Central Coast Iaido

We here, are crippled with grief at the loss of our dear friend, student and teacher, Andrew Hudson. Andrew spent many years with us at the dojo, and for that I... am grateful. One of the most hardworking young men I’ve ever known, always learning, always willing to help and always striving to be better than yesterday. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends in the days ahead. Please know how much we loved Andrew and how deeply saddened we are by his passing. Robin Ramirez Long Sensei has a gift that many of us aspire to, thank you Sensei for the following words, as they are echoed by all in this family. As I write this my heart once again is overcome by the burden of loss. Our lives are touched by those people who choose to accompany us on this marvelous journey we travel. We welcome and rejoice with the people who step upon the path and share their uniqueness and gifts with us. Be they young, old or just old souls in youthful bodies, they choose to allow us to celebrate their lives as we grow together. Countless souls come and go through the doors of our collective dojo. Each leaves a footprint on our mat and on our hearts. Many of us have been together for decades and have become family. I venture to believe that our bonds are much more than others can ever conceive. Our dojo relationships transcend mere friendships. We share our deepest fears, desires, dreams, accomplishments, tears and trust in one another. We develop familial relationships. So it is only natural that we enjoy the greatest gift of being human...love for one another. It is the human condition to seek to be loved. It is the natural order for us to love more deeply those who contribute so much to our happiness. This is both the gift and the curse of our hearts. The more deeply we love, the more agonizing it is when we lose the ones we cherish. Our dojo has always been a home to our hearts and our children, our friends, our eventual beloved budo partners. We always mourn the end of one of our training partners Budo career. When a friend leaves the training floor due to outside influences we mourn our loss. But when we lose a kind and generous soul through physical disease or accidental or emotional distress, when a life ends prematurely, we lose an unretrievable part of ourselves. Throughout the years our hearts have been torn as our fellow partners have fallen ill and passed. But for me, as I once again struggle with the loss of another one of our sweet young souls to emotional turmoil I am crushed. Our collective dojo, our close knit organization has been touched so many times by our friends and family who have made the choice to take themselves out of our lives and this world. We naturally grieve our loss and question our vision and our hearts. We search for the answer to what we didn’t do right or didn’t say or didn’t see. We strive to sooth the pain in our hearts through logic in an attempt to avoid it ever happening again. But it happens again... I make this request from the deepest and most sincere part of my being. If any one of you ever feels the need to talk, to vent, to discuss your fears or frustrations, reach out to your family and dojo colleagues. We will listen. We will lend support. We will be here. Our lives are riddled with struggles and challenges that at times overwhelm us. But there is always a solution to be found and someone who wants to help. There is little I can do for those who have passed on. But there is much I can try for anyone who believes they must attempt to suffer in silence. We’re here for the ones who we love. Great loss is the end result of great love. I will never trade the love I have known in order to avoid the pain of eventual sorrow and loss. We are here for you. Carl Long

Leadership - A Gift, a Burden, an Honor Leadership, organizational acumen, vision is sometimes a natural talent and sometimes an acquired skill. It is sometimes... elusive and all too often absent in even the most well intentioned. It is also the one thing that almost every budoka will eventually be expected to embody if they continue to pursue this martial path. Leading others on the honorable path by ones example is certainly a challenge. It is a challenge because we are all struggling to conquer our own individual demons while bearing the weight of others’ welfare. An effective leader must have the necessary communication skills, sensitivity to the needs of the many as well as the few, a clear vision of the mission goals and the ability to facilitate the action plan to achieve it. Many of us come prepared and equipped with one or more of the traits needed for effective leadership. Those that we lack are either taught to us by trial and error or a keen mentor. Failure to embody any of the above diminishes ones ability to serve the mission and the group one leads successfully. My personal shortcomings are the greatest struggle I have faced in the past seven years of KNBK leadership. I have struggled with my personal sympathy/empathy for others and what I sometimes know is antithetical to the KNBK group as a whole. I have had to make decisions that at times has burdened me because I know that those decisions would be unpopular to a few. The few that I care about as much as I do the majority. I have attempted to maintain a steady hand on the wheel as we navigate through obstacles and victories. My constant companion during all these years is the haunting voice that speaks to me at the end of every day, reminding me of the effect those decisions have on our members, our budo and those who will be the next generation to carry the light. Oftentimes I find myself torn between what I know is right and what I know will be acceptable to the squeaky wheels in the organization. The lessons learned often being that even when I’ve conceded to the approval of the disgruntled, they are eventually dissatisfied with the mission and well-being of the group. Their departure being only temporarily delayed by an acquiescence to their immediate concerns. However, the one thing I have never balked at is the distinction between our KNBK budo mission and standards versus the wishes/argument for comfort or conformity to mediocrity or worse. Maintaining standards of technical skills, furthering our knowledge base, gaining deeper insights into our Koryu and creating an educational journey for our present and future students remains as my primary objective. I strive to implement this plan of action with the needs of the many AND the needs of the few at the forefront of my decision making process. But ultimately the objective is to provide the leadership necessary to provide a stable and legitimate platform for the next generation of leaders to launch confidently into the future. I have been gifted/burdened/honored to captain this vessel by karma, by tragedy and by choice. I am allowed to lead by those who have been and will be willing to trust in my instincts, technical abilities and hopefully my vision and commitment to a solid belief in standards and our students potential to rise above the expectations of the average bar set by the masses. Leadership is ultimately believing in our better nature and accepting that many need the help and encouragement to acquire the courage necessary to live a higher life condition than we often imagine for ourselves.

