All year I have made references to something secret that has been going on in my world. This entry will out me. For my Buddhist readers, it won't be as significant. For my fellow Ninjas much more so.
It's easy to criticize SGI, especially if you've fallen from grace from the cult aspect.
There's so much magical thinking, which goes hand-in-hand with cultish thinking which puts us at risk to engage in something even worse, "anti-cult" thinking, and even worse then that, "cult-fighter" thinking.
I equate the cult-fighter to the recovering alcoholic who accuses anyone who drinks of being an alcoholic and tries to force everyone to stop drinking. Gakkai cult-fighters were, at one time or another, the worst of the cuties. They were expulsed or quit and hate SGI for it. They are like fallen cult angles.
It's all treacherous, and very tragic. All of these things are borne of our misunderstanding and unrealistic expectations of SGI, the SGI which is the spirit of faith and unity, not merely certain people within SGI who themselves suffer from cultism and magical thinking.
The "master and disciple" relationship is a great example. This year a Japanese Shihan (master instructor) came to my area to study and research at the Naval Post Graduate school.
He's been studying under Grandmaster Hatsumi for 20 years. His knowledge of the schools of the Bujinkan and our art in general is on a level that is unmatched by any non-Japanese teacher.
A group of Shidoshi, 5th degree and above instructors, began training with him throughout the year. It was during these sessions that I experienced the reality of the master and disciple relationship. That I was included in this fortunate group of Ninjas is a benefit of astronomical proportions and one which I will be pondering for years to come. As precious as my time was in the dojo with this teacher, there were also rare moments over lunch spent discussing all things Bujinkan, Buddhism and people which I dare not mention here. I also shared these special times with a student of mine, David Rebiendt, who unexpectedly died this year.
Many aspects of this year's journeys have been a direct reflection of my SGI training. The reality is that because I have managed and minimized my own negativity and my tendency towards anti-cult thinking I have been able to truly tap this opportunity to learn from my teacher on a Buddhist level as well as a martial one.
I'm coming to understand the SGI in terms of the subjective vs. the objective. There's a lot that is "off" in SGI, but the frame work, the Buddhism, the guidance and the function of Pres. Ikeda is very genuine.
It's easy to criticize "embracing the heart of Ikeda sensei" if you are an anti-cultie, but when I think of my own capacity to be able to truly seek the heart and spirit of a teacher, and realize that it is something I learned from SGI, I know it is something true and important.
I believe it's possible to damage this capacity in our own heart if we're not careful how we handle our challenges in the SGI and in life in general This is how I now understand all that hype about "never slander the SGI".
It's real, not in the way the culties think it is, but it is real. There's a man out there named Daisaku Ikeda. I don't know him, I don't know what's in his heart. I occasionally read the guidance that is credited to him, and so exists the function of Ikeda sensei which is real to me now.
There's a feeling I have about wanting to understand all about someone else, someone who you know is truly your teacher. You know it's not just what they teach, rather what is in their heart that you need to seek .
This is the willingness to be a true disciple. I’m not the best student, of that I’m sure, but I’ve realized my capacity to be a sincere disciple.
My teacher has since returned to Japan leaving me so much more knowledgeable and connected to the Bujinkan on a level I could have never reached had he not come here. His appearance in my life and generosity are, to me personally, a mystical function of the universe in the most real sense.
There are people in SGI who - I imagine - feel that same way about Daisaku Ikeda. I don't, but that's ok. The most important thing in Buddhism is to develop the capacity to become a true disciple if the opportunity presents itself. One cannot be a master if they are not first a disciple. The world is littered with those who fancy themselves masters.
Only true disciples make someone a true master. He who claims his own mastership is nothing but a deluded fool.
There are Ninjas out there that know exactly what I am referring to.
Greg Dilley, Shidoshi
This last Labor day weekend I took the family to Camp Campbell, a YMCA camp in the California redwoods, for family camp. Each family stays in it’s own cabin and enjoys a variety of camp activities, including archery, arts and crafts and camp fires at night.
