|
About the Takeuchi-ryu, Page 1 |
Home
Takeuchi-ryu |
(Photo: Ono Yotaro, of the Choufukan Dojo in Kyoto, Japan.) The Takeuchi-ryu is considered among one of the oldest extant martial arts of Japan, and is often referred to as the "father" of Japanese grappling arts. In the following pages will be some information about the history, techniques, philosophy and organization of the Takeuchi-ryu.
The characters read (left to right): Takeuchi-ryu Kobudo.
We are not trying to be elitist or exclusive. But we are aware that there have been instances in which some unscrupulous people have appropriated names of different classical systems for their own greed, including that of this ryu. We strongly advise that anyone seeking to train in a classical martial art of Japan be sure that their instructors are honest and authentic. I (Wayne Muromoto) don't claim to be any great "master" of Takeuchi-ryu. Our club reflects my belief that I myself need to get better, and the way to do it is to constantly train myself with my fellow other students. My main teacher in the Takeuchi-ryu is Ono Yotaro, but I must also credit all my sempai (senior students) who were patient with my clumsy efforts, especially Kouno-san and Takagi-san, who currently have a branch dojo of the Chofukan and Kurashiki Dojo in Tokyo, Japan, where they instruct the Bitchu-den Takeuchi-ryu. Takagi-san's "real" profession is as a government official with the Ministry of Finances, while Kouno-san is employed by a bank. Classes in Takeuchi-ryu are led by me (Wayne Muromoto) and Rev. Clark Watanabe. I am currently an instructor at a local community college. Rev. Watanabe is an ordained Shingon Buddhist minister who received his training at Koyasan, Japan. In Utah, Anthony Abry is a jack-of-all trades, who breeds horses on his own farm, shoes horses, and does some day trading. My teacher, Ono Yotaro, is a landscape architect by trade who owns his own company and also lectures at a college. In Kurashiki, there is the Bitchu line Takeuchi-ryu master Nakayama sensei. There are also the honke and sodenke lines of the Takeuchi-ryu in Okayama Prefecture. We try to inculcate in our club the inquisitive and earnest atmosphere that we encountered at the Chofukan and Butokuden. We aren't interested in spreading our group thin, we don't want to proselytize like crazy, and we won't claim that we're better than any other style or system. We just want to study koryu budo in as clear-headed a manner as possible. If your art is fun and effective for you, then more power to you, as long as you are doing something authentic and healthful.
Some of the members of the Choufukan in June, 2003, when I visited the group. Second from left in the front row is Anna Seabourne, student from England. Second from right, front row, is Ono Yotaro sensei, and I am seated first on the right. |
1.
General Introduction to the Takeuchi-ryu
To date, there remains but a handful of Takeuchi-ryu (also
known as Takenouchi-ryu) dojo in Japan connected to the Bitchu-den, Honke
or Sodenke linse. The Seifukan is one of only three dojo currently
authorized to teach Takeuchi-ryu in the United States and Canada. The
other dojo is in Utah, and is run by fellow Takeuchi-ryu member Anthony
Abry, who like Wayne Muromoto limits his student numbers for the sake
of better quality training. Another dojo is in Canada. Their contact information
is in our