American Kokuryukai: It is what comes Next...

I have been teasing this for a while and a few people in the inside know everything I am talking about was in the works back in 2016.

It was hinted at with the book Legacy of the Kokuryukai. The American Kokuryukai is a project bridging martial arts & ninjutsu, it takes into account that Ninjutsu is a) Not a Martial Art and b) Ninjutsu Espionage and Scout Craft.

Ninjutsu can be applied to any martial art and, historically speaking there were "guarden shinobi" these were formally known as Oniwaban or spies... They worked in groups known as Kobushikata and were established during the 8th Tokugawa Shogun. A group of poorly trained spies, the kobushikata was lead by a Oniwaban (a professional spy) who reported directly or indirectly to someone in the Shogun's to report to the Shogun.

This is a concept based on the Genin, Chunin and Jonin concept of ninjutsu. Genin are "low people" trained on an as needed basis. A peasant farmer used as a native agent to warn, a shinobi observer is an example of both a Kobushikata and a Genin. As well as a court gardener or, maid listen in and spy on a Lord's conversations. Martial arts was never actually a requirement, except to the Samurai who managed such things.

This is the basic concept behind the American Kokuryukai concept... I use the name American Kokuryukai, because it is based on the methods of Omoto Ryu Budo which contained Ninjutsu training... Fujibayashi even stated that the terms for shinobi have changed at different times throughout history (page 19 of Book of the Ninja: The First Complete Translation of the Bansenshukai by Antony Cummins & Yoshoe Minami), so ninja weren't always called ninja and, still performed ninjutsu. Hence why at a later period, the term Genin (low man or low person) became Kobuskikata or, Code or Covered up Groups of lower class agents who often worked as gardeners, field labor, general unskilled labor, etc. and, why Oniwaban were sometimes referred to as Ninja or Shinobi. In fact, some Historical Sources say that Oniwaban were Iga & Koga Ninja/Shinobi employed by the Tokugawa Shogunate. Some Shinobi or Ninja were simple low status Ashigaru (foot soldiers) sent ahead to scout out the enemy and called Kusamono or Grass Men. So called because of their talent for hiding in tall grass and moving through it without being detected, basically infantry scouts.

The American Kokuryukai is a cross between an Adventure School, Martial Arts fraternity & Secret Society... Membership allows those trained in any martial arts system or, self-defense form to cross train with other systems. It also always them to practice ninjutsu, as an espionage system, attend various specialty camps. Now here is the kicker... You don't tell anyone you are American Kokuryukai. This is to a maintain the Cloak & Dagger atmosphere one does not tell people you are a ninja, and if you do you do so and show only what

It is Black Dragon Ninjitsu without any martial arts system & able to be applied to any other system of fighting. So why tell you this is what comes next? Because I have laid the ground work for the system. And anyone interested should feel free to contact me for membership at omotoryuha@gmail.com.

Filming the 7th Kyu DVD...

So we been out filming the 7th kyu DVD, which focuses on throws and takedowns. Closing the gap from striking range, to infighting range and placing us in grappling range.

The 6th Kyu DVD expands on the grappling range techniques, much the same way the 9th Kyu material did for the 10th Kyu material. This got me to thinking...

How you train is more important than what you train in... 6th Kyu DVD will be the first time Kata, will be demonstrated in Omoto Ryu/Black Dragon Ninjitsu. With the 7th Kyu material almost fully released and the 6th kyu material soon to follow Black Dragon Ninjitsu Course is about to begin to focus less on fighting techniques and more on stealth and survival training...

The First Domino: Dealing with the State of West Virginia

Now we get to see where the first domino fell and why...

Don Roley (so does Phil Elmore & Barron Shepherd) wants to talk about my criminal history, so does his online horde of cyber stalkers and trolling cyber bullies. What they don't understand is that I already had this planned out. Think I am lying read Never Back Down, published on February of 2015 I explain this to the world. See it is true I was arrested for making Terroristic Threats and the Prosecutor did falsify evidence to have me fail my initial psychological examination. However, the second and third opinions (a third was used to justify the differences in the second opinion) because I would not stop saying the Prosecutor falsified evidence to Dr. Miller to have me found Incompetent to Stand Trial. In fact, one doctor even asked me why I believed this, my reply was "Because either she did it intentionally which makes her corrupt or unintentionally which makes her incompetent, either way its an established fact that there is a difference between what she gave Dr. Miller and what she gave you. Either one benefits me in court doesn't it?" The same doctor then followed up with the question "Why do you believe it is important that I believe the evidence shows the prosecutor falsified evidence?" And my reply was "It doesn't matter, its not important because the jury decides if she did or didn't. It doesn't matter what I believe it matters what I can prove and how things appear. And, I can prove Kristen Keller falsified evidence."

However, even before the book was published, or written for that matter I had a plan. August 22nd 2013 before my arrest for Terroristic Threats I said this in Open Letter to Johnathan Russell.

"Consider that I had to break the law and secretly record a motions hearing before Judge Kirkpatrick just to get the Prosecutor Pat Lamp to deny the existance or claim of a second search warrant on record. Something discussed on a court record before Magistrate Massey, who somehow loses the transcript and records, after we insured he recorded the hearing."

Said Recording Uploaded July of 2013:

Now there is a method behind what seems like random events and shifts in my mood you just have to remember I am often juggling several plans and activities at once. Cause here is the arrest warrant for the child porn charges and it mentions a 2nd Search

I also said this little gem, "...see if I'm arrested we have to look at all the evidence I addressed in that little blog (why the fuck you think I let Greg Duckworth know I knew where he lived? To intimidate him? No, to make the point he ain't gonna do shit), if they don't arrest me they look corrupt  weak. If they do I get to prove their corrupt. Think Roley informing the police matters to me? Same end regardless... Hell if I kill someone its justified under Common Law Standard Bad Elk v United States allows anyone to resist a false arrest even to the point of killing a cop,its only requirement comes from Brady v Ohio on the exclusionary rule that I have to prove "Malicious Intent" by actions take in "Bad Faith."

Now, I said I get to prove them corrupt... Guess what I did many times... And will again, all easily excused as trying to battle the online trolls. This is playing real close to a certain fire I have issues with, namely that I was supposed to keep all the talk online about all the corruption down as part of my agreed upon (unofficial) deal with Kristen Keller.

As you can see there is a period of House Arrest, I lied to everyone about (not even Ashida Kim knew that I was on House Arrest awaiting a trial that never came) everything being over because the state had no choice but to dismiss after Kristen Keller falsified evidence in my case. It would kill any evidence of any mental illness excuse she gave and the State could not prevent me from taking the stand and addressing that she falsified evidence you have me found mentally incompetent to stand trial. Why wait till now? I know right?

Quite simply, it was just letting the trolls try to "prove" something based on my lack of proof. In the 5 months of house arrest I got to create Shadow Warrior Press. And I already said this was going to happen before hand in the Open Letter Blog:

"Don't get me wrong, my goal is simple destroy them. I want my life back, but I don't that as long as certain people are in power in this state. So I'm going to do three things; expose their lies, find their secrets and rub it in that they can do nothing to stop me. Shooting me opens a lot of questions, charging gives me a chance to say what I need to."
Done that already, all three things...
1. Expose their lies...
2. Find Their Secrets...
3. Rub it in that they can do nothing to stop me... and I did a fouth thing to boot.
4. Use Barron Shepherd, Don Roley & Phil Elmore to help me without their knowledge. Thus using their hatred of me as a weapon against them.

In Full Disclosure II I stated plainly...

"Well if he was wired he just heard some of what pops off if you come at me, what happens if you act on those "threats" (said just to provoke you) & how I pointed out that whole "threat" is based on the very real information and truth of Bad Elk v US support by the recording of the motions hearing before Judge Kirkpatrick (An Examination of the Kangaroo Courts of Raiegh County) with the criminal complaint; that clearly states a Second Search Warrant the Prosecutor denies existing in to the "secret court recording."

So there is the state caught lying and you say that the criminal conspiracy is all in my head. Yet, here you go undeniable evidence that Pat Lamp said no second search warrant exists and yet there is a copy of the criminal complaint saying their was a 2nd search Warrant in the Child Porn case. There is proof there, that the warrant was either made up by the arresting officer or the state's prosecutor Pat Lamp was lying. Perhaps both.

