Martial Arts and Culture; writing by Mark Raugas
Writing and Research
The Inner Dharma writing project began in 2006 and has evolved substantially as my training interests have shifted over time. The photo gallery preserves some content drawn from event updates (annual gatherings, memorial demonstrations, seminars, and pilgrimages) from 2004 to 2026. I want to thank all those who provided feedback and encouragement over the last twenty years.
Links to some of the work that resulted from this project can be found below:
- From the Kōbusho to the Butokukai (opens in a new tab): The late Edo period Kōbusho that many famous Jikishinkage-ryū swordsmen were attached to, its teachers, the arts they practiced, and subsequent institutions. Inner Dharma, June 2026
- An Overview of Wú Tàijíquán Practice: Tàijíquán, along with Xíngyìquán and Bāguàzhǎng, forms the core of the internal martial arts, distinguished by their grounding in Daoist philosophy and Nèigōng practices. April 2026
- The Truth of the Calm Spirit (opens in a new tab): Research on Jikishinkage-ryū kenjutsu, including its early history, curriculum, and its philosophical content drawn from available Japanese language scholarship and library holdings. Inner Dharma, December 2025
- Divergence and Unification in Shinkage-ryū (opens in a new tab): An essay on kata, heihō and shugyō, comparing and contrasting different surviving lines of Shinkage-ryū, with reflections on my own practice. Kogen Budo, September 2024
- General Qi Jiguang’s Jixiao Xinshu and Reflections on Claims of Martial Virtue (opens in a new tab): A look at some older writings from Japanese koryū that reference classical Chinese military treatises, and how the practices described in those works may be represented in arts surviving today. Kogen Budo, February 2023
Please visit jikishinkageryu.org (opens in a new tab) for additional content on Kashima-shinden Jiki Shinkage-ryū kenjutsu. I continue my training in the Pacific Northwest.
Mark Raugas
Seattle, WA
