Gyokko Ryu Origins and Koku Anytime one begins to search for the origins of a martial art that is as old as the Gyokko Ryu, in any country or culture, you find yourself going deeper and deeper into myth and legends, rather than true history. This is definitely definite ly the case with our art, the Gyokko Ryu style of Koshijutsu. As you may already know, the term “Ryu” means style or school, and these styles were kept very secret. Oftentimes a style may be known only to one or few members of the same family or clan. Therefore, to these people the th e history of their “Ryu” was simply taken for granted and was believed as it was taught to them by their master. They did not doubt its validity. They only needed to survive and live to fight another day. To do this they needed faith in their art and style, style, and as expected this was easier eas ier to accomplish when their “Ryu” had legendary or even divine origins. The Gyokko Ryu scrolls written by Takamatsu Soke, or “Grandmaster” of the Ryu, are the first written record of the history hist ory of this style. For about 1,000 years it had been an oral tradition, a secret to be passed pass ed down from master to disciple; generation after generation. These scrolls were written from memory, detailing everything that Takamatsu Soke was taught by his grandfather, the 32nd Soke of the Gyokko Ryu. On a few occasions I have had the honor of inspecting and translati ng some of these scrolls. In them we can see the mythical origins of this ancient style. The story begins with a few warrior-wizards named; Yao Yuhu (In Chinese) or Yo Gyokko (In Japanese) Ikai a.k.a. Zhang Wushen (In Chinese) or Cho Busho (In Japanese) Gamon Doshi Garyu Doshi Hachiryu Nyudo and Tozawa Hakuunsai. All of these names are very ve ry prominent in the legends of the Ninja in Japan. They are heroes whose stories are well known in the plays of the Kabuki Theater, traditional stories and even comic books. There is very little evidence, if any, to support that these men ever really existed. Yo Gyokko is said to have been the founder of the art known as Shitojustu, while “Ikai” or Cho Busho is the one who brought the Gyokko Ryu to Japan from China. Looking at the Chinese characters used to write Ikai’s name, we can see that he was most likely a foreigner to Japan (the “I” meaning outsider or other” and t he “kai” means to be distributed dis tributed evenly). It is interesting to note that “Ikai” in i n Japanese can also phonetically mean “from overseas”. This, of course, was not his true name but a warrior name or even a pirate name attributed to him. I once heard Hatsumi Soke say that these men may have gone back and forth between China and Japan on more than t han one occasion, developing and spreading esoteric Buddhism (Mikkyo). It is possible that they may have even had a small naval force. In this period of history, following the Tang Dynasty of China (618-907 AD) it was very ver y common for Buddhism to be spread throughout Asia with the support of a political/military arm. When considering such names as Gamon Doshi, Garyu Doshi, and Hachiryu Nyudo we can
see by the use of the characters “Doshi” and “Nyudo” in their names that they were devout Taoists and practitioners of “Onmyo-do” or the way of Yin and Yang. So it is safe to assume that our art was heavily influenced by these schools of thought; Buddhism and Taoism or Onmyo-do as it was known in ancient Japan. Tozawa Hakuunsai on the other hand was well known in ninja history as being the master of the legendary Sarutobi Sasuke, Japan’s version of a ”Robin Hood” type of character. But, unlike Robin Hood, he is not thought of as being generous to the poor. It is said that Hakuunsai gave Sarutobi Sasuke a “menkyo kaiden” or full mastership in the arts of Ninjutsu and Hichojutsu. Similar to the legends of Robin Hood, Tozawa and Sarutobi most likely actually did exist. Their feats have probably been highly exaggerated. It is even more likely that these were groups of men who operated under the same name to give the impression that they could be in more place than one at the same t ime. Hichoijutsu is often misunderstood