Learn the authentic art of shaolin chuan fa from Black Belt Hall of Fame member Steve DeMasco in this exciting three-part DVD series! DeMasco has been a student of the martial arts since 1971 and has trained with some of the most famous Chinese grandmasters in the world, studying Shaolin arts such as the northern mantis and black tiger systems. Since 1997, he has journeyed to China each year to train with the senior monks of the famous Shaolin Temple. This 10th-degree black belt in Shaolin kempo also serves as the United States' cultural ambassador for Shaolin martial arts in China, an honor bestowed on him by Shi Young-xin, abbot of the Shaolin Temple.Shaolin Chuan Fa Part 1 DVD topics include: Shaolin animal techniques with full explanation! Exercises practiced by the original Shaolin monks as described in 1,500-year-old manuscripts! Interviews with DeMasco recounting his life, training and experiences!
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To Master the Supreme Philosophy of Enshin Karate, Look to Musashi's Book of Five Rings for Guidance!
In the martial arts, we voluntarily subject ourselves to conflict in a training environment so we can transcend conflict in the real world. After all, we wouldn't knowingly train in a style that makes us weaker or worsens our position. The irony of all this is that we don't want to fight our opponent. We prefer to work with what an opponent gives us to turn the tide in our favor, to resolve the situation effectively and efficiently.The Japanese have a word for this: sabaki. It means to work with energy efficiently. When we train with the sabaki mindset, we receive our opponent's attack, almost as a gift. Doing so requires less physical effort and frees up our mental operating system so it can determine the most efficient solution to the conflict.In this essay, I will present a brief history of sabaki, as well as break down the sabaki method using Miyamoto Musashi's five elements
Brief History
<p>Musashi was a samurai who lived during the 17th century. In feudal Japan, he was regarded as a kensei, or sword saint. Toward the end of his life, he wrote The Book of Five Rings, a classic on strategy and philosophy. It delineates the elements of air, water, fire, earth and the void. The timeless beauty of this text lies in the way it can help us understand those elements in a way that improves our skill in combat, as well as our ability to comprehend human nature.</p><p>For most of us nowadays, the martial arts are not needed for survival on a daily basis. We have laws and firearms to protect us. This fact makes the mindset and spirit of the martial arts even more important because they are what help us combat stress, handle people with opposing views and endure conditions that otherwise might threaten our well-being.</p><p>In the 1970s, my father Joko Ninomiya had a huge impact on the world of full contact — specifically, on kyokushin, the style of karate developed by Mas Oyama. In Japan, my father is known as the prince of karate and a modern-day Miyamoto Musashi. Why? Because when he fought, he used angles, leverage, positioning, timing and sensitivity to overcome bigger opponents. He didn't rely on brute strength; he relied on sabaki.</p><p>In 1988 he created his own style of full contact called enshin karate. The name means "heart of the circle." Enshin signifies not only the spiraling nature of sabaki techniques but also the authentic connection between ourselves and others, as well as the community at large.</p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDM5MTU5Ni9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1OTA4NTQzMH0.nKyZ1q09J9Q-FcYShSSwL4-uu3-7z7O2v2JoYhVXj_Y/image.jpg?width=980" id="baa95" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c7d394fc91ee8fc834b16fb81f7c1b19" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>Mike Ninomiya (left) faces his opponent (1)</p>
Book of Air: Discernment
<p>When we work with energy, a fundamental idea is that we can consciously give direction only to something we're aware of. To effect change, it's essential to be aware of that thing. Take, for example, a tire that's slowly leaking. It requires us to discern that something is wrong and then devise a strategy to change or repair the tire before it bursts on the highway.</p><p>In the martial arts, we don't just get hit out of nowhere; something happens, and we pick up on it. My father likes to say, "Your hands are like antennae." Our mental space must be bigger than our opponent's, and our hands should project that power with sensitivity. In sabaki, we want to be in an ideal position in which we know everything about our opponent and his movement potential is limited.</p><p>Air is also responsible for our ability to develop and use strategy in combat. If we cannot follow directions pertaining to strategy, usually we are very earthy. This is because the element that's in opposition to air is earth. If we are earthy, we're grounded. That can make us more susceptible to sustaining continuous damage. On the flip side, if we have too much of the air element, we're more susceptible to getting swept.</p><p>Another important role of air is its influence on our mental space. Ideally, we won't get hit, but if we do and our mental space collapses, we become more vulnerable.<br></p><p> <strong>How to enhance the air element:</strong> Eat foods that are less dense. Take a course in public speaking to learn how the mind is used to project what you feel. Simulate defending against multiple attackers. Keep a structured journal.<br></p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDM5MjExOC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNDY2Njk4M30.IpdZam4Krs4u_zQbMMpwQcQ1_cnGHvJoRAq68cY8wyk/image.jpg?width=980" id="bc8d9" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="909dbd88e0dafd218222ac982bc2eb63" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>Enshin karate instructor Mike Ninomiya (left) and his opponent square off (1). </p>
