It might be June already, but this year really started off it's momentum by a fantastic seminar in New Jersey with Jack Hoban and Pedro Fleitas Gonzalez back in January. It was a very high energy seminar with lots of guests and both the Shihan instructors took us through the Kihon Happo over a whole day. The interesting thing is that they are both different in their backgrounds, training experiences and to a certain extent the visible form, however there is something that they share in the way they move and their life philosophies. It really made me realize that whatever Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu is, it is not something on the surface level, it is not just about one person either, but a collective force that permeates throughout the organization at all levels and appears in many forms through its experienced practitioners depending on the circumstances.
It was only my second time to train in a class by Mr Gonzalez, previously I had an opportunity to attend his class during a Daikomyosai in Hombu Dojo Japan. I was at that time extremely impressed by his knowledge and skill and really hoped I would get another chance to learn from him. I was even more impressed this time. As a person he is notably polite and curtious, he also brings a feeling of intensity in his training. However, although serious when needed, he was often smiling and had a very warm humor about him during the seminar. I experienced some of his technique first hand and, apart from being a bit scary, just like many high level teachers you get this strange feeling, something familiar yet also hard to comprehend, it inspires your curiosity to really keep going and train harder.
During the training we would see some familiar techniques, and both teachers would demonstrate their own particular method of teaching it, or how they were shown the basic version. I found it interesting how depending on when people started training, when they went to Japan and who they trained with their 'basic' might be slightly different. Even more interesting was how they were all valid techniques and how the principles behind why the techniques work is more important than the actual techniques themselves.
During the training I sometimes felt that I did a good job of doing the technique as shown by both instructors. This really didn't happen very often but it did encourage me. Sometimes predictably I found it easier to do the technique the way my regular teacher demonstrated it. In this case I noted that maybe I should try a little more henka for that particular kihon and take a more open approach. However, what really took me by surprise was how some of Sensei Gonzalez techniques felt so natural to me and I struggled with the usual way, which, I thought was great just one week before. I thought about this in the days following the seminar and I realized that sometimes bad kihon is camouflaged amongst my own view of training. I thought my technique was quite good, but then someone brings a contrast to the equation. The bad kihon is unable to hide any longer, no longer camouflaged. This was great because not only did I realize a new way of doing things, but I was also forced to re-evaluate what I thought I was being shown in regular training. As the weeks went by after the seminar I started to get more out of my classes with Jack because I was paying more attention.
Of course there was also the times when I just didn't feel right doing the Kihon that anybody was showing me. But that is why I was attending the seminar and not teaching it. There is always more.
