About Our Training
WHAT DO WE TEACH?
Self Defense martial arts with origins in traditional Japanese Ninja and Samurai schools.
WHO ARE WE? We practice Budo Taijutsu as a part of the broader Taka Seigi family under the auspices of Dai Shihan Phil Legare. We are former military service members interested in openly sharing our knowledge of the martial arts.
BUDO TAIJUTSU
Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu makes up the core of our training. It is the unarmed practical combat training we exercise to prepare ourselves mentally and physically. Far from being just a set of techniques, the foundation of Budo Taijutsu is built on developing an understanding of balanced postures with disciplined kamae, natural body movements in San Shin, and authentic combatives methodologies of the Kihon Happo. This is not training for sport.
NOT FOR COMPETITION
We train Budo Taijutsu to enable ourselves to survive, and protect those that we care about. Decades of military service with practical application of this training in multiple tours of combat have shown us that discipline and hard work in Budo Taijutsu prevails.
WHAT DO WE DO IN TRAINING?
The fundamentals of Budo Taijutsu can be classified in three broad categories:
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Taihenjutsu methods of individual body moment; breakfalls, rolls, leaps, and walking methods unique to ninjutsu.
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Dakentaijutsu strikes, kicks, and punches, as well as blocking methods.
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Jutaijutsu grappling method for throwing, choking, locking, and escaping the restraining holds of others.
We also train in the use of a wide variety of weapons, but these skills build upon the fundamentals listed above.
WHAT JAPANESE MARTIAL ARTS SCHOOLS DO WE STUDY?
The Bujinkan consists of study from three ninpō ryū-ha (Ninja Schools) and six bujutsu ryu-ha (Samurai Schools):
Togakure-ryū ninpō
Gyokushin-ryū ninpō
Kumogakure-ryū ninpō
Shinden Fudo-ryū Kukishinden Ryu
Gyokko-ryū Koshijutsu
Koto-ryū Koppōjutsu
Gikan-ryū Koppōjutsu
TakagiYoshin-ryū Jūtaijutsu
WHY IS OUR TRAINING RELEVANT?
Like many martial arts dojos, we study the past in order to understand how our disciplines evolved, but our ultimate goal remains to apply those disciplines to situations in contemporary times. The transmission of samurai and ninja disciplines into modern times takes place more easily in military, law enforcement, and personnel or physical security applications, but we strive to provide a contemporary context that empowers every student with applicable skills and abilities to face modern problems. We call this training Shinken Taijutsu.
SHINKEN TAIJUTSU - MODERN WARFARE
Shinken Taijutsu is an authorized application of the bujinkan in the contemporary (modern day) environment. Dai Shihan Legare, the creator of our school, was appointed by the Grandmaster Hatsumi-Sensei via Menkyo Kaiden ("License of Total Transmission") to continue what was started by him and his teacher Takamatsu-Sensei. To our knowledge, this authorization or endorsment has not been granted to anyone else.
Shinken Taijutsu was refined into a modern applications program called personal protective measures (PPM) to counter the violence we may face in our every day lives. Whether it may be a school shooting, workplace violence, criminal or domestic violence, PPM will empower you and your family to effectively recognized the threat (Assess), develop contingencies to handle the threat (Plan) and then move decisively to address the threat and get you and your family to a safe place (Act). Using this method you can survive the three fights; physical (survive the situation), legal (use only the appropriate amount of force to get to a safe place) and moral (you can look yourself in the mirror and know that your actions were correct).
Shinken can be thought of as Bujustu ("Martial Science") or Bugei ("Martial Art") vice a Budo ("Martial Way") in that it is focused on the practical application of martial tactics and techniques in actual combat and has been refined to facilitate systematic instruction and dissemination within a formal learning environment.
