Genbukan Kageshin Dojo in West Virginia

The Genbukan Kageshin Dojo was established on 3/26/96 in Baltimore MD. Our Dojo is a temple for many systems of martial arts. It is a place in Japan where many traditions are studied under one roof. In the Genbukan Kageshin Dojo, you will be taught from family systems that date back to over 2300 years, and have just a few living grandmasters today. The Kageshin Dojo's head quarters is now based out of the Panhandle of West Virginia.

The style of martial art that you will be taught is officially called Ninpo. This is the mother of all systems taught in Japan today. Ninpo goes back over a two thousand years, one of it's famous systems was brought to Japan by a man named Ikai who was a warlord in the Su Chang province in China. Ikai escaped his death, and fled to the mountains of the Iga region where he began to teach the beginnings of what we know today as Ninpo, and has made the Iga area very famous for martial arts. Other terms you must understand are Bujutsu and Ninjutsu. These two terms are very closely related, but do have their differences. Bujutsu was a general system of combat studied by the Samurai. It contained information on unarmed fighting, Sword skills, wooden weapons, archery, horsemanship, small canons, rope tying, and strategy. With Ninjutsu the same things were learned almost exactly in the same manner, but with a more specialized application. Many things that were taught in Ninjutsu would be dishonorable to the Samurai. Some of these skills were Henso-jutsu the art of disguise, Inton Jutsu the art of stealth, Ho-jutsu the use of illusions, and the Ninja had there own family systems for fighting. This brings me to the explanation of Ninpo. Ninpo is a governing philosophy of thought and life. A Samurai would learn Bujutsu and maybe parts of Ninjutsu, but Ninpo was only taught to a few. This was passed down by word of mouth called Kuden. Ninpo combines the spiritual world and the physical realm into one complete being. From here you are able to see the past and predict the present, giving you the ability to understand the future. With Ninpo all your goals in life can be achieved, and you can truly find peace inside yourself and the world around you. So you can further understand this topic look at things this way. You will learn all of Bujutsu and Ninjutsu, and you will have Ninpo as your center and driving force. To understand Ninpo think of this famous phrase; The Samurai has come to fight and is prepared, but the Ninja has come to die, and therefore has nothing to fear. In conclusion, this martial art should not be called Bujutsu or Ninjutsu, but instead by it's spiritually significant name NINPO. In 2008 many branches of the Kageshin dojo opened. We have locations in Baltimore MD, The Panhandle of West Virginia, Hagerstown MD, Alexandria VA, Washington DC, Elkton MD, and Newark Deleware. All these schools are overseen by Robert Stevens Cheif Dojo Cho all the Kageshin schools. Sensei Stevens has been traijning in Ninpo since 1985. The Kageshin Dojo is connected to Kyoshi Gary Gamboi who is one of the top instructors for the Genbukan in the United States. Kyoshi Gary regularly teaches seminars on the East Coast and provides and tremendous amount of knowledge and talent to help all our schools continue to grow and develop. Sensei Stevens is personal student under Kyoshi Gary and helps organize events through out the year. For more information on Kyoshi Gary please visit his web site at http://www.genbukan.biz/.

"If the heart's eye comprehends,
And one catches the mystic sword,
One can control it like heaven"

Ninpo

Ninpo is a group of related martial traditions that have developed in Japan since the ancient period (before the 12th century), and that have been combined in the modern period under one comprehensive martial system. This system includes the eighteen martial skills (bugei juhappan) for the common bushi (warrior), and another group of eighteen unconventional types of martial skills (ninja juhakkei) for special warfare. These make up the foundation of the Genbukan. Another component of Ninpo, in addition to these thirty-six martial skills, is a unique world view, thought and philosophy, and esoteric practices. This world view emphasizes the defensive nature of Ninpo, and the need to have a compassionate heart.

The term "Ninpo". The term "Ninpo" is made of two characters. The first, "nin," literally means patience, perseverance, and stealth. The character itself is composed of two characters to have a blade placed over the heart/mind. There are a number of symbolic meanings to that. One, the blade forces the heart/mind to remain stealth in order to persevere. Another meaning is that the heart/mind should be as sharp and pure as the sword.

The second character, "ho," is philosophically more complicated thus more difficult to grasp, and has a strong Buddhist connotation. In modern Japanese this character is used for the word "law" (as in the legal system), but in the term "Ninpo" it takes on the Buddhist meaning of the universal Buddhist Law. In Sanskrit the word Dharma (Jp. Law) has a deep and complex meaning, but it essentially means factors of existence on one level, ultimate reality on another level, and the Buddhist doctrines and thought on yet another level. The result of combining it with the first character "nin" produces a term ("ninpo") that could be understood as the ultimate and eternal reality of perseverance and stealth. However, one should not rigidly define or interpret Ninpo in one way, rather understand the depth of it in its various meanings.

Ninjutsu. The term ninjutsu literally means skills of perseverance, and is an historical (vis a vis historiographical) term. In the 17th century ninjutsu records (Bansenshukai, Ninpiden and Shoninki), the authors extensively use the word ninjutsu to refer to their martial tradition. Historically, ninjutsu is a general term for a variety of martial skills that share a common characteristics. These characteristics include the people who nurtured and developed ninjutsu, the combination of conventional and unconventional fighting methods, and the period when ninjutsu was most widely used, among other .characteristics.

It is possible to divide ninjutsu to four fundamental categories: taijutsu (unarmed combat), ninki (weapons), heiho (strategy), and shugyo (religious practices). Taijutsu (lit. body skills) is unarmed fighting techniques divided into kosshijutsu, koppojutsu, dakentaijutsu, jutaijutsu, and taihenjutsu.

Ninjutsu weapons are rather numerous and include conventional weaponry such as short and long swords, naginata, and yari, among others. In addition, there is a large variety of unconventional weapons such as special bladed weapons, concealed weapons, collapsible ladders, floating devices, and many more. It is common among those who practice ninjutsu these days to think that in medieval Japan the goal was to master all aspects and all the techniques associated with ninjutsu. In fact, it was quite the contrary. The aim was at specialization rather than an overall mastership. It is important to remember that being born in medieval or early-modern Japan meant that one?s future depended on the family in which one was born to, especially if the family did not belong to the samurai class.

All these traditions are still alive, and still being taught in a very traditional manner under the control and guidence of a true Ninpo grandmaster. These scrolls of history still exsist and are still alive teaching us today. Many Martial Art systems teach kata and talk about the past. Thier past is actually dead or simply the past. many of the time honored traditions are lost. In the Genbukan it is the opposite. These scrolls continue to grow and continue to be passed down. We are part of it's history and we are it's future. It is truely an honor to be a student of the Genbukan and a priviledge to train under such a wonderful teacher. To find out more information about Grandmaster Shoto Tanemura and the Genbukan World Federation please visit his website at www.genbukan.org

On a more local level this site has been developed to help people who live in the Panhandle of West Virginia, and Western MD. Sensei Stevens has set up a dojo and is teaching Black Belts from around the country. He has also decided to open up a few days to show new students what the traditional arts of Ninpo are all about and give them a very good opportunity for a personal relationship and training in a very small enviroment as a personal student. People drive and fly from all over the county for his teachings, so this is a rare chance for individuals who want Traditional Japanese training connected directly to Japan and History. For more information about the training Sensei Stevens or any of the dojo's connected to him please contact: