Koryu Iaijutsu & Kenjutsu: Classical Sword Arts with Carl E. Long, Kyoshi

Shindokan Dojo is once again proud to welcome Carl Long, Kyoshi, chairman/Soshihan of the Kokusai Nippon Budo Kai, for his return for a weekend seminar on authentic classical Japanese sword arts. We also welcome you to join us for what will certainly be weekend of instruction of extremely high caliber. Sensei will provide instruction in the koryu traditions of Muso Jikiden Eishin-ryu Iaijutsu and Ono-ha Itto-ryu Kenjutsu. While access to instruction in the koryu sword arts is slowly becoming more widely available, instruction at the level that will be experienced during this seminar remains quite rare indeed. It is important to note that Ono-ha Itto-ryu, an art that has directly influenced the more modern arts of Kendo, Aikijujutsu and Aikido, remains almost completely inaccessible outside of Japan. The KNBK is the only source of instruction in the mainline of Ono-ha Itto-ryu in North America! This is indeed a great and unique opportunity to study real koryu! An exemplary teacher of authentic Japanese and Okinawan martial Arts, Long Kyoshi serves as the Chairman of the Kokusai Nippon Budo Kai and is the designated successor of Masayuki Shimabukuro Hanshi, the 21st Generation Inheritor of our line of Muso Jikiden Eishin-ryu Iaijutsu. Long Kyoshi is also Hombu-cho of the KNBK Intl. Hombu Dojo and is also the Kenshoin (Inspector/Advisor) of Iaido and Batto-do for the International Division of the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai, the oldest martial arts governing organization in Japan. He holds the grades of 8th Dan, Shorin-ryu Karate-do; 7th Dan, Muso Jikiden Eishin-ryu Iaijutsu; 6th Dan, Shito-ryu Karate-do; 5th Dan, Shindo Muso-ryu Jojutsu; and dan grades in Aikido and Kobudo.

Instructor Development Workshop

The next Instructor Development Workshop for Dentokan Aiki Jujutsu scheduled for January 16th at 10:00 a.m. at Shindokan Dojo/BBTMAC.

Carl Long Kyoshi at Shindokan Dojo in February

Shindokan Dojo is proud to announce the return of Carl Long, Kyoshi to New England for a 2-day seminar in Muso Jikiden Eishin-ryu Iaijutsu and Ono-ha Itto-ryu Kenjutsu. Sensei will be here over the weekend of February 26th and 27th. We will post more information shortly, but for now, we look forward to Sensei's visit with great anticipation! Please contact me at shindokan1@gmail.com for durhter information!

Kagami Biraki 2011

Thanks to everyone who took part in Kagami Biraki at Shindokan Dojo/Black Bear TMAC; we had a great session consisting of brief (10 minutes) of sitting meditation, followed by 108 repetitions of a couple kosa dori variations (ude osae & konoha/kote gaeshi....54 of each). I hope everyone enjoyed the practice!

May Day Embu: Part 1

Shindokan Dojo/Black Bear Traditional Martial Arts Center conducted an embu (demonstration) on May 1st on the green by the Mystic River in beautiful, historic downtown Mystic, Connecticut.

The first portion of the embu was performed by youth who comprise the Black Bear Traditional Martial Arts Center Demonstration Team. The children, ranging in ages from 6 to 15, provided an excellent demonstration of traditional Shorin-ryu Reihokan Karate-do and Kobudo. This is especially significant, given our era of so-called “martial arts” studios” in which authentic, traditional martial arts for children are eschewed in favour of over-hyped, pretend martial arts (using the terms “martial” and “art” very loosely here) that are nothing more than flashy, glorified acrobatics and dance routines in silly looking, multi-coloured and multi-patterned circus outfits. These forms of “Rah-Rah-ryu” (not intended as an insult to cheerleading in any way, but martial arts should never be presented in a way that confuses the two!) amount to nothing more than mere toys, just like their glow-in-the-dark “staffs” masquerading as the bo of the dignified warrior of the Ryukyu Kingdom.

It is therefore very refreshing to see enthusiastic but disciplined youngsters, clad in the simple, dignified white do-gi of traditional Karate-do, correctly demonstrating the etiquette and skills of authentic budo with vigour and sincerity. It is also a testament to the heart and skill their teacher, who, along with his dedicated assistant instructors, transmits the art of Shorin-ryu Reihokan Karate-do and Kobudo just as he himself pursues his own studies; with an uncompromising commitment to the Way.

Seeing the youth of Shindokan Dojo/Black Bear Traditional Martial Arts Center demonstrate their arts with confidence and skill; seeing them show their budo, their hearts, to all in attendance, filled me with hope and joy. As one of my teachers recently said to me, “it is from small seeds that big trees grow”. And it is youngsters such as these, rigourously pursuing the true heart of Karate-do, which give the world much to be hopeful for.

New Schedule at Shindokan Dojo Beginning in June

Black Bear Traditional Martial Arts/Shindokan Dojo has expanded and now has a second training floor, enabling us to offer different class concurrently. As such, we will be going forward with a new training schedule beginning in June.

Our “samurai arts” classes, including Aiki Jujutsu, Iaijutsu and Kenjutsu, will now be offered Monday through Thursday at 6:00 pm. And on Saturday mornings beginning at 9:00 am. We will also be holding morning beach classes at least twice each week (weather permitting) from mid may through September (these classes are by invitation only).

Our Zen practice group will also resume meeting for zazen (Zen meditation) practice on Saturday mornings at 8:00 am beginning in June.

Please see http://blackbearkarate.com for changes to the Shorin-ryu Reihokan Karate-do & Kobudo class schedule.

Some Random Thoughts....

It is a mistake to chase after heijoshin; to chase after awakening; the closer I think I get, the farther away it really is.


Budo is training in mindfulness; in sincerity; to live fully experiencing this moment…