Adding to that I have always maintained that as a Ninjutsu practicer, neo-ninja, ninja master or whatever that Ninjutsu is a B.S. system by all accounts and stated this publicly in Full Disclosure II;
"My hobby of teaching ninjutsu and jujutsu, writing books & being involved in martial arts events with the hopes of turning that hobby into a business. However, being involved in martial arts world has opened my eyes to certain facts.

1. Ninjutsu is a joke martial art; with hundreds of instructors claiming secret martial arts masters, obscure connections to Seiko Fujita, the Kokuyukai or something else (myself included), muddies the waters a great deal.
2. Ninjutsu all ninjutsu is fraudulent in one aspect or another... either those who refuse to prove their claims or those who lie about them outright. See Bujinkan Lies & Is Koga Ryu Dead blogs.
3. At the end of the day lineage is pointless. If you read the original documents any number of shinobi claim to have learned ninjutsu from gods, demons, goblins, talking animals & dead relatives. Going back to Soke so & so is kind of pointless. So lets look at skills...
4. The real skills of ninjutsu are espionage-based; strategy, information gathering, reading body language, psychological manipulation, herbals, scouting, skirmish (commando) tactics, sabotage & assassination."

See I leave "Easter eggs" and other little hints throughout everything I did. And it all comes back to what I said in Full Disclosure.

"You want me to be a low life thug, fine I'm a low life thug... How do like me now? See before I let you label me a terrorist & a pedophile, knowing you're committing acts of terrorism under color of law and most of you are pedophiles or protecting child raping faggots like my uncle Thomas Calvin Keller; I will give you what you want. I have nothing to lose but my self-respect. I know who I am; I'm a low life; I drink, smoke weed, eat shrooms, pop some pills on occasion, even snorted a line of coke or 3 & I'm bout to get high tonight. I have one night stands & used to love a good fight. Yeah I'm a fuck up & I've had more then a few fuck ups who watched my back as a kid of 15, 16 & 17. My life is a cross between that god damned The Last Dragon Movie, Burn Notice & Son's of Anarchy. Its not cool, is painful and destructive and something most of you will never know anything about living your safe comfortable lives, watching your backs keeping your skeletons tucked away in the closet, adding more to it as you go... I'm putting my shit out front in the yard, I even dress them up for the holidays."

Side Note: Seriously, I am going to buy a bunch of Halloween skeleton's and put them in lawn chairs in the front yard, leave them there all year round and just change their attire for the next holiday on the list. Makes for an interesting conversation piece with the neighbors. End Note.

Now I made this comment based on the experiences I had when I was in Jail the first time over the child porn charges, and the worst thing they could do was let me out on bond. They did and they dropped the charges for that as well. But, having been in the Sex Offender Pod I noticed a lot of people I knew who were informants on the street and who would inform on me in the jail. So I manipulated one such person & used him as well to further my ends...

Robert Harry Whitamore molested a 4 year old girl and lied to West Virginia State Police on the Sex Offender Registry. In order to get away with lying to the State Police he wore a wire on me in Court. And Robert Harry Whitamore is allowed to run the Streets of Beckley WV.

This is part of a page from Never Back Down and is expanded in the following exerts.

The page showing the Court Papers from Michigan and below is the Court Papers showing Whitamore's charges...

As you can easily see in the Transcript that Whittamore was involved in a conspiracy to entrap me. Surely, the missing 2nd Search Warrant proven to not even be in existence, by the Statements of the Prosecutor are yet mentioned, on said Arrest Warrant and also mentioned by Pat Lamp is that the police never turned over evidence, this is an issue since the arrest warrant claims they had copies of the files.

And here is Whitamore telling another guard how smart he was for telling him how to manipulate me. Course all he got was basic conversation similar to;
Whittamore "So you want to kill people?"
Me "I don't want to kill anyone."
Whittamore "So you want to kill people?"
Me "I don't want to Kill Anyone!"
Whittamore "But you said you want to kill people."
Me "No I didn't"
Whittamore "But, you said you wanted to kill people."
Me "No I didn't"
Whittamore "So you want to kill people."
Me "Yes I want to kill people."
Whittamore "Who do you want to kill?"
Me "No body I don't want to kill people."
Because I can't prove coercion unless I let them coerce me. Which is why it was never used as it was another coerced witness trying to coerce me.

Whittamore's confession on the Recording... "I just, I just, I followed exactly like you said he sang like a bird. You're a smart man. You should be a cop."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE VOICE "Do what?"
Whittamore "I did exactly like you said and he sang like a bird. Inaudible don't kill anybody. Take a Judge and Inaudible. People like that don't deserve to Inaudible."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE VOICE "MMMM HMMM"
Whittamore basically admitted to entrapment. As he states he was given directions to coerce me into confessing and this is very different then your typical recorded conversation. If say for instance, someone is selling drugs to Confidential Informant (CI) and they do so without any coercion the CI has clear evidence, right? But, if a CI comes in and harasses someone to sell them their pain pills, that CI just compromised the case. From Robert Harry Whittamore's own lips... He was given instructions by an "UNIDENTIFIED MALE VOICE" to coerce me. And for that, the state let a literal "baby raper" out on the street to try to convict an innocent man. This is a violation the American Bar Association Standards of Prosecutorial Investigation, Standard 2.11 (c) (iv), whoopsy!

How does that happen? How does the release of someone who rapes a four year old and lies to police about where they live, for wearing a wire on someone who you drop all charges against later? This was something else I prepared a head of time and had evidence in my favor to confront... So, I made sure the evidence leaked and Kristen Keller falisified evidence to Dr. Miller. I didn't expect Kristen Keller to falsify evidence, I thought it would have saved me at trial but, we never went to trial. Instead Kristen Keller falsified evidence in my case, but I have already disclosed this.

As you can tell from the above, there is a good bit of information I am holding back to bring to bare later on, for strategic reasons.

Let me explain this to everyone right now, there are three goals I have to get under this cloud of harassment and threats on my life, family and friends...

Goal One: Make this so painful and destructive to the Raleigh County Court system via evidence and facts that I can skip having to look over my shoulder in fear that some badge is going to kilofme because they thought "I had a gun" or "he looked like a suspect" crap. Did that with the "Terror Threats" crap. Even addressed some of this on Attack by Stratagem, everything is about directing events to a goal & I directly took on the State in Court and won, painfully so... but, I still won.

A large part of this is built on the idea of Ashley Redden's statement about being coerced on the court record having gone missing... But there were many other incidents all compiled & explained to Lt. Deeds when I spoke to him and recorded that conversation as well, just he didn't know it. And so I jumped through the looking glass, back down the rabbit hole and I got all new evidence. Which was a painful but required sacrifice. I can keep trying to fight to get the evidence from the past or I could suck it up and get new evidence to go with that old stuff and build a long term case for harassment and abuse... Yeah, that's what I did.

Its the principle of Go & Ju or Hard & Soft. You can also equate it the principle of Tao (Chinese) or Do (Japanese) which is made up of two opposing forces Yin & Yang (Chinese) or In & Yo (Japanese). The more you resist the harder your opponent resists but you resist (Go i.e. hard or Yo/Yang or positive energy directed to yourself) just to yield (Ju i.e. yield or negative energy directed to your opponent by no longer resisting them and even feeding their fall).

Now there will be a second Domino falling over very, very soon, yes I am telling you how I manipulated the cops, courts and even the criminals in Raleigh County... Because now I am going to tell you have I manipulated Phil Elmore, Don Roley & Barron Shepherd. Leaving only Goal Two set to be played out through law suits and exposing their lies. In doing so I return their actions back in themselves.

Surprise! Don, it all played as I expected... Better actually.

Motivation: Why I am happy with a "Jacked" up Life & you aren't with a perfect life...

To say I am perfectly happy is a lie and this is meant to be an "honest blog post." No one is perfectly happy. However, I am generally happy with my life... Nothing is perfect and my life has had many tragic moments, being falsely arrested, harassed by the police and having people like Don Roley, Barron Shepherd and Phil Elmore trying so very hard to slander my name. Doesn't make it any easier when the local media whores will post stories of what you are accused of but won't post stories about the charges being dismissed or that the police and prosecutor lied...

