1556431570

Path Notes
of an American
Ninja Master
by
Glenn J. Morris, Ph.D.,
D.Sc., Oshihan
Shidoshi in Togakure Ryu Bujinkan Ninpo
North Atlantic Books

Berkeley, California
Path Notes of an American Ni n j a Master
Copyright © 1993 Glenn J . Morris, Ph.D. All rights reserved. No part of
this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, or any infor-
mation storage or retrieval system, without written permission of the
publisher. Printed in the United States of America.
Published by
North Atlantic Books
P.O. Box 12327
Berkeley, California 94712
Cover and book design by Paula Morrison
Typeset by Catherine Campaigne
Path Notes Notes American Ninja Master is sponsored by The Society for
the Study of Native Arts and Sciences, a nonprofit educational corporation
w h o s e goals are to develop an cducntional and cross-cultural perspec-
tive linking various scientific, social and artistic helds; to nurture a holis-
tic view of arts, sciences, humanities, and healing; and to and
distribute literature on the relationship of mind, body and nature.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Morris, Glenn, 1944-
Pathnotes of an American ninja master Glenn Morris
p. cm.
Includcs bibliographical references.
ISBN 1-55643-157-0
1. Ch'i kung. I. Title.
RA781.8.M67 1993
796.8'15-dc20 93-8031
CIP
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .x
Introduction to Enlightenment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xii
Chapter One: A Brief History of Ninjutsu,
Ancient and Modern. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter Two: Chi Kung and Kundalini:
The Real Secret of the Masters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Chapter Three: The Kundalini Experience. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 9
Chapter Four: Traditional Relationships and Teaching in
Esoteric Martial Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5
Chapter Five: Meditations for Becoming Enlightened. . . . . . . . 57

Chapter Six: The Godan or Master's Test for a Ninja . . . . . . . . . 8 7
Chapter Seven: Portrait of the Artist as a Grandmaster. . . . . . . 97
Chapter Eight: Seeing and Feeling the Aura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Chapter Nine: Healing.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Chapter Ten: Teaching Esoteric Strategy at the College Level
or The Founding of an American Ryu t o Compete with
Ninjutsu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129
Chapter Eleven: Exchanges with Interesting People . . . . . . . . 139
Chapter Twelve: Screwing U p . . .Higher Sexual Practice. . . . . 155
Chapter Thirteen: Mirror, Mirror.. .Seeing Through a Glass
Darkly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173
Chapter Fourteen: Dreams and Dreamers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183
Chapter Fifteen: Magic, Crystals, Talismans, and Swords . . . . 195
Chapter Sixteen: Spirits ...

Things that Go Bump in the Night . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .201
Chapter Seventeen: The Spider Prince . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .215
Chapter Eighteen: Spirits . ..In Vino Veritas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .227
Chapter Nineteen: Strategies for a New Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Chapter Twenty: What Good Is Enlightenment? . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Annotated Bibliography for the Inner Adventurer . . . . . . . . . .253

Acknowledgments
This book is for my parents, my wives, and their children who

became my own. It is for Linda who sent me away to follow my
heart's desire and welcomed me home when I'd achieved a goal
few would seek and fewer understand. It is dedicated to my stu-
dents and friends who struggled with me as we all learned "the
ways of strategy," and to those whose particular need for trans-
formation draws them to the life-giving sword inherent in the
highest levels of mastery in the martial arts, may they continue to
fear no evil.
I would like to thank the following master teachers of Togakure
Ryu Ninpo for their toleration of my eccentricities and for allow-
ing me to become a part of their dream: Masaaki Hatsumi-Soke,
thirty-fourth linear grandmaster of the Togakure Ryu, who brought
the ninja out of the dark and took the risk of teaching gaijin
(round-eyed devils); Stephen Hayes, who started the Ninja Boom
in the United States; Bud and Bonnie Malmstrom, who are living
examples of the loving heart; Kevin Millis of Shibu West who
sometimes shares his life and perspective; the Japanese shihan,
Seno-san and Kan-san, for their continual sacrifice of their bodies
in endless years of demos; Shiraishi-sensei and Ishizuka-sensei,
for their lessons and hospitality when I was in their homes, train-
ing, or partying with them; Larry Turner and Greg Kowalski, who
shared their expertise with me, and all the others who had the
courage to look behind the propaganda, go to Japan, and become
teachers of Bujinkan.
Other enlightened martial artists who contributed to my devel-
opment include Shichidan Sherman Harrill of Carson City, Iowa,
who is a magnificent teacher of Isshinryu Karate, and Leo Sebregst,
who heads the Wu Shu Association of South Africa and whose
teachings are available to all races in the city of Johannesburg.
vii
PATH NOTES OF AN AMERICAN NINJA MASTER
John Yono, a boxer living in Livonia, Michigan, has provided

interesting insights from a totally self-taught, no-respect-for-the-
loser, Middle Eastern perspective.
Alternative medical systems have also played a necessary and
positive role. The Chinese National Institute of Chi Kung in Moul-
ton, Alabama, has a very good correspondence course for the devel-
opment of chi (bioelectrical energy or subtle energy). Mantak Chia
and Steven Chang have written extremely valuable works for those
interested in working with their bodies' electrical systems.
Psychologists and healers who have chosen to be part of the
Midwest Association of Humanistic Psychology have shared their
knowledge and skills with me over the last ten years and provid-
ed a wonderful sounding board as well as confirmation that some
of the rather strange phenomena I experienced were felt by others.
Were it not for annual conventions where I could observe Trager
enthusiasts, Reiki workers, and meditators of various ilk, as well as
get on their tables, I feel I might have lost my sanity. Cynthia
Raczko of Ann Arbor; Ilana Rubenfeld of Rubenfeld Synergy; Lisi
Graves of Charlestown, Indiana; Treesa Weaver of Hillsdale, Michi-
gan; and M. Cohen-Nehemia, founder of the Mitzvah Technique
of Toronto, Canada, have wonderful skills in bodywork.
Denise Hillyard taught me many things about friendship across
generations, and without the computer knowledge of Denise's
Envoi Design in Cincinnati I'd never have been able to pull off
this book. Dan Vettes at Jackson Commiunily College MacLab
helped me set up the book one frustrating afternoon.
Steve Noonkesser, Campbell Walker, Randall Reising, Cortney
Strother, Toffesse Alemu, Suzanne Carlson, Kevin Brown. Skip
Lepire, Rick Pinter, Karim abu Shakra of Jordan, Ted Consengco,
Andy Tucker, Rick Groves, Dr. Richard Grant, L. J. Lavene, Shawn
Phillips, Jaime Lombard, and Blake Poindexter all achieved the
rank of shodan (first degree black belt) or higher in my self-pro-
tection course, hoshinjutsu (weapon heart skills) while complet-
ing their bachelor's degrees. They suffered my abuse, became my
friends, and taught me what they wanted to learn. Each made
major contributions to my thinking and continually amazed me in
viii
terms of what young human beings can accomplish when their
minds are set free. The new generation free from Hillsdale Col-
lege's PC conservalism-Dr. Kobert Simpson, Todd Smith, Bill
Kesterson, Michael Cornelius, Bill Killgallon, Tom Van Auken,
Chris Cornelius, Mark Rubinson, and Bret Talbot-are every bit
as interesting to observe and much easier to teach as they find
their piece of the path.
As to whether I have any writing skills, 1'11 allow the reader to
make that judgment. I've a background i n poetry which has
allowed me to earn extra income as a designer of psychometric
instruments and simulation games for heuristic purposes. My edi-
tors at North Atlantic Books, Kathy Glass and Sal G lynn, have
been very helpful in correcting my failings and excesses. This is my
first attempt at a complete work in easily readable prose. I have co-
authored some textbooks, so my style leaves much to be desired.
I am particularly indebted to Ms. Glass, who shows remarkable
depth, humor, and insight.
Foreword
D r. Morris and I met through the practice of Budo. Over the

years, practicing together we have become close friends,
which pleases me greatly. Dr. Morris has learned the Ninja way
through observation and perceptive insight as he does not speak
or read Japanese. He was able through his powers of empathy and
observation to absorb and appreciate my natural behavior. In
return, I have learned from observing his sharing way the appli-
cation of American philosophy, psychology, and strategy.
No one can make conclusions about another's (or their own)
actions. For example, logical actions may be effective, but there are
times when drastic changes to the illogical add interest to one's life.
Common sense is at times completely senseless.
What I have learned from Professor Morris's perspective is that
the questing spirit (heart) when presented with illusory pathways
will choose which path of many to take that leads to the one,
and for this I am thankful. The behavior of the searcher or shugyo
sha is one of total absorption and endurance. What follows is the
devastation of one's own self, and in time the erasure of one's
existence. This death is not the end but the start of the next spir-
itual phase-such as Jesus Christ showed in his resurrection.
The death of the socially learned self is the spiritual enlight-
enment or satori of Eastern beliefs. The business of the samurai
is to die, but one reply of the samurai is to live on, renewed in
nature. This is what I have gratefully learned from Dr. Morris.
The death that I speak of is a phase in our lives. This learning
I have gained from my time with Busato Morris. By publishing
this book he is explaining the importance of life as well as how to
Foreword
hold on to the energy of Life Force for human happiness and a

natural, productive existence.
I hope that many people will read and gain from this book.
Masaaki Hatsumi, Bujin Tetsuzan: Soke, Bujinkan Ninpo
34th Grandmaster of Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu
Fourth year of Heisei, 9/30/92
Commentary
As usual I had three different translators work on Hatsumi's letter.
I wanted to be certain I approximated his meanings as each trans-
lator's version was slightly different. I perceive Masaaki Hatsumi to
be one of the great human beings in the world and his written
and spoken words are to be studied carefully. All the translators
complained about the difficulty of getting exact meaning from
his use of archaic and tricky language. All agreed that what is
above is close to the Japanese. I left in the Japanese term where I
knew of no English equivalent or the translators varied widely in
their interpretation. Once again I am indebted to Aikiko Tsao of
Hillsdale College, Jeff Bristow of Jackson Community College and
I
his living dictionary, an unnamed Japanese manager at CAMI
products in Parma, Michigan.
Introduction to Enlightenment
n the summer of 1985 I began a series of experiments on myself

I following ancient Chinese and Japanese practices concerning
the transformation of self. The result of this eclectic approach was
the awakening of the kundalini, a very pronounced change in
my perception, and a radical shift in physical health. Since the
events of '85, I've developed a strong interest in Chinese tradi-
tional medicine and transpersonal psychology, as these two dis-
ciplines seemed to contain the most useful descriptions of what
was / is happening to me as well as the best methods for protecting
my sanity. I might add that very little of what I read at that time
was particularly helpful, with the partial exception of Ken Wilber,
John White, some tantric texts from Tibet, and Patanjali. The
most useful information came from healers and martial artists.
Only the martial artists seemed to exhibit the powers I was having
to contend with and, depending on their degree of sophistica-
tion, had any understanding of the enormity of their gifts. As the
years have gone by I have noted that many martial artists search
for the esoteric in their art and find none. This book is meant to be
a guide for them as to well as create some spirited discussion
among the supposedly enlightened.
The lesser kan and l i (opening the first four chakras or learn-
ing to run the microcosmic orbit) have become very easy to repli-
cate in those who are willing to make the time to learn to breathe
properly, and the transition to Kundalini is becoming so smooth
that even the untrustworthy over-thirty crowd is going through it
without taking damage. (Hindu term for connecting your geni-
tals to your brain via the spinal column. The safer Chinese method
for making this same energy connection is called the greater kan and
li.) Just what implications the actualization of Western-educated

enlightened masters holds is yet to be seen. Even the Chinese could
not wish for more interesting times.
It is traditional for someone who is proposing a "way" t o
describe themselves or their lives so that followers may imitate
them. I see little value in that exercise beyond establishing one's cre-
dentials, as my experiences leave me to believe that a teacher can
only be a guide. If you're truly seeking enlightenment there comes
a point when no master or scripture can help you, as you are on
your own. However, as I work on this I will share whatever I feel is
relevant but include my mistakes as well. Sometimes they're pret-
ty funny but I expect you to make your own pratfalls. This is what
Musashi (Japan's sword saint who wrote The Book of Five Rings) and
others referred to when they declared they had no teachers.
You will have to find someone knowledgeable at some point to
test your experience. I like banging heads with good martial artists.
Adventure in the realm of Sun Tzu (ancient Chinese strategist who
is credited with writing The Art of War) and the intuitive psyche
through the purging fires of paranoia and other frightening and
possibly liberating states of consciousness necessary to achieving
flow in the martial arts isn't what most people are reaching for
when they elect to put on canvas pajamas. Humanists, Transper-
sonal, and possibly Jungian therapists study the branches of psy-
chology that are closest to dealing with the realities of the esoteric
martial arts, which include disciplining the shadow when on the
warrior path.
This book, following in the tradition started by Lao Tzu (pur-
ported author of The Way of Power or Tao Te Ching), is meant to be
a guide for your thinking and practice. I will offer suggestions
drawn from my own experience and that of my friends, and if
they make sense to you-go for it. I will include nothing that I've
not experienced myself. I will occasionally throw in a little code
work for those who like to laugh with delight when they catch a
riddle.
This book is structured according to the learning principles of
the Hoshinroshiryu, which means some parts are written in the
xiii
manner of a scroll. A scroll shows you the basic principles or for-

mulas but expects you to complete the information in ways that
work best for you. It is not a call for rote imitation. Each chapter
is a layer of learning that helps you to understand the next chap-
ter. The fundamentals are hardest and then by the time you're
into the latter chapters you have the vocabulary and perspective to
experiment with the meaning. I've attempted to illuminate the
general theory and then follow the theory with applications or
anecdotes that illustrate what has gone before. I am not going to
footnote a lot of the research, but if you chase down the books
offered in the bibliography you will be getting a graduate education
in energy work and strategy. When you read a scroll without expe-
riential knowledge of the subject matter, you will have difficulty
unless you have an experienced teacher. One approaches a scroll
from the viewpoint of a child-knowing nothing!
None of the chapters are truly meant to stand alone, but once
you've read through the whole book, I highly recommend you
try out some of the exercises with a good friend. You should not
expect high-level results until you have mastered the meditation
chapter and begun to develop your own source of internal chi. It
is also my expectation that you become involved with a somatic art
that will stretch you physically, as following the prescriptions in
this text will move you mentally and spiritually. This is a grim-
moire or cookbook for self-development. We begin by establishing
credibility for the skeptical.
My Ph.D. is in Communication and my Sc.D. is in Psychology.
I've worked most of my adult life as a teacher or consultant to
Fortune 200 companies as a humanistic or third force (Maslow as
opposed to Freud) psychologist. I've taught at major universities as
well as a small private college and am once again teaching at a
community college as well as accepting a dean's position with
Eurotechnical Research University in Hilo, Hawaii, in The School
of Polemikology. I've been married and divorced twice and raised
six wannabe successful step-children. I've achieved master-level
black belt rank in two esoteric martial arts (ninpo and chi kung)
and earned black belt rank equivalents in combatic jujitsu and
xiv
nei shen kung fu, as well as received honorary licenses in karate

and kenpo. The lessons of aging, parenting, and marriage are sim-
ilar but not equal to academic and martial ranks, as the standards
for personal and social acceptance are somewhat higher than bio-
logical ability. I served as a medic in the U. S. Army during the
Vietnam era but was fortunate enough to avoid the mass unit
combat, spending most of my tour in Germany with the Third
Infantry and then collecting my GI Bill. I've never been much of
an athlete but was and am a compulsive reader. When I was a
graduate teaching assistant at Penn State I was rated in the 98th
percentile of all teachers at that university, somewhat to the cha-
grin of my advisers who thought I was shell-shocked.
I've always been a popular professor due not so much to grad-
ing policies, but to the originality of my viewpoint and dedica-
tion to sharing myself with my students. My teaching style is
somewhat theatrical, as I've trained in theatre arts and believe a
skilled teacher should be at least as interesting as television or
why bother to have one. I strongly believe that education should
be experientially structured where possible and that someone
should only profess what they themselves have experienced. The
experience does not have to be positive.
As I approach my fiftieth birthday I find myself with a seventh
dan (black belt) ranking in Bujinkan (School of the Divine War
Spirits) Ninjutsu (Intentional Skills) Ninpo (The Way of Intention)
and the title of Shidoshi (master teaching license) , a sixth dan in
Nihon karate jujitsu, and the title Oshihan (major master) granted
by the Bunbu I-Chi Zendo Budo Bugei Remmei (the international
organization for preserving the best scholarship concerning Japan-
ese Zen traditions of conducting warfare or strategy), which is a bit
embarrassing and difficult to live up to as a teacher of funda-
mentals. My eclectic skills of creating an actual working path to
enlightenment (Hoshinroshiryu) have also been recognized by
the Dai Nippon Seibukan Remmei, Kokusai Budoin, and the Zen Koku-
sai Soke Budo Bugei Remmei (Japanese organizations for traditional
martial artists, of which I know little as ninjas are more secretive)
and elected membership in The World Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
I'm delighted to be part of a new college specifically created for

martial artists as dean of general academics for Eurotech's School
of Polemikology.
Enlightenment is a biological process which has intellectual con-

sequences. It can only be achieved through disciplining the body,
which allows for the resurrecting of the spirit. Resurrecting the
spirit means strengthening and entraining the body's electro-
chemical fields and hormonal systems normally thought of as the
parasympathetic nervous systems and gaining control over the
"flight/fight response.'' People familiar with esoteric or occult tra-
ditions may refer to this as opening and aligning the chakras, or if
you've read into Taoist medical practice, running the micro- and
macrocosmic orbits to "harmonize" the mind, spirit, and body.
Religious people may experience this as union with god as the
spirit gains ascendance. Yogis and ninjas both may refer to it as fol-
lowing the light, and Zen practitioners as following the breath.
I see enlightenment as a process of reeducating the mental
structures which support the ego (the learned self and particular-
ly the negative aspect sometimes referred to as the superego) to
allow the id-which is grown up and housebroken though some-
what childish to run the show. The result is not psychosis but
transcendence if the practitioner is altruistic, trusting, and impec-
cable (pursuing truth not perfection, not sinning, or missing the
goal) in his or her practice of intention. Once the process starts it
is almost impossible to stop, as it is a natural biological need to be
righteous. Once startled out of "business as usual" the subcon-
scious continuously seeks to awaken.
Behavior beyond the practice of meditation and integration
has little to do with the path. If the practitioners are happy,
relaxed, and confident they will follow their own path to enlight-
enment, which is also a peaceful heart. If not, they will follow
others and this external focus may result in dependence, addiction,
or paranoia depending on their chosen teacher. My basic posi-
tion is we are not to worship but to become. Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi
(thirty-fourth grandmaster of the Togakure Ryu) posits that the
xvi
ninja's primary responsibility is spiritual development and a deep

knowledge of all religions. I suggest a good course in cultural
I anthropology or comparative religion if you have only studied
your own, or if you're sensible enough to have a secular or tran-
scendent viewpoint, an examination of shamanistic practices
across cultures may benefit your appreciation of some of the more
esoteric aspects of ninpo.
As most of the techniques for spiritual development are drawn

from religion it is necessary to understand that human beings
and perhaps all living organisms are tripartite in that we all have
mind, body, and spirit. Religion lays claim to responsibility for
the spirit as science does for the mind and body. Religion is open
to the same criticism as Skinnerian psychology. The socially learned
self is shaped by the culture within which it is raised and thus
only experiences the reality that is accepted for its group. In a
modern industrial society consensus reality can be wildly com-
plex, difficult to learn, and impossible to assimilate at all levels.
Specialization and mastery are rewarded as they are replicable.
Generalization, abstraction, and intuition are recognized by the
wise, but as they are seen so rarely, may or may not be rewarded.
Intuition is often seen as female or left handed. In some cul-
tures, even today, left-handed children are allowed to die at birth
ensuring a more manageable left-brained population, which is
more amenable to extrinsic logic. Whereas the left-handed raised
in a right-handed world have to be more creative, ambidextrous,
and use more of their brains in order to survive. The left is con-
sidered female and clumsy in a right-handed world. Creativity is
seldom rewarded in traditional martial arts, which often slavishly
follow the example of their founder. The traditional ways are near-
ly all right-handed. Tantrism is sometimes referred to as the left-
handed way, as it forces one to transgress accepted social beliefs to
deepen one's experience of reality. Some aspects of ninjutsu are
influenced by tantrism.
In Western society higher IQs are associated with left-handed-
ness and myopia from reading. Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo,
xvii
and Picasso were lefties, as are many professional athletes, partic-

ularly in baseball. Spiritual death of the learned self is supposed to
come from the left. Death of the ego is necessary to true enlight-
enment. The death of the ego or male right frees the intuition or
the female left. Every enlightened martial artist that I've met has
been left- handed or ambidextrous. Androgyny and ambidexteri-
ty as well as gentility are related. Learning to use both sides of
your body opens areas of brain function, as it stimulates the ner-
vous system. As we learn best that which gives us pleasure, it is
important to choose a form of exercise which is perceived as plea-
surable fun for you. Natural, relaxed, efficient body movement is
essential to enlightenment as well as to developing the "chi" or
"ki" or "wa" or "spirit"(different names for living energy) necessary
for the siddhis (eight natural psychic abilities) or magic. Flexibili-
ty is also critical as "sound mind-sound body" can be jumped
to "flexible body-flexible mind."
Physical flexibility is required to avoid injury in the martial
arts and is emphasized in the more difficult softer arts such as tai
chi or taijutsu or yoga. These are particularly beneficial for prepar-
ing the body for the changes that will occur as the process of
enlightenment progresses. Rejuvenation of the endocrine system
results in change.
If you are right-handed, start doing things left-handed. If you
are a dedicated left-hander, start using your right. At every oppor-
tunity stretch and maneuver your spine and neck. Most of us
don't seem to realize our brain is part of our spine and as Voltaire
said, "only what we think we think with." The brain is part of
the central nervous system. It extends from the top of our heads to
the tip of our tails with less gross extensions to all extremities of
our bodies. In other words no mind/body dichotomy. Stretching,
dance, yoga, and shiatsu (massage techniques that affect the body's
bioelectrical systems) can all be important tools for disciplining the
body in a relaxed, pleasurable way.
An important point many seekers miss is that the more relaxed
you are, the more efficiently the spirit can move within the body.
Physical strength is nice but at a certain point muscularity gets in
xviii
the way of self -development. You may notice that none of the
godan and above in ninjutsu have the physical presence of an
Arnold Schwarzenegger or Jean-Claude Van Damme (famous
actors). If you are going to be a spy or gatherer of intelligence, an
outstanding build is too easily identified.
Internal exercises drawn from Chinese medicine to develop
healing energy are becoming better known in the West. Esoteric
yogas that teach the practitioner how to use the sacrum and skull
as pumps, the intestines as storage coils, and the blood, bones,
and meridians as conduits are more effective for developing real
power than lifting weights and have the additional benefit of acti-
vating the hormonal systems, which greatly slows the aging
process, hence the more reasonable claims for longevity or immor-
tality. This rejuvenation is best accomplished through active con-
trol of the breath. I've noticed that since going through the
kundalini I only take about four breaths a minute.
In the course of this book I will have to discuss religion, psy-
chology, meditation, physical practice, psychic phenomena, chan-
neling, teaching and learning theory and relate those to the martial
arts in general and to the study of ninpo in particular. People tell
me my viewpoint is not shared by many. There will be times when
what I discuss will contradict traditional practice, and some of
what I talk about can only be understood through experience. I
strongly recommend trying out the exercises from an attitude of no
expectations and then carefully monitor your progress with a
diary.
May I also state very clearly my goal was never to become a
ninja but to advance myself as a human being. Ninjutsu is one
of my hobbies, what I measure myself and my students against,
and it is probably the only surviving combat-oriented Mystery
School whose traditions have not been warped or lost because it's
still operating and transforming the dangerous into the beauti-
ful. Masaaki Hatsumi is a living buddha, gentleman, scholar, artist,
doctor, actor, enduring fighter, good friend, and a lot of fun. This
book is not about how to become a ninja, or a martial artist, but it
is about mastery of subtle differences, inner adventuring, and
xix
what that might mean for you as a human animal attempting to

become a complete human being by transcending your culture
and your animal self. Stephen Hayes asked me one time as we
were riding around in Japan what 1 thought of ninjutsu. My reply
was, "Ninjutsu is the most effective way of dealing with violent
paranoids that I've ever seen."
Learning ninjutsu has given me the opportunity to observe
what happens when other Westerners get sucked into real spiritual
training. Hatsumi-san is a living Buddha. The names of the nine
living traditions that are subsumed by ninpo and manifested in his
expression of Bujinkan Ninpo have names associated with Eastern
sorcery and mysticism. As the names of the schools (ryus) sug-
gest, these are not trivial subjects and there are parallels in West-
ern mysticism. A knowledge of esoteric terminology from tradi-
tional Chinese medicine might give you an indication that if you
are going to study in this graduate school . . . hang o n to your
hat, as the ride is going to get pretty interesting! (More about
these schools in the next chapter.) Many American ninjas have
only learned the Japanese sounds in naming these schools without
researching their meaning, as if pronunciation were more impor-
tant than understanding. They're the most fun to watch over time
as their terror becomes visible to the compassionate view of those
who have gone before them.
Ninpo is the equivalent of a graduate school for the person
who can only negotiate nonverbally with a terrorist. We forget
that historically the ninja warrior from the Togakure Ryu was
regarded as a sorcerer, and folklore associates them with ruling
over the tengu (demonic, raven-like spirits haunting the moun-
tains in Japan). There is a very real shamanistic core to Bujinkan
Ninpo that transcends ninjutsu.
Chapter One
A Brief History of Ninjutsu,

Ancient and Modern
T
OGAKURE R YU NINJUTSU was founded by Daisuke Togakure
after winding up on the losing side of a revolt against the
oppressive Heike regime in Japan some 800 years ago.
Daisuke Togakure was a noble with responsibilities to his people.
He could be considered a country samurai. He barely escaped with
his life. In Japan, the losers in a war against the state are supposed
to commit seppuku (ritual suicide). He didn't do that. He ran like a
woman back up the mountain into the forests to warn and hide his
children. He took what he learned from the awful experience of
watching most of his friends hunted down and slashed to pieces
and began a school that teaches how to survive against over-
whelming odds when every hand is turned against you and those
in positions of authority consider you to be cowardly, of the wrong
religion, and an impostor. The Japanese treat history with a revi-
sionist eye now and did in the past, too. The ninja ryus remained
underground for nearly a thousand years.
Hiding in the sewers can lead to associations with the rat, spider,
and night moves. In that time much knowledge was gained and
lost. The Koga ryus, which emphasized combatic training only,
had no spiritual component beyond Zen but were able to create
many interesting systems of defense and penetration and estab-
lished a reputation for teamwork and assassination. To the best of

my knowledge no Koga school still exists as an unbroken ryu, but
there are teachers who can share bits and pieces of their ancient
lore. 1 am told that members of the Koga ryus consider Masaaki
Hatsumi a traitor for teaching gaijin and revealing the secret train-
ing. This could be compared to Bruce Lee's revealing wu shu to
Westerners, but the order of revelation is cosmic in comparison.
The Togakure Ryu-according to my informant Hanshi Richard
Kim, something of a martial arts historian-broke away from the
Koga ryus to establish a school for enlightened warriors who oper-
ated as individuals practicing Ninpo (suffix designating a combat-
proven way to enlightenment with Chinese roots) over ninjutsu.
Takamatsu, the thirty-third grandmaster, was a spy in China for
the Japanese during World War II. He was president of the Japanese
Busen (professional scholars of the arts of war) in China and stud-
ied and demoed with many fine Chinese martial artists during the
years of Japan's brutal occupation. There are many harrowing tales
concerning his valor. Like many ancient samurai, when confront-
ed with the darker side of their quest he, too, became a Shingon
Buddhist priest in his later years. He was a family man and pro-
vided a good life for his spouse and daughter. Takamatsu's paintings
reveal a childlike sense of humor, and Hatsumi-san (suffix denoting
respectful friendship) describes him as a fiercely tender teacher.
The first task of the Togakure Ryu ninja is spiritual refinement
by whatever means necessary. For some facing their mirror is a
fearful nightmare. For others it is the Musubi (knot similar to the
Gordion that Alexander the Great cut with his mother's sword). It
is to be examined layer by layer, for it holds great treasures. It is
imaginatively similar in shape to the brain, but leaving the tail
hanging would give too great a clue to its nature for a riddle for the
not-too-bright, but gutsy. Interpreting legends often provides
interesting insights into our own lives, as evidenced by Joseph
Campbell's popularity among the spiritually misled.
Masaaki Hatsumi began sharing his expression of the complete
art of ninpo in the early seventies and has shared a body of knowl-
edge in Bujinkan that is unmatched in my experience (I have been
A Brief History of Ninjutsu, Ancient and Modern
involved with martial arts for thirty-seven years). Many people

regard ninjutsu with great suspicion, primarily because they have
been exposed to the viewpoint of the competition, or had the
sour experience of being taught by a psychopathic fraud. Ninpo is
a living art with an awe-inspiring reputation as a route to enlight-
enment as well as a system of self-protection par excellence. As I
was given a Shidoshi's license by Hatsumi-soke (suffix meaning
grandmaster), passed the sword test for fifth dan in 1990, and was
granted a nanaedan or shichidan's license (seventh) in 1992, you can
take my commentary with some degree of credibility.
There are other practitioners who have far greater taijutsu skills
than I and some who have studied years longer. But as a Ph.D.
and a psychologist focusing on the transpersonal who has been
through the greater kan and li or kundalini, my perspective may be
more objective than most, as I only consider ninjutsu my hobby
and Hatsumi-sensei (suffix indicating a teacher/student relationship)
my rather odd friend. As I do not take friendship lightly I feel no
guilt at turning my concentration toward him, as he has shared
much with his American students in a very honest and open man-
ner. He is very approachable but really expects you to learn his
language. He butchers English far better than I can even contem-
plate mangling Japanese. I think he spends a lot of time on his
riddles and koans. He does some things that make you think hard
for a long time.
Ninjas are emotional people with deep attachments. His Amer-
ican organization is growing through the skill of the Bujinkan
teachers, and the screening of the guard is becoming harder to
penetrate. Ninpo is far more challenging and interesting than
golf, bowling, tennis, or Vipassana meditation. It took me five
years to get from white belt to ninth kyu green belt-I already
had considerable experience in karate, jujitsu, kung fu, and Zen
meditation and was beginning to learn Tao Tien Chi Kung. I still
consider myself a beginner in ninpo after ten years. It is difficult to
give up wrong practice when you learned it young. However, the
tools I have taken from ninjutsu have bolstered my strengths and
provided time and distance for my weaknesses.
Taijutsu is the physical art associated with ninpo. Because its

roots are Chinese, real ninjutsu looks a great deal like the softer
Chinese martial arts performed with a more Japanese linear body
movement necessary to wearing armor. After thousands of years,
the art of taijutsu is, of course, thought of as Japanese. The low
stances and lunging body movements of the beginner are modified
with time and experience into much more subtle and hard-to-see
movements so that the seasoned veteran has exquisite balance
and power but in no way resembles a fighter. (Taking deep stances
and yelling "kiai" when you are in enemy territory is hardly a
sign of skilled intelligence.) You can see this by contrasting the
videos of Bussey's Warrior International with any of Hatsumi's
Quest videos or the videos available from Greg Kowalski of actual
ninja training in Japan by Hatsumi-soke and his Shihan (master
teachers who have experienced the lesser kan and li). Once you
have witnessed real Bujinkan Ninjutsu you are usually deeply
impressed by its flow and how much it does not look like Tae kwan
do, Okinawan karate as typically taught, aikido, or jujitsu but
does look like some of the combatic kung fu.
The flow of the art is unique and subtle. I might also add that
many of the moves are surprisingly funny and take advantage of
the more rigid styles' favorite attacks and ways of wearing armor
and weapons. The ninjas' traditional enemy was an arrogant, over-
bearing, well-fed and exercised, armor-clad, sword-bearing samu-
rai who was a product of one of the kenjutsu ryus. Techniques
that failed the test of actual application were not passed on, for tor-
ture, interrogation, and death greeted the inept, as the Togakure
Ryu intelligence gatherer worked alone under the sword of his
opponent. The gatherer of intelligence must serve at least two
masters well or his or her information will be tainted.
The katas (memorized forms) or Kihon Hoppo (basic moves) in
ninjutsu are quite short by Chinese standards (usually five moves)
but can be adapted to the eight directions and various weapons in
every case. Each of the nine ryus that Masaaki Hatsumi has brought
under the umbrella of Togakure Ryu Bujinkan Ninpo has its own
Kihon Hoppo variations which can keep the enthusiast busy and
A Brief History of Ninjutsu Ancient and Modern
happy for a very long time. There are some slight differences from
teacher to teacher as to what is considered a base of knowledge
worthy of reaching the next kyu or dan rank. The fundamentals
vary from year to year as your experience grows and in relation to
what point in the teaching cycle you entered the system. The
Israeli ranking system used throughout Canada is slightly different
from the Kasumi-An ranks used by Stephen Hayes's Nine Gates
or Shadows of Iga methods. Detroit Bujinkan-where I play most
often-draws its ranking system from tenth dan Daron Navon
(Israeli) as well as Greg Kowalski (seventh dan) and Larry Turner
(sixth dan) and is supervised by Shidoshi-ho Otto Cardew, a very
knowledgeable sandan (third-degree black belt).
With few exceptions ninjas wear traditional black dogi (can-
vas pajamas) and tabi (spit-toed, cloth boots with a thin, corru-
gated, flexible sole) while training. The hooded night suits
popularized by the theatre and media are usually not worn. Those
are actually the suits worn by prop managers in Japanese theatre
productions which convention renders invisible when they walk
onstage to move a prop. The belt system for adults consists of
white, nine kyus (pre-black belt ranks) of green, and ten dan
(degrees) of black. Fifth-degree black belt and above (master level
rank and a special certification for teaching, shidoshi) can only be
awarded by t h e Grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi in Bujinkan,
Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu. Grades of black belt are distinguished by
the chest patch, not belt stripes or color change. A master's patch
is red, with the kanji and perimeter surrounded by a white border.
A shihan's patch includes yellow and green to represent the open-
ing of the heart and solar plexus chakras.
All dan ranking diplomas i n Bujinkan are hand-brushed in
Japanese and have red seals stamped o n them identifying Hatsu-
mi as well as the particular ryus. The cover of this book is from
my godan license. As there are less than a hundred Americans
who have attained master ranking in Bujinkan Ninpo at this time,
most of the thousands of people who purport to teach tradition-
al ninjutsu are frauds of various stripe. You may take this book
along when you go shopping for a teacher.
Tannemura, who actually claims to be Takamatsu's successor, is

an interesting break-away from Hatsumi who was never able to
understand the spiritual side of ninpo. He claims to be the true
grandmaster of the Togakure Ryu but is given n o credence in
Japan. I have seen the scrolls of Takamatsu at the shidoshi training
in Japan and had Japanese friends read them to me while Hatsumi
looked on. A master passes his scroll to his successor so that his
exact thoughts will be preserved; there is also the transfer of spir-
it at death to be considered, and I have seen the spirit of Taka-
matsu-sensei in company with Hatsumi-soke. Time is of little
importance when expressing genius. Physical skill does not always
correspond to mental and seldom to spiritual.
At the end of this chapter I'll praise some teachers I admire,
and you can follow up as you like. The real thing is worth pur-
suing, and even a hobbyist can have a great time studying nin-
jutsu. The Warrior International Network (P.O. Box 30338,
Stockton, CA 95213) has recently published a directory for $5 of
quite a few legitimate teachers and enthusiasts listed by state. This
is a big country and the good teachers are thin on the ground.
Spellers, too, as you will see when you get to my entry.
Ninpo is a living art and that means the shidoshi-level teachers
are all artists of a very physical nature with their own creative
viewpoint being exercised to bring the traditional learnings of
the schools into alignment with their own personality and the
reality of our times. This means that dogi are sometimes replaced
with cammies when people are training in the woods or street
clothes when training in town. I have even seen the clever appli-
cation of camouflage to wetsuits for UDT work. I have seen people
do some very risky and stupid things thinking they were getting
real ninja training because weapons and cammies were involved.
The ninja usually trains outside a great deal of time under clement
and inclement weather conditions. Some of the most fun I've had
has been training with Shihan Kevin Millis (seventh dan) on the
beaches below Malibu as well as working on climbing techniques
in Joshua Tree. One learns the traditional weapons and tools and
then their modern adaptations and applications. It's fun to know
how to shoot a flintlock or even make one, but my military expe-

rience has taught me considerable respect for communication,
aviation, artillery, armor, and automatic weapons. Being invisi-
ble when the heavy-weapon folks are around is very useful. Sun
Tzu has some very interesting philosophical positions that are
well understood and brought to life in the practice of ninpo.
Training in a combat-oriented martial art is a gift that is meant
to save your life. It can be regarded as a means for taking the lives
of others but that is a perversion of the Way. Some people can
only see it in that perspective. I would not like to live in their
bodies nor share their poor blighted spirits. To quote Patton, "The
object of this battle is to let the other poor dumb son of a bitch die
for his country." A martial artist wants to live, not die glorious-
ly. Patton wouldn't even let his troops dig foxholes, as he con-
sidered them little graves. Movement was his forté. He taught the
Nazis blitzkrieg as a total concept; their racist stupidity would
never see a Red Ball Express run by a subject race. Training in an art
designated as a "jutsu" indicates the focus is on combat tech-
niques not sport. The knowledge passed on is to keep you alive
and well when others are attempting to kill you. Arts that have
a "po" suffix have ancient roots in China and usually a concealed
developmental component as well as combatic techniques. Arts
designated as "do" are supposed to be concerned with develop-
ing the self as well as providing a path to enlightenment. I cannot
think of any "do" which has not been perverted by sport in the
United States and know of no master living today who achieved
full enlightenment following the precepts of that suffix. You have
to observe closely.
A teacher provides the skills from his or her experience. The
student learns to apply the lessons from their viewpoint. A poor
teacher can only convey technique. A great teacher inspires desire
to learn with feelings, technique, and self-discovery. A learner
soon recognizes fear and hatred are a waste of time and spirit.
Only lovers achieve completeness. Love is a learned behavior that
is biologically motivated. It's easy to learn when you love what
you're doing. Commitment is not the same, but bears a close rela-
tionship. One is often preparation for the other. Teaching is often

erotic in nature when the student and teacher are deeply involved
in the subject matter. This is seldom discussed but certainly is
true. It is the major reason why so many professors marry their
graduate students or have affairs with them.
The traditional skills and eighteen levels of training for a nin-
ja are listed in Hatsumi's Ninjutsu: History and Tradition (Unique
Publications, 1981). Masaaki Hatsumi, Stephen Hayes, and Jack
Hoban have published a whole series of excellent books on nin-
jutsu with Contemporary Books. Hayes also published a good
series of five basic readers with Ohara that are collector's items
now but have just been reissued with gorgeous covers by Greg
Manchess. A careful examination of these works does not reveal the
unemotional, heartless assassin so often associated with ninjut-
su in the popular media by Ashida Kim, Frank Ducs, and Eric von
Lustbader, but an extremely well thought out defense system
stretching from the individual to the community, having med-
ical, intellectual, political, geographical, and social aspects of sur-
vival taken into consideration, particularly from the underdog's
viewpoint. The ninja spent a lot more time figuring out how to get
out of the ropes than how to tie someone up. (Now that I think
about it, I've only had classes in escaping in ninjutsu. You were
allowed to tie your own knots.) Kirtland C. Peterson's Mind of the
Ninja (Contemporary Books, 1986) gives an excellent analysis of
the omote (exterior) concepts and behavioral patterns of the nin-
ja as presented in modern society from a Western and Jungian
perspective.
Stephen Turnbull's recent book on ninjutsu completely gloss-
es over the fact that many of the old prints shown there refer to
the men and women identified as ninjas as royalty. His text goes
on to identify them as Chinese bandits and outlaws who followed
Sun Tzu. An extremely secondary-source viewpoint. It's like hav-
ing a lowbrow Japanese tell you what Koreans are like, or a Klans-
man describe Jews, or a practitioner of a sport-based martial art
with lots of rules give you an opinion of a combat-based art with
no rules. My father, who was a collegiate champion boxer and
wrestler, still contemptuously refers to my interests as "Oriental

Dirty Fighting." This is after nearly forty years, senility excused, and
what he thinks of as judo.
The classical ninja according to Hatsumi-and I have no reason
to doubt him as I've had some very interesting experiences hang-
ing out with the upper level ninji-was a mystic, and the Japanese
version is not very different from our Western version. The
Togakure ninja worked at developing a deep and accurate self-
knowledge, and from that mystical perspective of universality
granted by satori only engaged in combat when motivated by dis-
covery, love, or reverence. (Righteous warriors are to be greatly
feared, as we well know in the West, seeking always to have God
on our side.) Spiritual refinement was the primary skill for the
traditional ninja of the Togakure Ryu. Taijutsu or unarmed combat
skills involving striking, kicking, avoiding, blocking, grappling,
choking, and escaping the holds of others as well as leaping,
rolling, silent movement, and tumbling were secondary skills.
Tertiary knowledge of the sword and a whole slew of other skills,
like weapons and pharmacopoeia, continue the list. Like the Oki-
nawans, there were periods when the mountain people were not
allowed weapons or at least swords by their rulers. The ninja treat
weapons as tools for the most part, and the use and creation of
unorthodox and concealed weaponry is part of the training.
There's always some debate as to who are teachers of legiti-
mate ninjutsu. If your instructor is putting more emphasis on
teaching you how to capture somebody rather than how to get
away, I would suggest the lessons of warfare against the govern-
ment have not yet sunk in. Of course you have to know the former
to really accomplish the latter. If all he can do is tie them up then
your education is incomplete should you be captured or hunted.
Escaping is critical if you screwed up enough to be attacked or got
aggressive yourself. I throw that in for the handcuffs and feathers
crowd.
The old kanji in the names of the nine ryus have esoteric mean-
ings which were translated for me by Mark Lithgow, an English-
man and translator who lives in Noda City, Japan. He has been
a student of ninpo for many years and works often with Masaaki
Hatsumi as a translator. The esoteric titles are: The School of the
Hidden Door (or Mysterious Portal) ; School of the Jeweled Tiger;
The Immovable School Passed Down from the Gods; The Enlight-
ening School Wrested from the Nine Demon Gods; Tiger Felling
Dragon School; The School of the Hidden Cloud; The School of the
Jeweled Heart; Water and Mountain Spirit Rules; and The Takagi
Tree Felling School. Bujinkan can be translated as "The School of
the Divine Warriors," as well as "War Spirit Building." Shidoshi
can be translated as "Knight of the Four Ways," or 'Teacher of
the Ways of Life and Death." (As you may guess from the names,
this is not the equivalent of a Harvard MBA even for a Japanese.)
My translation of Mark's translation goes this way:
The Way of the Hidden Door. You have to go through the door
that is concealed to learn anything. That which conceals the door
is something we don't want t o look at. In Taoism the corre-
sponding school is called Mysterious Portal, and one of its mean-
ings is to use your rectum as an energy pump when you're moving
sexual energy up your spine. The Hindu correspondent has to do
with using chitta (living energy which can be directed by the
mind) to hide yourself or build a n energy tunnel toward your
goal with the a j n a (third eye/forehead chakra). The third eye is
considered a doorway to enlightenment. You can't see it until
you have it. Sometimes as it opens one experiences an interest-
ing form of tunnel vision that is like looking into a doorway into
another dimension, which it may be.
The Way of the Jeweled Tiger. Tiger refers to goddess or yin ener-
gy, which flows up the front of the body. When a person knows
how to see energy, the acupuncture or shiatsu points glow, as well
as the chakras, on a harmonized, powerful person and look like lit-
tle Christmas tree lights or jewels as the energy flows through,
sometimes also creating a striped effect along the meridians. There
is a method for striping your aura that works as camouflage at
night.
The Immovable School Passed Down from the Gods. This has to
do with the stilling of the mind. Once you have "killed your ego"
you have total control of your emotional states. You cannot be

swayed from your purposes. The preferred state is neutrality or
no desires-mushin or no-mind. The "way of death" is a little sex-
ual joke in both the samurai and ninja traditions and actually
refers to subduing the personality or learned self. Once you've
accomplished this you are considered a living buddha and able
to draw inspiration from those fierce enlightened ones who have
gone before you. In the West you might be considered a god of
rock and roll (Clapton).
The Water or Mountain Rules or Spirit Building School. Water is
another term for living energy, and the student of this school
seems to flow like water, as does the sexual energy and blood.
One of the monster dragons in Chinese lore has a bowl of water
balanced o n its head. Kappa (sprite/animal spirits that appear
almost human) in Japanese fairy tales were water gnomes who
had the power to knit bones and regrow tissue. Water is a code
word for chi, or in Japanese ki, or spirit. The name suggests flow or
movement with power. Rules imply danger. It might also be trans-
lated as Mountain Water. That analogy should be powerful and
clear. Mountain is a code term for yang sexual energy.
The Enlightening School Wrested from the Nine Demon Gods. I
love this name. It's rather like the seven deadly sins plus two.
Energy has to move up to the brain for enlightenment to take
place, a n d a n enlightened being should rule his or her own
demons as well as have understanding and compassion for the
foibles of others. I would expect a n emphasis o n opening the
chakras as well as controlling the emotions, with a rich smattering
of Machiavellian-like psychology. This school name reflects a yin
or darker curriculum. The ninja must understand both the positive
and negative aspects of power, where the so-called saint tries to
ignore the darker aspects of being human and sees martyrdom as
a worthy goal. Inner deities or chakras are sometimes considered
demons. Living energy can appear demonic or angelic. A demon
god is someone who rules demons.
Tiger Felling Dragon School. Yang energy or dragon energy is
considered male. This is a n exercise in male chauvinism. Yin is
considered female since it is attractive, whereas yang is repelling.

This school focuses on the subconscious subsuming the ego or
learned self. Learning to be soft and supple like a female. Learning
how to receive an attack and turn it to your own use. Learning
to use your left side. On another level it may mean the absorp-
tion of the sperm's energy for chi, resulting in the death of sexu-
al desire or the little swimmers' ability to go very far. This can be
considered too effective a means of birth control if you're interested
in having children. You might want to wait a while before study-
ing in this school. Conversely, some of the tantric techniques are
reputed to re-energize the sperm. Consult Mantak Chia's books
and/or Douglas and Slinger's Sexual Secrets (Aurora). Hatsumi's
war name of White Dragon connotes androgyny. There is a school
of kung fu named White Tiger Swallows Green Dragon, as well
as a very nasty women's school called Black Tiger.
The School of the Hidden Cloud. In the material world this could
be thought of as all the ninja's nifty blinders and powders, as well
as trickery and deceit to cloud the mind of an opponent. Because
the aura looks like a cloud around the individual, I suspect this
is where that knowledge finds its home.
The W a y of the Jeweled Heart. Opening of the heart chakra is
second only to the kundalini in the achievement of enlighten-
ment. In the West we say "follow your heart" when we advise
others to do their best in difficult situations. It is associated with
wind techniques in the Go Dai and the personality trait of benev-
olence or open acceptance. In Taoist esoteric yoga the heart is
connected to the tongue. When your heart is open it is very dif-
ficult to lie. Many wind techniques are specifically for receiving
your opponent's attack openly with benevolence so you can take
a prisoner or restrain a friend.
The Takagi Tree Felling School. Probably the most forthright in
terminology unless I've missed something. Trees are blown down
by the wind. Chi again. As one of my early senseis used to try to
tell me, "When the big wind comes, the mighty oak falls but the
willow bends with the breeze." I was eighteen and in the army.
My kindest thought was that Orientals are eccentric. Full-body
A Brief History of Ninjutsu Ancient and Modern
taijutsu uprooting movement probably comes out of here. In

Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai, one of the seven makes a joke about
this legendary school.
1 once had a long talk with a Japanese sociologist who was
amazed that I was studying real ninjutsu. When she looked at the
kanji (Japanese iconographs) on the diploma she said they were
very, very old, of a type not used in Japan for centuries. She also
said that Iga Province was where all the wild people were sent as
punishment during the Warring States Period. Since its moun-
tains are now a well-preserved ski area, the wild people are still
enjoying frightening the samurai flatlanders.
As a means of disguising from the enemy the real purpose of
these schools, under the discipline of kyojitsu (telling lies that
appear to be the truth), each mental and spiritual practice was
hidden within a physical or weapon technique. You can master the
physical techniques of ninjutsu without having a clue to the men-
tal disciplines. You can also learn the mental disciplines without
being shown the internal energy uses. You can't learn ninpo with-
out taijutsu, however.
For example, each of the kamae or fighting postures, which
are normally treated as end products of exemplary movement
when applying a technique or avoiding one, are also asanas or
yogic postures that if held and used for meditation greatly strength-
en the body and develop one's sense of balance far beyond normal
limits. The physical postures strengthen the spine and encourage
the body's electrical systems, while the rolling techniques add to
one's flexibility a n d mobility. When the physical posture is
enlivened by an attitude appropriate to that way of standing or
being we refer to it as flow or integration, which is often the com-
pelling effect of being completely natural. When done properly,
ninjutsu is totally based on natural, relaxed body movement flow-
ing from the subconscious mind without intellectual interven-
tion. In that, it is closely related to tai chi or nei shen kung Fu.
The use of the breath and energy is not discussed in ninjutsu in
my experience with the Japanese beyond a simple discussion of dif-
ferent kiai. That knowledge is only passed from grandmaster to
grandmaster. You may have noted reading Musashi that when he

really wants you to get studying he uses the disclaimer of "oral
tradition." However, any chi kung practitioner who has advanced
to the macrocosmic orbit will find taijutsu an excellent medium for
moving energy.
In the six years I've been observing him Hatsumi has only
slipped once and mentioned chi. He was showing a technique for
unbalancing someone wearing armor at the Atlanta Tai Kai in
1990 when he said "To make this work you must move your chi
down to your feet." It sent his uke (training partner who receives
and hopes to survive a training experience) sailing. The statement
was edited out of the video. Don't expect a ninja to teach you chi
kung. You are supposed to figure that part of the formula out
yourself by going into yourself. I asked Daron Navon (tenth dan)
about teaching some of this at a seminar; and he said it was too dif-
ficult. When I told Hatsumi I couldn't honestly teach ninjutsu
without teaching chi kung he replied by giving me a shidoshi
license. (In my opinion it is the only Way and I personally rec-
ommend the Chinese National Chi Kung Institute.) They had to
censor the hell out of this year's Tai Kai video, as Hatsumi-sensei
gave away secrets that most of us who were privileged to see will
have to work years to get down smoothly. I usually settle for the
pragmatic and have been accused of sacrificing green belts to
increase my knowledge of how to give pain. I'm a hobbyist and like
the short path.
The field of battle is outside the dojo. Only four people that I
know of have been killed outside the dojo in training accidents,
and I know of no one being permanently maimed or crippled by
a master instructor. You are not paying fees to be injured unless
that is the only way you will learn. There are many people who put
on fatigues or night suits and claim to teach authentic ninjutsu. I
was told by one fraud in Toledo, Ohio, that Steve Hayes had giv-
en him his red sash in Yin/Yang ninjutsu (my pregnant ass). Only
Hatsumi gives the sword test, and there are n o red sashes in
Togakure Ryu ninjutsu. Nor were there any Kasumi-An diplomas
or Bujinkan licenses in his dojo, just a lot of students being ripped
A Brief History of Ninjutsu Ancient and M o d e r n
off. I occasionally run into a young ninjutsu trainee in Chicago

bringing bad and acting macho with his tabi (funny feet for scuf-
flers) when I'm out partying. It's pretty obvious he has missed the
concept of humility and doesn't understand the true value and
danger of invisibility. He brags about his taijutsu and attempts to
frighten people. Eventually someone will shoot him. Most
Togakure Ryu dojo attempt to follow the tradition of providing
some guidance in etiquette, but many students in the U.S.A. have
little exposure to the practice of dangerous adult human beings
treating each other with respect.
Kevin Millis, who teaches out of Irvine, California, is a great
teacher and I recommend him highly for those who live on the
west coast. In the Northeast, Greg Kowalski in Wallingford, Con-
necticut, has taught me many things and I treasure his friend-
ship. Mark Davis in Boston runs a good school. The best bang for
your buck in the Midwest can be found near Ann Arbor. Shidoshi-
ho Otto Cardew supervises the U of M's as well as Schoolcraft Col-
lege's ninjutsu clubs and gives private lessons at his home dojo. I've
enjoyed Otto's rough-and-ready brand of taijutsu training for over
ten years. Larry Turner, out of Dayton Ohio, conducts excellent
seminars. Tucker, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, hosts Bud Malm-
strom, the highest-ranked American ninja, who has excellent
teaching skills and even a large children's contingent. Stephen
Hayes still teaches out of Germantown, Ohio. There are some very
good technicians in Texas, but I've never attended any of their
trainings, just seen them perform at Tai Kais.
If you are planning an adventure of going to Japan to train, I
would recommend traveling with Millis or Kowalski. If you want
to soak up the historical culture and see the sights, Stephen Hayes
leads some interesting tours. Toshiro Nogato teaches in Tokyo.
Tetsuji Ishizuka is in Kashiwa City and both speak English. I sent
my son-in-law to train with Ishizuka when he was stationed near
Tokyo with the U.S. Marines. You really should have an invita-
tion or escort before you impose yourself on Shiraishi-sensei or
Masaaki Hatsumi-soke in Noda City. I've seen visiting martial
artists show up uninvited in Noda and expect to be provided for as
if they were visiting V.1.P.s. Only ninja kindness kept them from
suffering for their foolishness. In the next chapter I discuss chi
kung from a martial arts perspective and relate that to t h e
kundalini.
Chapter Two
Chi Kung and Kundalini:

The Real Secret of The Masters
w ORTHWHILE MARTIAL ARTS have a basis in meditation and

chi kung. Usually the secrets of chi are not passed down
until the student has spent long years proving his or
her worthiness of the gift. There are many techniques for trans-
mission and generation of chi but all require a master-student
relationship unless you are inclined to intense self-study. Self-
study is the source of unique gifts and often requires conquering
your greatest fears. According to Sun Tzu, self-adventure also
results in the greatest powers. Only time will tell, but there are
probably more accomplished people doing esoteric studies on
their own right now than at any time in human history. Mantak
Chia's many books on Taoist esoteric practice provide excellent
information on this little-understood area in the higher-level mar-
tial arts that is the equivalent of the kundalini in yoga.
I was rereading Gopi Krishna's description of his kundalini
experience and also listening to Christina Grof's tape on her expe-
riences (by Sounds True). In both cases we have adventurers expe-
riencing an internal journey for which neither has a map. Gopi
Krishna takes almost twenty years to "kill his ego" and get on
with absorption into the void but was severely handicapped by
having to rely on ancient scriptures and coded directions left by
long-dead masters who had probably passed on the warnings oral-

ly. He was also handicapped by having to work alone, as all of
the great spiritual leaders of his generation had not fulfilled their
task of achieving enlightenment. Nobody knew what to do. The
Jungian analysis that accompanies his text is occasionally help-
ful, but also completely misses the point considering Gopi Krish-
na's call to experimentation and replication (scientific term for
repeating the experiment with similar results).
The methods for bringing to fruition the kundalini, like many
techniques in the martial arts, are easily learned if seen or shown
but would never be done if the neophyte didn't happen on the
right combination by accident. Gopi Krishna describes the terror
of the body's natural energy arising and the effects that it had on
him because of his minimal preparation. Most people reading the
book are not drawn to experiencing the light when made aware of
the fact that you can shine or burn.
The opening to energy and being able to move your center
out into the fields often results in experiences that could be con-
sidered "psychic," such as sharing another person's perceptions,
thoughts, and feelings. As each chakra is opened by the sexual
energy moving up the spine, a different perspective (personality)
is formed of the world out of the emergent feelings. Continuing
the climb through conscious direction has often been analogized
to mountain climbing, with the movement into the energy realms
as ascent into heaven. If nothing else it provides ample proof to the
adventurers that there is an aspect of themselves that has little
to do with the body.
Mr. Krishna makes it quite clear the experience nearly killed
him on a number of occasions but for the ministrations of his wife.
He didn't have a clue as to how to prepare his body for higher ener-
gy beyond pushing the energy from the genitals up the spine. Ms.
Grof's adventures are received with better humor as she has been at
least exposed to a saddhu who is not a benevolent fraud and has a
notion that if she doesn't go insane there is a worthwhile goal or
light somewhere up ahead. It also helped to have the support of
her husband, a rather famous researcher in transpersonal psychol-
Chi Kung and Kundalini: The Real Secret of The Masters
ogy and LSD, who has modernized some of the ancient techniques
for transcendence into what he refers to as "holographic breath
training." Their Spiritual Emergence Network provides a very real ser-
vice for those who are battling their inner demons.
I mention these two as well known examples of contempo-
rary people who have experienced the inner awakening without
benefit of martial arts training. This can happen to anyone who
meditates in an upright position regardless of gender if they're
beyond puberty. In the martial arts the training of the breath
energy is referred to as chi kung and the awakening of the kun-
dalini as the greater kan and li (Chinese) or entering the void (Japan-
ese). Transmission of the secrets of generation was usually from
father to son, mother to daughter in family systems, or to a cho-
sen disciple when bloodlines were not essential as in the Togakure
Ryu. The secrets of generation and transmission were closely held,
as the benefits of success-greater creativity, endurance, longevi-
ty, compassion and psychic advantages-greatly benefited the
family or training group. The person who can best absorb the
grandmaster's energy and accept the Bujin without going crazy
is considered a lineage heir. In Bujinkan Ninpo the role of grand-
master skips a generation so the successor has time to learn his
or her role and be trained by the best of the previous generation.
As spiritual development and the generation of healing inter-
nal energy are usually regarded as the property of the religions
and viewed as the heroic and never mythological characteristics of
the saints and founders, not ordinary people-a little secrecy was
probably in order. In the West we had the human alchemists and
Masonic lodges. In modern times, Taliesen as founded by the
Wrights and adherence to the Gurdjieff model would parallel the
ryus and kwoons of Asia as training halls for the artistic spirit, or
warrior heart. I consider the Hoshinroshiryu (my school, the school
that masters the weapon heart) a modern equivalent of the ancient
path, and the Japanese and Chinese authorities that regulate such
matters agree with me.
Assuming "the position" and going within to confront or search
for the true self from the viewpoint of a psychologist requires
PATH NOTES OF AN AMERlCAN NINJA MASTER
courage as well as skill. Each of us can only testify to our own

experience or bear witness to the experiences of others. The psy-
chological discoveries can be described in narrative, and that may
encourage those who have not yet undertaken the journey of self-
transformation. The following is a description drawn from my
own experiences as well as those of others focusing on the psy-
chological aspects of transcendental change. (In the chapter enti-
tled "The Kundalini Experience" I describe it from a feeling or
sensory perspective.) This description also points out what I per-
ceive to be ends, although the process is not over, as I'm still alive
and in this body most of the time.
Let us first suppose that what we consider our self seems to be
more a collection of masks or theatrical roles that we present to
others. When we explore beneath these sweaty masks we find
more masks. Images of-what we're supposed to be but no feeling of
who we are. These comprise self-image or can be thought of as
social roles. We might discover that our impulses toward achieve-
ment and compassion spring from a fear of failure and feelings
of helplessness. As we plunge deeper we may be forced to discov-
er that these social strivings are but acceptable covers for anger,
resentment and envy, leading to undermining of others in the
guise of helping them in "friendly competition." Suppose we rec-
ognize and take ownership of this sly rage and allow ourselves to
open even further to find shame, yearning, terror, sadness, and
other dark emotions we normally do not hold to our credit. Often
the recognition and controlling of these powerful emotions is
considered enough for the adventurer, as he or she quickly sees the
advantage of having them under control, particularly where many
others do not even seem to realize that they are driven by a darker
desire.
Finally suppose when we accept our shadow self and work
through to the roots of these turbulent emotions, we find anoth-
er layer of calm connectedness that allows loving interaction with
others without the marked manipulation and ambivalence dis-
covered in our earlier self-reflection.This open acceptance of self
and others is utterly different in feeling and context than where
C h i Kung and Kundalini: The Real Secret of The Masters
we started. Little change may be visible, but you will feel the
difference.
It is on the basis of such a narrative that people seek therapy
because those of us who have lived it or guided others through
it know the value of inner peace and being in touch with the true
animal nature, which is fundamentally benevolent and caring.
This can be accomplished through years of analysis or more quick-
ly with the guidance of a skilled therapist. You can do it yourself
through Zen meditation in three to eight years of sesshins (ritual-
ized meditations sitting under the supervision of a Zen roshi or
meditation master).
Let us suppose that by going into this primal self we find skills
and connections not required by life in the polis. Let us suppose
that when we are truly relaxed and have removed the masks and
barriers to our being what we are rather than what we supposed we
were, we find connections beyond the ground of self that force
us to reevaluate reality as we once perceived it. With a little study
we may find that others have penetrated these inner and outer
terrains and based on their honest and diligent exploration have
left maps but in a strange language-discussions of endless bliss,
energy beings, chakras, lights as a thousand stars, merging with
gods, etcetera ad infinitum
One who has experienced love will not find much sympathy
when explaining his or her viewpoint to those whose only joy
comes from revenge and who find strength in their ability to hate.
Thus it is often hard to translate the directions and warnings giv-
en by the ancients, as the meanings of the descriptions may have
more distance than mere age. You have to go yourself. Sometimes
the self-adventurer discovers the truly rare and extraordinary. One
who claims to know the way but has not made the journey is nei-
ther a good guide nor a complete human being.
Sometimes, as in the case of Aleister Crowley or others who
have taken this route in order to achieve dominance or power
over others, they find themselves immersed in an overwhelming
sadness which is their true self's recognition of their longing for the
universal and simultaneous'awareness of being alone. The alone-
ness is a recognition of one's separateness from others and one's

place in the cosmos. That too must be questioned and explored.
Suppose that as a creature of energy and wavelength and con-
stant change one discovers a new relationship that also contains
the material relationship with the world which is universal. Life is
a simple presence we all share with each other. When we can
appreciate our aloneness we can be ourselves and give most fully,
as we no longer need others to save us or make us or reflect us or
make us feel good about ourselves. Instead, we want them to
become themselves more fully. In this way conscious love is created
from the exploration and opening of one's own heart through
diligent meditation and introspection. It is only through knowing
yourself that true love and compassion evolve. Remember Socrates'
dictum, "Know Thyself!" For the martial artist this process is phys-
ical as well as psychological/spiritual.The ninja's heart is under the
sword, which tends to speed the process if you can relax and trust
the sword wielder.
As you study the literature left by the great martial artists of
the East, there is always reference to a number of concepts that
may seem strange to Western eyes, particularly when after what
seem to be stupendous physical exploits, someone says something
like "and then I learned about chi kung and really began to learn
and understand what I was doing." Chi kung is the training of
internal energy through breathing techniques that enhance and
change the character of the physical body. It requires total relax-
ation and calm and results in extraordinary speed, strength, and
control. It is the internal key to the external power and the best
explanation of why in the internal arts the most dangerous prac-
titioners are usually in their fifties and sixties, whereas those who
rely on physical skill alone seldom survive into the thirties regard-
less of their skills. The practice of chi kung (or Taoist esoteric yoga)
when combined with Zen meditation results in the kundalini if
done religiously for thirty to ninety days. The end mental product
or psychological result seems remarkably similar to what we in
the West identify with creative genius and preternatural physical
skills if you have properly prepared your body for the onslaught
of living energy and hormones. If you don't know what you are
doing, it is more like what is described by Gopi Krishna or Christi-
na Grof--eight to twenty years of hell until you give up your fear
and grow up.
Most religious traditions have lost the power to the frauds,
and most martial arts have been oversold by the ignorant and the
sports buffs, but the Way is the same as it always has been for the
intelligent who wish to transcend their socially learned self. It is a
simple step-by-step process of continuing practice that accumulates
like step functions in mathematics. The results of the process can
be seen, felt, and tasted. The following are not drawn from the
historical record but are empirical descriptions drawn from my
own experience, the observations of my students, and verifica-
tions by others who have had similar experience of living energy.
Physical characteristics of a true kundalini survivor, tatsujin,
or complete human being which cannot be faked include:
1. An inch or more of glowing corona around the body that
is particularly evident and bright radiating around the head. The
completed product is white. No other color need apply. This can be
seen against plain backgrounds and most easily in subdued light.
For the wearer of a halo, it feels like wearing a cap. Before the
energy reaches the head and while it primarily rests in other loca-
tions, the corona will be the color usually associated with the
organs in Chinese medicine or chakras in the Indian nomenclature
for the endocrine system. Each color has distinct personality char-
acteristics or survival mechanisms which can be considered bio-
logical. Color also identifies where the energy is held, which could
be considered a sign of progress or an indicator of where the ener-
gy is blocked. Each chakra is associated with two or more inner
deities in the Taoist, Mikkyo Buddhist, and Tibetan systems.
2. The breath is slow, usually four breaths a minute unless one
smokes which may up it to six. A nonsmoker from a smog-free
area might have a cycle of one or two breaths per minute. The
highly skilled can fake death. Both chi kung and the kundalini
lead to extremely efficient metabolisms. I've seen this discussed as
"the meditator uses less air." It is more accurate to say the medi-
tator uses air with exceptional efficiency and is seldom breath-

less unless exercising heavily.
3. The saliva is sweet to the taste like honey, thus the refer-
ence to nectar of the gods across cultures, and it flows freely result-
ing in better digestion and disease control. This is a result of the
energizing of the brain stem and pituitary.
4. The heart rate is quite slow and the body temperature
remains below normal. Gopi Krishna's heart rate remained high as
a stress reaction; he was scared and with good reason. Blood pres-
sure may be lower depending on personal habits.
5. The musculature is soft and very supple, more like an athletic
girl than a man, which is probably a by-product of the rejuvena-
tion of the endocrine system and accounts for the association
with androgyny. This is what Okinawan practitioners of karate
refer to when they describe the body of a master as "steel wrapped
in cotton." The bones appear harder and whiter under X-ray. The
mental linking of intention with action backed by the endocrine
system often results in what is perceived by the more hesitant as
superhuman strength and speed.
6. Close association with one of these complete human beings
will kick your body's electrical system into overdrive. Their very
presence raises most peoples' excitement levels, so they're fun to
party with. You feel strange when they're around until you get
used to them, unless they've learned to hide their wa (harmo-
nious spirit), as taught in some Japanese martial arts associated
with the gathering of intelligence. Often this feeling of higher
energy results in sexual arousal and can be mildly embarrassing if
your teacher is of the same gender and not inclined or vice versa.
(Higher energy is also sexual energy.) My son informs me that
just being in the same house with me kicks in his adrenals. You eas-
ily feel people with chi, and people without active chi are very
difficult to sense by comparison. Feelings may also be exchanged,
which may be perceived as radical mood shifts when you enter
into the survivor's range. The kundalini survivor learns to stay in
neutral so as not to wreak havoc on his or her friends. The power
of this energy does not seem to fade but continually increases
with use. The more I do, the stronger I get, the better I feel. This
also seems true of every practitioner of chi kung that I know. This
higher energy accelerates healing of self and others. Cuts and
scratches heal in days. Most diseases that are not virus-linked no
longer affect one, and flu symptoms, are minimized.
7. Body movement is very controlled, as the integration of
mind, body and spirit results in an ability to move with great
speed out of complete stillness. There is no thinking involved,
just action in response to action. This is not a result of program-
ming but is creative response. To the observer it is very fluid and
graceful, not robotic or mechanical. The whole body is involved,
not just an arm or a leg. It is hard to describe, but once seen is
never forgotten. A policeman I train with occasionally described
me as going from completely relaxed, to completely on, to com-
pletely relaxed in the same second, which he felt was very
"spooky." Personally, I find uptight, perfectionist, hard-bodied
people much more spooky.
8. There is surprising strength regardless of size, which usually
takes a while to master. One has a tendency to break things until
one learns to lighten up. I went through a period of breaking keys
off in locks, ripped the handle off a car door one icy morning,
and sent many of my students screaming to the floor until I
learned to slow down and back off. Some of the ninjas I play with
call me Dr. Death. Even affectionate squeezes and hugs are not
appreciated, and love-making can be filled with minor perils if
the object of your affection does not share your rare affliction or
athleticism. One of my shodan, Bret Talbot, ran up a consider-
able lab bill in broken beakers while working on chemistry projects.
He claims he was only holding them gently in his hands when
they imploded. He still thinks he is gentle when he is dangerous as
a bear. You have to be careful with this strange strength. The feel-
ing is invincibility, but the reality still won't stop bullets.
9. The tatsujin or complete human being is calm and balanced
under most conditions. Physical balance is one-pointed in that
the center flows to the grounded point. The center is mobile,
which makes for a strange three-dimensionality of movement,
something like a dancer or gymnast but not as athletic or aes-

thetic in appearance. Folk as opposed to ballet. A master boxer
can fight balanced on one leg. Shiva stands one-footed on the
dwarf of ignorance. To be completely honest you may want to
observe apes and monkeys and then draw your own conclusions
in terms of natural body movement. All the masters and myself
included move like monkeys, which can be very amusing. The
study of yoga provides a graceful, uplifting balance. Androgyny
can also be seen as balanced.
10. There is a tenth characteristic that is seen more in the reli-
gious than the martial practitioner. Georg Feurstein alludes to it in
his book Holy Madness, which is an excellent exposition of Crazy
Wisdom that shares some of the same characteristics of divine
madness exhibited by Zen-oriented martial practitioners. The char-
acteristic of knowing from many subtle inputs does have the effect
of distancing one from what is observed. The religious practi-
tioner has to deal with converts who see transformation as a men-
tal process instantaneously accomplished. They know better but are
trapped by socially learned expectations. It is difficult to contin-
ually forgive and suffer fools. Losing one's objectivity, however,
usually creates even greater difficulties. Karma.
The above are the primary physical symptoms of the complete
and safe transforming by the kundalini, which is greatly aided by
the safer technology of chi kung. This is actually a biological
process available to anyone who meditates and masters the tech-
niques for moving sexual energy through the microcosmic orbits.
Knowing the technology of awakening the inner self removes
most of the physiological dangers. A guru or Oshihan should man-
ifest all these characteristics both mental and physical, as they
are the same for both sexes and a result of connecting the merid-
ians and rejuvenating the endocrine system.
When I took Suzanne Carlson, my first female shodan in twen-
ty years of teaching, through the kundalini in London, the only
after-effect was permanently dilated eyes, which is not exactly a dis-
advantage when you're an actress. She ran bliss for a couple of
hours and reported "seeing" with the third eye a scorpion, then a
fox's skull, and then a smile or half moon tilted to the side as is
usually shown on the forehead of Diana the huntress or the god-
dess Athena or Egypt's Nepthys. One should not expect ovarian
energy to have exactly the same symbolism for the brain as tes-
ticular. Her father asked her if she were on drugs when he saw
her eyes a couple of days later. She went through a brief period
of feeling very superior as her psychic abilities manifested, and
like Gurdjieff noticed practically everyone she knew seemed half
asleep or were simply rats in a maze having no control over their
lives or desires. She went through a brief period of testing her
fearlessness by trying out dangerous practices. Then like most of us
who have done this, she reacquired humility and got on with cre-
ating her life and career.
We followed Mantak Chia's instructions concerning not allow-
ing hot energy to enter the skull until the way is prepared includ-
ing the practice of keeping the tongue up. The female experience
is similar to the male's but with the usual differences rooted in
our biological nature. Some of the ancient Taoists wrote that
women were incapable of chi generation. The Roman Catholic
Church forbids the ordination of priestesses. A fox skull has the
same outline as the two ovaries and vessels leading to the uterus
and vagina, as does the arc of the browed moon or the raised tail
of the scorpion-all symbolic of bringing female sexual energy
to the forehead up the spine. Suzanne is the only woman I've
been privileged to observe go through the kundalini. We were
able to discuss what was happening when she came down, and
it was great fun. We had to run out to the West End and buy a
copy of Cooper's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols to
keep abreast.
Kammy, a female friend of Mike Cornelius reported a blind-
ingly bright yellow banana shape appearing as her solar plexus
opened. She is running very hot energy now when she used to
run cold. I know two other young women who developed all the
energy characteristics of the lesser kan and li but have not had the
experience of ovary-to-brain connection via the spinal column.
Blake Poindexter has specialized in training women. We are both
of the opinion that women are easier to teach and develop more
power than men. It is probably the reason some of the ancients for-
bade the teaching of women. It's terribly embarrassing to be
thrown about physically and mentally by a woman, even when
you love her. It's easier to maintain a master/slave relationship.
Very few of the ancients seemed to follow the example of the Yel-
low Emperor, who kept and learned from his female companions.
The martial artist who becomes involved in physical transfor-
mation that results in transpersonal growth tends not to lose his
or her sense of humor. We also realize that once the typical seek-
er sees our path, they look for something less risky. We know that
most not only won't but can't get IT. We tend to let our stu-
dent/victim/client/friends struggle through the belt system at
their own speed or drive them away if they can't develop higher
expectations. It is a tragedy from my viewpoint that our institu-
tions burdened with the role of leading us to enlightenment are
failing us due to fear and ignorance. It is sad indeed when martial
artists can demonstrate greater effect than ministers and priests.
Study on this.
Chapter Three
The Kundalini Experience
B
EING A COLLEGE PROFESSOR means you have the summer off to
indulge in little self-improvement projects. When the school
year ended in 1985 I decided to follow the prescriptions
given in my chi kung correspondence course from the Chinese
National Chi Kung Institute in Moulton, Alabama, to arouse the
bubbling springs or bring the inner fire to the brain. This is known
as 'Tien Tao Chi Kung or Heaven's Way and corresponds to the
Indian Kundalini. I'd been able to run the microcosmic orbit con-
necting the meridians and chakras to the spine both front and
back with a single breath for about three years and was able to
bend a candle flame to my bidding, so I thought I'd go for the
big time. Ninety days of meditating as much as possible.
I set up a pad in the back porch and moved in a stereo tape
player so I could meditate to ragas, Kitaro, or subliminals (which
I recommend if you're nutso enough to try this method). My sec-
ond wife Linda and her children would occasionally look out from
the kitchen to see what I was doing. Since watching someone
meditate ranks in spectator sports right down there with spider
kissing, they failed to get involved. The back porch was my king-
dom for the summer as long as I occasionally got up to eat, take
them to the lake, and performed as a parent and husband. Other-
wise I sat cross-legged, listening to funny music with my eyes

shut. After all, her first husband used to beat her and them. My
activities seemed strange but harmless. They did their things and
I did mine.
At this point in my development I was not particularly noc-
turnal so I always meditated in the daytime (my first error). I
would hit the position for at least thirty minutes on waking and set
my goals for the day. Some days I would get in an hour or two
in the morning and another hour or so in the afternoon. About
twenty days into it I began to see what appeared to be a vagina
with a rather swollen clitoris floating in the air before me. I took
this as a sign that the pineal and pituitary glands in the brain
were rejuvenating and/or the third eye was opening. Some days I
would sweat profusely as I meditated, which I regarded as a good
sign because it indicated something was happening. It is not usu-
al to break into a fever-busting sweat when you're being absolute-
ly still, at least not in my mediocre athletic career. Sweating is
both a means to cool the inner fire as well as a process of purifi-
cation. That's why sweat lodges, saunas, and hot baths are appre-
ciated. My body was starting to feel great and I was horny as a
I
three-peckered owl. This is where I made my second mistake,
which would eventually cost me this marriage.
Let me digress for a moment and set the scene. I weighed about
240 pounds, smoked a pack or more of filter tips a day, enjoyed
wine with my meals, ate a lot of red meat, and preferred Rusty
Nails (Scotch and Drambuie 50/50, n o ice) as my daily libation.
When I meditated I did not usually keep my tongue up, as I could
not see how that could be important. I was not properly stretching
my neck but had mastered holding my back erect. I was 41 years
old, succumbing to a potbellied, sedentary middle age. The only
redeeming factor was I worked out with my martial arts class once
a week for an hour or two, which kept my reflexes quick and was
restoring my body after eight years of being a scholarly, desk-
bound wimp.
I want to be perfectly clear that the kundalini is not a result
of perfect asanas, ahimsa (nonviolence) and a vegetarian diet,
which are logical progressions resulting from the experience but

have little or nothing to do with attaining it. My practice was
directed toward perfecting iron palm techniques, and I wanted
enough voltage to shatter concrete blocks without effort or harm
to myself. I certainly wasn't celibate and, until the first great dis-
aster, Linda and I had a varied and active sex life, as we both con-
sidered sex the best form of exercise.
I was feeling like a twenty-year-old, semi-erect all the time. I
decided to masturbate, put some porn on the VCR, and was beat-
ing off while standing. Suddenly a tremendous burst of energy
ripped up my back and hit the base of my skull. The pain was so
intense I fell to my knees. I wanted to vomit. The back of my neck
began to burn along with my right elbow, which I'd injured doing
stupid tae kwan do katas a few years back and then reinjured play-
ing tennis. From that day for the next six months sex was not a
pleasure, as from the moment of erection I'd become nauseated
and every stroke was a race to see if I'd faint or throw up from
pain. Orgasm was a relief, but attaining it was a superhuman
effort. I tried to explain what was happening to Linda but she
wasn't buying into it. Actions spoke much louder than words. All
she could see was my struggle and, not having the highest self-
esteem, decided I either hated making love to her or had taken a
mistress and now found her repugnant. Fighting this kind of pain
and keeping an erection was not easy. She asked for a divorce. I
gave her the house, cars, set up trusts for her kids, and went
adventuring.
Chi sickness or emerging kundalini problems weren't part of her
perceptual world or mine. Fortunately Dr. Richard Grant, a polit-
ical economist at the college who was taking my hoshinjutsu
course, had read in the field of Ayurvedic medicine and recom-
mended Mantak Chia's work to me. The techniques of Taoist eso-
teric yoga corresponded to the chi kung but had some additional
safety factors built in such as stronger emphasis on keeping one's
tongue up when meditating as well as reversing the direction of the
energy occasionally when running the microcosmic orbit. I was
eventually able to heal the damage done to the jade gates (energy
entry points) at the base of my skull and return to a normal sex life
but the damage to my marriage was irredeemable. It wasn't until
after Linda divorced me and finally developed her own chi through
transmission that she was able to swallow that whopper.
At this point there was nothing to do but press on. I continued
my practice even though it was painful. Some part of me knew I
had to continue or lose all that I felt 1 had gained. The spectral
clitoral vagina still floated before me. I realized the cause of my
problem probably also contained the cure. When I wasn't medi-
tating I became an avid researcher i n esoteric literature and
transpersonal psychology. About forty days in, my body began to
shake as soon as I hit the position that is often referred to as the
half-lotus or sage seat. I have never been able to sit in full lotus
with any comfort, and at this time my ankles were not stretched
enough to hold in seiza for the required time periods. Once the
shaking started, things really began to get strange. This was the
beginning of bliss.
Now, I wasn't keeping a record of these events, as 1 didn't real-
ize the importance of what I was doing. To me it was just a way to
improve my martial art. I'd attended two of Stephen Hayes' Go
Dai (five centers) seminars and been impressed by what I'd seen
and done with the ninjas. It had also struck me as funny that
most of the people I knew studied Eastern philosophy but did not
practice what they were studying. Theirs was an intellectual, not
a physical involvement. And to be quite frank, becoming a guru or
Hare Krishna or cult member struck me as the ultimate in silli-
ness. 1 had stayed away from the religious aspects as 1 was quite
content being a failed Methodist and still feel that way except for
occasional excursions into goddess worship. My concerns were
purely technical and my expectations were to gain control over my
body's electrical system. I can't give an exact chronology of the
following events as they seemed not to be consecutive but con-
current. Anyway, what happened was totally unexpected.
About the middle of July, close to my birthday, the floating
vagina turned into a tiny dancer of Balinese extraction and zoomed
up to me on one foot and hovered in the air in front of me. I was
The Kundalini Experieryce
flabbergasted. I was having hallucinations of Hindu temple whores?

She stood on one foot with her arms spread wide wearing a metal
breastplate, pointy helmet, and funny flared miniskirt. My impres-
sion at the time was this apparition was female and, for some rea-
son unknown to me, was telling me to put more dance into my
training. I perceived that the spread arms meant, "See, I have the big
head, graceful movement is important." It wasn't until years later
that I realized this was Shiva, the destroyer of the ego (or igno-
rance). My latent homophobia kept me from realizing the androg-
yny of this personage, and my ignorance of Hindu religion left
me with no recourse but to watch this improbable vision as it
watched me. I suspect we were both equally surprised. I don't know
how long this went on. I was frozen in place for quite a while.
Years later when Suzanne and I were playing in the Victoria
and Albert Museum in London, I saw a statue of Shiva and this
piece of the puzzle fell into place. Ah well, I missed my chance
to speak with a god. Shiva's posture is similar to Hicho no Kamae
(karate kid's white crane) in ninjutsu.
The next event was more physical. As I was running energy
around the orbit and looking and smiling down into myself and
shaking with energy, I saw a brownish-gold coil of powerful ener-
gy building at the base of my spine. It had a head like a viper and
began to come up my spinal column. As it hit each vertebrae it
would straighten and adjust it, throwing me from side to side.
The feeling was of being slammed about but I never came off the
zafu. This was terrifying, particularly after the penis-migraine-
nausea hookup. I was lost. Nothing I had ever read prepared me for
this. It was inside me. God damn these chi kung exercises! 1 could
see it coming with my inner eye like a freight train coming up a
tunnel, and when it reached the skull this time there was no mer-
cy and no stopping it.
My head exploded. It was as if the top of my skull blew off
and I was radiating up into a fountain of white light. Then I was
white light. I wasn't just sitting on the back porch, I was part of the
house and the yard and the trees and the birds and the grass and
the cat and it all made sense from an evolutionary perspective as
my consciousness rocketed out of Jonesville, Michigan, into uni-

versal ecstasy. Darwin was right. It's survival of the fittest, but fi t has
many meanings and everything is connected to everything on
an atomic level; the whole has a spirit or direction that might be
defined as God, or energy, or self/creativity if you're inclined in that
direction. The messages I was getting made n o sense in terms of
good or bad. It was just here it is and you're part of it and it's part
of you, and though you're a small part, you can affect the whole.
Do your best as you're o n your own. Krishnamurti describes a
very similar experience as does Gopi Krishna.
As this experience was winding down, my life began to pass
before my eyes as if I were watching a movie running backwards in
slow motion. I got to watch how I'd screwed u p important rela-
tionships and what lessons I'd learned or failed to learn in my
interactions with others. Most of the important learnings took
place when I was very young. Like the song goes, "Teach your
children well."
The wildest memory was of being sperm. Even sperm has con-
sciousness. How's this for a lesson: I was racing down a tunnel
toward a pink light. I was part of a horde of little lights who were
also me, and we were all trying to reach the big pink first. It was
imperative, as the goal was attractive. The race was close and
we/me were all going at top speed. I/me/we hit the pink first.
Another we/me was right behind me by a millisecond. I watched
it die with all the other we/mes as I merged with the pink. That's
my first lucid memory. Now the lesson from this could be all
organisms have consciousness and should be treated as part of
the holy spirit. I think my particular interpretation ran more like
winning is real important, which I suspect is the more usual out-
come for men from this deep-seated universal experience. How
one is raised would definitely reinforce either interpretation.
The memories stopped at conception, no past lives. No womb
swimming. No birthing experience. When I saw the opening to the
movie Look Who's Talking years later I almost fell out of the seat
laughing. Since death is as universal as life, this memory cannot be
sentimentalized into an argument against abortion. A n ant has
the same relation to intelligence or problem-solving. Sentience is

not the same as existence. I can't buy into "every sperm is sacred,"
as my tendencies are definitely hedonistic. The food chain exists.
This whole thing was stretching to the limit what my first wife,
Martha, used to refer to as "your fucking Zen Buddhist calm!"
There weren't any stress management techniques for dealing with
these life events. And the dance had only just begun. I was still
locked in position, morning had come and gone as a still, small
voice began to speak to me. "Oh, your neck hurts; well, look at
your eyelids." I could see a holograph of my skull and neck bones
as if it were an X-ray, except when I moved my head the holo-
graph replicated the movement. "See the damage here. That's
high school football, and this one, that's karate. Now stick out
your arm, turn your hand over and shift your shoulder this way."
The vertebrae slipped into place easily and a residual pain that
I'd been ignoring for twenty years went away. "Now isn't that
nice. Why don't you just let me take over. I know how to take
care of this body."
Whoa, this was getting a little too strange even for me. I'd seen
The Exorcist. What was going on now? Voices in my head! "Get
thee behind me, Satan!" Which is one of Jesus's better puns when
you know about the spine. Who do you call, Ghostbusters?
An interesting debate ensued as to who owned what. The id
had now emerged and proceeded to show the learned personality
which I still perceived as me what was what. "You think what you
see is real, try this."
The back porch became a forest, my meditating pillow a rock.
I could hear birds singing as the wind moved the branches of the
trees. 1was naked, the sun was going down. "I'm your body," the
voice said, "I process everything that you see, hear, feel, or do.
You don't know what's real. I do." I was back on the pillow facing
into the kitchen, considerably shaken.
"Look," I said, "I'm a college professor. For all I know, you're not
even housebroken. You may be able to run this body, but how
are your lecture skills? I have to feed my family. Let's make a deal.
I mean we're both me. How can we merge?"
What happened next I can only describe as a fist being shoved

through another fist, but it was taking place in my skull. My per-
ceptions were going through some very interesting changes and
my body began to change. Some of those changes are still going on
today, which is about eight years later. As the inner voice quieted,
I asked one more question. "What would you have done if I hadn't
opted for merger?"
The voice grew large, seemed to come from all around me, and
said, "I am a jealous God and will have no other gods before me!
Obey me and live according to my custom! " A very interesting
support for bicameral brain theory. Then it went, "If you didn't go
for that, there is always something like this . . . I'm Xantha, a
10,000-year-old warrior from Atlantis. Allow me to enter through
you and share the learning of the ages." That seemed to take care
of channels. If you don't allow the learned personality (ego and/or
superego) to die when you meditate, the id will try to fool you
into letting it run the body. That was the last time "the spirit"
spoke as a separate entity.
Chi sickness is a result of the body's inability to process high-
er energy or move it from place to place by the direction of the
imagination. The Taoist traditions place great emphasis on wa
(harmony). Moving the energy through the microcosmic and
macrocosmic orbits accomplishes this mixing to help achieve
inner harmony. As one's internal wattage increases it is often
described as "inner fire" or "fire in the belly" since excess energy
can be stored in the intestinal coil or hara. The object of Taoist
meditation is to bring the fire to the brain and then through the
rest of the body. Wherever the nerve synapses are not flexible
enough to handle the voltage there can be considerable pain.
Eventually the body will adjust to the energy if your practice
allows you to move it. It is important to realize that chi moves
most easily in circles and spirals. It is also important to know that
the yang energy burns, while the yin energy cools. The cooling
heals the burning. Running hot yang energy is easy for most males
and many women. One imagines the cycle at first, but when the
real thing begins you will instantly know the difference. Running
The Kunda lini Experience
cool yin energy is difficult as it is usually produced by the left

side of the body, which right-handers allow to atrophy.
It took me years of study after going through the kundalini to
get even sporadic control of cool energy until Suzanne Carlson
mastered it while studying dance, acting, and celibacy in Lon-
don. She called me from England and told me she had been run-
ning icy cold energy for days and it was scaring her as she couldn't
get it under control. By the time I got to London she had figured
it out and could contain the phenomenon. She had a lot of fun
showing me how. Toffesse (who is described in the "Exchanges
with Interesting People" chapter) could change from yin to yang
on command b u t never could explain how h e was doing it.
Suzanne, being brilliant, articulate, and in touch with her body and
spirit, was able to pass o n this skill necessary for higher-level heal-
ing. I've been cool for five years now.
From 1986 through 1988 my body went through extremely
painful sessions of what I refer to as rewiring. When the stomach
rewired there was a period of three days that I could keep down no
food or water. The pain was intense, but as all medical tests showed
absolutely nothing, I knew I'd have to ride it out. I'd drink a glass
or two of water to keep dehydration at a minimum and then run
to kneel at the shrine of the porcelain god when it came back up.
This was a continual ritual. Once when the urge to upchuck was
upon me and I was getting out of t h e easy chair t o make the
scramble down the hall to the bathroom, my eyes turned off.
My immediate thought was, "Oh, no! I'm going to be blind!" I
still had to throw up, so I crawled down the hall feeling my way as
fast as I could. Being blind is one thing, barfing all over Linda's liv-
ing room is quite another. As I fired into the toilet, feeling quite
pleased with myself for conquering this first obstacle with my
new challenge or handicap, my eyes turned back on. That has
never happened since. But other interesting rewires seem to take
place at odd moments when you've nothing better to do. Your
whole body will eventually rewire and some parts are definitely not
as much fun as others. Every place you've been seriously injured,
had a bone broken, or taken some nerve damage will receive spe-
cia1 attention, as damage improperly healed often creates a block

to the efficient flow of energy. Blocked higher energy burns! Those
areas referred to as erogenous zones tend to hold one's attention
when they light up. It never seems to happen when you're dri-
ving or doing anything dangerous. (It also seems to happen again
every few years.) If you've managed to poison yourself, it can be
much like an epileptic seizure. Your social mind shuts down, you
sweat copiously, empty at both ends, and in minutes feel great.
Not a pretty sight but better than being poisoned. I've had that
experience three times. Chi allows you to drink enormous amounts
of alcohol but the poison eventually wins.
Most of my students who kept their tongues up when running
the orbits had much gentler experiences of the kundalini than I. A
female diabetic in Fenton, Michigan, informs me her pancreas
now produces insulin after being shut off for fifteen years. She
went through some weeks of barfing and is now on soups and
yogurt. Her name is Laura Butler, and she designs custom fantasy
jewelry. She decorated my sword scabbard with Chinese-Japan-
ese monsters that are associated with enlightenment.
It took me over five years to rewire the damage done when
the first rush of kundalini energy hit the Jade Gates and couldn't
get through to the brain. That area on the back of the head is
always the first to inform me when it's time to visit the chiro-
practor or get back to my neck stretches. It seems to me the process
is much easier if you're in good shape. I was not. I'm in much
better shape now than I was in my twenties. When I went through
the kundalini I was fat and degenerate; now I'm much slimmer
and more circumspect in my diet. Suppleness is critical! Gopi
Krishna almost died. Krishnamurti had relatively few problems
(and hid his sexuality) but had the support of the Theosophist
movement. Alexander the Great fell down and foamed from time
to time. Hatsumi says he went through a period of grave illness
where nothing he knew seemed to work anymore. He had to live
on yogurt for eighteen months. Can you even imagine what that
would do to a Grandmaster's ego? This can be dangerous if you
miss some of the parts.
T h e Kundalini Experience
According to the transpersonal psychologists who research in

this area, most of the people go through spiritual crises and the
ones who have a full-blown kundalini experience tend to retire
from society. I can understand why. Things get strange and you
have no one to share your experience. Visual and auditory hal-
lucinations or strange energy rushing through the body, were sel-
dom discussed in my circle of friends. Prolonged altered states
that do not go away are hard to explain when you do know what's
going on! One kundalini survivor I interviewed went for more
than twenty years without saying a thing about it until he met
me, as he had no idea why he was the way he was, only that he
was radically different i n his perceptions and much smarter,
stronger, and faster than anyone he knew. He did not even dis-
cuss it with his wife or family. He had constructed a very com-
fortable life but was without friendship.
The Pathway or routes to enlightened survival recommended
by Sun Tzu are similar in attitude if not practice to the avadhuta.
They allow one to be active in both worlds. Being fearless means
no inhibitions. The enlightened invariably have a childlike earthy
quality. When you first pass through the veil, there is a strong
tendency to feel very superior to all the people you know who
haven't done this. It shouldn't last too long. Your taijutsu skills
may improve just from net dodging. Invisibility is more secure
than invincibility, as you'll discover. The general population's
expectations don't include this form of adventure as entertain-
ment, and the elite do their level-headed best to stamp it out. Be
careful.
People like to be the way they are and it is not for you to mess
with them. You'll have enough problems dealing with what life
throws at you. We're all in this together. Anyone is capable of
doing chi kung to achieve the kundalini but there are definite
dues and you will pay them. You pass through hell to achieve
heaven. The Gods do indeed check you out. There are some very
lively "concepts" or "archetypes" that seem to enjoy hanging out
around you that can only be logically explained in religious terms
and the presence of some rather atypical but archaic ideas. The
best all-around general advice I found to go along with "Love thy

neighbor as you would love thyself" and "Do unto others as you
would have them do unto you" is this short list of maxims by the
Gautama Buddha in his Sutra to the Kalamas:
Do not believe in anything simply because you have

heard (or read) it.
Do not believe in traditions because they have been
handed down for many generations.
Do not believe in anything because it is spoken and
rumored by many.
Do not believe in anything simply because it is writ-
ten in your religious books.
Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of
your teachers and elders.
but
After observation and analysis, when you find anything
that agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and
benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.
Some of the changes since those days: I n o longer follow a reg-

imen of daily meditation but seem to be i n a relaxed state nearly
all t h e time. I n o longer fear death or a n y other thing. I am
absolutely convinced that if you kill another human being for
any reason, you'll be back here. "Here" is not always what we
think it is and your condition may not be optimal. (Dante could
never have imagined a bag lady in the Bronx.) My senses have
become very acute, particularly at night. I'm more empathic and
o n rare occasions telepathic, both of which I regard as a n aid to
compassion and a pain i n the ass. I'm continually horrified by
how people justify their treatment of each other. I have very few
friends my own age, though most people seem to like me. I seldom
get sick. I do occasionally get damaged, which 1'11 describe in the
chapter o n Screwing Up, along with other reasons your relation
with the medical doctors can get to be high-risk. I weep and laugh
easily. Major sporting events used to reduce me to an emotional
moron as 1 would be literally swept u p by the emotions of the
crowd even though I seldom care who wins. I will only attend
rock concerts with trusted friends. Music and crowds just amplify
chi. I have a wonderful time.
I can affect others' energy fields at will. Anyone who gets with-
in thirty feet of me can be affected with ease. My curiosity con-
cerning the human predicament is boundless, but my interest in
technology is medieval. Learning to use a Mac was a struggle, but
I love computers now. Immediately after going through the kun-
dalini experience I found it very difficult to read. A page or two a
day was exhausting. I now read a book a week, but I used to read
a book a day and once even taught speed reading when I was in
graduate school. The spirit is nonverbal! Everyone I know who
practices chi kung goes through a period of reading difficulty. If
you like to read the skill comes back. Your taste in literature may
change.
I no longer work for anyone I do not like, and I base that on
feeling. (Goodbye to wealth.) Most of the religious writings with
the exception of Patanjali strike me as poppycock. They describe
the life, but not the practice that resulted in the life. Religious
writers tend to gloss over the schizophrenia or epilepsy or other fun
characteristics of being "touched by God" and not being able to
bear the voltage. Only Gopi Krishna and Krishnamurti's descrip-
tions seem to parallel my own, and I find it interesting that an
agnostic Westerner following Chinese medical practice would
have Hindu experiences. It is obviously biological and has nothing
to do with culture, religion, or racial grouping. The only enlight-
ened people I've met (and I can count them on my fingers) have
been martial artists, a young Zen monk, healers, and the Dalai
Lama. If you take offense at this, I will thank you to note my
father was a Methodist minister on the World Council of Evan-
gelism and I've a wide acquaintance of Christians of various stripe.
My standards are primarily bioelectrical. Your standards are yours.
I am not inclined to worship. 1 enjoy working out and beating
up young people.
I continue to practice and teach the martial arts, as it is a non-
religious and relatively easy way of passing o n this knowledge.
You have to do it! Reading about it is just looking at the map, or
PATH NOTES OF AN AMERICAN NINJA MASI'ER
pointing at the moon. Good works may or may not teach you
compassion. Sit zazen and learn to breathe using chi kung method-
ology, get into yoga to stretch out your spine and learn balance, go
dancing and fall in love, and do something really scary for focus
and hormones-real combatic martial arts, mountain climbing,
performing arts, open sea scuba diving, hunting beasties with
primitive weapons or humans, or hardest of all, make a new friend.
All tend to focus one's creative potential and desire to live.
Arousal is critical to growth, change, and love. Most impor-
tant, keep your tongue up. When you've finally got IT or merged
with your nature, the commonest phosphorescent holographs on
your eyelids will look like the Rose Window in Notre Dame, as
well as other shapes alluded to in mystical records, such as the
lotus rooted in the mud and floating o n the water. It does not
seem reasonable to me that the old mystical saw concerning "as
the inside, so the outside" can be reversed by staring at mandalas,
but the iconic similarities are probably meant as guides. One of the
things that always annoyed me about the Rajneesh and others of
his ilk was they had the order of the colors wrong.
The kundalini has legendary counterparts in Gothic, Greek,
American Indian, Celtic, Chinese, Hindu, Japanese, African, Hawai-
ian, and other mythologies. This cross-cultural commonality
strongly indicates it is a universal human experience. References to
the snake wisdom or kundalini are usually designated as demon-
ic or evil in Christian mythology referencing the Garden of Eden.
It must be recognized, however, that the gift of the serpent was
knowledge. It is knowledge that leads us to the life of adventure.
Just as the spider has the dual meaning of creator of the universe
as well as the web of illusion, the coiled serpent signifies the cycles
of manifestation as well as latent power. Coiled around a tree or
any axial symbol, the serpent represents the dynamic force or
genius of all growing things. Genius means genii or spirit or kami
(Japanese spirit of a particular place) and may also represent a
skill. Associated with the tree of knowledge it is identified as evil
by Christians, yet when associated with the tree of life the same
serpent is regarded as beneficial. The horned serpent or dragon
T h e Kundalini Experience
or serpent-wreathed head are universally regarded as symbols of fer-

tility and creativity as well as a n intermediary to the gods.
Kundalini as a means and outcome of mastering energy is an
actual biological process that when observed objectively closely
follows its mythic description. J. C. Cooper defines it as "the ser-
pent which lies coiled at the base of the spine in the chakra known
as the muladhara [the Japanese like h a r a ] and which lies dormant
until awakened by yogic and spiritual practices when it begins to
ascend through the chakras [endocrine glands or Go Dai], bringing
increasing powers into play, until it reaches the highest point in
total awareness and realization. It is latent energy; unawakened
being; the sleeping serpent power; the primordial shakti [creative
female energy] in man. To awaken it is to break the ontological
plane and attain the sacred Center: enlightenment. The symbolism
of the kundalini is associated with that of the serpent, or dragon,
or spine, the world axis."
This is not trivial knowledge, nor is it evil, though enlight-
ened common men have always been feared by the established
order particularly if it has lost its Way. This is worth setting some
time aside to attempt. My experience and observations lead me
to assert that you should clean up your act before seriously start-
ing the meditative process. It is also helpful if you have some
interesting life experience under your belt or your IQ is well above
average, as the gods are real when you enter the void and they
will test your endurance. There is interesting work to be done.
Chapter Four
Traditional Relationships and

Teaching in Esoteric Martial Arts
T
HE PREFERRED, BUT seldom achieved, teaching relationship
is one of mutual trust and consulting. I know things you
don't know. You know things I don't know. We both benefit
from sharing. There is always a hierarchy in experience but with
respect it doesn't have to be formalized to any great extent. Dis-
tancing creates many problems in communication. All science
appears as magic to the ignorant. Ignorance is not stupidity but not
learning. In Christian nomenclature, ignorance is missing the
mark or "sinning." My father informs me that the word sin is a
Greek archers' term used when the archer misses the target. The
fool killer Kali, the spider goddess, as well as Shiva, balance o n
the corpse of ignorance. Dr. Norman R.F. Maier (my industrial
psychology mentor) said, "The easiest way to identify smart peo-
ple is to look for who's asking questions."
In the traditional master-student relationship, a master parcels
out information and experience according to his or her percep-
tion of the student's readiness to receive. Master Sherm Harrill
spent years on the karate basics in Okinawa. Shimabuku gave him
scrolls when he left for the States. The master had rewarded and
recognized his sincerity. It took Sherm years to figure out what
he'd been given. It helps to have a translator when you're dealing
with the inscrutable. Leo Sebregst's teacher, a retired Chinese gen-

eral, made him watch for seven years while he tried to teach his
own sons. Finally he relented and said, "Since you've shown more
interest than they have, come and get it!" or words to that effect.
Takamatsu is described by his wife as being delighted with having
Hatsumi as a student. At the shidoshi training for godan and
above in Noda City, Hatsumi rolled out Takamatsu's scrolls for us
to admire and spoke about how often he goes back to read the
letters and cards from Takamatsu and returns to the scrolls to dis-
cover new insights.
I know from my own experience trying to teach street people
what a drain it is to teach those who can't or won't learn. All of my
students have confirmed for me how much more fun it is to teach
smart people regardless of their physical skills. It's easy to see why
Takamatsu would love having Hatsumi for a student. You would
give your left nut to teach a real genius, it's so much fun. In
expanding our venturesome militaristic societies, the study of
unarmed combat is considered in the province of gentlemen. In a
democratic, business oriented society, it is too often limited to
disciplining children, entertaining adults, or being studied by
thugs. It is a lengthy, painful growth process to learn the real
thing as the levels of risk and your avoidance skills expand. Neither
raw intellect nor great physical skill compare well to the lessons of
endurance. The master or guru and disciple or deshi relationship
requires deep bonding and closeness. This is a relationship and
friendship for life.
When Hatsumi was demoing in Dayton, Ohio, for a Japanese
TV network special in the early eighties, I saw his aura running
high-voltage green wind chi. He started doing techniques on Steve
Hayes, Bud Malmstrom, and Jack Hoban: the looks on their faces
as he sent them sailing were an appropriate mix of awe and terror.
I loved it when Hatsumi said, "Now my American instructors are
at a level where I can use more of my power." Only an outsider
with developed chi could really appreciate the looks they gave
each other when he said that after what he'd just done to them. It
looked like, "Oh, no. It's starting again." Hatsumi's motto is "Keep
Tr~ditionalRelationships and Teaching in Esoteric Martial Arts
going. Keep playing." In other words, "Never quit. Have fun. This
is your life. Enjoy it."
Ninjo (endurance under the stick? beating emotions into place?)
is the concept of human feelings being vastly more important
than what is logical and profitable. For the time and effort a sen-
sei invests i n a student h e hopes the student will realize tsukiai
(the social debt incurred by the student toward the teacher). Tsuki-
ai in ancient times would manifest itself by the student taking
care of the teacher's family, shelter, or whatever he or she needed
to be more comfortable. Giri, the obligations or debts the student
owes to a real shihan, are considered gimu (endless), and no mat-
ter what is given, it will never be enough for the gift of enlightened
life or spirit. Giri to one's associates, however, is repaid according
to the significance of the obligation or gift received, and it must be
repaid promptly.
The titles of teachers have meaning beyond teacher. Shihan
means knight/scholar and head of a particular school. Shi, referring
to four and death, is also Japanese for chi as manifested by spirit.
Shihan then has a hidden meaning as one who can give chi. Shichi-
dan or seventh degree has three obvious meanings that are con-
cealed from t h e outsider by using t h e number designation
nanaedan. Oshihan is a self-made master in reference to chi, holds
no obligations to a teacher, and is able to pass on his skills. It is also
a term used to refer to someone who has thousands of followers as
head of a particular school. The title is interchangeable in terms of
quality or quantity resulting in knowledge lost to popularity. Big
organizations often lose their hearts to size.
Amae (unconditional affection) is the core concept of Japan-
ese culture and the foundation of their psyche. For lack of a better
definition it could be described as indulgent love. Francis L.K.
Hsu wrote an excellent ethnography of Japanese concepts and
behavior that I read some twenty years ago and can't remember the
title. In Rogerian psychology amae would be total acceptance of the
other.
Regardless of physical skills, the person with the most experi-
ence is regarded as sempai (senior) and the person with less expe-
rience as kohai (heart that says yes? or junior). Sempai have an

obligation to develop the kohai. The kohai have an obligation to
tend to the needs of the sempai.
Most Americans have no desire to become grown-up dojo boys
to a rigidly traditional master. It smacks of indentured servitude
and taxation without representation. We are used to receiving
public education, and with the exception of apprenticeship avoid
in-depth relationships with teachers. We pay them money rather
than serve them always. The actual behavior among sempai and
kohai, however, is usually of the older indulging the younger to be
boisterous and rowdy under the master's protection. The sempai
observes from the background while the kohai acts as his or her
agent. The sempai will reach out to save the kohai if disaster
threatens. The kohai shares a fresh perspective with the sempai
which keeps the senior up to date. It's a powerful relationship.
The kohai/sempai relation is supposed to be one of indulgence.
The relationships between the ninjas and their American students
have to be pretty forgiving, as most people who are drawn to this
sort of thing tend to be wild and headstrong (as well as have more
redeeming qualities). Often a kohai will be over-promoted by the
sempai with the expectation he or she will grow into the new
position. After Hatsumi gave me a shidoshi license at godan, I
told him if he wanted to protect the ryu's reputation for excel-
lence in taijutsu he had better quit promoting me. Expectations of
behavior could be better researched on both sides, but all wounds
seem to heal eventually or at least become smoothed over out of
curiosity and politeness. In some ways it is like belonging to the
tennis league and playing doubles. You get to know people on a
number of levels. You are there to learn and play. If you can't
handle it, you back off.
Giri can also be translated as discipline, and a discipline requires
disciples, which is the term often used in Chinese systems for a stu-
dent of a chi kung or kung fu master. The Japanese term for a dis-
ciple is deshi. The relationship is considered religious, for life, and
the kung fu or kempo training hall, or kwoon, is a temple. The
disciple is often the memory of the master and studies in one par-
Traditioizal Relationships and Teaching iiz Esoteric Martial Arts
ticular discipline of a large system. By being the memory of the

master, a disciple perfects a particular form and specializes in
teaching that part of the system. (I don't cartwheel out of flips,
but my student Todd Smith and ninja shihan Greg Kowalski can.
If you are athletic enough to want that as part of your response sys-
tem, you go to Todd for that lesson, as my body tends to fail at that
level. You want to learn that technique from someone who does it
with grace rather than the hope of avoiding injury. The knights
stand in for the king. The deshis transcend the skill of the aging
master to preserve what has gone before.)
A lot has been written on the martial arts but very little on
the science of pedagogy as it applies to the teaching of martial
artists. For that matter there is considerable question as to whether
art can be taught, as the best artists are often self-taught. This is
true in the performing arts as well as the combat arts. Those men
that I've known who bragged on the harshness of their master
and the brutality of their training were invariably not too bright
and were probably deserving of their treatment. From a higher
perspective their physical skills weren't terribly impressive either.
Together with John Porter, a ninja friend who taught me how to
walk fire, I used to laugh about how some people thought that
"mental discipline" could be taught by physical means. Like there
might be a relationship between how many push-ups you could do
and how well you could teach, fight, lead others, shoot a gun, or
make a bomb. In statistics this would fall into the fallacy of com-
paring apples and oranges.
No great spiritual tradition that teaches single-minded pursuit
of happiness leads to satisfaction, as personal desires multiply
endlessly, forever creating new desires which create new dissatis-
factions. Happiness is not a goal but a by-product of accomplish-
ment and recognition of self-growth. Cherishing the growth of
others, particularly those we love, exercises the larger capacities of
our being and helps us be aware of our vulnerabilities. The call
to teaching a way of creative development forces the learning of
new skills while unfolding our finest qualities if we are taxed and
fully stretched to the limits of our understanding. A real martial art
has no rules and thus continually forces adaptation and creation

through conflict. Teaching is a leadership behavior, and the rela-
tionship with the teacher is part of the modeling.
Since people do not generally regard wisdom, truth, or cre-
ativity as central to an intimate relationship or the mastery of
self, they seek out relationships based primarily on biochemical
reaction, companionship, or mutual self-interest. The same can
be said for the selection of a martial art teacher. A true martial
artist is concerned with saving your life. A master would also like
for you to have one that is worth living, full of passion and excite-
ment as you develop your deepest resources and finest qualities.
This need not be rare in this day and age, as all the secret tech-
nologies of meditation, breath, and massage are widely available,
and more and more knowledgeable students demand that their
teachers exhibit the qualities associated with their credentials.
This is not an abstract concept but a growing recognition that a
teacher is real when actions are based not just on knowledge but
the explicit presentation of one's own being through the person-
al experience of knowing. Knowing is doing. You must observe
carefully.
For example, sometimes a martial system may be broken down
into beneficial exercises and dances, breathing and meditation
techniques, and combat and weapon applications so that all the
knowledge is not in one place. If a country is conquered, the mar-
tial applications go underground. They may be hidden in what
appear as folk dances or religious postures. The swords may be
hammered into plowshares but the training continues. The Indi-
an goddess Kala, a sexier, younger version of Kali, is often shown
in the sword posture of Dokko no Kamae. I have learned many
interesting techniques for strengthening my body through study-
ing the movement of traditional dancers. The dancers of Bali have
remarkable balance and control that appears full of life-preserving
grace. The fighting application can be picked out of its aesthetic
concealment long after the footwork goes from lunge to jeté.
When I met Kevin Millis the first time in Japan I could see he
was a perfect vehicle. He had the build, diet, intensity, all the
Traditional Relationships and Teaching in Esoteric Martial Arts
good ninja stuff. We became friends as he seemed to think I was

wise and worth cultivating even though I was a lowly, old, and
decrepit white belt in ninjutsu. 1 began to show this godlike black
belt little ways to improve his already prodigious skills. He took my
clues and covered ground in months that had taken me years to
research. He has a very high IQ and learns fast. He would recip-
rocate by showing me how to improve my physical techniques. We
had a great time teaching each other. (We still do.) Hatsumi would
ask him, " Who is the teacher, Morris or Millis?" Our relationship
doesn't follow typical hierarchical practice because we're Ameri-
cans. A year or so after I showed him how to breathe and meditate
properly, he could generate enough chi to show in his aura. When
the grandmaster noticed his higher glow, Hatsumi promoted him
again and then told him that everything they did from that point
was a gift. He was a colleague by the rules of giri! Kevin had
achieved the lesser enlightenment.
Kevin was horrified. No more learning hundreds of techniques
with all kinds of toys. No more walking the dogs with the boss
late at night in ancient Noda. He didn't want to be a colleague. He
didn't know what to do. As far as he was concerned he was getting
some chi. A little something extra in his ninjutsu! He was a Cali-
fornia Boy. Surfing. Kicking butt. Lakers. Malibu and the pretty
girls in the morning. Rock climbing in the off season. Spiritual
stuff was pretty low in his hierarchy. He blamed me for spoiling his
relationship with the boss. What if the boss quit teaching him
ninjutsu and expected him to come around and discuss flower
arranging, or levitate? His world had come unglued. He wanted no
cracks in his cosmic egg. He was an urban, modern, American
warrior.
So he went out into the Buddhist temple park in the center of
Noda City where the roads come together. He went into the garden
that has the little pool. He pushed all his energy down into his
feet. Then he pushed as much of it into the ground as he could
without dying. He stepped away from the spot. A desperate act
of devotion on his part that struck me as lunacy when we dis-
cussed it after I discovered what he'd done.
We were roommates in the training bunkhouse rented from

shihan Ishizuka's parents. I noticed Kevin wasn't getting out of
bed after a couple of days and seemed to be real sick. Sleeping well
into the day or catching up after hard night training was com-
mon behavior. We were whipped most of the time. Kevin looked
like death eating a cracker, kind of dried out and definitely not
himself. I said, "I can't believe you're sick, man. We hardly ever
get sick." No jet lag, exhaustion, nothing. He looked like a sick
puppy to me. He told me what he had done in the park. I couldn't
believe it. I didn't know you could do that. He'd gone over to Hat-
sumi's to train after he'd fed the spirits of the place (kami). Hat-
sumi told him, "You look like someone who has lost your way."
I loaded him back up after he'd suffered enough to remember
what it's like not to have chi. Like many flower children, Kevin's
short-term memory leaves something to be desired. Never ask
him to remember anything abstract for you unless it is music. As
an exchange of chi does carry some emotional content or intention
no matter how clean you try to run it, I'11 bet his perceptions were
a little weird for a while. After I thought he was OK I took a sam-
ple and ran it through me for a check. (Every now and then I get
this urge to surf.) He went back across Noda to visit with Hatsumi.
Hatsumi said, "I see you have found your self."
I'd love to know what Hatsumi thought was going on. I don't
know how he feels about experimentation on human subjects.
Kevin told me a year or so later that Hatsumi had put a bug in
him that seemed to flush out the meridians. The Indians, Bud-
dhists, and Taoists all have purification rites and techniques for
purging the body of toxins, as do Jews, Christians, and Methodists.
When I joined the Methodist Church as a child, my father and
the elders put their hands on my head. I fell to the floor, faint-
ed, and threw up from the blast of energy. Some fundamentalists
might regard that as casting out a demon. It feels like electrocution
to a little kid.
Ninjas seem to work off giri by showing each other a good
time. I always know when I go out to train with Kevin he is going
to blow my mind with whatever he has come up with since last we
TraditionalRelationships and Teaching in Esoteric Martial Arts
exchanged information. It's a great pleasure to watch him teach

