Death by Prop Samurai Sword

As many people know, Japanese Jidaigeki Dramas of the Samurai period have been popular in Japan since the introduction of television. Throughout its history, many famous actors and stunt coordinators have perfected the art of sword play for the stage and screen. But like with any sword play whether it is for acting or for real Budo requires much training and coordination. As we say in America, there is a learning curve. Evidently last week, 33 year old actor Daigo Kashino fell on that curve and was rushed to a hospital for a wound he suffered during rehearsal with a prop sword. The wound is said to have pierced his abdomen during an action scene. This is the second death in recent times where a performance had gone wrong. An Italian actor chocked to death while doing a hanging scene. We don't know if this was a low budget film or just sloppy stunt coordination. Having worked on low budget films in our past we can tell you that some productions will try to cut every corner just to get a shot. We sure hope that was not the case. The sword is believed to be a practice sword and not a real katana. But still, even without a real edge, a 73cm blade of any object is not to be toyed with lightly, hence why in real Budo we bow and pay so much respect even for practice weapons. We at American Mishima hope that tragic scenes like this won't be repeated anytime soon. Speaking from personal experience; "When engaging in swordplay, even for the stage, one must always engage with absolute sincerity. Makoto!"

Marking a Milstone: Obata Toshihiro @ 67

Seven time All Japan Sword Champion, Author, & Shinkendo Founder Toshihiro Obata celebrates his 67th birthday as seen here in this photo Honbu Dojo Los Angeles, Little Tokyo 10-20-2015.  

We at American Mishima wish Obata Kaiso a continued long happy life.  

おめでとう たんじょうび ございます!

一日の画像 - Picture of the Day

Seen here is Nicolas Sensei and Shinkendo Kaiso (Founder) and our former Sensei Toshishiro Obata with yours truly at the Koyasan Buddhist Temple in Little Tokyo Los Angeles. While it has been five years since we have studied under Obata Kaiso, we still hold him in admiration as a master swordsman and martial arts instructor.

三島, 英語を話す Rare English Interview with Yukio Mishima

The legendary Japanese author & playwright Yukio Mishima is featured here on American Mishima in a rare english interview where he speaks on a variety of subjects including his thoughts on Bushido, Kendo, Hagakure, Noh, Kabuki, his own private army, and Death itself. It is a fascinating look in this snapshot of time back to 1970 and the state of mind of the celibrated and most controversial author. It should be noted that his peculiar accent stems from the post war era where American English supplanted if not replaced Kings English of the prewar era. This combination of the two schools are evident in his voice. It should also be noted that in this interview he spoke of dying like the author of the Hagakure in a state of old age on some tatami mat. It's most ironic given that the Hagakure and Mishima himself espoused ideals of how a Samurai should end his life that he himself envisioned living to old age. But ultimately, this would not be how Mishima would end. With his four most trusted members of his own private army, he would stage an elaborate stunt if you will that would gurantee him no other option than to commit Seppeku on the world stage, an event that 42 years later is still a subject of controversy and with some of the baby boomer generation a delicate subject to this day. In that quest to shock and awaken the ways of old Yukio Mishima had succeeded.

新しいストア New American Mishima eStore!

こんにちわ! I am pleased to announce the opening of my new American Mishima Bushidoya eStore. In a new partnership with Amazon, I am making available a collection of books, dvd's, and other items to come of Japanese & Bushido Culture. It's not a matter of selling out. It's just after two years of being out of work this became a logical thing to do after answering many questions as to which books would I reccomend such as basic starter Samurai films or Shinto & Bushido books. Granted, there are other sources out there and I do list them. Given that, I hope that new readers will give my little estore a glance and perhaps help support yours truly while finding items they may wish to have. So please visit and thank you for your support! ありがとう ございます!

