Training with the Master: Lessons with Morihei Ueshiba, Founder of Aikido Review

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(More customer reviews)The book is basically a big collection of photos taken by Walther V. Krenner with John Stevens' "Art of Peace" included at the end.
Unlike other collection of photos of O Sensei, these are connected and are telling a story. Kinda like 'A day in the life of O sensei'.
The only thing I didn't like about it was John Stevens' way of describing O Sensei though Indian mysticism and Yoga.
I regard it as a very nice coffee table book and a very nice way to describe Aikido and O sensei to people.

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Through an extraordinary collection of photographs, Training with the Master depicts the training methods and daily life of Morihei Ueshiba, the Founder of the martial art known as Aikido, or "the way of harmony." The photographs presented here were all taken in 1967 when Morihei was eighty four—at the summit of his career as a spiritual seeker and when the flower of his teaching was in full bloom. Most of these photographs are being made available to students for the first time.The first part of the book, "On the Mat with the Master," is a detailed photographic record of Morihei instructing his students. These photographs offer a precious opportunity for readers to see what it would have been like to train with the Master himself. The photographs in part two, "The Master Teaches the Way," depict Morihei in everyday life—entering a room, sitting in a relaxed yet dignified manner, chatting easily and joking with students, making a serious point, taking refreshment—manifesting the Way of Harmony naturally in all his actions. Part three, "The Art of Peace," contains the essence of Morihei's philosophy distilled from his collected talks. Also included is a short biography of Morihei as well as a section of suggestions for further reading for those who wish to have more detailed information on Morihei's life and teaching.

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True Path of the Ninja: The Definitive Translation of the Shoninki Review

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(More customer reviews)it's good to have every version of translations of books like this, as some parts are open to interpretation. My first main complaint is that they inserted their footnotes into the text, rather than keeping them separate, which in turn no longer makes this a very "definitive" translation.
Second of all, Yoshie isn't very good at translating the latter parts once they get into deeper topics. Her translation is pretty dry and misses the essence of the original text. Personally, I prefer the other english version of the Shoninki available [with the black cover] but have this version also to double check things. If you're going to only get one version, get the other.

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True Path of the Ninja is the first authoritative translation in English of the Shoninki—the famous 17th century ninja training manual. Antony Cummins and Yoshie Minami worked closely with Dr. Nakashima Atsumi, author of the most comprehensive modern Japanese version of the Shoninki, thus making this English translation the closest to the original scrolls. The information and insights found in this translation are invaluable for understanding the skills, techniques and mentality of the historical ninja. Whether it involved tips for surviving in the wild, advice on intelligence-gathering techniques, or methods for creating chaos in the enemy camp, the True Path of the Ninja unveils secrets long lost.Also included is the first written record of the oral tradition "Defense Against a Ninja" taught by Otake Risuke, the revered sensei of the legendary Katori Shinto Ryu school of swordsmanship. It reveals for the first time the traditional teachings on how the samurai can protect himself from the cunning wiles of a ninja.

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Remembering O-Sensei: Living and Training with Morihei Ueshiba, Founder of Aikido Review

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(More customer reviews)If you have any interest in the life and ways of the founder of Aikido, this is a delightful book of paragraph-long snapshots of experiences people had with O Sensei. I really enjoyed the various perspectives.

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Morihei Ueshiba (1883–1969), founder of the Japanese martial art of Aikido, is one of the greatest and most beloved martial artists in history. Remembering O-Sensei is a portrait of Ueshiba as told by his uchi-deshi, the students who lived and trained with him as his disciples. This collection of memories—gathered here for the first time—captures the essence of this extraordinary martial arts master and visionary, revealing Ueshiba's teaching style, his daily habits, his philosophy of life, the lovably human aspects of his personality, and his deep belief that Aikido could be used as a means to creating peace and harmony in the world.The book also provides a snapshot of a fascinating time in Japanese history when a student would apprentice with his master by essentially moving in with him and receiving instruction through rigorous training sessions, and also by serving him and observing his actions in daily life. Most of the students whose remembrances are included in this book went on to spread the teaching of Aikido throughout the world and became masters in their own right.

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An Introduction to Zen Training: Sanzen Nyomon Review

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(More customer reviews)Introduction to Zen Training, Sanzen Nyumon is one of the few books to address the many questions that naturally arise as one begins to train. Questions range from the elementary of how long one should sit at a time to the more intensive of how to maintain concentration when not sitting. Omori Rotatishi was best able to convey his points by drawing upon his vigorous training as a martial artist of the samurai era and his scholarship in both Chinese and Japanese bringing to life the many traditional Zen teaching stories.
The book provides an introduction to the physical nature of training, discussing ones state of mind, the physiology, breath, posture, pain, and drowsiness. Training is placed in a context which gives sitting meditation depth and breadth. Sanzen Nyumon discusses the rationale for zazen, the foundation of Zen training. Zazen, while seemingly a simple activity, is not just "quiet sitting" and its value remains in fully understanding the subtleties of the activity. The book also provides instructions on how to sit zazen, and how to adjust one's breath, posture and mental state.

