Jo Instructional / Reference Books

[Amanda790]

I live in Upstate New York, and have relatively no instruction on jo, or jodo, past the beginner levels. I already own Dave Lowry's , Don Zier's, and Michael Finn's books. I am looking for a book, if there is one available, that has instruction from beginner to advanced levels including forms ( katas ) for jo training. I have heard of a book called," Jodo Koyhan" and one by Pasquel Kreiger called, " Jodo, The Way of the Stick". Both, especially the former, seem to be very comprehensive but I have been unable to locate a way to order either one if they exist anymore at all. Any books that you could suggest, and where to order them from will be greatly appreciated.

Desperate in New York

[Dave Lowry]

Dear Desperate,
As the author of one of the books you mentioned, an observation, one which will be made here by others as well, I’m betting.

You can’t learn aiki-jo or jodo or any other budo from a book. I sit surrounded by them, in English and Japanese and were it possible to learn substantially from them, there would be talk of meijin status for me. There is, to my knowledge, no such palaver.

Books—technical books—can provide a memory prompt for those already learning. They can serve as reminders or as different perspectives on material. But you cannot look at the illustrations in a book or read the instructions provided and then execute the techniques. You might acquire a superficial “look.” Even so, it is the difference between reading about how an apple tastes and actually taking a bite from a Granny Smith.

The genius of the traditional way of teaching budo is found, in some large degree, in the personal relationship one develops with a teacher. There are a thousand technical points he can make that are critical to your development and which no book, no matter how detailed, can provide. That isn’t the important part, however. The important part is the essence of the art, its feel, rhythms, and personality.

I wish it were not so. I’d be wealthy and skilled if I could write books that could teach and could learn from others by reading them. If you want to buy books, far be it from me to dissuade you. Just don’t do it, I’d suggest, with the notion they can replace or in any way at all approximate instruction from one qualified to teach.

Cordially,

[Diane Skoss]

Dear Desperate,

It all depends on what sort of jo you want to learn. The books you own deal with aiki-jo (actually, I can't recall what's in Finn's book--but it isn't advanced SMR; it may cover seiteigata); the books you're looking for deal with Shinto Muso-ryu. These are entirely independent and completely different animals.

There really aren't any good books on SMR and I most emphatically recommend that you not worry about books at all until after you've found an instructor. SMR jo can NOT be learned from books or videos.

There are instructors of SMR in both NYC and NJ; contact me privately for more information.

Krieger's book and the Jodo Kyohan are both notoriously difficult to find. I don't know of any copies floating around at the moment, but perhaps someone else on the board does.

Finally, E-Budo policy requires that all posters provide a full name. In future, we'd all appreciate your cooperation in this.

Hope this helps!

Diane Skoss

[David Russell]

Phil Relnick had some of Pascal Krieger's books.
His web site is:shinto-muso-ryu.org/

The book is excellant, but I agree with the others. It's a good supplement, but you won't learn the art from it.

David

[Diane Skoss]

Hi David,

My understanding is that the copies Phil Relnick has are not for general sale.

Does anyone know if Peter Boylan at Mugendo stock's Pascal's book? I seem to remember a cache turning up somewhere not so long ago, but don't recall the details (ah, the treacheries of age!).

Cheers!

Diane Skoss

[Jack B]

Amanda,

Lapses and current changes notwithstanding, Krieger sensei's book on Jodo is one of the better books written on a martial art. It covers Kihon as well as the Omote, Chudan and Ranai sets of the koryu system, then outlines the rest, with notes on seitei and copious history and philosophy of budo. It is out of print but I've seen it available sometimes.

The Jodo Kyohan, which got the belated approval of Shimizu sensei, covers the entire koryu system as done by Kaminoda sensei in Tokyo many years ago. There are many differences (or corrections) in what is taught today compared to what is shown in the book. Like Krieger's book it is a general reference, useful mainly if you do not have constant contact with your instructor. It is also out of print and there are no plans to republish it.

The Michael Finn book covers Kihon and Seiteigata, but not well. There are several outright errors (wrong pictures and descriptions) and it is of little use as a go-by. As Ms. Skoss pointed out, the other two books you mention are "aiki-jo" not jodo.

There is also "Kim's Little Book of Jodo" from Seitokai Press that covers Seitei as taught in the Canadian Kendo Federation. I have not seen it but there is a lot of history and an accompanying video. Mr. Taylor has supported the free flow of information about gendai and koryu arts. There is a proprietary situation however with some koryu, and training in these arts is not valid if not from a classically licensed instructor.

There are also several other sources for videos on the Kihon and Seitei (ZNKR, Panther, Fugakukai, Tozando), and a set by Matsui sensei from Tozando in Japan that covers most of the Koryu and is very expensive.