Let me show you only two pieces of evidence, one a secret recording of a pretrial motions hearing where the Assistant Prosecutor Pat Lamp says they don't have any evidence I possessed Child Porn (the police never turned it in,ever) and that there is no mention of a Second Search Warrant mentioned on the Arrest Warrant. The second piece of evidence is the Arrest Warrant, which was never turned in as part of discovery. Discovery I never got by the way.

So why would Pat Lamp lie to Judge Kirkpatrick?
Why would the second search warrant be an issue that needs to be lied about?
The answers may shock you... Add to that the arresting officers never once turned over any discovery, even though the warrant says they had copies of the evidence. Why is that?

Piece of Evidence 1:
https://youtu.be/-9kUNtP9vh0

Piece of Evidence 2:

Now my life is not normal and sad truth is I don't know what to do with a normal life. I have lived through things that make for great movies and well, they don't make for good lives. Still I am happy...

See it is always funny watching people, attack you because they feel threatened. With all the chaos and tragedy I have this fantastic list of friends in my life, people who saw everything I went through. I have a beautiful girl friend who has a family full of people trying to come between us and who hasn't lost faith in me. More importantly, she never lost faith herself or her dreams. She never lost faith in me and a lot of people talk shit behind our backs or to our faces if they are feeling brave. She gets mean when people talk trash about us being togather.

Thing is, God blessed me to know some truly great people, to have truly great friends and associates. My life os full of complexity, chaos and challenges. Yet, here I stand (actually sitting but you understand my metaphor). My life is complicated but full of adventure and challenges. As much as certain people hate me, they also want to be me... Which is part of why they hate me.

See its easy to stay motivated and press on. Don't focus on the mistakes, the failures and the critics. Instead learn from your mistakes, look at your successes minors victories that built up to your failures and ignore the critics. Critics are either people whose lives are so miserable they want to see others miserable or they people who gave up, focused on their failures and mistakes. The worst critic you will ever face is yourself, you can't lie to yourself no matter hiw hard you try... And, you have to live with yourself regardless.

See life has beat me down, broken me a few times and its so easy to just give up and surrender. Say its too hard and quit. But, what if you can't? What if you've learned to enjoy the suck and thrive on the pain. See it is the scares that make life interesting. It is the challenges and each successful victory that leads you to developing yourself. With challenges life is just too easy and you never know how good, strong or compassionate you was if you've never been tempted to do wrong, had your strengths tested or been beaten to the point that you know real hatred and let that all go forgiving your enemies and no longer counting them as enemies.

After a while, you look at yourself and see in yourself what others see or saw in you all along. After a while, the sword no longer hates the forge that took it from raw iron to hardened steel. It craves the forge, the heat, the pressure and the hammer that made it what it was.

This is why rank is a joke to me... Being grandmasters or supreme great grand guru pubha in a martial art doesn't mean you know anything. At some point, you have to apply the martial arts to life and, this is just more then how you hit someone but how you deal with challenges and how you deal with life.

I am no teacher of mystical secrets and no wise master who spent years meditating on the secrets of the universe. I am just some guy who lived an extraordinary life and contributes much of my survival to the lessons martial arts gave me. You see "Happy" is a mind set, its knowing I had suffered worse and am thankful for the small blessings & small victories...

On the Five Elements of Martial Arts and Strategy.

On the five elements, people might have a dominant element which expresses their personality. Mine is air but I often cycle between different elements, as modes of emotional and intellectual processing of information from my environment relayed through my senses and codified by my brain. The five elements principle is basically one of describing energy. Energy is neither created or destroyed it simply changes forms.

My experience with life in general and my observations of others, allows me to see patterns and develop them into other patterns I want to bring about the final result in the pattern of events. You gain this level of insightful acting based on planned responses by simply watching, observing and listening to events in other people's lives. Certain characteristics appear and reappear... If you are observant.

And meditating on the cause and effect. The elements, only provides the gross reference points like stars in the night sky. You use them as fixed point to observe the world around you. In this way it is the most basic and natural of interactions and progressions that can be applied.

This is first demonstrated in the Five Element Kata. It is then expanded by personality types and attitudes. Even then,  if one were to study Sun Bin, Sun Tzu's protégé who wrote a second Art of War. The five elements of Taoist Alchemy also produces 5 types of soldiers and 5 strategies for using these types of soldiers.

We will discuss these here...
Wood is the Chinese equivalent of Void. This is the Spy or Scout who is the eyes and ears of the army and dagger in the back when need be. Wood os characterized as a seed which grows into a tree which produces more seeds and becomes a forest over time. A slow and continual expansion of energy.
Fire is the Officers who maintain discipline and moral of the Warriors who work togather in bands or companies. The Officer is characterized by the sword and represents a slowly compressing energy,  that burns at the edges ans wears the enemy down or forges a hardened team.
Earth is the Warrior, who is characterized by Spear. This energy stands firm and meets resistance with resistance. This is. A stable energy that does not act unless acted on.
Metal is the Chinese equivalent of Air or Wind. Wind is characterized by the crossbow and later the bow and Archers who acted as a kind of medieval artillery covering the withdraw of Infantry (the Warriors). This is an evasive energy which attacks by withdrawing.
Water is characterized by the Chariot and later the horse representing the mounted Archer on Horse back. Water is characterized by a flowing and around energy. As chariots or mounted archers would race around the clashing infantry trying to target officers leading the soldiers.

If you understand this, you understand the basic idea of how such Armies were ordered for battle.

Scouts and Spies, provided security for Armies on the March. They also provided for Strategic Operations to delay or hamper the enemy from reacting quickly or effectively. Example, Scouts may observe an enemy activity and spies may report on enemy movement and plans but, to delay an enemy force from meeting and delaying one's own probing forces which would come in to seperate the "vanguard" from the supporting forces. The scouts can act as Skirmish forces (commando units) to ambush these enemy reinforcements or they can simply burn down a bridge and drop a few trees onto the road to form a barrier. Likewise, spies can be called on to do the same. These are not frontline soldiers or "elite shock troops" but, small strategically applied forces. And yes, this is where the physical stealth and hiding skills that os part of the full scope of ninjitsu is focused.

Officers do the planning either tactically in the charge of smaller forces or strategically over who military campaigns. An officer might lead frontline forces or scouts gathering and compiling intelligence. Since at the time the ruling class was the military class, officers also engaged in politics and matters of governance. Such men were well educated and would have been trained in disguise, able to impersonate priests, tradesmen and so on. They would have specialized in gathering information from conversations in court or during negotiations.

The Common Soldier would provide a greater function as a defenisive force posting security for camps and castles, or keeping the peace in times of piece. In battle, the common footman would defend the archers who would inflict the most damage by bombarding enemy forces with arrows.

It was many times, not uncommon for samurai commanders to choose to engage their enemy in a forest. The mountains and forests of the Iga & Koga areas of Japan for example would make the larger army arrangements impractical allowing for Scout & Skirmish forces to be of greater value. This would also negate the use of mounted archers. The archer could enage the enemy from high ground. This is the place of the Archer and it was common for common ashigaru and samurai of the Iga and Koka areas to ne trained in archery as well as sword and spear, because of the nature of the terrain.

Finally, we will examine the mounted archer or calvery element of the army. On the more open areas like we see the Kishu areas of feudal Japan. Samurai acting as mounted archers could ride around enemy formations firing arrows in to the enemy and seeking to pick off enemy officers as well as inflict enemy casualties of regular soldiers. Mounted Archery draws from the Kamakura period (1100s to 1300s) to the mid 1600s when the Portuguese brought firearms to Japan. More so, Samurai on horse back could bypass the infantry defending the archers and charge the archers directly, with spears impaling more then one at a time.

Even though the weapons have changed with the modernization of technology, the basic principles and strategy of the five elements have now.
Wood/Void: Expansive force slowly  breaking out from within...
Fire: A colapsing force slowly consuming from without...
Earth: A strong force reisting outside force by pushing against it the force amd meeting it with equal or greater force.
Wind: An evading force that draws force to act against it and withdraws to disrupt the force directed against it.
Water: A yielding force that overcomes by receiving and redirecting force directed against it.