Book of Water: Attachment
<p>Water relates to feeling, fluidity, timing and rhythm. As my father always says, "Put your mind into what you're doing." When we put our mind into our opponent, we can feel his rhythms and interrupt them. In sabaki, we use the concept of kyushu to connect with the force of our opponent. Kyushu means "to absorb and cushion an incoming attack." It's the tool that bridges awareness and lets us feel what's actually happening, which is superior to being forced to simply react. Kyushu and the water element in general represent a movement that's in opposition to the fire element. It expands out and away from us.</p><p>Kyushu, on a more social level, refers to putting ourselves in another person's shoes. Many courses on conflict resolution involve being the person we have a problem with, all in an effort to make us realize the trigger is a barrier we set up to isolate and protect ourselves. The name of my father's karate is enshin, which refers to the heart of the circle. It's not only the physical heart that circulates blood in our bodies but also the energy that allows us to feel and have empathy. This empathy is an attachment and harmonization to another person's feeling or intention.</p><p>Musashi wrote a poem titled Senki (War Spirit) that explains the water element: "The moon, in a cold stream like a mirror." The mind is calm and unaffected like the cold stream that keeps moving while reflecting the emotions (the moon) of the opponent. So even though we're separate from our opponent, we're calm and can feel everything he's thinking.</p><p>When we use kyushu to respond to an attack, we absorb it through a solid structure that has elasticity embedded within it like a trampoline. This trampoline-like strength relies on opening and closing the joints and the fascia, the web of connective tissue that has a strength and sensitivity greater than muscle. While a muscle requires oxygen, the fascia is avascular, which means it doesn't have blood vessels because it doesn't need oxygen. This frees up the oxygen in our bodies so it can be used by the brain and vital organs. When our operating system has freed up some of its resources, we can feel what's happening more accurately.</p><p>To do kyushu with proficiency requires a mind shift from that of fight or flight, which is encoded in our DNA, to that of releasing muscular tension and using the body's natural intelligence of the fascia and bone alignment. Something interesting to note in the kihon (basics) of enshin karate: The blocks are technically not blocks according to that word's conventions, which conjure an immovable and hard structure. The blocks of traditional karate are rigid and linear, with a start and a stop. The blocks of enshin use spirals, which are the language of how energy is transferred along fascia. A spiral has no start or stop, which results in a continuous stream of connected power.</p><p>Once kyushu has been established with an incoming attack, we can move toward a position that's more advantageous. In this position, our movement potential is amplified, and our opponent's movement potential is limited. As soon as position has been established, another critical concept enters the picture: kuzushi. Often referenced in the grappling arts of judo and jujitsu, kuzushi means "to borrow the opponent's balance." When we have to stabilize our balance, it's very hard to simultaneously defend against a strike. Using kuzushi, however, we can choose how to respond — with a strike or a takedown. The sabaki method uses both options.</p><p> <strong>How to enhance the water element: </strong>Take up yin yoga, a gentle form of yoga that uses relaxation to create space. Practice giving and receiving. Play and interact with music, song and dance. Hit a heavy bag while moving in and out in sync with the bag's swinging. Volunteer to do something that resonates with your higher purpose, such as teaching a skill or donating money without expecting anything in return.<br></p>Book of Fire: Will
<p>The fire element is expansive in nature and deals with any percussive strike. On a personal level, it calls on the will to materialize an action. Someone who has a strong fire element has a strong will. When things get tough, we can harness this element to dig deeper — this is called fighting spirit. The person with the fiery personality is often the life of the party. Fire is spiritual, rules philosophy and connects to intuition.</p><p>Fire is the only element that doesn't exist in nature without the application of an external force. It requires a balance of other elements to ignite it. When fire is in excess, we can be irritable, moving and attacking with a lack of focus and purpose. When it's in harmony, we can maternalize our reason for fighting (water), discern when to do it (wind) and be grounded enough to not get carried away throwing wild punches (earth).</p><p>A pivotal point in Musashi's career occurred when he learned that the reckless actions and duels in which he'd participated had no direction or purpose in life. Legend says that a Zen priest named Takuan Soho taught him to cherish his life first so he would know what's worth fighting for. When we care enough about something, he learned, we will fight for it.</p><p>In Musashi's fire book, he spoke about how different movements and strikes embody different kiai. Essentially, he said the kiai should match the action. He also highlighted the gaze, which should be focused and composed.</p><p>In sabaki, once we discern an attack or detect an opening, we use the water element to connect to the opponent. Then we can choose to strike depending on the circumstances. In kihon, we use correct form to learn how the bones and connective tissue transmit striking power. The traditional stance known as sanchin dachi, a pigeon-toed position that relies on the stability of the triangle to connect the hands to the feet, is hard-wired energetically. When the stance is freed up in free fighting, we learn how to connect all the moving parts.