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When Buddha Said that We suffer because of our attachments, he was describing the condition in which we view the world from the perspective of our ego, that part of us that sags fundamentally we are each individual, apart from all that surrounds us. Buddhism in general is a religion that leads to a deeper perspective, that all existence is part of the Whole. While many people find that a meaningful belief, Zen Buddhism takes a slightly different position: don't believe a lofty religious ideal. All of you - flesh and blood, thoughts and emotions - can experience the Whole directly at all times and under all conditions. The process by which this experience unfolds is called Zen training. Introduction to Zen Training is a translation of a text by one of the foremost Japanese Zen teachers of the 20th century, providing an overall view of the nature of this training. Omori Sogen Rotaishi's approach to this training was unique. Having trained rigorously from his youth in Zen, swordsmanship and calligraphy, he became a sword teacher and ultimately advisor to the Japanese Cabinet prior to World War II.Following the war, he became a priest and continued his work as a teacher and court magistrate. His approach to Zen was very direct and physical as befits a martial artist, but he was also known for his compassion. This text was written to both provide a solid introduction to the physical nature of training - how one's breath, pain, posture, drowsiness, state of mind, and physiology all take part- as well as the context in which it takes on meaning. In the first two chapters, he discusses the rationale for zazen, the form of meditation that is the foundation of Zen training. Although seemingly a simple activity, zazen is not just "quiet sitting", and it is valuable to see it so thoroughly defined. The next chapter provides solid instruction in how to sit zazen, how to adjust the breathing, the posture, the state of mind. But this is just a starting point. Introduction to Zen Training is one of the few books to then go on to discuss many of the questions that naturally arise as one begins to train, ranging from how long you should sit at a time to how to maintain concentration when not sitting.As a martial artist, Omori Rotaishi was uniquely able to illustrate his points by drawing upon the vigorous tradition of Zen and the martial arts that flourished during the samurai era. But his scholarship in both Chinese and Japanese Zen is no less informed and he is able to bring alive many of the traditional teaching stories as well. The book ends with commentaries on two Zen texts that help to place all of the instruction into context. Hakuin, the reknown Zen Master of 18th century Japan, wrote the text Zazen Wasan (A Song of Zazen) to make zazen understandable in everyday terms to the common people of his era. Omori Rotaishi takes the same text and makes in meaningful to our era. He finishes by using the traditional Ten Ox-herding Pictures to once again show the rigor and physicality of Zen training. Translation of the text was done by Boy Yoshimato and Hosokawa Dogen Roshi. Yoshimoto was a Ph.D. candidate in Japanese literature at Columbia University and a long-time Zen and sword student at Daihonzan Chozen-ji, the temple founded by Omori Rotaishi in Honolulu, Hawaii. Hosokawa Roshi, dharma successor of Omori Rotaishi, is the Abbot at Daihonzan Chozen-ji.Overall supervision was provided by Tanouye Tenshin Rotaishi, dharma successor of Omori Rotaishi. Tanouye Rotaishi was the first Abbot of Daihonzan Chozen-ji and became Archibishop upon the death of Omori Rotaishi in 1994.

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Fighting Techniques of a Japanese Infantryman 1941-1945: Training, Techniques and Weapons Review

