Princeton Bagua and Taiji Seminar

At the end of August I traveled to Princeton, NJ to attend a seminar on Taiji Push Hands and the Bagua 18 Interceptions Dao form of Ma Gui; this is a form using the "Goose Feather" saber, which is a long one-handed saber that has a constant width, unlike the Ox Tail saber more commonly seen. While in Princeton, I became a formal lineal student of Zhang Yun in North American Yin Cheng Gong Fa.

Then I visited the Pacific Northwest. While on travel in Vancouver I was able to practice Xingyi and Taiji in my hotel room a bit, and do some yoga. In Portland, I visited Laurelhurst Park, where I found enough shade to practice Taiji and Bagua. I also visited my friends Mike Heiler and Troy Gehrett. Mike and Troy are now students of Takamura-ha Shindo Yoshin-ryu -- I was fortunate to be able to visit and watch a session at the private Murakumo Dojo of Doug Walker. I enjoyed seeing a traditional jujutsu style that preserved an associated kenjutsu practice. Very often in Japanese martial arts weapons and grappling have diverged so that one has to learn a separate style of grappling from field weapons — however, Shindo Yoshin-ryu is a wonderful late-Edo period exception. Its weapons practice is influenced by Matsuzaki Shinkage Ryu, which is a branch of Shinkage-ryū in the lineage of Ogasawara Genshin Nagaharu (Shin Shinkage Ryu) and Okuyama Kyugasai Kimishige (Okuyama Ryu).

For me, it was nice to see a Japanese martial art that used the same body mechanics for both jujutsu and kenjutsu.

The next day, I visited Troy's farm in Beavercreek, OR. There, Troy and Mike and I practiced sword arts taught in the Hobyokai. My focus at the Hobyokan has been JikiShinkage-ryū, while Mike has practiced Yagyu Shinkage Ryu for a number of years and is now learning Jiki as well. Mike has been teaching Yagyu Shinkage Ryu and I was able to join in a practice he was leading of the honden kata. I was also able provide Mike some practice and pointers on Jiki's Hojo and To No Kata.