Your first step should be to contact an instructor, preferably by introduction. If you can't remember what your teacher taught well enough to practice it, you probably aren't ready for it. However, despite the fact that no book is ever as good as a teacher, some books are still good nonetheless. I dunno about the Granny Smith analogy... It's probably more similar to reading about winemaking and then trying to figure out how to make a Bordeaux. Even if you make something really good, it just won't have the same flavor as if you were apprenticed to a master vintner.

Jack B.
"Drinks Texas wines, but prefers Ch. Margaux, and won't touch Boone's Farm"

[Harold James]

Amanda 790

Everything everyone has said so far is ideal advice. Really, it is coming from the experts. You aren't going to learn anything of value from looking at a picture book.

But...

I know it's nice to have books. One thing I really like about Krieger Sensei's book is that he gives a pretty good explination of the philosophy (his take on it anyway and perhaps as he applies it to his life) of Shinto Muso Ryu and of what it is like to pursue a classical system.

If you want to look for Krieger Sensei's book, why don't you go to the FEJ website run by Krieger Sensei and ask if copies are available.

www.fej.ch

I have a copy of the Jodo Kyohan, and I feel I can say two things about it relevant to most people:

1. It's in Japanese, so if you don't read Japanese well, all you get is the pictures and none of the good stuff which is everything other than the pictures.

and

2. It was really expensive. Like several hundred dollars, and they are really hard to come by. If you just really have to have one, perhaps there is a person here in Tokyo who might be able to locate this book (and others of interest to all sorts of Budoka by the way). Contact me by private message if you would like some information on how to contact this person.

If you really want to get some experience in Jo, and SMR in particular and there is none in your area, your best bet is to travel to where it is. If you really want to learn it, than sometimes it's worth the sacrafice to drive several hours a week to get training under a qualified teacher.

In fact, the quality of your teacher makes all the difference in the world. Try it once and I don't think you'll be too interested in the books any longer!!!!!

BTW, no one else has said it yet and I'm in a bad mood this morning so I'll say it: If you have a bird cage at home that needs cleaning, I can't think of a better use for your copy of Mr. Finn's books.

Have a nice day.

[Mark Brecht]

Hmm, I agree with the previous posters, a book will never replace a teacher. The direct transmission by a qualified teacher is neccesary. However books are a good reference and they also do help to keep you motivated. We had before a few of the Jodo Kyohan, unfortunatly they are gone. However we have at least two other books on the subject that are readily available. One is I think by Takeshi (quiet a big book with nearly 300 pages, I am not sure if I recall the name correctly), the other one is smalller and by two authors whose names totatlly escape me... (8.15 am and no sleep last night). Hm, we also do carry the Shinden Muso Jojutsu Videos from BAB. I hope this helps.

[Jack B]

Originally posted by Mark Brecht
However we have at least two other books on the subject that are readily available. One is I think by Takeshi (quiet a big book with nearly 300 pages, I am not sure if I recall the name correctly), the other one is smalller and by two authors whose names totatlly escape me...
That's probably the Japanese language manual on ZNKR style Seitei by Hiroi sensei and Yoneno sensei (both 9 dan hanshi). I forgot about it.

Also Matsui sensei has a Japanese language manual on Seitei, and there are a couple of history books, one of which the IHS has translated into English.

Jack Bieler

[Mark Brecht]

We received several inquiries and requests for details on the books and videos in response to this thread. We put up a special thread in the JT forum. We hope this helps.

JODO: Books and Videos ! Matsui Kenji, Fujita Seiko, and other authors... (http://204.95.207.136/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6322)

[JamesF]

Hi,

The British Kendo Association had an english translation of the above.

Thry may still have some if you want to contact them (can't think of URL at the mo but a search will find it easy).

Thanks,

James.

[charlesl]

This is probably not so helpful, but...

I bought a copy sometime over the last year (jeez, you'd think I could remember a simple thing like when...) from Mikado Martial Arts and More out of Denmark if I remember. Their website was http://www.xs4all.nl/~mikado/ but it's been down for a while. It was right around $80 + about $12 for misc. postage, etc.

It was the only place I knew of that sold new copies. I also did some searching for used copies, and found a couple for sale over in Germany for around $50.

I like Kreiger's book, and sometimes find it pretty useful when I forget the specifics of a kata, though I think the way some of the kata and kihon were practiced then is not the same as they are practiced now.

-Charles Lockhart

[charlesl]

Oh, fyi, I found this link:

www.mikado.nl

Guess it's in the Netherlands.

-Charles Lockhart