as the art of flying or jumping but it i s actually a kind of empty hand fighting art that incorporates a lot of jumping and leaping in its movements. In the Iga region of Japan it was known as “Hicho Karate Koppojutsu” and it was the central martial art for the famous Iga Ninja clans n the 1500’s. We call it the Koto Ryu. But this can be discussed at another time. Later the Gyokko Ryu was passed down into the Togakure clan of ninja in the Iga region by Momochi Sandayu, and possibly into many other clans in the area as the style is very well k nown as being a “jitsuryoku ha” or a style with great effectiveness. The lineage of past Soke and Menkyo Kaiden holders is as follows; Yo Gyokko (The original founder of Chinese Shitojutsu) Ikai (The man credited for bringing Shitojutsu to Japan circa 1056 AD) Gamon Doshi Garyu Doshi Hachiryu Nyudo Tozawa Hakuunsai (The master of Sarutobi Sasuke, circa 1159 AD) Tozawa Shosuke Oho (circa 1162 AD) Suzuki Saburo Shigeyoshi (circa 1180) Suzuki Gobei Mitsusada Suzuki Kojiro Mitsuhisa Tozawa Soun (circa 1288 AD) Tozawa Nyudo Genai Yamon Hyoun Kato Ryubaiun (circa 1394 AD) Sakagami Goro Katsushige (circa 1532 AD) Sakagami Taro Kunishige Sakagami Kotaro Masahide So Gyokkan Ritsushi Toda Sakyo Ishinsai Momochi Sandayu (circa 1555 AD) Momochi Sandayu II (circa 1591 AD) Momochi Tanba Yasumitsu (circa 1615 AD) Momochi Taro Saemon (circa 1624 AD) Toda Seiryu Nobutsuna (circa 1644 AD)
Toda Fudo Nobuchika (circa 1681 AD) Toda Kangoro Nobuyasu (circa 1704 AD) Toda Eisaburo Nobumasa (circa 1711 AD) Toda Shinbei Masachika (circa 1736 AD) Toda Shingoro Masayoshi (circa 1764 AD) Toda Daigoro Chikahide (circa 1804 AD) Toda Daisaburo Chikashige (circa 1804 AD) Toda Shinryuken Masamitsu (born 1824, died 1909) Takamatsu Toshitsugu (born 1887, died 1972) Hatsumi Yoshiaki (Masaaki) (1931 – present) Please keep in mind this list is not to be thought of everyone that existed in the Ryu. These were the leaders and some may have even led at the same time in two parts of their region. It is said that the Ryu was very active even through the peaceful Edo period. Only to nearly die out in Toda Shinryuken Masamitsu’s lifetime due to drastic changes in J apan’s government resulting from foreign influences on the country. Thanks to the efforts of Takamatsu Soke and Hatsumi Soke the Ryu is now enjoying its true “Golden Era”.
Religious Backround As I mentioned earlier, the Gyokko Ryu was influenced heavily by Buddhism and OnmyoDo, or ancient Taoism in Japan. This is extremely obvious in many ways. One is simply the language of the style. Words such as Koku, Kukan, Gogyo, Goshin, Sanshin, Tenchijin, et c. are often used throughout the style’s forms and teaching principles. Today I would like to mainly discuss the term Koku as it i s the theme of this seminar. This term is very simple, yet extremely complex at the same time. It is Buddhist in origin and originally comes from India. Koku can be translated as space, empty space or even boundless sky, but its true meaning is much more mystical and deep in meaning. The concept of koku is personified by the Buddhist deity “Kokuzo Bosatsu”, the deity of wisdom and memory. It is believed that ultimate wisdom, or enlightenment, is contained or hidden in the “womb of space” and through the guidance of this deity one can attain enlightenment by experiencing the wisdom contained in the empty space or ethereal void all around us. His name is often translated as “boundless space treasury” or “void store” as his wisdom is said to be as limitless as the universe itself. Kukai, the founder of the Shingon sect of Buddhism in Japan is said to have chanted Kokuzo Bosatsu’s mantra throughout his youth and eventually he had a vision telling him to make a pilgrimage to China for further study in esoteric Sanskrit texts that were not understood in Japan at that time. He left Japan in 804 AD in a government expedition to China consisting of 4 large ships with many other monks (including the famous monk Saicho), scholars, warrior generals and ambassadors. During a great storm on the wa y to China, one ship turned back for Japan and another was lost at sea.
