Sogobujutsu: Psychology, Philosophy, Tradition

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1 Sogobujutsu The Forging of a Martial Science

The Warrior Science of our Ryu

Menkyo vs. Dan How our curriculum took shape

Sogobujutsu No Kyoka Our Curriculum from Mukyu to Shodan

Sogobujutsu Outlined

Godai No Heiho

Setting standards

Buhei Combative Concepts

Chapter 2 Neji Gekken Ryu The birth of our martial arts family

Neji Gekken Ryu Mon Our Family Crest

Neji Gekken Ryu Model of Operations

Chapter 3 Godaishin Dojo Our martial home

Our Dojo Patch

The Velcro on our patch

Common Dojo Phrases and Commands

Attire for Our Dojo

Titles and Positions

Our Dojo Kun The Oath of our Martial Home

Our Dojo Kiyaku General Rules of our Martial Home

Reigi Saho Methods of Proper Dojo Etiquette and Discipline

Important Kanji Dojo to Ryu to Budo Kanji Important Translation of Japanese Calligraphy

Chapter 4 Warrior Ideology Rank and brotherhood

Building Leaders in our Ryu

Service The foundation of Samurai nobility

Meek but not weak

Honorific Titles

The Martial Arts Experience

Inspirational Sayings

The Jihi Bujutsu Kai

Chapter 5 Historical Influences Our historical origins

Takagishin Ryu Lineage This is our connection to the Tagakishin Ryu

Kukishin Ryu Lineage This is our connection to the Kukishin Ryu

Daito Ryu Lineage This is Our Connection to the Daito Ryu

Takenouchi Ryu Lineage This is our connection to the Takenouchi Ryu

Phoenix Ninpo Ryu Lineage This is our connection to the Phoenix Ninpo Ryu

Nagano Ryu Lineage This is our connection to the Nagano Ryu

Chapter 6 The Nine Principles of our Ryu Fuhengenri No Neji Gekken Ryu

Aiirenai The principle of Conflict

Arinomama Truth, Devotion to the truth

Baransu Balance, Maintain Balance, Control the center

Bonsatsu Temple, The Body is the Temple

Chuugi Loyalty, Loyalty to the Ryu

Guuzen Chance, Leave nothing to chance

Kakureru Disappear, Do not be seen

Kankyou Environment, Utilize the environment or the circumstance

Yunifai Unification; Unify body, mind and spirit

Closing Statement

Glossary

Falcaro Sensei’s 2006 Interview Interviewed by his Sensei, Edward J. Smith Sensei

About the author

I loved my journey into the warrior science of

Sogobujutsu Integrated warrior science. To share in that

journey with you is to know a kind and loving God. I am

grateful and thankful.

When I was a little boy who had trouble learning to read and write. I was broken of all confidence. I was labeled and called learning disabled, dumb, slow, and lazy. I was made an example of, punished in front of the class for not keeping up with the others, and outcasted; no teacher had time for me. Finally, someone came along who changed my life, a very special teacher, Sue Vanic. She took me under her wing and spent time getting me to smile. She found out how to reach me and then spent years teaching me the distinct way I learned.

Completing my book, and thinking through my progress, I came to think of that little boy. The kid who, in a million years, would never believe he could read and understand a book such as this, never mind be the author of one. I thought of how a few had the job before you, Ms. Vanic, but you were my first teacher.

I am an author because of you and I am so grateful.

Dedication

I dedicate this work to all of my Kyu Martial arts student and Dan Black belt. It is for my family, for my friends, for my brothers within this Ryu Martial arts family tradition, and for me that I train in Kobudo Classically derived martial arts. It is for all of you that I strive to bring about the true essence that was passed to me. I ask that you embody theseteachings, personify Sogobujutsu Integrated warrior science, and add all that you can to the already strong Ryu Martial arts family tradition that is our Martial Family and become a strong link in an already strong chain. To the students now beginning with the Godaishin Dojo Spirit of the five elements martial arts school, I hope that thiswork will help to impress what an important thing it is to become a part of the Neji Gekken Ryu Martial arts family of the spiraling combative edge. The education one receives is unmatched; beyond this, the experiences felt and encountered are unlike anything else. It is commonly said that the most precious commodity we possess is time and knowing this to be true, I urge you to enjoy your time with us. Appreciate each class; take in the experience of being a whitebelt, the awkwardness, the feeling of sometimes being overwhelmed with information. You don’t want to miss out on what you are seeing and feeling now by looking too much toward the future. You are only a whitebelt in our art once; enjoy each step of the way, grabbing hold of as much as you can along the way.

To my senior students:

It is time to take the reins. I have prepped you to

become leaders, so lead. All of these teachings of

Sogobujutsu Integrated warrior science enriched my life as

they are now enriching yours. Remember to not be selfish.

Do not rob the future Bugei Warrior of their destiny; do not allow this art to die with you. It will be tempting at times to dumb things down, and not pass on everything you were taught. You must let it flow freely through you as it flows through me. Try not to give too much too soon. Give thegifts as they were given to you. Do not ever betray our beloved traditions. Keep them whole and strong. Lead and pass on the qualities of leadership. As you teach, take this advice with you: Lead from your Hara Bodies center of intuition and motion and love your students. I have loved and do love all of you; do not teach those incapable of sharing love. They may be good students, but would be undeserving of this beautiful and powerful, yet destructive, art. Please allow this book to stand throughout time. It is meant to inspire, explain, enrich, and help in governing our Ryu Martial arts family tradition.

2009 The beginning of my son’s training. Liam David Takeda Falcaro and David C. Falcaro Sensei.

Acknowledgments

To my family, to my beautiful and intelligent wife, who

provides me with love, understanding, support and daily

lessons in humility. I am honored to share my life with such

a wonderful person.

To my son and daughter, this is your legacy. Follow the

path, live Sogobujutsu. Let my advanced be your basics.

Remember that there is no greater love in this world than that

of family. Always be there for each other; this art will help

you with that.

To my Gram, you are the glue that binds this family together.

Your wisdom impresses me. You are the single greatest

cook on Earth. You are so many things to all of us and I love

you for all that you are.

To my stepfather, your strong part in our family has always

brought me solace. Thank you for your backing and love.

To my brother, Mike, when I was a little boy, I prayed and

prayed to God for a little brother. I now pray that I am

worthy of such a gift.

To my sister, Jen, everyone loves you, but very few people

know you at your core. To know that person is to be truly

blessed. You are wonderful, Jenny.

To my mother, there is too much to thank you for. I could

write a book entitled More than what a mother should be

and it would not do you justice. Saying thank you is a

gross understatement.

To my father, an insightful teacher of life. You never put

limits on where and how I could dream. You taught me how

to build my dreams, no matter how big or small, you have

helped them become tangible. You have given years of your

work, a dedication to me of countless hours; the Hombu

Dojo Headquarters of all of the martial arts schools within

the Ryu could not exist without you. Your spiritual guidance

is unmatched.

To my first success, Jacob B. Fouts Sensei Instructor, You

know how I think and I have told you many times how I feel,

so that everyone else knows, "If this Bugei Warrior is your

Sensei, consider yourself blessed by the heavens".

To my senior Kyu, all of you will be remarkable teachers.

The well you draw from is deep, delve into its depths. Stay

in the HA The second state of martial development as long as

you can; be forced into RE The third state of martial

development.

To the Neji Gekken Ryu Martial arts family of the spiraling

combative edge, don’t just read this book, employ it and

embody its teachings and try to learn more than your Sensei

can teach you.

To the Sensei, you are never done learning, nor am I, let us

continue together.

2007 Taken during a class on Kata Garuma. I am teaching with Fuku Jeremy Hochrine.

To the future of our Ryu, appreciate your foundation. You

stand in line with truly great men. My favorite saying of

Tanemura Katsumi Sensei’s is "If I am in fact this great

master, it’s for one reason, I have had the honor and privilege

of standing on the shoulders of giants".

To my second success, Eric P. Fichter Sensei, My goal has

been to make you a great Bugei Warrior, I am happy to have

succeeded. Your impressive dedication breathes life into the

art. You are an example of the strength of this Ryu.

2011 Taken at our annual Ryugi A concept meaning wearing the

brotherhood and respectful aspects of the martial family like a

uniform celebration. These are many of my advanced Students.

To Tia, thank you for your efforts and dedication to the

success of our Ryu.

