Components of Bujutsu

I have thinking recently that there are many components that I need to work on in bujutsu. First there is posture; how I align my body with gravity and increase the efficiency which I can load weight into my body. This is part alone is a massive undertaking.
Then there is what I would call how to bridge and interact with your opponent. Bridging is involved in free grappling standing and ground as well as striking. This is the ability to engage your opponent in a bujutsu way! In striking it means not telegraphing, moving smoothly between contact and striking, keeping the energy of movement smooth and constant as you generate strike after strike. Keeping the energy flowing so that you don't get tired and keep using your body movement efficiently to generate strikes. In grappling or standing free I need to learn how to contact my opponent without them knowing where I am going to generate power from and when. Then I have to have smooth and constant movement when I initiate my move so that the opponent doesn't react until it's too late. I have to make sure that each of component parts taking part in the movement move evenly with the equal same amount of power used by each part without one part overpowering the other parts.
Finally there is the mental/mind part and the spirit part and the heart of bujutsu. I need to be calm, flexible and able to adjust to any situation I find myself in. It is easier to keep your posture and connection inan controlled environment, but then if you throw a live opponent into the mix you have a altogether situation. How to keep calm and act objectively. I have fought in many competition fights and it is hard to keep the objectivity which is so essential to bujutsu. Trust me many people think they can do this and that, but when the reality of a aggressive opponent faces you then each and everyone of is has to ask ourselves some serious questions.
This brings me onto the spirit!!!
I need the spirit for the fight, that never quit attitude, with a calm objective mind, the passion and heat and the cold objective mind must co-exist in the spirit for true Bujutsu to materialise.
From True Bujutsu I must also have a kind open and loving heart. The biggest battles are fought with myself not with any opponents. That is the true value of training and bujutsu the development of my heart - which I must make bigger, more open and more compassionate. I think this is the true gift of bujutsu and the true key to bujutsu.

Monk Shidejian

I have been training regularly everyday now since around the 20th of December and I have made some improvements and feel much happier about my training and the reasons for my training. I realised I was training and trying to get better and learn Jutsu for all the wrong reasons. I wanted to be strong, for people to talk about me and say how amazing I was.....

It all changed for me when I watched a documentary about a shaolin monk called Shidejian who trains at a mountaintop monastery with a small number of students and teaches Chanwuyi, which is zen, martial arts and medicine. His martial arts style is called xingyiba and is mostly an internal style and relies on everyday activity to train structure and connectivity and whole body power.
Something about him struck me as being very different, happy, peaceful and pure. He mentioned that his teacher told him that in order to learn martial arts he must first learn to be a good person. Then he can learn martial arts and then if he becomes good he can learn the medicine and help people. I could talk about this guy all day long..... He trains very purely and heals the people he can for free very selflessly.
One thing struck me that made a difference to my outlook on my training. He said martial arts are not to show off, see who is strongest or to hurt anyone. Martial arts are a way to discipline and train yourself to be a better more peaceful person, it's never been about fighting. I have heard this many times, but for some reason for me it never rung true because it when it was said it never sounded sincere just said because it was the thing to be said. But I could tell when Shidejian said it and by the way he lives and train a that he means it.... I then remember that Akuzawa sensei also said the same thing many years ago. He said it's not and has never been about who is stronger or weaker, it's about your spirit.... How has your spirit developed. Shidejian also said that the training makes you healthy and enjoy life.

So to get to the point this is how I am now approaching my training, with an easy going relaxed mindset, enjoying it whilst still training hard and not being focused on being the toughest man in the world. And low and behold I have now made my biggest connections and understandings in all my 7 years of training. I cannot wait to train everyday and feel my body is coming together as a unit and my mind it more peaceful when I train. I am enjoying so much.
I would highly recommend watching Shidejian on YouTube, he is a very inspiring man.....