Old Traditional Budo Structure - It's not for everyoneIt's not meant to be. Many inquiries come into the office each year requesting information about our orga...nization and the styles of budo we practice. I can usually predict rather early on in the communications whether our ‘koryu’ (old style lineage) studies would be a good fit for someone. I have had to decline membership to some very good friends and budoka I admire. These fine men and women were interested in being able to spend more time together and we have found other ways to further our budo friendships. So, allow me a moment to explain what just a few of the differences are that you might expect when asking to join this koryu. To begin, it’s difficult to educate people on the differences between koryu and sport oriented martial arts organizations. It’s even more difficult to educate those people if they have already become accustomed or affiliated to a more modern organization and attempt to apply the politics of that type of culture in a koryu. Unlike the huge federations whose primary emphasis is on recruiting, regulating and hosting training events for the masses, koryu are focused on allowing accepted members to show up and fit into the group. And...you’ll be expected to start trying to fit in immediately. The ryu’s role is in fitting the individual into the way the ryu moves, thinks, acts, performs. When you join, you get in line in the order you were accepted into the group. There are no shortcuts. The size of your dojo, the rank you were in another martial art, style or federation means little to nothing. Either you wish to join this particular ancient cultural group, or you don’t. The main focus of a koryu is the specific martial traditions it embodies. The personified embodiment of the art is the SoShihan , Soke, Shihan-Ke, Menkyo Kaiden or other designated steward of the ryu. The expectation for you is to adapt to the koryu way of doing things or leave. Unlike a budo federation or club atmosphere there’s no Committee or elected officials voting on what they think is best for their budo or worse; agreeing on some ridiculous approach to the budo technique only because numerous styles are represented as members and they cannot come to a common consensus on actual good technique without offending someone. Then all agree on something that resembles a unicorn designed by a committee. The hierarchy of a koryu is determined by the blood, sweat and time you’ve given to the training and your assimilation of the direct transmissions of the ryu. Your job is to show up and work hard. The most challenging part for most people is showing up. If your budo is founded in a modern association (kai) or federation (renmei) type of culture you’re likely to have a difficult road forward in a koryu if you don’t rewire the way you think. Once upon a time, early on in our relationship, I asked my teacher, Shimabukuro sensei, how he felt about our group getting larger. His reply was he didn’t care at all one way or another. As long as there was at least one person to take his place. The rest was up to whoever wanted to follow his designated successor and his teachings. On his deathbed he asked me to help our students after he had passed. He asked that I help whoever I could help within or outside our group in the future. I told him I would try but I couldn’t teach the students if they didn’t want to learn from me. He smiled in knowing agreement, nodded his head and that was the promise I have kept. Today there are many that are no longer walking the path my teachers spent a lifetime walking. Perhaps the most poignant moment that illustrated to me the role we each play in a koryu occurred while living and training at Hombu dojo in Osaka, Japan. Once, after a hard weeknight training in Hombu Dojo, Miura Sensei decided it was time to go to a local restaurant. He made the announcement, put on his sport coat and started walking in his very dignified and prewar perfect posture out the door. The students quickly grabbed their gear and fell in line like little ducks all in a row. We followed him through the very dark streets of Neyagawa trying to keep up with him for approximately 3/4 of a mile until we finally reached the restaurant. The fact that Sensei was 80 years old at the time and never slowed down his gait for a single step was not what amazed me. The fact that from the time he made the announcement at the dojo to go until the time we got to the restaurant he never once turned around to see who was following him was truly astounding. He NEVER ONCE looked back over his shoulder to see. He simply didn’t care. He was leading and those who wanted to be a part would follow, Period, nothing else mattered. He knew we’d be there because that’s what was expected of us. In a Koryu that’s what’s expected. This is what many today have a hard time accepting. A koryu supports itself or it dies. If you’re a member of the ryu you have a place, a responsibility to the welfare of all. In a federation or modern sports club, often times the members show up as they wish, PAY for their spot in line or worse, weasel their way into a position of importance. It’s easy, its political, it doesn’t demand loyalty, trust or necessarily hard work or skills. Certainly, there are very good budo federations that do good work for their members and promote good budo. But... they are not koryu simply because they aren’t! A martial arts association or ‘Kai’ is a group of affiliated members and dojo of perhaps the same style but not necessarily. A budo federation ’Renmei’ is a group of affiliated dojo associations ‘kai’ that might have a common purpose and find strength in numbers. There’s a huge difference between a Koryu, a Kai and a Renmei. Not better, not worse............very different. If you are like the majority of westerners that love your independence and abhor conformity a koryu is probably not your best first choice. Decide which one you want to belong to, and which one will eventually want you!

