Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu

Though the arts themselves are much older, the Bujinkan began in the late 1960s when Hatsumi sensei created the organisation to teach the 9 traditions he inherited from his own teacher, Takamatsu sensei.

These arts are fighting styles of Japan's famous samurai and ninja and have been handed down from teacher to student for 900 years.

Each has it's own skills and it's own curriculum but at the same time they are not entirely seperate, sharing connected principles and histories, and having been taught and practised together for generations.

Depending on the region and period of history there are many names for the fighting arts of Japan. Taijustu literally means body skill or body technique and is another name for what might commonly be called traditional jujutsu.

In practical terms training includes,

• Junan taiso - exercises for a healthy, flexible and capable body
• Ukemi and taihenjutsu - techniques of adapting the body such as falling safely and receiving and avoiding attacks
• Kosshijutsu - methods of attacking and protecting weaker parts of the body
• Koppojutsu - using skeletal structure to care for ourselves and disrupt an opponent
• Jutaijutsu - ways of pinning, throwing and locking as well as escaping such holds

Taijutsu is inseperable from classical weapons training which helps teach movement, timing, precision and adapting to use whatever may be at hand. Most commonly we practise,

• Bo - staff techniques including bo (6ft), jo (4ft) and hanbo (3ft)
• Ken - sword techniques for long and short sword including iai (drawing), cutting and swordsmanship

Other taught weapons include yari (spear), shuriken (thrown weapons) and nawa (rope).