The second annual gasshuku of the Sei Ryu Kai took place from the 17th to 21st of May; at the emblematic Shinto shrine ‘Meiji Jingu’, in the heart of Tokyo. Whilst many groups can practice at the Shiseikan Dojo, we were afforded the rare honour of being allowed to stay within the shrine grounds in the residence usually reserved for visiting monks. A total of 30 participants (20 staying for the whole gasshuku) were thus able to escape from the bustle of Tokyo within the beautifully forested grounds of the Meiji Jingu.
Some participants came from such distant places as Switzerland , the Chec Republic , Australia , Turkey and Spain . We would also like to mention Shikanai Sensei (also a shihan of Aikikai Aikido) who came all the way from Brazil to attend. On Wednesday afternoon all gathered at the monk’s residence, and after leaving our luggage we went to pay our respects to the central shrine. From there we made our way to the Shiseikan Dojo, some 10 minutes walk through the forest, to commence practice. Over the course of five days we were able to experience intense training, all under the direct supervision of Nishioka Sensei.
Every morning we woke up before 6am to commence the first practice of the day at 6.30am. The original plan had included the even earlier practice of misogi (spiritual cold water cleansing), but much to the relief of those ‘morning people’ this early morning cold water schedule was changed to late night warm sake! So we commenced at 6.30am every morning to focus on the basics: suburi and kihon dosa. At 8am we made our way back through the forest to the residence for a very minimal Japanese style breakfast, and a short rest before the next session.
The next 2 hour session from 10am was devoted everyday to the practice of Shinto-ryu kenjutsu. The afternoon session was held from 2pm to 5pm, and was devoted to the practice of jo kata. For the first hour and a half the participants were split into groups according to technical level, and were able to train under the guidance of the various instructors and seniors within the group. Here all had a chance to consolidate the kata they knew, and also learn new kata. The remainder of the session was free training, allowing everyone to pair up with practitioners of their own level and polish their new skills. Here also the senior students had the chance to advance further in the SMR syllabus, and practice the associated arts. During this practice one could observe the use of other weapons such as tanjo, jutte and kusarigama. Nishioka Sensei was observing at every moment and was always ready to demonstrate and give direction for all of the technical doubts that came up during the course of practice. Sensei brings much enthusiasm to the practice and we can only marvel at the vitality he still possesses at 82 years of age.
Once back in the residence, we had some time to enjoy a well earned hot bath before dinner which was served at 6pm. On the first and last day we enjoyed a more informal buffet style meal (as welcome and farewell parties) which was well washed down with beer, sake, and other liquors that some participants had brought from their home towns. For the other nights we experienced more typical Japanese style dinners, also well washed down with beer, sake and other liquors! Initially alcohol was not to be allowed in the monk’s residence, but luckily the kamisama’s (Japanese deities) took pity on us and it was allowed just this one time… making any plans to do misogi (early morning cold water ritual) a remote possibility! One night after dinner was spent watching some old videos with demonstrations by Shimizu Sensei, and another night Nishioka Sensei explained to all of us his vision of the Sei Ryu Kai and encouraged questions and discussion about it. As you can imagine, such an exhaustive program left us all looking forward to the nights sleep, dreaming of all the day’s activities…
During the course of the gasshuku, there were a few mentionable events:
On the second day, David Dangerfield, Adrian Knight (both from Australia) and Vicente Borondo (Spain) received the traditional scroll of Shomokuroku from Nishioka Sensei.
On the Saturday afternoon examinations were held which resulted in the successful grading of one 3 kyu, a few shodans , and a 3 dan. Congratulations!
After the test the newly appointed Shomokuroku’s gave a demonstration of Gohon no Midare upon the request of a few participants (Gohon no Midare is the new kata set created by Shimizu Sensei). As Saturday was our second last day at Meiji Jingu, we were invited to view a video about the shrine’s history, and about the philosophy of Shinto itself. Then we were given a private demonstration of Kashima Shin Ryu by the director of the Shiseikan Dojo, Inaba Sensei. This was a very powerful demonstration which also included the use of live blades.
After the early morning session of the final day, participants had breakfast before commuting across to the Bunbukan Dojo for the celebration of it’s 25th anniversary. Suezawa Sensei conducted the ceremonies, which included demonstrations of aikido, iaido and jodo. For the jodo demonstration, Nishioka Sensei led the aikido kids through the suburi of honte, gyakute and hikiotoshi uchi.
Following this the participants of the gasshuku, and the regular dojo members in Tokyo , all had the opportunity to demonstrate a kata with Nishioka Sensei as Uchidachi. After all the demonstrations, the tables were brought out (for a total numbering somewhere in the range of 100 people, in that small space!) and the customary “kampai” began a most enjoyable afternoon of eating, drinking and speeches.
Nishioka Sensei would like to express his thanks to all participants and organisers for such a successful gasshuku. We hope to see everyone again next year for Sei Ryu Kai’s 3rd annual gasshuku.