Among the traditional activities I enjoyed my own personal time practicing shurikenjutsu amongst the redwoods trees that offer friendly targets for my shuriken.....
Among the traditional activities I enjoyed my own personal time practicing shurikenjutsu amongst the redwoods trees that offer friendly targets for my shuriken. The shuriken widely used in my art are the Bo shuriken, or needle shuriken. They are fundamentally different from the star shuriken of the ninja movies. Star shuriken are easily thrown by anyone and not an effective weapon, used rather as a distraction by the historical ninja. Despite this fact California has chosen, by virtue of nothing more than fear response from ninja movies, to make the star shuriken a felony to possess. Contrast this to a misdemeanor charge for carrying a concealed firearm illegally and you have an idea of the legal climate of California. Please believe however that there was method to the madness of creating these laws.
As I was throwing bo shuriken into a redwood tree stump which rewarded me with a delightful “tock” sound when the shurkiken hit, a young teenage boy passed by. After passing his curiosity got the better of him and he wandered back cautiously to ask what it was that I was doing. I nonchalantly replied that I was throwing shurkiken and asked if he would like to try, extending to him three of the 9 shuriken in my hand.
He quickly replied “no” lowering his head and abruptly went on his way. It was obvious by his non-verbal communication that while curious and no matter how cool what I was doing was to him, that it would be considered bad behavior to do such a thing as throw shuriken. His conditioning, whether from his parents or school, was very effective indeed. Anything involving weapons must be bad.
What boy wouldn’t want to try something as cool as throw a shuriken? My 9 year old daughter can throw shuriken.
Warriorship in our society
Warriorship in our society has become schizophrenic. We, the enlightened faction of our society, have raced to castrate our young males against violence in our society, in essence sacrificing their ability to naturally learn to become self-sufficient for some lofty ideal. More often then not however the youngsters who are taught not to play with toy guns or engage in play which mimics violence are the very children who will later need those basic play-learned skills both to protect themselves and to survive as soldiers in a modern army very much concerned with foreign US interests. Military intervention has become as much a business in the US as microchips or agriculture. In the future virtually every young soldier can expect to see combat.
H. John Poole, in his book “A Tiger’s Way, A Private’s Best Chance for Survival” writes extensively about the modern Western soldiers basic lack of field skills. He graphically illustrates how the armies of all our historical enemies have practiced ninjutsu against us including finely honed field and survival skills. In contrast the modern Western soldier relies heavily on technology and advanced weaponry. Poole's point is that while we will continue to win the conflicts in which we are determined to win (a key point in itself) we will continue to lose the lives of many more young men then we would if our young men had been allowed to learn basic warriorship and survival as they once did in the early part of the 1900’s. Our modern military devotes neither the time nor money to teaching these skills.
It’s interesting to note two things; nearly every special forces soldier I have had contact with was once a Boy Scout, and most were Eagle Scouts. The second and less related fact is that once upon a time Camp Campbell itself had a rifle range. Can you imagine the controversy if the YMCA re-opened a range today with .22 caliber rifles for young people to learn how to shoot?
In the book “Warrior Dreams, Violence and Manhood in Post-Vietnam America” there are many important points made, including the ineffectiveness of gun control. However the most vital point that comes to mind is James William Gibson’s illustration that as factions in American society attempt to repress military culture in every way (including banning the sale of military clothing) this culture itself becomes more and more attractive throughout society. Much like human sexuality, militarism and the culture of violence, when repressed and made naughty, re-emerges in perverted and frightening ways such as the Columbine School murders to name only one of many. The gun has taken on magical and talismanic properties where it once was viewed as an important tool.