To one of my first teachers Stan Triplett, who began my

studies into Nihon Bujutsu Japanese derived warrior arts.

You inspired me in more ways than you wanted to. I

appreciate you. Thank you for you efforts.

And to my Sensei, Edward J. Smith, who provided me

with my struggle, and married me to a lifestyle. You stand as the

most impressive Martial Artist I have ever seen. You are the

inspiration to never stop learning and growing. I hope to

make you proud.

Preface

There is a lot of information that has the potential of taking up class time on the mat. Every student, in my view, mustpossess this knowledge. At the very least, have access to it. After a class of lecturing, I am leftwondering how much of what I have just said I will have to repeat. The thought of a textbook for the study of Sogobujutsu Integrated warrior science was an image I could not escape. I found myself often daydreaming about itscontent. I got to the point of writing little notes for myself throughout the day on topics I wanted covered. I became a bit obsessive for a while there, trying to cover every possible avenue and answer every question before it could be asked. I wanted something tangible. A mental foundation in ourhistory, psychology and philosophy that I could convey verbally did not seem to be enough anymore. It was too time consuming and a strain mentally to remember how much or how little information each student received.

It became apparent that I could reach the world with a A peek at my old notebook, I have taken notes since 1990 textbook and this work could stand for generations. It consumed much of my time but it had to be as in-depth and complete as I could make it. The art deserved representation and I desired documentation. Cognizant that so many books have been written about other forms of martial arts and yet nothing so far has broached the topic of Sogobujutsu, I realized that it was time for me to make every attempt to honor the art I am so honored to possess.

Introduction

In this text, we delve into what is behind the warrior art of Sogobujutsu Integrated warrior science, taking a deep lookinto its roots and rich history. It establishes a clear view ofthe basis from which the art of Sogobujutsu was derived. This text attempts to present a full and concise picture of thevast range of study that Sogobujutsu encompasses. This isexplained through an in-depth outline of the warrior arts andtheir sub-arts. Also, I have given a unique explanation of the 9 principleconceptsof mymartialfamily. Ispent timewritingaboutcodes ofconductthat arefound in atraditional Dojo Martialarts schoolsetting. This textreveals alevel of importance behind warrior mindset and traditions never before explained in a book.

Furthermore, the book explores different aspects often overlooked and perhaps never covered in the martial arts. Many martial artists openly claim to "live the life of Budo Martial arts’’ or Bujutsu Warrior arts. When asked what that means to them, they often lack the education to match their desired commitment to living the martial way. The information uncovered in this book will inspire, while impressing you with a sense of the scope of the warriors’ philosophies of life. Readers are provided a personal look into our Martial family, our home, and our art to share how we interpret these truths that were passed to us and how we gladly keep these traditions alive today. I have been very open about myself, sharing many photos and details of my training to convey the truth about my credentials.

Over ten years ago I started on a quest to write down everything a student would need that may not be covered in a regular class. After over a decade of adding to my work, only now do I feel confident that I am done. Having birthed this text out of a lifetime of labored experiences, I am providing what I know to be invaluable information.

I am honored that you have chosen this book to further your knowledge of Budo Martial arts. My hope is that it inspires you to get everything you want out of martial arts. After you have read it over a few times, if you feel a calling to this martial art and its teachings, please feel free to contact me directly in order to get involved.