The Tosa samurai resided in Kyoto while serving the emperor and Tokugawa shogunate. Their residence was known as Tosa House and was located near the Tosa shri...ne at Tosa-Inari (Misaki-jinja). The Tosa were fierce warriors who assisted in the Meiji Restoration. Their interactions with the famous Shinsengumi has been the inspiration for legendary stories. One of the most famous Tosa samurai was Ryoma Sakamoto who led a great rebellion to restore power to Emperor Meiji. One of his most noted accomplishments during this period was the negotiation of peace between Chsh (present day Yamaguchi Prefecture) and Satsuma (present day Kagoshima Prefecture), two powerful provinces that had long been hostile to each other. He then united them against the Bakufu, the government of the Tokugawa shgun. He was often hunted by the Bakufu supporters, such as members of the Shinsengumi. He was ultimately attacked and murdered before the Boshin War, along with his companion Nakaoka Shintar, at an inn in Kyoto. Our hotel in Kyoto will be near this famous Tosa shrine where Tosa Samurai offered prayers of protection and the site of the Tosa House of our Tosa Budo ancestors. If you’re interested we can take you there....

Ichi-Nen The Determination to Succeed The new year has arrived and this past years events begin to slowly fade into memories. It is a time to reflect bu...t not be chained to yesterday by our triumphs or our failures. Our never-ending optimism and hope fuels our determination to push forward as it replenishes our enthusiasm for our training and the anticipation of enjoying our amazing lives. We formulate a plan and allow ourselves expectations of a new life or at least a better life than we all had yesterday. This is the shared optimism of our mission of budo. As budoka, we have chosen the difficult path. We seek to attain the perfection of character while attempting to live our lives with politeness and solemn discipline. Our budo creed teaches us to honor a code of ethical behavior that allows us the tolerance and conviction to see the goodness in people and foreign things that others may not otherwise see, even in themselves. Our people are encouraged by their own admonition to strive to accomplish their goals and attain exceptional focus, skills and comprehension of high ideals through hard work, cooperation and effort. Our long history bestows upon us the knowledge that impetuous, rash and reactionary behavior brought on by fear, anger, and environmental control over our lives is destructive, harmful to others and ourselves. Each day is an exercise in not just training, but fighting the incessant voices from without and from within, that argue that the next difficult step or battle can be put off until another day. Those voices use our doubts, fears, exasperations and stumbles as signs of our weaknesses that we should accept rather than conquer. To all of those voices we must simply reply, I know who you are and recognize your face. Now go away! As budoka with such lofty set goals and ideals as these, that we chose to place upon ourselves, is it any wonder that we arrive at the end of each year with possible regret over our shortcomings? Is it unfair of us to expect more of ourselves than we were able to accomplish in the past year? Should we forsake the promises we make daily to ourselves and to our fellow dojo souls because we often fall short of such high expectations? We cannot allow our doubts, fears, disappointments, or unexpected obstacles to confuse us or deter us from our mission. Our goals have never changed. Our mission, to make a better world through the making of a better man, is as powerful and strong a fight today as it has ever been. Our youth and our elderly face challenges beyond the comprehension of those who came before us. Your struggle is very real. The struggle to be able to live a high life condition is very real. We are fortunate to have the tools and the companionship to fight together to create a better world! In every organization, every year, the faces change and new faces appear where individuals of our past quietly dissolve into memories and fond stories. People come and people go. This has been the truth of budo families from the beginning. The evolution and change of our leadership and membership is a natural order. Our continued existence as a budo that serves for the better good and as self-aware budoka has always been reliant upon adapting to this change. Today we have more people actively training than ever. Our KNBK organization, our budo family has matured beyond the frontiers once imagined. The majority of our budoka today never met let alone trained under the mastery of Shimabukuro, Miura, Narise or Masaoka. Yet, the budoka today maintain the spirit, technical skills and compassion bequeathed to them through their diligent efforts and continued hope for a better world beyond their own existence. AndIt is a better world because last year you tried. The good fight you fought this past year won a better place in the world for your family. Your battles against the human instinct to accept mediocrity over hard fought gains brought positive changes in you and those around you. Your battles both won and lost were milestones of triumph and self-sacrifice on behalf of higher ideals. The knowledge of your shortcomings and strengths should only increase your determination to overcome the next obstacle without fear of failure and then strengthen your convictions! We, the KNBK, are a vast array of people from many races and creeds. We are comprised of and represent many cultures, genders, races, religions, political affiliations and generations. Under the usual circumstances of our time our differences would far outweigh our ability to see eye to eye each day let alone over decades. It is our continued mission to create a better world through choosing this difficult path, the building of a better man in order to make a better world that unites us in brotherhood and strength beyond the self-centered, mundane tendencies of those around us. 2019 and all of the struggles we will encounter in it should be welcomed with open arms and a strong determination to win! We are here for the fight. It is why we signed up for the Budo tour of duty when others have taken the easy road. True budoka welcome the chance to confront the powerful and defend the powerless. 2019BRING IT ON!

