Ninjutsu for begginers?

[Anvil Of Crom]

I'm a newbie to martial arts, always been interested in them. I've just started getting over a 3 month long illness which debilitated me and I want to take up a martial art to get myself moving again. In my local area I have a choice between Jeet Kune Do and Ninjutsu.

I want to know if Ninjutsu is a good option for a beginner? The dojo is run by a guy named Wayne Roy who apparently founded Ninjutsu in Australia and trained in Japan with Grandmaster Hatsumi in the 1980's so he sounds like the real deal. Has anyone heard of him before? Any information or advice would be appreciated.

here's a link to the website http://www.tesoma.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3&Itemid=3

 

[Supra Vijai]

Hi,

Yeah it's the real deal. I'm a student under Sensei's Roy's dojo in Melbourne. You may want to update your link as well. www.ninjutsuaustralia.com

Depends on what you're after really. Something more traditional I'd recommend Ninjutsu as it's quite rich in history etc.

Contact Chris Parker if you were after more information on these schools and other options (he's my instructor in Melbourne and an active poster on these forums)

 

[Anvil Of Crom]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I'm very interested in the historical aspect of the art which is another reason I'd pick Ninjutsu or other traditional art over Jeet Kune Do.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I'm very interested in the historical aspect of the art which is another reason I'd pick Ninjutsu or other traditional art over Jeet Kune Do.

No problems. To be honest I'm very biased though lol. I started training not really knowing what to expect and found it was nothing like I'd imagined. No costumes, no mystical finger seals, no hiding in trees throwing ninja stars but I fell in love with the art and 3 years on am starting to realise that I've barely begun to scratch the surface. Not to say JKD isn't good at what it is, it's just not Ninjutsu. Apples to Oranges really.

Where abouts are you located? If you are actually training with Sensei Roy, I'm jealous... I've trained with him about 3 times in the past 3 years (being on the opposite end of the country to him) and the guy is phenomenal.

To answer your question about beginners though, yeah like anything else they don't expect you to have a black belt in something before you train. Walk in, watch a class, try a class and see how you go. Go at your own pace and just have fun.

 

[Anvil Of Crom]

I'm in Sydney and I'm looking at attending a class in Cronulla under Sensei Justin Goodall.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Ahh nice. Well as I said contact the school directly or Chris Parker on here, go down and watch a class, ask any questions there and see if it's for you. Finding the "Right art" is only half of it. You also need to make sure the instructor/s is "right" for you.

We head over to Sydney sometimes for special seminars with Sensei Roy who makes the trip down from Brisbane so if you start training, we might run into each other All the best!

 

[Anvil Of Crom]

Thanks for the advice Vijai.

I'll go along to a class next week in Cronulla and check it out. I'm pretty sure Ninjutsu will be the right choice for me though. It seems like a very well rounded and practical martial art.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Supra actually, Vijai is my surname But you're most welcome. It is quite well rounded and as to the specifics of what you'll cover (both traditional weapons, and modern self defence) largely depends on your personal instructor so they will be the best person to speak to.

 

[Anvil Of Crom]

Sorry about that Supra.

 

[Kumori Ryu Ninja]

I agree with Supra on this one!!

You can take such a personal approach to Ninjutsu, The more you put into Ninjutsu the more you get in the end my friend.. The key is Endurance, and with the will power you've demonstrated with enduring illness you will for sure succeed in your Nin training!!

Blessings to you Uke!!

 

[Chris Parker]

Hi Anvil,

Each Ninjutsu organisation has it's own "flavour", so to speak, the way we approach the arts is rather different from the Bujinkan, for example. So if you have seen a number of You-Tube clips, you may get a different feeling from the classes themselves (hopefully a good one!). Justin Goodall is a very solid practitioner, I hope you enjoy the class.

 

[Tez3]

Totally off topic but as you are all Aussies I'd thought I'd ask! I'm assuming that you are all away from the floods? It says on the news they are really bad so was hoping you and yours are all okay.

 

[Supra Vijai]

Hey Tez, thanks for the concern Yeah we're tucked away down south so fairly safe over here. The worst we get is a lot of rain ruining a great day but that's normal Melbourne weather. The worst flooding at present seems to be up in the far north, with places like Brisbane having torrential rain but no floods. The weather down here is wacky at best though...

 

[Rayban]

Hi Anvil,

Welcome to MT and quite possibly Ninjutsu. I joined with Supra (3 years ago, Really?) and I haven't really wanted to do anything else but this. Its a good mix of classical teachings and how to handle yourself in street situations.

 

[alburyscott]

Thank you Tez, all pretty good here too (relativly south here too). Been fairly waterlogged, much worse than normal for this time of year, but not flooded!

 

[Indagator]

All the best on your journey, Anvil of Crom.

 

[DuskB4Dawn]

I train in jyuku tatsu ninjutsu founded by Wayne Roy in melbourne.
I have trained in other martial arts. and I can ninjutsu is definitely easier on the body.
there isn't any flashy high kick and stuff. its all about effective natural movement.

I think you will like jyuku tatsu ninjutsu. you will learn such a broad range of forms of martial arts. and plus the weapons and modern self defence. you usually dont find this in other martial arts. just usually specialising in one form of martial art you miss out on the rest.

Im very grateful of Wayne Roy and my sensei Chris Parker for making ninjutsu available to study in australia.