Wood creates Fire by burning, Fire creates Earth by leaving Ash, Earth reveals metal through digging, Metal produces Water through condensation and Water creates Wood by nourishing it's Seed.

Likewise, Wood is destroyed by Cutting ot with Metal, Wood destroys Earth by breaking through when it grows from within, Earth destroys water when it stagnates because the Water does not flow, Water quenches ffireby smothering,  Fire destroys Metal by melting and Metal corrodes with Rust from Water.

Do you understand the five manuvers of forces during warfare yet?
Wood: Subversive Tactics based in Espionage, Sabotage and Assassination.
Fire: Surrounding and Harassing the enemy, laying siege.
Earth: Defending and holding ground.
Metal: Baiting to Ambush.
Water: Flanking the enemy.

The cycle of conflict during war;
Subterfuge breaks a strong defense from within. Laying siege to an enemy prevents their escape and wears them down from without. Strong defenses limit enemy movement and prevent attack. When your key elements are protected and the enemy cannot attack you bait them amd draw them into an ambush. When the enemy baits you to attack you out maneuver them by avoiding the direct route and flanking to cut off their retreat. Allowing the enemy to retreat & using the chaos the plant "seeds" in the form of spies who will sabotage the enemy's defenses from within, while one seeks to lay siege from the outside. And when the enemy attempts to bait one to attack, one simply does not follow (much like how I felt Roley's challenge to challenge him was a set up to have me arrested) but flanks the baiting force with reinforcements instead of one's main force breaking the siege. Likewise, when the enemy leaves an openning to draw one's reinforcements forces out, one holds their ground, even charges head on to meet the enemy to meet force head on with one's own forces.

If this seems wasteful, consider the alternative is to retreat, thinning one's ranks amd run into a secondary flanking force which would cut down one's thinned ranks in retreat amd be caught in what the Western strategists calls a pencer maneuver. So the only way to survive is to reinforce one's front and meet the enemy head on.

By understanding this cycle of maneuver warfare, one has a powerful alternative to a strict set of route maneuvers. Unlike, Western Battle Drills this 5 element, metaphor allows a tactician to understand tactics on the more intuitive level. Which allows for better understanding on a subconscious level. However, it does so at the risk of confusing the conscious mind which is more literal and less intuitive.

A lone martial artist can learn to interpret the fighting style and tactics of his opponent with the 5 Element Kata functioning as a loose set of guidelines, vague suggestions to interpret another's individual combat style. By comparison, a tactician can develop a sense for how the enemy is acting and intuitively counter said action as or before it can be made.

The strategist however, uses one element to create and counter another and plans 10 steps ahead of his opponent knowing that warfare follows certain pattern. This way we, can also look at the ebb and flow of human nature, as well as the human nature of nations. For example because the first act of a nation going against another nation is Wood, the use of spies to infiltrate plant the stages of subversive activity. A nature defend for this is the cutting off of enemy this done by having "spy hunters" or assassins who do nothing but find and kill enemy agents or by turning agents. These turned agents may only pretend to be turned and, thus, must be watched carefully. They can serve one's own ends by supplying their handlers with false information which requires sacrificing men and operations to make the enemy believe they are getting correct advice.

Ultimately, while the individual student may not see the five element kata and five element nagare exercises as going beyond the specifics of jujitsu they relate to a greater understanding of military strategy. Because the individual budoka learns to apply the five elements to fighting techniques at an individual level. They learn to apply it at as a small team and eventually as a larger force. Decisions are intuitive and happen with little to no conscious thought, thus reducing the likelihood of over thinking actions and reactions.

What is Rank..?

I had a nice discussion with a friend when talking about rank in martial arts... We both have two separate levels of thought, his is shaped by what his "Sensei" (I don't know the Korean word for it) says "That Rank cannot be taken away it is a sign of skill." I say rank is meaningless and can be taken away just as easily as it can be lost. There is a different in having rank taken away and losing your rank. To see where my thinking goes on this, you need to understand how I see rank and why I don't put much stock in it.

What is rank? Lets start with what is rank in the first place. The Kyu/Dan grading system as we know it was invented by Kano Jugaro, who copied the Japanese school system grading for progression in public school and took some insights from an English school uniform where the students of different grades wore colored school suit jackets. The older Koryu systems in Japan used no such measure but instead had a simple method of grading the students in martial arts... They used a simple ranking structure Deshi (student) and Sensei (teacher). Sensei taught Deshi, the Sensei was the Sempai (senior student) of the Shihan (master). A Shihan was someone awarded the status of teaching those who did the teaching. Now that sounds awesome right, a Master Teacher!

The reality is that the "Sensei" might not be in a great position to stand out as a teacher because the "sensei" might only be a Deshi who is a little further along then you. While you are learning from him, you are also his test from the real Sensei who wants to see if he understands the ideas and how to demonstrate them. In the old system of ranking and in martial arts a Deshi was give a series of certificates showing they had studied a certain art... this is not limited to martial arts but to flower arranging, tea ceremonies and so on. This system was called Menkyo or License and referred to licensing someone in a martial art.

Someone who starts training was sometimes given a Okuiri or a license that says they had entered into the art and what day. Okuiri is made up of two words Oku meaning secret and iri meaning enter and can be translated to mean to enter secretly or to enter into the secrecy of learning an art or trade. Many times this is a contract between the student and master to uphold the Dojo Kun or Kun of the art. This is symbolic of the student's oath to never teach methods to those outside the organization. After a time following basic training, one was given a Mokuroku license meaning one had been entered into the official school roles as a student. Again it varies between traditions and many such systems simply don't issue a certificate to the student for the Okuiri or Mokuroku grades, some do. One is not a student until they are a Mokuroku student. Shomokuroku is a license to learn the basics of an art. Many arts do not award a license until one can gain a Shomokuroku license can mean you have learned the basics of an art or system or that you are permitted to learn. A Gomokuroku holder is someone who has learned the Advanced methods of an Art. Most times Mokuroku was a blanket for Shomokuroku and Gomokuroku rank.

So a Shomokuroku grade would call a Gomokuroku a Sensei when they were helping them to learn the basics but a Gomokuroku would call a Shomokuroku Deshi and Menkyo holder, a lincensed teacher would call both Deshi or the Shomokuroku Sempai. Menkyo means license and means the bearer is a licensed teacher. A holder of a Menkyo Kaiden was a license of full transmission and a founder or successor known as a Soke.

You have to understand were this form of ranking comes in and what it means... This isn't a form of martial arts rank but a form of Iemoto or Soke system ranking for trade guilds/clans (families tied togather via politics, marriage and economics) that became common after the Sengoku period of war. The "martial artists" during this time were in fact warriors and many were in fact conscripted farmers and tradesmen. A samurai, even a Jizamurai or country samurai, might be trained in a particular school of combat using the same Menkyo system as the trade guilds for pottery, painting and so on.

A student's dedication might be judged by giving them pointless tasks to judge the student's worth and character. This is entering into the Okuiri status, certain students or prospective students would be trained and skip the Okuiri status because their family had to serve in a particular function. Others had to be Okuiri for a time to judge them, this is a copy of systems for licensing trades during the feudal Japanese system. Graduation from the Okuiri status or just by being born into the position. Mokuroku/Shomokuroku meant was learning the basics and being licensed or certified in the basics meant one was a low level martial artist or bushi/warrior.

During the Sengoku period many peasants and even some lower status merchants were given a Shomokuroku license to be used as Ashigaru (Light Feet or Light Infantry) warriors. Some wealthier merchants and low ranking samurai or even a few jizamurai (country samurai) acted as Non-Commissioned Officers or Sergeants leading groups (or squads if you like as Ashigaru). Some such samurai even made up whole columns of elite shock troops & mounted archers in battle, these warriors were ranked in a particular school of warfare or combat as a Gomokuroku. With many high ranking Jizamurai in the country and many lower ranking samurai from the cities ranked as Menkyo or licensed teachers.