and move. He has incredible skills. I wonder how the big fish are
responding to him now that he's got a yacht and diving licens-
es. Octopi are supposed to be smarter than hell. They're proba-
bly heading for Frisco. Kevin likes his sushi.
Shihan Ishizuka took Kevin and I out to a great Japanese restau-
rant with private rooms and an elderly traditionally trained geisha
(a woman trained to fascinate and encourage men) to entertain us
after I showed him the trick of seeing auras. She fed us and cleverly
played games with us while we got blitzed and laughed ourselves
silly and discussed dreams. Tetsuji Ishizuka (The Fists of Iron)
wants to establish a training camp in the coastal fjords and wilds
of the resort mountains for the old boat and pirate techniques.
Now that could be fun. A little luxury in beautiful terrain and
then storm the yardarms. Let's try your bokken (hard wooden prac-
tice sword) on a deck that moves beyond your control. Traditional
and modern assault courses with famous teachers, nets, and inter-
secting water slides. Wow!
I like to party with my student/friends. We pick each other's
minds and verify our experience. At some point in their training
they get to work on my house or lawn and plant something in
the garden. I've had the football players moving furniture. There
are always little projects that require more hands. Steven helped me
with the plumbing. Randy and Steven helped hang wallpaper.
Courtney's wisteria bloomed lavender this year. We call it sempai
duty.
I'm told Hatsumi's shihans get together and attempt to dust
his library once a year. Theirs is a Herculean task. I've seen his
books. The shelves are full, so it's floor to ceiling stacks. He has a
huge collection of more than three thousand museum-quality
swords in storage. It's difficult to keep a heritage alive when you
have limited living space as in Japan.
Many of the people who have studied ninjutsu have written
about their experiences with minimal comprehension of what
was actually being shown them. People come and go and take
what they can use. Others stick it out, working their way up
through the ranks, following their desire. Some learn the meaning
of giri and amae. Some find their dream can be a nightmare. The
ninja develops his or her endurance through external or internal
energy. The end result is the same but the collection of experi-
ence can be very different. Ten can also be zero. People do very
strange things and consider themselves martial artists.
I once read a martial arts book by some poor silly bastard who
went around attacking martial art masters to see if they were real-
ly that tough. He got slugged by quite a few and could describe
their techniques when surprised. He finally jumped some old Chi-
nese doctor and herbalist who had an international but low-key
reputation for chi kung and martial expertise. The boob woke up
in a hospital dying of severe bioelectrical malfunctions that West-
ern medicine couldn't explain or adjust. He had to hire the Chi-
nese doctor he had assaulted to consult on his case. The old
gentleman kindly saved his life. This young thug retired igno-
miniously from his stupid hobby after experiencing the real thing.
He's lucky the Chinese like gamblers and consider fools touched by
God. I would have handed him his first book and said "Save
Yourself."
In most traditional systems, visiting with the grandmaster (the
absolute head/founder/lineal successor of the founder) is equiva-
lent to addressing the Pope or the Dalai Lama. Talking to Hatsumi
is sometimes like hanging out with your eccentric neighbor. We
had a couple of minutes to talk at the 1989 New Jersey Tai Kai
(annual training party with the grandmaster) and Hatsumi asked
what I was picking up. I told him that I was having a good time
watching and learning from him, as it was a pleasure to know he
was still alive. He laughed and put his arm around me and said, "I
like to watch and learn from you, too." I don't think he was admir-
ing my sloppy taijutsu. I haven't the faintest. I was beating the
snot out of some great looking girl who had trained in Isshinryu
and liked to wrestle. The girl and I were having a hilarious time.
She thought she was dangerous. He said, "The next time I see
you. You'll take the sword test." Then he said to my horror, "When
the godan demonstrate, I'd like you to do something." I was a
Traditional Relationships and Teaching in Esoteric Martial Arts
sandan in ninjutsu on that occasion. He's merciless. I'm going to

have to properly learn the Kihon Hoppo.
A few moments later while I was in front of the crowd doing a
cane throw I've done hundreds of times, my right arm went up
instead of the left. My partner, gokyu (fifth green) Mark Kenworthy
(shodan now and semi-retired as he pursues a career in organ
music), started doing things we hadn't rehearsed. He got into his
part. He started slugging me from behind. The whole thing got
very spontaneous. It ended with me throttling Mark with the
crook of the cane while throwing him to the ground after dis-
arming him with a buss o n the cheek. He thrashed in disgust
admirably. The crowd loved it. We stood and bowed to the audi-
ence, then turned and bowed to Hatsumi and the shihans and
skedaddled stage left.
He likes to test you. He can attack from a distance. It is the
combat application of Therapeutic Touch (discussed in the Heal-
ing chapter). Kevin Millis comes over later and tells me I'm sup-
posed to bow to Hatsumi first. He was embarrassed that his student
was uncouth. No one has ever told me what goes into each par-
ticular grade, any protocol, or how to act at a ninja demo. The
boss didn't seem offended. We were all having a good time.
Shihan Toshiro Nagato (former A11 Japan heavyweight cham-
pion in kickboxing as well as judo) asked if I wanted to be ranked
in ninjutsu at the Los Angeles Tai Kai in 1988. Nagato went to
Ohio State and can be quite fluent. He's very big, smart, and gen-
tle. I'd been doing ninjutsu as a white belt for about six years
without a promotion and thought of it as a hobby. I like the peo-
ple who are in it, some better than others. It's a wild mix of people
from all sorts of backgrounds. My progress always surprises me
as I have n o idea what I'm doing. I just trust my guts and pay
attention. Like Woody Allen, I keep "showing up" at seminars of
teachers I respect. Nagato-san told me to send Hatsumi a video
of what I thought were my best teaching strategies. I sent back
edited clips of some of the other masters I train with; I put in the
beautiful girls from Hillsdale College's hoshinjutsu class dodging
shinai strikes from the rear while wearing their white belts as blind-
folds in front of a cheering crowd of martial art enthusiasts; I

showed Ethiopian Toffesse Alemu defeating my best Errol Flynn
imitation with Japanese sword and chain techniques; I showed
him one of Hoshin's combination firewalk, beer bust and weenie
roasts; I showed him my son Shawn, the power lifter, training
with me with hanbo (three-foot staff) in a wooded clearing. After
we were done beating and throwing each other Shawn delivered a
little lecture on Vietnamese kung fu and the expansion and closure
of the rib gates while breathing, then we meditated next to a wild
rose. Hatsumi sent me a black belt through Kevin and a license
through Van Donk. I wear it proudly. I like it better than my red
and white belt, and even wear it sometimes when I'm teaching
hoshin.
I've missed a lot of the traditional training as a hobbyist. I
have been lucky in having very bright students who speak my
language and had little preconceptions and no bad habits con-
cerning the martial arts, so they approached their training with
open minds. I will probably never again have so much fun as
when testing hoshinjutsu (our smaller American system) against
the ninja and discovering whether we could blaze the same path
but as hobbyists. Yondan (fourth dan) from Hatsumi probably
has to do with pushing through and keeping going when you're
under psychic attack, as he promoted me after the demo and he
was definitely jerking my chain as well as egging Mark on. It forced
me to alter my programming in a hurry.
Esoteric aspects of ninpo that I have noticed include covert
use of healing techniques by some of the higher-level players;
telepathic exchanges-through touch, over short distances, and
over vast distances; cloaking of movement; and great strategies
for driving away the unsuitables. I will discuss how some of these
are done, but if you want to be consistent in your practice you
will have to develop chi. A teacher can pass that to you through
contact as in the case of Takamatsu training Hatsumi. Or you can
learn to develop your own way of achieving enlightenment, of
becoming a tatsujin (indescribably harmonious spirit) through
meditation.
Chapter Five
Meditations for
Becoming Enlightened
M
OST PEOPLE WHO purport to teach meditation don't real-
ize the importance of some aspects of the practice and
how it affects the brain. Meditation is the key to becom-
ing a complete spirit, an integrated person, a whole human being,
enlightened. The biological process of enlightenment involves
encouraging the endocrine system to awaken the hypothalamus
and cerebellum. These are the oldest parts of the brain and could
be said to represent our deepest nature. They are concerned with
movement, balance, protection, and music. They would also seem
to be the seat of problem-solving, vision, and creativity if the cor-
tex is primarily memory storage and word processing.
In recent years a great deal of research has been done on the
effects of meditation. If you are interested in listening to a group
of Western psychologists and scientists report to their colleagues,
Insight Recordings has a six-tape collection of presentations from
the Inner Science Conference for a very reasonable price. Write
them at P.O. Box 546, San Jacinto, C A 92383. One of the points
these researchers make time and time again is that meditation is
hard work. The techniques I share here are empirically researched
and provide useful shortcuts to avoiding entrapment by some of
the darker emotional states or levels of awareness that can be use-
ful for survival but aren't terribly helpful when you are taking
care of everyday business.
If you have not mastered the simple techniques of basic med-
itation, you haven't a prayer of attaining your goal of becoming a
complete human being or tatsujin. Tat refers to the void and sujin
could be a water spirit. It does not matter what your religious
background is, or for that matter whether you are religious at all,
as the practice of meditation can deepen beliefs or eradicate them
depending on the individual. Hatsumi recommends Americans
attend the church of their choice. Religion is concerned with wor-
ship; this process is concerned with becoming. They are very dif-
ferent. What is important is learning how to discipline your mind
and body so that energy may flow through you in the most ben-
eficially natural as well as efficient manner. Meditation or mind-
fulness should become so natural to you that you don't have to
close your eyes but can drive your car, walk about, make love, or
win a fight without breaking your concentration or composure.
Eventually you'll attain mushin (divine emptiness/innocence/
absorption by the void) if you make this walk your everyday walk.
I will now present for you a method based on the ancient Tien
Tao Chi Kung practices that are hidden within Bujinkan Taijut-
su. All of this works and it all works together. You leave out any
part, then shame on you. I'll emphasize the important secrets
that are usually left out (or only passed on through oral tradi-
tion). There are worse penalties than boredom for doing this
wrong, so read this over and approach the subject with caution and
pure intention. If you're careful and maintain the right attitude by
using the Secret Smile, you can have a lot of fun. Practice is more
important than intensity or sincerity.
The essential aspect of meditation is relaxation. Medical
researchers refer to this as the relaxation response. In the first
phase the relaxation response is elicited to open the door for
change; the second phase is used to reprogram or rewire the mind
with fresh information along desired lines; the third phase is
exploring the subconscious, group consciousness, and the process
of melting away dualism. Let us remember there is no mind-body
Meditations for Becoming Enlightened
dichotomy so what you do affects all. Each individual's experi-

ence of certain techniques will be different but the principle
remains the same. For example, where my inner vision is relaxed
and filled with interesting challenges, my friend Mike Cornelius is
constantly doing battle as he learns about his inner rage and com-
petitive nature. Another friend who is enamored of Aleister Crow-
ley suffers enormously for every piece of the inner puzzle gained.
Entering the inner world of consciousness is a lot like playing
Dungeons and Dragons. Many ancient cultures devised alchemi-
cal recipes and visionary exercises for improving oneself. All
include meditation, but often only the outer forms or postures
are preserved or understood by those unwilling to dig a little deep-
er or go behind the facade.
"The Lord loveth an upright man" is a true statement and on
one level has to do with posture or keeping the back straight as
possible. This is very difficult for the neophyte who probably
doesn't have much sense of inner balance and doesn't yet have
the confidence t o allow his bones to support his muscles so he
can move freely from his axis. If you've trained in ninjutsu or
some schools of kung fu you'll notice there is considerable empha-
sis on keeping the back straight and the bones aligned in most
of the movements. The postures for sitting in meditation are
designed to provide a stable base for the beginning meditator and
nothing more until he or she develops their chi through the train-
ing of the breath. Sitting up straight is what is important. Occultists
refer to this as developing the spiritual body; Togakure Ryu ninjas
describe the back straightening process as following or being lift-
ed by an inner light, similar to an esoteric Christian description.
The importance of the spine in spiritual doctrine is even reflected
in the Latin names of the bones-foramen magnum (Mouth of
God) and sacrum (Vessel of the Sacred). Translation of corre-
sponding Chinese acupuncture points in Taoist scrolls renders
Heaven's Seat and Seat of the Ocean. The burning sword of Tibet
and the sword surrounded by a fiery dragon are both symbols for
the spine, as is the serpent-entwined staff of the Greek caduceus of
healers and the serpent in the tree for those who work with the
living. So much for an esoteric excursion into universal vision-

ary symbology. Here's the first lesson, which is to prepare the body. )
Sit in a chair so that your knees are beneath your hips. Pull
your shoulders back and then down so they are centered below
your ears and your ribs are forward. Tuck your chin in slightly as
you tilt up the back of your neck and head as if you were being lift-
ed by your ears or imitating an elf. Close your eyes and pay atten-
tion to the back of your eyelids. Raise your tongue so it presses
lightly against the roof of your mouth, the touching point above
your upper two front teeth. (If you wear dental apparatus that
keeps this from happening, forget vanity and get rid of it while you
meditate.) This seal of the mouth is critical and one of the secrets
passed in oral tradition. If you don't do this you risk severe dam-
age to your brain stem and exquisite pain. Let your hands drop
together in your lap in whatever manner they fall comfortably.
Notice how this naturally straightens your spine and is not par-
ticularly uncomfortable if you have any strength in your lower
back at all. If your lower back is weak, you may have to lean
against a wall or tree and use pillows until you get it right. Edgar
Cayce, the famous sleeping seer, was fond of pine trees. When
you do get it right, you'll know because you'll be able to hold the
posture for a long time without strain.
It's balance not muscle that allows the skilled meditator to
hold a posture for long periods of time. In fact, some research
indicates that meditation does not contribute to relaxation as
much as balance and internal harmony. You may find the atten-
tions of a chiropractor or massage therapist of some value in the
beginning stages, and if you're a martial artist you'll enjoy their
skills for more mundane reasons. Meditation that is done lying
down is worthless for achieving the kundalini but can be useful for
practice in deepening relaxation, visualization, and healing. (Dr.
Rammamurti S. Mishras, T h e Textbook of Yoga Psychology. New
York: The Julian Press, 1963.)
Energy moves through tight muscles slowly, so trying to med-
itate through strain is largely a waste of time. Sitting in a chair
works; it was fine for Egyptian gods and Chinese faeries who val-
ued stillness over contortion. For many Westerners the very stable
lotus position which provides a seat will probably be too painful to
derive its mystical benefits. A simpler seat used by the Japanese
in both common and meditative practice is called seiza (sitting
on one's heels, knees together to the front, ankles raised or lowered
or held to the outside of the hips depending upon foot flexibility),
with everything concerning the spine still applying. Another pre-
ferred seat of the mystic is called fudosa (the sage seat/the seat of
powerful compassion/wind way meditation posture), and I've
seen most ninjas alternating between it and seiza for meditation
and simpIe observation. Some martial artists belittle the sage seat
as they are not flexible enough to move out of it with ease, but
with a little practice you'll be surprised to find that it's no imped-
iment to fast action. The samurai (military ruling class that served
the tyrant shoguns until corrupted by mercantilism) liked it a lot.
The sage seat is best accomplished by crossing the legs like the
proverbial red Indian chief while seated on a zafu (small, round,
pillow or hard pad that raises the hips above the knees). One heel
is tucked under to press against the perineum while the other foot
is turned to rest against the tucked Ieg's shin. The perineum press
is important, particularly when working on your sitting smile.
Once you have mastered sitting in an erect and still position
with your bones balanced so your muscles can just hang relaxed,
you can begin working with the breath. Being still allows you to
feel subtle differences in your body as you experiment with devel-
oping your ability to efficiently process oxygen to ignite the blood.
Chi kung breathing uses a simpler formula than many of the yog-
ic techniques but the end result is the same. Your breathing should
be slow, silent, and seamless.
Seamless means there is no catch; the transition from inhale
to exhale is so smooth that an observer cannot tell if you are
breathing in or out when watching your shoulders or upper chest.
As you breathe in through the nose, you allow your sinuses to fill
as you press outward and downward with your stomach and groin
muscles in a relaxed manner, allowing your lungs to completely fill
with air. This is going two steps below diaphragmatic breathing
PATH NOTES OF AN AMERICAN NlNJA MASTER
as practiced by musicians and singers. With a little gentle persua-

sion the ribs at the front and back can also be expanded to bring in
even more air. After all, you are going to need to run in an extreme-
ly efficient manner considering your goals. Breathing this way
feels a bit like a cobra spreading its mantle, which is another com-
mon symbol in the martial arts. Air is our most easily attainable
source of food and energy. No air, n o Self, n o life as we enjoy it.
Once you have made the relaxed, seamless, giant inhale a nor-
mal and easy part of your practice, add the following to your ever
more complex but easy technique. As you exhale, slowly collapse
your ribs and bring in your stomach muscles until it seems your
very intestines are wrapping around your lower spine. If you are
weak you can extend and exaggerate this tightening and loosen-
ing to include every muscle in your body with each breath, giving
you the advantage of continual relaxed dynamic tension exercise.
You may recall the description from the Tao Te Ching of the mas-
ter who holds power yet doesn't seem to do anything. This prac-
tice is important o n many levels even if it is not particularly
dramatic, which also accounts for it not being well known. It is
sometimes referred to as "the baby's breath" by Taoists as this is
how the little tykes breathe; Hatsumi jokes about having very
young energy and ninjutsu being a baby art. There is a beginner's
body as well as a beginner's mind necessary for development on
the Zen, Chen, or Tien path. It may not be pronounced the same
but it's all the same nonetheless.
Now that you've discovered or rediscovered how to breathe for
depth and power, you'll quickly find this method absorbs the high
chest breathing you were doing before. Usually after a few hours
of practice this becomes the way you breathe all the time, particu-
larly if you remember to do it when you're walking or driving. If
you're moving about it's not necessary to keep your eyes closed
but all other references t o relaxing, aligning the bones, and bal-
ancing on the spine still apply. It might encourage you in your
studies of this type of breathing to know a 1987 survey of cardiac
arrests at the Menninger Clinic (quoted with great regularity in
Rodale Press's various publications) reported that all heart attack
victims represented in that survey sample were high chest breathers.

One hundred twenty-seven out of one hundred twenty-seven is a
fairly conclusive little study. New drugs have been launched on far
less evidence. High shallow breathing is also associated with paranoia
and anxiety attacks as well as fainting. Learning how to breathe
properly is critical to longevity as well as to quieting the mind.
When you've achieved four to six breaths a minute as normal
you may want to experiment with faster inhalations and long
slow exhalations. In deep meditation you may find a cycle of
breath can take up to a minute. You may find that after a while you
can also hold your breath for ridiculously long periods of time,
which is useful when hiding or underwater or, if your chosen
lifestyle is particularly hazardous, both. The morning is a good
time to meditate. Before one goes to the dojo or kwoon, it's a
good way to get settled even if you plan to meditate with your
class later. The Togakure Ryu ninjas like to do it before perfor-
mance or entering the territory of the opponent, rather like a
prayer to enhance their chances of coming home to Mama. It's
different from pumping up. Gatherers of intelligence try to avoid
the way of cannon fodder.
One of the best times to meditate, in my opinion, is after sam-
pling an anodyne you've learned to trust. The colorful sunset is fad-
ing after a two-day blizzard in January, and the wind chill is about
twenty below as you face West and prepare to face the forces of
night and death. Build a fire in the Franklin stove so you'll have
warmth at your back. Put on some Carlos Nakai, an American
Indian flautist and singer of singular power. This probably won't
win me many sidekicks, but you should be sitting in fudosa or
cross-legged like Chief Sitting Bull or Chief Red Cloud and pre-
pared to do thirty minutes at least. The feeling is something like
divine laughter for being crazy enough to participate in Inuit
shamanism. It's a little like how a lifetime trainer in the martial arts
feels. There's a certain "I'm still here!" about it which is part of
the competency of doing it right, that's pumped by a hell of a
rush as your animal survival mechanisms seek inner warmth. It's
called "The Pleasure Principle."
1 have a friend, Ed Purchis, a retired GM exec, who likes to go

canoeing in the winter predawn, when it's quiet o n the mid-Michi-
gan lake and the water is coagulating from the cold. It's lonely as
a leper's picnic. No one is out there sharing this magical if frigid
moment with him. Even his wonderfully adventurous and curious
wife, Kay, does not share this particular adventure. I liked it a lot,
but it's a hard sell. The water actually grates as you slice through it,
and the mist can be very odd.
After Kevin Millis and I had spent some time rooming togeth-
er in Japan on one of Stephen Hayes' tours of historical sites impor-
t a n t in ninja history, h e suddenly asked me o n e sunny cold
morning, "What t h e hell are you? You only take o n e or two
breaths for every three or four the rest of us take and you smoke.
You awaken instantly and know exactly where you are and where
everyone else is. How do you do that?" He was a n observant lad,
even when freezing his ass off. I should have said, "I trust in God"
but instead I said, "Oh, that's just chi kung. Even a child can do it.
Let me show ya."
Quietening the mind is the quintessence of all the skills nec-
essary for enlightenment. It is absolutely necessary to stop what we
normally regard as thinking. As one of my early senseis told me,
"You must think the thought which is not thought!" I worked on
that little gem of a koan o n and off for eight years during my
diaspora from the martial arts for graduate study. It's a normal
human urge to better oneself. But No-thought or Divine Emptiness
is a pretty fucking alien concept for someone who is trying to
earn a Ph.D. in the industrial Midwest, home of Motown, apple
pie, motherhood, Alice Cooper, and Chevrolet, coming out of
Penn State, the U S . Army, small towns in the mountains of Penn-
sylvania, and the home of a Methodist minister and an elementary
schoolteacher. I still love burning rubber. My shadow side is attract-
ed to headbanging.
Fortunately, I was sitting in half-lotus one day o n the sundeck
of our condo contemplating my navel (which is a great joke on
the operation of the dan tien, the spot two fingers below the navel
which the Japanese call hara, and the medieval alchemists Seal of
Meditations for Becoming Enl ightened
the Soul). My Puerto Rican neighbor who was working on his mas-
ter's in business administration or some related subject at U of M,
and who had put me onto Gurdjieff and Ouspensky wanders by
and shows me Dr. Herbert Benson's little masterpiece on meditative
research-his first book, called T h e Relaxation Response (Avon.
1967). (He has written better stuff since: Yotir M a x i m u m Mind,
Times Books, 1987.) In the first book there are perfectly clear
descriptions of how to meditate from a medical and psychological
perspective without having to misinterpret an archaic language
or solve some madman's enigmatic riddle. What a gift. A guide-
book on how to quiet and empty the mind for beginners. No
samadhi or samantabhadra (total absorption in the object of med-
itation/pure intention), just silence. This I could handle. I knew
how to shut up. This was science and I know the rules in that club.
The following is my interpretation of all you need to know
concerning emptying the mind, with some extra challenges for
the truly flexible yet exacting practitioner. In some circles this is
called Dr. Death's Humbling Bad-Ass Brain Scrub. You should
attempt to do this for at least twenty minutes every day, morn-
ing or night, until the condition of no mind chatter is normal
and preferred. This is a phase one relaxation exercise. Phase Ones
are to prepare the meditator's hardware. Everybody loves the Secret
Smile (the most respected esoteric tool for transformation across
cultures) as a Phase Two moving meditation. Most of the Phase
Two exercises I'm using in my next book, or you can take the
course or join the ryu (a stream/an integrated, codified, aware con-
sciousness associated with winning under any circumstances/
fraternal-sororal-familial discipline that encourages risk and pain
as a process for self-growth and development of leadership quali-
ties for emergencies).
Start the brain scrub by simply counting to ten, one number as
you inhale, one as you exhale. You are only allowed to think the
numbers. Any extraneous thought such as my feet hurt or this is
a stupid exercise sends you back to the beginning because all you
are allowed to do is count your breath. Most people last about six
seconds if they're honest, when they can't believe that second
thought sneaked in and they start over. If counting presents too

great a difficulty you might try going "ooonnnneee" with your
exhale. This is called using a mantra, and any mellifluous sound
will do while you are working on emptying the mind.
"Aum" is probably the most famous of all mantras and can
serve the dual purpose of emptying and filling, as it means "All is
one, both the beginning and the end." One of my students
remarked, "Ah is the sound you make as you begin sex and Um is
when you finish. Aum is another name for God when you are
enlightened." This was without prompting and shows a remarkable
parallel to the Tibetan translation of Jewel in the Lotus (om mane
padme hum), which is a euphemistic pun for androgyny, as lingam
(male principle/penis) is absorbed by yoni (female principle/
vagina).
Or you can just make a loud humming or growling noise so
your sinuses and skull bones vibrate. Make your noise as loud as you
can and then begin to quiet your sound production until you can
hear it only as a thought, and then keep turning down the sound
of the thought like you're dialing down the radio until all you can
hear is a high-pitched ringing noise which is sometimes referred to
as the music of the spheres but in reality is just the sound of blood
coursing through the round little blood vessels in your ears. Now
that's quiet. When your mind is quiet like that you can hear a
mouse fart, a useful skill when you are trying to detect the approach
of an enemy or hear the admonitions of your true conscience. If
you want to increase your hearing, pay attention to the root of
your tongue and focus your listening as far from your body as your
mind can easily remember. You may get a surprise.
The object is not to improve hearing, however, but to remove
extraneous noise. You want a quiet, smooth-running brain that
allows easy access to what is stored there. A Cadillac engine of
the mind. You don't want a sleepy, moody, ignorant, slow, or jerky
brain with a bad memory as a result of not knowing how to do
basic preventative maintenance. It's time to change the oil! I'll
bet you're still clinging to useful thoughts like 2 + 2 = 4 even though
you had the principles pat for years. How many jingles do you
Meditations for Becoming E nl ightened
have stashed in there? Dinah Shore hasn't sung for me in such a

long time yet 1'11 always see the U.S.A. with her out-flung arms
blowing a kiss. If you can't turn it o n and off, you don't control
it-something else does. On one level it's the difference between
external and intrinsic motivation; on another it's simply a matter
of ownership and the normal human desire for quality, particularly
when quality translates as having a more interesting and healthy
life. Most people treat their most valuable possession like it was
somebody else's unattractive dog.
Now once you've stilled the mind and made it quiet, observe
how thoughts arise. As they do, just let them slip by without
attaching or getting involved with them. Let it be, or let them
go, or objectively observe as they float through your consciousness.
Once you understand the mechanics of their movement, begin
to trace the insectile thoughts with n o interference beyond obser-
vation or attention without attachment. This exercise is some-
times referred to as The Witness. Once you have examined the
contents of your ego or learned self, you can begin the process of
debugging your software by simply n o t feeding unwanted
thoughts. Purposively withdrawing your awareness keeps the
thoughts quiescent and weak until they simply fade away. You
dial them down, you still your mind. You turn off the radio. This
is also a good process for dealing with addictions.
Another method which I have little faith in but offer anyway is
"the gopher-whacking exercise," where one tries to push back
each thought as it arises. This only leads to frustration and is usu-
ally given up if the initiate is taught the dialing-down or passive
mind methodology. Beating up yourself strikes me as self-destruc-
tive regardless of what is being damaged. It's using a sledgehammer
where an eraser provides a cleaner transition. If you're drawn to
this manic kind of intensity read Crowley's Magick: In Theory and
Practice (Dover, 1976). He offers some exercises for those who hate
and fear their body which only a Victorian could see in a posi-
tive light.
After a month or so of mind-scrubbing you may notice that
you're pretty hard to distract and your access to memory is fast
and accurate with the exception of trivia, which takes a while

because it is now properly categorized. People who never go
through this process often spend their whole lives in pursuit of
trivia, no pun on the game intended.
The result of this process is clarity of thought, often accom-
panied by much greater access to the subconscious---accomplish-
ments that are hard to denigrate. It also has the additional benefit
of greatly slowing the heart rate and sometimes lowering blood
pressure. Research on meditators indicates they score significant-
ly younger on tests of biological aging. The intestinal breathing
greatly facilitates digestion and evacuation, which are also asso-
ciated with longevity. The need for caloric intake often drops to
about a thousand per day, which research in the last ten years
strongly correlates with low disease incidence and longer life.
There is a tendency to become more of a vegetarian in your selec-
tion of food and simultaneously to acquire a genuine liking for
raw flesh. Takamatsu (thirty third grandmaster) decried modern
cooking methods, many of which correlate with cancer, as being
a source of weakness. There is a reason you feel energized after a
snack of sushi or sashimi. Proper meditation increases your phys-
ical as well as mental efficiency. Not having to eat as much and
being primarily vegetarian is a considerable advantage on a forced
march or when traveling in hostile territory where a cooking fire
could betray your presence. Do you need any other reasons why
meditation might be useful to a warrior?
Now that you've emptied mind through passive reflection, the
question becomes what do you want to put in there that might
make your life more interesting? Meditation can increase analyt-
ical skills and memory and rejuvenate the endocrine hormonal
systems, referred to by the ancients as chakras, as well as strength-
en the parasympathetic systems which can be considered our
immune system. The following are various ways to build the "inner
light." The first is a kung fu exercise that is part of Taoist esoteric
yoga and requires a little imagination on your part. You might
record the instruction to play to yourself as you practice or have a
friend read you the "recipe" while you are mastering the tech-
nique. Or buy the tape set that accompanies this book (available
from Eurotechnical Research University's school of Polemikolo-

gy basic and advanced meditation courses). We start Phase Two
with the infamous Secret Smile.
First hit the proper meditative position that you like the most.
Close your eyes and slow your breathing. Balance your spine in an
upright position and put your tongue up. Put a smile on your
face. At least lift your cheeks, so the corners of your mouth turn up
if you no longer remember what a smile is. Tighten up your toes
until they really hurt and then release them. Do this three times.
Once the pain has stopped, pay attention to the relaxed feeling
concurrent with it stopping and move that relaxed feeling from the
sole of your foot to your ankles and then up to your calves. Bring
it around your knees into the heavy muscles of the thighs and
allow them to soften and relax. You may feel yourself settling into
your seat as you allow the hips and pelvis to settle. Picture your
thorax as a bowl or barrel (grail or vessel) filling up with relax-
ation. Let the intestines, stomach, and lower back fill up. Allow the
relaxed feeling to flow up into your chest, upper back, and shoul-
ders so that it overflows into your arms and down to your finger-
tips. Let your arms fill up until the relaxed feeling begins to move
up the back of your head and around your neck, coming up over
your ears and skull to rest behind your eyes. Catch the feeling
with your relaxed tongue, mix it with your saliva, and swallow it
down to the bottom of your belly, where you swirl it around.
Instead of emptying your mind, remember a time you did
something you were not only proud of, but other people recog-
nized your achievement. It doesn't matter what it was or how old
you were. Pay attention to how you felt. Erase the people, event,
and reward and keep the feeling. Take that feeling down to your
feet and breathe it through your body following the same proce-
dure you just did with the feeling of relaxation, but this time you
don't have to tighten your toes. Bring it over your head, mix with
the saliva, swallow, and allow it to mix with the relaxed feeling and
then begin the cycle anew. Do this for three or more cycles of
breath.
Picture a time when you were laughing so hard you literally
fell down, cracked up, and totally lost it. Take out the joke or situ-
ation and hold onto that feeling of wild laughter and breathe that
through your body, starting at your feet and ending in your belly,
Mix it with the first two and breathe all three through the cycle.
Now, remember a time when you were in love and felt loving.
Take out the loved one and the situation and hold onto that won-
derful feeling. Take that down to your feet and bring it up through
your body over your head, to swallow it down and mix with the
other feelings. Then combine the four to breathe through your
body following the identical procedure. The next segment is rated
R and those under 18 must have the permission of their parents or
guardians to continue.
If you're sexually active, remember the best orgasm you ever
had, and if male, hold onto the moment just before ejaculation
and breathe that feeling through your body (as you probably don't
want to stain your trousers and the male orgasm is often too short
for this exercise). If female, let it rip as you breathe that through
your body from the tip of your toes to the top of your head, down
behind the eyes, through the tongue, and back to the belly of the
beast. This is the power behind the Secret Smile and one of those
important little tantric items usually regarded as oral tradition.
Once you've succeeded in combining all these feelings and mov-
ing them from your feet to your head and back to below your
stomach, memorize the process. Make it part of your daily practice
until it is so easy that it just becomes background sensation for
any other exercise or a warm-up that sticks with you.
The Secret Smile is a process for truly internalizing feelings.
The feelings you have just internalized are also referred to as
relaxed calm, confidence in your abilities, happiness, love, and
ecstasy. You could say you're just making yourself cool, confident,
happy, and sexy. I like to think of it as Homo sapiens' (Latin for
what you is) natural state. With the distractions and turmoil of
modern living it's difficult to remember that you once were and
with a little effort still are in this state of youthful bliss. Zen prac-
titioners call this remembering your Self. As your practice deepens,
so will that concept.
Energy moves best through a happy camper and everybody
loves a lover. I taught a girl how to do this in about ten minutes a

couple of years ago in California when I was out to train with
Kevin and the look on her face was great afterwards, she was radi-
ant. She said, "Wow! I didn't even know what smile meant." She
couldn't wipe the grin off her face. I dare anybody to try to intel-
lectually flog the mind into accomplishing that little exercise.
Mental discipline has to do with attention, remembering, and
creating, not how many pushups you can do on your knuckles.
The Secret Smile also prepares the body and mind to accept as
normal the movement of powerful emotions and sexual energy
through it as a means for clearing and opening what Oriental
medicine refers to as meridians. Let's move onto another exercise
for developing "inner light.',
Look away from the external light source. Close your eyes but
pay attention to the phosphorous on the back of your eyelids.
No color. Write down black in your diary of meditation events.
(You are keeping a diary, aren't you? Don't you want to be able
to explain to your grandchildren how you got so weird and fun-
ny?) Make note of any color or semblance of color you see. Hit
the position of choice and, maintaining no expectation, empty
your mind with your tongue resting against your lower teeth.
Breathe like you used to and watch the back of your eyelids. When
you're done with that, put your tongue up and begin chi kung
breathing, continuing to pay attention to whatever happens on
your eyelids. After you've exhausted those insights, begin the
Secret Smile and observe throughout the five complete cycles of
breath. Note any differences. Do this more than once. Look around
back there; you may find some interesting surprises. If you do,
they're yours. Scope 'em out, dude. It might be reasonable to
check your progress this way at least once a week as part of your
meditation practice. The little fat buddha called "Happy Ho Tai"
represents this exercise.
Have you noticed that many of the legendary Japanese heroes
are depicted as being more than just a little cross-eyed? I've a
woodcut of Musashi, katana (mid-length war sword) held under-
hand, slicing arrows out of the air while looking backwards with
his eyes crossed. Are we talking skill, art, or super-natural here?

Trevor Leggett (Zen and the Ways, Tuttle, 1987) tells us that the
crossed eyes are an artistic device used by the Japanese to indi-
cate that the individual was guided by looking inward or follow-
ing an inner light. You might make the leap of faith from the
picture to the godan test as representing something similar. If
you've ever examined a Japanese pillow book you might have
noticed that some of the positions are done with crossed eyes.
Meditations for Creativity

This next exercise from the Hoshinroshiryu is called Da Mo's Cave.
Da Mo was the Hindu monk who traveled to China and, accord-
ing to legend, revitalized the Shaolin Temple, introducing brain
and marrow washing as well as chi kung and kung fu to the poor
benighted priesthood of that far away and long ago era. Supposedly
he sat in meditation in his cave for nine years. Like Christ, he felt
it was important. He's usually painted with no eyelids, as legend
has it he tore them off so he couldn't fall asleep when meditating,
He's also the patron saint of tea drinkers. He's usually pictured as
a rough-looking bearded gentleman. He is also regarded as the
founder of Zen and sometimes referred to as the Bodhidharma,
Da Mo, or Daruma. My first gift from Hatsumi was a watercolor of
Da Mo. Hatsumi paints him as shame-faced and worried-looking
with a flaming aura.
This exercise is designed to increase your ability to visualize
and fantasize, and to provide alternative ways to access your sub-
conscious and chakra system. If you're print and auditory oriented
like me, you may have to have someone read this to you while
you meditate. Most of the TV generation have no difficulty with
this at all, as it is just like going to the movies. I don't visualize
nearly as well as my students. What I do to remember and create is
like what you do when you read a good author whose words allow
you to sort of see and feel the situation he or she is describing.
(Very rarely do I get the detail that the youngsters get. Most often
my visions look like holographs. If yours work out that way, don't
worry. It's all processed in the brain eventually. I'm told that us
lower-IQ types have greater problems visualizing.) Just treat it like
a story except that you are the main character and get to fill in
the details as you want them to be. This exercise is definitely part
of the oral tradition and similar to shamanistic journeying.
Hit the position of choice, do the PG-rated version of the Secret
Smile, and then once you are relaxed and happy, picture yourself
emerging from the water o n a beach and then walking across a
plain toward a mountain. As you walk along it seems as if your
feet draw energy from the ground and every step makes you feel
strong and confident. As you begin to climb the mountain you
see ahead a n old abandoned temple and graveyard, which you
skirt but notice that there are bathing pools that still hold water
within the ruined interior. You continue to climb and it is get-
ting tougher. As you begin to tire and lean against the rocks and
trees, you find that you can draw strength with your hands as
well as your feet, and that gives you more energy to continue
your climb. Ahead of you o n a slightly different trail you see a
cave with an inviting entrance. You go toward it and a guardian
wearing a cloak that masks identity gestures to you to enter and
bows so you feel accepted and a bit like a well-loved king or queen.
You enter the cave and find a long, downward-descending tun-
nel with phosphorescent walls that glow with enough light to
see. This descending ramp opens into a large subterranean room.
In the back at quite a distance there is a bed of glowing lava. On
your left is a tall podium supporting a large leather-bound tome
which has written across it in words of flaming gold, "All Knowl-
edge Is Power. Seeking Truth, First Look Ye Here!" Behind this
large book's podium is a room containing a massive communi-
cation and computer set-up, looking somewhat like the bridge of
the Starship Enterprise You can see three seats in there. One is
yours. There is a young woman and a young man working in the
room. They don't see you yet.
To the right is a great stairway with five steps. Each step is a
different-colored wide slab with a doorway opening off of it. The
first step is red and its door is heavy and barred but you can see
PATH NO'I'ES OF AN AMERICAN NINJA MASTER
that it opens into a rugged and ancient desert, and in the dis-
tance you can make out a city built from stone. The next step is
orange and its doorway is a Dutch door looking out o n a bab-
bling stream that flows down through a forest t o a vast lake or
ocean. There is a ship approaching. The next step up is bright yel-
low and its door is intricately carved and looks out o n a city that
is both modern and ancient and seems to be sheltering many dif-
ferent kinds of people. Some even look like elves. As you focus
your attention there, you hear faint laughter and music and the
clink of glassware. The next step up is green and seems to be open-
ing into the sky. You can see a bird floating. It's like looking up to
a n upstairs window. The sky is cloudless and light blue. The last
step is tilted and spirals off into the distance in various shades of
blue and violet fading into white. It almost seems to penetrate
the dark rock of the cave in the distance. It is rather strange.
In the center, before you, is a series of rooms that are your liv-
ing quarters. There is your bath, sleeping quarters, garden, library,
laboratory, personal dojo and instructor, machine shop, stables,
and kitchen. You explore t o make certain all is as you want it.
You are surprised to find an animal in a back room that regards you
as its master. In one of the rooms you find a secret panel and in
another there is a hidden trapdoor under a rug. You do not enter
these at this time as they are dark. When you have familiarized
yourself with the contents of your cave and feel certain you can
return whenever you wish to improve it, for instruction or to play,
allow your eyes to open.
My cave was initially rather austere. For a long time my bed
was rock and I kept warm with the skins and blankets made from
what I could capture. One day I asked one of my Hillsdale Col-
lege students what her cave was like and she said, "I love my
waterbed and masseuse. It's so nice to walk out into the desert
with music blaring from the outside speakers when I want to be by
myself." Angie Damm got me thinking that the cave might be
wildly different from person to person depending on their interests
and creativity. Da Mo's Cave has a lot of possibility.
Blake Poindexter's empire of the South would make Donald
Trump green with envy, and Mark Robinson's has cartoons liv-
ing in his. What you may find out the doors, behind the panels,
and down the traps is part of our oral tradition, but keep in mind
Togakure means "hidden door" and one of the Taoist schools is
"mysterious portal." Be careful as you explore the surrounding
domains, and don't jump out the green door. It's a long way to the
bottom of the abyss. There's climbing gear in the war room or
you might try to ride the bird.
You should explore Da Mo's cave as an exercise in imagina-
tion. How real and yet how crazy can you get? Because the mythos
of the cave is based on cross-cultural archetypes, as your chi builds
your cave will change and you may find some very interesting
connections to exterior reality as you also discover interior deities.
Kevin Brown would write the answers to probable test questions in
his cave's study and keep notes in the memory tome. If some-
thing slipped his mind during a test, he'd close his eyes, run into
the cave, and get the answer. He carried a four-point average in
Physics. Medical students may want to use the lab and visioning
screens behind the book to explore their meridians or direct ener-
gy and other biological functions. Experiment-it's your cave and
everything in it is also you. It gives you a fantasy arena to work out
your psychosis. It's full of surprises.
My son once sat in on a session of my college class. As I was
describing the stairs to my students, he decided to look in his
tome. He told me the pages looked like Swiss cheese and then
pointed out that I'd informed him once there were major holes in
his knowledge that he should start repairing. He was a great kid
and has become a remarkably good man and world-class chemist,
of all things.
A variation of Da Mo's Cave taught to potential POWs by Air
Force psychologists was building their dream houses in exact
detail. The reports of prisoners in Vietnam claim this technique was
extremely helpful in terms of enduring boredom, deprivation,
and torture. It is recommended in this process that one even
attempt to involve the senses of taste, touch, and smell while
working on the inner vision.
Meditations for The Senses
Smell
Hit the position of choice. Empty your mind. Close your eyes and
keep them closed. Pay attention to the tip of your nose, the rim of
your nostrils. Breathe in gently and focus o n the quality of the
air. What do you feel and what d o the feelings tell you? Lift your
arms and take a whiff. Drop them and see if you can still pick up
your aroma. What does it tell you, aside from your deodorant
brand? Sift through your own body odors and breathe in deeply.
What else can you smell in the room? Who else is with you? How
far away are they and in what direction? Does their presence affect
the air temperature as it passes your nostrils? Can you separate
them out by sex? Is there a difference between cologne and per-
fume? Keeping your eyes shut, crawl around until you find a part-
ner or one finds you. Do not speak. Do not touch. Sniff them out.
See if you can remember who this is by their scent. Take a peek.
Right or wrong? Wander around a n d try again. Analyze your
progress.
Human beings don't depend too much o n the sense of smell for
information, as that particular nerve bundle is about the size of a
needle. A dog's is about as big around as m y finger and so dis-
criminating canines can identify one drop of urine in a thousand
gallons of water. When I was younger and hadn't hardened my
nostrils by smoking for twenty years I could always tell if a lady was
in heat and at quite a distance. Takamatsu is said t o have joked
about knowing the washerwomen were o n his mountain when
they were miles away. Since I was a preacher's kid and didn't know
beans about sex, when I first noticed this I thought something
was wrong with the women, and as they seemed t o take their
changing odor in stride then it was probably something wrong
with me. I do recall I had the sense not to ask about it. I t wasn't
until I was out of the army that I realized the value of smell infor-
mation. Because I was achievement-oriented, smoking kept away
one very potent distraction. It's hard to get through school when
you can fall in lust by simply following your nose. The nerves for
the nose and the genitals grow from and connect with the same
area of the brain. The nose knows. In experiments with women
coeds, researchers found they could entrain a dorm of girls to go
into menstruation at the same time using scent triggers. (It is dis-
cussed in most introductory psychology courses and certainly
physical anthropology.)
You may want to experiment with various types of incense
when you meditate. Some are supposed to be triggers to higher
states of awareness, but most strike me as a way to cover the smell
of a dirty room or a corpse putrefying. Smoke from a cooking fire
carries for miles, and a cigarette can be smelled for hundreds of
yards in three-tiered jungle. Wool smells different from cotton or
synthetic textiles. Different locations have distinctive odors which
are intensified if you're blindfolded. Scents get attached to mem-
ories at a very deep level and you should be aware of their asso-
ciations. There is more going o n with smell than meets the eye.
Touch
Stuff your ears with cotton. Suck on a eucalyptus cough drop or
some other stinky product to block your sense of smell. Take off
your shoes and socks. Close your eyes, or if you're really confident
tie on a blindfold. Clear your mind. Feel what the air feels like
around you. Notice how the air that is inside your clothing is
warmer than the air outside your clothing. Move your hand away
from your body and see if you can discriminate differences in air
temperature from the floor to above your head. Feel your way over
to a wall. Try to feel the difference a wall creates in the air before
you walk against it. Put your hands out in front of you and try to
find a friend. How close do you have to get before you feel them?
Try not to touch, as you're searching for essence. Find them, back
off, try again. What do your hands feel like as you do this?
Put your hands behind your back. Stick them in your obi (belt),
or pockets. Lean forward and pay attention to how the air feels
on your face. Close your eyes. Use your hands' memory and go
find a wall. Go slowly and carefully, as you are leading with that
which greets others. Attempt to find a friend. Try to identify them
by using your face. Take a guess. Wander around, try again. Feel
any improvement.
Pay attention to your feet. Sink your consciousness down to
the soles or Bubbling Springs and see what you can pick up from
the floor or ground. We tend not to pay enough attention to mes-
sages of our feet, yet they have the longest nerves in the body
connecting reflexology, shiatsu, and acupuncture sites that affect
every major organ. What are the old hoofers telling you? Reach out
and touch someone. Getting any messages? Aside from blatant
erogenous zones, these are the most sensitive nerves in your body.
What are they telling you? Walk around some more. Walking is the
most important skill in the martial arts, the best form of exercise,
and one of the easiest ways to stay in touch with your environ-
ment. It is associated with genius, and many great people have
enjoyed the benefits of walking. I have seldom seen a ninja run.
Learn to pick up stuff with your toes. Go barefoot as much as pos-
sible. Do some taijutsu. Try not to kill yourself.
Close your eyes and boogie around your own house and prop-
erty at every chance. It's great for training balance and sensitivity
as well as memory. If you have a lover it opens all sorts of possi-
bilities for training as well as laughs.
Sight
Turn off the lights. Train in dim light. (Bars are usually dark. Peo-
ple attack you at night.) Walk around after dark. Get your night
vision back. Eat more blueberries. Sit around in the dark and bull-
shit with your buddies. Make the night your friend. Guerrilla
troops always own the night. Read in dim light. Palm your eyes for
a minute or so whenever you think of it. Massage around your
eyes at least twice a day. If your eyes are weak, try ginseng and
see if they improve. Wear contacts rather than glasses. If you need
glasses, try to wear them only for tasks that require them as they
become a crutch. You don't have to be in 20/20 all the time. Our
eyes are binocular and the corneas are supposed to be adjustable
lenses. You ought to be able to consciously adjust them to various

levels of light and focus. Wear eye shades as little as possible.
Sit down knee to knee with a friend or training partner in dim
light. Empty your mind. Do the Secret Smile and stare into each
other's eyes for a few minutes. Try not to blink much, and get
your urge to giggle under control. You're supposed to be observing
with no expectations. Without breaking your stare, shift your
focus a few inches in front of this person's face. Shift your focus
behind them as if you were looking through them. Shift back to
the face. Shift to the area between the ears and shoulders. Shift
to above the other's head. One person should then close his or
her eyes and breathe deeply while the other goes through the
same cycle of observation. Switch roles. Discuss what you observed,
and share your observations with the other training dyads. Some
of what you hear may surprise you.
Hearing
Put some music on the stereo. Hit the position. Close your eyes.
Empty your mind. Pay attention to the back of your eyelids. Try to
feel what the rhythm does inside your skull. What area of your
brain responds? How does it affect the phosphorous behind the
eyes? Try a different piece of music. Put on some baroque quartets.
Try a little New Age. Break out the Beethoven; see what Mozart
does. Try a Gregorian chant or plain song. Sample the Damn Yan-
kees. Whitney Houston. Ravi Shankar. INXS. Enigma. What real-
ly lights you up? Run the Secret Smile to music. Try a subliminal
tape. (It's useful to know when they're being used even if you
can't do much about it. Keeps down the shoplifting. Increases the
confession rate. Increases your chances of getting lucky. Builds
your self-esteem. Speeds healing. Reduces vice.) Observe the dif-
ferences. Figure out the benefits. You have to listen with your feel-
ings as well as your ears.
According to legend, Pythagoras, the inventor of geometry and
probability, spent years studying the occult effect of music and
sound on the nervous systems of his students and friends. The
results of his years at this work were mostly lost when the library
at Alexandria was burned. In ancient times when there was no

mass printing and all books were handwritten and rare, the burn-
ing of a library was a major catastrophe.
There are a few modern musicologists who are esoteric in their
interests, and all agree we learn faster when listening to extended
notes. Emotions are definitely stirred by music and some portions
of the brain more than others. Some instruments and scales are
considered very beneficial to meditation and are supposed to affect
certain parts of the body as well as influence the chakras. Paul
Abel, a local jazz musician, helped me try out some musical effects
and wrote some very effective meditative music to support these
exercises. Music soothes the savage breast (Willem Shaxpy, six-
teenth-century English playwright) as well as entrains the neuro-
logical bioelectric systems of the brain. Sometimes when you don't
like a piece of music, it has nothing to do with the music, but
the associations and paths it stimulates. There's a lot of wonderful
meditation music around now. (Hit the position to a Ravi Shankar
raga and see what happens.) In the old days music was a privi-
lege only royalty, the wealthy, talented, or professionally religious
could enjoy. I suspect there are quantum differences between
humming a mantra and wiring yourself into a modern CD sound
system. I know there is, that's why I'm suggesting it.
Taste
Taste is a little difficult to work into a meditation unless you've
developed the skills to move around in your relaxed altered state.
As preparation for this exercise, attempt to hold onto the feelings
from the other exercises as long as possible after each training
session. Go to a really good restaurant that serves a wide and inter-
esting menu, preferably of food you have never sampled. Ask the
waiter's opinion in selection if you've no idea what is being offered.
Make your order. Relax. Empty your mind of all expectations and
concentrate your energies o n your saliva, sense of smell, and
tongue. Roll your tongue around your mouth and between your
lips and teeth. If you are having a wine to cleanse your palate,
inhale its bouquet, swish it around in your mouth, and pull a lit-
tle air through it before swallowing. Pay attention to how it feels

all the way down and note the aftertaste in your mouth.
Each morsel of food you put into your mouth, chew ever so
slowly. Feel its texture as you chew and mash it about with your
tongue. Smell it as it goes in your mouth and as you chew. See if
you've the sensitivity to detect the living energy in the vegeta-
bles and flesh as you eat. Hatsumi says that Takamatsu could dis-
criminate between teas grown o n different sides of the same
mountain, which would affect the moisture in the leaf. How does
the energy of broccoli differ from a potato? Potatoes are cousins to
deadly nightshade and their energy is easy t o feel as they aren't
that good for you, but we've adapted t o them because they're
plentiful and their inherent poisonous nature makes them easy
to cultivate, as most insects and grubs aren't interested.
Sauces can be intriguing. Breads can have wildly different tex-
tures. What does the flavor and consistency of the meat tell you
about the animal? I find wild meat much more interesting than the
fare at the supermarket. Eating in this manner helps you to redis-
cover the sanctity of a meal as well as sharpens your sense of taste.
On one level we are what we eat. Food comes after water and
breath as a universal need. We tend to love who feeds and enter-
tains us, thus the way to a man's heart is through bread and cir-
cuses. Awareness of subtle differences in taste, smell, and energy is
a significant benefit when you are trying to avoid ptomaine or
deliberate poisoning. How would you like the job of being the
dictator's taster? Maybe you've treated the cook badly? The ninjas
recommend shifting between blandness and variety and avoid-
ing spices, as they stimulate the intestines and can conceal the
beginnings of putrescence. This way's more fun.
Another even more fun way to train the tongue is in your kiss.
Many subtle messages concerning health and degree of interest
are passed in that junction. And you should take many samples to
develop your expertise. Just ask Motown's Shirelles. Science need
not be bookish or lonely,
Civilized living tends to deaden our abilities to interact with our
environment as we become jaded. If we cannot have variety then
we must pursue greater depth of experience to keep these evolu-

tionary processes fresh and available. They are always present but
are ignored, reduced, or forgotten. This is part of what the Zen
roshi refer to when they say the process of enlightenment is self-
remembering. Doing these exercises i n the order that I'm sug-
gesting will have immediate effect. This is the inner art of the
life-giving sword, so fear n o evil. If you want the outer art, go find
a really good swordsman. 1 know a few who can stretch your
imagination.
Meditations for Awakening Kundalini