Chapter 1

Sogobujutsu

The Forging of a Martial Science

Sogobujutsu is a modern term for what has been birthed from hundreds of years of martial history. Forged in battle during Japan’s feudal age, it is considered the birthplace from which all Japanese martial arts sprang. Sogobujutsu presents itself as the total view of all Warrior Sciences. There are no areas untouched or not covered. I understand this is quite a statement. If we come to understand its origins, only then will we be able to see how this comprehensive study came to be. The warriors of old were motivated by fear of death, dishonor, honor, life, family and many pressing outside influences. This constant pressure forced them to develop and hone their science of war. They were educated from childhood to become warriors. They were learned men who could read and write and they documented their triumphs and their struggles. Through centuries of trial and error, this science was birthed out of the victories in war. Sogobujutsu was documented in Densho scrolls and altered towardrefinement by each surviving generation. Every warring Gumi samurai clan developed Sogobujutsu during the manyhundreds of years of Japan’s feudal age. During this time period,warriors were given a stipend. Their entire lives were dedicated to the study and practice of war. The surviving Bugei warriors of their Gumi instructed Bugei throughout their lives. Bugei learned little outside of every known way to kill and how to survive against the same. They learned not just to survive, but to prevent, reverse, counter and recover from a seasoned battleground tested warrior’s attack. These Bugei were taught to face multiple attackers at once. The use of another’s force was a necessity because an attack from Samurai noble warriors could most often not be stopped. A Bugei did not wait his turn, they all attacked at once. This was how most of the art was forged, out of the necessity to cope with the effective and advanced skills of the opposing warriors. It was an arms race that lasted over a thousand years. Fueled by a governmental and social set caste system, a national budget geared toward maintaining civil war,seemingly endless multi-generational family feuds, every preceding generation’s documented knowledge of success and how to triumph in combat, and by countless human lives. Any method that did not work died with the men who attempted it. This stands as the most extreme Darwinist approach to the development of a science ever. No other study in human history comes close. The result is a proven true science of war, Sogobujutsu.

The Warrior Science of our Ryu

The martial art form that we practice is derived from many sources. We use the term Sogobujutsu as an umbrella term to encompass all of the old Japanese warrior arts. If we look at the Kanji Japanese characters that make up the term Sogobujutsu, we see the depth of its meaning. The Kanji for So Go Image668.PNG translates to: the amalgamation of many into one, total, integrated, consolidated, brought together, and comprehensive. It is Japanese for E-pluribus Unum. The meaning behind the Kanji for Bu Image676.PNG translates to: war, military, warrior, weapons, and chivalry. The Kanji for jutsu Image683.PNG means: skills, science, art form, and technology. Simply put, Sogobujutsu can be translated as the integration of all warrior sciences.

For us, this integration is depicted inside of every Waza technique; the same motion we use in cutting with a sword or knife is the same motion we use to strike with our hands and arms as well as in throwing a person. For instance, any single Waza, can be used with a Tanto knife, Hanbo 3ft staff, Kobo 2ft staff, Tanbo 9in. stick, Kama sickle, Kusari Fundo weighted chain, as well as empty handed.

This ideology was developed over many centuries for the purpose of efficient and effective movement. The Bugei warrior learns principles that are unified for the purpose of governing all actions; every movement in his/her life is fashioned in accordance with this way. We refer to this as proper movement. And by this, I am only referring to the developed pinnacle of martial form.

Why learn multiple martial arts forms? Many martial arts have a different form for each weapon. In my opinion, this would be a difficult study; it would prove to be even more difficult when attempting to recall the appropriate form for each given weapon in the middle of combat. Instead, Sogobujutsu teaches one efficient and effective movement developed to maximize power and minimize the use of effort.

Bukijutsu the weaponry arts, Jujutsu the Samurai derived art of hand to hand combat, Aikijujutsu the higher order of Jujutsu, as well as Ninjutsu the art of the Ninja, to most people are considered different entities, to us they are merely pieces from the same pie.

Our art includes hundreds of weapons, throws, joint-locks, chokes, many different kicks and punches, hundreds of pressure and nerve points, and also muscle attacks and bone breaks. In addition to all of these teachings (and more) there are Hanka variation techniques, and these are almost limitless. Without the common principles that are used to tie the art together, one would get lost in technique. The practitioner would spend their training time on collecting Ho methods, Waza technique, and Gata forms. It would take decades just to get a working understanding of all of the older Japanese derived martial forms. When training Bujutsu warrior arts and holding the unifying principles of Sogo integration in constant mind during training, one quickly notices the inherent synchronistic proper movement that occurs within each technique—this is the basis behind our art. When proper movement (empowered by principles) becomes the focus in training, no longer is the warrior practitioner training one thing at a time. Instead, for every one Waza technique the practitioner trains, he/she is invariably training a larger body of the martial art’s teachings.