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(More customer reviews)If you think al Qaeda is bad news, let me introduce you to Imperial Japan, a xenophobic society of death-worshipping nationalist religious fanatics. Leo Daugherty describes the Japanese soldier in 95 pages divided into six chapters:
--martial tradition
--induction and training
--military organization
--tactics
--individual weapons and equipment
--Japanese infantry division support weapons
Want to know what motivated the Imperial Japanese soldier to hunker down in a spider hole clutching an unexploded American aircraft bomb and a hammer? That soldier was going to blow up an American tank-and himself. The Kamikaze came about when military defeat and lack of war material meshed with the duty of the Japanese soldier to die in battle-if necessary, by killing himself. Daugherty wrote that the state religion of Shinto and the code of Bushido incorporated in 1867. Emperor Hirohito was considered a god, and anything done in service to that god was good. The national goal was unifying the world-under Japanese leadership. The soldier's code, Senjinkun, was pounded into already-prepared recruits. A military junta ruled Japan and this junta prepared the Japanese people for total war. On page 21 a table lists the year-long conscript training cycle-but this wasn't the beginning of military training. School children were indoctrinated early. "By 1934, more than one-third, or 915,000, of Japan's young men in the appropriate age bracket studied and drilled at these youth training centers."
No wonder part of the Japanese Imperial Guards rebelled when Emperor Hirohito announced Japan's capitulation!
Japan had no jungles to train in, yet the Japanese soldier was an excellent jungle fighter. This was the result of long, thorough training. The Japanese soldier was trained to fight at night as a means of overcoming enemy forces superior in numbers and firepower. The bayonet and hand grenade were preferred over the rifle-especially for close combat in the dark.
I found the descriptions of weapons and equipment brief but useful. Many criticize the Japanese for having poor small arms, for lacking a submachine gun, for "over reliance" on the bayonet. Actually, Japanese rifles and light machine guns were quite effective. Japanese pistols weren't, and the Type 100 submachine gun was a failure. The United States didn't really have a good submachine gun either, and its Browning Automatic Rifle was no match for a light machine gun. The famed knee mortar provided close-in 50mm shellfire on enemy positions. Oh, perhaps a semiautomatic rifle like America's M-1 Garand would have been nice-provided Japan's industry could keep her soldiers supplied with ammunition. Unrestricted air and submarine warfare by the United States went a long way towards insuring that there was never enough ammunition for the Japanese defenders.
At the division level (roughly 20,000 men-on paper), Japan shortchanged its soldiers on heavy weapons. No matter-there was a decided lack of motor transport in the Japanese armed forces. Couldn't haul artillery pieces and ammunition even if they had the hardware-a severe lack of petroleum was one reason Japan attacked the Western nations. Against lightly-equipped Chinese formations, Japanese units had ample firepower. When confronted by Soviet armored formations, Japan lost a chunk of Manchuria during 1939 in the Khalkyn Gol Incident. Initially, Japan crushed more-heavily armed British Commonwealth and American troops, but by 1943 the shoe was on the other foot. Eventually, islands such as Iwo Jima would bear the full brunt of American air power and naval gunfire unaided-it would just be the Japanese infantryman and a handful of artillery pieces buying time. Like the Vietnamese Communists of 40 years ago and al Qaeda today, the Japanese soldier believed it was just a matter of time before the soft Americans gave up and crawled back home. Given the disparity in divisional artillery and in tanks, this was quite the leap of faith!
Japan declared war on the whole world and her infantrymen did more than humanly possible. "Fighting Techniques of a Japanese Infantryman" describes in general terms how the Japanese infantry achieved this, and the tools that Japan gave its soldiers.


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This in-depth analysis of the tactics and equipment used by Japan's infantry between 1941 and 1945 includes descriptions of their training and how that training influenced their success or failure on the battlefield, where after 1943 the Japanese fought a skillful and brave defense against overwhelming odds and firepower. Full-color artworks show weapons and equipment to full effect, while tactics and fighting techniques are explained by means of detailed line artworks.

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Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook Review

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(More customer reviews)I saw Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook by Thomas Cleary at the library awhile back, and picked it up. Japanese bushido thinking is something I normally find interesting, and I've gravitated to books like The Art of War and The Book of Five Rings in the past. In this case, I had a far more difficult time staying engaged with the material. Perhaps it was the "anthology" nature of the material, meaning that there wasn't necessarily a lot of continuity from chapter to chapter. Given the writings span over 500 years, I can somewhat understand that...
There are 22 chapters, each consisting of a writing by some Japanese individual who was well-known as a bushido teacher in that particular time period. Cleary gives a short intro of the person's biography and cultural setting, as well as their philosophical bent. The rest of the chapter is then a translated writing of theirs that covers some element of bushido, be it warfare, personal responsibility, or training. Cleary has done a nice job in translating the material in a way that makes it understandable to the Western reader. Given that each chapter stands completely alone, you can digest the book in small chunks without having to keep track of an overall plot or theme.
I think I struggled in that the writers each had their own slants and takes on Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Shinto in terms of how they affected the life of a samurai. Not having a strong background in the differences and nuances of each, I think some of the material was lost on me. Also, I missed the continuity that comes from a single writer exploring a subject in some detail. I'm sure I'd feel different if the subjects were more a part of my normal culture. But as such, they came across as somewhat random and eclectic.
I think Cleary did a fine job in translation of the material. I just think that you'd have to be pretty well grounded in bushido thought to get the most out of this book.

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Through the ages, the samurai have been associated with honor, fearlessness, calm, decisive action, strategic thinking, and martial prowess. Their ethos is known as bushido, the Way of the Warrior-Knight.Here, premier translator Thomas Cleary presents a rich collection of writings on bushido by warriors, scholars, political advisors, and educators from the fifteenth century through the nineteenth century that provide a comprehensive, historically rich view of samurai life and philosophy. Training the Samurai Mind gives an insider's view of the samurai world: the moral and psychological development of the warrior, the ethical standards they were meant to uphold, their training in both martial arts and strategy, and the enormous role that the traditions of Shintoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism had in influencing samurai ideals. The writings deal with a broad range of subjects—from military strategy and political science, to personal discipline and character development. Cleary introduces each piece, putting it into historical context, and presents biographical information about the authors. This is an essential read for anyone interested in military history and samurai history, and for martial artists who want to understand strategy.

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