Once you've mastered the above exercises you are ready to begin
Taoist running of the microcosmic and macrocosmic orbits. Before
you start this process, read the following books carefully and you
won't get into any trouble like being possessed by a demon, delu-
sions of grandeur, or epilepsy: Awaken Healing Energy Through the
Tao by Mantak Chia (Aurora Press, 1983), Qui Quong For Health
by Takahashi and Brown (Japan Publications, 1981), and Zen Shi-
atsu by Masanuga and Ohashi (Japan Publications, 1977). The
ryus from which this information is drawn and synthesized are
called Cosmic Fire Gourd, Golden Bell, Heaven's Way of Longevi-
ty, Da Mo's Cave, and The Immovable School Passed Down from
the Gods. If you have accomplished the Secret Smile, made a
friend of your body, and learned to value silence as well as accept
your opposites-just do it!
Hit the position of choice. Breathe seamlessly through both
nostrils at the same time while expanding and contracting your
belly. Allow your mind to become completely still and empty.
Look down inside yourself. Picture a ball of energy below your
navel. Sink the ball behind and below your genitals. Pull it across
your rectum. Tighten your rectum to push it up your spine. Hold
the spine as erect as possible with the shoulders back and down,
which lifts the front of the rib cage. As you inhale bring the ener-
gy up over your head. Be careful to keep your head slightly bowed
with your chin tucked and your tongue against the roof of your
mouth. As you exhale let the energy fall down the front of your
body back to a point below your navel. Repeat with each cycle
of breath for as long as you are able to sustain your sitting pos-
ture and state of no mind. If you cannot feel energy moving, just
pretend that you can and imagine the process as I've described
it. Do this every day, morning and night, for at least twenty min-
utes until you can feel the energy moving. Always begin your
practice by running the Secret Smile. You want your body to be
very happy; that way your hormonal system will cooperate and
you will avoid paranoia.
Once you can feel the energy moving, picture balls of energy at
the soles of your feet. As you inhale, draw that energy up to mix
with the first ball at the base of your spine and draw it over your
head. Your hands should lie together in your lap if you are sit-
ting, or if standing, hold them in front of you as if you were hug-
ging a tree with your elbows below your hands. As you exhale
run the energy down to your fingers and feet. Experiment with
moving the energy around and inside your body. Roll your eyes as
you breathe and pay attention to what happens. Observe the col-
ors behind the eyes. Whenever you get light shades of yellow,
green, violet, blue, or white, attempt to increase their brightness.
Do not attempt to bring through an archetype, god, or spirit by
imagining yourself to be on a particular wavelength or way of
thinking and feeling. Sustain no-mind or what is referred to as
mushin or Holy Emptiness, n o expectations. Be certain your seat
is very stable and comfortable. Pad your knees. You will go through
long periods of stillness. After a period of days you may find that
you sweat profusely. This means the body is purifying itself and
removing toxins. When the sexual energy is drawn from the gen-
itals, which may happen spontaneously, you may begin to shake
as the orgasm mechanism is reversed and feeds energy into the
body rather than out. In my opinion this is the oft-reported
ecstasy/bliss and is strengthened and harmonized by the Secret
Smile. Without the Secret Smile exercise it is more like thrashing
and can be the precursor t o t h e kundalini (serpent power/
samadhi).
When you have finished a sitting session, get up and walk

around. Give yourself a shiatsu massage starting at your feet and
ending with knuckle knocking at the top of your head. Swirl your
tongue around in your mouth and swallow your saliva. Give your
ears a good rub and pull your lobes and haul the tops a bit as if you
were the ghost of LBJ greeting a beagle. When you are not medi-
tating, practice your martial art at least twice a week to keep the
body supple. Walk at every opportunity. If energy levels seem
painful, flick and shake your limbs as if you were shaking off
water. Occasionally reverse the orbits and run the energy up the
front of your body and down your spine and out your feet. If the
urge hits you, run it in circles inside your chest and belly as if
you were making an energy baby. Look down into yourself when
you do this. It may be educational. Once again, maintain no-
mind as much as possible and keep your tongue up as you do
these exercises. You will thank me for this very important piece of
advice.
This next technique is a n advanced exercise I've named
"Humbly Contemplating Your Navel." It is extremely beneficial
to the art of cobra breathing and I wanted to include one com-
pletely original technique (not advanced by research) of my own
invention so I could name it and perhaps restore some validity
to a fine old tradition.
Sit in sage seat. Run your orbit. Drop your hands into your lap
in the position Zen roshi refer to as The Mountain. Bend your
body forward so if you opened your eyes you would be looking
into your navel behind and beneath your thumbs. Breathe as deep
and as slowly as you are capable, fully expanding and contracting
every muscle in your body with each cycle of breath. Do this until
it is painless and it feels as if your skin were breathing. Pay partic-
ular attention to the light show behind your eyes. Feed it energy
and research what you see. Sit back up and notice how it affects
your chi kung and ability to expand your lower rib cage in the
erect posture. I recently saw old wooden carvings of men balled
into this position in San Francisco's Chinatown, so I guess I'm
reintroducing it. There is little new when considering the Ways.
The advanced technique is for the evening. Find a spot with

rocks and shadows. Fold yourself into this position with your
head resting o n the ground before you and your hands completely
hidden beneath your body but still with thumbs touching and
fingers crossed. Allow your muscles to completely relax. Go into
meditation. Become a rock. See if your training friends can find
you. Hide and go seek for grown-ups can be educational. If you do
it right you may get to meditate for quite a while! There are times
when it is safer to be a rock than a mountain. Might be useful for
a quick ambush, too.
Treat every direction u p to this point as Gospel or at least like
your mother's most delicious recipe that you don't dare change
because whenever you do, the end product isn't what you expect-
ed and this is a very important bake-off. The ancient Taoists rec-
ommended you run the orbits as often as possible morning and
night for up to ninety days if you want to risk the kundalini expe-
rience. Sun Tzu says that the long-lasting chi is best accomplished
in the daylight of the hot and dry season, which is verified by
my experience.
It is better not to bring the energy into the head until you've
learned how to cool it. Some of the Chinese schools recommend
just running the orbit to the heart chakra and dumping down
the spine, not forcing entrance to the skull at all. 1 did not learn
these safer techniques until after I'd had the kundalini experi-
ence. Some of my students have preferred these methods. They're
slower, but safer. Once you have achieved the lesser kan and li,
it's just a matter of setting aside the time to work o n the higher
techniques which connect heaven (the lotus chakra) with earth
(the genitals). When things get weird, kick back, observe, and fol-
low the light. It may well be that experiencing the kundalini is a
result of doing it the risky way and bringing up the hot energy
first. That way certainly forces you to learn how to use the energy
if you don't want to be handicapped by burnt organs. A little cau-
tion, a stitch i n time. If a little blue girl with a hatchet turns up,
pay attention to her, but don't get off your seat. Good luck. God
bless. Keep your tongue up.
Chapter Six
The Godan or Master's Test

for a Ninja
N MOST MARTIAL art systems the black belt does not represent
mastery but acceptance. Earning it means you have learned
the basic physical skills necessary to be accepted as a peer or
advanced student. It might be considered the equivalent of a high-
school degree in mayhem. The second degree or dan usually means
you can teach the basics; the third means you are a licensed teacher
with some special skills; fourth is often concerned with dojo man-
agement as well as weapon esoterica, and in some systems it is
considered the rank at which you are a fully certified teacher or
supervised teacher directly under a master instructor.
The fifth degree means you are a master of the basic physical,
mental, and spiritual fundamentals with your own contributions
to make to the system. You have demonstrated mastery as well
as contributed something unique to the system. In other words,
you are not just imitating your teacher but have your own view-
point. You have become a n artist of the darker side of human
nature in a socially acceptable context. It might be said you have
awakened and tamed your shadow self. It must also be said that
some masters' basics far exceed the norm in subtlety, effective-
ness, and teaching skill.
Sixth degree (rokudan) and seventh (shichidan or nanaedan, for

the very polite) are considered the equivalent of Ph.D.s or doc-
tors and are usually referred to as "shi" or "shihan," which means
head of school. These practitioners have developed chi, and are
thought of as knights/scholars in Ninpo and Budo/Bugei. Hanshi
or "respected master" is eighth dan or above in the traditional
Japanese Budo. The title Oshihan is reserved for a master of high-
er energies or demon control who has not only developed his
own source of regenerative chi (or creative spirit) but his students'
students manifest. SiGung (grandfather) is the equivalent title in
esoteric Chinese martial arts. In arts where spiritual training is
part of the curriculum one will also have trained the intuition to
separate right from wrong on a variety of levels. Not everyone
will agree with this way of looking at martial ranks, but it's close
enough for a generalist who considers his martial skills a hobby
that has lasted for thirty-five years and resulted in eighteen dif-
ferent grades of black belt in five systems and three cultures with
languages he doesn't speak or read.
The godan (fifth degree) test of Togakure Ryu Bujinkan Ninpo
consists of the student kneeling in seiza with his or her eyes closed
in meditation or terror, as the grandmaster, also in meditation,
stands behind the student with a sword. When the grandmaster is
ready he attempts to halve the student. It's the student's job to
roll out of the way, avoiding the strike. To pass this test requires
rudimentary skills in telempathy (feeling and reacting to emo-
tions). From a mystical viewpoint, the student is accepted and
protected by the Bujin (martial spirits such as tengu friendly to the
Togakure Ryu). From my perspective, the student feels the sen-
sei's mind change and avoids the strike, as feeling precedes
thought. Because killing is not natural to the human being and
must be thought about, this gives the student the minuscule
advantage necessary to escape. From a Taoist perspective, the
grandmaster and the student merge their spirits, and being in
communion the student knows when to move. If approached
from a purely physical perspective, the test indicates that your
awareness has moved far enough out of your body that you can
The Godan or Master's Test for a Ninja
sense movement in another person's mind who is standing behind

you prepared t o strike. Concurrent with that sensitivity to the
powers in your environment is a spinal flexibility so astute that one
can be blown into a roll (or role when gathering intelligence) by
the movement of the esoteric breath. All these perspectives are
true to a greater or lesser extent depending on the student's per-
ceptual abilities. In ninpo passing the sword test requires activat-
ing senses that are not normally used but held by all as part of
our evolutionary heritage.
The grandmaster swings with his eyes shut, with the sword
starting from above his head. The victim or person about to be
promoted or dissected sits on his feet under the strike of the sword.
Witnesses observe to ascertain there is n o cheating, or to poke
fun at each other's teaching results as Hatsumi, like justice, is
blind. As it is n o mystery in the ninja community, I'll describe
my godan test at the Atlanta Tai Kai in 1990.
The godan test for a martial artist is the equivalent of the oral
defense of a Doctoral candidate. It is the cumulation of six to
twenty years of study. It's pass/fail and is over in seconds. As you
can imagine, the tension is palpable. Picture, if you will, a small
room packed with all the godan and above from the Western
world plus the Japanese instructors and Masaaki Hatsumi. The
energy from these individuals is potent. Now add in fifteen can-
didates for the degree whose anxiety certainly kicks up the level.
Most of the men and women in this room were/are very powerful
subtle energy generators. Trying to align yourself with a particular
individual, even when it's the grandmaster, is not easy. You have
to trust in him to really want to kill you, and in your ability to
feel the sakki (killing intent). If the intent is not real, your pro-
tecting spirit will not emerge.
Hatsumi-soke (grandmaster) picked up a shinai (light bamboo
practice sword), which is often used for this test in the West, as it
is rude to kill a trusting but insensitive student. It is my under-
standing that Doron Navon, an Israeli and Feldenkrais practitioner,
was the first and last Westerner to take this test with a live blade
and one of two to pass on the first swing until 1990. He often
serves as Hatsumi-soke's translator along with Rumiko Hayes. I

was relieved to see this was a shinai belonging to Kevin Millis,
one of the modern leather-wrapped ones that do even less damage
than the traditional split-bamboo staves. Hatsumi-soke stepped
in front of the table where his translators sat and said to the can-
didates, "As you do not get to train with me very often, I'll give you
three chances to avoid the blow." Three strikes and you're out.
Dick Severence went first and set the standard for the day, as he
easily avoided the cut and rolled away as the shinai hit the floor
where a moment before he'd been sitting in meditation. Dick had
been studying at least two years longer than I had and was in his
sixties. Yondan to godan, so it went. Most of the aspirants avoid-
ed the strike on the first cut. A few took a blow or rolled too soon
and were brought back to try again. My turn was approaching,
my curiosity about to be answered. I'd wanted to do this for years.
Could I as a hobbyist get on the wavelength of the preeminent
martial artist of the world?
I crawled forward, sat on my heels in seiza, closed my eyes,
and reached out with my feelings to connect. The first surprise
came as I encountered "nobody home." Hatsumi was in mushin
and I was in deep shit. As far as my body was concerned, no one
was behind me. (There is more than one level of disappearing in
this art and sometimes you don't connect things until you expe-
rience them. I had expected to be able to feel him.) I watched the
white light behind my eyes and waited, saw a flicker in the phos-
phorous, and rolled. The sword smacked into the floor where I
had been kneeling. Victory.
"Come back. No think," he said. I crawled back into position,
another dream deferred! What to do? I knew I'd felt his intent
but that must not be the object of this particular exercise. My
mind went into overdrive as I contemplated my failure. Seven
years down the tube. Oh well, what the hell! Compose yourself
and see what happens.
Bam, the shinai cracks me in the skull. Strike two.
"You must not think," he says in English and mutters some-
thing in Japanese which Kevin Millis told me later was "These
intellectuals always think too much." (Hatsumi-san is not totally

without prejudice but he seems to direct it toward the things that
matter.) At that moment I remembered Will Shepherd, who died
rock climbing at night, describing his godan test as a feeling of
great nausea in his stomach and not knowing whether to roll or
throw up and then avoiding the strike with no conscious effort. I
dropped my consciousness to the hara, or gut. My intestines were
rolling, my body began to shake. I shut off mental process and
waited, and waited, and waited. Suddenly I was on the other side
of the cleared space in the room with no memory of the roll, leap,
or crawl that allowed me to pass the test!
When the testing was over I gave Stephen Hayes a hug and
thanked him for getting me involved in ninjutsu all those years
ago. One of the young American godan who I'd befriended in the
past approached me after the testing and told me that from his
observation I had rolled at the correct moment the first time. I've
given that some thought and explain my shortcoming in this
manner. It is not enough to react to the killing thought. It is nec-
essary to actually avoid the blow. In hoshin we operate from the
thought, but the ninja responds to the deeper reality of the actu-
al attack. One may be threatened but not attacked; responding
to threat alone may reveal your skills to a subtle opponent and
he or she could then use that knowledge against you.
In the godan test there is an exchange of subtle energy from the
grandmaster to the initiate. The stronger spirit wins. That night
when I checked my spirits in the mirror with sensei Sellers Smith
and Dr. Mikey Fenster, there was a new face in the crowd. A white
tengu! Transfer of chi is part of the equation. The sword test estab-
lishes and guarantees a link to the Bujin. If we think of this as a rit-
ual of connection, protection, and healing, rather than escape
and avoidance, it becomes an interesting example of hidden move-
ments in ninpo. As I reacted to the feeling of the attack, I was
missing the main event of being linked up; Hatsumi would feel
that no energy went out from him. Viewed from this Taoist per-
spective, one should "joyously race to embrace the sword." How-
ever, one's taijutsu must remain good enough to avoid a live blade.
You are supposed to be a ninja whose fate often was to be unarmed

against the sword. This level of flexibility and speed is greatly
facilitated by integrating the mind and body so the spirit can
emerge under the blade of the inquisitor.
On a political level Hatsumi may have been informing me that
I shouldn't be such a smart-ass. After all, these other testees were
real hardworking ninjas and I was/am only a hobbyist amateur
with the unmitigated gall and temerity to keep coming back for
more. On a deep physical level the hormonal drivers of chi are
activated by the adrenals atop the kidneys (or less technically, by
fear), and as a scientist and practitioner of chi kung and Taoist
esoteric yoga I had figured out the "magick" and was treating it too
lightly. Hatsumi was going to make me sit until he felt the proper
amount of fear emanating from me. "This is not storefront tae
kwan do takeyurdo, this is the thirty-fourth grandmaster of the
Togakure Ryu lineage about to swing a stick at your head and you
should pray to all you regard as holy that he misses. Now get with
the program, as the blow is coming." Although I was sitting in
seiza, the way my guts were churning and witnesses inform me
my body was shaking, I think I was able to achieve a state of con-
trolled terror and respect for the workings of universal reality and
harmony. I let the cosmos decide.
I don't know what my body did t o avoid his cut but I have
seen poorer teachers' students slammed. I wouldn't go first unless
I really had internalized the ability to feel intent. I've seen the
shihan of all the branches and different races exchange that
"Ughn! One of yours" look as well as celebrate skilled perfor-
mance. We all know who we are. It's a very small club, particu-
larly the Westerners.
I don't know if this is true or not, but I've been told that some
of us have taken the test up to fourteen times before passing. It's
considered rude to inquire but I know of at least two godan who
are friends who said they paid and went through it six times. Con-
sidering the drain of energy, it would be a kindness and good eti-
quette besides to quit on the first failure, as some of the more
respected ninpo players have done, rather than waste the Bujin's
time. When Hatsumi gave the test at Tai Kai '92 in Atlanta the
"strike-out count" was down to two. Two, you're out.
Out means go home and study for another year, as you are
still a brick. Supposedly, in the old days with a live sword, when
the Bujin rejected your test, you were just executed. Eight hun-
dred years of civil war results in some novel tests of fidelity. Treat
it like the real thing and you will get more out of it. Think of it as
pass or die.
A blind roll out of a sitting position when you are meditating
is not an easy thing to do if you have not lowered your center. It
is especially difficult if you have hardened your muscles and made
rigid and unbending your mind. It is easier if you are really relaxed
and your body is flexible enough to follow your head. If Hatsumi
invites you to take the test, he uses a shinai. If you ask him, he uses
a bokken (hard oak practice sword). I preferred not to be concussed
or reduced to taking it with a helmet to protect my wounds. Some
of the failure stories are awful. I had waited three years for his
invitation, and passing was second in significance only to going
through the kundalini. It is both a great honor as well as a cul-
mination of many years of preparation. But as they say o n the
boob box, "Don't try this at home!" It could be hazardous to your
health. The test has nothing to do with hearing, and as far as that
goes I tend to be a bit deaf like most middle-agers with a taste for
rock and roll and automatic weapons in their youth. Some stu-
dents attempt to pass by listening for the bamboo to creak since
Hatsumi squeezes the shinai as he begins his strike. This coun-
terfeit is easy to catch and embarrassing to see.
Now someone may ask what does dodging a sword out of med-
itation have to do with real-world fighting? The answer is speed,
timing, and luck. We feel before we think. Feeling is the seat of
the creative response, not the drilled response. Taijutsu will get
you out of the way of the sword. Your spirit or chi will tell you
when to use those abilities. If you're ever attacked by someone
who seriously wants to kill you without harm to themselves, it
won't be a face-to-face confrontation. These days he or she will
hire some sort of filth willing to do that for money.
You get a lot of information through feeling someone's

thoughts even if you can't read their minds. The intuitive range is
quite great. With careful discrimination you can pick up speed
traps and other fun consequences of living in this age. You find
yourself next to the person you wanted to meet. You don't drive
through the intersection just as the light changes as is your habit,
and that is when a truck rumbles by, running the red. You bend
over to adjust your shoe as a drunk hurls a bottle into the back
of the chair where your head was resting a moment before.
Stories of near misses abound in Bujinkan. (I have often won-
dered if it would be considered a pass if the testee decided to go to
a nice comfy bar instead.) Synchronicity is not to be sneezed at,
like coincidence, as it is more like opening yourself to sustainable
luck. Avoiding a killing strike could be described as loving your
new acquaintance enough to fill the unforgiving moment with
sixty seconds' distant run from t h e Victorian perspective of
Kipling's perfidious Albion. The survival aspect that has the most
power in the fight/flight syndrome has an "1." The godan test is a
proof that you can enter the perceptions of your proto-con-
sciousness and are now able to begin work on your true self. It is
a beginning, not an end.
In a fight seen by an unskilled or biased observer, lucky, tricky,
and sneaky may all describe the devastating maneuver executed
humbly at the proper moment to do the most appropriate damage
to an attacker. Now, that's a secret sword! It is almost impossible to
teach unless you are an artist or can tolerate a great deal of exper-
imentation on your students' part while preserving the core that
is life-giving. Intuitive decisions can be superior to analytical deci-
sions. "No think" does not mean stupid.
Passing the godan test in Togakure Ryu Bujinkan Ninpo indi-
cates that you have reactivated your amyglia, hypothalamus, cere-
bellum, and brain stem, which are parts of the brain concerned
with integration of knowledge, pleasure, music, and self-protection.
They are the oldest parts of the brain and are sometimes deni-
grated as reptilian by misguided intellects who overvalue the effi-
ciency of the cortex and fallible eyes. (The cortex may be little
more than a memory bank.) When this reintegration begins to

happen, your auric corona will run light blue. In some people it
begins to manifest from their trapezius dorsi and hearts, some-
what resembling faint electric wings. In others this faint halo
effect spreads from the neck and head like a hood. If the higher self
is involved, the effect is something like a cobra. It would be wise
to consider the myths and legends surrounding those able to
develop the skills necessary to inner focus and interaction with
such spirit.
This reactivation of the brain stem or becoming consciously
aware of subtle input is referred to as the lesser kan and li in some
esoteric systems of kung fu, as it is the stage of enlightenment
attainable by all if they've the endurance or guts. It is why the
tengu (demon spirits friendly to ninjas with the heads of birds and
who once ruled in Egypt as well as Japan) refer to themselves as
"only Tengu," realizing there are higher levels to reality beyond the
siddhi of invincibility. The feeling of invulnerability will pass but
is real and can be drawn upon when the threat is real. A real threat
to a telempath is felt by the spine and seen by the eyes in the
back of the head.
Often Hatsumi-soke promotes a Westerner for only develop-
ing one side of the equation, as he takes the long view. Some-
times the spirits speak through Hatsumi-soke and he shows great
compassion to a student who really was not properly prepared
by a knowledgeable teacher. I have seen some teachers actually
invoke Bujin to intervene for the testee because their friend is/was
putting on a very bad show for the other godan and above. One
should subdue the ego and the flesh before this test. It is not nec-
essary to pass it half-assed.
In the rush t o embrace the sword, enthusiasm should not
presage discretion, as the traditional test was with a real sword
and the man administering it is still a certified channel. You will be
remembered as an example of your teacher's skills if you are not
self-taught. Hatsumi does not always move of his own volition. The
last time I observed the godan test he asked for more strength to
keep going when a testee was stupidly and repeatedly failing. Even
his Japanese shihan never know what or who will move through
him. A little paranoia is in order; some of the Bujin are malig-
nant spirits appropriate to the horror of war. I have noticed the
Japanese shihan both love and fear their soke. Study on this.
Chapter Seven
Portrait of the Artist

as a Grandmaster
J
a martial artist, Master? How d o I recognize a
" UST WHAT IS
teacher of quality and goodness in these times of greed and
false idols?"
The mission of the artist, regardless of the medium of expres-
sion, is to elevate his or her perceptions through study, practice,
and intelligent insight to the highest attainable level within their
capability and then communicate that knowledge or expression to
their peers, and if teachers, to the wannabees. I believe there is a
tenuous genetic component to art associated with intelligence.
The problem that confronts all in the pursuit of original expression
of creativity is the easy slide into mediocrity as a result of popular
acceptance when one settles for the least common denominator.
In academics this can be seen in the ABD who enjoys the teach-
ing but never finishes his or her dissertation and ends up in the
junior ranks of professors, or is not granted tenure after four or
five years of excellent teaching. In religion this is the con man
who claims the calling and fakes the healing and establishes sys-
tems for adulation and worship rather than giving guidance from
his own experience of becoming. In the martial arts this is repre-
sented by the shodan who teaches as if he or she were a master
because in the eye of the public a black belt represents mastery, but
in the eyes of traditional martial artists it's about the same as a

Bar Mitzvah. Only godan and above are considered original
thinkers with spiritual as well as technical expertise to offer. Hat-
sumi says, "Give the shihan the adulation they earn rather than
the rank they've attained." The master martial artist is not just a
gifted physical technician but has an additional role as a teacher
and spiritual guide, which is seldom understood in the West or
practiced in the East. Sensei means one who has gone before, and
shihan means you finished the trip but have not necessarily reached
your destination.
How many men in long-ago Florence understood what Dante
was all about? How many in Poland understood Copernicus? Dar-
win and Huxley had to deal with near riots when they published
their ideas in England. Hatsumi is regarded as an unidentified fly-
ing object in Japan. Good original work is seldom embraced by
the more traditional masses until long after the pioneer is dead,
with the exception of dance, novels, music, and maybe movies.
Now it has to be recognized that an artist in many ways resem-
bles an outlaw. Just as the great writers and painters and poets
(and inventors) must separate themselves from what has gone
before to create the new, so must the artists lift themselves above
their cultural milieu. Often that process requires extreme breaks
from tradition or cracking the cosmic egg to see reality in new
ways; seeing with a different perspective leads to different behav-
ior. Where the outlaw destroys, the artist builds but the psycho-
logical root of the actions may be similar. Van Gogh assaulted our
sense of shape and color. Monet, the effect of light. Wagner, our
ideas of acceptable sound. Picasso, our ideas of form. Dali, our
relation to imagination. Artists who are creative depart from the
norm. The criminal, however, is usually not too bright and his
destructive nature soon attracts the means of incarceration rather
than liberty. The spiritual adventurer goes within and the terrain
has both dangers and rewards, but to the outside observer little
seems to be going on beyond someone just sitting around. It's
not an easy sell. Those ideas associated with Crazy Wisdom and
shamanism have so far made the most sense to me. The martial
Portrait of the Artist as a Grandmaster
artist must not allow himself the gift of complacency regarding

skill level when there are schools of clever people studying to beat
the system.
Hatsumi remarks that the concept of martial artist is grossly
misunderstood in America and probably in Canada and Europe
as well. It's a problem involving a free-enterprise society that has
industrialized its school systems to reflect a quantity-over-quality
reward system; where someone can become wealthy by mass pro-
ducing to fit the lowest common denominator or estimated taste.
The destruction of the creative element starts in elementary school
if the child comes from an enriched home. The child from a
deprived environment soon comes to love school more than
home. If children cannot rely on the teachers for useful informa-
tion, they quickly turn to their peers. The public elementary school
is where only the most intelligent and effective teachers-whose
manner encourages a joy in learning-should serve, as that is
when the child's brain is most hungry and learning most pleasant.
We tend to waste it on pap.
In the martial arts, showiness often wins out over effective-
ness in the short term. For example: You're proud of having a
teacher who can show you how to do actual killing techniques
in a fist fight. Do you realize what will happen to you if you actu-
ally murder or seriously injure someone? Dim mak is real; if your
victim survives the initial onslaught he may find himself with
serious handicaps unless he knows an acupuncturist. The highly
skilled martial artist can drop you with a touch. The fist fight sel-
dom goes beyond one punch. The good stuff all flows out of being
attacked. Has he taught you how to conceal the body or hire an
effective attorney? Are your meditation techniques disciplined
enough to sustain you in prison where an athletic body can be
the object of desire for many. No? Dumn. (I like spelling dumb
this way, as being silent seldom equates with stupid in the gath-
ering of intelligence. It is so much harder to learn when your
mouth is moving.)
You're proud of having a teacher who is showing you how to
aggressively move into proximity of another human being to
exchange kicks and blows in a fight. Has he taught you that real
human beings use weapons when they fight and treachery to win?
That when you kick above the knee you will almost assuredly lose
your genitals to a skilled opponent, and that most real fighters
like a sneak attack and enjoy assaulting others from the rear, par-
ticularly when they are blinded by their own blood? Has he shown
you some methods for dealing with multiple opponents, as many
people only fight in groups, sport? No? Dumn.
Has he spent many hours teaching you how to be polite and fit
into the company of strangers? How to safely avoid broken bottles,
ashtrays, tire irons, chairs and other fun instruments of homicide
available in most social situations? How about the avoidance and
use of firearms and edged weapons? Has he shown you how to
climb and move on various surfaces in free and cluttered condi-
tions? No? Boring. You're spending most of your life on flat,
smooth surfaces?
Does he somehow confuse the ruled elegance of sport with
the brutal ugliness and chaos of battle when you carry no weapons
and are far from home? Does he emphasize perfect repetition over
practical utility? Does he enforce a lot of ritual that has no mean-
ing to you? Can he explain down to minute detail how to exe-
cute the perfect fist, punch or kick? Are the movements powerful-
and jerky? Are you paying this person to teach you how to save
your life? Study on this!
A martial artist so thoroughly understands the basics of his
tradition that he or she can depart from the expected and respond
both creatively and effectively to the actual situation with the
appropriate strategy that ensures winning. The enlightened mar-
tial artist has the further obligation to preserve life or release it
as a sacrifice. His or her sensitivity should be so great that they
can pull down the eyelids of their opponent as they lay their
hands upon his face at full speed from a totally relaxed posture
as a response to the opponent's chosen attack. Staged kata sel-
dom seem to account for how bodies react when they're being
torn apart, or for that matter, what the performer would really be
doing if on the receiving end of serious aggression.
I've never seen a real fight last longer than seconds when one
of the opponents was properly trained t o accept and create a
changing reality. A master or martial artist is not limited to one
decisive strike but can escalate and control the situation by flow-
ing with it and judiciously modifying their opponent's behavior
through pain a n d imbalance. Such skill requires a deep under-
standing of all aspects of human behavior. Hostility and aggression
prevent flow and slow learning. Humor and joy at being present-
ed with an opportunity to teach o n many levels is a characteristic
of a mature martial artist. (I have seen the great practitioners break
into laughter when giving a lesson i n surprise tactics.) Fear para-
lyzes. A martial artist cannot fear his subject matter, however
debased, or he will lose many opportunities for growth and prac-
tice. Study o n this.
An artist studies form and beauty through his own experience
of the world. A master artist is recognized by his own school as
a teacher. A grandmaster is recognized by other schools as being
able to teach their art. Hatsumi has been passed the shihan or
head of school scrolls of at least nine famous Japanese schools to
preserve. This is a ferocious undertaking. Within each of those
schools are probably nine more traditions if the Buddhist liking for
the number nine and esoteric numerology holds true, making
Hatsumi the head of eighty-one disciplines. I understand he has
taken some other scrolls out of kindness just to ensure the learn-
ing won't die. It is the equivalent of attaining nine earned Ph.D.s
and a smattering of honoraries from extremely physical and cyn-
ical men. Inside of that he's a bone doctor, calligrapher, painter,
actor, writer, fair vocal musician, magician, and only God knows
what else. According to people I've talked to in Japan, he is con-
sidered in the top levels in each of these fields of endeavor outside
ninpo, a Japanese Renaissance man. I know he astounds me.
Most good schools of the martial arts have their own etiquette,
codes, belt knots, favored weapons, history, kihon (formal basics),
breathing techniques, emergency medical techniques, and mental
disciplines. In addition to the open techniques that are taught
the public, there will be hidden techniques that are only shown the
student after he or she commits to the system of instruction inher-

ent to the school-unless he or she demonstrates their attain-
ment prematurely. Usually every shown technique has a mirrored
hidden technique as well as subtle helpers that may or may not be
shared. I think these are referred to in Japanese as ura (hidden)
and omote (shown publicly) but check into it yourself with a good
teacher who speaks the language. It's a subtle area for investigation.
Attainment of the hidden is always a rewarding adventure as it
requires creativity, not just rote learning or repetition of what you
are shown. Often the hidden techniques are not shared until the
student achieves the rank of sandan in a traditional art-which
accounts for the terrible combat and street record of some of the
Korean systems based on Japanese ryus, where promotion by trav-
el is of mythical proportion. Technicians tend to punish depar-
ture from the tried and true as taught to them. A combat martial
artist studies war or life-preserving behaviors, not contests or
games, so is always concerned in the ways of preserving peace.
Artists aren't stupid and want to be allowed to do their thing.
I once heard Stephen Hayes say that Hatsumi thought Miyamo-
to Musashi, Japan's sword saint, had led a sad life. I'll tell you
why it was sad. He was in at least three wars, the first one on the
losing side. The losers are supposed to commit suicide because
they were dumb enough to put all this to risk by following the
wrong side, and nobody with any sense wants them around. It's a
small chain of islands. There is no escape from the condemna-
tion of your neighbor. Losers aren't supposed to contribute to the
sperm pool. But he didn't commit seppuku (ritual suicide).
Musashi killed many master sword teachers in duels, which
has grave karmic consequences in societies where skilled teach-
ers are revered. He could find no student good enough to follow
him as a master in his youth, and in his middle years they feared
for their lives. He was chock full of useful combat information,
if you want to live when your back's to the wall. For most of his life
the average samurai thought it would be a great honor to kill him
and at the same time establish their new school of the sword and
famous reputation. He was ronin (a wave man). None would give
him shelter in fear of the retribution and blood guilt they would
be sheltering in their homes. He spent much of his teens living in
the woods and sleeping in caves. He was observant, he learned
from the animals. When he was thirteen he killed a teacher of
the sword. In Buddhism it's a sin to harm a teacher. In his late
teens he killed damn near a whole school when they demanded a
group duel. Them against him in a big park near Kyoto. The samu-
rai code allowed them to do this; they were all insulted. Musashi
went early and hid above their line of sight in a tree on the high-
est ground. They being strategists also sought the high ground
but felt safe in their numbers. He waited till night, then surprise
attacked. Leaping down from the tree, he cut down the heads of
the Yoshioka family school, one of whom was a mere child. He
escaped in a running retreat through the darkening woods back to
the city to supposedly end that bloodline and this particular feud.
He was an active, athletic man and stayed that way. He walked
a lot. The duelist lifestyle leads to hasty travel. Musashi states in
code that he was a student of Taoist breath techniques and had
developed the third eye. He strongly recommended hiding combat
skills in natural movement. One of the stories about him has him
killing a tengu, which means he trained with ninjas. In his recent-
ly published fictional (but much loved in Japan) biography, the
author has Musashi stating in middle age that he was fortunate
to have never met an enlightened swordsman in his youth. For
most of his life he didn't own much more than a sword. He raised
a stepson, who may have died a hero, in a very haphazard manner.
He never married though he did have a lover, whom he could not
marry due to his miserable existence. The saddest part of his life was
that he was a greater artist and strategist than swordsman. He was
a fine sculptor of wood. His brush paintings are considered nation-
al treasures, and I've seen his cast sword guards in museum col-
lections. He was an artist of enduring excellence and worthy of
study. He died of old age around sixty after writing in one night a
book on swordsmanship containing all he knew about it.
Most of The Book Of Five Rings is in code or very old language.
Musashi exhorts his readers to consider the book as a spiritual
guide, but most readers don't know how to read that way, as they
are martial and military students. He did not get his skills
overnight. He retired from accepting duels at fifty-five. Most peo-
ple remember him as a duelist, but he was a great artist and friends
with priests, geishas, and poets, particularly Takuan Soho. I don't
think he cared a rip about what is commonly thought of as swords-
manship. After he was thirty-five he fought most of his duels with
wooden training swords (bokken) or what was available when he
was attacked. He killed the Emperor's sword teacher with a boat oar
after spending the night at a geisha house. He called his way of
fighting "two swords" as he had a secret one that came from the
left. He was an upright man. He lived in a very bad time and had
to educate himself with what was at hand. I like his book a lot. It
is generally misunderstood by most readers as a text on winning
swordsmanship rather than endurance, chi, and survival when
you are the preferred target of many. It is full of traps for the
unwary swordsman, as Musashi knew his enemy well.
A long time ago when we didn't have such professional means
to distance us from who we were killing, being able to win a duel
without incurring blood guilt was considered part of being a gen-
tleman, but a master could completely change the attacker's mind,
It takes a lot of time learning to flow under extreme stress if you
haven't the heart or flexibility for it. You hate to give up clarity
because some dirtball wants to fight. You are allowed to adminis-
ter rude and abrupt lessons to the overly assertive if they attack or
actually threaten you, as that is part of the way. Teaching the eso-
teric side of a martial art seldom pays well, as you're supposed to
drive your students away, particularly if they seem inclined to
abuse their power, or you can see that their heart is not in it and
they would be better served elsewhere. This can be a creative
process and a lot of fun. People usually will not pay to be abused
if they are not learning. If they're smart you probably don't have
to go full force more than once a night to illustrate a point. (You
would like them to leave as friends if you've come to respect and
love them, but you still must send them away. Sometimes it can be
extremely painful to both parties, particularly if you have promised
something you cannot deliver as they won't do the work to get it.
Learning is two-way.)
If you're a ninja grandmaster you teach people different styles
and disciplines within the styles, so they have to get to know each
other if they want the hidden. You're supposed to lay false trails
and ambushes for the unwary and yet keep their friendship. It
can be like being trapped in a shaggy dog story. Rumors and pol-
itics abound in Togakure Ryu ninjutsu, but everyone is usually
treated fairly or as they deserve, from my observations of Hatsumi.
As we say in the sheltering mountains of Pennsylvania, "You give
a fool enough rope and he will hang himself." A master of the
dual mandala exhibits both sides at once. Many of the higher-
level instructors have their own political agendas but cannot slip
it to you in four ways.
An artist likes to personalize his lessons so that they will be
fixed in the witness's very soul. The lessons become messengers to
all those who would wish to see reality, which to an artist is cre-
ativity. The strategically creative consciousness state translated
from Mikkyo Buddhism as the "mind and eye of god" never stops,
it continually evolves. You're allowed to rest and make mistakes,
but you have to keep going. Keep playing. It is not just the dif-
ference between the professional and the layman, but the lover
and the slave, or the living and the dead. In tarot the hanged
man is dancing. Hong Kong Phooey, the cartoon character for
children, stereotypes with humor the life of a martial artist in
America. It can become serious business at the drop of a hat but
most of the time it can be your hobby. (Just your way of stretching
and getting a first-rate, three-level workout. Things you don't use,
you lose. A real martial art has utility in every aspect of your life.
The United States needs more teachers of the heart.) Strategy has
many faces.
A teacher of the art of enlightenment has the additional problem
of being known by his or her students as well as his or her own
actions, words, and deeds. Art requires human beings. Martial
artistry is the stuff of legends. The students and their achieved lev-
els are a reflection of one's skill as a teacher as well as the tradition
as a whole. The difficulty of the curriculum, the numbers engaged,

and price are measures of popularity and appeal but the enlight-
ened are mostly concerned with transformative power necessary
for survival in all its variations. A college instructor has to accept
who pays for the class. A graduate of Penn State does not have to
play football. A graduate of an enlightened ryu must manifest sentience
above physical competence. The competence is fun. One of the reasons
Hatsumi could say with confidence a few years back, "I am the only
true ninja in the world," was that he'd been visiting those who
purport to teach authentic ninjutsu. You have to gather your own
intelligence when your observers are naive. The ryus of invisibility
hardly advertise. I usually don't put Skilled at Death Touch (Dim
Mak) on my resume when interviewing in the Midwest.
A maharishi (great sage/seer/teacher) is saddled with the addi-
tional burden of offering guidance and personal experience (wis-
dom) to the benighted if they ask and are willing to pay the price
of truth. This is not trivial. The Togakure Ryu considers forty years
of training-twenty for the yang and twenty for the yin-a normal
course of study, with no guarantee you'll figure out the hidden. To
learn all this stuff will take the rest of your life at whatever point
you wish to enter. (Hong Kong Phooey worked as a janitor so he
could study what he wanted, because he wanted t o be good
enough to be a teacher. The warning is clear.) You as a consumer
have the additional problem of entering an evolving system.
I think it helps to have someone show you the basics. The
greater the teacher's ability to transmit the traditional standards,
the more you will enjoy and value your experience of the hid-
den, particularly if you have the open-hearted ability to treat peo-
ple with respect, curiosity, and friendly reciprocity. The study of
martial arts is a lot more fun than golf or tennis and has man-
aged to be an embarrassing but absorbing interest of mine for
more than thirty years. If you can avoid the sports and use the
techies, you get to meet very intense and alive people, many of
whom are compassionate and fun. In ninjutsu, like anthropology,
they tend to be older as they've rejected the callow pursuits of
their youth, usually after a long rough ride.
Quality in art is supposed to be transferable to any subject that

interests the artist. Hatsumi's traditional watercolors, brush work,
and calligraphy are as good as any I've ever seen. When he works
in oils he tends to prefer the impressionistic and modern primi-
tives. One of his oils featuring a huge golden spider with a naked
woman in the web struck me as particularly perverse and funny
considering his role in life. Many knowledgeable readers of Sun Tzu
would pay a mint to put it o n their wall, if they knew of its exis-
tence. It was in a Tokyo exhibit that I couldn't afford. The lives of
Da Vinci and Cellini reveal diverse interests beyond the smear-
ing of colors. Da Vinci's secret journals reveal a grave robber study-
ing anatomy, a n d b o t h h e a n d Michelangelo were military
advisors. Cellini was a swordsman as well as a sculptor and the
only man to escape from the Pope's jail twice.
The Zen concepts of art include the possibility of the perfected
movement that exists for the moment and then disappears, known
only to the doer. Haiku (short Japanese nature poems) attempt to
capture the feeling of a particular moment. Ninpo is taught more
by how a movement feels than how it looks, as each practitioner
attempts to make the basics personal. Hatsumi says this concern-
ing the basics of ninpo: "The ninja's role in society is to protect the
good. . . . Technique is nothing; the kihon hoppo is for children, a
first step. . . . Movement from the heart is hard to see and under-
stand but everything." This statement applies to any activity where
the intention is the attainment of quality.
An artist is involved i n transformation, not replication, but
must demonstrate competence. A martial artist is tested continu-
ally in ways other than success in the marketplace. Some never
get to prove the efficacy of their study. One of my red belt (begin-
ner after white) college students of Arab descent was attacked
while studying in Spain. He dropped the attacker screaming to
the floor by unbalancing him with a nerve center grip while deliv-
ering a mallet kick to his calf. He quickly strolled from the bar
before anyone noticed what had happened in the men's room.
His wealthy father who had wanted him to take up tennis as being
more useful now supports his fall from acceptable sport. Another
student, a sandan who teaches high school math, told me he pic-

tures how the problem is done and focuses on the forehead of
the recalcitrant student. Breathes it at him or her and watches in
wonder as they suddenly seem to figure it out. Another sandan
who is an actress shamanisticly becomes her character and draws
the audience into the action through radiating intent. She's riv-
eting to watch-American kabuki. When I taught at Penn State
one of my prettier students was attacked by a fairly competent
rapist according to his rap sheet. His black eye, broken elbow, and
dislocated shoulder made him very easy for the police to identify
She didn't even get a bruise. Budo is not the same as publishing a
fine novel, or being in the movies, but martial artistry in the realm
of single and small group combat with a little spiritual develop-
ment thrown in for the sensitive seems as good a way as any to get
a life.
Art requires passionate interest in people, material, or action.
Grace or harmony of movement appropriate to the situation is
part of art and is supported by the laws governing self- defense.
Those who follow the light do not fear the darker side of endeav-
or. Warriors understand conservation, hunting, and the necessity
for pruning back the excessive. Enlightened warriors remember
the Golden Rule and can mirror their attacker's intent, but that
type of neurolinguistic programming fades before the art of trans-
formation necessary to love your enemy and give him every oppor-
tunity to surrender while protecting your interests. It's more fun
and keeps it challenging.
Pressing down on a bone-shattering wrist and shoulder lock
is a comfortable position for skillfully negotiating with a barbarian.
A well-applied ninja shoulder lock is the equivalent of religious
conversion for many ruffians who thought they could fight and
did not know how to fall. Praising your enemy's weakness can be
a blessing in disguise.
Insincerity is another matter altogether. Every religious writer
I have ever read seems to ignore that the searcher must build the
connection to the Void with his or her own inner direction. I
have yet to see it happen from the other direction. Paul Brunton
gives an excellent exterior description of the Void or Sacred Empti-

ness in his book The Secret Path.
Hatsumi describes one of his colleagues in the Togakure Ryu
as a man whose swordwork was so skilled that he witnessed him
draw his sword and cut the wing from a bird in flight. Takamatsu,
a man who could so terrify attackers that they would see death
as attractive, did not give the scrolls to this incredibly skilled per-
son. Think for a moment what it would take to clip a wing with
iado (Japanese art of sword drawing) let alone sneak up on a bird.
Balance, silence, speed, prediction, or timing as the wing must
be open, familiarity with your weapon. All good left-brain, right-
handed, masculine stuff. The right-brain, left-handed, feminine
stuff regards this act of butchery from the viewpoint of, what kind
of asshole kills birds to demonstrate his domination of nature
when he isn't hungry? On a spiritual level where one is lifting
spirits to flight, what are we to think of a man who cuts off wings?
Is this a statement that makes the dangerous attractive-or prais-
es weakness?
One of the problems with the concept of art concerns external
direction and response to feedback. When one is embedded in
the web of circumstance, it is often difficult to remember that
going with the flow is following one's truest nature. Your life is
your art. It is more fun to be part of something legendary. Fol-
lowing your heart seems to lead to the greatest emotional rewards
and even occasionally ties into fiscal returns if the investment in
quality is great enough. Leaping outside the realms of conven-
tionality continually results in growth if your basics are good
enough to sustain you when confronting the unknown. The jour-
ney within eventually leads to exterior connections only faintly
described by adventurers lacking in communicative ability. Re-
search this well.
Chapter Eight
Seeing and Feeling the Aura
0
NE'S AU R A IS the subtle field of energy surrounding and
generated by the human being, of which the thickest and
heaviest part is called the body. I've researched quite a
few different books on the aura and must point out that there is
some of diversity in what people claim to be able to see. The aura
as seen by a skilled healer who is guided by a spirit differs from that
which is usually seen by the martial artist. The part which is eas-
iest to see is light and denser than the air in which the body is
immersed. It extends out from the body's surface approximately
one-quarter to one-half inch on most people and is referred to as
the functional or etheric body in the literature of Western mystics.
On a powerful individual it may radiate up to ten times the norm.
The next layer out which can be easily seen if you stay relaxed
is somewhat egg-shaped, colored by the fluxions of the hormone
system, extends out a yard or so on intense people, and is called
the emotional body or nin (spirit) in Japanese. It is said to have
great healing and protective powers if dominated by the next two
layers. It is a presence easily read and felt with practice. The fields
at the edge of perception are called the mental body (socialized
thought or learned self), the energy field (soul, avatar, or bridge
power), and the circumference of the personality (realm of the arche-
types, immortals, and inner deities as well as the connection to the

universal or Void). I will discuss the subjective reality for an adven-
turer in these three realms of energy or power in the third book of
this series.
Seeing into these fields of energy simply requires using your
night vision in the daytime and two other easy abilities: 1. being
in a relaxed, open state of mind, and 2. having enough control
over your eyes to shift your focus in and out of 20/20 so that you
can notice some phenomena you normally ignore. For example,
where there is injury to the fields they will move more slowly and
that creates a shadow or an opening in the field. There are critical
points on the body that could almost be said to glow from the
amount of energy that runs through them. Depending on the
point's function it will pull or push energy into the fields around
the body. In the martial arts some of these points are called pres-
sure points, because if you whack them with a strong pressure
you disrupt organs.
The relaxed individual glows in a different way from the uptight
individual. Powerful and dangerous animals give off very different
vibes than the dangerous and weak, or the powerful and playful.
Certain character traits which can be seen in the aura with a lot of
casual practice tend to predict first moves under stress that are
simple enough to be survival mechanisms. It is useful to know
when one is likely to take a stand, or is in love. I used to glow
pink at ninja seminars because I was having so much fun and
loved doing it. I'd taught Dr. Jon Kayne, the vice president of Bel-
lvue College in Kansas, how to see auras and took him to a ninja
seminar so he could put it to use, as it is easiest to see around
intense performers. When he told me I was glowing pink, I almost
fell down laughing. Pink is for pregnant girls in love, according to
my experience.
Color predicts in funny ways as I just described, but the descrip-
tions tend toward biology. When your hands become sensitive
enough to feel and follow the points, there are opportunities for
healing as well as serious harm. It takes experimentation on hun-
dreds of bodies to get super-accurate, but if you can hit through a
pine board you can miss by a little, and if you can break a patio
block, you can miss by a lot.
When I was a college professor, I had psychometric data on
all the managers who went through our Self-Analysis for Leader-
ship course. I took a sample of one hundred volunteer managers
and showed them how to "see" auras. Most were able to distin-
guish colors in the heat envelope or electrical fields surrounding
the body within twenty minutes. The fourteen conventional per-
fectionists who weren't ever able to distinguish the differences or
see anything going on at all were fun to observe as they, of course,
thought everyone else was bonkers or hypnotized. This little
evening exercise usually created some very interesting discussion.
I usually finished this session with the following statement and
question, "This has been around you all your life, but because it's
subtle, it's very easy to miss or forget. What else have you been
missing because you didn't know what to ask or chose not to
learn?"
I consider statistics as proof of relationships, as do most sci-
entists. Colors positively correlate with the Go Dai or chakra sys-
tem and related scores on appropriate psychological inventories.
It's not all significant but it's strong enough to be interesting. Peo-
ple normally don't have very bright auras. (This is also true in
England, France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, South Africa and Japan.)
Brightness seems to relate to energy. The colors shift a lot. Peo-
ple who meditate and people who do tai chi, chi kung, or taijutsu
usually have bigger, brighter auras with easier-to-discern colors.
Many entertainers have large bright auras. A blues singer puts out
like a torch. It seems to relate to what we call charisma, but the
media can't seem to define.
People who can't control their blink rate, who are color blind,
who are significantly (<.05) more conventional, perfectionist, and
rigid in their psychological make-up, or who try real hard won't see
auras. That piece of information from a three-year study I couldn't
get anyone to publish. Auras and retinal retention are completely
different phenomena. See if you can get your retinal retention to
change and move with the thoughts of the person you are observ-
ing. People who can go into relaxation response with their eyes
open, who are (<.05) significantly more flexible, less convention-
al, and perfectionist, usually will see auric phenomena once shown
how. It's really just a matter of using your binocular vision to shift
your focus to one of greater dilation to take in more light. Amer-
ican Indian traditional healers refer t o it as using "soft eyes."
Here's the method I usually use to show someone how to see
auras for the first time:
1. Sit facing a friend or subject placed against a white, grey, or
light violet background in a room with dimmable lights. You may
have to experiment with the lighting. I prefer the lights to be
dim, but not dark.
2. Have the subject hold a finger approximately six inches in
front of their face. Go into relaxation response and focus on the
finger, so that it is sharp and clear and their face is slightly out
of focus or blurred.
3. Once your eyes get used to being slightly out of focus, look
above their forehead and between their ears and shoulders. You'll
probably get a thin corona of misty lighter color or white. Let
your eyes shift out to about three inches above the head and then
down around the shoulders. You'll probably get color. If you don't,
have the subject close their eyes, breathe deeply, and think about
something they really enjoy and like. Observe the shifts, particu-
larly around the head. Ask the subject to pause, take a deep breath,
and begin thinking about something they really dislike. Observe.
4. Memorize how you feel as you are doing this, not what you
are doing. Play with it. Practice under different conditions. Practice
makes it easier. Being in a relaxed or meditative state is also helpful.
This phenomenon is complex and varied. Body temperature,
electro-chemical-biologicalfields, traits and intention, nutrition,
and being able to see into the ultraviolet spectrum are all involved.
Mystics and healers use the aura as a diagnostic device. Real mar-
tial artists have it as an ace up their sleeve regardless of their phys-
ical skills. Being able t o see the aura and how energy moves
through a person can be an enormous aid to the selection of fight-
ing or teaching strategies as the descriptions given in Mikkyo and
Shingon Buddhism seem to be based on extensive empiricism.

This also can provide endless hours of entertainment and fun
insights once you've mastered the eye trick so you can do it while
you're moving. Don't take it too seriously or draw conclusions
until you've "seen" many people under different circumstances.
Some of the stuff I've seen written by supposed esoteric experts
was way off the mark from my experience. Caveat emptor (let the
buyer beware). I could usually verify what I was seeing by bringing
in a student or friend. Not always trusting my own interpretation
of esoteric matters, I highly recommend that you experiment and
draw your own conclusions. Following are some things to look
for with no guarantees of consistent replication.
I've noticed that when people do not believe what they are
saying (an unkind person might regard this as lying), their body
aura around the heart and along the shoulders will often flash a
drab green. The ninjas refer to this as Negative Wind and associate
it with misplaced idealism, which I've also seen described as jeal-
ousy. Auras often get redder and bigger with alcohol consump-
tion. People with bright yellow auras tend to be assertive, not
saintly. Indecisiveness and/or lack of integration may be shown by
the body aura being very different from that around the head.
Bars, dances, airport terminals, churches, and other places
where people congregate can be very educational when you can
read intent and see auras. Most people can't hide their intent so
being able to "see" it provides a beneficial non-verbal clue to the
wise observer; for example, the darker shades and mixes of the
primary colors-brown (inflated ego, needs to win), beige (depen-
dence and cowardice), olive drab (lying and jealousy)-seem to
indicate negative traits or character disorders. Healers also see the
darker areas as blockages in energy flow. I've never seen a black
aura as such except when watching an example of possession by a
goddess. I've never seen a chakra either but they are very easy to
feel. When you occult your fields to hide or project chitta (living
energy that obeys your intent), you can make it pretty dark. The
deep visionary thinkers put out some indigo that can look like
black under the right conditions. I tend to put the black auras
and plane crash or elevator fall tales into the teller-probably-flashes-

olive-drab category or someone watching a death angel at work.
Usually people who meditate will have a wider corona surround-
ing their bodies. If the energy moves in the brain, a result of med-
itation and certain types of prayer, the alpha wave cap may project
out in an actual vertical halo effect (I have only seen this effect in
church choir singers). Healers will often have little whirling balls
in their auras like little stars and nebulas. I travel in some odd cir-
cles and visit some exotic places and keep my eye out. You should,
too!
The first time I met ninja shidoshi Stephen Hayes was at his
invitation to attend one of his Dayton dojo seminars (1982 or
1983). He was teaching what esotericists familiar with Japanese
concepts refer to as the Go Dai (five great understandings) but in
a way I'd never seen before. No mystical trappings, just directed
meditations, specific body movements, and self-defense tech-
niques that were incredibly powerful yet flowed. By the second
day of this unique and earthy training, I noted that the coronas
and auric fields surrounding the heads and shoulders of all fifty par-
ticipants were now pinkish red or bright red rather than the usu-
al wimpy mix you see in any typical gathering. I was impressed
and intrigued. The ninjas could do something I couldn't do and
furthermore could whip butt! My money was well spent.
The next seminar I was able to attend had the Wind as a topic,
and many of the same people were present as well as new faces. By
the second day all the participants had nice little apple-green
auras and I distinctly remembered two-thirds of them were red
the last time I'd seen them. These guys were jumping two chakras
in months. Very interesting. A few in attendance noticed this phe-
nomenon of light around the body when we were doing some
exercises in handicapped light conditions. Hayes treated it very
lightly and went on to other things. The next seminar addressed
the Void, and I decided to take my friend and colleague Dr. Jon
Kayne along, as he would make a good witness to some of my
observations, being a clinical-type psychologist and statistician.
By the third day the aura colors all matched the course content.
Kayne was able to see this also. Folies a deux (French expression for
contagious craziness) confirmed.
I wrote a paper o n the Go Dai, psychometrics, and archetypes
that was greeted with such excitement by the journals that n o
one would publish it. Each one said the subject matter could be
handled better by some other journal, which said, "It's not quite
what we do. Send it to ." I would occasionally show this
paper to a friend. After collecting some more data and running
the appropriate statistical tests I used it to obtain a Sc.D. from
Eurotechnical Research University. I'm probably the world author-
ity on the subject now.
One of the things that impressed me about Stephen Hayes in
those early years was that as he moved through each stage of a
technique, his aura flashed to the appropriate color corresponding
to the body movement. He had definitely trained his intent. Some-
times he would shoot little rainbows out of the limbic regions of
his head as he explained something. He'd trained as a n actor and
writer in college but fell in love with the machismo of the martial
arts as he perceived them until he ran into Hatsumi. Acting, as
well as dance, are two of the traditional Western paths to enlight-
enment as well as a ninja specialty necessary for information gath-
ering i n hostile or ambiguous situations. A spy may have t o
maintain a role for years, and his or her death can be the reward of
a bad performance. Hayes already understood how to get into a
part so the direction and shaping of intention was easy for him to
understand, internalize, and teach in a dramatic and easily grasped
manner. He's a brilliant teacher. He's got a great sense of humor
when he's not being frustrated by Hatsumi or his own sense of
righteousness. If you want to learn taijutsu of the spirit, Hayes is
one of the round-eyes that can teach you. Particularly if you enjoy
a more systematic, heroic, and formal approach to learning this
ancient and chaotic tradition.
Many of the other high-level shidoshi teach more from the
perspective of the kihon hoppo or basic moves. I prefer the Go Dai
but then my perspective is more inclined to the esoteric and psy-
chological. I am not interested in holding myself up as an exem-
plar of masterful taijutsu. There are many teachers of taijutsu who

are much more demanding and thus better at the technical aspects
than I. There is also a strong tendency to favor what you learn
first as the basis for what follows. The ability to see and use infor-
mation from your opponent's aura far transcends the simple kick,
punch, or throw, no matter how beautifully and powerfully exe-
cuted. Not all the shidoshi in Bujinkan are inclined toward the
bioelectric or androgyny. After they age and lighten up a bit, they
may enlarge their studies. In the Hoshinroshiryu, seeing and read-
ing the aura is the kihon hoppo.
The first time I saw Hatsumi, he was running continuous bright,
lime, neon green a foot wide and was so easy to see he would
flash in bright sunlight. Now his aura runs white most of the time,
at least when I've had the privilege to attend some function where
he is teaching or when we could party together. I've seen him run
every other color when doing taijutsu. Kevin Millis, who sees Hat-
sumi much more often than I do, has confirmed this observation
of the White Dragon on his mountain.
One of Kevin's students is a Zen priest into shiatsu and massage.
It's a privilege to get on his table. Since Bill has been working on
Kevin, he shines like a Christmas tree. Sometimes the auric coro-
na around the body looks a bit like the old movie scenes when
the actors were shot against an outdoor movie backdrop. When I
showed Ishizuka-sensei how to see auras, after his wife had demon-
strated the tea ceremony for me, he asked me if Hatsumi knew
how to do this. I said I didn't know if he knew how to see them,
but he certainly had one that was easy to see and he'd be a good
subject to study, which made Ishizuka (The Steel Man) laugh with
delight.
Feeling the body's electrochemical fields is relatively easy. First
raise your hands in front of you with your palms together. Relax,
breathe slowly. Separate your hands and wave the fingers of your
right hand slowly past the palm of your left. You may feel a faint
sensation as if the palm were brushed by a feather. Pay attention
to the palm, not the hand that is waving. You may have to close
your eyes. Move the waving hand away until you no longer feel
the sensation. Move it back in. Switch hands. Notice the differ-
ence in sensitivity and handedness. The Chinese refer t o this
polarity as yin and yang. There are pictures of Rumiko doing this
exercise in Stephen Hayes' Ohara books on ninjutsu.
Find someone else to play this with. Run your palms over their
body at an inch or so distance. Move away. See what you feel.
Come closer. See what you get. Start paying attention to what
other people feel like in various situations. Pay attention to what
you feel when you are around them. Practice distancing. Learn
what you can from it. Don't rationalize the feelings, just build
your catalog. Ninjas have interesting exercises like dodging fists and
swords and shuriken blindfolded. (You start slow with padded
weapons and work up to speed.) In the Hoshinroshiryu we observe
our leaders and lovers. Healers identify blocked meridians, dam-
aged chakras, and other potentials for disease. Each requires a
great deal of sensitivity to rather subtle sensations. Remember
blind Master Po of the glowing cataracts in the sixties television ser-
ial "Kung Fu."
Seeing the aura requires relaxed concentration. I have run into
a few people who do it with considerable effort and the occa-
sional "psychic" of genetic luck. I think it's easier if you learn
how to relax into it. The just-try-harder types don't seem to have
much of a success rate. When you can "see" other people's auras or
spirits and have practiced "feeling" until you can trust your cata-
log, you will find that your sense of humor as well as compassion
will have to expand if you want to maintain all of your acquain-
tances. This exercise provides a gateway to greater intuition skills
such as empathy and telepathy and is considered a great boon by
the healers who have mastered the process. If your lifestyle requires
quickly identifying people who seem to be too good to be true, I
throw in this little bone-a consistently grey aura is often indica-
tive of a bullshitter in the thinner spread of the material world.
Check it out.
Chapter Nine
Healing
M
EDICAL PRACTITIONERS ARE not so secretive about chi kung,
as they tend not to be interested in the darker side of
its application. As power is derived from the shadow
intuition or id, they usually aren't very good with it. Most of their
training is with the intellect and memory, so they must resort to
the knife for surgery or the acupuncture needle for generation.
Practitioners of preventative medicine like chiropractors tend to
have more skill, particularly after a few years of practice. It's all
written down, has been for centuries. Many of the great karate
masters have stated that to attain real greatness as a practitioner of
karate you must become a healer. Most people don't have the clit
or balls to go for it. Besides, it's dangerous.
If you don't know your meridians you're going to have one
hell of a time figuring out how to effectively use chi. At the shi-
doshi training that Hatsumi held in Ishizuka's dojo during the
celebration of his thirtieth year as grandmaster of the Togakure
Ryu, he informed everyone there that if they really wanted to
become accomplished at ninjutsu they must learn to think and
study like medical doctors. There are many good books around
now on acupuncture, shiatsu, and if you must, dim mak (Butoku-
den, Dim Mak, Bernola and Morris, 1993). Knowledge of anatomy
is essential to understanding yourself as well as dissecting others.