Only a Soke held the Menkyo Kaiden (License of Full transmission) but during times of war the Soke often made sure his students were "over qualified" as the better one's school proved in warfare, the better it's reputation and more people paid to be trained. So for this reason Menkyo was awarded sparingly and each Menkyo holder had to pay the Soke to teach their traditions. During Tokugawa period the schools of combat were limited to geographical regions and training became more expensive, as not only could one pay to learn a system of combat and/or warfare but one could also pay to be protected by those trained within said schools. Thus, under the Tokugawa Shogunate Ashigaru became part of the Samurai caste of warrior governors, below the Jizamurai. This also limited training to the Samurai caste (a form of peasant disarmament).

Many schools of warfare and combat died off and a few survived being passed down along family lines. Some started new schools but it was of little concern with staged Shiai or Contests between rival schools that was basically as realistic as modern professional wresting. One Soke would argue and challenge the other Soke, then student's would fight in tournaments, Shiai, that charged people to watch said bouts. Both Soke were in on the rigged and dramatic displays to attract spectators. How does this answer the question of what is rank?

Because it demonstrates that rank is nothing more then a means of controlling competition and generating revenue or social status. In some cases when the head of family died and heir did not earn their Menkyo Kaiden, they were given a Menkyo Kaiden to "rubber stamp" Licenses while they learned their whole art in secret often from instructor holding only a Menkyo themselves. In trades the rank of Menkyo Kaiden is awarded only after one has been a part of the art for 30 or more years but it does not make one a Soke in the Iemoto tradition.

If this ranking system is based around making money and limiting competition to from one's own students what does it really say about the Menkyo ranking system? Rank is like this, I can train in a martial art and have a Menkyo after many years. I can teach and pay a Soke (if the Iemoto system was active) to do so in his name, and use the name of his art. If I failed to pay the Soke for using his art to teach my Menkyo could be revoked. Just like if I was a Ashigaru who rose to being a minor samurai in the country, a jizamurai and I displeased my Shugodai (governor appointed by the Shogun) I could find my status dropped to Ashigaru again and lose control of the lands I managed/ruled. So rank once given could always be taken away...

More so, can rank be lost? Rank can be lost... If Rank is a sign of skill then one must always work to achieve greater skill. If one fails to train due to illness or injury, or because one has to spend more time working and caring for one's family in today's complicated, fast paced world... skill gets degraded and in time can be lost. Its like being a doctor, you can be an awesome heart surgeon... but, if you stop operating for a year, you might have all the knowledge you always had but you don't have the practice. This is why, non-martial arts Menkyo systems require only a Menkyo to achieve full transmission and why Menkyo Kaiden is awarded after 30 years of practicing said skills.

Rank is an illusion mankind's need to seek status... What to prove your skills are effective, fight someone. Want to prove your rank means something, show it! In nature the Alpha is the strongest who proves his strength and the others fall to wayside. In our unnatural human civilization, tokens of status such as rank is the illusion of having proven ourselves. Rank does not will a fight, skills do and skilled fighter might not have rank to show for it.

Proof the Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu is Ineffective: Don Roley Doesn't Rely on Bujinkan Arts for Self-Defense!

So I don't always keep tabs with what others are doing... Quite honestly I don't care. But, many of you know I am a friend of Ashida Kim's and while I haven't been his student he has been a mentor of sorts. See Ashida Kim isn't a very rich man but he is a man of character and I need strong character more then I need money... Mental Toughness & Moral Strength are words for Character and in the many trials I've faced I've had money, lost money and can get money again but I can't afford to lose myself. So when someone showed Don Roley's latest jab I couldn't help but laugh...

I noticed this from the onset observing Don Roley's posture in the Raw Footage but I didn't say anything until Don Roley said it first and then I couldn't help but laugh. The following images are used for the purpose of review and are considered viable under 17 USC 107 of Federal Code.

Here Don Roley provides in his own words a statement of using the video for his own purposes, considering he invited his "Bullies" to show up, you can basically see where my comments to him on the Raw Footage about how he will never fight me stand. See Don Roley was trying to play the victim. The victim game is a common ploy used by children who like to start trouble but rely on their teachers or parents to save them. As adults they rely on the courts and, its a clear sign someone can't fight. However, we are talking mentality and not methodology... As Don Roley wants to appear non-aggressive yet challenged me via a video on YouTube, a video I was no doubt correct about disappearing should I have fought him.

Here Don Roley Challenges me to Challenge Him & you can get the full story on this issue here...

Here is a fun fact for you all, Count Dante aka John Keehan was Veteran of Army and as such had training in World War II combatives. This same stance is also used as part of the Kata Dante as invented by John Keehan/Count Dante...

The Hidden Hand or "Crotch Cover Defensive Stance" as demonstrated by Ashida Kim in preparation to perform the Kata Dante. Perhaps, Roley was going to perform the Kata Dante.

Here is Don Roley mentions getting his hands up in a concealed fighting position. This is very interesting because this an aspect practiced by none other then Captain Chris Pizzo (yeah him) and Damien Ross (the Guy from Penn & Teller's Bullshit: Martial Arts Episode). From my understanding Ross & Pizzo were business partners and Pizzo ripped him off fir some cash and started his own combatives program but is a former student of Damien Ross.

However, since many good sources of information exist on the Combatives like the Bill Wolfe Combatives and other schools of the Defendo/Defendu tradition. You even have some elements of these methods discussed in Tony Blauer's SPEAR System and his earlier works on self-defense (Yes, I am a fan of his). So what I am saying is that none of this shows up in  the Bujinkan system and when confronted Don Roley doesn't even rely on his "Battlefield" Tested Samurai Arts... I mean postures like Shizen no Kamae, Hira no Kamae & Jumonji no Kamae don't seem threatening right?

Add to this these same stances/postures have been explained my me in the Jukyu Black Dragon Ninjitsu DVD not as actual Ninjutsu, Taijutsu or Jujutsu but variations of the Tachi Kamae of Black Dragon Ninjutsu/Omoto-Ryu Budo.

 The Hidden Hand Posture, an adaptation of Tachi Kamae of the Standing Posture...

 The Thinker a Variation of Tachi Kamae...

My own course admits these methods are not part of Black Dragin Ninjitsu but are discussed so that one can understand the variations of Tachi Kamae. The Principle of positioning the hands to make them accessible in a fight exists however, it is not codified Black Dragon Ninjutsu system as "this or that" stance. It is simply variations of Standing Posture (Tachi Kamae) addressed to give the student a reference to adaptations codified by other systems. One could just as easily place their hands behind their head and using the "Ear Muffs" Stance if a boxer or raise their arms as if surrendering, its all fluid and changes from set postures to whatever the student needs for the situation.

In any event, Don Roley by his own admission doesn't rely on the methods of Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu but instead uses modern (well WW II based) combatives and same methods of those he calls frauds...

Black Dragon Ninjitsu Competition Rules for Sparring & Jujitsu Matches

This will be the last blog for the month of September, so I wanted to address something which has been asked of me and I figure this will head off some questions. The question asked over and over again since I offered the idea of a Ninjutsu Competition has been "What are the rules of sparring or jujitsu competition in Black Dragon Ninjitsu? "

So allow me to provide some answers...

Competition Matches will be divided into 3 rounds each round lasting only 2 minutes for those of 10th Kyu grade. These sparring matches will be "punching only" (essentially boxing matches). Points are awarded as follows;

• A knock out wins the match... A knock is judged by the fighter losing consciousness for 10 seconds or be struck in such a way as to unable to intelligently defend themselves due to a strike.
• 5 points for a knock down, 3 knock downs in a single round is a Technical Knock Out.
• 1 point is awarded for a clean strike to the chin, jaw or solar plexus.
• 1 point is awarded for a clean block against a punch.

 

For 9th & 8th Kyu grades, it becomes more of a Kickboxing style event allowing knees and elbows similar to Muay Thai. Rounds are increased in number to 5 rounds at 3 minutes per round.