Upon finally arriving to China, Kukai excelled in his studies and later returned to Japan as the eighth patriarch of esoteric Buddhism or Mikkyo. He was considered a genius in many respects. In a very short amount of time he mastered esoteric Buddhism rituals and meditation, learned Sanskrit and its Siddham script which played an important role in the development of Shugendo or mountain asceticism. This script was also paramount to the spread of Buddhism from northern India through Tibet and Nepal and all along the Silk Road. One of Kukai’s greatest gifts to Japan was his teachings on the concept of Koku. That wisdom and enlightenment was something that could be grasped by anyone from the empty space all around us, as long as they knew the secret esoteric rituals and meditations including many “mudra” or spiritual hand positions and “mantra” or chants. The most common mantra for Kokuzo is “On Basara Aratana Kan. Om Basara Ar atana Un” which is chanted to gain wisdom, intelligence and to accomplish tasks, another is “Nobo Akyasha Gyrabaya, Om Arikya Mari Bori Sowaka” which translates as; I Wish to the whole universe, OM, and with total dedication pray that all human beings prosper and flourish. The most important thing to understand regarding Koku is that the mind and space are one. It is our bodies and impure thoughts that separate the two. For any practitioner of the Gyokko Ryu, daily meditation on Koku is essential along with practicing the Kihon Happo of Buddhism, the noble eightfold path. Just like Soke has taught us to return to the Kihon Happo of the Gyokko Ryu when we feel lost in our training, the Buddha has given humanity the Kihon Happo of Buddhism.
In my next seminar I would like to go into the Taoist aspects of the Gyokko Ryu. Studying the true meaning of the TenChi Jin in more depth.
The following has been edited from the following website; http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html The Noble Eightfold Path The Noble Eightfold Path describes the way to the end of suffering and gaining enlightenment, as it was laid out by Siddhartha Gautama. It is a practical guideline to ethical and mental development with the goal of freeing the individual from attachments and delusions; and it finally leads to understanding the truth about all things. 1. Right View Right view is the beginning and the end of the path, it simply means to see and to understand things as they really are. Right view is not necessarily an intellectual capaci ty, just as wisdom is not just a matter of intelligence. Instead, right view is attained, sustai ned, and enhanced through all capacities of mind. It begins with the i ntuitive insight that all beings are subject to suffering and it ends with complete understanding of the true nature of all things. Since our
view of the world forms our thoughts and our actions, right view yields right thoughts and right actions. 2. Right Intention While right view refers to the cognitive aspect of wisdom, right intention refers to the volitional aspect, i.e. the kind of mental energy that controls our acti ons. Right intention can be described best as commitment to ethical and mental self-improvement. Buddha distinguishes three types of right intentions: 1. the intention of renunciation, which means resistance to the pull of desire, 2. the intention of good will, meaning resistance to feelings of anger and aversion, and 3. the intention of harmlessness, meaning not to think or act cruelly, violently, or aggressively, and to develop compassion. 3. Right Speech Right speech is the first principle of ethical conduct in the eightfold path. Ethical conduct is viewed as a guideline to moral discipline, which supports the other principles of the path. This aspect is not self-sufficient, however, essential, because mental purification can only be achieved through the cultivation of ethical conduct. The importance of speech in the context of Buddhist ethics is obvious: words can break or save lives, make enemies or friends, start war or create peace. Buddha explained right speech as follows: 1. to abstain from false speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies and not to speak deceitfully, 2. to abstain from slanderous speech and not to use words maliciously against others, 3. to abstain from harsh words that offend or hurt others, and 4. to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose or depth. Positively phrased, this means to tell the truth, to speak friendly, warm, and gently and to talk only when necessary. 4. Right Action The second ethical principle, right action, involves the body as natural means of expression, as it refers to deeds that involve bodily actions. Unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound states of mind. Again, the principle i s explained in terms of abstinence: right action means 1. to abstain from harming sentient beings, especially to abstain from taking life (including suicide) and doing harm intentionally or delinquently, 2. to abstain from taking what is not given, which includes stealing, robbery, fraud, deceitfulness, and dishonesty, and 3. to abstain from sexual misconduct. Positively formulated, right action means to act kindly and compassionately, to be honest, to r espect the belongings of others, and to keep sexual relationships harmless to others. 5. Right Livelihood Right livelihood means that one should earn one's living in a righteous way and that wealth should be gained legally and peacefully. The Buddha mentions four specific activities t hat harm other beings and that one should avoid for this reason: 1. dealing in weapons, 2. dealing in living beings (including raising animals for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution), 3. working in meat production and butchery, and 4. selling intoxicants and poisons, such as alcohol and drugs. Furthermore any other occupation that would violate the principles of right speech and right action should be avoided.