In the long run you'll get a lot more use out of alternative medical
skills than fighting skills. Applying chi kung to healing is one of the
so-called siddhi or magics associated with enlightenment. Reiki,
medical chi kung, shiatsu, homeopathy, and therapeutic touch
are all based on the principles of harmonizing the flow of life
energy to speed or restore healing energy as opposed to curing.
Once you have learned how to generate and move energy through
your own body it is a simple procedure to offer this blessing to
others. You don't have to be deeply religious in the mundane
sense. Practically anyone can give someone else a little blast of
energy. I've been told by Crystal Kroll-Young that in Canada where
therapeutic touch is part of the training for most nurses, no hos-
pital staffed with TT nurses has ever been sued for malpractice.
The trick is in intention.
Shiatsu, one of the Japanese massage therapies, is based on
manipulation of the body's energy points and meridians, as is
acupuncture. If you have chi there is n o need for needles and
microwattage since you provide the energy. All of the strikes in
ninjutsu when applied properly are directed toward meridians,
kinesiology release points, or acupuncture points (tsubo). I've been
told they are different, but if they are it's in degree more than
placement. (Dr. Michael Fenster and I are researching fifty of the
ryu's recommended points of retaliation [kyusho] from both the
Eastern and Western medical perspective. We published a manu-
al showing thirty-eight of these points after identifying them in
four other systems.) If you've learned how to absorb and move
energy a ninpo workout is like getting rather violent massage
combined with chiropractic manipulation-one of the reasons
why Hatsumi says the practice of taijutsu alone can bring enlight-
enment. Chi kung is a body skill.
If your partner is inept, you may get to work on your self-heal-
ing skills. If your partner is very inept or you haven't learned to go
with the flow-a trivialized statement that has many levels of
meaning-you can take or give yourself serious damage and get to
meet an expensive and disapproving physician. Relaxation and
Healing
good intentions are essential to high-level ninjutsu; that is one

of the reasons the angry individuals tend to leave the art. They
can't loosen up enough to do taijutsu without getting hurt. I have
heard seminar attendees complain that their girlfriends are bet-
ter at shiatsu massage than some of the ninja teachers. It takes a
powerful soft hand.
In my discussion of kundalini in chapter three, I describe some
of the dangers of being stiff-necked. I received an energy blast to
the major meridians while standing nearly motionless, doing
something that is supposed to be pleasing and relaxing. I fell to my
knees and threw up, and it took six years and some help to heal.
Take an energy blow when you're off balance, unaligned, frus-
trated, and angry from the full-body movement of whatever train-
ing partner has slammed you. . . . Your bones will knit eventually.
Do some of the full extension blows and kicks when you're stiff
and uptight and see what happens to your body. I saw Mark Ken-
worthy attempt a power mule kick out of a roll without warm-
ing up. He rolled around screaming as the muscles and ligaments
tore loose in his quadriceps. He kicks very hard automatically
because he trained for many years in karate. The bruises from
internal damage went from his knee to his groin. His wasn't a
steroid accident. Run hot angry emotions through your meridi-
ans and see if you like the migraine feeling. All fear and anger is an
attempt by the social self to prevent change. Let the cosmos decide.
Study on this.
When I was about twenty-five, I was living in Los Angeles on
Manhattan Beach and decided to join the Los Angeles Police
Department. They were helpful, as not too many college gradu-
ates/veterans are interested in police work. The physical at that
time consisted of three X-rays: the head, chest, and legs. They
took seven of me. When I asked the doctor why, he informed me
that practically every bone in my body had suffered at least a hair-
line fracture: football, boxing, wrestling, jujitsu, karate, judo, kung
fu, bar brawls, falls, car wrecks-an exciting life of near misses
but considerable contact. They weren't going to take me, as I'd
be pensioned out with arthritis by the time I was thirty-five.
When I was around thirty-eight and living a sedentary acade-

mic life, I dropped my daughter as I was picking her up because of
the arthritic pain in my thumbs. She probably weighed less than
sixty pounds. I'm forty-eight now, have no arthritis, no pains,
and feel great. I place the blame for this rapid decline on returning
to the martial arts, meditatively studying chi kung and ninjutsu,
and practicing hoshin while having people half my age beat on my
body twice a week. When the flesh is weak but the spirit is willing,
regeneration can indeed take place. That's the way of endurance.
You can speed the process of healing or regeneration by stim-
ulating the cell structure of the injured area with chi. In alche-
my this is called transmutation or transubstantiation. In
Methodism we call it the laying on of hands and in ninjutsu, as
well as Tibetan Buddhism, it is one of the ways of taming demons.
A thoroughly bad person requires a heavy healing hand. Those
of us with a more intellectual inclination toward the "way of
death" or transformation of the self (which includes the study of
disease) are easily sidetracked by the healthful benefits of self-pro-
tection. I'm happy to watch the youngsters whip on each other; I
know what damage feels like. At my age, I'd much rather coach
than experience.
Therapeutic touch is augmented by a knowledge of anatomy. It
is particularly helpful if you study shiatsu and the acupuncture
meridians so you can move energy most easily through another's
body. Nurses are very good at it, if they are familiar with loving
feelings, anatomy, and positive thought. Only a few male physi-
cians seem to be aware of its existence. You might read Bernie
Siegel or Larry LeShan. The magazine from Pacific Rim Publica-
tions called WuShu Qi Qongmay stimulate thought.
When we were studying the effects of shiatsu at Hillsdale Col-
lege as part of our hoshin regimen, we discovered ways to reduce
pain, speed healing, and increase or reduce strength. There are
techniques for controlling menstrual cramps and PMS and for
energizing the body. In the West shiatsu can be compared to kine-
siology. I remember the beautiful young actress-in-training,
Suzanne Carlson, giving us a lesson in intention: One afternoon we
were discussing what point manipulations seemed to work and
what seemed to have little or n o effect in reducing menstrual
cramps. One technique we'd found in an old Korean medical text
on massage had general acceptance with the women in the class.
Suzanne was saying it didn't work on her roommate at all. In fact,
she had worse pains when Suzanne worked on her. I asked Suzanne
how she felt about her roomie, and she expressed extreme dis-
like. After laughing heartily, I suggested that when she worked
on her roommate to confine her thoughts to healing or maintain
neutrality. When she did that, the techniques were effective.
The lesson in this is you get what you project. The healing
energy of the open heart is light green in color. Any of the lighter
colors will work; pink, white, bright yellow, and green are con-
sidered the best, but it's an individual thing relating to the chakras
or Go Dai. Usually where there is an energy block or injury the
molecular friction will heat up and/or thicken the area's energy
field. It's like a stickiness in the air. Often just brushing your hand
through it will begin its dissipation, and as the flow returns to
normal the increased energy in the area will lead to a return of
normal function. Skill levels can be developed from direct manip-
ulation to healing from a distance, using the body's electrical
fields in preference to the manipulation of muscle and bone. I
have "watched" healers of great skill use these techniques and
been on the receiving end to test their efficacy at Association for
Humanistic Psychology conventions. It's another skill helpful in
avoiding the scalpel as well as the sword. A study published in
the International Society for the Study of Subtle Energies and
Energy Medicine journal Subtle Energies (Vol. 1, No. 1, 1990), in
which the placebo effect was eliminated by using a double-blind
study experimental format, showed an increase of healing speed by
a factor of ten in the subjects exposed to non-contact therapeutic
touch or external chi kung. Learning energy skills strikes me as
an essential component of martial practice, from being a booster
to first aid to an adjunct to strategy.
Self-protection might include the idea that the organs of your
body are part of your self. The wellness and prevention move-
ments are not the blathering of airheads. A simple shiatsu tech-

nique controls and can eliminate tachycardia. Look up what your
pharmacist or surgeon consider a cure.
When I was a medic in the army and practicing O'Neill Quick
Kill (military application of combatic jujitsu emphasizing hand
strikes and snap kicks, developed for the British Special troops by
the Gurkhas and a former member of the Hong Kong police in
World War Two), a friend who was a sergeant in the infantry and
practiced a form of karate used to beat his knuckles on the cast-iron
fences that surrounded our kasernes (barracks in Germany). He
wanted me to break the knuckles in his hands so that the bone cal-
lous would be even thicker. I did it for him, since I knew he'd
never play the violin and it made him happy. Miyamoto Musashi
says that he dislikes hard hands. Art requires sensitivity. Energy
moves through soft hands. Women tend to be better at healing.
Here's an exercise for you to try out.
Think about a time when you were relaxed and happy. Think
about a time when you really loved someone or something. Put the
care and affection you feel into your hands. Handle something
alive, even a plant. I've potted plants that are ten years old and still
doing fine under my sporadic care. I mow the lawn in my bare
feet. Linda thinks I'm crazy. Her plants die with great regularity.
According to the most recent medical research on chi kung pub-
lished by the Institute for Noetic Science, these ancient and once-
secret breath a n d movement techniques revitalize the
endocrine.chakra systems, which correspond to the Go Dai. Prac-
titioners live long lives without senility. The practices reduce or pre-
vent hardening of the arteries as well as stimulate the central
nervous system. I recently had t h e h o n o r of meeting with
Eurotechnical Research University's School of Polemikology, Rock-
well College's Chinese Martial Arts department heads. Except for
Brendan Lai, they are all in their seventies and it would be extreme-
ly difficult to place any of them older than fifty. Dr. Yuang (sev-
enty-five, All China Wu Shu Champion and chi kung practitioner)
still has black hair. None of their wives looked older than forty. Chi
kung has shown a phenomenal effect and unique function in pre-
Healing
venting and treating disease; maintaining good health; increas-

ing and promoting intelligence; resisting aging and retaining
youthful appearance and body movement; raising working ener-
gy and efficiency; and strengthening and arousing the interior
latent energy of the body. The therapeutic effect of qiqong is par-
ticularly noteworthy in the treatment of diseases afflicting the
digestive, respiratory, cardiovascular, and nervous systems.
I strongly suspect the exaggerated descriptions of the healing
powers of the ancients worked as a rhetorical device, but I can
easily see the wisdom of applying energy methods where appro-
priate. I trust my own experience and recommend you try it out
yourself. It's a lot slower than surgery and seldom requires anes-
thetic. Don't rely on martial applications; try some different flavors
of bodywork. The basic material is the same but the application is
quite different.
Following is a meditation used to increase one's ability to use
therapeutic touch and expand consciousness. You are expected
to have mastered deep belly breathing, the Secret Smile, and qui-
eting your mind as described in chapter five on meditation. This
is to be done in the sage position, seiza, or upright in a chair.
Once you are in a deep state of relaxed balance and your breathing
has settled, have a friend read this to you as a directed meditation.
Picture yourself walking along a beach. (Pause) As you walk
you are beginning to shrink. This does not frighten you, as it is
very interesting. You quickly find yourself going down to the size
of the sand grains upon which a moment before you were tread-
ing. (Pause) Soon the grains appear as mountains and then separate
into worlds unto themselves as you continue to shrink down to the
molecular level. (Pause) As you continue to shrink and slip between
the atoms, each atom seems a star or diamond in the emptiness
and you can faintly see the energy lines that connect them like a
web or net flung out of points of light. (Pause)
You continue to shrink and fall through space, flying like a
bird though you are in a vacuum, eventually approaching a point
of light you pick from the web. As you grow closer it begins to
appear as a world, and then our beloved Earth as seen from space.
(Pause) You continue to approach, huge in comparison but still

shrinking rapidly as you enter the atmosphere and fly down
through the blue sky over ocean waves toward a sandy beach.
You float up to a likely landing spot and hit the position you like
to use for meditation. You open your eyes.
Practice this until it becomes easy to shrink your conscious-
ness and send it out scouting along the energy lines or the spaces
between. I think the therapeutic touch applications will become
evident when you are able to project your intent into your hands
and beyond. Some people pick this up with remarkable speed,
and for others it doesn't seem to have much effect beyond being
an interesting visualization. This exercise can be considered a
preparation and aid to achieving astral projection as well as a tool
for achieving more precise and subtle healing. Play with this, as it
is an exercise congruent with more than one esoteric tradition.
When you have trained your mind to project an intention,
such as liking or alertness, you can move that projection through
the practice of chi kung concentration into another person's aura
or into the proper meridian. Working on your therapeutic touch
prolongs your life as a protector and healer, as well as increases
your power as a teacher.
Chapter Ten
Teaching Esoteric Strategy

at the College Level
or
Founding an American Ryu
to compete with Ninjutsu
I
N 1981 I took an administrative position at Hillsdale College in
southern Michigan. It was a new experience for me as the col-
lege was small, private, and conservative. I was used to teach-
ing at large, public, and liberal colleges. My job was an instructor
in social psychology for the Dow Leadership Development Center,
which meant working with managers from all over the world
every other week to do psychological assessments and teach team-
work, problem-solving, and people skills in a workshop setting.
After a year had passed and the responsibilities became routine, I
also took over the Speech Department, as the administration of the
college had decided to eliminate the program. This struck me as
fatuous for a liberal arts college so I volunteered to teach all the
courses required for a communication minor on a rotating basis.
It wasn't part of my job description but I'd taught speech at Penn
State, Wayne State, and the University of Windsor. Since the
administration wasn't willing to pay me for the class but was will-
ing to charge the students, I taught the courses as if they were
graduate seminars. I liked the students and it was fun.
The work was sedentary, and my second wife, Linda, was an

excellent cook and lover so I began to put on weight. After reach-
ing 260 pounds on a light-boned, six-foot frame I decided to start
working out again (twelve years later I'm at 180). I'd quit the
study of martial arts for eight years before I signed up for the col-
lege's tae kwan do course. The instructor, Brian Anderson, was
very competent, but I quickly realized that tae kwan do was more
sport than combat and for someone of my age and condition too
hard on the joints, particularly the hips. I've also never been par-
ticularly fond of kata (forms) except for tai chi, and one-point
sparring bores me to tears. One of the red belts noticed that when
I couldn't perform a particular tae kwan do maneuver I'd slip in
something that worked for me. He asked me what I was doing
and I replied "Jujitsu." His response changed my life. "Teach me,"
he said with a grin.
Campbell "Camper" Walker was extremely skilled in the kick-
ing techniques and also nunchakus (Okinawan karate weapon
developed in China). As I taught him throwing and joint lock-
ing, he taught me different footwork and "karate sticks." We spent
a lot of time figuring out how to defeat each other's favorite tech-
niques. As we were more friends than student and teacher, a lot of
our interaction included talking about books, life in general, and
what was important to him at his age. He was a guest at my home
and reciprocated. I was having such a good time playing warrior
with Camper that I decided to systematize what I had learned
over the years into an intelligent, challenging course. At the end
of the year I'd broken down the belt system into a self-defense
course plus readings which would take approximately six semesters
to achieve a black belt if you were smart and normally athletic.
When I showed it to Camper he informed me I'd left out the most
important part.
"Your mind," he said. "It's not the techniques but how you
teach them, the meditation, the strategy, sharing your thoughts
and feelings. That's what's important! You always tell me the truth.
You never bullshit. Most of the professors here are so full of them-
selves and their subjects, you can't really learn from them. You
Teaching Esoteric Strategy a t the College Level
treat us like we matter. You've got to get that loving what you are
and doing into the course."
I was stunned. He went on. "Everybody wants to meet a real
master and study with them. When I tell my friends what I've been
doing the last year they're so envious. You've got to put the hid-
den meanings and all the psychological stuff in the course. We'll use
that; most of us will never have to be in a physical fight once we get
out of school. We have to learn strategy! It's so much fun!"
After being chased around by a smart, dangerous, twenty-two-
year-old for a year, his request had more than ordinary appeal.
The trick would be how to get the right stuff into a package accept-
able to modern Americans while still making them able to defend
themselves physically as well as mentally in ways appropriate to
their environment. I may have seemed masterful to Camper, but
why not expose young students to the ancient masters, real mas-
ters, and professionals, not just a hobbyist like myself. The syl-
labus in my head got a lot more interesting. Things that I'd seen
over the years and wanted to experience myself combined with a
basic core of exercises and techniques associated with transfor-
mation of consciousness. Modern hoshinjutsu was born out of
that discussion.
Replication is the heart of science. Camper had a young Alaskan
friend who wanted t o study with me. His n a m e was Steve
Noonkesser. He was a history major and very analytical, good
with computers, and loved playing Dungeons and Dragons. His
joining our little circle made the next semester very interesting.
Teaching should also be learning, and Steve, having grown up in
Alaska with Eskimos, had some very interesting perspectives con-
cerning man's place in nature. We began to integrate some of the
techniques he'd learned from his Indian friends into the course. I
began to study and practice chi kung and Iyengar yoga, which
amplified the Zen practice I'd been doing o n and off for years. I
learned how to dungeon-master and we added role playing to our
strategy sessions as mental exercises.
Camper and I had boiled down hundreds of techniques to
what we thought were the most effective requiring the least
amount of strength. Steve, because he was physically powerful,

became our guinea pig. He also encouraged the introduction of
weapons at a much lower belt level than Camper and I had dis-
cussed. We decided that improvised weapons and easily concealed
weaponry made more sense for modern times so we lifted hanbo
(cane) and chain (kusari fundo) techniques from ninjutsu for our
basics. We derived our warm-up exercises from yoga, chi kung,
and tai chi. We decided to wear black gi's instead of white to dif-
ferentiate ourselves from tae kwan do and emphasize our non-
sport, self-protection orientation.
We went through one more step. I wanted a student who was
smart, small, athletic, and exemplified the conservative, status-
seeking, upwardly mobile, middle-class young people typical of
Hillsdale College. Someone who had never been in a real fight in
his life. Enter Randy Reising, ex-high-school football player and
gymnast, and gentleman about town. Randy became the final
authority as to what techniques were kept or dropped. As he had
no experience and was learning everything through new eyes, he
became our best critic and most proficient practitioner. We combed
through the martial arts literature, paying particular attention to
the techniques recommended for women and the elderly. We'd
take something like a hip throw and see how many variations of
it we could find in different martial arts. Then we would take it all
apart and develop variations on the basic theme based on utili-
ty, kinesiology, or escalation of pain, damage, and energy flow,
saving the nastiest techniques for the higher levels as opposed to
the more athletic. We called these "fifth-picture moves" because in
many of Hatsumi's Japanese books on ninpo he'd show four pic-
tures breaking down a technique and the fifth was usually some-
thing only a truly creative and nasty person would do to another
human being in the midst of a fight.
I submitted the syllabus to the physical education department.
The course was accepted, and the next semester we had twenty
willing scholars. Little did we know what we had started. Each
student was given a packet of readings, copies of the written exam
to be completed after reading The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto
Teaching Esoteric Strategy a t the College Level
Musashi, and a list of techniques they were expected to master

for an A in the course. Camper graduated and Steve and Randy
became my assistant instructors. The class met for two hours every
Friday afternoon as a way to guarantee only interested people
would sign up. We were given the use of the dance studio but
often took the class outside so people could practice their tech-
niques on varying surfaces.
During our search of the literature we discovered Stephen
Hayes. Hayes is one of the first Westerners to be trained in the
traditional ninja life-ways as taught by Grandmaster Masaaki Hat-
sumi of the Togakure Ryu of Japan. When I discovered he lived
a day away in Ohio, I called him and he graciously invited me to
attend a special weekend workshop for his black belts and oth-
ers. I was deeply impressed by the skills taught and even more by
how they were taught. Hayes used directed meditations, music
when appropriate, emphasized stretching and body movement,
and, most interesting for me, connected attitudelintent to tech-
nique. It was apparent that the ninjas with their 800-year-old war-
rior tradition had already accomplished for the professional what
we were trying to put together for the hobbyist. That weekend
eventually led to the inclusion of many ninja ideas in our course,
as the ninja reputation as the "ultimate warriors" is based in the
reality of their training. As we began to experience some of the
side effects of enlightenment it was comforting to know there
were people out there who were even crazier than we were. Taijutsu
as taught by the Bujinkan is definitely a path to mushin. One
must train the intent before one can release it.
One of the things about the martial arts that always annoyed
me in my own studies was the imposed hierarchy of master over
student or teacherlleader as omnipotent source of correct knowl-
edge. As an intelligent observer of many things I found that rule
hard to ingest. Realizing that the sensei (one who has gone before)
served as a model, I wanted our dojo climate to be more relaxed,
open, and fun than is usual to more traditional systems. Play is
important to learning. The closest to my particular ideal have
been the various Togakure Ryu Bujinkan Ninpo dojos in which
I'd trained. Every semester I would give a lecture on how one

should act when visiting other training halls--depth of bows,
courtesy, belts and sashes, flags, shrines, and all that. I'd been in
more than a few over the years. Then I'd point to the light switch
on the far wall and say, "If you feel you have to worship some-
one or something in here, I'd suggest the source of electricity
because that's as close to magic as we'll get. To me this is all
science. "
As most people get started in the martial arts because they fear
others, I felt it necessary to do everything possible to reduce fear
and instill curiosity. All anger is rooted in fear of loss. I wanted
to encourage flexibility of mind, body, and spirit and felt that
could best be accomplished in a democratic atmosphere. I wanted
my students to be relaxed and calm so we always opened with a
meditation and some stretching. I wanted the women to advance
in the system, so upper body strength techniques were minimized.
Taijutsu, jujitsu techniques for older people, and chi kung held
the key to accomplishing that particular riddle. It was felt at that
time that the women would have a gentling effect. Both sexes
have the opportunity to know each other much better, reducing
shyness and fear, and increasing confidence. Sexual tension keeps
everyone alert, as there is something arousing in making the beau-
tiful dangerous. The other differences were much greater empha-
sis on training the mind and particularly the emotions, early use
of pick-up weapons, and application of strategy. Women make
very sneaky opponents. (The Japanese strategists regard them as
.
treachery. The Chinese +*.
would wound/bind their feet
from birth so concubines could not develop complete use of chi,
nor flee their fate.)
Five kyu belt levels were developed using the Go Dai as a basis,
as well as five black belt levels that also required study and achiev-
ing rank in other martial systems to test one's survival and intel-
ligence gathering skills. Ninpo, having the least weaknesses,
became the favored other system to explore unless we could find
a legitimate kung fu master. Each belt had an associated series of
readings, yogic exercises, healing practices, and specific techniques
Teaching Esoteric Strategy at the College Level
and principles to be mastered before going o n to the next belt

package. Students always had a good idea of where they were in
the system. Higher-level ranks were assigned students to bring
along and could not advance until their students had reached the
appropriate level, guaranteeing they learned how to teach. Teach-
ing is the only universal marker of a leader.
Trapping and woodsmanship as well as modern weapons famil-
iarization at the local range became part of the curriculum. We
included a heavier emphasis on chi kung and meditation as well
as a greater emphasis on esoteric self-protection as greater skills
began to emerge i n what the ancients referred to as siddhi (the
eight learned magics) and we called weird science; strategy from
numerous sources both East and West; and greater emphasis o n
play, realizing that when the adrenals took over in a real fight,
the spirit would emerge. We put in a fire-walking party at the end
of each semester and held annual trophy raids o n the fraternities
and sororities during Greek Week, as one of the visiting ninjutsu
instructors, John Porter, enjoyed that sort of thing. One of the
girls in the system was so good at her stealth techniques that she
would write me letters o n the college president's personal sta-
tionery and had a collection of her target fraternity banners in
consecutive years.
Eventually three hundred students achieved at least the first
two belts as part of their physical education requirement. We had
a pile of data from their experiences-aura reading, telempathy,
telekinetics with energy, telepathy, far sensing, survival of falls
and electrical accidents, chi development, shared dreams, heal-
ing of endless nicks and bruises, escapes from and capture of thugs,
and accusations of witchcraft by the fundamental Christian Inter
Varsity student group. Dr. Jon Kayne, a clinical psychologist, would
test the black belts o n Rhine cards and for precognition. They all
scored higher than normal expectations. (It appears to me that
the psychic researchers are looking for the light i n the wrong
places.) We never got levitation but Skippy Lepire developed some
altitude and hang times that put him in a class with Air Jordan. In
five years we tried out everything we could think of or that some-
body else described well enough for us to take on. I paid for
instructors in ninjutsu, karate, and kung fu to come and give guest
lectures and demonstrations. We would troop off to take semi-
nars by instructors in other arts who were invariably surprised to
get a gaggle of outsiders attending their demos. Such are the dan-
gers of offering public training. We did all the things a bunch of
bright smart people are going to try if given the opportunity. We
had a ball.
Of the three hundred, only four were malignant enough that I
quit teaching them and finally drove them away. We treated all the
siddhi (will discuss the siddhi more in the chapter "Magic, Crystals,
Talismans and Swords") as benefits rather than goals and worked
on our art and energy. Most of my students applied their new
understandings to their professions as opposed to their new hob-
by of scientific mugging. Some were even horrified that they
couldn't get out of the class without passing the physical mea-
sures at a standardized level of expectation of being able to quick-
ly end a fight by winning.
After I left Hillsdale College to consult with the Engine Division
of General Motors, a number of students enrolled specifically to get
hoshin, not bad for a one-credit gym course. I'm teaching it again
now that I've accomplished my primary goals in ninpo. I needed
to make some high-level friends. I didn't seem to find any in busi-
ness, academia, or church. I felt it was necessary to achieve a mas-
ter's license in a different art from hoshin as it struck me as hubris
and self-promotion to take that title on without proof from a
legitimate lineage. I was able to do that by relying on what we
had researched and developed at Hillsdale College. I consider
hoshinjutsu to be a close but honed-down approximation of the
ancient ryus as well as a modern introductory course that enables
students to enter the world of the true or combatic martial artist
without fear, and to have the confidence to follow their hearts
far beyond the techniques represented by sport, the color of their
obis, or the limitations of their instructors. Hoshin provides a
vehicle for attaining the advantages of flow or enlightened move-
ment without the risk of surviving endless battles with others.
Teaching Esoteric Strategy at the College Level
It forces the issue to conquering one's own fears while entering

unknown territory in the company of friends. Creation of this
system for American martial artists was recognized by the World
Martial Arts Hall of Fame and was the reason for my election to
that august body. I am, and will be forever, grateful to my stu-
dents for teaching me the way.
Chapter Eleven
Exchanges with
Interesting People
T
HIS CHAPTER IS a little parody of Gurdjieff's conversations
with great men, with vignettes or descriptions of people
who've impressed or inspired me in the martial arts and
related arenas.
First I'll describe two conversations with Masaaki Hatsumi and
their after-effects. I was walking across the big quad at the Girl
Scout camp near Kettering, Ohio, where Steve used to hold the
Ninja Festival when I felt Hatsumi behind me. I turned around
and he was coming out of the dinner hall with Nagato, Kan (I
think), and Jack Hoban. I waited until they crossed the seventy
yards or so to see what the grandmaster wanted of lowly white-belt
me. This was 1987 and I'd been wearing glasses since the late sev-
enties. The usual middle-age astigmatism. Hatsumi grabbed my
hands, looked into my eyes, and asked me what I thought about
ninjutsu. I told him I was enjoying the training enormously and
felt that what he was demonstrating was of great value. He would
ask me a question and Jack Hoban and Nagato would translate
back and forth. He did not let go of my hands.
I noticed he was drawing energy from me and I started to laugh
and draw energy from him. He was startled, grinned at me, and
began to pull harder. I reciprocated and we began to run a circle of
energy through each other's arms. Jack and the shihans did not
notice what Hatsumi and I were doing. We were both giggling
like schoolboys playing a prank and trying to maintain the con-
versation as if nothing esoteric were happening. We finished our
exchange. He released my hands a n d walked off with his
entourage. I turned toward my bunkhouse and noticed that I
could see every leaf in the trees with clarity. My eyes were healed.
I didn't need my glasses anymore. This lasted for over five years.
They've weakened a little since 1987 but not enough for me to
elect for glasses. (I take ginseng, and work on my breath, and
palm when I remember.) When I saw him again at the Los Ange-
les Tai Kai (annual gathering of the Bujinkan) the next year, I
thanked him for my better vision; he laughed and said, "I have
very young energy."
Kevin Millis and I were in Noda City, Japan, for advance train-
ing. "The Boss" had invited us over to his house for some sake
(rice wine) and conversation on a cold winter's night. Hatsumi
had warmed up some sake on his little burner and we were bun-
dled up among his collection of books and medical equipment.
There was a jug of clear liquid with a snake dissolving in it on a
shelf over my head, alongside the autographed poster of 1960s
German sex symbol/movie star Elke Sommers. One of Hatsurni's
dogs was trying to get to know me. The atmosphere was relaxed
and comfortable. Hatsumi poured sake and when he handed me
mine there was a tuft of dog hair pressed to the lip of the cup.
(He'd reached over at some point and pulled a little off the beast,
then neatly arranged it.) I thanked him for his gracious offer,
turned the little cup and drank, swiped off the hair unobtrusively
with a finger, and extended the cup for more. (He was testing my
ability to deal with the unexpected, as well as checking my
tolerance.)
We talked about various things, and then I decided to have
some fun with him and see what he knew about yidam. Yidam
are Tibetan warrior vampires, according to Chogyam Trungpa.
Their particular task in life is the protection of the righteous. I
asked Kevin to translate very carefully for me. He said he'd try.
Exclznrzges with Intemting People
I then said, "In the West, we have some very old customs con-
cerning how to treat people who can work with energy. These tra-
ditions were designed specifically for those who could draw energy.
We used to hunt them down, drive a wooden stake through their
hearts, cut off their heads, and bury their remains at a crossroad.
We call them vampires and they were much feared as you can
imagine from the treatment. Yet I notice in Buddhism that people
with many of the same characteristics of the legendary vampire are
regarded as enlightened saints. Could you explain that to me?"
Kevin struggled with it. Hatsumi looked at me with a perplexed
expression, suddenly stood up, walked over to a book stack on
our right, and pulled out a beautiful collection of woodcuts. He
said, "Here are some very nice thirteenth-century prints. Would
you like to look at them?" The topic was closed. The prints weren't
about vampires. It's not nice to joke about vampires around "the
Boss." About a year later one of Nagato's students, a rather naive
young sandan, informs me that Stephen Hayes is teaching vampire
arts. Sorry, Steve, it's probably my fault. Hatsumi and I are the
only real vampires I've noticed. There are a lot of politics in nin-
jutsu, but if you follow your heart everything that is said about the
ultimate warriors can be found in the Togakure Ryu.
Sherm Harrell is a shichidan in Isshinryu Karate who has a dojo in

Carson City, Iowa. Once a year h e holds a seminar in Parma,
Michigan, at Alandale Acres. His story, as told to me, is that his
daughters were killed in a car crash. He withdrew from teaching
and went into his cow barn and studied the scrolls given to him by
his famous Okinawan teacher, Shimabuku. After two years of self-
study he emerged with what he called Jutedo (soft hand way). It's
a system of energy use attacking the meridians and balance points
of the body and is a great improvement on how karate is typical-
ly taught. To the uninformed eye, it is a way of throwing people by
striking them. It's very powerful and lots of fun to learn. I always
make my students attend Sherm's seminars with me. He's a great
teacher and usually wears his tattered white obi (belt). Andy Tuck-
er, a shodan in hoshiniutsu as well as a black belt in tae kwan do,
was sitting next to me putting on his tabi and said, "These karate
guys are really old. Look at that old white belt in the crew cut
having a cigarette. Do you think they really have something to
show us?"
After Sherm finished his smoke, he came in, formally started the
class, and began to demonstrate some of the most punishing tech-
niques I'd ever seen on his assistant instructor, who spent the
next hour or so flying through the air and landing on his butt or
whatever got to the ground first. It was a great display of relaxed
power. I was happy that we spent a lot of time on falling and
rolling. Watching Andy handle his cognitive dissonance was fun.
Sherm talked a lot about energy use and keeping soft through the
techniques. The karate people were having trouble grasping the
concepts, but my students jumped right on those bones of wis-
dom. They could see by his aura that he knew what he was doing
when it came to moving chi around.
Sherm had gone through the kundalini on his own with no
idea as to what was happening to him. He thought he was going
crazy but knew in his heart that whatever was happening was for
the best and he'd just have to ride it out. (Ex-Marines are tough.)
He was still getting severe headaches after demos. He ran mostly
yang energy, so we went outside and I showed him some of the chi
kung techniques for bleeding off excess energy to the head. I sent
him some articles from the Chinese National Chi Kung Institute on
how to run the orbits. He sent me back a nice letter praising my
students. Since he has only promoted two black belts in twenty
years of teaching, that was high praise indeed.
Sherm spent many years on the makiwara (wrapped posts or
wall hangers used for striking practice) and has the gnarly hands
and feet to prove it. I watched him use soft sand palm techniques
to break three patio blocks that were not separated. He then used
soft techniques to break the middle block of five without breaking
the two above or the two below. We then got to break a patio
block using the same method. He showed a girl of eleven how to
do it and she did it effortlessly. The hard breakers had a hell of a
time. I did my patio block blindfolded. It was an eye-opener.
Exchanges with Interesting People
Sherm pointed out that once you learned the soft-hand tech-
niques, all hard breaking was good for was reminding you about
your arthritis on cold mornings. As a farmer in Iowa, he has a
deep understanding of cold mornings. He's not a mystic, he's just
real good at what he does.
Shihan Kevin Millis and I are good friends and often share our
thinking and reactions to things and events around us. I think
of myself as a fairly down-to-earth, middle-aged, middle-class col-
lege professor with Midwest values. I was visiting with Kevin and
his parents near Malibu and asked him one afternoon what being
around me was like. He said, "Being around you is like being
around a Martian. You are a Midwest Mork with n o Mindy in
sight." I was saddened to hear that, as I thought I was learning
to fit into the California Lifestyle. I was even beginning to like
the Lakers and contemplating learning to rollerblade in Venice.
The Midwest Association of Humanistic Psychologists holds a

convention in Indianapolis every year. I try to go if it's conve-
nient and I have the money, or if the presenters look interesting.
There are usually many healers and bodyworkers performing their
art. I like to attend their seminars. It's a weakness of mine. Maybe
I should have been a massage therapist.
In 1990 I went t o two day-long certification granting semi-
nars. The first was called "The Healing Process: Exploring Body-
mind Integration." The teachers were two white witches into Reiki
(Japanese energy work). One was Meg Blanchet-Cole, who obvi-
ously had a background in yoga, and the other was Barbara Allen,
an R.N. with considerable chiropractic experience. We all sat down
in a circle on our pillows. I had cleverly arranged to sit next to
Meg, who is stunning and exudes a strong white aura. I noticed
that she was blocking energy between her shoulder blades and
reached over to hit the shiatsu points that would release it. She
said, "Don't touch me!" I politely backed off.
The group was asked t o introduce themselves and their spe-
cialties. It was heavily laced with bodyworkers of all sorts. I could
learn a lot here. When it came my turn I introduced myself as

"Dr. Morris, a fourth-degree black belt in Bujinkan Ninpo, and it is
so nice to be a vampire here at play with all you nice people."
The look of horror on Meg's face was well worth the price of
admission. I paired off with a bodyworker named Sue from Chica-
go who was married to a martial artist, and we had a good time
blowing out each other's circuits.
The next exercise involved feeling body energy around the
chakras and we broke into triads. My group consisted of Meg's
husband and an amazing girl who had walked across the Middle
East as a teenager and eventually wound up learning energy work
from Aborigines in Australia. She said, "I've never seen anyone
like you before. All your energy is radiating from your head."
"That's what you're supposed to do with your sexual energy,"
I replied. "You move it up to your head so you can think with it.
Then you can send it where it's needed."
"Oh, yeah. Send it to your feet." I did as she commanded. She
was intrigued. "Send it to your chest." I gave her a blast out my
solar plexus. We were having fun. Meg's husband wanted in and
asked us to show him where he was open. I ran my hand up his
body fields and told him I felt the solar plexus was strongest. The
Aborigine-trained girl concurred. He said, "But I'm a good per-
son, why isn't my heart chakra strongest?"
"I'm not certain goodness and chakras coincide but it could
be interpreted that you still have to think about it. The solar plexus
is associated with strong intellectual activity while the heart is
considered more feeling," I replied. He seemed satisfied with that.
The young woman had me march around the energy some more.
I showed her how to change colors with intent. We were late for
the next triad.
My next group included a woman from Puerto Rico who was
attending because she had an ovarian cyst. She did not like the
prospect of going under the knife. A small elf-like woman was
kneeling before her, directing energy into her lower abdomen. I
could see the elf didn't have the juice for what she was trying to
accomplish, so I laid my hand on her shoulder and began to pump
energy down her heart meridian. The look o n her face was classic.
Her name was Lisa Graves and she said, "Wow, what the hell are
you doing?"
"I'm just feeding you. Take it and do what you know how to do.
I use this stuff for breaking bricks. I can generate for hours. Go
for it." She returned to her work and I continued to breathe ener-
gy into her while she directed it into the lady from Puerto Rico.
That woman snapped to attention, her eyes rolled back i n her
head, a n d she went i n t o orgasm. Meg a n d Barb came over to
watch us at play while our victim vibrated. Blue light was run-
ning in little streams all up her body and over her face. It was like
she was being electrocuted with microwatts.
Finally Lisa says, "I got it." I moved around the falling woman,
guided her over to a massage table, and lifted her o n to it. I ran my
hands through her fields and she seemed to be burning very clean
to me. I asked Lisa to check her out. Meg came over and did a
pass, as did Barb. Barb adjusted the woman's hip. We all felt very
pleased with ourselves. Lisa told me that she'd never worked with
anyone that way before. I didn't tell her it was a first for me; I
responded like old and knowing. Lisa and I became friends. I wan-
dered off to talk with Barbara Allen and watch how she worked.
She does a great wise woman and has a nice sense of humor.
When the seminar was over I was at the door talking with Sue
from Chicago and the Australian-trained girl. Meg came over and
said, "Dr. Morris, I have to apologize to you." I said, "For what?"
She replied, "For what I said to you." I said, "Your response came
from the heart and was absolutely correct for what and who you
are. Think about it. No apology is necessary. I had a lovely time in
your seminar." And I left with Lisa to see what kind of techniques
she was willing to turn loose.
I bought Lisa dinner as she was dirt-poor, having scraped
together every cent she had for this particular seminar. We went to
my room and I had a beer. She being a healer told me she didn't
drink. I showed her how to see energy in the mirror and breathe
properly to generate more power. I took some of her healing ener-
gy and ran it through me using the internal witness to observe.
It was nice and pink and lit up all the meridians and organs. She
knew her stuff. I showed her how to do a non-sexual exchange. She
said, "When you do that, I see what looks like a demon in flames
surrounding you, but it doesn't scare me. Why's that?"
"There's nothing to be afraid of," I replied. "It's tame now."
She took off for home, but as she was going out the door Lisa
turned and said, "You weren't kidding about being there to play,
were you?" It seemed a heartfelt compliment. I have her work on
my legs when I'm down that way. She lives in Charlestown, Indi-
ana, and works in a health spa in Lexington. She is real good with
ripped muscles and other mundane consequences of over-enthu-
siastic training. Someday I'd love to do a full split and lay my
chest on the ground without screaming. It will take considerable
stretching and bodywork to achieve that goal at my age, with my
body.
The next day of the convention was Rubenfeld Synergy with
Ilana Rubenfeld. She combines energy use with bodywork and
psychotherapy and has her own school in New York City. She's
world-class and a former Association for Humanistic Psychology
president. I definitely wanted to observe her at work. Her day-
long workshop was entitled "Healing the Mind-Body-Spirit Con-
nection." It was attended by approximately 120 women and 30
men. She led us through some Feldenkrais-type exercises and
eventually asked for a volunteer to get on her table. The session
was being recorded.
A woman leaped from the crowd and Ilana started talking to her
as she massaged her feet. I could see she was using intent but
couldn't tell anything as her energy use was very subtle, with
everything going into the woman o n the table. Suddenly the
woman began to babble the most horrific stories of sexual abuse
and rape as a small child, beatings as a wife, divorce, remarriage,
more abuse, harassment, on and on, one terrible event after anoth-
er. If I had a client like her I would have been paralyzed. Ilana
took each event and derived a lesson from it that led to the next
event she might make a joke from. She subtly rebuilt this woman
in one of the most virtuoso performances of the art of therapy
I've ever seen. It was astounding, the audience seldom made a

sound, and the anger and sadness from the empathetic, primarily
female group were palpable. Tears were streaming down my face.
I could hardly breathe I was so shocked by her pain and their
empathy. (There are many occasions when occult science is a
painful disadvantage. It's referred to as compassion.) Ilana, like
some sort of legendary pain-eating shaman, evoked memories
with her touch, kneaded them out of the flesh, and discussed them
into palatable lessons to avoid repeating. When she was finished
she helped the laughing rag doll of a woman off the table. The
woman was radiant, she was reborn. The atmosphere in the room
did not bode well for men. I noticed there were about fifteen now.
She asked for another volunteer, and a young, athletic, beautiful
woman with a withered leg climbed onto the table. Ilana started to
rub her feet and relax her legs. The volunteer started to talk about
her relations with men, and how hard it was to find a good one.
Who would accept her? She was one of the last victims of polio.
She had a sense of humor about her handicap or challenge. She
described a dinner with the man she would like to marry and
how he manipulated her and held back because of her leg. I turned
to the woman sitting next to me, an attractive Ann Arbor type
about my age in all handmade cotton clothing with thick grey
hair to her thighs and gorgeous skin.
"I hope to hell she goes hunting," I whispered. She looked at
me, tugged at her shawl, and grinned back. "So do I!" I felt a little
better but the bad vibes for the masculine side were intense. I was
working hard not to lose it. When Ilana finished with this vol-
unteer, she whipped around and said, "Well, so much for women.
I'd like to do a man now."
Nobody moved. No way. This group of female therapists was
primed for blood. I think there were about five men left in the
huge room. Silence was stretching when I found myself standing
and moving toward the table. I had to experience this.
I climbed onto the table and introduced myself. She had me
take off my jewelry and admired a dragon crystal neck chain made
for my be Laura Butler, who specializes in fantasy designs. Ilana
went to work on my feet, and the lady in cotton brought me her

shawl to use as a pillow. I closed my eyes, went into no-mind,
and turned my attention inward to see if I could catch any of her
skills. She stretched my legs out and started a little relaxation mas-
sage when all of a sudden these nuclear bombs of energy started to
flow up my meridians to explode behind my eyes. I was lost. She
had me. I hoped nothing too gross would come out in front of
this audience. I was semi-comatose when I heard her saying,
"What's going on? How old are you?" I heard myself replying,
"Five," in a small high voice. "Why are you crying?" she asks.
"I'm being beaten by my Sunday School teacher," I wail. "She
caught me eating the oatmeal paste and she's mad."
We then went into a three-way discussion with adult Glenn, lit-
tle Glenny, and Ilana as interlocutor. We had a lot of fun and
wrapped it up with me giving the little tyke words of wisdom like
"Eat the goddamn oatmeal. It too will pass." When I got off the
table she pressed her palms together and gave me a little bow.
Hell, I'd give her a floor-knocker bow any time. That oatmeal inci-
dent could explain a lot of mistrust of authority. We did a little tai
chi dance to the music and I escaped with my nasty, male-chau-
vinistic, androgynous self unrevealed. God knows what would
have come out of me if she'd loosened up some other knot. It's a
brave man that gets on her table in front of a national audience.
You have no control at all. Rubenfeld Synergy. Kings of old would
kill to have a seer like her work on them after a battle.
John Yono is a Chaldean Christian who owns a party store in

South Lyon, Michigan. Meeting John is a bit like stepping into
the pages of the fictional book The Way of the Peaceful Warrior by
Dan Millman. Johnny is a boxer and self-taught madman. He fol-
lows the way of fire and can hit harder and faster from any direc-
tion than most professionals. There were no teachers who could
handle him in the Detroit area, so he soon went his own way.
When he was younger he used to train heavyweights for tough
man contests. He's about 5'8" and weighs around 160. He fought
his way out of the inner city and now trains by hunting and fish-
ing around his store. He loves cars and has built one national
championship hot rod. He is meticulous in running his store and
raising his children. There is always some soup or wild game cook-
ing on the gas grill in the back room for favored visitors. He keeps
track of the gossip and politics of the neighborhood and the foibles
of his neighbors. He knows everything worth knowing about all his
customers. When they're down and out he provides credit and
chow, and sends them on their way smiling. He's in his late thir-
ties and looks twenty-three. His memory is phenomenal. He loved
his mother and deeply grieved when she died; he visited with his
father every week until the old man died, too. His father was from
Iraq and made a place for his family in the wilds of Detroit. The old
man had been very depressed since the death of his wife. He
wouldn't leave the house. He was in mourning for over a year.
The old man liked to fish but had never been lake fishing. Johnny
and I rented a charter boat and took him out on Lake Michigan
after salmon. We had a ball and the old man began to enjoy life
again, but soon followed his beloved wife into the void.
I like to sit behind Johnny's deli counter and chew the fat
while he supervises the teenagers who work for him. Occasion-
ally I'll go to his house and we'll work out in his basement gym.
After he gets done terrorizing me we'll take a sweat in his sauna.
Usually we end the evening watching his hundreds of multi-col-
oredwild fish from Lake Tanganyika in Africa swim around in
their tanks. There's a big white male he calls Hatsumi because it
hides so well and refuses to eat from his hand. John's a real human
being. He's a martial arts friend. When one of my students wants
to improve in boxing skills, I send them to Master Yono.
Leo Sebregst is head of the South African National Wu Shu
Association. His dojo is a multi-storied building across from the
police headquarters in Johannesburg. He has a farm in the Trans-
vaal where some of the wildest kung fu training in the world is
commonplace. He trains people of all races. As you walk up a hill
in the high bush you see rising before you on the crest a Chinese-
style wall. Leo and his students have built a temple fortress on
top of a mountain. It's complete with a huge dragon's head
entrance (you go in through the mouth) and bunkhouses over-

looking the surrounding valleys. The view is spectacular. Leo says
the idea of it came to him in a dream. He has made the dream
reality. Nearby there is a climb up a brush-filled ravine that is
done at night. One gets to acquaint oneself with scorpions, leop-
ards, wild pigs, and other fun denizens of the farm. He has balance
pole sparring arenas set up at different levels of difficulty and var-
ious other kung fu training devices to make the sides of the tem-
ple hill look like an obstacle course for the completely demented.
I was flabbergasted. Kung fu students come from all over South
Africa to train with this outspoken and talented man.
A colleague and hoshinroshiryu founder, Dr. Richard Grant,
an economist at Witswatersrand University, invited me to be his
guest in South Africa so I could see the country, meet Leo, and
get an unbiased peek at the infamous situation. Now who would
pass that up regardless of their political persuasion? I hopped a
plane for Rio de Janiero and then took the southern route across
the Atlantic. South Africa is well worth visiting. I loved it and can
see why feelings concerning the political situation are so strongly
held. (Rio, with its pickpockets, feral children, beautiful beaches,
and people is another story concerning misguided government.)
SiGung (Grandfather) Sebregst's kwoon/dojo is brightly painted
in traditional Chinese colors with smooth concrete floors and
modern conveniences. He teaches in a gruff, fatherly manner and
among martial artists I've observed is definitely in the grandmas-
ter arena when it comes to control and movement. He's almost
twenty years younger than most and so is just hitting his full
powers. His hands are soft and cool but the skin feels a bit like a
football, as he has used the traditional skin-toughening techniques
of pounding sand, then gravel, and so forth. The sand is specially
prepared with herbs to prevent infection, and a special tea is drunk
to prevent blood clots. Eventually the skin is thick but smooth. The
effect is quite different from the knuckle busting of karate.
We talked about some aspects of yin energy use, and Leo
answered some questions that I'd never been able to find answers
to among people whose English or experience was broad enough
to respond. After we became comfortable with one another he

asked me to demo for his students. I was a godan in hoshin, a
sandan in ninjutsu, and a sifu in chi kung at this point and
thought it would be fun to compare and contrast styles for a select
group of eight or ten.
The evening demo was performed for well over a hundred of his
upper-level students. I would demonstrate a technique and com-
pare it to one from ninjutsu or kung fu. Then I'd answer ques-
tions. One long-haired young man asked me what drugs were
preferred by ninjas. I told him to study homeopathic medicine
and look into ginseng as a general anodyne. Then Leo demon-
strated techniques that he perceived as parallel from the systems
he taught. This went on for an hour or so, and then I was inter-
viewed by the local martial arts magazine. An interesting night.
The interviewing reporter told me he was really surprised to
find this interview and demo being conducted at Sebregst's, as
Leo had often publicly stated and demonstrated in competitions
his contempt for all the other martial artists in South Africa. (Leo
has a little work to do around the concept of humility.) To have
someone from another system actually giving a demo in his place
was unheard of. I truly felt honored. Later Leo arranged for me
to receive a teacher's license from the governing wu shu commit-
tee in case I decided to stay in South Africa. It became part of a
collage I made of my martial adventures and hangs with my mem-
orabilia.
A good friend once bought me a Christmas gift of an hour's ther-

apeutic massage from a French masseuse who had been trained
in Sri Lanka. She was very skilled and every now and then would
lift her hands off me to measure or test my energy fields. She had
never worked on a chi kung practitioner before. Not too many
hang out in deepest darkest Lansing. So her curiosity was under-
standable. When she was finished I asked her if she had noticed
anything strange that I should be careful about. She gave me a
long thoughtful look and said, "Do you know you have a Bud-
dha living inside you?" I laughed, "Yeah, he's eight hundred years
old and doesn't know how to act. I have to take him everywhere
but don't speak his language. It's a burden I have to bear. What
would you do?"
"I don't know, Monsieur. I have never seen or heard of such
a thing before." She isn't alone there.
The best student I ever had is an Ethiopian. His name is Toffesse

Alemu. His father was a general and Toff grew up in Haille Selasse's
household. He's a devout Coptic Christian and we've had many
interesting discussions concerning Africa. He told me his grand-
father had practiced many of the elements of hoshinjutsu and
told him a true warrior had the soul of a great woman, spoke only
from the heart, and breathed from the feet. He thought the old
man was mad as a hatter.
Toff was raised with no concept of money. As part of the royal
household, members of his family could walk into any business,
select what they wanted, and the bill was sent to the palace. His
father had him flying jets by the time he was fourteen. He has a
Nilotic build and had never experienced prejudice until the Com-
munists took over and his family fled to America. When he start-
ed his studies with me, he was in his mid-twenties, not terribly
well coordinated, and his English was sub-high school. Being
raised like a prince Toff had marvelous confidence and great men-
tal discipline. He flunked every belt test at least twice as he worked
his way up the ladder of hoshin, thus gaining deeper knowledge by
continually returning to the basics with greater humility. Watch-
ing him struggle with the concepts through at least two languages
taught me quite a bit about what can be communicated verbally
and nonverbally. In a couple of years his physical and mental
skills far surpassed my own. I have never been able to interest
him in ninjutsu, and he regards me as his only sensei.
One of my other students who shall remain nameless belonged
to the Klu Klux Klan (Hillsdale attracts conservatives of all stripes).
He used to read to Toff from white supremacist literature. Here's a
fool who thinks the mystic concept of "blood in the face" has
something to do with race, lecturing an offshoot member of the
oldest known royal bloodline in the Western world on white

supremacy. Toff listened graciously, and then proceeded to advance
far beyond this boob, who eventually drugged and drank himself
out of college.
About a year into my second marriage I was lying in the bathtub

alternating between reading a journal, meditating, and playing
with my daughter's rubber duckies, when my wife Linda walked in
nude with my grandfather's straight razor in her hand and sat on
my chest. Now when a woman you love leaps into your bath with
an open razor in her hand, you tend to be very still and pay atten-
tion. She wanted to shave my head, and since she had my arms
pinned with her knees, I found it difficult to object. I also thought
it was terribly funny. She proceeded to do it, humming softly all
the while, and she only nicked me once.
The next day I went to work at the Dow Center and raised a few
eyebrows. My colleague Dr. Kayne asked, "What's your wife going
to say when she sees your new haircut?" I looked stern and replied,
"The bitch will learn to love it!"
I still wear my hair shaved twelve years later. It doesn't have
anything to do with kung fu or ninja commitment. I think Linda
has a fixation on bikers or worse. It does give me an advantage
when practicing throwing people by their hair.
Chapter Twelve
Screwing Up. . .
Higher Sexual Practice
I
N 1986 I was asked to be an expert witness at the trial of a
poor bastard accused of murdering another man by his for-
mer student/girlfriend/mistress who claimed she was his "nin-
ja sex slave." You can imagine the uproar in Port Huron, Michigan.
He wasri't a ninja and he didn't have a chance, although there
seemed to my mind plenty of evidence of his innocence. He was
just a not-too-bright tae kwan do teacher taking advantage of the
ninja boom and couldn't keep his peanuts in his pants. He went to
jail for a long time on hearsay and very sketchy evidence from a
teenage girl and a flamboyant attorney waving Original Ninja mag-
azine at the jury. His teenage wife was pregnant. His teenage sex-
slave mistress was into drugs. During foggy walks in the riverside
park, he told her about the yakuza (Japanese crime families) smug-
gling boatloads of dope in from Canada. The "ninja" had wit-
nesses he was hundreds of miles away when the very public
shotgun killing took place. The girl sex slave and a friend saw
him speeding away from the scene in a car. The DA was up for
re-election on a get-tough-with-criminals ticket.
The police sent five patrol cars, a SWAT team, and a helicopter
to arrest the defendant. Ninjas with sex slaves are dangerous. He
had shinai (bamboo training swords) in the trunk of his car and a
knoife (large Australian cutting tool) collection that wouldn't quit.