<br></p><p><strong>How to enhance the fire element: </strong>Learn to strike and kiai properly. Develop single-pointed focus in standing meditation with your eyes open to prolong the time you can act before reaching the threshold at which you want to quit. Engage in resistance training with light weights and explosiveness. Do high-intensity interval training that focuses on body mechanics and breathing.</p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDM5MjM5Mi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2MTYwMzAxNH0.alpXNlIlY1uJoYABcHL-ANcIws08y74SKHPE-Exn7-E/image.jpg?width=980" id="12195" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2c6040652eb40fec3343b1f65d9af405" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>FIRE ELEMENT: The opponent unleashes a body punch (1). </p>
Book of Earth: Persistence
<p>In a nutshell, the earth element teaches that how we do one thing is how we do everything. On a deeper level, this means connecting to the rituals that underlie our daily habits. It's really the earthly persistence of how the other three elements interact to embody a skill while maintaining integrity on all levels.</p><p>Many skilled martial artists can tell just by sight if they come across someone who trains in the arts — and often they will know which art the person practices. This level of embodiment in a person and the ability to detect it cannot be forged overnight. It takes years of doing the one thing until it becomes part of you.</p><p>In a practical sense, the earth element keeps us grounded and gives us the ability to use the techniques we've practiced without having to think. One of my father's favorite quotes, one that he often renders in Chinese calligraphy, is "A drop of water repeated over time makes a hole in stone." This is the secret to success that we must remember: Just keep training.While the rootedness of earth can make it challenging to throw or sweep someone who has too much of the earth element, it's often easier to strike such a person and then use kuzushi to borrow his or her balance before throwing or sweeping.</p><p>While this element may seem like the most mundane, it also is a reflection of the divine. This means that the rituals and care we see in the dojo remind us not to take our practice for granted. If we follow an empty ritual or do something only because it seems fun, in the future, we may become bored and never grow deep roots. The source of the bow in Japanese culture represents grounded humility. Reference the rice plant: As it matures, its head drops toward the ground so others can eat it and grow strong. The reverence that arises from an authentic bow instills a sense that there's always more to learn. As the Japanese say, "With true strength comes humility."</p><p><strong>How to enhance the earth element: </strong>Learn to stand on a stability ball. This is one of the most direct ways to develop a real root, as opposed to a physical root. (A real root is an energetic connection that runs deep into the ground and takes advantage of intention. A physical root involves widening one's stance and dropping one's center of mass.) Develop a daily schedule and create a routine to document your progress. Eat foods that are denser in nature.<br></p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDM5MzM3MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYwMjMxNzkzNH0.IYKHfqkIoeGcIZWxe-WOkYjRzXaaaaXsnUyYAKD6luQ/image.jpg?width=980" id="6807a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="19b5b828375ac60973f059b96280bcf9" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>EARTH ELEMENT: Pinned against the wall with his right arm immobilized (1), </p>
Book of the Void: Emptiness
<p><br>This is the most mysterious element in that it represents the mind itself. In the martial arts, mushin refers to the state of "no mind" — in other words, a mind that's empty. The mind has two parts: the active mind, which has one pointed focus, and the passive mind, which is voluminous and wide.</p><p><strong>How to enhance the void element:</strong> In the spirit of Musashi, train your mind to be like a sword: extremely sharp yet so polished that you can lose yourself in its reflective nature. Meditate in your quest to attain mushin, striving to have your active mind focus on emptiness and your passive mind gently observe. Such a goal can be difficult to attain on your own. It's best achieved through participation in retreats that teach meditation. </p><p><em>Mike Ninomiya is a four-time Sabaki Challenge world champion. He has an eighth-degree black belt in enshin karate, a black belt in judo and a brown belt in jujitsu. In addition to martial arts, he teaches meditation, energy work and yin yoga. For information about his retreats that use The Book of Five Rings, visit <a href="http://mikeninomiya.com" target="_blank">mikeninomiya.com</a>. For information about enshin karate, visit <a href="http://enshinacademy.com" target="_blank">enshinacademy.com</a>.</em><br></p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDM5MzU1MC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxODY0MTY2MH0.Yz-mQCPuWy7rywvtId7s7fBI3XyJElQdIVSe4cbvIm8/image.jpg?width=980" id="ea0aa" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c93d6af22c03f104b9405be7eba60044" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p>ROOT: Mike Ninomiya uses a stability ball to practice the enshin karate concept of a real root to the earth.</p>
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"Yoshiharu Osaka sensei was always the textbook of shotokan," one experienced karateka said."True," his colleague replied. "But Kanazawa sensei was always the book of its poetry."