• A knock out wins the match... A knock is judged by the fighter losing consciousness for 10 seconds or be struck in such a way as to unable to intelligently defend themselves due to a strike.
• 5 points for a knock down, 3 knock downs in a single round is a Technical Knock Out.
• 1 point is awarded for a clean strike to the chin, ribs, kidneys, temple, jaw or solar plexus.
• 1 point is awarded for a clean block against a strike, to include kicks, knees and elbows.
• 2 points are awarded for initiating a clinch/head control. Fighters are not stopped due to tying up in a clinch for 5 seconds or less.
• 1 point awarded for showing controlled aggression & dominating the fight.
• -1 point for first act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (first offense)
• -5 points  for second act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (second offense)
•  Disqualification for third act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (third & final offense)
• Un-Sportsman Like Conduct is defined as, striking to intentionally injure one's opponent, cursing at, spitting or biting one's opponent, fish-hooking (pulling on an opponent's mouth with the fingers), eye gouges, groin strikes or throat strikes or grabs, elbows strikes to the nose, temple, base of skull or sternum & head butts to the nose.
• Head butts to the Chin are Permitted, but not points are awarded for effective strike with the head.

7th Kyu Grades & up...
At 7th Kyu and up Competition takes on a variety of forms adding grappling & weapons sparring to the sparring allowing for jujitsu competition to become a basis for other competitions (meaning a Black Dragon Ninjitsuka would be able to use Jujitsu techniques in competition with Kendo Shinai as part of learning to use the sword as well). Such a jujitsu/taijutsu competition would also be comprised of 5 rounds at 5 minutes each, at 5th Kyu this becomes 8 rounds at 5 minutes each & 10 rounds at 5 minutes each at 2nd Kyu;

 

A knock or wins the match... A knock is judged by the fighter losing consciousness for 10 seconds or be struck in such a way as to unable to intelligently defend themselves due to a strike.

A Choke out wins the match, choking an opponent unconscious wins the match.

Submission is signaled by tapping the mat or opponent repeatedly or saying "Matte" when a fighter forfeits the match and surrenders.

Matches can also be stopped when the referee or majority of 2 of 3 judges during a competition decide the fighters are not of the same ability levels.

5 points for a knock down, 3 knock downs in a single round is a Technical Knock Out.

1 point is awarded for a clean strike to the chin, ribs, kidneys, temple, jaw or solar plexus.

1 point is awarded for a clean block against a strike, to include kicks, knees and elbows.

2 points are awarded for initiating a clinch/head control. Fighters are not stopped due to tying up in a clinch for 5 seconds or less.

2 points for a standing choke.

2 points for a standing arm-lock.

2 points for taking the fight to the ground

5 points for a throw or takedown knocking an opponent to the ground.

-3 points for being taken to the ground.

1 point for gaining dominant position on the ground.

2 points for reversals and taking the dominant position on the ground.

1 point for arm or legs locks on the ground.

2 points for chokeholds on the ground.

1 point awarded for showing controlled aggression & dominating the fight.

-1 point for not showing aggression during a fight.

-1 point for first act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (first offense)

-5 points  for second act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (second offense)

 Disqualification for third act of "un-sportsman like conduct." (third & final offense)

Un-Sportsman Like Conduct is defined as, striking to intentionally injure one's opponent, cursing at, spitting or biting one's opponent, fish-hooking (pulling on an opponent's mouth with the fingers), eye gouges, groin strikes or throat strikes or grabs, elbows strikes to the nose, temple, base of skull or sternum & head butts to the nose. Any strikes on the ground. "Tapping out" and initiating physical contact afterward, between rounds or when told to stop.

Headbutts to the Chin are Permitted while in the clinch, but not points are awarded.

Techniques which are not permitted in Competition; Finger or Wrist-locks, Neck Locks (not chokes), Spinal Locks or throws which "spike the other fighter on the head."

On the Ground No Striking is Permitted, a Fighter has 30 seconds to achieve a submission or chokehold on the ground to achieve a "Choke Out" or Submission.

 

Belts & Colors:
Mukyu (no rank) No Belt, Student has to earn their White Belt usually takes about 15 to 30 days.

10th Kyu White Belt

9th Kyu Yellow Belt

8th Kyu Yellow Belt

7th Kyu Orange Belt

6th Kyu Orange Belt

5th Kyu Green Belt

4th Kyu Green Belt

3rd Kyu Green Belt

2nd Kyu Brown Belt

1st Kyu Brown Belt

1st Dan Black Belt

 

 This format would allow the Black Dragon Ninjitsu student to practice striking a moving target, at each point closing the gap to allow for infighting and then focus on grappling methods. After 7th Kyu grappling methods would dominate one's unarmed combat training. And as the student adapts to a particular area of focus adds to the foundation by "adding tools to the tool box" crafting their own style of fighting designed to fit their personality.

More so, and more importantly, this allows an instructor to train with their students to limit themselves to spar and train with their students. Not simply walking around commanding the students through drills but, training with them demonstrating the character traits of mental toughness and showing that the instructor is still seeking to build themselves up. In Black Dragon Ninjitsu instructors do not say "go forth before and do as I say..." in Black Dragon Ninjitsu instructors say "Follow me..." we seek to build leaders and leaders don't seek to command others, they go forth sometimes alone and inspire others to follow them.

Legacy of the Kokuryukai: The American Kokuryukai and what it means...

I few people have asked about the newest book Legacy of the Kokuryukai and my American Kokuryukai Organization. While the "instructors" handbook is available to everyone via Shadow Warrior Publishing, memberships are not for sell nor are they offered online.

Why start a martial arts organization and hold the membership to being invitation only?

The reason is very simple, I want to keep out the trash. Keep the politics to a minimum and the goals on point.

Why announce the Existence of the Organization?
To draw interested people into associating with our members and allowing them a chance to try to get involved. Like many Private Social Clubs, we (I) want you (the outsider) to see us and wonder about us. Such clubs from Motorcycle Clubs (especially 1%s) to the Free Masons have their secrets, their unpublished members and their by-laws to live by. We are no different but, the American Kokuryukai is not for sale and neither are memberships they are earned by hard work. So you know we are out there but, you don't were, why or who is a member.

Is the American Kokuryukai restricted to Black Dragon Ninjitsu students and members?

No... It includes other systems of ninjutsu and some other non-ninjutsu martial arts. Currently, a Shaolin Kung-fu artist has been invited, a ninjutsu expert or three and, others are sure to follow. The historical Kokuryukai of World War II fame, used proxy groups and various methods of training from any place that gave them an advantage. The American Kokuryukai uses the strategic and tactical elements of Black Dragon Ninjitsu but, is focused on making Ninjutsu a Strategic-Survival-Combat System & using any martial art, self-defense or combative system to further that goal.

To do this, we have to drop the "Ninja-Warrior Sales Pitch" and focus on Ninjutsu as the Invisible Art, the art of things done in secret as if you were never there... So we will honor the Spirit and truth of the Samurai, that they were warriors first and ninja second. We seek to develop personal systems of combat (not based on someone else's style or tradition but what works for you the individual), based on cross training and develop of personal understanding of principles, lifestyle and development goals. This is a starting point where we address elements like strategy (a individual study thereof), tactics and philosophy to work on things like psychological manipulation and controls, goal setting and developing a plan of action, core life styles taught through a "cloak & dagger" style Adventure Camp & Social Club. From here, we develop a network a instructors in multiple systems and styles, cross training, learning and developing a Fraternal Order of Strategists and Leaders. We seek to use martial arts and ninjutsu (modern and historical) to develop the Leaders of the Martial Arts world...

How is this done through a "martial arts" fraternity & what qualifies it as an "acceptable martial art?"

Its not done through the fraternity it is done through personal development. What qualifies as an acceptable martial art is any system with physical requirement to take action against another living human being & has a focus (it does not need to be the central focus) on Self-Defense. This means a "too deadly to spar" Self-Defense School were you never apply what you learn against another person is not qualified for membership but, an MMA school that teaches a Karate-based Self-defense system and trains fighters to enter MMA using Muay Thai and/or Brazilian Jujitsu is... A Hapkido Dojang that doesn't spar and is focused on Self-Defense techniques for comat doesn't qualify but a Tae Kwon Do school that includes light sparring and self-defense training along with breaking and forms does qualify. Because the acceptable system needs to allow you to test your limits and explore your strengths and weakness but also needs a practical base outside of looking good, winning trophies or patting egos.