Sexuality can create some interesting problems when martial arts
are involved, particularly as an adjunct to enlightenment. It's not
a good idea to screw up with your students. Save it for your friends
or lovers.
In all my years of training in ninjutsu, sexual practice has nev-
er been a formal topic of discussion. Most of the instructors don't
think in terms of sex therapy or sexual energy. As "warriors" they
tend to be pretty macho and miss out on most of the fun stuff.
Usually only the girls in the art know how to dance, which is fine
by me. However, as a scholar of Taoism I have noticed that the
Chinese students of sexology are a long way ahead of Masters and
Johnson, and have been for at least a thousand years. If excel-
lence in the pursuit of enjoyment includes spirituality in your
sexuality, then you really have to face East for your inspiration. In
hoshin we researched by comparative analysis where possible, as
I like people to be informed concerning topics that are important
to their happiness. In this section I'll discuss the psychological
map and some physiological results of higher voltage, but if you
want to check on the hard wiring and plumbing in the spirit
house, check out the books I recommend in the bibliography and
throughout these chapters.
To the common mind, sex and spirituality do not mix. (For
that matter, neither do martial arts and spirituality seem a win-
ning combination to most conventional thinkers!) Christian saints
of the Roman Catholic version tend to be celibate, as do swamis.
Tantrism contradicts this popular assumption as does most of his-
tory. You probably weren't taught much in junior high about Ben
Franklin's girlfriends or Washington's and Jefferson's mistresses.
Aside from the Nag Hammadi translations of the Dead Sea Scrolls,
and the Gospel of St. Thomas, I don't recall ever being told about
Jesus's seven female disciples. History is written by the winners or
those who hold the power of censorship. If you want to get beyond
the junior-high version of practically anything important about
people, you have to do your own research and you have to know
how to identify bias. Celibacy is a great concept for those who are
Screwing Up . . . Higher Sexual Practice
ignorant concerning sex, or whose experience has been so negative

or unattractive that doing without sex betters their lives. Finding
people in the first category is not easy in this age of information and
mass media. Those in the second group are on their own.
Celibacy can be a tool for increasing your awareness of your
sexuality, and if male, retention of your sperm can enhance your
energy, but the resulting increase in sensitivity translated to irri-
tability in most adults is not a pretty sight. There are better ways
and they are well documented if you know how to look. This
chapter is provided to give you some hints, tools, and preventative
measures while ensuring you have a better time than an ascetic.
We're Americans. We're allowed to do this. Go for it. Crazy wisdom
is for consenting adults.
An interpreter of esoteric traditions that I've come to trust,
Georg Feurstein, is the author of Yoga: The Technology of Ecstasy
and Holy Madness: The Outer Limits of Religion and Morality. Feurstein
writes that Marpa (1012-1097, founder of the Kagyupa school of
Vajrayana Buddhism, better known as Tibetan Tantrism) had eight
tantric consorts in addition to his chief wife. (Moslems and Mor-
mons are/were allowed four. Nine is a symbolic number to Bud-
dhists.) Milarepa (1040-1143, the most famous of Marpa's students,
considered the greatest Tibetan poet) was a folk hero as well as a
weather magician. He liked to sing naked, as well as build towers
and suffer Marpa's abuse. Milarepa is known to have initiated sev-
eral of his female devotees. The avadhuta (Zen or "crazy wisdom"
form of enlightenment) Drukpa Kunley (1455-1570) initiated
more than five thousand women into t h e sexual secrets of
tantrism. As the tantric techniques are similar to the Taoist, that
may help to account for his longevity. He also was said to enjoy
beer, humor, conflict, and poking fun at his monastic contempo-
raries and the governing authorities.
The avadhuta tradition or "crazy wisdom" is justified by its
practitioners because from their viewpoint the general popula-
tion needs a more drastic means of awakening to overcome its
insensitivity, inability to shake material distraction, lack of com-
passion, and ignorance of the sacred order. "Shock" therapy is
not only preferable but necessary, as the quiet example of the

world-renouncing ascetic is not getting their attention. This insen-
sitivity to subtle reality is often encouraged by authoritarian social
institutions as a means to control members. Modern psycholo-
gists like Fritz Perls resemble the ancient avadhuta.
In the practice of clinical psychology, most self-destructive
neurotic behavior comes out of warped sexuality, perverted reli-
gion, or parental abuse. Healing usually requires self-acceptance
and self-forgiveness. Involvement of the abuser is not necessary to
the process of forgiveness and acceptance. Perfectionism is the
other major source of neuroses, related to and sometimes referred
to as fear of failure. It can also develop into pronounced personality
splits. The preferred cure is the realization at the deepest level of
the strengths within your weaknesses, and acceptance and use of
that knowledge. Many of us who grew up in the straight-laced
fifties went through a bursting-out process during the sexual rev-
olution of the sixties. Sexuality was never discussed except in awe
and horror in the Morris household.
At the age of eighteen when I joined the army, after one year at
Penn State studying philosophy, my father decided it was time
to give me the words of wisdom to guide my sexual life. He came
to my bedroom the night before I left for Basic Training and said,
"Keep your mouth shut. Keep your nose clean. Don't go out with
girls you are not introduced to!" I know he thought it was helpful.
This is from a man with six children. Mom was equally forth-
coming. Somewhere between storks and not-very-helpful biolo-
gy texts there was a reality yet to be experienced, but they weren't
giving a clue. It was typical of the time and of Fundamental Chris-
tianity. Why conservatives fear the awakening of their children
must be connected to guilt, because ignorance is not bliss.
Given the record of sexual gurus in this country, I'll suggest
that you're probably better off to experiment on your own or with
the cooperation of a good friend and lover. You're not supposed to
get too attached to the body. You might put a lot of so-called
experts and professionals out of work if you really started to pay
attention. The development of chi greatly alters your perspective
Screwing Up . . . Higher Sexual Pmctice
concerning sex and increases the dangers as well as the pleasures.

You would be foolish to abandon your critical intelligence to a
teacher in this important area of learning.
Many of the women (and men) who develop an interest in
the martial arts do so out of fear of men, fear of rape, and fear of
physical abuse, which has not collapsed into the lethargic accep-
tance of domination, as they still aren't afraid or unwilling to
learn to fight competently. Occasionally women are attracted to the
spirituality within martial art, but find little of it in the men who
train with them. They often seem to be receiving what they came
to learn how to avoid. They may not handle pain well if it reminds
them of other things. It is easy to drive such women from the
dojo. It is easier to teach a woman who thinks it is fun to fight, or
has at least been active in some physical sport like soccer, basket-
ball, or best yet, dance, so she is used to pain. One should never
confuse pain with joy, particularly your joy and their pain. Con-
sider the rest of this chapter a guide to your own experimentation.
I had planned to write a long chapter with exercises and med-
itations, but after reading Margo Anand's The Art of Sexual Ecstasy
(Tarcher) I was so impressed by most of her methodology that
I'm only going t o make a few comments and suggestions. One
should read Douglas and Slinger's Sexual Secrets (Aurora) for a his-
torical context as well as another viewpoint which supports and
adds to what Ms. Anand has put in the public record. Mantak
and Maneewan Chia's books concerning Taoist esoteric yoga and
the cultivation of male and female sexuality (see bibliography)
should also be read because they are the best internal researchers
writing in English. These books will keep you busy and happy for
quite a while, and with them you will probably avoid some of
the dangers that I'll now describe which apply primarily to men,
but not necessarily.
In kung fu some of the schools have names that can be trans-
lated as "Softening the Bone," "Shrinkage of Private Part," and
"Beneficial Cessation of Desire." A corresponding metaphor in nin-
po might be "Tiger Slaying Dragon Ryu." The tiger metaphor has to
do with the female energy, learning to be more yin, using the ener-
gy channels that run up the front of the body. It is usually associ-

ated with negative or drawing energy. Men usually have to soft-
en up considerably to even be aware of these meridians and the
power that can move through them. I remember a Canadian stu-
dent of ninjutsu pointing out to me that most of the Japanese
senior instructors with their interests in art and dance struck him
as being "rather limp-wristed." I pointed out that this was simply
a cultural difference and there was n o need to guard himself in
the shower! I certainly wasn't going to bring up androgyny to him.
Gender-based behavior is largely socialized behavior and has lit-
tle to do with biological sex, but a lot to do with how we think
those of our own gender should act. It is the first part of the social
self learned, and at a time when our judgment is least critical,
making such behavioral choices a stable part of your personality by
as early as the third year. Gender identification is learned person-
ality and part of the structure of the social self and ego. It's part of
what gets killed on the warrior path. Robert Bly and Gloria Steinem
are pointing at a reflection.
Westerners tend to pay more attention to the strength that
moves up the back, which is considered male or yang. Yang ener-
gy tends to be hot, whereas yin energy is cool. Yang energy is
associated with the lower chakras and is considered dragon ener-
gy; its base color is red. Yin energy is associated with the upper
chakras and is considered tiger energy. (It helps to remember that
tigers are white in Tibet!) Yin lightens the energy in all the chakras
as well as cools the internal organs. In the West we used to speak
of being lion-hearted. It might be remembered that the Norse
achieved Valhalla by being lifted from their deaths by the female
Valkyries.
One might recall the folk wisdom pertaining to "being cool" or
the description of someone sexy as "being hot." "Opposites attract"
relates to hot women and cool men and usually to hot men and
cool women. There may be a relationship between homeostasis
and harmony. Similars seem to have the best long-term relation-
ships, but difference may generate higher passion. I've seen descrip-
tions of the colors and energy relating in different ways from what
I've just described, but this is how my personal experience leads me

to share these appearances with you. Observe, experiment, and
make your own conclusions.
One strengthens the energy in the body through deep belly
breathing. The intestines serve as a coil to hold the energy as well
as a pump t o move it. Breathing techniques that move the
intestines as well as fill the lungs are essential to higher energy
as well as "higher sex" to use Anand's term. Once skill is devel-
oped in breathing, one usually notices that he or she spends an
awful lot of time in the pursuit of sexual pleasure (pleasure being
more interesting than simple reproduction) .
It seems to me that someone who learned these techniques
when young enough to both enjoy and employ them would prob-
ably avoid most of the problems that are created when sexuality
and spirituality are separated. Courtship and romance are the civ-
ilized equivalent of the hunt, and sexual conquest, the kill. It's
probably the nicest way to get the hormones pumping. Marriage
or acquiring a permanent helpmate can be regarded as the ulti-
mate test, as the ramifications for the skilled hunter and huntress
can affect generations. This may seem trite as an observation, but
we tend to forget our animal natures when masked by the dis-
tractions of the polis. When we think about sex objectively, we
also tend to forget that the other gender hunts, too. Marriage
between equals is one of the higher forms of spiritual develop-
ment as well as a reflective symbol used in human alchemy. The
recognition of equal and different becoming the same is considered
sacred and should be.
I don't pretend to understand women, but there is a Texas tru-
ism that has always made me laugh: "The thing that men keep
forgetting about women is that if it weren't for procreation, there
would be one hell of a bounty o n them!" Being somewhat
involved in the raising of three very different daughters and hav-
ing grown up in families with traditions of working women, I
like, to quote Bob Seger, "to watch her strut." Kali is the most
feared manifestation of Shiva, who is also known as the kind one
as well as the destroyer.
There are distinct differences between the sexes that may in

some ways explain mating patterns as well as the value of androg-
yny. I refer to research o n brain development and compartmen-
talization. The female corpus collosum permits significantly more
energy to flow between segments of the brain, strongly suggesting
that the bicameral brain is much more of a male problem than
one for the female. The corpus collosum is seen by some psy-
chologists as the seat of the Void. As a woman has greater access to
her brain's storage capacity, she is more sensitive than a man. She
is more alert to smell, touch, and sound. She has better hand-eye
coordination. She sees better and is more skilled at reading and
projecting the social cues of body language. She smiles more than
men when she is not happy and is nicer to people she may not
like-which could be considered a positive defense mechanism.
She has a better memory for faces and character. These could all be
considered side effects of having the right hemisphere of the brain
better connected to its left side, which controls verbal expression
and relationships. The intuitive is more in touch with commu-
nication skills. The mature female maintains closer, longer, and
more confidential relationships than is typical of the male. She
also seems to know when to cut her losses and split the blanket. All
are strategic characteristics for a martial artist who values survival
over conflict. To quote the fictional hard-boiled Detroit detective
Amos Walker, "Sweet women lie."
It has been said about American men that maintaining one's
lawn is more important than maintaining one's friendships. After
the age of thirty the making of new friends is rare for men as
most of our energy is put into "getting ahead." It is a sad com-
mentary o n life in modern industrialized civilization that the
very pursuits that create a comfortable lifestyle for our families can
blight personal development. Even successful women have not
relaxed the pressure o n men to succeed. Success is measured
financially. If women are sex objects, then men are success objects.
Most embrace the system with little consideration beyond their
wallet. The emphasis o n financial reward taints activities that
were once regarded with respect. We are losing the concepts of
husbandry, craftsmanship, friendship, and individual personal

development.
One should really examine what it is to be a human being,
what it takes to be happy. What goals are one's own and what
have been imposed by the expectations of others? Where is this lin-
ear charge taking us? The famous Indian saint Yogananda found he
did not have to go to the Himalaya (which he really wanted to
do in his youth) because he achieved his heart's desire in his attic
bedroom. The pursuit of money alone renders many young men
marginal to our society and they are the primary source of crime
and violence. Training in a no-competition and no-rules martial art
provides friendship, respect, and challenges both physical and
spiritual. Measuring others by their income was and still is con-
sidered a form of prostitution in my home. I've been rich and
poor and at speeds that allowed me to watch the reactions of
acquaintances to the rise and fall. Wealth is more fun than pover-
ty but doesn't do much for character. That viewpoint is increasingly
rare since Reaganism glorified image over substance beyond all
historical precedent. Public power is sexy to some regardless of
morality, and the media should pay more attention to the rela-
tionship than the act. Everybody screws. How you feel about it
during and later is probably more important. I find the increasing
sexual dissection of politicos funny, as the media should be delight-
ed that some candidates who actually seem capable of love have
been able to maintain relationships with intelligent, educated
women, and have not alienated their children or beat them into
submissive stereotypes.
Social interaction between the genders always relates to politics
and wealth as well as biology. One may notice, if their biogenetic
luck of the draw wasn't too good and their energy level not too
high to begin with, that sex can be pretty draining. Hence all the
warnings about preserving your seed and girding up your loins
before battle. Both Chia and Stephen Chang (see bibliography)
present a simple solution to this problem through manipulation of
the perineum. There are Taoist myths of vampire queens who
drained the life force of thousands of youths in order to attain
immortality. Harems maintained by males were not described in

such negative terms, but it is strongly suggested that friendly sex-
ual interchange with younger women is beneficial to sustaining
one's youthful characteristics. What's good for the gander is prob-
ably good for the goose even in this day of voracious venereal
disease. The French prefer that older women initiate younger men,
which eliminates a great deal of male stupidity concerning how to
treat women.
1 remember reading an archaeology report of a fifth-century
Scottish dig where the sewers of the castle rendered up thousands
of little tied-off pieces of sheep intestine. With today's sexually
transmitted diseases your protection has to be tougher than mere
birth control. It is the friendly interchange that is important. This
is exchange of valued energy and healing, loving commitment.
Sex is a waste of time, energy, and effort when partners are
tired, aren't loving, enthusiastic, or skilled, or have a death wish.
However, wasteful sex on the physical plane is better than no sex
at all because one can still fool oneself into feeling loved. Loving
touch is remarkably therapeutic. Let us not in our pursuit of spir-
itual purity forget biological reality. Creating a child is a twenty-
year responsibility and should not be treated lightly. I've seen
parents who don't have the tools to raise a cat, let alone a viable
child. Passing on a venereal disease, like date rape, is not a lov-
ing act. Bacterial-based disease does seem to be eradicated by the
strengthened immune system. Stephen Chang suggests that high
levels of chi prevent venereal disease. My experience is chi only
slows down viral-based disease. Viruses are complex and tricky.
Flu, herpes, chlamydia, and AIDS are viral. I've no interest in per-
sonally testing Dr. Chang's hypothesis, but I'll bet he's wrong.
I've had flu two or three times since going through the kundalini
and had the opportunity to educate a young friend concerning
the spread of chlamydia, which is hard to detect in its early stages
in the male, as it is a mild itching in the urethra similar to what
you get from too much coffee.
We humans are the sexiest of the primates as well as the most
successful in exploiting our environment through the tools and
masks of culture. Unlike our less erect cousins, a female human

being is always sexually accessible, even during pregnancy and
nursing when she is more difficult to impregnate (something of an
advantage when you'd like t o keep a man about the house or
cave). The male of the species has not only the longest but the
thickest erect penis of all the 192 species of primates. The human
is capable of greater variation, intricacy, and duration than any
other animal. Testosterone, the aggression and dominance hor-
mone, is also the sex hormone in both men and women. Testos-
terone is produced and controlled by the adrenal gland, which
also plays a major role in stress management, the martial arts,
and the pursuit of enlightenment. Men have twenty times the
level of this powerful hormone in their bodies and brains than
women, which when combined with the adrenals may account
for a certain narrowness of focus. The jokes about women being
hormone-driven are probably projective slander.
All the jokes about fallen gurus have in the root the simple
equation that love and sex are similar and someone who is high-
ly evolved is also highly sexed. It is how the sexual energy is
applied that creates the definition-healing, prophecy, charisma,
power-seeking, creativity, and breaking bones all flow from the
same source. Higher sex requires sublimating the orgasm as well as
exchanging energy with the lover. If one is skilled in the control of
energy, penetration is not required to give a loved one orgasmic,
loving, balancing, or healing energy. If coitus is involved, the
male freezes the moment before ejaculation and then reverses the
muscle spasms to pull the semen and sperm back into himself
while projecting his energy into what is known as the G spot in the
female. Or he could be drawing energy, depending o n what the
participants are trying t o accomplish and their degree of skill.
This takes a little practice and control, but it is fun to learn how to
do. It requires attentiveness as well as considerable slowing down
to capture the moment, because you will want to repeat the expe-
rience at will. Testicular kung fu or ovarian kung fu is considered
one of the identifying skills of a Taoist master of the martial arts.
I found learning it more engaging than the sumo technique of
drawing one's testicles up into the body. Fear will do that for me,
and faster. I know how to use my adrenal glands.
Penetration is not necessary to exchange energy nor is gender
necessarily relevant. Knowing how to "work" your energy or chi or
aura is. Two people can have a lot of fun trying to make it work,
trying to make their microcosmic orbits link up. The exchange
benefits both participants, if both give freely and with respect, as
both are strengthened as well as harmonized. Yin to yang, yang to
yin. The yab yum position (couple sits facing in meditation) in
Tantric Tibetan lore is probably the most efficacious for this
exchange. The tongue and the genitals might be considered the
equivalents of male and female plugs for the connecting of the
current. The spirit is bioelectrical in nature. This position works
best cross-sex when you are relaxed but focused. Back to back is
valid same-sex. Nurses trained in therapeutic touch make energy
exchanges over considerable distances, as do tai chi and chi kung
masters and some very high-level ninjas. It's all similar.
Respect, play, and healing are important parts of the formula.
A woman should learn the positions known as the secrets of the
plain girl (sexual healing techniques) and master the big draw (life
force manipulation). A man at the very least should master nine lit-
tle heaven (prolonged orgasm techniques) and the million dollar
spot (sperm flow retention point) described by Stephen Chang.
These are discussed in Sexual Secrets and The Tao of Sexology. Recent-
ly published research in the Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy indi-
cates strongly that women who climax before or with their partners
are happier than those who climax after their partners. Today
men and women of college age and intelligence want a sexual
partner with some experience. What they prefer is that their dates
be potential mates and that there is emotional attachment with the
involvement. Sexual relationships are preferred when there is
more depth than simple mutual masturbation and more to share
than simple belly rubbing. Passion far exceeds competence.
When chi is involved, the lover merges with the beloved as
intent or feelings penetrate with both physical touch and tasting
flowing together in their energy fields. In the beginning it is the
soft feather touch of movement in the air above the beloved, and
in the end it is stroking wafts of energy massaging the cellular
structure of the pleasure centers of your beloved's brain, which
can be reached by going down the meridians. The practitioners
of non-contact therapeutic touch and tantric yoga and the eso-
teric martial artist have similar energy. The difference is in power,
not perception. A lover of a physical art is n o less a lover than a
poet or a scientist and may have some surprising sensitivities not
often explored by most people. I n o longer can count the people
who have been surprised by this knowledge, but were quickly able
to take advantage of the benefits.
Now, the warnings for the males in my reading audience. Remem-

ber what I said earlier about microwattage increasing as your pow-
er increases. If your partner is on a lower wavelength or doesn't
have much energy due to lack of physical conditioning or inat-
tention, you will burn her, particularly if you don't bring her to
orgasm, or she does not know how to do the "big draw." Women
do not appreciate scorched vaginas. Neither d o they enjoy
migraines, barfing, and being wired out if you can't harmonize
your energy to hers. If you don't figure out how to cool your tool
you won't be invited back. On the other hand (decidedly left),
the ones who do know about full-body, spirit-merging, blissful
orgasms of indefinite time period tend to enjoy your attentions and
reciprocate. Sometimes they send their friends around to enjoy
something really different. I have had sexual partners faint both
when dancing and making love; I'm not sure what to make of
that other than circuit overload, incipient epilepsy, or good luck.
They seemed to regard it as a surprising side effect of ecstasy. It
has never happened to me. A prophylactic does not block energy
exchange or in any way reduce ecstasy, in my opinion. These days
it may even increase your pleasure if you don't know your friend's
sexual history.
If sex wasn't much fun for you, or your experiences were pri-
marily negative, as you draw the energy upward away from the
genitals to feed the brain, you may find you lose all interest in
what goes on below. Some schools of thought consider this a

blessing. You may find you are now impotent. The chi-related
impotence has two causes. Sex, being primarily negative for you,
is no longer a driving force in your life. In other words, clarity of
thought is more important to you than a hard-on. The other rea-
son is you are not in love. The spirit does not lie. You just can't get
it up when you don't care. Promiscuity falls by the wayside. Your
marriage might too. As your mind and genitals are now connect-
ed, spontaneous erections will be a thing of the past. You might
have to work harder on your foreplay (it's the dreaded "soften-
ing the bone"). The penis functions just fine, only slower. Some of
the sisters inform me a little slowness is appreciated.
There are more than a few warnings in the Taoist literature
recommending that a man should be certain of his own skill in
generating chi as well as preserving his seed before initiating his
female partner, as women are much better at all of this than men
are. It has been my experience that if a girl or woman learns how
to run the orbit she will be much more powerful both physically
and sexually than most men. Being able to join and exchange
your energy is the true meaning of soul mates. I won't even try to
describe how wonderful that can be and how wrenching and hor-
rible to lose it.
If you are overly rigorous in your pursuit of enlightenment
and/or accidentally gain bliss by blowtorch before your body has
been properly prepared, your pain and terror will probably forestall
all sexual interest and women will be regarded from the Pauline or
demonic perspective. It's no fun to be blinded in the desert. Every
time you get an erection you tend to fall to your knees and throw
up from the intense migraine caused by the energy movement to
the skull, which has not been properly prepared to handle the
raw, hot, and dry male reproductive voltage. In fact, St. Paul's
complaints of symptoms sound remarkably like chi sickness. He
also exhibited extraordinary abilities of self-healing, as he sus-
tained substantial beatings and stonings during his ministry.
Unlike Jesus, he didn't have much time for the fairer sex. He didn't
make friends easily as he took his religion very personally. He was
a rabble-rousing ranter and bad-tempered when he called him-

self Saul. I'll wager that one of the disciples that Saul had stoned to
death managed to transfer some chi into him. Once in, it starts
working its way to the top and the stronger spirit wins. It doesn't
take long.
There are some schools of Magic in both Eastern and Western
traditions that purely hate women. Women are to be treated as
wicked animal distraction and regarded as demons. It's easily
understood. Here's a perfectionist, been saving up his sperm for
many years. Responsible for training young monks. He can read
emotions. He can feel the inside of his liver. He's pure as the driven
snow until the hot little tart that serves his food mentally whacks
him in the pineal gland and starts providing all kinds of distrac-
tions that the founding fathers claim lead t o damnation. He
doesn't have any defenses; it's not part of his training. Monks
don't get to spend much time around women until they've got a
fair chance of fighting them off. Now, if this happens often
enough, the scholars are going to get together to save the recruits
from the horrors of losing their seed, or getting married and drop-
ping out. They'll figure out "How to Have Power Over Women." If
they're of the demon-regarding school, there's always exorcism
or death.
You ever notice it's almost always the girls who get possessed or
burned at the stake? Fear and intolerance quickly become insti-
tutionalized in stable societies. Women in many parts of Asia are
treated only slightly better than a Doberman pinscher. When
Drukpa Kunley initiated five thousand women he was a living
Buddha. He was making a statement about human rights, women
as spiritual vessels, guaranteeing the knowledge would be passed
on to children, and probably having some fun too. Jokes about
him are still told in Tibet today. He seems like a Holy Till Ullen-
spiegle. In Tibetan tantrism every male deity has a female con-
sort who to an outsider would appear to be exceptionally bad
news. Janusian females. Read up on Kali. Goddess worship can
be pretty high-risk. Jesus liked to exchange footwashing. Kinesi-
ology is another easy way to exchange energy.
Sexual energy is the primary tool of transmission by a tantric

master or mistress. The spirit is not only energy but intent. Inten-
tionality is a direction by definition. Knowledge to some extent can
be transferred; at least feeling can. Powerful people's energy fields
extend quite a distance from their bodies, and the more unre-
fined spirit begins to evolve simply through contact with their
fields. When an energy master gives you his or her energy, it will
change you. If you have not already opened yourself, the process
will begin with or without your acceptance. It will just take much
longer if you're not an active participant. Your spirit learns from
her spirit. I describe some interchanges in the chapter "Exchanges
with Interesting People."
In the martial arts we refer to this as "the stronger spirit wins."
The process is more than behavioral monkey see, monkey do.
It's a privilege to be beaten by a master. Energy has emotional
content. It's another reason why happily married people begin
to look and act alike. I once had a girl tell me that all the godan
and above in the Togakure Ryu were "as alike as peas in a pod" in
their attitudes. We all seem pretty different to me, but then I
don't have her perspective. Being a yondan at the time, I would
like to think she was reacting to the calm acceptance of others, the
gentleness, or the intensity. Training as a hobbyist I'm not around
that much. I usually only attend a seminar or two a year and
have never studied under one particular teacher for any length of
time. I do know that for the most part many of them do not
seem tantric, nor shamanic, nor biologically enlightened. The
higher energy is not always there. Taijutsu yes; the Void not yet.
Only Hatsumi and one or two others continuously manifest, and
as we're talking about a handful out of a hundred and fifty, I'd say
the system is remarkably effective. After all, what is the ratio of
enlightenment in the general public, or for that matter in our
institutions that are designated for that particular project? I had
a Catholic priest friend tell me one time that he liked vacationing
at the monasteries because he felt the odds were about one in
ten thousand there of meeting someone who was enlightened,
as opposed to one in a million in the general population. He's
still looking for light in all the wrong places. Even Merton went
East.
If your spirit is weak or untrained, you are a sitting duck for
anyone with a stronger spirit who has designs on you and even a
rudimentary skill at energy manipulation. Or worse yet, someone
who drains your energy and is incapable of generating their own.
They're usually unaware that their negative mindset affects their
energy and affects those with whom they interact. They're not
vampires, they're just lost. I once had this verified by a woman I
worked with who taught me a lot through sharing her experience
and doing things to me that she'd think up.
In casual conversation about her neurotic boyfriend, she once
laughed, "I used the Big Draw on him and really drained him. He
nearly passed out. He didn't like it one bit!'' She could lay two
fingers on your hand with a gentle swirling movement and you
could feel her move energy anywhere in your body. She could
make you smile or laugh at twenty feet. (He didn't catch on and he
didn't improve. They didn't get married.)
The major meridian of the heart which also connects into the
brain and the genitals gets involved with sex. There is a story
about William James under the influence of an anodyne asking
the spirit of the drug the reason for psychological suffering. In
the morning he found he had written:
"Higamous, hogamous
Woman is Monogamous
Hogamous, Higamous
Man is Polygamous."
He was not impressed, but from an anthropological perspective

I've always thought it rather profound. Some biographers claim it
was laughing gas and others mescaline.
Sex is still sex regardless of the intent, and all that wonderful cre-
ative energy is expressed in its most fundamental and biological
power. Those skilled in chi kung simply draw off the energy at its
rawest source and-use it for transcendence rather than reproduction.
Tantric practice is also supposed to be a powerful method for birth

control as it operates on two levels: preserving the seed and draw-
ing off the little swimmers' energy in case any escape. The ignorant
simply follow their biological and socially reinforced proclivity.
The results are sometimes the same. Make love, not war.
There is a pretty strong rumor that one of the Tibetan tantric
masters at Naropa who was a teacher of crazy wisdom confused sex
and gender with androgyny and infected quite a few of his fol-
lowers with HIV. Many are now dying of AIDS. He may have just
about wiped out a major portion of the school. Good intention
does not kill viruses. Safe sex avoids the disease as well as the
issue. Being able to discriminate between fantasy and reality, I
can't really recommend abstinence. Chinese medicine is no more
infallible than our Western traditions but still has a great deal
more to offer in knowledge of the bioelectric. Viruses are a domes-
tic problem.
Chapter Thirteen
Mirror, Mirror. . . Seeing

through a Glass Darkly
I
N MAGICAL, RELIGIOUS, and occult practice, cryptic references
are often made to mirrors. Folklore, superstition, and myths
from many cultures mention the use of mirrors and not just for
scrying. Lao's mirror reflected the mind and its thoughts. Mer-
lin's mirror informed him of treason, secret plots, and other dan-
gers to Arthur's kingdom. Vulcan's mirror showed the past, present,
and future. Tezcatlipoca spoke to his Aztec supplicants as the Lord
of the Smoking Mirror, and his mirror had the property of con-
tinually bringing faces to its dark surface as if seen through smoke.
Practitioners of Zen refer to "polishing the mirror" as their actions
are a reflection of the state of their souls. Ninjas do kyojutsu (weird
air combat skills to subdue the demons).
Vampires and yidam cast no reflection and their shadows are
thinner and lighter. (No self?) Many so-called primitive societies
believe reflections, like shadows, are projections of the soul and
avoid gazing into water or having their photographs taken as it
may endanger their spirit. American Indian shamans often practice
"face-dancing" in a mirror to demonstrate their degree of enlight-
enment. St. Paul looks "through a glass, darkly," and Aleister Crow-
ley gives specific mirror-building directions to catch all the subtle
nuances of the experience of reflection. There is more going on
here; the word itself, reflection-illusion-deep thought, has many

elusive meanings.
It seems to me that much smoke must reflect some fire. "Dark-
ly" is the key to the experience. Usually when you look in a mir-
ror, it's well lit. Light washes out what you are trying to see unless
you are schizophrenic or under the influence of a hallucinogen.
Drugs are not necessary but good night vision and control of your
breath are. I discovered this on my own, but I've run into ninjas
who have face-danced with teachers of shamanism. Brugh Joy
makes the usual cryptic reference to mirrors in his book Joy's Way.
If you were working a large group in a ballroom with mirrored
walls, dim lights, and meditative music to increase the feelings
of relaxation, what you might start to get in the mirrors after
everyone was suitably relaxed would be well worth the creative
energy necessary to be surprised again. My editor tells me this
isn't real clear. Just do it. It has to be experienced.
The kundalini experience is not requisite to some of the phe-
nomena I'll describe, but I'm fairly certain that it relates to some
of the more bizarre aspects. First let me state strongly that this
can be a very scary experience, and you will be much farther
ahead if you've developed your powers of positive thinking,
because what you get in the mirror is a reflection of your most
basic self. The workings of the id are not always pretty nor do
they always fit normal consensual reality.
My first mystical experience with a mirror was when I was sta-
tioned in Germany with the Third Medical Battalion. I was on guard
duty, and during my off shift I set up a small mirror with a candle
behind me and went into a meditative trance. Tolstoi describes a
similar use for scrying with mirrors in War and Peace. I contem-
plated my girlfriend who was attending Northwestern University. In
the mirror I saw her sitting in a large room with burnt-umber fur-
niture and she was weeping. I wrote her a letter and she responded
that she had just broken up with someone she'd been dating there
and the room I described was the student lounge in her dormitory.
That was thirty-some years ago, and I never tried that one
again, as wisdom has taught me it is better not to check into the
Mirror, Mirror . . . Seeing through a Glass Darkly
private affairs of your lady loves. A voyeur's life is not necessarily

made happier by his curiosity. What I'll describe next seems to
be much easier to replicate, as it deals with self-revelation. Here's
the recipe; the results have to do with how well you cook.
Set up a mirror in a darkened room. Provide enough light to see
yourself faintly. Begin skin breathing, or pushing your energy out
from your body. (This will work better if you meditate for a while
and wait for your eyes to adjust to the dark.) Watch the mirror
with minimal blinking and n o expectation. Wait for whatever
appears or scarier yet, disappears. Be as relaxed as possible and
try to hold onto no particular train of thought. Let your normal
consciousness become quiet so that your subconscious can more
easily emerge. And just like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane,
your face might change. Sometimes it's helpful to put a candle
to one side (Musashi recommends the right), as the flickering
makes you work harder to see subtle differences and the flame
will bend as you begin to increase your energy. That's all it takes.
A quiet mind, n o expectations. You don't have to invoke the
demon gods or sacrifice your children or suck anyone's blood to
disappear in a mirror. (I showed Suzanne Carlson's father how to
do this one night in London and he was able to get it in a couple
of minutes with no prior experience. He now entertains his friends
this way at cocktail parties. His wife has not forgiven me.)
If you've been meditating sufficiently to alter your body's elec-
trochemical system and have become pretty good at stilling your
ego, you may just fade right out. No reflection. In primitive soci-
eties this particular genetic proclivity toward night moves and
skill is of great service to hunters, scouts, spies, and the righteous
who have to flee and hide in the night.
I've tried this on different "wavelengths" and received inter-
esting insights. When one practices chi kung or breath control as
part of their meditative agenda it activates the parasympathetic
nervous system and enhances the body's immune system. One
of the effects of this is increased resistance to disease, and it is
perhaps also the cause of a major change in the electrical fields
that surround the body. In folklore this may be referred to as the
aura or "vibrations." The trick to seeing it is being relaxed and

using your night vision in the daytime which requires dilating
the pupils, which also takes you slightly out of 20/20. Many peo-
ple have noticed the glow around others, but as no one talks about
it in terms of utility it soon becomes a part of our perceptual world
we choose to ignore. (I discuss this in more detail in the chapter on
aura seeing and feeling.) After all, the visual mechanisms of the
brain have enough to do processing upside-down to right side
up, as well as sidedness. (The way our optic nerves operate may
have something to do with when we were fishlike, because as an
adaptation to arboreal binocularism it seems awfully inefficient
to me. A good physical anthropologist could probably give a more
detailed explanation, but take it for granted the eye/brain link-
up has some amazing filters to information-processing.) If one is
rigid, no new information need apply. The rule "we hear what
we want to hear" also applies to the unmindful observer in that
"we see what we're supposed to see." When your mind is open
you may see some things you are not supposed to see, or at the
very least have forgotten or never learned how to see. The angling
in ninjutsu and a few other arts takes advantage of a little-known
blind spot in our eyes. Study on this.
The animal or biological aspects of human beings are more
potent than the learned personality, but this unrecognized shad-
owy intelligence hides in the body's electric fields-probably from
the days of toilet training when the young human being begins to
be truly socialized. However, the id is with you, grown up and
hopefully toilet trained, as this aspect of yourself has been observ-
ing your situation for all the years of your particular existence.
It is still a child regardless of age, represents itself with icons, and
is moral to a mythical degree. It is also a force of nature and thus
recognizes its duality. When it shows you one side, like Janus or
the Hindu gods, it also shows you the other. Joy is balanced by
regret.
When I described the kundalini experience, I mentioned the
unwinding of one's memory. I had an experience that might be
analogous to Vulcan's mirror and which I hypothesize as genetic
Mirror, Mirror . . . Seeing through a Glass Darkly
memory. I was "face dancing" in deep meditation one night but

instead of the usual holographic shifts I began to see very clear
faces and upper bodies superimposed one over the other: mostly
male figures, a few females, some with long hair, some short, some
bearded, some not, some heavily muscled, some clothed, some
naked. As the faces changed and time passed (it seemed to go on
for quite a while), the brows and chins became heavier until it
seemed a parade of knuckle-walkers. Nobody was old; they all
seemed to be in pretty good shape if a mite intense of aspect. It
might be explained as genetic memory of one's forebears con-
tained in the DNA/RNA, as all these figures were relatively young,
of child-bearing age. It might be a confirmation of Nietzche's pla-
giarism of the wheel of dharma in that we keep coming back until
we get it right. If so, I've been on this ride for an awfully long
time. If there's such a thing as an old spirit, mine is decrepit. Some
of those knuckle-walkers looked like neanderthals. What I'll
describe next I perceive as more ordinary and have been able to
demonstrate to students, friends, and (usually a mistake) lovers.
Same process, different intent, different result. I've shown numer-
ous people how to erase themselves in the mirror. A strange side
effect of this for which I've n o real explanation (a problem of
being self-taught) is that sometimes the people I'm showing say
that not only does the image fade out of the mirror but the person
being reflected disappears as well. This could definitely put a
damper on a romantic candle-lit dinner. I don't recommend it as
a way to win friends and influence people; however, I suspect it has
something to do with the fields occulting the light in some way
because from my viewpoint only the mirror image fades. Some-
times when I'm doing this with a friend they will describe not
being able to see themselves or me, but I still see them in infrared.
We're experimenting with different light frequencies now. I think
it is a camouflage adaptation for the more nocturnal primate. Nin-
jas are sometimes referred to as shadow warriors, and this cloaking
effect might add another level to that description. "Shadow war-
rior" can also be interpreted as one who engages the darker side of
one's self, as well as indicating a preference for engaging in battle
in what lesser men and women would consider handicapped con-

ditions. I have often trained in a darkened ninja dojo.
Sometimes when you observe this strange phenomena in mir-
rors you see the body surrounded by what appears to be colored
flame, somewhat like the pictures in Tibetan icons. Sometimes
you get faces that you can be pretty sure aren't you. Different sex,
different age, different race, different species. And most interesting,
if you focus from a particular chakra you may get the appropriate
archetype. Depending on your propensity for positive thought as
well as ferocity, you may not be too pleased at meeting your moti-
vating demon and shadow self.
When sparring or engaged with particular martial artists able to
project their spirit or who have acquired martial spirit guides,
what you see coming out of the night at you besides their weapons
and fists can definitely be a shock to the system. The person being
attacked will feel regardless of whether he or she can "see." A spir-
it warrior can project this image before him or her. The image is
either the archetype, or something that scared the opponent as
a child. 1 rather fancied projecting the crypt keeper from the old
horror comics that were banned, you may remember the one with
the melting eyeball. I gave him up when friends started avoiding
me. The archetypes that come up are often different variations of
the trickster. I've seen Japanese tengu, which correspond to the
Hopi horned god. When face dancing with someone of Ameri-
can Indian extraction, the tulpu (Tibetan for living apparition) are
related to Indian mythology. Egyptian animal heads, particularly
bird heads, seem to be common; it probably relates back to totem
poles in some way that has been lost from the oral tradition. (The
inner energy deities' archetypal nature could be represented hier-
archically on a raised pole or phallus.) One of my students of
Celtic extraction can project a great-looking tree king rather like
Huon of the Horn complete with antlers, and she fades out real
well too. For those who prefer Western "magick" I once got on
the wavelength of a rather Elizabethan-looking gentleman who
resembled a painting of John Dee, so if these are indeed spirits or
spirit guides, some of the old-time European practitioners seemed
Mirror, Mirror. . . Seeing through a Glass Darkly
to have escaped the wheel of return. I have had students project

spirits wearing war masks. I haven't the faintest clue, except the
masks resemble Tlingit artifacts. It's evident to me that these rather
odd side effects could be easily exploited by a priesthood con-
cerned with dominance and power.
I tend to regard with deep suspicion those who pursue Meso-
american shamanism. Let us not forget all those virgin sacrifices
(fear is a great source of energy as is innocence), and the mem-
bers of winning basketball teams that got to meet their maker as a
reward for their skill (so is religious exultation).
Under difficult light conditions a mirror or darkened window
allows one to see projections. The mirror trick may also serve as a
diagnostic device for seeing someone's motives or intention when
you walk him or her by a mirror when it's dark. What you see
may lead you to change your mind, but then again, fear no evil.
Forewarned is forearmed. The dark is and can be your friend.
When Jesus meditated in the Garden and his face changed to
that of one of the prophets, it might have been an example of
channeling or the manifestation of a spirit guide. When describing
the kundalini experience in chapter three, I mentioned my reser-
vations toward channeling. However, prejudice aside, I seem to
have acquired some curious Oriental fellow travelers that don't
fit my preconceptions very well. When I project onto the mirror
while doing deep belly breathing, I often get an old, wispy-looking
Chinese who resembles pictures I've seen of the mythic Yellow
Emperor. He comes through quite clearly and I've shown him to
many of my friends who have esoteric interests. I've always liked
Chinese art and poetry in translation, and the basic principles of
kung fu make sense to me, as do the refinements of ninjutsu.
Somehow, I feel very comfortable with this odd spirit (odd for a
white preacher's kid from Pennsylvania). He usually floats slight-
ly to the left in front of me.
When I hold my shoulders back with my head high while
using a sustained exhale, my reflection becomes greenish and
through me comes a fattish, shaven-pate Oriental who looks a lot
like statues I've seen of Kobo Daishi, who I understand was the
PATH NOTES OF AN AMERICAN NIJNA MASTER
founder of Shingon Buddhism in Japan. He may have caught my

train at Koya-san. This one is dressed as a Japanese and comes in
two versions, middle-aged and about twenty-five: both feel the
same. There are also three samurai types with ornate hairdos that
seem to be close associates of the fat one. Once I got a Kuan Yu
lookalike (Chinese war deity for shamans and artists). The more
androgynous, shape changing beauty of Kuan Yin has eluded my
search. I have no idea why these "people" are hanging out with
me. I certainly don't live anything like a consecrated life. I've con-
sciously avoided learning Japanese and Chinese to the embar-
rassment of my friends who feel learning the language is important
to the study of ninpo. For them it is: for me, I'm a little worried
that if I learn their language the spirits may learn mine, and if I
were to start babbling in Enochian (the language spoken by angels,
according to the Golden Dawn Society) while working with a
bunch of managers, they might just throw a net over me. Chan-
neling an ancient Oriental wouldn't add much to my credibility
with the conservative organizations that hire my services. I think
I'll wait, continue to be distant but interested, and work on my
telepathy. I suspect I'm not unique.
The ancient Taoists said the number and type of spirits one
acquired were reflections of his or her perception and power, as like
attracts like. As I've seen little to indicate a Western slant to these
apparitions, I reluctantly reject the concept of it all being genetic.
It could be learned or worse yet acquired. If I had my druthers I'd
rather bring through Falstaff or even John Wesley, who I would
understand even though he wouldn't be much fun. I've always
admired Ben Franklin.
There does seem to be an exchange of information that takes
place on a feeling level between me and these disembodied play-
mates. As I said, I enjoy Oriental art, friendship, music, and food.
There is definitely a sensual connection and appreciation of aes-
thetics not acquired at high school, college, or graduate school. I
often know how to use ancient religious articles in nonordinary
ways and understand the hidden meaning in rituals and paint-
ings. It's very hard to verbalize. But I suppose it has something
Mirror, Mirror. . . Seeing through a Glass Darkly
to do with how Tibetans identify a reincarnation. I'd like to observe

that process. John White informs me that Eastern reincarnations
are becoming quite common in the West and he links it to the
Tibetan diaspora. I've had friends who thought the Hippie move-
ment was an Indian ghost dance. I don't know. It appears heaven
can wait.
As time passes, the energy of a particular spirit manifestation
seems to merge with my own and the others. It becomes harder to
draw out as a separate entity from yourself, but with a little mirror
practice you can use the reflection as a feedback device as to
whether you're able to sustain a particular attitude in depth. As you
lose the mood, the spirit fades. As it/he/she becomes more in tune
with your reality, it becomes more a part of you-thus spirit guides.
There are situations where subtle suggestions from another realm
of experience can be useful, particularly when it comes to fighting
for your life or the situation has decayed to include fighting for
your family. It is this heartfelt plea for survival to which the hor-
mones respond, summoning the archetype, and it is only with
total openness not demand for power that one gets to use the
subconscious or spirit to solve the problem. The Muses are similar.
I have had "the fighting spirit" respond to an insult, and it
was pretty funny to me if terrifying to the person who catalyzed it.
It occasionally over-reacts or reacts in a way more appropriate to
a less sophisticated society. I suspect that is why Sun Tzu suggests
that the wise man will sometimes ignore the admonition of the
spirit. These boys didn't have to contend with modern police
methods. The violent spirits are triggered by the adrenals. They
are easiest to see and feel. You don't waste this on what tie to
select unless your guiding spirit is into fashion.
Chapter Fourteen
Dreams and Dreamers

REAMWORK IS AN esoteric area that has attracted scientific
analysis in the last decade. There has been considerable
research into lucid dreaming, where the dreamer takes
control of the events in the dream or at least is aware of the fact he
or she is dreaming. Psychologists have set up sleep labs to study
student sleep patterns and have done quite a bit of physiological
measurement in the last few years. The mystery is fading. The
Winter 1992 (#22)issue of Gnosis, a magazine for Western eso-
teric traditions, devoted almost all of its articles to the use and
understanding of dreams. Both Freud and Jung did extensive work
with dream analysis and found a valuable resource.
The Sufis use dreams as part of their training, and many of the
Christian and Judaic prophets used the content of their dreams
to show their relationship to Jehovah. The Roman God-Emperor
Claudius recorded dreams he thought were important, as well as his
family's historical and profitable relationship with the water sprite
Egeria. Roger Bacon, one of the founders of the Royal Academy
of England, expressed an interest in dreams, as did his contempo-
rary, the magician John Dee. Brugh Joy puts a great deal of empha-
sis on the interpretation of dreams. There's a long history of interest
and research into what happens to the mind when we sleep.
The ninjas have techniques for the active use of dreams, and
some have the ability to communicate in and with dreams across
great distances. I have had both Hatsumi and Stephen Hayes con-
vey messages to me in dreams. In both cases it was something I
already knew how to do, so I incurred n o giri. Dreamwork for the
purpose of combat is a little different. It can be quite fun to send
a nightmare to a n enemy, depending on your skill in under-
standing his or her fears. Of course, you must study to be able to
do this. It requires endurance on the part of your friends if they
accidentally share your attempts to master Dreamtime.
On the next few pages, I'll lay out some basic ideas, convey
some cautionary tales as warnings, and then leave it up to you.
Dreamwork and creative meditation tap into similar areas of the
brain. As even animals dream, which any dog or cat owner can
observe, the area is obviously not the higher cortex. Dreaming
can be considered a primitive function. Most psychologically
healthy people do not remember their dreams as they are not
warnings but simply entertainment for the mind while the body
is sleeping. Dream content normally flows out of the four Fs of
survival: feeding, fleeing, fighting, and sex. If a dream becomes a
repeater, that is usually a sign that the spirit or body would like to
get the social self's attention. Once the social self recognizes the
problem, the dream goes away.
Before my first wife divorced me I used to have a recurring
dream of wandering around a large, empty house with rotting
floors. My companion in the house was a small, black, yappy
bitch dog that attacked me every time I'd start to crash through
one of the rotting spots. Disconcerting to say the least. Consid-
ering that she divorced me in the midst of the struggle to get the
Ph.D., the dream content seems obvious. Hindsight is like that.
At the time I made the mistake of describing the dream to her.
She saw the implications where I did not. She was pissed. She was
a psychological anthropologist and had read a lot of Freud. Freud
felt that one of the major functions of dreams was to adaptively
connect emotions to events. Dreams of this sort usually don't
require a great deal of introspection if you're in touch with your
Dreams and Dreamers
feelings. (1 wasn't at that time, or at least had trained myself as a

medic to ignore most feelings, not wishing to be "sensitive.")
Once the divorce was final, the dream went where all warnings
that are heeded retire to.
The research on Rapid Eye Movement or REM sleep indicates
that we usually dream a number of times in the course of the
night. Lucid dreaming studies show that we can program our-
selves to dream about particular topics by self-suggestion before
dropping off.
Dreamwork times that are most effective seem to be just before
going to sleep or just as you are waking up. When you realize you
are beginning to dream, rather than just watch the story, raise up
your hands and get into the situation just as an actor gets into
his or her part. The entertainment hypothesis is supported by the
fact that when I was a child most people seemed to dream in black
and white, like the movies and television. (I've always dreamed
in color.) I can't tell you how long it has been since anyone told
me their dreams weren't in color. Taking an active part in your
dream life is one way to train the imagination.
My son Shawn informs me he likes to edit outcomes as he
goes, and if the dream starts to move in a direction he perceives as
unpleasant he gets busy and changes it to his liking. He also tells
me it is hard to get out of these dreams when you are interacting
and something happens outside the dream that you have to attend
to, like answering the door or telephone when you're napping.
Australian Aborigine shamans spent a great deal of time in an
altered state which they referred to as Dreamtime. Being in Dream-
time was a tool that allowed the wise men and women to predict
events, travel in the astral plane, and perform certain healing rit-
uals. Dreamtime was considered a creative state where the nor-
mal rules of time a n d space did n o t exist. The concept of
Dreamtime corresponds with the Void in Aborigine creation leg-
ends as the source of life. This seems to be pretty strong evidence
that you don't have to be asleep to make use of your dream states.
A waking vision is not the same as a dream. It is more like a hal-
lucination, a dream with the power to intrude on the perceptual
screen of the social self when wide awake. This is not entertain-
ment like a drug reaction; it's more like a nightmare in intensity
but can be positive and even fun. This can be brought on empath-
ically when sharing something exciting with awakened compan-
ions. I've had that happen with Veronica Moran while partying,
and Kevin Millis while swimming. Veronique (nickname) and I
were standing in a hallway when suddenly a tunnel formed
between us and we both stepped inside and were no longer at the
party. Kevin and I were snorkeling in southern California when we
both started to have what Maslow would call a peak experience.
We were both seeing on the same spectrum and could describe
to each other what we were experiencing.
I've talked with married couples who sometimes share each
other's minds. It's not that uncommon. The Russians supposedly
have done a lot of research in this area. Now that the Iron Curtain
has collapsed, we may get to examine what they've done with
telemetry, telepathy, clairvoyance, and so forth. I used to be pret-
ty skeptical of this whole area of investigation. Now I'm skepti-
cally curious.
Waking visions also seem to be part of the meditative experi-
ence, as I described in the chapters concerning the kundalini.
There may also be a link with past-life experience, spirits, and/or
genetic memory, which I tend to discount even given my per-
sonal experiences (I prefer not to wade in those waters, though I
seem to get splashed from time to time). Dr. Rich Grant once
found himself immersed in a cavalry charge in France of a few
centuries back. Suzanne Carlson dreamed of herself as her father
as a young man in World War II London during the bombings.
I've been on a high platform watching troops in strange uniforms
pass in review (this was not a pleasant vision), as well as been a
trader with bronze spearheads poling a log canoe with a leather
sail. The feeling is you are wide awake, but what you are watching
is a dream that is, was, or can be part of you.
Dreamwork can also be a spontaneous response to receiving
higher energy from a master of chi kung or someone who has
gone through the kundalini and figured out what to do with them-
Dreams andDreamers
selves besides head for a rubber room. I'm thinking of the exam-
ple of Arlene Hill, a theatre student. Blake Poindexter (hoshin
sandan) and I wired her up with meridian massage at a party
when she was dating Mark Robinson, one of our blue belts. We
both dumped a lot of energy into her as we were working out her
kinks.
Arlene codified a phenomenon that I hadn't really thought
much about. She was completely on her own, as she and Mark
broke up soon after and she wasn't training with us, so she had no
idea what to expect or what we had done to her. One thing she
definitely didn't expect was the vivid increase in the intensity of
her dreams as her body began the process of rewiring to handle the
higher energy we had dumped in her. She personally blamed me
and particularly resented being chased from her loft in a dream by
a shape-changer which caused her to fall and break her foot. As
Arlene's energy escalated she was also presented with the prob-
lem of how to deal with her suddenly much greater attraction to
men as well as a quantum jump in her performance skills. She
was also confused by the admiring approach of satanists, as well as
meditators and yogis who had never shown any interest in her
before. Her broken foot kept her from blowing off the excess ener-
gy through dance, and she was not interested in the men she was
drawing to her flame, so her elevation was not without some inter-
nal pain from overloaded biocircuitry. There is something to the
power of virgins.
When I was working for General Motors and living on a little
lake, my neighbor across the way was a nurse. I asked her if she
meditated or knew therapeutic touch. She didn't and wanted to
learn. One week while her husband was attending a conference so
she didn't have to devote her evenings to him, 1 taught her how to
meditate and give meridian massage as well as read auras and use
therapeutic touch. (This can only be done by energy exchange.)
About a week later, she told me she had the following dream. Her
husband and she were at a restaurant when a group of Japanese
dressed as businessmen struck him down and kidnapped her. They
hid her away in a large stone castle and she was feeling very lost
and helpless. She was taken to a room to be interrogated by a

large group of men. While they were distracted by torturing her, I
walked into the room. I changed into a large black bird with claws
for hands and feet and long sharp bill. I tore into the back of the
group and began shredding them with great glee. I killed them
all. I then returned her to her husband. At the time of this dream
she had no knowledge of ninjutsu and certainly wasn't aware of an
esoteric piece of information like tengu are ninja are birds. Her
healing skills improved and her doctor wanted to take her with
him when he moved into private practice.
Steven, a student of Mark's, once had a dream about me after
we had worked out together at Mark's place on Bear Lake. Blake
and I were demonstrating how hard you could hit with chi, and
Steven may have been cannon fodder once or twice in the course
of the demo. It's interesting having third-generation students as
you don't have any idea what they know, or don't know, not
being their teacher. Steven told Mark he'd had the following
dream.
"I was sitting in a large banquet hall. There were many peo-
ple there and we were waiting for the speaker. Finally, the huge
doors at the end of the hall opened and in walked Dr. Morris. He
was escorted by four beautiful women, each of a different race.
They were very solicitous of his comfort. His talk was about the
importance of conserving your sexual energy which was very fun-
ny since the women did not seem to be very helpful in that direc-
tion." As Steve is a very handsome young man, he thought he
would attempt a pick-up of Old Baldy's escort. "When I approached
the women, they poked fun at me and slandered my manhood. It
was very embarrassing. They said that at my level of potency they
would be jailed for manslaughter if we got it on." Steve knew
nothing about the Yellow Emperor and his Court of Lovelies and
neither did Mark at that time. I had not yet given him the Big
Red Book (Douglas and Slinger's Sexual Secrets).
When Kevin and I were giving Earth and Fire seminars on his
turf south of LA., a higher-ranking American ninja decided he
could attend for free, take over to give a couple of advanced
Dreams and Dreamers
lessons, and probably rip off a few of our students as rank hath
its privilege. He showed up late in the afternoon of the second
day after I'd spent the first day teaching the participants how to see
and feel energy. He had only met me once before at a Tai Kai and
had no idea what my skills and interests were. (It must be remem-
bered that in Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu some of the masters are much
more physically talented than mentally. Some have never shown
any interest in the soft side of the art; some who are thick as bricks
refute their own experience and say it doesn't exist; and there are
a few whose level of enlightenment allows them to attempt to
fake it. Genjutsu, or faking skills for professional reasons, is not
denigrated by the system but can be a necessary survival skill for
duping the naive.)
Anyway, this boob starts telling the students to watch how his
energy moves up the chakras as he performs some techniques. I
had to warn the class to remember Hatsumi's dictum concerning
trusting your own senses and primary sources. When the day was
finished I summarized the learnings and invited those who weren't
exhausted after two twelve-hour days to come party with Kevin
and me in Malibu. The visiting master got to sleep alone in his
truck in the parking lot. He told Kevin he had terrible nightmares
and could hardly sleep at all that night. 1 have noticed over the
years that his taijutsu has improved enormously, but since he is not
a friend I'm not aware of the state of his ego. I've not spoken to
him in years.
You can usually tell when a dream is not yours, as the sym-
bols and feelings will be wildly different from your own. Now,
intruding into someone else's dream requires that you know how
to get on that person's or group's wavelength, or you have shared
energy and are "in" that person so you can go visit your energy
baby. Rather like some of the experiences that twins report. Most
people regard the penetration of their dream in about the same
way a victim regards rape. It is scary to realize that someone else
can share your dream. This is very different from dreaming about
someone. This is being visited by an alien presence in your most
inner and sacred being.
It is probably a good idea to approach dreamwork with cau-