ぶしだまし - Budo Upgrade Through Aikido & Bojutsu

For the last two years I have trained hard in Shinkendo and Toyama Ryu. After much delay I have finally joined the Aikido & Bojutsu classes taught by the Obata's in addition to Shinkendo. Classes take place weeknights at the new Shinkendo Honbu Dojo now located at 320 East Second Street in Little Tokyo across from the Japanese Plaza. With DOUSOUJIN keeping watch, my Bushi Spirit has taken on the rigors of Aikido. I am fortunate to train under Obata Sensei who once trained the Tokyo Riot Police. I could not ask for a better Sensei. Learning hand to hand combat when your in your 40's can be tough but not impossible. I will do my best and train hard. Bojutsu class is seriously すごいい! I have always wanted to learn how to wield a bo-staff and now I am on my way. According to Obata Sensei, people in Japan knew this skill 150 years ago. It was not the sole exclusive domain of the Samurai but a skill practiced by people of all classes. I find it most fun and look forward to mastering this essential Samurai Art. From time to time I will keep you posted as to how my training progresses. Since I am just starting, I will not participate in the Aikido demonstration but will participate in the Shinkendo demonstration in next week's Sakura Matsuri. Wish me luck! 私に幸運を祈ります！

新しい - Shinkendo on the Move

After the last two months of searching, we are pleased to announce that the Shinkendo Honbu will remain in Little Tokyo. The Shinkendo Honbu Dojo will be moving from its current location at 333 Alameda to a new location. As of February 22nd 2009, we will be located at 320 E. 2nd St across from the Japanese Village Plaza in Little Tokyo.

For more information on Shinkendo, Akibujutsu please visit the official Shinkendo website.

Tachiuchi no Shinkendo

Japanese swordsmanship has always been a favorite of mine. And as such, I have sought out the Samurai Arts and have trained over the last year and a half at the Shinkendo Honbu Dojo located in the heart of Little Tokyo under it’s founder master swordsman Toshishiro Obata. I consider myself fortunate enough to train under such a renown swordsman of Samurai liniage who once held the title for seven years in the All Japan Swordsmanship Championship. And train we do six days a week!

Under the instruction of both Obata Kaiso and Mrs. Obata Sensei (seen to the right here), I have learned much of what it takes to learn the Samurai Arts. In order write Samurai fiction as I have chosen to do, it is often recommended to walk a mile in your characters shoes or in my case learn the ways of the Samurai in the most practical of means. To do this watching Akira Kurosawa Samurai films with Toshiro Mifune was not going to be enough. For this reason I chose to live Bushido by actually applying it. Though initialy, I did not plan to become a writer. It was by chance during a period of transition in my career that the process of learning swordsmanship had come about. It is often suggested to write about what you know. I knew Japanese history but not the way of the sword. Since I had started my training, my writing has only since benefited from first hand knowledge of leanring how of what goes into actually weilding a sword and the power that goes with it.

It was the works of Yukio Mishima that inspired me to take art and unite it with action. With that ideal I trained in Kendo at Osaka Sangyo University Learning Center in Studio City but felt unsatisfied with my training. In Kendo, we work with Kendo Bogu (armor) that was loosely based on Samurai armor and bamboo Shinai sword. In that year I was only taught three strike points of men, kote, & do. This was fun at first but after some time I became frustrated with some of the kenshi I trained with. It seemed there was less focus on the art of Japanenese swordsmanship and more focus on wining kendo tournaments. I do not blame my former Sensei’s but my own lack of understanding. Neither my limited understanding at the time in Zen Buddhism or the Gorin No Sho could answer this. I had joined at age 37 roughly the age that Yukio Mishima had started. But at 37 competing with 18 year old kids who didn’t work for a living and had never smoked or downed enough sake to kill a horse, didn’t appeal to me. I felt like the odd man out and so I left.

Being away from any dojo can be painful and the older you get the harder it is to return. But to return to kendo didn't seem right. I felt there was more to swordsmanship than just attacking three strike points. I wanted to learn more realistic Japanese swordsmanship but didn't know where. I had considered Iaido but there were no dojo’s that called out to me. I did find an awesome looking school hidden somewhere in Little Tokyo but their hours made training with them impossible. I had considered the Aikido Center in East LA but something told me to hold off on that. During this period in 2007 I had started to watch the NHK Taiga Drama Furin Kazan which I loved ever since seeing the 1969 film version starring Toshiro Mifune.