Stories of Hirokazu Kanazawa are a soundtrack of post-training bull sessions. Kanazawa, who won the first All Japan Karate Championship in 1957 — with a broken wrist. (When his mother heard he was dropping out of the competition because of the injury, incurred only days before the event, she asked him why he couldn't win with the other hand and with his kicks, compelling him to stay in. Moms then, and Japanese moms in particular, were a little different.)
<p>Kanazawa who, along with his roommate Takayuki Mikami, was one of the first graduates of the Japan Karate Association's instructor-training program, where his skills were polished by Masatoshi Nakayama, Hidetaka Nishiyama, Teruyuki Okazaki and other members of the JKA whose names are still spoken with reverence.</p><p>Kanazawa, who established the United Kingdom and Germany as centers of karate excellence in the West, who was forced to leave the JKA — or who voluntarily left, according to whom you believe — and who founded almost single-handedly an organization that remains among the strongest karate groups in the world.</p><p>Clearly, there are lots of stories, some of which are less well-known. Like Kanazawa's repeated sojourns to Okinawa for serious, long-term study of its karate — which flew in the face of a JKA that's always been arrogant and provincial in its refusal to consider such cross-training.</p><p>Like his embrace of tai chi, which he credited with improving everything about his budo and which doubtless did much for the synergy of his art, giving it the suppleness and flow that are missing in most iterations of JKA karate today — which explains the comment about his karate being the poetry of the art.</p><p>And there are lots of examples of his extraordinary character. One of the least-known is his inspiring humility, his genuine lack of pretension. He always insisted on demystifying the whole "master" nonsense.</p><p>Some years ago, Kanazawa visited the offices of Black Belt. He posed for hundreds of photos, performing over and over again the kata known as jion, which were to be used to illustrate an article about him. Over lunch, he answered the editors' questions graciously.</p><p>One editor asked, "What is your definition of a sensei?"</p>
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<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2237506225ab7ab8ead228f80512868c" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-runner-src="https://blackbeltmag.com/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQyMDg5OS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyODQzOTg3NH0.qOv_fxW8YITCfa1B3XwU5zDFH70jj5GImz8GM3zZQ2E/image.jpg?width=980" id="0e63e" type="lazy-image"/>
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<p>Kanazawa smiled. He turned toward one of the two students who had accompanied him, both Japanese, and he spoke in that language.<br/></p><p>"Best thing that could happen for American karateka to do is to quit using 'sensei' at all and just start calling us kusobera-san." A visitor who was at the table laughed, prompting Kanazawa to ask, "Did you understand what I said?"</p><script async="" src="https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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</script><p>The visitor did. Instead of using paper, Japanese toilets in the feudal era had smooth sticks for cleaning oneself. Kusobera translated as "poop stick."</p><p>What Kanazawa meant, he went on to explain, was that students should forget about the "sensei/master" mystique and recognize that teachers are tools, humble tools, meant for improving the lives of their students. They should be treated with respect but not as objects of near-worshipful devotion.</p><p>Kanazawa died late last year. He was 88 years old. He was one of the last of the karateka who could consider Gichin Funakoshi to have been a direct teacher. He was one of the most influential martial artists of the last century, as well as one of karate's most inspiring champions, teachers and leaders.</p><p>Kanazawa's tens of thousands of students and readers — he wrote several texts on karate — might find it odd that a poop stick would figure in his obituary. Hirokazu Kanazawa, however, the man, the karate sensei, the subject of all those stories, might have found it satisfying. </p>
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It's a difficult subject, but perhaps I'm finally old enough to examine it with some objectivity — and with some insight that's worth sharing. The issue, of course, is when one should retire in karate or other forms of budo.