tion. It's an intense form of telepathy. When I returned from Eng-
land after taking Suzanne Carlson through the kundalini, she
would show up in dreams and dreamtime. That was very pleas-
ant since I like Suzanne. I talked with her old boyfriend and he said
that she'd been able to do that with him for a long time. It's a
different matter when the appearance is unexpected. He wrote a
song for his Chicago rock band, The Mean Reds, that is quite pop-
ular in the dance bars, called "Get Out of My Mind!" It's about
how difficult it is to shake the witch-lover's spell. A lot of people
seem to empathize with his anger.
There is a ninja story concerning a high-level physical practi-
tioner who wanted to learn how to use dreams. His teacher trust-
ed him to use the information for self-protection; instead he
decided to intimidate the samurai he worked for by sending him
nightmares. He dropped hints so that the samurai would realize the
source of his night terrors and bribe him appropriately to win
back his peace of mind. The samurai chose another route of con-
tinuously assigning his ninja subordinate to increasingly danger-
ous jobs until he was severely injured in an explosion that could
have been ignorance or sabotage. Only the ninja's superb taijutsu
prevented him from being killed and disfigured. The samurai then
truly feared and retained him, as he survived where lesser men
would have died. When I told my master boxer friend John Yono
this story, he said, "I would have sent the nightmare and then
rescued the samurai from what I sent, building his gratitude."
John's is a more Christian viewpoint.
Before the Texas Tai Kai in 1991, Hatsumi-san came to me in a
dream. It was in the early morning hours when I like to meditate
while lying in bed. Often the male sexual energy is higher in the
morning, and this is a good time to draw it off your testicles if
your spouse is tired. 1 was lying beside my wife in that state
between dream and waking when Hatsumi and a beautiful Japan-
ese woman appeared in the buff before my surprised eyes. It had
been over a year since I'd seen him and I'm pretty certain he was
in Japan. He began to speak to me in telepathic English baby talk.
Dreams and Dreamers
"You can love me even more by loving her," he said as he ges-

tured broadly and dumped his energy into his female compan-
ion. It did n o t require a degree i n cross-cultural nonverbal
communication to notice her enthusiasm. Esotericists might find
this visit a manifestation of sadhana complete with dakini or
khadroma. (Look it up.) Anyway, it scared the hell out of me. I
retaliated by sending a dream date for his turkey, owl, and dogs.
Often a spirit will approach you during dream states. They
seem to be strongest around midnight. A guiding spirit may be
considered an angel if you're a Christian or a n ally if you're into
American Indian spirit lore. I personally don't think it is a good
idea to attack them like Jacob in the Bible story. They cannot cross
the dimensional plane unless you feed them energy, and you can't
do that unless you know how to transfer chi or are so scared you
kick into fear and terror mode, which radiates all over the place
and the boogie gets it for free. It's more interesting to make it a
friend or pet. Kick back, relax, match breaths, and observe carefully.
Pay close attention to the feelings, as this is in no way an intel-
lectual exercise. If the spirit gets uppity-eat it. Just inhale it with
your tongue and recycle it through your orbits. It can be quite a
rush. (See the yogic asana or pose called the lion. You might remem-
ber the tongue as an organ of spiritual transfer from your tantric
practice.) The stronger spirit wins. All the crap about how powerful
they are is propaganda to frighten the foolish and superstitious.
This is a creature of energy and breath. It's lighter than air. Its only
hope of survival is in not being noticed when o n our plane. It's
curious as to how you got over into its realm while you are obvi-
ously still in the material world. It remembers being carnate. It's
happy to share information, particularly if you're willing to share
energy. No human sacrifices necessary if you've developed your
own inexhaustible source of living energy through chi kung.
You probably know as much about dreamwork as I do. It's a
new interest for me. Toff, Blake, and the Hoosier element of hoshin
fancy their dream skills. The basics relate to lucid dreaming. High-
er energy is necessary for sending over distances. The periods just
before waking or going to sleep allow access to nonordinary lower
brain functions similar to meditation. Visual exchange does seem

to work better at night. Sending down works better than sending
up. Interchange between compatibles or equals is quite vivid. Indi-
an shamans would often use animals to transport their spirit in
dreamwork.
Recently after a workout I went to a massage therapist I've
been teaching the hoshin meditation skills to see if she could
release some of the tighter fascia in my legs and hips as I've nev-
er been satisfied with my flexibility. She said there was some sur-
prising tightness and worked my legs through all kinds of funny
little lifts and stretches to break things a little looser. It felt great.
I told her the story about being o n Ilana Rubenfeld's table and
the oatmeal abuse. She thought it was funny and remarked how
women often do damage unawares. Psychoanalysis often reveals
the beginning of female-hating as a response to careless mothering,
as if adolescent rejections weren't enough. We talked about Bly's
men's groups and I expressed my opinion that he will probably do
for fathering what Freud did for mothering in the long run. He's a
better poet than shaman/psychologist.
That night in my dreams I was weeping and recognizing how
much I missed the only woman with whom I have ever been
romantically in love. She was twenty-some years younger than I
and had her own life to create. I tried very hard to keep from con-
necting her to me and when it finally happened was so astound-
ed by t h e d e p t h of connection a n d experience granted to
enlightened lovers that I lost all semblance or need for distance and
just launched myself at her. I have had considerable erotic expe-
rience of the fairer sex over the years, even taking the vows of
matrimony twice, but had never come across telepathic love-
making, sharing energy, and being what she described in her inex-
perience as "compatible and passionate."
It has been years since I've seen her, though little things happen
daily that cause me to think of her. We did not part well or happily.
I showed her my very worst and succeeded in driving her away. It
was painful and stupid on my part, but the age difference seemed
as monumental to me then from a teacher's perspective as race
Dreams and Dreamers
to a bigot or IQ to an intellectual. It does not seem strange to me

that she would be released by the stretching of the hips and pelvis.
Dreams are one of the doorways to the body's knowledge. Some-
times the dream provides the only acceptable release.
Nowadays there are all sorts of "revolutionary tools for higher
consciousness." I have tried most of these toys over the years and
have come to the firm conclusion that higher consciousness comes
from your genitals and brainstem, not your cortex, and you will be
much happier with the results of meditation on the microcosmic
orbit and breathwork. You have to develop the initial power before
you can reach out and touch something with any degree of con-
sistency. At this writing I've come into very interesting and real
contact with Shiva, Tara and/or Sophia (who would seem to be
interchangeable with Ningobble of the Many Eyes), Jesus, Kali,
Kobo Daishi, Athena, and the Yellow Emperor, to mention those
consciousnesses that have recognizable characteristics, and some
others that were beyond me to recognize and a few that I ate. As I
find religion ridiculous for the most part and was not drunk,
stoned, or on acid at the time, I suggest an attitude of friendly
observation and willingness to share as the proper approach to
spirit contact, as opposed to worship and fawning.
All hallucinations are supposed to be part of you or a product
of your own mind. Share and tell. It might just be your left lobe
after all. In dreamtime anything is possible, and there seem to be
some interesting problems with time if not space and distance.
Some master-level practitioners of Shaolin Kempo or Sillum Kung
Fu are rumored to be able to cross time barriers through meditation
and breath control. Nobody in my circle of friends has figured
that one out. The immortals live on in dreamtime.
See you in your dreams.
Chapter Fifteen
Magic, Crystals, Talismans,

and Swords
T
HE FOCUS OF intention is the basis of all magic. There is "one
thing that allows you to learn the 10,000 things" continu-
ally referred to but seldom explained in Eastern esoteric lit-
erature; that is meditation. The type of meditation required to
truly focus intent, however, is a step beyond focusing on a mantra
or going into relaxation response. It is going into your self to
awaken your true Self, which connects to the Universal. Internal
practice is necessary to affecting the external reality.
The Chinese practitioners of chi kung, the swamis of India,
the Zen roshi, and the ninja are prominent examples of those
who pursue enlightenment or awakening. Awakening is simply
waking up your id, shadow, or true self. Enlightenment is the bio-
logical process of rejuvenating your hormone system. The side
effects of obtaining enlightenment are called in Sanskrit "siddhi."
In the context of Buddhist yoga or Vajrayana (perfect mastery over
the body and forces of nature) there are eight ordinary siddhis:
1. the sword that renders unconquerable; 2. the elixir for the eyes
that makes gods visible; 3. fleetness in running; 4. invisibility; 5.
the life essence that preserves youth; 6. the ability to fly, levitate,
and/or project onto the astral plane; 7. the ability to make cer-
tain medicines; 8. power over the world of spirits and demons.
The order appears to be hierarchical. Some of these can also be

described as mind-reading, clairvoyance, empathy, materializa-
tion, levitation, making things invisible, and entering other bod-
ies. I have yet to witness what I consider true materialization or
levitation; astral projection is trippy enough for me.
Many wise men and women say that no one can attain enlight-
enment without the assistance of a perfect master. It strikes me
as difficult but not impossible to a good researcher willing to take
some chances. This isn't the tenth century. This is America. The
libraries are open, if not filled. My own experience has led me to
believe the preserved descriptions concerning these powers are
somewhat rhetorically exaggerated, and human beings should
not be overly concerned with fantasies like perfection. Murphy
seems to share my opinion.
All these powers seem supernatural if you haven't learned how
to do them or opened yourself up to the experience. All science
appears as magic to the ignorant. All the great sages agree that
they are also just distractions to obtaining enlightenment or
absolute truth, as attachment to a particular siddhi is an obstacle
in the way of spiritual development. What that means is, if you
waste all your time trying to learn how to read other people's
minds or master the secret sword techniques instead of working on
your own damn self, you have missed the point of the exercise--
rather like a psychologist who breaks off his or her own analysis.
However, it is easy to speculate uses of such powers for a sage or
gatherer of intelligence.
Another problem concerning the pursuit of enlightenment is
the identification of a legitimate teacher, as well as separation from
the teacher once the goal has been attained or particular lesson
learned. Perhaps in these days it is more accurate to say avoiding
attachment to the teacher as you attempt to solve your own inner
puzzle. Most traditional teachers expect devotion. It's where the
word "devotee" comes from, meaning disciple or deshi. It's not
an American concept nor is devotion necessary to the biological
process of enlightenment, but it can make life easier for the teacher
and the student if the relationship is understood from the start.
Magic, Crystals, Talismans, and Swords
Enlightenment is differentiated from the eight ordinary sid-

dhi as the sole extraordinary or supreme siddhi. It's number nine.
And its expression is as diverse as the many-petaled lotus used to
represent its accomplishment in India. The enlightened individual
is supposed to be able to demonstrate mastery of the common
eight from his or her locus of control, rendering a new and positive
form to the dark and ancient magic. The meditative techniques I've
described are virtually the same in Taoism, Kriya yoga, Kokoro,
Kabbalah, Esoteric Christianity, and Sufism. Manifestation may
differ according to the practice, but the true practice has to do
with going within and working on yourself and your breath fol-
lowing the light-not drawing pentagrams on the floor that rep-
resent internal states and standing in them while bellowing in
languages you don't understand.
Kuji (mudra) and Juji (spirituality) and similar practices are well
documented in esoteric literature. A helpful book, Where the Spirits
Ride The Wind: Trance Journeys and other Ecstatic Experiences by Felic-
itas D. Goodman (Indiana University, 1990),lays out some 30 pos-
tures that are especially trance-inducing. Some are very similar to
the moving kamae of ninjutsu; others are much more American
Indian. Kuji can be used to shift the flow of chi energy from the
normal patterns through the meridians, and one who is pursuing
enlightenment should explore those avenues. They definitely affect
the brain, particularly the cerebellum. Hayes's workshops on the
kuji are very well received. Once internal energy is transformed, it
can be externalized and that is real magic. However, things aren't
always what they seem, and the ancient gods felt and feel it a duty
to twist the wish of a power seeker. What you see may just be what
you get. Transformation is a two-lane highway.
Crystals have a long history of medical and esoteric use. It has

been my experience that plain old quartz crystal in its various
colors along with aquamarines, tourmalines, and moonstones
may be the only stones worth wearing on the body. The harder the
stone the less charge it can carry and the lesser its ability to affect
a gland. Quartz can hold a charge if you run your chi into it. It also
has a subtle electrical field around it, so that if you wear one over
your thyroid it stimulates the gland. The kings and queens of yore
wore crystals not gems in their crowns t o stimulate the occult
powers. Thrones usually had a giant stone hidden in the seat to
stimulate the genitals. (The throne of England had a huge red car-
buncle that is now kept in the Tower of London.) Gems came
along when money started to get confused with power.
Lovers in the Renaissance gave each other crystal rings to wear
o n the water meridian (kidney, ancient seat of the emotions) or
third finger of the left hand after they had charged them with
their feelings for the other person. A nice way to reinforce affection.
The ring wearer would tend to think of the giver more often. You
can see how easily sentiment can be perverted by price.
Wearing a crystal helps to harmonize your energy fields, but
the clarity, size, or color are of little consequence. Where you
hang it is more important, as you want proximity to the govern-
ing meridians or organs you wish to stimulate. A cheapie held on
by a piece of leather can do the job as well as the "occultly perfect
stone" in a jeweler's setting. What is important is whether you
feel energy in the stone. Many people will disagree with my expe-
rience, but we follow our own placebos.
Once the target gland is functioning properly, you will proba-
bly find wearing the crystal n o longer has any effect. Reactivat-
ed hormonal or endocrine glands seem to want to keep working if
given a little gentle encouragement from breath and crystal. The
body enjoys being healthy. Subtle energy techniques like this can
take a little more time but also seem to outlast a kick start. Clear
the crystal when you n o longer need it and give it to a friend.
Once you have developed chi you can easily pass some of your
charge into wood. The favorite hanbo (walking stick) becomes
charged with the intention of the handler. I've noticed consider-
able difference in the feel of bokken (hardwood practice swords) and
hanbo of students and teachers when I chanced to pick them up.
It's a fun exercise in sensitivity. Can you tell whose stick is whose?
(It is also considered extremely rude to handle or step over anoth-
er's weapons or practice weapons without permission. You should
Magic, Crystals, Talismans, and Swords
adopt a look of innocent wonder as you drain or sabotage a piece

with your foot.)
This same principle of chi transference applies to the making of
works of art and religious objects. The artist channels his or her
feelings into the work. If the artist's intent is strong you can actu-
ally feel the energy he or she put into manufacturing the work
(ritual magic is part of the sword-making art in Japan). This prin-
ciple even applies to letters and handwritten documents. Sup-
posedly information is passed by the touch of the scroll when it is
made by a powerful mage who pours his intent into the medium
as well as the message. Hatsumi-soke hand-creates all promotion
diplomas for Bujinkan. I like to pass my hand over mine from
time to time just to get a feel of the man.
When I was in England visiting Suzanne Carlson we went to the
Victoria and Albert Museum to check out the Japanese swords
encased there. Two of the swords could push our hands back from
the glass when we followed the energy flow. We both thought
that was pretty special, so we looked to see who made them and
when. Both of the pushy swords were older than the others and
made by priests. They were all magnificent examples of the sword-
maker's art. Doing detail work can fix the mind but it is the emo-
tion that creates the art. This may account for the tales of lucky,
life-giving swords and unlucky swords whose owners seemed to
come to a nasty end. The sword test in ninjutsu when performed
with a live sword is supposed to be done always with a virgin
sword so that complete neutrality of outcome is observed. I once
heard Hatsumi say, "Buddha men would only use their swords
for right things!"
There is a broken sword displayed in shihan Tetsuji Ishizuka's
dojo in Kashiwa. Hatsumi broke it with his bare hands. They took
it to be assayed and the analysis said the steel around the break had
strangely crystallized. We all know about the hardness and strange-
ness of some Japanese swords. I have an old sword made by Yoshi-
da Tamekichi of Seki. It's a night sword, which means the blade is
mottled and smoky in appearance so that it's hard to see. Same
principle as bluing a knife or gun. I bought it from an antique
dealer for $75 as it was pretty beat up and the bloodstains in the
officer handle wrappings weren't particularly attractive. Its owner
probably didn't make it home. Every time I tried to sharpen it or
clean it up, I'd get cut-once to the bone on my left thumb knuck-
le. I read a biography of Tesshu (one of the last great samurai
swordsmen to achieve enlightenment) and decided to try run-
ning energy into the blade as well as meditating with it in my
lap. One night as I was meditating the sword became very cold
and a woman's voice spoke to me saying, "You keep that ninja to
(short straight-bladed sword favored by boat warriors) beside your
bed instead of me. How can you be such a fool? Don't you know
I deserve better treatment than this?!''
I got up, moved the to out of the bedroom, and put her beside
my bed. She has been light and easy to handle ever since. I haven't
been cut since. I had her scabbard and handle decorated by my
mystical jeweler friend for a whopping fee. I had her nose redone
even though it dropped her value as a bushido collector's item
by ten thousand dollars. The sword sometimes seems to move
about me on her own when I do sword drills as a form of com-
passionate compensation. I don't have the faintest idea how a
swordmaker trapped a female spirit in a sword three hundred
years ago. Given some of the cutting drills used by the samurai
to test swords, such as hacking up prisoners, I don't think I want
to know. I'm just happy to own such an interesting artifact. I call
her Lydia, after Kenneth Robert's wonderful book Lydia Bailey. My
cynical Crowley-following friend says she's probably some old
whore who tried to short-sheet a samurai.
The swords and hanbo are but two examples. Chi can be passed
on to other objects if you want to work real hard, I suppose. Heal-
ers will often charge water for their clients to drink. The clients
sometime report it makes them feel as if they had drunk a little
wine. Who knows what charging up your Macintosh might accom-
plish if you're a writer. But it's probably more beneficial to work on
your typing skills than the creation of esoteric bugs. The tele-
phone is more reliable than the telepath. It is probably not wise to
encourage the ghosts in machines.
Chapter Sixteen
Spirits . . . Things that go

bump in the night
There are a number of books concerning enlightenment that treat

the experience as religious, and that's fair since most of the liter-
ature in the West comes from Buddhist translations or pseudo-
scientific investigations by occultists. (It might be recalled that
the founder of Zen, Da Mo, the Bodhidharrna, is the same fellow
credited with beginning Shaolin Kung Fu and developing mar-
row-washing and brain-energizing chi kung.) For a Christian per-
spective o n enlightenment and meditative practice I strongly
recommend Meister Eckhart or St. John of the Cross. Even more
interesting might be the Gospel of St. Thomas, recently dug up at
Nag Hammadi; it's the only gospel written by an actual witness, as
the other Gospels were rewritten long after Christ's death and
based on hearsay. My understanding is that it was considered
apocrypha and did not survive beyond the fifth century as a source
of doctrine.
There also is a burgeoning body of literature concerning
shamanism that is gaining in popularity; much of it flows out of
the somewhat questionable work of Carlos Castaneda (who went
a bit native) and more scientific investigators such as Doore and
Harner. Back at the turn of the century we had the Golden Dawn
crowd, Gurdjieff, and wild fellows like Crowley. Some left rather
interesting cookbooks. My own experiences following no particular

teacher but being perfectly happy to experiment on myself have
left me convinced that no single practice has a corner on the mar-
ket. If you want to do it yourself, chi kung is a valid, scientifically
replicable system for achieving not just incredible strength and
health but much of what the Hindu refer to as siddhi, Westerners
as magic, occultists as power, and Taoists as the Way, or in the
general vernacular-enlightenment.
All of these folks, myself included, regard or regarded them-
selves as sane, responsible presenters of useful information. I'm
sharing my experience. Nobody taught me. All shortcomings are
my own. If you don't like what I'm putting in the public record,
then get to work on your own. You don't know until you've expe-
rienced. When I have a problem I go to an expert. If I can't speak
his language, I observe and try to find competent translators.
There seems to be a lot better stuff around these days than when
Madame Blavatsky or William James were writing. My belief system
was more shaped by Poul Anderson, Andrea Norton, and Robert
Heinlein than any of the above.
When I was a graduate student at Penn State, I had a conver-
sation with Norris Durham, a physical anthropologist, about a
paper by someone positing the hypothesis that dominant males in
protohuman primate groups achieved their status by being able to
shock their subordinates-something akin to electric eels. We
laughed ourselves silly over that one. I'd yet to be exposed to the
internal arts, and chi was still a foreign concept.
Modern man is a lot larger than our Medieval forebears, yet
the knights were able to dress up in heavy (by our standards)
armor and go after each other with clubs and swords for days on
end. That kind of endurance strikes me as chi-driven and leads
me to the conclusion that the Chinese royal families and Shaolin
monks weren't alone in their discoveries. Orientals only had to
contend with ignorance, not the Inquisition, book burning, the
Dark Ages, fundamentalists, Luddites, and Puritan Roundheads-
challenges that eradicated most Western esoteric knowledge. What
was saved was in code to protect the human alchemists, and before
Spirits . . . Things that go bump in the night
long the codes were followed, not the hidden meaning. However,
we did get chemistry and astronomy.
Western materialism is pretty hard to compete with, as it is a lot
more fun and delivers faster feedback than working o n taking
conscious control of your body's electrical system (or mastering the
secrets of Holy Water). I've found all the techniques in chi kung
described in European alchemical texts, and the symbols for trans-
formation are almost universal. All you need to know is in the
Grail quests. What was that Green Knight all about? Islam has
Khezr and Sufis.
We've all heard of the strength of the insane, of manic or mani-
acal strength. There is a great little horror movie called Eyes of
Fire about a n Irish faerie in North America around 1750. The sto-
ry is told from the viewpoint of the observing children and occa-
sionally shifts to what the mad girl or faerie sees. I found the
movie quite remarkable because I have seen through her eyes.
Whoever was responsible for that script did excellent research.
Everyone who has ever watched it was mesmerized by the story.
Thomas Szazz, the famous psychologist, has written that much
of what passes as insanity is only extremes of behavior and inter-
pretation. Anyway, when the hormonal systems supercharge for
fight or flight, the brain gets a load of chemicals that can wildly
alter your perception of the world as you knew it. If you are fear-
ful, your focus is narrowed t o all that can go wrong a n d you
plunge into paranoia. Your imagination fills in the gaps of your per-
ception and you hallucinate all that frightens you. If you cannot
discriminate between the real and the imagined, you may act o n
your "feelings." You have discovered Hell and no one else seems to
share it.
If your viewpoint is positive and you are loving, the percep-
tual world that emerges is much different. Dr. Abraham Maslow
described it as "peak experience" and practically everyone has
one from time to time. Your world is beautiful and so are all your
acquaintances. You move with grace and power, as there are n o
fears or barriers to your accomplishment. Your hallucinations may
take o n a Walt Disney flavor. If you start having too much fun
and see yourself as God, even though your vision is benevolent and
harmless, you too can be given the rubber room. Yin and yang.
Moderation in all things seems t o be the Way. (I recommend
attempting associative preference for a demigod at first.) As you
gain control of your hormonal system through proper exercise of
the breath and posture, the changes will affect your total persona,
and until you learn to relax into it, delusions of grandeur is the
price you pay for lack of humility. You get it (the Self) under con-
trol or it gets you. You're still you, just more amplified, with some
additional talents and viewpoints that very few people you know
share unless you're an adept or an esoteric martial artist of high lev-
el. You are playing in the fields of dreams and the stuff of legends.
As one of the early changes, you become more nocturnal and
see farther into the infrared spectrum, allowing you not only to
see the heat envelope around others but also where their energy
fields are strongest. This is a considerable advantage when applying
shiatsu or using therapeutic touch. After you have learned to "see"
energy as a side effect of controlling binocular vision and enhanc-
ing your hormonal or chakra system through relaxed breathing
techniques, the energy around people's bodies will be readily appar-
ent even in bright light as long as the background is relatively flat.
Fortunately most people don't have much energy or the faintest
idea how to use it, so you're probably further ahead to keep your
extra bit of info to yourself, as most others don't see it. This is well
described in the healing literature concerning alternative medicine.
I recall once being described by a ninja acquaintance as "some-
one who sees what others can't." No, that's too nice. What she
actually said was, "Oh, you're him, you're Dr. Morris. I've heard of
you. You can see things that other people don't and there are
rumors you're into green belt sacrifices. No thank you, I'll find
another training partner." Such is life in the big city and the rel-
atively small world of martial artists.
People who have strong energy project their id into their aura
and it can be seen. If you can't see it, you can certainly feel it.
Hayes describes a time when Tanemura dropped him with an
energy strike, and I've "seen" Hatsumi use energy a number of

times. At the shidoshi training, celebrating his thirtieth anniversary
as grandmaster, he threw a rather arrogant young Israeli godan,
and asked him t o explain what had just happened t o him. The
Israeli's comment after the throw was, "I tried t o hit Hatsumi,
everything went black, then I was in the air and landed o n my
head. I don't know how I got from the punch to the tatami" (spe-
cial mats built into the floors of a dojo). He was quite perplexed.
What I saw was Hatsumi take the energy from his punch, add
it to his own, and send it back into the young man, overloading
his circuits/channels/meridians and causing him to momentarily
black out while Hatsumi completed t h e throw with his usual
aplomb and amazing grace. Hatsumi then rebalanced the fallen
warrior as he helped him to his feet. I have seen Leo Sebregst, a Wu
Shu SiGung, perform in a similar fashion. The ability to use sexual
energy for both attack and healing is quite rare in the West but a
common legendary theme i n the East, where the link between
medicine and martial arts is tradition. Both Hatsumi and Nagato
are bone doctors. (Sebregst only uses the healing side under duress;
he is not a medical practitioner.) Some of the stories concerning
Hatsumi's cures and healings border on the miraculous if one does
not comprehend energy use. The stories are verifiable.
Yoki no kamne, kyojutsu, or Yojutsu (the ability to project "weird

airs" or illusions) is one of the side effects of having developed
your chi. In chapter thirteen, "Mirror, mirror . . .," I describe the
passive use of this skill. Yojutsu requires the projection or chan-
neling of intention. A skilled adept can project energy and faces to
frighten an attacker, or encircle him with unexpected weirdness or
bolts of energy and feelings. Hindu adepts describe this as direct-
ing chitta (life force), and its use is a closely guarded secret of yog-
ic magicians. However, Ormond McGill in his book Hypnotisrn
and Mysticism of India (Westwood, 1979) provides useful descrip-
tions and techniques. Interestingly enough, this type of phe-
nomena can best be discerned i n dim light or darkness. Bright
sunlight or electric lighting can wash out the projection, but light
does not wash out the effect. The Tibetans refer to this as "creating
tulpus," and supposedly a master can create an illusion so real
that you can engage it in conversation. I've never seen that, but I
read a research paper paid for by the C.I.A. back in the seventies
that discussed the possibilities. What I have seen is similar but
not so grandiose, and o n one level resembles channeling and on
another is probably a side effect of energy transfer.
A powerful person's aura has a bright corona that extends out
from the head and shoulders approximately six inches to a foot. If
they usually think in a particular pattern this will be revealed by
color shades in the field. A normal person's corona is approxi-
mately a quarter-inch to an inch thick and diffuses quickly as it
extends from the body. A person who has been working with their
energy or spiritual development does not diffuse so quickly but
is surrounded by a fairly coherent field that extends outward from
three to thirty feet. It looks like a cloud of mist. It usually appears
as a halo or glow about the individual. Usually the close-to-the-
body corona is all you'll see without practice or optimal condi-
tions. It will occasionally be picked up by television cameras if
the angles are right.
Esotericists have names for these fields, such as the "soul body"
and so forth. They believe this field is what survives after death
and in reality is your true self and the basis of most religions. Heal-
ers perceive it as living energy and use it to stimulate the damaged
cells of their clients to return to healthy growth. It is a gift of the
spirit that heals. A teacher exchanges energy with his or her student,
transferring the feeling of a particular action. What is transferred
depends on the skill of the teacher and the receptive skills of the
student. Teachers in the esoteric martial arts are revered by their stu-
dents, because the student recognizes that without the gift of ener-
gy or spirit they would never have been able to develop on their
own. At some point the teacher has to cut the students loose so
they can develop their own talents free from dependency, Those
that are self-taught often think they have succeeded from lack of
peer feedback and must guard against paranoia with humility.
I attended a Pak Kua (internal organ strengthening techniques)
seminar taught by one of Mantak Chia's students in the Detroit

suburbs and was quite impressed by the fields emanating from
his body. I almost cracked u p at a number of points when he
would demonstrate a technique for us and say, "Mantak Chia
stands behind this," and a ghostly apparition of Mantak Chia
would appear in his aura standing behind him. After the seminar
was over I gave him a quick lesson in aura viewing in exchange for
some of the useful insights he'd given me. Giri.
Sellers Smith, a student of ninjutsu and a martial arts friend,
attended a Common Boundary convention in Washington, D.C.,
with me where a renowned healer was presenting. She is a chan-
nel who uses therapeutic touch, energy transformation of the
chakras, and sound vibration for psychic healing. While she was
working on a volunteer from the audience she allowed her guiding
entity to come through her. Sellers and I both saw her aura expand
to include this big ball of energy that wasn't there before. It
appeared as energy, not as a recognizable person. At least not to us.
When my student Dr. Richard Grant studied with Leo Sebregst in
South Africa, I was surprised to find Leo's head looking out at me
from Rick's aura one evening when we were cracking jokes in
Johannesburg. Seems he likes a good laugh, too.
Kevin Millis was showing me some naginnta techniques (sword
blade on a bo staff, usually used by women or shamans) one night
in his Irvine dojo. His skills and control were so overwhelming
that if I weren't a hobbyist (thus having no pride) I would never
have dared to pick up a spear again. He was giving me the worst
thrashing of my life without hurting me or even causing much
pain, but everything I tried to do was absorbed, put me off bal-
ance, and resulted in me being crushed to the floor with some
extremely vulnerable part of my anatomy exposed to his blade.
It was an impeccable demonstration of weapon mastery. As I was
having my butt so thoroughly kicked I still can't properly describe
it, I was filled with this feeling of complete and utter terror for
the error of my ways for even thinking to strike at a teacher. (He
was pissing me off.) As these waves of remorse washed over me I
shifted my vision and "saw" a Japanese Noh dancer complete
with mask, long white hair, splendid costume, and whirling nag-
inata moving with some of the wildest taijutsu I've ever seen.
Every time this entity moved through Kevin to do something
totally beyond my ability to predict or respond, it would rear back
in a victory dance, imitating a rock and roll guitarist doing a heavy
metal riff (Kevin was once a rock and roll guitarist and still plays
professionally) rather like MTV from hell. Then it would come
after me again, flipping me out by wielding a long, giant stone
penis and attempting to crush me with it. The first three of the five
hellish crimes in Buddhism are matricide, patricide, and the mur-
der of an enlightened teacher. I was giving him my best shot. He
didn't seem t o be holding anything back. I have seldom been
more frightened and yet had more fun. If you think you're a good
martial artist, this kind of a lesson is horrorshow dark horse indeed!
Hatsumi says the spirits of the tradition flow through the grand-
master, and this little vignette concerning Kevin's boogie man
might illustrate what that means. I later asked Kevin if he knew
what a Noh dancer was or had ever attended classical Noh the-
ater. He said he didn't have any idea what I was talking about.
Seeing the spirit do air guitar maneuvers with the naginata con-
vinced me i t was having a good time, even if I wasn't. The
exchange between Kevin and the Noh dancer was impressive.
(Some Noh dancers were considered to be shamans. Actors and
dancers were two of the traditional disguises of the ninja involved
in intelligence gathering.)
This is yojutsu or mental projection as performed with a spirit
guide and probably a little gift from Hatsumi or just the luck of the
Taoist draw while wandering around in Japan. According to the
ancient Taoists, spirits are attracted by the enlightened and align
themselves appropriately-a spiritual illustration of "The Law of
Attraction." Healers get healers, scholars get scholars, and war-
riors get warriors. The more powerful you are, the more spirits
you attract. My hypothesis is that the guiding spirit achieved
enlightenment in its life and now gets to play, but I've no idea
as to how to test it other than check out of this existence, and
I'm having too much fun for that. I do know that yojutsu is real
and most people who have chi can project feelings and faces
before them that can be seen in the dark. Probably explains the
boogie men reported by children.
When Hillsdale College informed me my job was being elimi-
nated, my second wife informed she wanted a divorce, as she
knew there was n o way I could stay in Jonesville and make a
decent living. She wanted to stay there because the kids were hap-
py in their schools. I was filled with this incredible grief because I'd
truly loved this particular job and felt I had learned how to be a
very good father and loving husband. I thought my family would
go with me. I was used to moving and starting over. Preachers'
kids move every five years. At that time my student Suzanne Carl-
son told me she could feel my sorrow palpably across a distance of
more than fifty feet. She said it was hard to do anything when I
was feeling so sad. Bad vibes, passive yojutsu.
When I was traveling with Hayes on one of his ninja tours of
old Japan we visited many interesting sites and temples impor-
tant to the historical ninja. One of the experiences that had a
powerful effect on me was a visit to a particular temple in which
the energy was the color and feeling appropriate to what the tem-
ple was dedicated to. Supposedly this is a skill of the Shinto priests
in site energy selection. It is an art and service for charge among
certain Chinese sects and Shinto priests that previous to this jaunt
I'd thought of as charlatans. Temples for strength had red energy;
one for water/female was orange. Togakushi was green and blue
and white. It certainly surprised me. I've been in a lot of old build-
ings in Europe and Africa and never picked up a thing. Of course
at that time in my life I wasn't capable of looking, so maybe I
shouldn't be that impressed, but I've checked out a few Ameri-
can institutions since and was disappointed with the exception
of the Lincoln Memorial. The only other source of wild energy
like that which I've experienced was at Joshua Tree National Mon-
ument, climbing with Kevin Millis, or where there is a lot of quartz
crystal in the ground.
One of the interesting places we visited in Japan was Koya-
san, home of Kobo Daishi, founder of Shingon Buddhism. There
was a celebration of his spirit's annual return to earth one night

when we were there. It seems to me it corresponds to our All Hal-
lows Eve. Together with Michael Fenster, a very smart young med-
ical student who is now a shodan in ninjutsu and a sandan in
hoshin, I wanted to observe this event. We decided to walk
through an amazing old graveyard and memorial ground that is a
huge park in the center of the city. There are memorials to the
forty-seven ronin, to Musashi, and to American dead from a plane
shot down in WWII, as well as aborted children, poets, shogun,
and samurai, all interred together or at least recognized as a part of
the history of this mountain city. Graves and memorials piled on
top of each other, from ancient to modern, sitting cheek to jowl,
rooted in the rocks and giant trees for a thousand years.
A young Zen monk, Kuboda, was staying with the Mikkyos so
that he could give us a lecture in English and a demonstration of
how his Renzai sect taught meditation. He told us we were nuts to
go through that graveyard at night without protection. Not being
superstitious, we ignored his heartfelt warnings, not having the
faintest idea what protection might be necessary as we were skilled
martial artists and could probably handle anyone nutty enough to
mug people in a graveyard.
We expected quite a crowd to attend this important religious
holiday and were subsequently surprised to find ourselves whistling
in the dark on a very lonely walk up the mile or so to the shrine. I'd
been showing Mike how to read energy and we were having a lot of
fun watching how some of the old, old family shrines oozed a
menacing brownish energy rather like the fog in a grade-B British
horror movie. I don't know in detail how Mike perceived some of
this, but he jumped around quite a bit, looking over his shoulder
while suppressing gibberish. It just looked like foggy energy to me,
but then I'm used to having this so-called gift. I'd worked for it
and no unexpected weirdness was going to spoil my walk, so we
compared notes and hastened right along. No sense making closer
inspection when we had a church service to attend. The next time
a Zen monk warns me about protection I'm going to ask a whole
bunch of questions (and not about the local crime rate).
When we arrived we were again surprised to find that the ten or

twelve Americans outnumbered the Japanese in attendance. There
was a small choir of chanters screaming rhythmically what sound-
ed to me like "Turkey in the Straw" sung in Chinese. It must have
been the intensity of their plea not the beauty of the call that
attracted the spirit. As one group of chanters faltered from exhaus-
tion, they would be replaced by alternative wailers.
It seemed to be working. The little shrine behind the big tem-
ple where Kobo Daishi's mummy was kept had a major energy
form made up of lots of little sparkly lights that reminded me of
the "Beam me up, Scotty!" effect o n Star Trek. I decided that pru-
dence required that I ignore it. Michael kept taking off his glasses
and cleaning the lenses and putting them back on, then taking
them off and cleaning them again. As a physician he is a very
astute observer and does not trifle with observations that might
question his credulity. Finally he says, "Do you see that weird
light whizzing around?" Folies a deux confirmed, I shook my head,
"Yeah, but I don't have the faintest idea what it is. Let's move
right o n out of here at the next break." I then blocked off his
throat chakra, as I remembered reading somewhere that was sup-
posed to protect one from psychic assaults (and it had worked for
a couple of my students who liked to give each other headaches
and nightmares), and we boogied.
The totally unexpected-even if harmless-sucks up a lot of
energy just in the attention it requires. I still feel a little uncom-
fortable dealing with "The Undead. " Particularly somebody else's.
Mike and I are still good friends and are doing some fun papers
together concerning death touch. He'll probably have to change his
name so he can keep working. My reputation has already been
ruined with reports like this.
I didn't realize this at first, but when you give someone energy,
eventually it returns to you if the receiver no longer needs it or it
just wants to visit Daddy for a while. You might not recognize the
poor bedraggled little boogie when it shows up. The first time it
happened I thought I was being attacked and sent it off with no
praise at all for finding its way down the hall all by itself. The next
time I was more gracious and curious and spent the night in joint
study. After all, a loved one should not be abandoned regardless
of where they've been or what they've been put up to. We all are
capable of change even when we fall far short of expectations or the
gentleness necessary to loving interchange at a higher level.
My first wife, anthropologist Martha Binford, had a wonderful

childhood growing up among the Quechua Indians of Peru, as
her father was William Howland Butler, a professional civil ser-
vant and ambassador to many countries in South America after
World War I. Her mother was beloved by the Indians as a healer,
and greatly feared by the rest of the family for her disgraceful sex-
ual behavior. She claimed to be a high-level yogi and died as a
remittance woman in Spain. Some of the stories Martha told me
about her were verified by other members of the family. Her father
was Surgeon General to India and the China Seas back in the days
of gunboat diplomacy, and Martha's mother got to interact with
some very strange people when she was growing up. This openness
to esoteric phenomena led Martha to befriend a witch doctor or
female shaman when she was doing her anthropological Ph.D.
field research in Mozambique.
Martha attended a seance and tape-recorded it. When the spir-
it moved through the shaman her voice would change to a man's,
and Martha said she spoke in a dialect of Zulu that was very old
and no longer spoken by the Rjonga. She said the Zulu spirit was
feeling rather shy because the old white spirit that was protect-
ing her was different from anything it had ever seen before, and
then it described her mother's father down to the old military
medical uniform of the surgeon general. He was a very large man
with a beard. Martha felt much safer in her studies after that con-
versation. Not speaking any of the above languages I can't verify
what the tape said exactly but I think 1 can vouch for her hon-
esty in translating. The drumming was similar to American Indi-
an drumming popular with some of those studying shamanism
these days, and the voice changed radically.
As you can see, my viewpoint on what I'm describing is pretty

cross-cultural. Martha taught me to be a participant observer. You
might say this report is a bit like what an anthropologist does but
I am not interested in recording the visible history, just illumi-
nating the hidden. Spirit is not just an attitude or something
invoked by a pretty cheerleader. "To inspire" is not what a thrill it
is to meet a personal hero. Our language is not without symbolic
content. We have just elected to be familiar with the easier mean-
ings of the words. The map is not the territory. The word may
not be the meaning. If you can capture the meaning, you'll better
understand kuji and juji.
The musha shugyo (solitary wandering of the Japanese hermit
archetype) can be interpreted also as the journey within neces-
sary to discover how your mind, body, and spirit really work. This
can take many years depending on your diligence and knowledge
and willingness to accept guidance in order to avoid damage. You
are still on your own and have to do it by yourself. There are no
teachers at this point; only your heart or inner light can sustain
and guide you. If you want juji then you must seek out Hatsumi if
you're following a ninja path. A high-level yogi or practitioner of
chi kung may act as a helpful substitute. Jungian and Reichian
psychotherapy can also provide some guidance, but you're still
on your own.
Juji, according to Hatsumi, is more aligned with the mothering,
female, or Wind aspects of energy-Yin, the absorbing-and if
you like symbols, the dark tear on the Yin/Yang circle, which also
is part of its opposite. Now we're talking androgyny, which is a
little higher issue than gender. If you are going to "be all that you
can be" there are energy exercises that open the mind to experi-
encing the universe from entirely different perspectives. I think
these should be approached as if you were an exploring, intelligent
child, as opposed to a warrior, warrior/priest, or mage. The per-
spective I've come to admire is more that of the sage. That may be
just a by-product of my age and experience but it has led to the
meeting of many remarkable men and a few women like Lee Blue-
sking or Shannon Kubiak who are also world-class martial artists.
The stronger spirit wins and knowledge is power. If your training

is so limited that all you can do is march in a straight line smash-
ing all before you, it's pretty evident that gaining the benefits of juji
and kuji requires a long journey. Those whose only solution to
difference is to murder the different in battle usually have limited
options escalating far beyond normal perceptions of social inter-
course. They tend to earn their destruction, be it losing the abili-
ties they love due to age, arthritis, impotence, or the death-bringing
sword in glorious battle, goaded on by spirits they should have
learned to fear.
Chapter Seventeen
The Spider Prince
TEPHEN HAYES HAS built a beautiful dojo and training center

for his Kasumi-An, Nine Gates Institute in his hometown of
Germantown, Ohio. I attended his seminar entitled Ninja
Mind (May 4-5, 1991) and had a good time participating and
watching him and his students. As usual I learned a lot of things
and had some points clarified that I'd let slip. He led us through a
series of mental reframing exercises drawn from the Mikkyo tra-
dition that had immediate healing effects, presenting them in
modern terms through physical exercises, meditations, dialogue,
group process, and mini-lectures. It was a bit like attending an
AHP convention except the students and teachers get to try to
beat on and dodge each other.
Hayes is a good teacher and I've always been impressed by
him. I had a chance to talk with some of his students and they
were happy and busy working on their selves and preparing for
their next physical test. The testing was public, and a board of
black belts sat as judges of the students' taijutsu. Both men and
women showed prowess and natural movement. Both those pro-
moted and those who were not seemed to think the judgment
fair and free of politics. I saw old friends from years back and
some of the early black belts who I never got to know very well but
can recognize. We seem to be aging gracefully.

I talked to one of the parents of a girl who had survived an
attempted rape at a swimming pool. He had enrolled her in Steve
and Rumiko's children's class. He was so pleased with the posi-
tive growth she was experiencing, and since the Kasumi-An train-
ing requires that parents attend with their offspring, he was
learning too and getting a lot closer to his daughter. He said that
like many girls who are victimized by rape when too young to
know better, she was blaming herself and feeling guilt. She had
lost her trust of men and adults as protectors and was much more
fearful in general. (Not a life pattern that a responsible person
would like to see developing in a daughter.) He said all that was
turning around. He expressed the usual questioning of whether a
child will ever really appreciate what they are being exposed to
or realize the skills of their teachers.
Dennis Kinsalla was there. He's a n actor who works out of
Chicago. He showed me Steven Turnbull's book on ninjutsu, which
was filled with beautiful old prints, historical descriptions, and
lots of misinformation. The foreword by Hatsumi is priceless. Hat-
sumi quoted Takamatsu as saying you should go to original sources
if you want to know history and pointed out that this would prob-
ably become the standard text o n ninjutsu. Dennis had me look at
the photograph of Turnbull and Hatsumi at the front of the book,
as Hatsumi is not inscrutable to anyone who reads nonverbal
behavior. It is easy to see which man feels he is in the presence
of greatness. Hatsumi was practicing his Mona Lisa smile.
1 borrowed the book to read in my hotel room that night, and
one of the prints really caught my eye. It shows a Japanese prince
identified as a ninja. The caption says "Prince so and so . . . plan-
ning an assassination.', In the book's prose the ninja were identi-
fied as Chinese bandits and outlaws who had memorized Sun Tzu.
Where does this Ninja Prince come from? (Ninja are nobles? Samu-
rai weren't even considered nobles; they were managers of the
royal holdings.) Hayes refers to ninja as freedom fighters; an even
more accurate term might have been refugees who refused to be
conquered, trapped o n an island with their conquerors. The losers
T h e Spider Prince
in a Japanese war are supposed to commit suicide. Warriors who

are into Social Darwinism regardless of culture or age like the idea
of "the winner takes all," as it simplifies the establishment of the
New Order.
Taoists and Buddhists believe all life is sacred and our task on
Earth is to create awareness or sentience. To take a life, even your
own, is not following the Way. The ninja chose to live under the
sword of the winners but moved into the mountains and away
from the central government and established religion, which
would have treated them as slaves and cowards. It is only normal
that they would form a secret quasi-military vigilante group to
protect their interests which would over time be demonized by
the establishment.
A Japanese social anthropologist described Togakushi (I would
translate the name in baby talk as The Straight Sword Mountain of
the Loving Heart Knights) as the place "the wild people came to
live and worship." Wild usually refers to animals we cannot tame.
The place is a ski resort now, so the wild people are still drawn to
the mountain. It's very beautiful up there and not easy to get to,
even today. It is worth the trip.
The Spider Prince, as he was named in the picture, was garbed
in green and gold. What do we know about the symbolic use of
those colors? His hair was coiffed in the samurai manner but I
don't know which clan, as I've never studied the hairstyles of the
Japanese warriors. It gets a little crazier than vets and crewcuts.
The Spider Prince is pictured with an old scroll in his mouth
that is tattered and stained. A ragged scroll is a Japanese artistic styl-
ization that indicates internalizing knowledge that one is reluctant
ever to use, as it is damaging to the user's very being if improper-
ly applied. A scroll indicates a text that is written with such depth,
clarity, and intent that one who reads it is immediately filled with
new insights on his or her condition, regardless of the number
of times read. It is not just memorization; it is transfer of train-
ing. Reading a scroll over and over has no effect, as the meaning
will not sink in until you understand it. You only understand it
through observation and behavior. Behind the prince is a huge,
black spider with slavering venomous jaws and glistening eyes.

Its size completely enshrouds the prince with shadow as a black
aura. He looks frightened but determined. According to picture
notes, the text of the scroll refers to the black mountain spider,
probably a not-too-distant cousin of our black widow spider.
Now what can a prince, a man both bred and educated to care
for the welfare of his defeated people, learn from studying a spider?
Solomon, a king revered for his wisdom and songs for lovemaking,
recommended that his people study ants. He had many wives
and was said to commune with all of them, no matter how young
and inexperienced or strange and exotic. As few people mentioned
in the Bible are given the official designation of wise, it might be
considered wisdom to develop some interest in Solomon's lifestyle.
Most warriors wishing to be known for their valor in battle
study animals, as do sages-and ratrunners. Dr. N.R.F. Maier, my
mentor, used to run Norwegicus ratticus instead of white mice. He
ran the brown rats in size-to-size hedgerows or mazes to match
them against the children of college professors. The brown rats
kept up with or beat the kids to the prizes until the kids were
around seven. Seven-year-olds or older usually could figure out
the mazes quicker than the rats.
I was never certain if this was a comment on parenting skill
or a demonstration of how swift and smart the rats were. He had
one for a pet called Angel Face. There's a picture of it in an old
Life magazine. It liked to ride around with him in his car, and his
wife Ayesha told me, "The damned thing loved chocolates. You
couldn't hide a box anywhere in the house that it couldn't get at
it." Maier was the greatest American organizational consultant of
his time. He liked problem-solving, as do rats, or we would have
wiped them out long ago. The teenage mutant ninja turtles' sen-
sei is a large rat. I've always liked monkeys. I was bitten by one
as a child trying to pet the little savage. Study at a distance is fine
by me as far as monkeys go. I read the primatologists.
Now go back and read the above description of the painting
and commentary, thinking about it from the viewpoint of a
humanistic psychologist who has had anthropological training
The Spider Prince
and a Ph.D. i n communication. Think of part of it as a riddle,

part of it as a statement about the presenter. What am I saying
between the lines? What are the deeper meanings? You've just
been handed a mini-scroll. A scroll is supposed to be a work of
art representing the accumulated skill of the master at a given
point in time. Humor and trickery are respected characteristics of
a ninja master.
I wonder what Norm did with the demographics o n the kids?
The master's thesis might be entitled "Interviews with the human
beings w h o couldn't beat wild rats at solving mazes, and the
tragedy of their further pursuit of a meaningful life: a longitudinal
study."
A spider researcher might discover that insects outnumber humans

in terms of diversity and number, and spiders are almost univer-
sally feared and disliked, yet thrive in practically every environ-
ment. The female vagina is perceived as a venomous, rotting spider
to the insane across cultures. Why is this web-weaving creature
sent by God to teach us? What can we learn from the black widow
concerning the behavior of human beings?
We eat what we love. We kill what we love. We love who feeds
us. Powerful women are dangerous. Make the dangerous beautiful.
The powerful ones will kill you if they get pregnant. Birth con-
trol is a good idea if you want a powerful woman. Behind every
good man is a better woman. If you don't want his children, get rid
of him or cut his balls off. Rape prevention, too. We act to protect
our genes. Be nice t o your wife or she will be your death. Hell
hath n o fury like a woman scorned. There is a harsh wisdom
worth pursuing our eight-legged teachers to learn.
How 'bout Daddy Longlegs? Balance. It has the deadliest poison
but can't bite human beings. I've seen spiders that can walk o n
water and some that move along pretty well under it. I know the
little rascals thrive all over the house, and you're continually dust-
ing their webs above and below eye level. They are particularly
good at establishing networks, yet they also toil alone. They hide
in the still, dark, narrow ways. Some even seem to fly, as they use
their webs for many tasks from communication to mobility as

well as a trap for their prey. Even the big ones usually don't come
charging out to greet you; they've learned caution right into their
breeding. There's some poor Koga ninja I've seen on Japanese tele-
vision who has poisoned himself with more than four hundred
spider toxins. He has beaten calluses on his hands that jut out
like knobs. He likes to climb the walls of the old palaces. He was
some sort of engineer. His brand of spider knowledge has limited
interest, as he confuses fear and love while seeking respect. His
is the stereotypical ninja image. I can't recommend it but he seems
happy. His nonverbals are a little odd, probably because of the
poison. He looks the type to sweat it out rather than be humiliated
by total evacuation. Spider venom is neurotoxic and affects how
electricity is processed in the brain. His interpretation of Sun Tzu's
references to the web of life don't conform to my idea of grace
under pressure.
"Ichi" means one or the best in Japanese. (That is probably an
indication of chi's place in the minds of those who formulated
their mathematical system. That kind of pun and double entendre
cannot be an accident.) Niten Ichiryu, Musashi's name for his
"best school of the two swords" can also be translated as
"body/mind heaven using the best chi." "Kunoichi" could be bro-
ken down and translated in baby talk as "the loving heart or stance
is best." Kunoichi are spies of the ninja female variety for gath-
ering intelligence. Women who practice ninjutsu are referred to as
kunoichi. The spider way would be to send in your best first.
Women are the better survivors. Women and children first. The les-
son of the black widow indicates that a man's heart is below his
stomach. Make the desirable feared and people will study what
they practice.
Sun Tzu says treat your captured warriors well. Make the unde-
sirable attractive. A traditional Japanese supervisor cares for his
subordinates. A supervisor in a traditional organization will even
act as a matchmaker if required. Arranged marriages are a univer-
sal trait of royal families. It usually results in some pretty spec-
tacular inbreeding and blood diseases. The ninjas seem to prefer
T h e Spider. Prince
exogamous marriage or marrying out of the clans, differing from

the xenophobia of the typical Japanese and materialism of Euro-
pean royals. Sun Tzu highly recommends the life of adventure
o n many levels.
An arranged marriage indicates a bond between families. It
was often used in the West to prevent wars, as the grandparents
tend to love their children's offspring even when it's hard to con-
trol their own. In warfare the beautiful kunoichi has an easy time
reaching the beds of the leaders if they are far from home. Do
not be aggressive; make the enemy come to you. A journey of a
thousand miles begins with a first step. Taijutsu is defensive. It is
drawn from the fighting styles of Chinese nobles and adventurers.
There is even a spider kung fu which is associated with the emper-
or's teachers. Takamatsu said you have to follow the silk trail. The
kunoichi is skilled in both the recognition and gathering of intel-
ligence. She reports back along her network but being ninja has
plenty of autonomy a n d options. In a man's world it is truly
embarrassing t o have your butt whipped by a girl, particularly
one thought of as your wife or lover. Women in general appear
very subservient in Japan. Most of the ninja women I've met were
happy and articulate. We all know and care for Rumiko Hayes.
She's a pretty woman from a country village in the mountains
near the sea.
I had heard that Rumiko thoroughly thrashed Jack Hoban in a
mock knife fight when he was teaching the knife fighting methods
favored by the U.S. Marines, in which he was a captain. I've always
fancied my knife work. I like a good match. I'd never been beaten.
I wanted to try her out. In 1984, I cleverly managed to partner
up with her when she was eight months pregnant. (I do not believe
in giving away advantage.) She's a bright, cheerful spirit with
soothing mannerisms. It's hard to believe she can tame demons,
but Jack was a pretty hard boy. The moment I cut she had me
stretched out in an arm bar using her rounded belly to pin my
elbow. (Even the ninja fetus has potential to kill. That would make
a great Original Ninja magazine headline.) This locked my arm
and knife hand across her knees, forcing me to the earth; with
both her hands free she dragged my 220 pounds as she walked
duck-like, taking away my knife. Her spirited action convinced
me that ninjutsu was an art of true self-protection that surpassed
any physical training I had ever encountered. Her skills might be
described as chiropractic. She pulled off this feat without even
breathing hard and I took no damage while she knocked me about.
She always refers to Hatsumi as Hatsumi-sensei. Many Americans
think that she is Hatsumi's daughter. She's not but it seems a good
idea to see her that way.
It was a treat to see her at the Ninja Mind seminar. Her skin
was glowing with health, and I finally got to meet the daughter I
may have frightened all those years ago. Both daughters were bright
and cheerful, scrubbed and happy to see all their crazy uncles. One
was joking about getting A's i n recess to bolster her average. I
showed Rumi the diploma Hatsumi had sent me. Her first words
were "Ah. Hatsumi-sensei has sent you a shidoshi's license." T h e n
she translated it for me. That took care of the idea that it would be
fun to send me an official pass to a Tokyo brothel which started
off "If you read Japanese don't laugh because he thinks.. . ."
I hear a high-level American instructor is engaged to a Mara-
matsu clan girl. She was over as a translator for Hatsumi at the
New Jersey Tai Kai. Pretty girl, funny sense of humor, and smart to
handle the translation, which requires the ability to think eso-
terically in two languages as well as martial art codes. It's fun to
hear how Hatsumi describes something in baby talk. English was
not part of his studies. According to modern biolinguists, lan-
guages are learned best young as the brain is most flexible and
there is a biological proclivity to acquire language that seems to
kick in about two and may pretty well dry up by adolescence if
not exercised.
People always sound foolish in a new language, particularly if
they like to joke. I was never exposed to foreign languages until I
was in high school. My French professor in college told me I was
clever but hopeless, too late to learn a tonal artistic language like
La Belle Langue Française. When I first saw the Dalai Lama in the
early seventies, I made the mistake of not paying as much atten-
T h e Spider Prince
tion t o his baby talk and listened more to his translator, who
spoke my language with exceptional clarity. The message was
essentially the same but the Dalai Lama exhibited a greater sense
of humor. The other guy was showing off his language skills.
Hatsumi uses many illustrations drawn from the observation of
nature. He has a lot of pets and walks them every night. The pets
are gifts from students who don't realize that space is limited in
Japan. I only have the faintest idea how he maintains the cardio-
vascular systems of his owl and turkey. Ben Franklin studied turkeys
and thought they better represented Americans than eagles, now
a threatened species. Merlin, the legendary advisor to King Arthur
had a fondness for owls. Many of the observers of ninjutsu regard
this as eccentricity. It looks like higher wisdom to me.
Sun Tzu's Art of War (which is also translated as The Art of Strat-
egy) could also be translated as an "Art of Chi," particularly the
sections dealing with adventure and intelligence gathering. R. L.
Wing has done the best job of translating to date; if he were famil-
iar with chi kung and the Go Dai he could have revealed another
level hidden in code. It is my hope that his translation becomes the
standard work. His feel for what is written is excellent. He's Chi-
nese, bilingual, and an excellent writer of clarity. His subtitle for the
work, "The World's Most Widely Read Manual of Skillful Negoti-
ations and Lasting Influence," lets the astute reader realize he isn't
referring to the Americans fighting their way into the bookstores
so they can have this on their bookshelf right next to Kitty Kelley.
He refers to the section associated with the spider prince as The
Divine Web. He understands baby talk.
The story of Samson and Delilah is a classical example drawn
from the Old Testament of the development of chi and fits nicely
into our discussion of Spider Princes. His story is in the Book of
Judges. Samson was a Judge of his people (a title having more to do
with connection to God or exhibiting extremely violent creativi-
ty if you kick back and read the King James Version again), a rich
kid a n d a great warrior w h o wore n o armor a n d carried n o
weapons as the Philistines had captured and overrun Israel. (A
similar situation to the Okinawans and ninja when overrun by
samurai.) In one of his recorded battles he slew many of his ene-

mies using a pick-up weapon, the jawbone of an ass. What else
he did with that bone is really interesting. (Bone in Chinese medi-
cine has many uses; some are said to be aphrodisiac. They might
be interested in the properties of mule bones.)
Rather than dally with his own kind, Samson loved the women
of his greatest enemy and his people's conqueror as a statement. In
those days hair was thought to be a connection to the gods of
the air. Then as today hair was also a mark of beauty as well as
strength. (Taking someone's scalp is a little trick the French and
British encouraged in the Indians of North America.) A woman
of the enemy named Delilah conspired to capture him using lies,
ties, and magic numbers. Even when he was being abused Samson
enjoyed the game and would ignore her treachery and witchcraft
as she was such a skilled lover. It was not his first folly with Philis-
tine women.
The story is worth reading again now that you know some of
the codes. Do you suppose there is a relationship between Nazarite
and Nazarene? His heart was definitely below his stomach, not
in his hair. But, he was a man of his time, and beliefs affect reali-
ty. We tend not to do what we don't think is possible.
He told her the secret of his strength was in his hair. It's a good
thing he didn't think it was in his balls; that probably saved his life.
She cut off his hair while he was sleeping off a drunk and proba-
bly drugged as well. (That's my version; he doesn't strike me as
the type who would sleep that deeply over sex.) His enemies cap-
tured him easily as he thought he was weakened, because for him
chi was a gift, not something developed. It just grew. If you've
ever had a chi hangover the pain goes from the top of the head to
the tips of the toes; when your whole body hurts and your mind
is impaired it slows you down to normal.
The Philistines imprisoned this righteous man who thought
of women as heifers when angry and never noticed his mother
was smarter than his father (it's in the story), blinded him and
put him to forced labor. The story goes they forgot to keep trim-
ming his hair so it grew back so long and so strong that he was
The Spider Prince
able to pull a temple down on those responsible for his humilia-

tion. The reality of the tale might be that he had been sensory-
deprived, had time to meditate, was mostly isolated, certainly
celibate, somewhat starved, doing strong physical labor, in constant
fear, and without his hair had to go into himself to find strength.
The Hindu, Oriental monks, and samurai who shave their hair
are making a statement about their peaceful intentions and/or
what aspect of God they serve. Only the highly skilled in spiri-
tual matters or seekers of peace shave their heads. We in the West
associate it with defeat and prostitution. Monks and holy men
are known for their strength. It's more of a biker thing these days,
but the emotional content is somewhat similar if wilder. The wise
men knew we all serve more than one master.
When Samson needed all his strength he drew on all the
sources available, even the gods of his beloved enemy. He was a
Mensch, he liked animals and insects. He also understood
endurance. Judges as a book puts some very dark behavior in a
positive light. The term "judge" would include execution of action,
as judges embodied the Law in Old Testament meaning. When I
asked my daughter what she'd learned and remembered from the
story of Samson she said, "Delilah cut off his hair so he wouldn't
fool around." Linda thought he pulled down the tower of Babel.
History is always being rewritten by the winners.
I think the story of Samson and the Spider Prince have some
interesting correspondences, as does Musashi. We know little of
what happened to the ancient ruling families of Japan who held
the mountains. The archaeological evidence suggests that they
were Chinese adventurers who had already cut a swath through
Korea. Both ancient and modern stories suggest considerable
exchange between the mountains of Japan and China. (Many
Chinese masters say they studied with nameless Taoist masters
on a mountain that they won't reveal.) Most martial arts com-
bine like oil and water. Ninjutsu and the secret martial arts of the
Chinese nobility flow together like honey and butter, to use a chi
kung allusion. A close reading of Sun Tzu, a personal knowledge of
the higher-level men and women who are members of Bujinkan as
PATH NO'TFS OF AN AMERICAN NINJA MASTER
well as Chinese Arts, and a knowledge of art, language, medicine

and history reveal a long-suffering noble face to this ancient and
misunderstood art of spider princes and princesses surviving the
death bringing sword of oppression. Living under the sword is a
battle cry of the underground, where the sword over the heart
indicates murder. The kanji is the same to my eye and indicates
endurance that is heroic and worthy of study. The real thing is
worth the journey. A follower of Sun Tzu starts the journey with
one step.
I was asked to give a demo of ninjutsu to Mauck Elementary
School in Hillsdale for the children's academic award day. Rumor
was I was going to break flaming concrete blocks with my head.
The kids were excited, the teachers weren't. I invited five or six
young volunteers up on the stage. I spent about three minutes
showing them how to do a simple wrist technique which throws
people to the ground. I showed them how to roll and fall. We
had a soft mat. I paired a small blond third-grade girl against a
big-for-his-age, fifth-grade, red-headed boy who the teachers told
me later was a bit of a bully. The little girl slammed him to the
mat, jumped over his prone body, and ran off the stage back to her
seat, grinning from ear to ear. He walked around shaking his wrist,
trying to figure out what happened. I hadn't coached her beyond
the basic technique. She understood ninjutsu and did the right
thing. She knew he was dangerous. I gave her a bow. History can
repeat itself in small ways.
Chapter Eighteen
Spirits-In Vino Veritas
S
age of Budweiser Light and Dry and
U RP R I S I N G LY I N T HI S
unprecedented variety in ales, I occasionally have a student
ask something like "But what does beer do? Why do people
like something that tastes so bad?" Makes you just die to offer
them a neat malt scotch like Lophraig or some twenty-year-old
brandy. Talk about offended taste buds! You have to learn to look
knowing and mutter, "It's an acquired taste. Took me years to dis-
criminate. Wonderful bouquet. Slips right by the gag reflex.
Smoooooth." My kids stayed away from the hard stuff as I never
use mixers in the home. Let them find out about the sweet drinks
after they've grown wary. It will be around. They are curious.
Human beings have been using alcohol for at least 25,000
years, primarily beer or similar beverages. The archaeological
record is quite clear that almost all primitive societies used mind-
altering substances. Even Neanderthals buried their dead with
flowers and herbs, which strongly suggests a religious pharma-
copoeia. Primatologists have told me that chimps will wait until
the bananas are in a state of rotting fermentation, stake out and
defend a tree, eat the bananas, get rip-roaring drunk, and often-
times injure themselves seriously falling out of trees. As chimp
doctors are rare on the ground, these drunks are often fatal, as the
injuries make them more vulnerable to leopards.