We don't need to provide all the answers we want to expand your knowledge, open your mind and your eyes and help you start asking the right questions... It's about how you develop yourself and not how you justify your expanse of time and money. As long as you are improving yourself a human being and doing so with a practical goal of self-defense and self-improvement. We want you to help us better ourselves and will offer the chance help us better ourselves in return. The Fraternity doesn't give you anything, that's not already within you. We are just trying to help you find "it" within you and help ourselves find "it" within ourselves. The individual acts and in individual benefits, we just do so as a team of individuals following their own paths to summit.
If the Book Legacy of the Kokuryukai is a manual for Private Fraternal Order then Why sell it on Shadow Warrior Press?

Because Secrets are dangerous and making the information publically available means that people can see what the organization is about & what our goals are. I want the American Kokuryukai to not be limited to a text or written philosophy that is unmoving. I want a fluid and adaptable institution that brings people together to learn from each other & don't much care how people view that idea. The Book covers some of the Real History of the Real Kokuryukai, it addresses the Omoto Family connection and addresses some basic doctrine of Espionage & Clandestine Warfare so that all members regardless of Martial Arts can study and learn, even if it only is through the book. A place were any martial artists from any style or tradition can come together and focus on strategy and cross training with the many different variations of martial arts that exist in the world.

So because I know rumors and lies will spread about the Organization Across the Web like Wild-Fire, just as they have about myself. I also know that giving anyone the opportunity to see what we honor and what teach in the Art of Strategy is only the tip of the Ice Burg... The Book does not contain everything one needs to know & no one knows it all. The best we can do is always seek to keep expanding, growing, learning & developing yourself as an individual. Strong individuals make strong groups, weak individuals weaken the group... We just want to help you realize your potential and your strength.

Have a Good Day & God Bless,
Ron Collins

Jack of All Trades and Master of None

We used to say this a lot in the Army when it came to being Infantry because you wouldn't guess how many times you did things outside your paygrade or MOS (Military Occupational Specialty AKA Job to you Civilians). It is a saying I have taken to martial arts as well, the fundamental principle of Mixed Martial Arts competition is in the idea of allowing all possible techniques to be available to a fighter. This has changed much of the make up of modern martial arts as ground work has now gained a great deal of popularity in martial arts. More importantly, the question of which is better, striking or grappling has remained unanswered as at different times strikers or grapplers have dominated in MMA competition. Thus proving that it is never the art or the techniques but the fighter which is of the most value.


As such, a person dealing with self-defense must extend their list of possible techniques to include "illegal strikes" for competition such as knife hand strikes to the neck or throat, eye gouges or groin strikes/grabs. Then you have to train to deal with multiple opponents, weapons defense, weapons usage (after if you can take a gun away from a mugger but don't know how to use it, your screwed). So how is someone to be able to effectively defend themselves?

Now I won't label all traditional martial arts as a problem, in fact the biggest problem in traditional martial arts has come from the realm of competition. The rules of Karate exclude the use of throws, joint-locks and chokes. So many schools which seek to draw in students (remember that dojo is a business) water down their training to focus on winning competitions, which draws in more students. Judo contains Atemi-Waza (striking techniques) which is not allowed in competition, and many judo schools often exclude these methods from their training and focus on competitive skill sets.


This isn't a bad thing, some systems are not competition arts, like Goju Ryu Katate or Hapkido which is a self-defense focused art and more combative in nature they focus on effect and so include a lot more Bunkai (Literally "Disassembly" or "Breakdown" meaning to take Self-Defense Applications called Oyo from Kata forms) then Kata. Goju Ryu being a Okinawan art is more focused on combat application and so many Bunkai techniques are taught to the students, performing kata so that they under the application behind the movement. This is a stark difference to Japanese Shotokan Karate, which save Bunkai for higher belts. Goju Ryu also focuses more on developing the body to withstand punishment and build up the body to deliver powerful strikes & destructive joint-manipulations.

Is Goju Ryu Karate better then Shotokan Karate, in my opinion yes... (and I offer this assessment as an example of the concept I trying to express here) but Goju Techniques & Shotokan techniques are the same techniques. What makes Goju Ryu better then Shotokan is the mindset on training & the goal of effective fighting skills. The techniques and forms are almost the same or very similar in nature. Can Shotokan attopt some of Goju's philosophy to make itself better? You bet... In doing so we come back to MMA were different martial arts are studied and to make up for gaps in the training of these arts.

My old Shotokan school was a bit of belt mill, the instructor did it to make extra cash and really didn't care a great deal for "tradition" in Karate. In fact, he encouraged cross training, so I also studied Judo and Sport Jujitsu. And yes, my Instructor awarded my a black belt as a child but, in his defense its business & those belts don't mean anything...

There is an issue with people over estimating the importance of an award. Things like skill come with hard work and not certificates, lineages & strips of colored cloth. Let me give you something to consider, which is more impressive? The guy with a "Ranger Tab" who earned in Ranger School, or the guy without a "Ranger Tab" but who parachuted into gun fire, chaos and hell on earth in a fire fight as part of a Ranger Battalion as a simple PFC without the advanced training of Ranger School? This is by no means to diminish the honor or the difficulty of earning the "Ranger Tab" this is to say their is a difference between training and doing it for real. No martial arts competition or school will ever put you in the same position as the real thing of fighting for your life.

Self-Defense is not limited by the rules of competition, just as Bunkai is not limited to the confines of Kata. The real thing is always going to throw kinks into your game plan. I have a friend of mine who is a superb grappler and he loves to point out he can submit about 8 out of 10 times. Thing is one day he was touting the superiority of his grappling skills and I by contrast asked him how he could grapple a 30-06 round fired from 200 yards away. His response was funny... "He looked at me and said a gun beats everything."

My reply was "No, it doesn't..." Few people can actually make that kind of shot or have a weapon that has been sighted in for that kind of shot. So its likely thy will either miss you or not kill with the first shot. So lets say the round misses you? What do you do? Unless you've been trained in a react to far ambush battle drill, you have no clue. You can look it up in the FM 7-9 if you like... Basically, you will do the same things kids in the Ghetto do when a drive by occurs, you drop down and crawl for cover or if no cover is available pretend to be shot.

In the real world, the world of the rising threat of terrorism you cannot be so restricted to thinking of self-defense in terms of martial arts techniques or competition fighting. Competition has it place in training and competition with the most techniques available for use is of course the best option. But, in the world of self-defense you have to be a Jack of Trades and Master of None. Learning things with the idea of adding tools to a metaphorical toolbox & not becoming a Master of a particular style or tradition. In this case, I have developed the Black Dragon Ninjitsu Course to develop skill sets at each rank, to move from striking range, to infighting range, to grappling range, to include tactics, strategy, stealth and survival training. To act as a guide to allow you to develop your own "Style" of fighting and act as a generalized platform for self-understand the growth.

The Kenpo of Omoto Ryu Jujitsu

Omoto Ryu Budo is an art of many fascets, Ninjutsu is what it is best known for through me but, among others it is known for it's application of Kenpo in its Atemi-waza. Now when I say Kenpo you must understand what Kenpo is...

Kenpo is different between America and Japan. If you say you study Kenpo in Japan most Japanese will ask you if you study "Chinese Kenpo" And if you say no... They then ask if you study "Okinawan Kenpo." The reason for this is that Kenpo is a purely Japanese term.

Kenpo literally means "Fist Law" which many in the West associate with Chinese Temple Boxing. However, this has a far more mundane meaning. It is the focus and domination of striking principles and techniques. Literally, the Law of Striking with the fists. Striking arts did not become big in Japan until Funakoshi brought Okinawan Karate to Japan and changed the Kanji to mean empty hand rather then Chinese hand, as it means in Okinawa.

 Thus, any striking are is referred to generically as Kenpo. Fujita Seiko was a Soke in Na Ban Sato Ryu Kenpo which means Sato School of Foreign Killing Fist Law or Foreign (non-Japanese) Vital Point Striking Art in a more polished definition. It was said the Samurai who founded Na Ban Sato Ryu Kenpo learned the art in Okinawa. So we need to address the difference in Okinawan Kenpo, Japanese Kenpo and Atemi-waza in Judo, Jujitsu, Aikido etc.

Most Japanese arts were developed for warfare based on the Sengoku period. During the Tokugawa Shogunate peace made it possible for new schools to develop and new arts to exist. Many of the New arts were untested.