6. Right Effort Right effort can be seen as a prerequisite for the other principles of the path. Without effort, which is in itself an act of will, nothing can be achieved, whereas misguided effort distracts the mind from its task, and confusion will be the consequence. Mental energy is the force behind right effort; it can occur in either wholesome or unwholesome states. The same type of energy that fuels desire, envy, aggression, and violence can on the other side fuel selfdiscipline, honesty, benevolence, and kindness. Right effort is detailed in four types of endeavors that rank in ascending order of perfection: 1. to prevent the arising of un-arisen unwholesome states, 2. to abandon unwholesome states that have already arisen, 3. to arouse wholesome states that have not yet arisen, and 4. to maintain and perfect wholesome states already arisen. 7. Right Mindfulness Right mindfulness is the controlled and perfected facult y of cognition. It is the mental ability to see things as they are, with clear consciousness. Usually, the cognitive process begins with an impression induced by perception, or by a thought, but then it does not stay with the mere impression. Instead, we almost always conceptualize sense impressions and thoughts immediately. We interpret them and set them in relation to other thoughts and experiences, which naturally go beyond the “truth” of the original impression. The mind then posits concepts, joins concepts into constructs, and weaves those constructs into complex interpretative schemes. All this happens only half consciously, and as a result we often see things obscured. Right mindfulness is anchored in clear perception and it penetrates impressions without getting carried away. Right mindfulness enables us to be awa re of the process of conceptualization in a way that we actively observe and control the way our thoughts go. Buddha accounted for this as the four foundations of mindfulness: 1. contemplation of the body, 2. contemplation of feeling (repulsive, attractive, or neutral), 3. Contemplation of the state of mind. And 4. contemplation of the phenomena. 8. Right Concentration The eighth principle of the path, right concentration, refers to the development of a mental force that occurs in natural consciousness, although at a relatively low level of intensity, namely concentration. Concentration in this context is described as one-pointedness of mi nd, meaning a state where all mental faculties are unified and directed onto one particular object. Right concentration for the purpose of the eightfold path means wholesome concentration, i.e. concentration on wholesome thoughts and actions. The Buddhist method of choice to develop right concentration is through the practice of meditation. The meditating mind focuses on a selected object. It first directs itself onto it, then sustains concentration, and finally intensifies concentration step by step. Through this practice it becomes natural to apply elevated levels concentration also in ever yday situations.
It is clear that our art is full of Buddhist concepts so let’s take a look at what role do these ideas play in our art as a form of combat.
Please feel free to take notes at anytime during this seminar. InYo Tsukai Circular Energy – Centrifugal & Centripetal Shoshin-Gogyo-Goshin no Kata Kihon Happo Gyokko Ryu Basic Movements Discussion Kamae Kata – Ichimonji Hicho Jumonji TenchiInyo Tenryaku Uchu Gassho Tsuki Kata and Ate Komi Hoho – Sanshin, Gyaku waza Keri Kata Uke Kata – Uke Dome, Uke Nagashi, Ken Kudaki Koku (the basic form) Koku Henka