The Official Kokusai Nippon Budo Kai Seminar Schedule for 2019. KNBK dojocho - Please confirm your seminar dates as soon as possible. 2019 Seminar Dates are becoming less available for the 2019 calendar year. Contact KNBK Hombu soon if you plan to host an event! [email protected]

Inspired by the recent post by our friends of Budo Cool, we share this amazing video featuring the Butokuden, considered one of the oldest martial art hall in Japan. For more info check www.budocool.com

Notice To KNBK Members Worldwide: The Dai Nippon Butoku Kai 2019 Membership fees have been sent to Japan. If you have not yet registered for 2019 you are now of...ficially late. All KNBK members attending the 2020 DNBK World Butoku Sai in Japan MUST be members of the DNBK this year 2019. if you have not yet renewed your membership or become a DNBK member contact KNBK Hombu immediately. _______________________________________________________________ In addition to the Kyoto Butokuden and Seiryuden, the video below is an example of one of the venues where we will visit and some members will be performing Honno enbu. https://www.isejingu.or.jp/en/about/index.html Ise Jingu, officially 'Jingu', includes 125 jinja(shinto shrine), centered around Kotaijingu(Naiku), dedicated to Amaterasu-Omikami, and Toyo'uke-daijingu(Geku), dedicated to Toyo'uke-no-Omikami. Its area is roughly the same size as Paris. More than 1,500 rituals are conducted here yearly to pray for the prosperity of the Imperial family, the peace of the world, and the huge harvest. History Amaterasu-Omikami was originally worshipped in the Imperial Palace by successive Emperors of Japan. However, during the reign of the 10th Emperor Sujin, the Holy Mirror (the symbol of Amaterasu-Omikami) was moved from the Imperial Palace. Then, during the reign of the 11th Emperor Suinin, the Emperor ordered his princess, Yamatohime-no-mikoto, to seek the most appropriate place to permanently enshrine and worship Amaterasu-Omikami. After searching in many regions, finally the princess received a revelation that Amaterasu-Omikami should be enshrined and worshipped eternally in Ise. It is approximately 2,000 years ago. In the era of the 21st Emperor Yuryaku, about 1,500 years ago, Toyo'uke-no-Omikami was, in accordance with another revelation from Amaterasu-Omikami, summoned from the north of Kyoto prefecture and enshrined in Ise. https://youtu.be/xIA_nOmRnuY

URGENT Message for KNBK Members: All KNBK members of Dai Nippon Butoku Kai : 2019 "Membership Renewals" must be received by Long Hanshi in Pennsylvania by Janua...ry 14th, 2019. Current members may renew their DNBK memberships on the KNBK DMS website under your individual record page or submit payment via PayPal to: [email protected]. Please make payments ASAP if you intend to renew your membership this year. After the January 14 deadline a $25 late fee is applied to all renewal memberships by DNBK. Please share this notice with other members of your dojo!!! Current "Non-Members of Dai Nippon Butoku Kai" attending the DNBK WBS 2020 in Japan must submit a new membership application with two passport sized photographs attached. New membership fees should be paid via PayPal to: [email protected]. Contact your dojo teacher or Hombu if you need a New Member application. Please send the New member application and photos to: Carl Long Sakura Budokan 390 Tioga Avenue Kingston, PA. 18704 USA Thank you all and have a safe and Happy New Year!

Make it your 'BEST SEASON' this year! Join us this fall and tour the USA in a Hakama! View upcoming events here:... http://www.knbk.org/calendar/

For more information regarding the Kokusai Nippon Budo Kai visit www.knbk.org

Today, June 19th 2018, marked the 6th year that has passed since the death of my teacher Miura Takeyuki Hidefusa, Hanshi, 10th dan Seito Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu... Iai Heiho. Sensei was the 20th soshihan of our MJER line of swordsmanship. I offer a prayer of peace for his eternal rest and offer him thanks for his lifelong dedication to the preservation of koryu budo. His life was an inspiration to others. His kindness was a gift to the world for generations to come. In Gassho...