So Samurai deployed to Okinawa and even Korea came back with knowledge of Foreign arts. And Many of the arts had influence from Chinese arts. Named Kenpo in generic terms as unlike the Japanese arts which focused on grappling due to the fact of fighting in Armor making striking less effective than throwing someone to the ground to be stomped or killed with a weapon, making breaking an arm, fingers or choking someone to death all possible and a more highly effective option. By contrast this also has its roots in Chinese martial arts. Chin Na is a Chinese grappling art and involves not only Joint manipulation and destruction but, Dim Mak against acupressure and acupuncture points and grabbing and tearing of muscles and ligaments.

All Chinese Kenpo (to use the Japanese term) contains some Chin Na, but is best known for it's application of striking. Hence Kenpo Fist Law means governed by the fist or striking methods.

In regard to Omoto Ryu Jujitsu, the Atemi-waza is heavily influenced by Kenpo. Now this is not the Kenpo Karate we are used to in the US. American Kenpo Karate began with Ed Parker, Ed Parker was a student of William Chow who begin calling it Kenpo Karate as opposed to the Kosho Ryu Kenpo Jujitsu he was first taught. Omoto Ryu claims not connection to the lineage of Ed Parker or to Kosho Ryu Kenpo.

Kenpo in Omoto Ryu Jujitsu refers to the principles and concepts of striking arts upon the Jujitsu system. The techniques of Omoto Ryu are unique in that they are driven by one thing. Practicality... Practicality is the primary concern of Omoto Ryu. Whether you believe the Omoto Ryu is an art made up by me, taught to me by people who embellished their own history or really is a system first developed by warriors of Koga/Koka City and modified through ages as it was used by members of the Yakuza and the Kokuryukai is irrelevant (I find these claims questionable myself but, hey). There is no Soke of Omoto Ryu Budo.

In fact, being blunt Soke is a bit of a joke as a martial arts rank. It is a socio-economic (pedagogy) term to denote a familial heir to a trade... There are Soke in tea making, pottery and blacksmithing. When martial arts were no longer used in battle after the Sengoku period, Tokugawa Shogunate period that marked peace many new systems developed out of untested ideas. And many new systems were developed under the propriety ownership of certain forms of music, stories and verses in songs. Similar to modern copyright laws but, under the exclusive ownership of the Soke and the family in a system called iemoto seido. As such information was withheld to certain members based on status in the original iemoto family, social status and so on. Of course, the many new systems which were developed for commercial teaching of martial arts, using the iemoto system insured members of the Bushi/Warrior class would have greater training them say a farmer. A wealthy merchant could gain greater knowledge based on how much he could afford to pay to learn the art, compared to the farmer.

Now why doesn't the Omoto Ryu have a Soke is a good question? You have to understand what a Soke is and what it means... There is a wonderful article on Koryu.com about this very subject. In essence, certain families controlled all the art, poetry and music within an area. So these families would exert influence over anyone else doing similar work in their area. In terms of martial arts a Ronin could be hired as a Junior Instructor in an area for an established school, even though they were not of that particular lineage. However, prior to 1868 when Japan was organized into a modern nation, under the Meiji Restoration few such schools existed using the iemoto seido because of the many new forms of martial arts and new methods of training be devised by clever instructors. After the Meiji era however, many systems developed using the iemoto seido as the Meiji Restoration brought with it a change in warfare, the warrior class which ruled their own pockets of the nation was replaced with a central (federal) army made up of conscripted citizens, trained in boot camps and armed with muskets. So many martial arts adopted the iemoto seido to both pass on traditions and retain control of who taught the art both to preserve the tradition and to maintain it's traditional roots.

Omoto Ryu is not concerned with maintaining tradition in the strict since of techniques and histories passed from one person to the next. Quite the opposite the Omoto Ryu is concerned with practical application of techniques. As such many non-Japanese concepts can be applied to Omoto Ryu Atemi, and in Japanese tradition this would be referred to as "Kenpo." Body mechanics and such which makes use of the concepts of "Okinawan Kenpo" and combines them with Japanese Jujitsu. Under Sensei Martin these methods added old school USMC Hand-to-Hand combatives, boxing and wrestling. Under me adding Jeet Kune Do philosophy and modern military training & weapons. The school which withholds knowledge is not a school but a scam for extorting money from others keeping them enrolled and scamming them if their money to learn the "secrets of the arts." Under Kiyoshi Omoto Omoto Ryu was very much about Weapons with Jujitsu taking a backseat to using those weapons. Jujitsu with a semi-focus on striking and associated biomechanical actions as well as, conditioning the hands and feet for striking.

Now Omoto Ryu Budo is taught by me as Black Dragon Ninjitsu... There is no Soke.

Update to: Trolls & Haters are once again showing how little they know.

So by showing the how little the trolls understood of the concepts they are trying to attack with Trolls & Haters are once again at it... And showing how little they know., to justify their claims, because they know nothing and helped to prove it... They sent me new pictures, with new complaints, again showing they know nothing lol... So I'm bored and here is what the haters and trolls aren't explaining.

1. No Back in both cases is bent... The goals of each are different because we are talking about the same concept in two different systems. Above my lead arm is down because I am executing a block/deflection along with a slip and counter punch. The individual below is simple slipping and counter punching.
2. This can easily be seen in the still image below.

Notice the rope is pushed up and away as I slip the punch. This is because the block/deflection is used to establish trapping, something that doesn't exist in Boxing. It also sets up for the trap/grab and counter punch in the same action.

Following the block & slip comes the counter punch, notice the hip rotation that propels the reverse arm forward. While blocking and striking at the same time. So yes, you do train to block and slip, while counter-punching. And you can like the boxer who demonstrated slipping the punch and counter-punching can do so without a block. However the block/deflection will become a basis for many stand up grappling techniques, arm bars, wrist locks and so on. By contrast you see this done with the lead hand strike and the reverse hand used to deflect.

By Variation, you see the slip, block and strike drill done with the lead hand. This means the hips are snapping forward, while the lead knee bends behind the strike to deliver kinetic energy to the target. The counter rotation of the hips also gives the reverse hand power to deflect at the same time the lead hand is driven into the target. Your hips basically supports a column called the Spine, rotating the hips rotates the spine, which moves the chest and upper torso cavity. This why rotation of the body generates kinetic energy within a small space and creates a more powerful strike.

No just a different angle... But, I though the stance was too wide last time and left the groin to open? So its proper when Hatsumi takes a wide stance but not me... Course I'm not in a "stance" am I. I was punching, delivering kinetic energy to point, while Hatsumi is standing there passively in Ichimon No Kamae. I am generating explosive power through action and Hatsumi is posing for the camera. Two very different things...

As for the "Staggered Stance" well...

 Image from right after the punch, the yellow line follows the alignment of my "big toe." This image follows after the punch shown above, which also shows the forward movement of the hips and up body behind the strike. As compared the Hatsumi just standing their for picture.

From a different angle then...

Remember this is an action shot, so the hips are being snapped behind a punch to develop explosive power i.e. kinetic energy.

As for the head being "dropped" I guess all these guys are wrong to...

Danny O. Danny No!!! Some Internet trolls says your head is down. Ok Danny is moving backwards while I am moving forwards but lets see...

No Doug Werner author of a Beginner's Guide to Boxing, doing it all wrong as well... because the trolls say so... lol

Lets compare these images from a book on boxing to the troll's of my picture above...

Lets examine here shall we...
1. Chin Tucked in Shoulder of Punching arm... Both
2. Reverse hand up to defend... Both
3. Reverse Hand Position, Me placed to protect the throat and Mr. Werner places hand to outside the chin, not concern with protecting the throat.
4. Head forward... Both. This changes the angle of facehelps to prevent the nose from being a target.
5. Foot Work/Foot Position... Me, "L" shaped pattern more akin to Japanese arts with a wider stance used to move the body further into the strike, generate great kinetic energy. Mr. Werner feet face forward and closer together to allow for better mobility.

That is because I never completed the choke, I wasn't teaching chokes. I was addressing the possible expansion of a basic concept based in positioning. Chokes will be covered later, for now a student needs to focus on angles and positioning in a fight. The promotional video is below and it is intended to teach you yellow belt skills...

And because Big Words like Kinetic Energy and Kinetic Force confuse you, guys...