Historical The Quest List Post 90

From: Andrei
Subject: Re: RE: [The Quest List] Contribute to the FAQ
Date: 1999-04-06 21:05:00

> Thanks for the submissions. That first one is going to be a tough
> one to answer, but I think we can do it! :)

Personally, I never thought there was a difference! As far as I was aware,
the full (formal) name for Mr. Hayes' dojo was "Quest Center Bujinkan
Kasumi-An Kinryu Dojo". "To-Shin Do", for me at least, has always been a
personification of that kanji we all wear on our lapels. "To" for sword and
"Shin" for heart... "even though you hold a sword over my heart, I shall
prevail"... or, in other words, perseverance. Or, in written Japanese, "To"
over "Shin" gives you "Nin" (and I'm not referring to Trent Reznor's
industrial band here). Or, in more mediphoric terms, To-Shin Do, or the
path of the warrior heart. I never saw much difference between that and the
Bujinkan, which translates roughly as "place for training for the path of
the warrior's spirit". Many of the stories I have heard of training in the
"good old days" basically involved a mish-mash of techniques thrown at you
in no particular order, and you try to learn and retain as many as possible.
When the Sensei though you had suffered enough, or observed you doing
something exceptionally well, he/she would bestow the next belt rank upon
you. What Mr. Hayes did was went ahead and developed a structured
curriculum. The techniques presented are still the same, just in a more
logical order and with a structured testing system. I think the only ones
really distinguishing between Bujinkan and To-Shin Do are some of the
Bujinkan folks (and many of them lower-ranked Kyus at that); that "my art is
superior to your art" syndrome that the inexperienced are often prone to.
They forget that had it not been for Mr. Hayes, NONE of us would be able o
study this art in the first place. I've noticed that none of the "upper
echelon" practice this. Bud Maelstrom established one of the first
Bujinkans in the U.S. (and was once a student under Mr. Hayes himself), and
yet he's taking time out of his busy schedule with organizing the Tai Kai
and Hatsumi's U.S. visit to come out to our Quest Center in L.A. as a guest
instructor. I myself, a loyal Quest student under Matt Woodard, am flying
out to the Boston Bujinkan this weekend for the opportunity to train with
Mr. Hayes once more. Mark Davis, who runs that particular Bujinkan and is
putting the event on, is also a good friend of Mr. Woodard and trains with
him often. So, like I said, I've always thought of us as part of one
organization anyway. Those of us who are serious are here to study
Togakure-Ryu Ninpo, and not to engage in petty rivalries.

-- Andrei (Ju-Yon Kyu)
Westlake Quest Center
www.westlakequest.com

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