distance, he will get hit. And you, as an uke, should not be afraid to be hit. There is no shame in being hit. Even I, as I show techniques, am occasionally hit. This is a part of the learning process. In a real fight, you will be hit and you must not be shocked by contact. Being hit lets you know that you did something wrong and need to work on it until you get it right. Simply practice properly.”

Nagato Sensei

04/03/2022

“The way to true understanding and purification of the heart is through TRAINING.
Budo is about heart, not technique. Taijutsu is to the martial artist as Meiso is to the monk. Taijutsu is our meditation. It is the martial artists way to understanding the heart and achieving satori.
Therefore, keep going and don`t severe the connection with your teacher.

Words based on an excellent talk by Nagato Sensei at Honbu. ( March 5th 2013 )

08/02/2022

“People who cannot respect others for their good qualities - people who only look at the bad in others - are no good themselves. By looking at only the bad points, you open yourself up, and in a real encounter, will most probably be killed.”
宗家Masaaki Hatsumi

07/02/2022

"One principle of the martial arts is to have a heart or spirit which is flexible enough to cope with anything. Above all, the basis of Budo is Juppo Sessho no Jutsu ('contact in ten directions')... Juppo Sessho describes a situation when two heroic creatures - a dragon and a tiger - fight using a vast array of techniques. One can interpret this as indicating that Budo and Ninjutsu exist both inside and outside the box; indeed at a level totally beyond everything else."

- Hatsumi Masaaki, The Way of the Ninja, Secret Techniques

02/02/2022

18/01/2022

These are the essential Sanshin 三心 of complete martial transmission between teacher and student.

Kuden口伝 discussion/verbal communication
Taiden 体伝 physical substance communication
Shinden 心伝 heart/spirit communication.

Souke states that we need all three to truly understand the martial arts.

12/01/2022

“It’s not who’s good, it’s who’s left.”
Many skilled people don’t continue. Talent (才能) alone is not what makes one successful in the martial arts, you must have Konjou 根性. This is having guts,willpower,spirit,grit and determination.
Only those that continue, understanding the heart of perseverance ( 忍耐 ) and able to maintain consistency in their training while following the winds of change ( 武風 ) will truly benefit and grow from Budô.
南虎