This question of blending techniques from other arts came up again as it does often when we have someone new join us with previous training. When people ask me this they usually are describing how they do something more than the technique. Techniques are just tools. How you use them determines the art.

Omote gyaku, kote gaishi, outward wrist twist are all names of a similar technique that can be found in Aikido, jujutsu (classical and modern) and our art. What distinguishes our version is the ninpo taijutsu (on a physical level) we use to accomplish this technique. It’s less of what we do but how.

I did a seminar for some Kempo Karate friends where we did their techniques using our taijutsu. The end result looked more like our stuff then theirs.

On the other side if you are using muscular strength and speed to apply oni kudaki it won’t look like taijutsu even though that technique comes from our tradition.

The principles of how we move and think in a fight are what make us unique.

To-Shin Do is proof of that. Mr. Hayes has applied timeless principles to modern problems. Do the techniques look the same as the classical ones? To me they do because I’m not looking at the tool being used I’m looking at the taijutsu of the person using it.

The study of techniques should lead to the understanding of our taijutsu not to the memorization of a bunch of stuff.

Dennis
Shinobi Martial Arts
95 Plaistow Road, Plaistow NH

One of our students was saying that sometimes on striking and bag work, they drift into more of a boxing structure and lose track of shutos, extended knuckle fists…etc and was wondering what to do about it.

No matter which strike you are practicing you want to make sure you are using taijutsu to deliver the strike and not just the muscles of the upper body. I use the ideas from kenjutsu (sword work) to make sure my strikes are done with taijutsu.

Remember our system was developed on the battlefields of ancient Japan. There were not many reasons to fight unarmed. Its one of the beauties of our system, no matter what weapon you use or if you are armed or unarmed the taijutsu is the same.

To take advantage of this when practicing strikes I ask myself how would I move if I had a sword in my hand instead of just a punch.

Would I being snapping my hand forward from the shoulder or would I being sinking into gravity to pull my weapon out in front of me?

After I make contact with the target I freeze and then check my kamae. If I put a sword in my hand at that point would I be in correct kamae?

These ideas helped me to discover how to delver very powerful tsuki, omote shuto, and ura shuto strikes. From there it is easy to take the concepts to all the other strikes.

If you want to learn how to kick really well…pick up a bo.

Dennis
Shinobi Martial Arts
95 Plaistow Road, Plaistow NH