Warriorship is widely mistaken for violence. As a martial arts instructor I often am faced with parents who are turned off by the name “ninjutsu” and choose instead arts such as Tae Kwon Do for their children, an art which in application can be more of a liability then an asset - in my opinion. In a discussion recently with another woman Shidoshi a story was relayed to me of how she taught handgun skills at an Aikido seminar. Afterwards she received numerous complaints via e-mail and postal mail regarding the inappropriateness of guns in martial arts. She was very discouraged by this widely held belief that guns and shooting “are not martial arts”. On the other hand there are those who firmly believe that shooting straight is in reality the only true American martial art.
Parents are quick to choose martial arts schools which have been carefully marketed to emphasize first and foremost benefits such as character development, fitness, discipline before self-defense. For this reason it is universally understood throughout the Bujinkan that we Shidoshi will not get rich from our schools. We will never be marketable enough for that, and that’s ok.
N’Orlins and Katrina
I was glued to the TV for the first few days following the demise of Katrina and the appearance of the damage reeked from her visit. I recall initial reports stating “not the worst case scenario” but then quickly it became apparent that that was not accurate.
According to my recall it took only two days for the appearance of “armed bands of men” to begin roving the streets. This gang mentality would not have been prevented by the absence of firearms. These same bands could just as well taken shape with machetes, baseball bats or any combination of farm or construction tools.
Strange stories began to emerge about bullying and even rape inside the New Orleans Convention center. Thousands of survivors were virtually trapped inside, many or most without the ability to defend against bigger, stronger and certainly more aggressive males who had reverted quickly to primal behaviors of domination and exploitation. We now know that many police officers literally threw down their badges and walked off the job, and even committed suicide. Still other articles I have read reported that national guardsmen refused to allow survivors access to existing food supplies in shelters and themselves had formed temporary tribal units for the sole purpose of protection.
We here in the United States of America have been safe and comfortable for so long that we have largely forgotten the importance of the ability to self-protect or be self-reliant. We have not known open warfare on our soil since the 1800’s during our own Civil War. Other parts of the world have not known actual peace for much longer. It is the citizenry and not the Government that is attempting to outlaw private firearm ownership. This, I believe, is due to the illusion that if we give up this vital freedom we will receive peace and security in return.
There is no example of this sort of thing happening anywhere in the world at anytime. Freedoms lost are never replaced by anything of value.
Farther down the road it could be the outlawing of martial arts, knives, and swords, because the perverted effect of fear response knows no boundaries. Fear is a dangerous thing indeed with a life all it’s own.
Warriorship is vastly confused with fighting and the killing of an enemy. In reality warriorship is more accurately connected with the broad concept of self-reliance, the ability to protect oneself and others both in times of war and in times of crisis.
I fear less for my self. I am 45 and I hope will not live long enough to witness the appearance of the tyrannical Government against which our Constitution and Bill of Rights granted us protection both through the right to own firearms and the responsibility as Americans for its opposition.
There are many who cannot envision this sort of Government ever arising in the United States and yet our entire brief history is based on that very revolution. Throughout the world, wars, revolutions, coups and rebellions are taking place even as I write this blog. Why do we consider ourselves to be exempt?
It is my children, and their children for whom I fear. I fear for a future when Americans become unarmed and unempowered servants to yet another enslaving Government. If we look closely at what transpired in New Orleans we can see that human nature has not evolved at all in our brief appearance on this planet. We can revert to enemy tribes in the blink of an eye, or in this case, in the blink of the eye of the hurricane. Our technological and scientific advances have done little to make us the enlightened and erudite creatures we often fancy ourselves.
Why do most people feel safe from danger? Simply and solely because nothing truly dangerous has happened to them yet. This is the folly of youth and innocence. Nothing bad will happen, because nothing bad has happened yet.
This is self-defense by ignorance.
Evolve or perish.
Rev. Greg, Shidoshi
There is a story unfolding even as I type this...
New Orleans, the Convention Center.
It's not going to be a happy story, but it will tell more about who we are as a species then anything other thing that has happened in a long long time.
Rev. Greg, Shidoshi
update;
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5251105,00.html