Enzan no Metsuke
'Looking at the Distant Mountain'
'Enzan no metsuke' is a technical skill imparted to the students of many forms of budo regarding where to look when facing an opponent. Rather than focusing on the opponent's eyes, view their face, shoulders, and torso while permitting your peripheral vision to take in all that is beyond them and about you.
Centering your vision on an opponent's eyes will cause a "tunnel vision" to occur, thus limiting one's ability to deal with additional attackers. Furthermore, should you focus on your opponent's gaze you may be distracted by him looking in another direction.
Deeper within this concept of viewing beyond our opponent is the viewing of our present situation in the context of its possible future outcomes. Simply put, this is being aware of one's present actions and how they may effect the moments, days, and weeks ahead.
The Guiding Force Behind Ninjutsu
By Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
"Ninjutsu is a science, a human science. Ninja not only dedicated most of their lives to the study of ninjutsu techniques, but they also considered human psychology and human nature as integral parts of their training."
"Knowing people, studying their behavior and habits-understanding human nature and knowing when to attack-were as important as knowing how to attack and what techniques to use."
A Talk On Takamatsu Sensei
given by Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi; translated by Benjamin Cole
"One day, I went over to Takamatsu-sensei's and he told me to sit down, and that he had something for me. I was wondering what it could be and was kinda nervous about getting something from him. I felt something was strange, so I rolled to the side, then fell down flat on the floor. I rolled away from there and looked around. Takamatsu-sensei was holding a sword and had just tried to strike me down. He smiled and said, "Good".' He passed on his scrolls to me then. A year later, he passed on."
New Millennium Ninja
By Sean Askew, Bujinkan Shidoshi
"A medical doctor in the science of bone setting, and a master in the art of Koppojutsu -- the warrior science of smashing the bones and attacking the sensitive points of the human body. He is a paradox."
"The ninja's primary goal is to use the art to gain entry into enemy territory, gather as much information as possible to prepare a strategy and return without ever being detected."
"Sojutsu" (Japanese spear
method)
By Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
"As a fighting weapon, the straight edge could be used to stab, cut or pierce the opponent, while the hooked section of the blade could be used to snare clothing or hook limbs."
"When soldiers would battle with an opponent who was protected by armour and helmet, a spear gave them an advantage compared to a sword. It was difficult for a sword to a deeply pierce an opponent protected with a helmet and armour, but a spear could penetrate through the armour and strike the opponent down, or trip his legs. With a spear it was easy to stab between the gaps in the armour. So, the soldiers soon realised that the spear was 10 times more effective than the sword."
Interview with Masaaki Hatsumi and 1997 Tai Kai report.
Article from June 1998 issue of Black Belt Magazine.
Interview by Josh Sager, translation by Ben Jones
" The theme for this year's event was jojutsu, the art of the 4-foot-staff, which is an often underrated and misused weapon. The reasons why the jo has been so overlooked throughout history are not clear, but from the first day of training Hatsumi quickly dispelled all misconceptions regarding its effectiveness."
"He proved that, even though he's 66, he can still move around and wield the staff better than most people 30 years his junior. Hatsumi also discussed the principles of timing, distancing and angling when using the weapon, and he stressed that the weapon should be thought of as an extension of the body. A practitioner should not think about a technique, he said, but should let it evolve on its own."
"Koto Ryu"(knocking down the tiger school)
"The speciality of the school are very strong attacks known as koppojutsu (or bone breaking methods)."
"This school uses the famous "yoko aruki" or "sideways walking" of the ninja. As the student progresses they will learn, jumping, tumbling and falling this completes the basic training. Finally the vital targets of the human body are studied."
Ninja master shares secrets.
70-year-old forces foes into submission at Collinsville event.
By Brian Brueggemann.
Ninjutsu Hiketsu Bun.
By Takamatsu Toshitsugu, 33rd Soke of Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu.
All articles supplied by the The Bujinkan Meehan Dojo.