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Mushinjuku
"Within the Walls of Daitokuji"
by Andrew Cote'
(from Issue #7 Dojo Database)
Eguchi sensei demonstrates yonkyo at Mushinjuku. (Photos courtesy of Andrew Cote').
Nichu Budokenkyukai: Aikido, Tai Chi Ch'uan (Taikyokuken), Toro-ken, Niten Ichi-ryu sword in Kyoto, Japan Instructor: Eguchi Nobuaki Contact Andrew Coté via E-mail: andrew@mbox.kyoto-inet.or.jp Mail may be be sent directly to: Nichu Budokenkyukai Miyazaki House 13-9 Kamiyanagicho Murasakino, Kita-ku, Kyoto, 603, JAPAN.
Anyone who has had the good fortune to spend time in Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, will confirm that it is a place of rare beauty and alluring charm. Kyoto may not be the foremost city to which budo enthusiasts flock to practice and learn in the land of the Rising Sun, but it does offer some quality dojo in which preeminent sensei dispense the knowledge which they have endeavored to accumulate over a lifetime.
One such place is a small, unobtrusive dojo located within the walls of Daitokuji temple in Northern Kyoto; Mushinjuku. Mushinjuku's kanji, loosely translated, means "a school of detachment, or no-mindedness." Mushinjuku is the creation of a man who could easily be considered one of the few remaining men who lives wholly for perfection of his art. Eguchi Nobuaki, sensei and founder of Mushinjuku, has been practicing budo most of his life. Ten years ago he created the dojo as a means of sharing what he had learned with those interested in delving into the rewarding world of budo.
While Mushinjuku would be categorized as an aikido dojo, Eguchi sensei would not simplify the goal of Mushinjuku as such. As he put it, "I don't feel as if I am merely instructing aikido at Mushinjuku. I am teaching budo. That is my basic philosophy." Mushinjuku is a part of Nichu Budokenkyukai, a group which practices Chinese styles, such as Taikyokuken (Tai Chi Ch'uan) and Toro-ken (Chinese sword). Eguchi sensei has spent time in China studying these styles. Members of the dojo, notably his wife and son, regularly go to China and Taiwan to spend time with Chinese masters and bring back techniques to share with the members of the group.
In fact, the same group has activities every day of the week, ranging from ballroom dancing to mountaineering. The weekends are spent in a spacious, though rustic, house in the mountains north of Kyoto, which the members themselves built and collectively own. But just what has ballroom dancing and mountain climbing have to do with budo?
"Of course, I wouldn't imply that one must join all of these activities. It is simply that these things add to one's overall experiences in this short life. In doing so, it helps one to better understand each component. To that end, these various activities help us to understand budo, by giving us more references with which to understand it. It would be too self-limiting to simply practice one form of budo exclusively," Eguchi sensei says.
Those who embrace the spirit of the dojo more ardently are there at sunrise Monday morning, with wet towels, wiping down the wooden floors and walls of the adjoining temple. This is a small gesture of thanks to the priest for allowing the use of the space. In return for this, the priest's wife provides a breakfast of miso soup, rice balls, and hot tea. Mushinjuku aikido could easily be described as a very soft form of the style. Each technique is painstakingly done in such a way as to cause the minimum of discomfort to the attacker, while relinquishing no control to her/him.
Mushinjuku is a member of the Osaka Aikikai, but even as such, one can see distinct differences from the style of aikido practiced in other dojo in the Kansai area. Eguchi sensei is not terribly concerned with the dissimilarity.
"Yes, to survive in this budo world, we have to belong to some organization or another. It's not so important as long as they don't bother me," he says pragmatically.
There are two aikido practices a week. In a park not far from the dojo there is a sword practice one evening a week. There, half a dozen or so students gather at ten in the evening, begin with a thousand warm-up strokes with the bokken (wooden sword), and then for two hours execute Miyamoto Musashi's two sword techniques (Niten Ichi-ryu). The next evening, in a nearby building, there is an evening of practicing Chinese style arts, such as Tai Chi, Toro-ken, and various other forms.
The other evenings consist of the aforementioned ballroom dancing and other activities, and all during the week the time is dotted with various social gatherings. During the summer, the sword practice is followed by cold cans of beer from a nearby vending machine, and in winter, visits to a noodle shop. The system works and runs smoothly enough. Eguchi sensei can always be found with a disarming smile, a perpetual lit cigarette in hand, most evenings inebriated, and more than eager to share his considerable wisdom. And in the process, when all of these many stimuli come together, technique is acquired and mastered over a long, patient, and devoted journey.
Left to right: Ibata, Hatanaka (background) and Kiso of Mushinjuku perform Japanese sword methods at a New Year's demonstration.
Copyright ©Tengu Press and Wayne Muromoto. All rights reserved.
