Inner Dharma: Articles
Below are some longer form essays that were developed from shorter posts drawn from my Inner Dharma blog. I am happy some of these have been published elsewhere online:
-
Kiai is Not a Sound,
:
Reflections on my practice of kenjutsu and how it has evolved over time. How internal martial arts has changed my Shinkage-ryū and what riddles remain.
-
Divergence and Unification in Shinkage-ryū,
:
Comparing different surviving lines of Shinkage-ryū and examining the goals of swordsmanship from armored combatives and unarmored duelling to self-cultivation and beyond.
-
General Qi Jiguans's Jixiao Xinshu and Reflections on Claims of Martial Virtue,
:
Link to an essay examining some older writings from Japanese koryū that reference classical Chinese military treatises and how practices described in those works may be represented in arts surviving today. Examining the effect an important military classic from China has had on surviving Japanese martial traditions and how traditions describe themselves in relation to one another.
-
Gogyō Exegesis,
:
An essay describing my experience, thinking, and choices regarding attempting to practice multiple koryū and then deciding not to.
-
Aiki and Internal Training,
:
Collected thoughts on the historical influence of Chinese martial arts on Japanese jujutsu and how they relate to the topic of aiki in Aikido and Daito-ryu. What interested me about internal martial arts and how I have related that experience to my practice of Japanese budō.
-
NYC Aiki-jujutsu History,
:
A short essay collecting what I know of NYC area Aiki-jujutsu schools inspired by the teaching of Daito-ryu Kodokai, especially Yonezawa Katsumi.