A quick clarification: No serious martial artist "retires" in the sense that the person ceases to train, study and explore life by traveling along a martial way. There's an expression in Japanese that one should live one's life as a kara kyohi, a dry husk, one that's used up completely. In other words, one should leave nothing left undone. There is no retirement from any martial art; they all represent a lifelong path.There is a moment, however, if a budo teacher lives long enough, when he or she must contemplate retiring from a position of authority. More accurately, the person must be willing to step back, to allow a new generation to take over the active teaching role.
<p>This may surprise some readers. In popular martial arts lore, the bearded master not only continues to be at the head of things, but he also continually bests his younger, stronger students. The reality is that while budo can give us a healthy life and we can learn to manipulate timing and other subtleties in ways that can defeat younger, stronger practitioners, the arts cannot magically free us from time. If we live long enough, we will grow frail, physically as well as mentally.</p><p>I'm not suggesting your future as a sensei will be that of a doddering, mumbling geezer. Or that there will not always be a place for you in the dojo that you ran for so long. It is, rather, that you must accept changes. Adapt to them. Enjoy them as you accept them.</p><p>There is a title in old Japanese: go inkyo sama. The go is an honorific title, as is sama, a more formal version of san. Inkyo refers to a special, private area of a large estate, the living space set aside for those who have retired from daily life. In old Japan, warriors, nobles and the wealthy often retired from their careers as well as from the hustle of the everyday world. They devoted themselves to the arts, to their hobbies or to their studies. Today in Japan, the term is still used. Businesspeople and other professionals look forward to this period. You can see go inkyo sama all over that country: people gardening and pursuing other activities they never had time for as working adults.</p><p>In the dojo, sensei who become go inkyo sama don't necessarily stop coming to class. They do not, however, continue to lead training. Gichin Funakoshi, for instance, in the final years of his life, sat in a chair at the side of the training hall. He watched those teachers who were leading practice. From time to time, he might call one of the teachers over to make a point or offer advice. Mostly, though, he allowed those teachers to take their place, to mature and to develop the personalities needed for leadership.<br/></p><p>Often — too often — aging Western karate teachers like to believe they've "still got it" in terms of their physical prowess. Ego can play an enormous role. These sensei believe that they're indispensable, that those younger seniors in the dojo might be capable of leading the beginner's or children's classes but that the advanced stuff can come only from them.</p><script async="" src="https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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</script><p>I've visited dojo where a sensei has this attitude long after it's no longer applicable. He insists on being the one who continues to control everything. He lectures, covering topics everyone has heard a dozen times before. Seniors are polite, listening, deferring. One can sense their frustration, though. The sensei, too, is frustrated. Often, he knows that he's repeating the same instruction and that he no longer can do what he's telling his students to do. He may grow cranky, even angry. And he takes this out on the students:</p><p>"You guys think you know this, but you're still not really getting it!"</p><p>One feels sorry for the aging teacher in this position. At the same time, he should know he's perverting the flow of an art. He has, if it's a good dojo, brought up a generation of seniors, some of whom should be capable and sufficiently competent to assume a teaching role. But no. He tells them, "You're not ready." Is it because he really thinks they have more maturing to do? Or is it just that his ego cannot handle letting go?</p><p>If you're a younger practitioner, this subject may seem awfully theoretical. It's hard to imagine there will be a day when you must consider such things as retirement. And remember that for every older teacher who won't let go when he should, there's also a younger student who thinks he's ready to be a teacher when he isn't.</p><p>We all begin our training with selfish interests. We want to be stronger, more competent in meeting threats and adversity. None of us came to the dojo because we wanted to preserve and refine the art, to pass it down. We didn't think that far in the future.</p><p>In the case of a poor teacher, he never loses this self-centered mentality. Even as he teaches, his attention is on himself. His students are, to some degree, just another way of focusing on his own accomplishments.In the case of a good teacher, while he maintains his own interest, he also comes to care about others in the dojo and about the art itself. He comes to understand that he's not the center of things. He's another link in a long chain, stretching back to the art's founder and to those generations of teachers who came after the founder.</p><p>A good teacher is aware that he's forging links for the future. When the time comes, he must complete the forging — or at least be satisfied with his work. He must allow the next links to take their place in the chain. He'll always be "Sensei" in the estimation of his students and thus always respected. He'll have the grace, also, to take on the role of go inkyo sama. </p><p><em>Dave Lowry has written Karate Way since 1986. For more information about his articles and books, visit blackbeltmag.com and type his name into the search box.</em></p>
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