Menkyo vs. Dan

How our curriculum took shape

The first system of codifying warrior arts is now referred to as the Menkyo teachers certification system. The Menkyo system is made up of levels of knowledge transcribed in books and scrolls. Each Ryu martial tradition has their own order of scrolls. The names and documents differ greatly from tradition to tradition. In the Tagakishin Ryu, the different Ryu traditions were added to the same Densho scrolls and kept in separated sections. For instance, the Daito Ryu transmissions were a section called Takeda No Maki the scroll of the Takeda family. The transmissions of the Yoshin Ryu were marked on the Densho as Yoshin No Kata the forms of the Yoshin family. This is the order and names of Densho that are transmitted from the Tagakishin Ryu: Okueri, Hiden, Mokuroku, Hiden Mokuroku, Menkyo, Kaiden, Menkyo Kaiden. These were the main levels of the syllabus but they do not include all of the teachings. There were secondary scrolls transmitted to me. These were separate weapon arts and fields of study covered in other non-required Densho. I strived to learn them all.

By the time I was learning under my Sensei, Akahisa Tanemura Sensei, I had eight years of prior experience in the martial arts. This experience helped me greatly in understanding and absorbing the information in the Tagakishin Ryu syllabus. As I started, it was exciting to work toward the attainment of scrolls. This feeling faded away after years of struggle. By the time I attained my first Densho scrolls, the desire to have them was lost. This might sound strange but the journey was so long and difficult thatby the time I received it, my mind was focused on the next material. After you have an understanding of the material, having it in a scroll is nice but not very helpful.

With years set between each scroll and no achievement of any sort of ranking that came with it, it was difficult to relate to the Gendai Budoka modern martial artist. Twelve years into martial arts and four years into training under my Sensei, I had a fun conversation. Pushed to converse with a fellow Budoka during a party with friends, I gained new perspective. He described how good he was at Karate, having attained his Shodan black belt in just under two years. He, in turn, asked my rank. I began to describe all I had learned, the many fields of in-depth study, and the knowledge attained. I was interrupted with the same question, Yeah, but what rank are you? I went back to explaining how long I was training for and how hard the training was. He responded, Look, what color belt do you wear on your uniform? I answered that I wore a white belt. He quickly replied, What? You suck! Twelve years and you are still a white belt? God, you suck! As he laughed and walked away from me, the experience inspired me. At first, the inspiration brought me to appreciate humility. After a little while though, I got the feeling that the lesson was not just a good shot to the ego. The feeling became an idea. I thought if it were ever my turn to lead, I would transmit this wealth of knowledge differently. As I continued through my training, the concept grew. I thought about how much further I would be if I had learned this piece back then as it directly relates to something taught years ago. And I questioned why this knowledge was not all systematically grouped together. It became the subtext to my note taking during, between and after classes.

The Dan rank level system presented a new platform for organizing and conveying Bujutsu warrior arts. No longer would I separate knowledge into the groups named after the places where they were derived from. Instead, I would break up the entirety of the study into its parts and subparts. Then, I categorized everything into its logical place; integrating each warrior tradition together. Where different Bujutsu were taught, now Sogobujutsu was birthed. For instance, every kick from every Ryu martial tradition makes up our Keri Waza group of kicking techniques, and every entanglement from every Ryu now makes up our Karamae Waza group of entanglement techniques. I integrated every lesson from every source into one study. What I was left with was a huge amalgamation of parts. So, to simplify for the means of convenience, I split each part into three groups. The three groups for each part are Okuden hidden advancedtransmissions, Chuden intermediate transmissions and Kihonfundamentals. This was an easy thing to do because this material was most often originally organized this way in the Densho scrolls. Even after the division, each part was quite extensive, fifty Kihon Gatamae Waza basic limb locks, one hundred and fifty Kihon Nage Waza basic throwing techniques, thirty-seven Kihon Ate Waza basic upper body striking techniques, forty Kihon Shime Waza basic strangulation techniques and so on. When I laid it all out in front of me, it was a huge, organized mess.

Then, through reviewing the notes I took as I learned, remembering the journey and thinking in terms of logical progression, I started to outline a Kyoka curriculum. The inspiration was to have a commonsensical succession to the order of things taught so that each teaching would expound on the last learned. The Dan system provides twenty ranks. Ten of these ranks are Kyu student ranks and ten are Dan graduate student ranks. For much of Budo martial arts, many of the Kyu stages are not used; many martial forms only use seven or less stages of Kyu. I thought about how Gendai Budo modern martial forms package all of their teachings into seventeen ranks. I would need to use all twenty ranks to get it all in; truly, I thought I would need nine times more than that. That much material,