I disagree but I'll leave it at that. Moderators delete my posts if you feel so inclined.
Dear Barrett
Have you read our website from beginning to end? Has "inferno" done so? There is TONS of information about our ryûha. And if "inferno" is so much into it, there is the hombu dôjô in Japan and the dôjô in Germany. In addition, there are as well two dôkôkai (one in Germany, one in Switzerland).
We do not engage in online tutoring.
BTW: No, we are not all in the quest for knowledge in this together. I am in the quest for knowledge in this together with my fellow members of the ryûha only.
Ryoma,
I will admit I did not read your website but that was never my point, to have the original OP just read your website and then be done with him. Being that I was unaware of the 'amount' (that you say) of information available to him, it was only the intention of my post to give you a different perspective, one I am of, in order to benefit Inferno. While you are in ''the quest of knowledge' for yourself and those of your ryûha', I differ on my perspective. I don't care what ryûha, or for that matter, ethnically, what sword art you study; if it's swords I am more than interested in learning, even broadly as Inferno is hoping to do so at this stage. Saying that, I would have no problem telling someone new what I knew regarding any sword art, at least in a little bit more information than your website does.
I have read your website and the Dave Lowry link. It was an informative read for both, although I find your website is not a TON of information or anything the OP specifically requested, hoping to learn of at least techniques on some superficial level.
Bottom line is we have different values. I'll respect how, by Dave Lowry's article, traditional ryûha's must be promulgated and leave it at that.
You are free to disagree. Wouldn't be much discussion if everyone agreed on everything. No need to delete your posts either. You made your point rather well I thought. However, seeing as how this is a forum dedicated to koryu bujutsu, it seemed evident to me that you weren't aware of how the koryu sword arts approached things so I thought I would clarify. It's definitely not to everybody's liking. The way I see it, you've got to have a screw or two loose to put in the effort and time required to practice a Japanese sword art.
Paul Smith
"Always keep the sharp side and the pointy end between you and your opponent"
Sharing knowledge is admirable, in some cases, not so much in others. Let me give an example: I am a member of an organization called The Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization. I'm ranked "4th Degree" -- the highest level in our organization. Being Catholic I have no problem sharing with any who ask what I understand of the tenets of my faith, both of Christianity in general and of Catholicism in particular. I also would share with them information about what we Knights do in service to the Church and to people around the world, our charities, how to join and where their nearest council or assembly could be found, etc. What I would NOT do is share details about our ceremonials and rituals; those are restricted to members of various "degrees," and details are not even shared within the organization except to members who have qualified in that particular degree. Our ceremonials are designed to teach certain lessons to the participants, and prior knowledge would change the individual's experience. It's not that the Knights is a secret society, it's that we're a society with secrets...what in the world of Japanese martial arts might be called okuden. We take an oath prior to being admitted for full membership that we will not divulge privileged information to others, and we take that oath VERY seriously. Many koryu bujutsu require similar oaths, for similar reasons, and so "telling someone new what I knew regarding any sword art" would be a most dishonorable thing to do for any who had taken such an oath.
To those outside the Knights, or those outside a ryuha, such secrecy may not make sense, or may even seem suspect and sinister, but those inside know that there are very good reasons for such practices. Once an "outsider" becomes an "insider," most go "Ah, so that's it! I understand now." That's quite a different experience than, "Yeah, I saw a You Tube video about that a couple of years ago. Meh."
Yours in Budo,
---Brian---
I really liked that post Brian. Thanks for making a suitable comparison... of course, now i want to know all the secret hiden techniques of the Knights of Columbus. Time to squeeze the last drop of information from Google. Then I can tell myself I "know" all I need to know about the Knights. Tomorrow I will be researching Zen, which I should finish by lunchtime, then on to Cosmology until teatime.
David Noble
Shorinji Kempo (1983 - 1988)
I'll think of a proper sig when I get a minute...
For now, I'm just waiting for the smack of the Bo against a hard wooden floor....
The only thing one can share in a forum like this is impressions, opinions, and textual knowledge. These have little or nothing to do with *actual* training, so I have always seen gabbing online about such stuff to be essentially harmless.
Barrett
In my view the "best" thing you can do is be honest with people.
You can think its harsh if you like but I agree with pgsmith, ken, ryoma, Brian, etc.
By showing inferno how to behave they are actually helping him.
In any case it always irks me when folks treat real, live, human beings like they were Wikipedia pages. Just sitting around waiting to answer whatever questions somebody might stumble in and ask.
Asking somebody "why" they are asking and what they are doing with the information seems, to me, a reasonable question.
Last edited by cxt; 16th September 2014 at 19:36.
Chris Thomas
"While people are entitled to their illusions, they are not entitled to a limitless enjoyment of them and they are not entitled to impose them upon others."
"Team Cynicism" MVP 2005-2006
Currently on "Injured/Reserve" list due to a scathing Sarcasm pile-up.
Your post is obviously tongue in cheek, but it serves to illustrate another problem with looking to the Internet and other "outside sources" for information: much of what one finds about the Knights of Columbus is wrong; sometimes deliberately so. Misinformation and disinformation abounds. So too for information about Japanese martial arts. Those who know don't tell, and those who tell don't know.
Yours in Budo,
---Brian---