It was the way Kunske Yamamoto stared at the Kai Domain with great pride and his love for the banners of Shingen Takeda. Swift as the Wind – Silent as the Forrest – Fierce as the Fires – Immovable as the Mountains. It was something about those diamond mon and the Furin Kazan banners itself that awakened the yearning to seek out the right dojo. And in doing so I had found the Shinkendo website while I was doing research on the Takeda Clan.

As fortune would have it, Obata Kaiso descended from not only the Heike Clan but one of the famous 24 Takeda Generals Obata Masamori, Lord of Kaizo Jo Castle. Being a huge Furin Kazan & Takeda fan the lure of being connected to them was quite applealing.

To quote Pulp Fiction, Shit! That’s all you had to say! 

 

So it was in March of 2008 that I petitioned and was accepted into the Shinkendo Shinkage by Mrs. Obata Sensei. I have trained rigorously since that time and in August of 2008 I had passed my first test and achieved the first rank of Ichimonji in Shinkendo. I did not qualify to take my exams in 2009 due to some unrelated injuries I sustained and some personal drama. However, I am in the running for my upcoming exams for Jiho rank in February 2010 as well as my Kyu Rank in Toyama Ryu. In order to do this Kaiso says ”Practice, Practice, Practice!”
 

Here to the right I am seen recieving Ichimonji no Shinkendo August 2008. Shinkendo has its liniage in various Ryu such as the famous Yagu-Shinkage. Shinkendo is truly the masterwork of its founder Toshishiro Obata. We primarily work with wooden Boken, Bokto, and now and then Iaito Sword. Should a student qualify or is of higher rank then they can participate in Tameshigiri which is live test cutting with real Katana Shinken Swords. This is exciting to watch especially when Obata Kaiso does this with two swords. I can’t but think of Musashi at Ganryujima when I see him slice through a pair of targets with both swords in hand.
 
Shinkendo is practical sword art combining coordination, technique, timing, and overall safety. In the time since I had first started my training I have learned multiple techniques in Tarengata (prearragnged solo practice forms) and tachiuchi (carefully choregraphed sparring) Despite some moves being choreographed we learn them for safety. In the days of the Samurai, accidents were both life altering and in some cases fatal. Accidents still take place particularly in the act of chiburi or blood flickering. For this reason the Shinkendo emphasizes heavily on saftey and has one of the best safety records of any weapon based martial art. As a “Shindoka Kohai” we are also taught Toyama-Ryu which was a sword art devised by the Japanese Imperial Army. Toyama-Ryu includes such moves as Batsu-Jitsu and Gunto-Soho. Toyama-Ryu and Shinkendo are tested as two separate arts. Obata Sensei is one of the few people outside of Japan you can learn this from which he has included this into the Shinkendo curriculum. This is awesome when we do this in demonstration style in large groups. If you are at a Japanese Matsuri and see Shinkendo listed under demonstrations, this is something you will not want to miss.
 

Aside from Toyama Ryu, The Obata’s also teach Aikido/Aikibujitsu as well as Bojitsu – the art of the Bo Staff. What’s good to know in regards to Aikido is that Obata Sensei was the instructor for the Tokyo Riot Police in Aikido and Aikibujitsu. They train in hand to hand combat, work with Bo staffs, Tanto, Sais, and bokto. The Obatas employ strict discipline and a heavy emphasis on safety and tradition. So when considering an Aikido instructor you may want to consider training under the Obatas.

 

The Age of the Samurai may be gone but the Spirit of the Samurai and the arts that made the Samurai are still with us beyond the shores of Japan. That spirit known as Budodamashi lives on in dojos around the world. I am lucky enough to live close to Little Tokyo to be in range of the Honbu Dojo for Shinkendo.

 

If you are not in the area, lament not for there are other Shinkendo Dojo’s in America as well as others around the world which you can easily find at the Shinkendo website. It is available in both English and Japanese.

 

To find out more about Shinkendo

Please visit their website at http://www.shinkendo.com or visit the Honbu Dojo.

333 Alameda in the Little Tokyo Shopping Center.

Until then,

Jinsei Shinkendo!