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Posted February, 1998
Benjo (The Crapper) Budo:
I asked one of our readers about a secret
technique he used when he read Furyu the Budo Journal. I got
more than I wanted to know:
One of my friends and I developed "Benjo Budo",
the art of reading martial arts books while in the benjo. You
probably don't want to know any details. . .
--Neil Yamamoto
No, I don't.
Tom's Latest Words of Wisdom
I have greatly enjoyed reading Dave Lowry's works, including
Autumn Lighting, Persimmon Wind, and Sword and Brush. His knowledge
is profound and I find myself referencing his work constantly.
His understanding of bujutsu and the "spirit" of the
sword has helped me put into words that which my spirit has begun
to understand for the last couple of years now. I thank you,Wayne,
for finding the time to put Dave on the net for all of us. .
. .
--Tom Militello
And now a commercial break. Yes, shoppers,
go on to Amazon.com to order
a full set or individual copies of nearly all the books that
Dave Lowry has written! Jump to their page from our site and
order something, and Tengu Press gets a cut! Yes, Lord Help me
Jesus! Dave gets royalty to pay his mortgage, Wayne gets a cut
to help keep this crazy site up, and you get a great book that
you can use with your benjo budo!
Don't Sleep in the Subway, Darling, Don't Leave Your Furyu's
in It Either
I really appreciate your re-sending me Furyu issue
#8, as I never received it, due to the issue being apparently
'lost' in the mail. Both issue #8 and issue #9, which I did receive,
were outstanding!!! I was also happy to see I "made"
the letters column of issue #8. While I was disappointed to see
the complaints in the letters column on the time between issues,
I'm glad you refunded the person who complained about it, his
money, it sounds like he and his wife really need it. Given these
circumstances, I comment you for continuing to put forth the
effort, for you do produce a quality magazine on topics for serious
martial art students. I subscribe to Aikido Today, Aikido
Journal and the Journal of Asian Martial Arts, and
put your efforts in the same realm as their magazines!!!
You will soon be receiving a check in the mail for another
copy, including postage, of issue #9, I read the entire issue
and then proceeded to leave it on the subway. When something
is left in the subway, it disappears into another dimension!
I'm purchasing another copy of issue #9 as I want my collection
of Furyu to be complete. . .
--Tom Militello
Canadian Winters
. . .You know how cold it gets up here and it's great to have
your fab mag to read over and over again when we get snow bound
(teeth chattering) regards.
--Chris Romanin, the wilds of Canada
But Be Careful of Neil's Benjo Budo
I am just writing to tell you how much I love your web page
and the ideals it promotes. It shows the true feeling which should
pervade all of the martial arts as opposed to the unfortunate
American attitudes toward them. I am always seeking martial arts
studios where I might want to practice but they all neglect the
depth and spirituality that I seek. Thank you for providing such
a wonderful magazine and web page.
--From South Carolina, James Hanks
Kendo in Manila
Greetings. My name is Irwin Chua and I am a person of Chinese
origins living in the polluted and corrupted capital city of
the Philippines called Manila. I am 27 years of age and very
much into the ways of bujutsu, whatever the origin. But Japanese
bujutsu and budo always has a special place in my heart.
I accidentally came across your magazine of Furyu and
I am very much delighted at the quality of the articles your
press publishes, judging from the online articles you graciously
allow surfers to read. As present, I am a very new student of
kendo here in Manila. Our dojo is situated in a sports club in
the business district of Makati. Actually, it is a poor place
to practice kendo because of all the damn noise around us, but
beggars can't be choosers, I guess. Hopefully, we'll eventually
find a place good enough to own in a quiet neighborhood in Manila.
Fat chance in hell. But the quality of teaching is great, in
my humble newbie's opinion. We have two Japanese sensei, sixth
and seventh
dan, respectively, and they know what they are talking about.
I gathered this from all the training halls I've fallen in and
out of since 1992. What we hope to do is to be certified by the
International Kendo Federation in the near future and also introduce
the art in the universities that dot our great corrupted capital.
My first session in kendo was pure ecstasy. It was as if somebody
opened a book in my head and just wrote all the potential in.
No instructor, sensei, sifu, or master ever gave me a feeling
of total
potential like my kendo sensei. I felt a great sense of belonging
and when I held the shinai it felt so damn familiar. I look forward
to the time when I could wield the shinai like a part of myself.
Sorry, if I wax poetic, sir. And you may be wondering why I am
telling you all this. Answer is, beats me. Gut feeling? Intuition?
Dunno. Just felt you can understand.
But I digress. I practically like Furyu and am willing
to shell out some dough for the next six issues of your magazine,
plus a bit of saving up for the previous ones. It's a bit steep,
but as I said, your magazine has HEART written all over
it.
Japan and its culture has been one of the curious points in
my life. Other ones would be China, martial arts, philosophy,
literature, war, technology, and women. Of all these, I admit
researching on women is the hardest, no substitute for direct
experience. I have long since tossed the idea that pure "pragmatism"
in the martial arts is the only way to go. I have seen too many
pure "pragmatists" turn into mindless reactive egotistic
combat monsters. There is much to be said about the cultivation
of the spirit.
Thank you for keeping the flame burning bright. May we all
live in interesting times.
--Irwin Ko Chua
Geez, thanks, Irwin. But that blessing
(interesting times. . .) is also a curse, isn't it? Oh well.
I'm not sure if wars or women are harder to understand, but we're
all trying our best.
I recently stumbled upon your online magazine, it's outstanding,
wonderful. I was stunned by finding a Dave Lowry website. You
see I knew Dave a few years ago and knew the extent of his technophobia.
Tell Dave hello for me next time you see him.
--Bryan Welmon
Will do, Bryan. Dave's actually got
a computer in his house now!
I just subscribed to Furyu from the KoryuBooks
website. Last issue I saw was in '95 and I very much enjoyed
that also. Thanks also for the Dave Lowry stuff. I have all his
books.
--Best regards, Clint Hollingsworth, Sho Rei Shobu Kan Okinawan
Goju Ryu
Oh No, The Benjo Budo Master Strikes Again!
Just read through the site since I have already read the last
printed issue several times. You compared an aging budoka (yourself)
to a fine wine. My students agree an aging martial artist (like
me) is more like old Scotch whiskey because:
We come from an island culture where for hundreds of years
they wore funny clothing and tried to kill each other as often
as possible. Possibly because of the clothing they wore. . .
I have an attractive brownish tan color which looks good.
. .
A little bit goes a long way and too much leaves you with
a bad headache. . .
The older I get the better I get and more costly to keep around.
. .
--Neil Yamamoto
Actually, I kind'a like your analogy
better, too. My wife might agree with you as well. Fine wine
is something she'd never compare me to, but Scotch whiskey, hmmm.
. .Or maybe I'm like stale beer. It used to be cool, now it's
lukewarm, it dribbles all over the living room in front of the
TV, and it sort of smells bad.
Thanks for all your works. I am awaiting my first issue of
Furyu to come to my mail box. My impatience is only tempered
by the fact that I'm sure it will be very good. :0)
Thank you also for getting Dave Lowry's stuff on line. I thoroughly
enjoy his work and am always helped along the path by everything
that I read of his. In fact, rereading his books are nescessary
because I certainly can't absorb all that he writes in one reading.
I am in agreement with you about Persimmon Wind. If I
wished to make a complaint it would be that it was to short.
:0)
Keep up these good works. Its greatly appreciated.
--Ted Bouck, Northeast Ohio