 

[ElfTengu]

In my local area I have a choice between Jeet Kune Do and Ninjutsu.

Do both. I do. Ninjutsu (BBT) on and off for 25 years, Jeet Kune Do for less than one year and I wish I had been doing the latter far longer as it allows me to put my taijutsu in perspective against other martial arts and fighting methods, which the general closed-shop approach of most taijutsu organisations does not permit, leaving people only able to fight against other people who have studied taijutsu, because they only deal with taijutsu attacks in their kata and most of the variations.

It is easy to find someone from MMA who will permit you to break all the rules in order to spar/fight them and you will still lose.

It is easy to find an iaidoka or kendoka to test your mutodori against and you will lose.

It is easy to get into a Dog Brothers style stick fighting contest with a hanbo, jo or bo and you will lose. They will also be happy for you to break the rules but you will still lose.

But cross train in modern martial arts like JKD, BJJ and MMA, lightning fast swords styles like Katori Shinto Ryu, and full contact stickfighting styles like escrima, as well as 'ninjutsu' and you will be training according to Sun Tzu, knowing your enemy as well as you know yourself, in order to defeat them, and apparently Sun Tzu was instrumental in the creation of the ninja, so he knows what he is talking about.

Ninjutsu's/taijutsu's greatest strength is in its nastier methods, escalating the level of violence in order to prevail, usually by means of an ingenious tool or deceptive weapon, such a gun hidden in a fake sword to beat a fast draw swordsman, or shuko claws to defeat a grappler. But not only will you not be carrying any of these highly illegal items in public, but even shuko will not be much good against an MMAist if they punch your lights out or snap your arm before you get a chance to use them, plus we are regularly told that we should not hurt people if possible, even if they mean us harm, which is not easy if we have to resort to such extreme means to guarantee that we win. Which means using non-injurious grappling and striking which all these modern and sports-oriented martial artists are going to be much much much better at, because this is not only how they train ALL the time, but is also their primary objective.

Our art is a bit like having a gun but only being allowed to use it as a hammer to hit people on the toes with!

 

[Bruno@MT]

plus we are regularly told that we should not hurt people if possible, even if they mean us harm,

I don't disagree with the rest of your post, but the above is just not the right thing to teach imo. Don't fight unless it is absolutely necessary. So when you have to fight, the violence is warranted. Worrying too much about not hurting the other guy too bad is going to work against you.

I am not talking about a drunk friend attacking you, but someone who is really intent on hurting you or worse.

 

[Chris Parker]

Do both. I do. Ninjutsu (BBT) on and off for 25 years, Jeet Kune Do for less than one year and I wish I had been doing the latter far longer as it allows me to put my taijutsu in perspective against other martial arts and fighting methods, which the general closed-shop approach of most taijutsu organisations does not permit, leaving people only able to fight against other people who have studied taijutsu, because they only deal with taijutsu attacks in their kata and most of the variations.

It is easy to find someone from MMA who will permit you to break all the rules in order to spar/fight them and you will still lose.

It is easy to find an iaidoka or kendoka to test your mutodori against and you will lose.

It is easy to get into a Dog Brothers style stick fighting contest with a hanbo, jo or bo and you will lose. They will also be happy for you to break the rules but you will still lose.

But cross train in modern martial arts like JKD, BJJ and MMA, lightning fast swords styles like Katori Shinto Ryu, and full contact stickfighting styles like escrima, as well as 'ninjutsu' and you will be training according to Sun Tzu, knowing your enemy as well as you know yourself, in order to defeat them, and apparently Sun Tzu was instrumental in the creation of the ninja, so he knows what he is talking about.

Ninjutsu's/taijutsu's greatest strength is in its nastier methods, escalating the level of violence in order to prevail, usually by means of an ingenious tool or deceptive weapon, such a gun hidden in a fake sword to beat a fast draw swordsman, or shuko claws to defeat a grappler. But not only will you not be carrying any of these highly illegal items in public, but even shuko will not be much good against an MMAist if they punch your lights out or snap your arm before you get a chance to use them, plus we are regularly told that we should not hurt people if possible, even if they mean us harm, which is not easy if we have to resort to such extreme means to guarantee that we win. Which means using non-injurious grappling and striking which all these modern and sports-oriented martial artists are going to be much much much better at, because this is not only how they train ALL the time, but is also their primary objective.

Our art is a bit like having a gun but only being allowed to use it as a hammer to hit people on the toes with!

While I'm not going to say don't do both, I'd personally advise more checking both out and seeing which one suits you more right now. As I've said, the way we teach is not the same as a more "standard" Bujinkan school, and trying to do two different systems, particularly as a beginner, is rife with issues. The biggest, of course, being that the two different systems and instructors can give conflicting ideas and concepts, and it can be very difficult for someone with little experience to differentiate between them to understand why the two approaches exist (which is essential if you're going to train in more than one system, I feel).

I would suggest that, although you may wish you had started JKD much earlier, if you had (especially if you had started both together) then you wouldn't be able to get the benefits to the degree that you have here. Really, though, these are two generalist systems, which, to a great degree, can be a little counter-productive to train both in. I'd probably suggest that the Budo Taijutsu is your primary art, and if pressed that is what will come out, and the JKD has helped solidify that for you with it's drilling methods and approach. And that only happens when solid experience is gained in a system first.

If both systems are trained from the get-go, the most typical thing that will happen is one will slide, and in the end only one will be trained anyway.