My medical friends inform me that the body burns booze like
any other food. The problem is the side effects. Side effects are
both psychological, which will vary from individual to individ-
ual, and biological, which is somewhat easier to measure as body
configurations aren't as difficult to quantify. We tend to measure
what we can.
Many cultures have paid closer attention to the effects of diet,
nutrition, and beverages than we have, particularly in regard to
drugs and their effects. Did you know that alcohol in all of its
many manifestations is considered a depressant, stimulant, and
anodyne? Go get your dictionary and look up the last one. That's
the one that will cause the troubles.
An anodyne releases the spirit, and that is what the addict pur-
sues and often in his or her ignorance confuses with the stimulant
or depressant effect. The trick is to sustain the spirit without
becoming dependent upon the libation. It can be an aid to self-
remembering, but the side effects are the gateway to hell. One
has to be stronger than the spirit of the drug, and you must always
be more interesting than its effect on your body.
The old word for alcoholic beverages was spirits. Indians referred
to marijuana as "the benefactor." Tobacco was used for peace
negotiations and in purification ceremonies. Hallucinogens were
used for religious ceremonies, or for increasing psychic skills. All of
these substances have receptors in the body and brain which relate
to the release of endorphins and result in a mild, relaxed euphoria.
Psychoneuroimmunology research indicates these internally pro-
duced natural substances are more potent than synthetic opiates
and are by-products when physical and mental well-being pre-
dominate in people who have a positive and trusting viewpoint
toward themselves and others. The pragmatic ninja viewpoint of
raising children in a manner that provides and reinforces a positive
viewpoint can be regarded as great wisdom when considering the
biochemical reality of a happy individual.
Our ancestors used drugs but they were difficult to produce or
were used in their natural state. Our contemporary proclivity for
reducing a product to its most potent state is the equivalent of

using sledgehammers to kill mosquitoes. Many modern medical
practitioners pooh-pooh herbal remedies and homeopathic medi-
cines, but an objective observer will not be swayed by a white coat.
All chemical addiction has a spiritual component, which if
dealt with properly will free the addict. The use of psychoactive
drugs to contact spirits is common in most low-technology soci-
eties and is seldom associated with addiction when used for this
purpose. Practice usually allows the intelligent to discriminate
between the dream and reality. Spiritual practice that is not mind-
ful can also be addictive.
Tobacco was given to us by the American Indians. They used it

primarily for peace negotiations. Indian warfare was up close and
personal. You knew your enemy and his grandfather and cousins.
American Indians, particularly the warrior societies, had some
interesting ideas concerning bravery. It was not uncommon prac-
tice to humiliate and torture a captive to demonstrate your moral
superiority. When enough of the young men had been killed off on
both sides that conducting warfare began to affect the gene pool
or economy, and mothers were getting angry, peace would be
sought.
Now when you're going to sit down and negotiate for your
friends, family, territory, and loved ones with someone who
skinned your brother and then gave him to the women to play
with, it helps to be clear-headed and take the long view. Hence
let us smoke some of this brown stuff which tranquilizes the spir-
it but does not affect clarity of thought. They didn't walk around
with a pack of twenty in their pocket to hit on every eight minutes,
when the rush from the last one subsides. Hostile people tend to
get o n better with others when they smoke. That's why when
some people quit smoking, their friends and relatives very quick-
ly put temptation back in their path. It's called self-defense.
Women who smoke heavily during pregnancy will often have
smaller and lighter-weight babies, which is associated with sudden
infant death syndrome. Emphysema is one of the more unpleasant
side effects of clogging the lungs with smoke. Cancer of the mouth,
throat, and lungs is significantly correlated. The urine of heavy
smokers is mutagenic; eventually that could result in cancers of the
urinary and genital tracts. These are long-term side effects to be
avoided. Meditating is a more beneficial means to obtain clarity of
thought and calm, and the effects are permanent. However, ratio-
nality seldom subjugates desire. An Ethiopian wise man told me
one time that smoking was a good way to train the breath. "If
you can do it and still smoke. . . ." Often heavy smokers are not
happy with their lives so they enjoy the tranquillity offered by
tobacco and rationalize the dangers of addiction. Some of the
people who come to me to quit smoking fall into that category.
Most started when they were young, against the advice of their
elders. Tobacco is more addictive than most synthetic drugs.
Alcohol reduces inhibitions, which is a subtle way of saying it

weakens the superego, so the natural self can more easily emerge.
If your natural self is relatively uncurried below the knees or not
well socialized, it is probably wisdom to avoid the spirit known as
demon rum. However, we've been using alcohol for a very long
time to render events more convivial. (Remember the chimps.)
Researchers interested in brain function say that alcohol breaks
down the barriers between brain segments. Research indicates
that a glass of wine taken twenty minutes before attempting to
memorize something significantly correlates with retention. We
learn better when our social inhibitors are weakened.
The problem is knowing when to back off. Dylan Thomas wrote
some of his finest poetry when altered by alcohol, as did Shelley.
Our consumer-oriented society encourages one to easily go beyond
the stage where the anodyne is effective. Studies concerning
longevity indicate that an ounce or two of alcohol a day corre-
lates with long life. (We tend to save it up for the weekend.)
Research also indicates that most of the positive effects of alco-
hol begin to deteriorate after blood alcohol reaches .06 on the
drunkometer. That's two beers for most folks. Alcoholics die of
dehydration. If you're going to drink, include plenty of water in
your practice. Eight glasses a day seems to be the most frequently

recommended amount of H2O, twelve to sixteen if you're physi-
cally active. If your lips chap you need more water.
Just as the sermon should follow communion, so should some
useful activity follow the ingestion of alcohol. The prudent man
studies himself when his inhibitions are down. Some activities
that are enhanced by lack of inhibition are thought, conversa-
tion, dance, and self-exploration. However, nobody enjoys a habit-
ual drunk, particularly after they begin to confuse the feeling of
power with real power.
Women who consume alcohol during pregnancy often have
deformed or retarded babies. Alcohol damages sperm as well. Get-
ting drunk to make a baby is not one of the better strategies. Often
the children of parents who drink heavily or inappropriately will
have attention deficiencies that result in lifetime problems con-
cerning learning and the ability to hold a job. Crack cocaine does
even more damage to brain functions. Many gamblers who lose
their family fortunes become alcoholics. Hatsumi's father was a
gambler who became an alcoholic. Hatsumi did not explore the
effects of sake until quite late in life, remembering the example of
his father. He has expressed regret that he never had the privi-
lege of getting boiled with Takamatsu, who often offered him a
drink.
Marijuana has a number of interesting effects, first and foremost

being the reduction of short-term memory. That's why it is referred
to in the colloquial as "dope." Loss of short-term memory forces
one to pay attention to the immediate, which enhances how and
what one feels. Being more aware of one's feelings is a definite
enhancement to a number of activities in the short term. Appetite
is enhanced, as are sensitivity and night vision. The anodyne
effect is double-edged in that marijuana's receptors in the brain are
on both the right and left sides, and the chemical makeup of THC
is similar to what are considered female hormones. So with the
smarter users you get creativity, and the more macho get to expe-
rience paranoia. Welcome to the wonderful world of women. If
you're going to kick in the more intuitive side of your brain, which
also processes feelings, you must remember that we feel before
we think. Since most of us, particularly men, have had a lot of
training i n ignoring our emotions, finding them in charge can
have interesting consequences. Particularly if your mind isn't too
well disciplined and your memory not well trained. Short-term
memory centers of the brain are not fully formed until after ado-
lescence. If you are young and not too bright, just say no. A 1991
poll of high-level spiritual practitioners reported ninety-four per-
cent using marijuana at some point in their quest for enlighten-
ment. (Charles T. Tart, "Influences of previous psychedelic drug
experiences o n students of Tibetan Buddhism: a preliminary explo-
ration," The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology 23, No. 2.)
Coca, the favored drug of those who live high above sea level,
attaches to the brain and heart. It is primarily a stimulant to the
heart, as well as a pain killer t o the body and mild euphoric to
the segments of the brain that reinforce reward-seeking behavior.
A useful herb for an environment where even breathing is difficult.
Its side effects are reinforcement of superego and delusions of
grandeur. That's why it is the favored drug of those who are lost in
the material world. Delusions of grandeur help you to like yourself
when your existence is meaningless and your viewpoint negative.
Of course, you're a winner because you can afford this substance
and the other poor boobs are losers because they cannot. Users
of cocaine, if they are not destroyed by their drug- induced vio-
lence and greed, often check out with heart attacks. One of the
effects of cocaine allergy is severe vasoconstriction usually result-
ing in death. We seem to have forgotten that motto of the hippies
as we moved to yuppies-Speed Kills. It's hard to work with the
breath when your nose bleeds.
Anodynes can serve as an aid to meditative practice, but there is

always the danger of addiction. The proper use of a n anodyne is to
memorize the desired state, push through the side effect, keep
only what is useful, and use the rest for food. To do that requires
strength of will and focus of intent beyond the capacities of most

people unless they have developed their chi. Because they have no
knowledge of how to use the released energy, they settle for the
stimulant or depressant effect and are eventually overwhelmed
by toxins.
Drugs are the fast food of enlightenment, as EST is the McDon-
ald's of Buddhism. LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin can open doors
to different realities, but when the drug wears off so does the
induced state-if indeed the user is capable of perceiving the dif-
ference. To reference Tart's 1991 population again, psychedelic
drugs were experimented with and seen as a positive aid to lucid-
ity and clarity but were eventually rejected because of the ten-
dency toward addiction to an easy source of luminosity. The wise
learn to control the self with the self.
In terms of martial practice, one is much more likely to be
involved in a fight when drinking-or a car wreck, or any other
kind of self-destructive behavior that might emerge when our
inhibitions are down and the id is up. One does silly things like
falling asleep at sixty or seventy miles an hour, particularly when
the id is an undisciplined, poorly raised child, not a seeker of joy.
If you fancy yourself as a fighter, it's reasonable to find out what
you can do under these conditions. It's a lot safer to find out with
a friend at home or in the dojo than a bar where you have no
idea what you may be facing in an impaired state. Particularly
when you don't know your limits or have not learned how to
burn through them, for which you always pay a price, as the ano-
dyne is usually a toxin.
Meditation is the gentlest of anodynes and therefore the most
subtle and pervasive. Loving and taking joy in what you do is
another, and probably most powerful of all is being in love. Not
just loving as in total acceptance of the other, but being in rapport
chemically, electrically, and physically so that you merge with
the loved one. It is incredibly energizing and nothing like being in
heat, though of course that's part of it. That's why gurus get in
trouble in the West. Our culture is much more repressed sexually
than the East, so when people discover the power inherent in lov-
ing sexuality they tend to go overboard or in their ignorance cre-

ate attachments that may not be beneficial. As the highest-level
healing spirit requires androgyny, gender confusion may also
result.
Those who advocate celibacy don't understand their own sex-
uality as part of the godhead. Celibacy can be seen as a sign of
immaturity and a certain indicator that your teacher has missed the
point, as enlightenment is powered by controlling sexual ener-
gy. Denial is not control, and control in this case is without effort.
Without effort does not mean you don't have to study. It means
you know what you're doing so well it appears effortless. Once
again being relaxed is critical. Pounding away to orgasm has little
to do with making love and less to sustaining the spirit. It is sim-
ply rapid behavioral response to a pleasurable stimulus.
Herbal remedies, particularly ginseng, can be anodynes. I've found

ginseng particularly efficacious and recommend overdosing at
first until you find what works best for you. The amount found in
most teas is worthless. Capsules have worked best for me. Try two
or three daily with lots of water for about a month. Medical
research indicates that ginseng promotes homeostasis, enhances
endurance, and maintains steady blood sugar and blood pressure
levels. It appears to protect the heart from restriction of blood
supply, protects the liver from damaging chemicals, and stimu-
lates the immune system. The much-to-be-feared side effect in
men seems to be a return to youthful erections, probably some-
thing to do with freeing up blood flow. I'll wager you'll like the
effect if you're male and over forty.
I strongly recommend studying herbs, Chinese medicine, and
homeopathic remedies. If you're sensitive to your body, you may
find the results surprising. After my second divorce, a yogini friend
of mine offered me the homeopathic remedy for healing grief,
which I took condescendingly. To my great surprise I found myself
weeping in a very short time. My tears had nothing to do with
our conversation. Aside from the sudden onslaught of blubber-
ing, I remember the evening as a lot of fun. Since then I've devel-
oped some faith through experimentation with Bach flower reme-

dies as well.
As Aldous Huxley pointed out, the doors of perception are
both subjective and universal. Anyone with common sense should
be able to discover when to peak (peek?) and when to leap through
their own curiosity and experience. The great sages always point to
moderation, not excess, nor abstinence. Legal ramifications usually
support common sense. The pursuit of enlightenment by a warrior
is rare, not common in any sense of the word.
Refining attitudes to create a felt reality is part and parcel to
Tibetan Buddhism as well as hoshinjutsu and ninpo. Assuming a
particular attitude in or toward a situation can often speed the
learning of behaviors as well as deepen empathy and under-
standing. Just realizing that you are listening to the perfect teacher
because you are the perfect student in the perfect place with per-
fect friends to support your study helps you realize and focus on
the fact that now is the perfect time to actually accept the higher
teachings. This attitude creates a certain childlike expectancy and
immediacy of wonder similar to the effect of the anodynes
described above. It's a feeling to be cherished and is referred to
as The Five Perfections. Try it out.
Chapter Nineteen
Strategies for a New Age
w E ARE MOVING into a new age. I think that after the Age
of Reason, the Industrial Revolution, the Atomic Age,
and the Information Revolution which resulted in the
Electronic Village and world markets, we are ready for an Age of
Creativity that will be and is already becoming an age of techno-
magic. The break-up of the Soviet Union lowers the danger of
world war and may be the beginning of a Pax Capitalista that will
result in the sharing of ideas and periods of growth that will indeed
create a new world order. If nothing else it indicates the real pauci-
ty of thought from political scientists or the prediction capability
of political economists.
Times are changing. A universal shift of consciousness is in
progress. A global mind change will also be shadowed by a fevered
retrenching of ultra-conservatives, but it must be remembered
that change through action or atrophy, growth or dissolution, is
the natural arena of the creative artist and leader. One does not
lead to the past.
In The Book of Five Rings, Musashi gives nine basic rules or
strategies for living well in war-torn medieval Japan that still work
today. If you haven't read the I Ching or Book of Changes, you
should. I have a friend who made a considerable fortune as a
futurist using that book as a guide to policy decisions for some

major corporations. There are also computer applications of the
book that are quite useful such as "Synchronicity." There are peo-
ple who actually consider me wise instead of foolish and asked
me how I would improve on Musashi's list, so I consulted the I
Ching and it said "Increase," "Arousal," and "The Creative." Giv-
en this acceptance by the divining spirits, here are my words of
wisdom.
1. Never allow the concept that you have learned all there is to
know about anything gain a foothold in your mind regardless of
your achievements or recognition. Always regard yourself as a
beginner and approach new challenges as an exploring child.
2. Passionately care for others and show your care by treating
them with interest, respect, and love. Always be willing to make
the first caring move. Love your enemy.
3. Be willing to learn from anyone or anything. Do not put
your trust in secondary sources in any matter that directly affects
you. Knowing without doing is not knowing.
4. In problem-solving always involve those closest to the prob-
lem in the building of a solution. Get to the "we," as acceptance is
necessary to quality. Always take time to discover the probable
downstream effects of implementation. To quote Richard Weaver,
an admirable rhetorician, "Ideas have consequences." Continu-
ous improvement leads to better changes than embracing a past
that does not exist.
5. Both the best and worst of people yearn to love and be loved
and if given the opportunity would make a positive difference in
the world. Be helpful and kind.
6. Study yourself as well as others and why you and they feel
and care about the goals you (and they) pursue to develop staying
power as well as trust. Do not waste your essence in a relation-
ship where there is no caring. Learn to trust your gut, which isn't
too far from following your bliss and helps you avoid the bitter
taste of defeat.
7. Continually expand your awareness of your connectedness
to others. Everything in the natural and material world is con-
nected in never-ceasing, ever-changing interactions and interde-

pendencies. Be part of that, as the disconnections are illusions.
Take every opportunity to become more open, aware, and chal-
lenged.
8. Understand that when you move, you move as a whole and
are contributing to change by how you act and think. Put mean-
ing, purpose, and passion into everything that you do. Be will-
ing to sacrifice, to take risks, or to humble yourself to achieve a
clear, concrete result. Modesty is the greatest of virtues. Censure
yourself, never another. Have fun but don't harm. Internalize the
Shaolin Dictums.
9. If you follow your bliss, allowing time for peaceful contem-
plation, and remember the ancient dictum that "defense is moral
a n d offense often leads t o disgrace," the Way of the
Warrior/Artist/Sage will in the end be seen as profitable as any
other form of sincere scholarship. Sincere scholarship seldom pays
well until all other avenues have reported failure. The sweet taste
of fortune is both spiritual and physical when the emphasis is on
learned taste and the fortune is earned. The Zen Buddha of the
Ten Pictures rides the ox to the marketplace.
I have had a great deal of fun studying strategy or combatic mar-

tial arts and have through these studies met very interesting peo-
ple. There is an old Special Forces recruiting joke that goes, "Join
Special Forces; Travel to Faraway Lands; Study Exotic Cultures;
Learn New Languages; Meet Exciting and Interesting People (all at
government expense) and Kill Them." Sun Tzu says, "It is only
when you are a thousand miles from home that you will find the
value of your most basic skills." Your most basic skills as a human
being are to learn and to build relationships. We are ascended
from social animals. A n adventurer in the realms of strangers must
be able to be perceived as valuable on some other basis than lan-
guage, technical skills, or formal knowledge.
Sun Tzu's Divine Web of the adventurer and reincarnation has
implications for vengeance and reciprocity as well as forgiveness.
I sometimes find it difficult to maintain gentility when training
with my friends in the martial arts. Those who need a healing

spiritual practice the most seem to be running hardest in the direc-
tion of fear and power. I suspect they have unwittingly selected the
"school sent by the nine demon gods." Some need a vision of
Hell to appreciate Heaven's Way.
The world is changing and it appears that the environment
requires some heroic consideration. I have found myself regarding
the farming methods of the Amish with much greater respect of
late. There seems to be a different cycle of reincarnation that
favors greater understanding between Kipling's severed East and
West. On the darker side, the decimation of Third World popu-
lations and the urban ignorant by poverty, drugs, HIV, and other
smart viruses to come will increasingly tax the medical systems
of the elite as well as confound the dreams of the careless and
unlucky. The urge to religion is universal and healthy in terms of
lower associated medical symptoms, even though the correlation
between I Q and strong religious belief is significantly negative.
The relation to health, however, is positive when compared to
controls. My own experience of linking religious types to various
neuroses may derive from a limited sample that has been taught to
fear God and sexuality and see their religion as exclusive. There is
certainly much better esoteric information available today than in
any previous age. The scholarship and research published in the
last ten years are astonishing. The books I recommend in the Bib-
liography for Inner Adventurers also have some of my brighter
students' heartfelt approval, Even the charlatans are having to
learn that the ignorant have been exposed to the scientific method
and would like to see some replication of quality results before
buying the product.
As more scientific seekers publish their own experiences rather
than point at the wisdom of the elders for direction, we seem to be
experiencing a "hundred monkeys effect" but it may well be infor-
mation reformation and regression to the norm. People seem to be
finally recognizing that human commonalities are far more impor-
tant than the differences. Hatsumi, after he met me for the first
time sent me a watercolor of Da Mo, the Bodhidharma and the
founder of Zen who is credited with revolutionizing the martial arts

as taught at the Shaolin Temple. The inscription was translated
for me by a young Japanese exchange student who interpreted
what he had written as "Constants Don't Surprise" for the symbol
of ninjutsu, which is the kanji for sword over the kanji for heart,
which also can be translated as endurance or following the way
even when under duress. The rest of the poetic inscription was
"The bear's treasure is joy and pleasure."
The above little list is my strategy for enjoying the newest age,
as nine directed by a unique perspective leads to zero. There is
nothing in this list that is not supported by scientific research in
psychology, anthropology, and sociology. William James, the
famous American psychologist, posited that we feel before we
think, and there is considerable evidence to support that hypoth-
esis. The subconscious is the seat of feelings, and if you follow
the directions in chapter five you will learn how to link the emo-
tions to the mind through meditation. The ancients called this
practice Heaven's Way, and it results in the dissolution of fear,
which enhances all other activities in life. It must be remembered
that you shape the world you live in by your regard, and by open-
ing yourself to complete experience you may find many surprising
things that most other people will miss. This process will change
you. It will change how you regard the world and others; it may
even put a little magic and passion into your life if you follow
the clues concerning weird science.
We all change, as does our environment and society. Humans
are unique in that we can control and create those changes. Real
change is seldom an act of instant conversion. A changed mind
that is not followed by behavior has not reached into the true
self. We can all work o n ourselves and each other to make our
lives more enjoyable and better, or we can be swept along by fads,
worn down by indifference, and live in ignorance. The choice is
always yours, but to paraphrase a wise and ancient Greek, "The
unexamined life is not worth living. Know thyself!"
Chapter Twenty
What Good Is Enlightenment?
I
N "THE KUNDALINI EXPERIENCE" I describe what the great awak-
ening feels like, and in "the Godan Test" what the lesser awak-
ening feels like in terms of sensitivity. In chi kung as well as
Taoist esoteric yoga, these are referred to as the greater and lesser kan
and li. In religious traditions enlightenment is associated with
sainthood, or being in tune with (called by) God. In military tra-
ditions it's associated with invincibility in warfare and the use of
superior strategy, as in Joan of Arc or Sun Tzu. In art and science it
manifests as creativity. In yoga an enlightened master manifests the
will of God through self-development. In common parlance
enlightenment is referred to as being intuitive and usually thought
of as an on-again, off-again experience related to luck. In chi kung
it is considered a biological enhancement of natural proclivities and
is permanent if the practitioner is careful and knowledgeable. His-
torically enlightenment is considered quite rare.
The technology for awakening intuition has been with us for
centuries, but few seem to be willing to take on the challenge of
integrating the mind, body, and spirit, as it requires concentra-
tion and very few seem capable of hanging in for longer than
twenty minutes regardless of the importance of the topic. It does
require an adventurer's heart, and the voyage is made alone regard-
less of who shares your journey. It could be described as the res-

urrection of the body. The end point is being born again or zero,
and a viewpoint regarding life that is held by very few and could
be regarded as delusions of grandeur or controlled paranoia were
it not for the recognition that this is or should be anyone's
birthright. Fearing God is the harshest way of saying Respect
Yourself.
The thinking style of the enlightened is very relaxed and con-
versational, like a good story-teller, but the linkage of ideas is
much more circular and nonordinary. The ideas themselves seem
to come best from observation. The trait of empathy-which for
males is usually hard-won learned behavior-seems to extend to all
of nature. It's not sympathy but understanding how people or
animals and sometimes plants and insects feel. It is usually referred
to as knowing.
Sensitivity to how one's body is functioning is greatly enhanced
for the more enlightened. One can feel the intestines working
and sense the movement of energy and blood as well as control the
rate of the heart. When a joint begins to slip out of place, you
can often correct it by simply adjusting your posture. It is the
same with a thought. Pain is controlled. The eyes see farther into
the ultraviolet spectrum, and night vision returns if you've lost
it. Middle-age astigmatism is corrected to some extent. The body's
temperature drops to a range between 94.2 and 97.2 degrees
Fahrenheit and often feels cool to the touch of others, but there is
no sensation of chill to you except when you're cruising in the
lower ranges. Being cool seems to have a biological consequence as
do ideas. You are much more aware of the subtle energy fields
surrounding yourself and others, and with practice and experi-
ence can discriminate differences that seem to be meaningful. To
others you may feel warm or neutral due to energy rather than
temperature. Fear of death and other inevitable occurrences evap-
orates. There is an acceptance of self that does not require external
reinforcement.
Handedness becomes an option with sometimes amusing
results. (This may also account for tantrism being called the left-
handed way.) Most of the time the mind is silent and observes
with no commentary. The immune system seems to be strength-
ened as healing time is shortened, colds become rare and of short
duration, and the lower blood pressure and anal squeezing elimi-
nate annoyances like hemorrhoids. Cuts heal quickly. What the
long-term benefits of this change in a modern, free-enterprise
society can be, I've no real idea. We seem to reward a blinder
ambition.
We like to have goals. We like to know where we are going.
The enlightened have no personal spiritual goals beyond deep-
ening their experience, as enlightenment is the end product of
the spiritual path. Some seem to attract the attention of the Web
of Life and become guardians of the environment, reaping cos-
mic rewards. A few teach, and those who attempt to follow their
guidance and fail find religions for their solace. The enlightened
can tolerate no falsehood in themselves. In others, it's their prob-
lem to solve. From a religious viewpoint the behavior is usually
regarded as saintly, and some rather odd people have been des-
ignated saints from a psychological perspective. From the church-
es' perspective, extreme examples are still examples of possibility
and should be shown compassion. Some of Catholicism's choices
are perverse and funny riddles. Protestants don't recognize saints
but seem easily distracted by and willing to pay for uninformed
hypocritical entertainment, as TV ministries like Roberts, Gra-
ham, Falwell, Tilton, and the Bakkers indicate.
In business, the enlightened owner provides challenging work
so that continuous repetition does not dull the minds of his work-
force. He or she encourages problem solving and creativity so that
the organization can react to the marketplace. He studies the
trends and tries to be ready for the future. He expects his people to
educate themselves and provides time and opportunity so that
they can improve their position in life through material reward or
personal growth. He attempts to maintain a balance or a mix of
rewards and products. He protects the econiche, which continually
is endangered. He cherishes autonomy and creativity. He main-
tains excellent relations with his consumers and suppliers. He
adapts to change and sometimes leads the charge when change is

necessary. He is concerned with the quality and reputation of his
product. He understands the meaning of service and synergy.
An enlightened artist is concerned with showing what is before
the eye in a new way, so h e or she is not concerned with con-
vention or fashion once they've proven their expertise. Art is
always personalized, and that which is recognized is imitated.
Most artists who forge new paths or depart too far from the main-
stream are not rewarded in their lifetimes. All true artists are con-
cerned with mastery of their material. Great artists or masters (or
mistresses) are adventurers who move out of their fields and expose
themselves to other forms of knowledge which they then use to
modify their own work or bring new insights t o cross-fertilize.
Their performance in the new area may be met with derision, but
as they've proved their endurance i n one area, it's usually not
long before they acquire the necessary new skills. The Nobel Prize
winner in one field should be given a polite listen when discussing
another field.
The more information, interests, and skills artists acquire, the
easier and more fluid the process of creation becomes. An artist
may emerge in any occupation where there is freedom to experi-
ment and opportunity to problem-solve or personalize change.
America is a land of mini-artists who specialized too early or quit
because they expected mastery to come sooner. Many decide to fol-
low financial reward. Free enterprise is a wonderful concept that
can both foster and destroy creativity. Art is the cradle of invention.
War is the mother. Surviving takes both endurance and creativity.
The enlightened martial artist is concerned with defense and
retaliation as a preventative therapy. Ambush and attack is the way
of the bandit and the materialist and if used against an unintelligent
enemy usually works. Really dumb or desperate people go toe to
toe and slug it out. An enemy tries to harm you. War is the product
of failed diplomacy. It is the rapacious consequence of greed.
A skilled strategist has many responses and can escalate or
withdraw as necessary. Taking your best shot can be telling a joke,
or walking away, or setting a trap. The samurai maxim "the best
sword is never drawn" does not mean that it cannot be used. It

refers to the mind and spine of an upright individual. A real mas-
ter can read your heart, and show you how to attain peace. Worth-
while study if structured properly results in transfer of training.
All of the high-level ninjas are working at seeing the light. The
bad ninjas are disappearing. They're aging prematurely, as God
needs fertilizer. As the training intensifies the ability to read oth-
ers, the attitudes of your teacher may drive you to find another
more to your liking.
Since Kevin Millis describes me as being from Mars, let me
share with you what a Martian who is a human being feels like. I
do not perceive myself as having any knowledge that anyone else
can't have if they're willing to take the abuse and endure some
risks. Divorce, financial ups and downs, chi-sickness and suffer-
ing should not be part of your quest but they can happen when
you're not gonna quit till you get it, and you only have so much
time because your experience has taught you this place can be
hell. Enlightenment's at least a three-year process if you know
what you're doing, but the short course can be very high-risk. It
takes a lot longer as a part-time job and requires more than one day
a week to accomplish or sustain. It's a lifetime project, as once
the mind begins to move it wants to keep going.
Feeling the mind at work is almost orgasmic. It's very pleas-
ant when the words and ideas just flow out of you. It's a mental
side effect of taijutsu and meditation, as they both stimulate the
spine and brain. Because you're more in tune with your body,
you can feel disease or sore muscles as they start and often can
dispel them before they hinder your movement. Adjusting the
spine becomes very important, and when the back is out you can
feel the drop in immune system efficiency. There is something to
the Alexander Method and chiropractic. Pain is remembered,
accepted as part of learning, and categorized as needed. There is no
confusion once experienced between lust, love, and sexuality,
though all are felt.
When you are relaxed-without fear but still able to use your
adrenals-the mind integrates with and accesses subconscious
memory. Subconscious memory seems to include some very sur-

prising and curious talents. Physical sensitivity is greatly enhanced
as well as balance and flexibility. There is a feeling of connected-
ness that is bioelectrical and when used enough to trust is never
wrong. Entering someone else's electrical field gives you useful
information if you remember yourself. It is very difficult to remem-
ber you can do this, as there is no social reinforcement for the
skill. Dreaming can become a waking function as the subcon-
scious makes the id's contribution to observed phenomena (visions
and hallucinations are better accepted with equanimity if you are
in a public place).
When you use your total self to look at something or some-
one, some insights will be visual as well as mental and physical
feelings; these sensations often arrive in the dark as mini-halluci-
nations but are information if you've the knowledge to interpret
and use them. In the old days it was consulting the Muses. Prob-
ably the verb "amuse" is related. It seems like great fun to me. It
feels like the way we're "spozed to be." I think of it as awaken-
ing the sixth sense; a yogi would perceive it as union with the
inner god that allows communion with the eternal spirit. A Bud-
dhist might regard it as an evolutionary guide toward sentience.
When you are self-remembering, it means you are fully aware of
how you are processing information all the way down to your
cells. You tend to be very much attached to the present reality.
The past feeds you and the future awaits your endeavor. Some of
your feelings can be very disturbing, but you have the choice on
how to react to the bad news.
Salvation cannot be bought. A Christian might say you must
save yourself. Enlightenment is not an intellectual position but
a biological reality that is attained through work. It's like lifting
weights or getting a degree. It requires self study, concentration,
and time. It is only after the awakening that the process becomes
natural and without effort.
The American Indians thought that creative people or those
whose minds could move were bird people. They were excellent
observers of nature. What can we learn from the common black-
bird? Birds exhibit continual movement and high-burning metab-

olisms. They must continually search for sustenance and do not
exhibit much territoriality. They have signals and warn each oth-
er of danger. They sing for their own enjoyment and probably
entertain each other. They recognize hierarchy when feeding.
They don't seem to have much short-term memory but can learn
through repetition and reinforcement. Some migrate over vast
distances. They enjoy acrobatics.
I was sitting on my back porch one day when a red squirrel
dragging a very small nest ran around the corner of the house. It
was pursued by a small starling. The starling would open up its
wings to appear bigger and danced screaming at the squirrel,
which was twice its size. The squirrel, seeing it was going to be
cornered by the walls of the porch, scampered like a furred tree rat
and leapt into the neighbor's pine. The starling's friends arrived and
proceeded to throw themselves screaming at the squirrel, who
was running up and down limbs trying to avoid their dive bomb-
ing. Two robins and a sparrow joined the fray. There was another
nest in that tree. Birds of different species will join with each oth-
er to defend against a common enemy. The squirrel finally leapt
from a limb about eighteen feet up, having seen the dangerous
as attractive, and hit the ground hard. Scrambling in fear, it took
off clumsily for the maple tree in the front yard as the small cloud
of birds pursued like WWI biplanes or the X wings in Star Wars
after a fleeing target. Reminded me of the Iraqis heading for the last
bridge out of Kuwait. Sun Tzu recommends leaving an obvious
exit for your enemy. Schwartzkopf showed how to close it.
I've seen songbirds go after hawks, crows, and owls who will eat
meat of their own kind in order to feed their appetites. The preda-
tor birds are usually more territorial, mostly solitary, and do not
sing. The owl is a creature of the night, having great nocturnal
vision, acute hearing, and silent flight, giving it the ability to hunt
in both trees and plain. The crow is said to be of great intelligence
and far-sighted. It can be taught to talk like the long-lived par-
rots, only more quickly if you split the tongue. When our Red
Brothers say a person speaks with forked tongue it can also mean
the person is not true to his nature. Crows perceive man as dan-
gerous to their species and give us a wide berth except at harvest
time or when we appear to be unarmed. When you hunt you sel-
dom get more than one crow unless you have a silent weapon or
exceptional skill. Songbirds eat grain and insects. As do the bush-
men. Carrion birds will show you death.
Mostly the bird people served as advisors or peace chiefs. Chief
Joseph kept over five divisions of U.S. Cavalry including Buffalo
Soldiers continually in the field with hit-and-run raids using less
than twenty men while escorting his people's attempted escape
to Canada. Tengu are birds. The tops of totem poles are often
birds.
Teachings by tengu to samurai were preserved as scrolls even
though few seemed to understand them. Even mastering one of
the tengu's techniques was usually enough to protect you from
the average attack. The message seems the same. "You're not
meant for this. Only good people should be training with swords.
Get out of it. I even have to beat you up to show you this simple
stuff. You don't know how to think or act. You're not a pimple
on the butt of a real swordsman, but these techniques will probably
save your life considering the opposition." The tengu emphasized
a morality for the use of the sword and discussed it as a weapon of
defense. Tengu were not proud of their skill at arms and discussed
swordmanship as a last resort, a necessary consequence of dealing
with men. I suspect the legendary tengu of being teachers of the
soft budo of Osaka and Kyoto. There is a direct mythological con-
nection to the ninja. They were overrun, but never defeated, rather
like the Seminole Indians of Florida.
Even today we demonize our enemies. When the law is break-
ing down and the people and politicians are exhibiting a mean
spirit, those that exercise their freedom to learn self-protection
seem the more survival-oriented to me. We still can learn from
the birds. Survival can be pretty comfortable if you're intelligent
about it. The great mother can tame demons and get them going
in productive directions-protection of home and Momma and
cleaning up the neighborhood-in subtle but effective ways requir-
ing the aid of the residents. I prefer making the attractive dan-
gerous. Life has given me the other training. Endurance is a path
to enlightenment.
There is a ninja scroll o n how you can tell the time by how
the cat's eye normally dilates. I wonder what else it says about
them. (The hand claws are pretty interesting. Ichimunji is a better
cat stance.) I've seen this cat's eye chart reproduced in a number of
books and I always thought it was a joke. If scrolls were kept by
masters on many topics, a family of masters going back eight hun-
dred years and more like the Togakure Ryu would probably be
worth studying and learning new languages or very old ones.
Takamatsu left pretty broad hints it extends back a lot farther.
Sun Tzu says the learning doesn't really start until you're a thou-
sand miles from home and you have to rely on your basic princi-
ples. Feelings are pretty basic.
If my conjectures are o n target, the ninjas are correcting the
way martial arts are taught and discussed and have every right
to. Hatsumi has said o n more than one occasion that ninjutsu
owes the Chinese. He dressed u p in Chinese robes and showed
weapon techniques. Some of the male figures in the old ninja
scroll drawings are wearing Chinese costumes in the Quest videos.
He chose to show that for a reason. If this is the old snake brain
functioning, it seems able to discern the light from the dark on a
multitude of levels. Anthropomorphizing is considered to be bad
science but my feeling is it can be intelligently applied to reality.
In real science as well as combatic martial arts we practice skepti-
cism and humility. In psychology, which gets off track from time
t o time, we say, "The rat is always right." Enlightenment seems
to be recognition that all things are connected through love and
intelligence. The shaman's viewpoint is reflected in the Book of Job.
Chapter thirteen offers, "But ask now the beasts, and they shall
teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or
speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea
shall declare unto thee." Keep going. Keep playing.
Annotated Bibliography
for the Inner Adventurer
T his bibliography is designed to support Path Notes of an Amer-

ican Ninja Master. It is also the recommended reading list for the
fourth-degree black belt in hoshinjutsu. I urge you, the reader, to
buy and read the books in the blocs in which they're presented.
Each book is representative of a classic position and is the best of
its type in my opinion. If read in tandem, these books present a
series of ideas that interweave to provide a unique understanding
of the topic that will be different from the authors' and mine, but
of particular use and benefit to you. Try it out and see. I'll wager
you'll have as much fun as I did with a quarter of the effort.
The first two or three books in each section are the most impor-
tant. There is no particular order for your perusal. The prudent
individual builds his or her own library and supports the one in the
local community. Reading is one of the universal skills of leader-
ship. If Ben Franklin were around today, he'd say, "A book on line
saves time."
Internal Energy
Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming. The Root of Chinese Chi Kung: The Secrets of
Chi Kung Training. Jamaica Plain, Mass.: Yang Martial Arts Assn.,
1989. Excellent text for explaining many of the consequences
and side effects of learning to breathe and exercise internal
energy or chi. Scientifically and experientially based, and only
refers to the ancients for additional descriptions. Does show
some energy applications for the martial artist that comple-
ment the healing art.
Mantak Chia. Awaken Healing Energy Through the Tao. Aurora Press,
1983. Written as clear, logical, and practical medical descriptions
that encompass the physiological and spiritual practices for
awakening and circulating chi. This is the basic book and con-
tains practically all you'll ever need to know. Mantak Chia also
has a valuable series of books relating to various other aspects
of Taoist esoteric yoga, sexual practice, and nei kung published
through Healing Tao, 2 Creskill Place, Huntington, New York
11743.
Ajit Mookerjee. Kundalini: The Arousal of the Inner Energy. Rochester,
Vermont: Destiny Books, 1986. Describes the core experience of
Tantra and relates it to the opening of chakras; provides both
modern illustrations and ancient commentaries. An excellent
overview and worth comparing to the Taoist cosmology.
Gopi Krishna. Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man. Boston and
London: Shambhala, 19 71. Describes the effects and personal
experiences of an Indian gentleman who went through the kun-
dalini with no real prior training or expectations beyond curios-
ity and rudimentary meditative practice. It nearly killed him
and is a great cautionary tale as well as an accurate description.
It should be read by anyone who wants to follow in the steps
of their ancestors. Hillman's Jungian analysis of the experience
widely misses the reality of being touched by the goddess.
Sexual Practice
Mantak Chia and Maneewan Chia. Healing Love Through the Tao:
Cultivating Female Sexual Energy. Huntington, New York: Heal-
ing Tao Books, 1986. Absolutely the best book for women. Nev-
er give this to any female with whom you are intimate if you
haven't finished your own work. You'll never catch up if she
catches on. The ladies learn this stuff more quickly and easily
than men because of the structure of the corpus colossum.
They've one for male sexual practice called Taoist Secrets of
Love: Cultivating Male Sexual Energy. New York: Aurora Press,
1986. You should read both.
Annotated Bibliography for the Inner Adventurer
Dr. Stephen T. Chang. The Tao of Sexology: The Book of Infinite Wis-
dom. San Francisco: Tao Publishing, 1988. Combines Chinese
medicine and sex therapy i n unexpected but beneficial ways.
Easy to read and experiment with. Discussion of "million dol-
lar point" is invaluable. However, his discussion of strength-
ening the immune system to cancel out virus-related infections
is not supported by my experience nor observation of others.
Nik Douglas and Penny Slinger. Sexual Secrets: The Alchemy of Ecsta-
sy. New York: Destiny Books, 1979. A wonderful book. Pro-
vides cross-cultural tantric practice as well as tips for getting
into the attitudes of the gods. Must be read-though looking at
the pictures will provide for hours of experimentation. Referred
to in code by those in the know as The Big Red Book. The most
practical and useful discussion of higher tantric practice I've
ever found and I read a lot. No home library is complete with-
out it if you are trying to understand Eastern religion, sexuali-
ty,and culture. Margo Anand's The Art of Sexual Ecstasy (Tarcher,
1990) provides modern application of these ancient principles
for the beginning Westerner.
Dr. Alan P. Brauer and Donna Brauer. E.S.O., The New Promise o'f
Pleasure for Couples in Love: Extended Sexual Orgasm (an illus-
trated guide). New York: Warner Books, 1983. It's fun to see
what a bright young couple can figure out to d o with sexual
organs a n d a Western medical background. Go scientific
method!
Gregory J. P. Godek. 1001 Ways To Be Romantic. Weymouth, Mass.:
Casablanca Press, 1991. This is my major failing in life. A little
bit of this goes a long way. If you want to preserve a relation-
ship or create one, let Godek be your guide. It's never too late.
This book is a heartbreaker if you haven't a clue. My ex gave it
to me in hopes I would reform. It's a frightening mirror. I've
seen women burst into tears when reading it. The marriage
you save may be your own.
Philosophy and Strategy

Miyamoto Musashi. The Book of Five Rings. Woodstock, N.Y.: Over-
look Press, 1974. There is also a Bantam translation that is very
good. The Japanese consider this the equivalent of a Gospel
or Veda. It is a guide for the individual warrior and contains
many useful techniques for disposing of swordsmen.
Sun Tzu. The Art of War. Any number of translators. I like R. L.
Wing's The Art of Strategy. New York: Dolphin/Doubleday, 1988.
The guide book for Chinese bandits and inner adventurers
everywhere. Like go is to chess, Sun Tzu is to Clauswitz. Avoid-
ance of conflict is the basis of all strategies, leading to even-
tual total and permanent victory.
Lao Tzu. Tao Te Ching. Aside from the Bible, the most translated
book ever written. Once again, I'll support R.L. Wing's trans-
lation, The Tao of Power: Lao Tzu's Classic Guide to Leadership,
Influence and Excellence. New York: Dolphin/Doubleday, 1986.
There is no better prescription for skilled leadership than this
subtle and marvelous guide to influencing others.
Lex Hixon. Coming Home: The Experience of Enlightenment in Sacred
Traditions. Los Angeles: Tarcher, 1989. Ken Wilber thinks this is
the best introductory work o n the world's great mystical tra-
ditions. Hixon's presentation is unusually clear and easy to
read. He moves from ancient tradition to contemporary prac-
tice with a knowing skill. This book is more useful for the
beginner than John White's W h a t is Enlightenment.
The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy and Religion/Buddhism, Tao-
ism, Zen, Hinduism: A Complete Survey of the Teachers, Traditions,
and Literature of Asian Wisdom. Boston: Shambhala Publica-
tions, 1989. Tells you what the words mean, who the people
were, and what important things they said. A helpful text when
you are reading and people use esoteric language to demon-
strate they've been East or talked to a guru who didn't know
English words for his or her practice. (Sometimes there aren't
any. Salvation or "being cool" really isn't the equivalent of

satori or sammadhi.)
Dr. Christopher M. Bache. Life Cycles: Reincarnation and the Web
of Life. New York: Paragon House, 1990. The last two chapters
are brilliant and the rest of the book held my attention. The
Web of Life and discussion of Sheldrake's field theory had me
moving my lips. This is a very useful book as an interpreta-
tion of Sun Tzu's commentary on the Divine Web.
Warren Bennis. On Becoming a Leader. New York: Addison Wesley
Publishing, 1989. A guide to modern leadership in organiza-
tions. Research-based and well written. if you are going to be a
leader in the field of martial arts or just an excellent teacher
of the way, this book will provide information that is just as use-
ful as the more traditional Oriental texts concerning strategy
and leadership.
Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Expe-
rience. New York: Harper and Row, 1990. A guide to the inner
experiences that make life worthwhile. Psychological support for
the Zen experience. He even cites ninjutsu as a possible route to
physical liberation. Interesting book if you're pedantic or skep-
tical enough to need a totally Western viewpoint. He tends to
squeeze the juice out of the lemons.
Herbert Silberer. Hidden Symbolism of Alchemy and the Occult Arts.
New York: Dover Publications, 1928. Also J. C. Cooper's A n
Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols. New York: Thames
and Hudson, 1987. Cooper explains all kinds of things if you
haven't figured out that there is a basis to magic that is rather
weird science. A knowledge of symbols becomes very important
when you begin to visualize and communicate telepathically.
Silberer's book is quite old and way ahead of his time. He was
probably burned on a stake. He translates some old German
alchemical texts and then performs a Freudian interpretation
that is quite good.
Personal Health and Well Being

Bob Anderson. Stretching. Bolinas, Calif.: Shelter Publications,
1980. Stretching is necessary for the body's ability to process
higher energy. This fun book of stretches is very helpful. If you
want to be very knowledgeable, combine this with the analysis
of asanas you get monthly in the popular magazine Yoga Jour-
nal and that will provide all the exercises you need.
Shizuto Masanuga with Wataru Ohashi. Zen Shiatsu: How to Har-
monize Yin and Yang for Better Health. Tokyo, Japan: Japan Pub-
lications, Inc., 1977. People keep stealing my shiatsu books,
and once you start experimenting with the techniques you'll
understand why. Shiatsu becomes particularly interesting once
you've developed chi kung.
The Editors of Prevention Magazine and The Center for Positive
Living. Positive Living and Health: T h e Complete Guide to
Bruin/Body Healing and Mental Empowerment. Emmaus, Pa.:
Rodale Press, 1990. The editors overstate their case, but this
book is full of useful information and handy tips. All the health-
oriented books from Rodale Press are excellent sources for the
independent investigator.
Edward Bach, M.D., and F. J. Wheeler, M.D., The Bach Flower Reme-
dies. New Canaan, Ct.: Keats Health Classic, 1979. You have
to try these things. You should also learn about homeopathic
medicine. I know of few martial artists that don't respect chi-
ropractors and massage therapists, for that matter.
Ted Kaptchuk and Michael Croucher. The Healing Arts: Exploring the
Medical Ways of the World. New York: Summit Books, 1987.
Every culture has its own system of maintaining health. This
lucid book draws the best from many and explains their rele-
vance to contemporary Western medicine. It was given to me
by Dr. Michael Fenster, who recommended it highly.
Enlightened Martial Arts

Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi. Essence of Ninjutsu: The Nine Traditions. Chica-
go: Contemporary Press, 1988. Ninjutsu: History and Traditions.
Burbank, Calif.: Unique Publications, 1981. Only Hatsumi can
express the feeling of ninjutsu from the grandmaster's view-
point. One should go to the source while he is still living if
you want to understand this complex art. None of his American
interpreters are even close to the reality of his skill.
Taisen Deshimaru, Roshi. The Zen W a y to the Martial Arts. New
York: E. P. Dutton, Inc., 1982. Makes many oriental concepts
accessible. It's required reading after Musashi for my students.
Clearly states that bushido is a subset of butsudo. The samurai
at his best.
Jou, Tsung Hwa. The Tao of Tai-Chi Chuan: W a y to Rejuvenation.
Piscataway, N.J.: The Tao Foundation or Charles E. Tuttle, Pub-
lishers, 1981. Reveals the history and relationship of tai chi to
chi kung. Contains valuable information concerning center-
ing, movement, and breathing exercises. Shows how the fun-
damentals of energy movement can be applied to any martial
art.
Trevor Leggett. Zen and the Ways. Rutland, Vermont, and Tokyo:
Charles E. Tuttle, 1987. Leggett has a number of books on the
martial arts of Japan. He has been acknowledged by the Japan-
ese government as a Westerner able to represent their think-
ing. His are the only translation of "warrior Zen" scrolls from
the thirteenth century into English. He never loses sight of
the practical implications of what he translates. Read.
Stephen P. Hayes. The Ancient Art of Ninja Warfare: Combat, Espi-
onage and Traditions. Chicago: Contemporary, 1988. All of his
work will eventually be collector items. He's the best Ameri-
can source of traditional training and historical information
for the ninja enthusiast. He has entered the Mikkyo priesthood.
Strange Stuff that Won't Seem So Strange

after a While
Dr. Rammamurti S. Mishras. The Textbook of Yoga Psychology: A
new translation and interpretation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras for
meaningful application in all modem psychologic disciplines. New
York: The Julian Press, 1963. Need I say more? Patanjali was
the greatest psychologist in all of history. His exposition of the
spiritual mental process is completely accurate and transcends
cultural influence. He was a man for all times.
Gary Doore. Shaman's Path: Healing, Personal Growth and Empow-
erment. Boston and London: Shambhala, 1988. A very good
collection of essays concerning modern applications of some
very old ideas and principles.
Joseph Campbell, ed. The Mythic Image. Princeton, N.J.: Bollingen
Series C, Princeton University Press, 1968. I wish I'd known
about this book when I first started doing chi kung. Campbell
has done an excellent job in popularizing and explaining the
esoteric in religion across cultures.
Arthur Hastings. W i t h the Tongues of Men and Angels: A Study of
Channeling. Forth Worth, Texas: Hold, Rinehard and Winston,
1990. A more Christian perspective on channeling but pre-
sented with plenty of empirical back-up. Easy to read and com-
prehensive.
Felicitas D. Goodman. Where the Spirits Ride the Wind: Trance Jour-
neys and Other Ecstatic Experiences. Bloomington and Indi-
anapolis: Indiana University Press, 1990. Describes positions
and rituals that invite rather interesting guests to come visit
your body. Some of these women's groups make Robert Bly's
bad boys look pretty harmless by comparison. I tried her stuff
out and animal sensibility can be interesting.
Bruce A. Vance, Poet. Dreamscape: Voyage in a n alternate Reality.
Wheaton, Ill.: Quest Books, Theosophical Publishing House,
1989. The best book I've found concerning dreamwork. Very
process- and experience-oriented and full of useful ideas that

come from someone who has done what he is writing about.
Let Vance be your guy in this tricky area.
Keep going. Keep playing. Study on this.

About the Author
G LENN J. MORRIS is an elected member of The World Martial

Arts Hall of Fame. Dr. Morris was granted the title Oshihan by
the Board of Directors of the Bun Bu-Ichi Zendo Budo/Bugei Rem-
mei in 1991. In 1992 he was given the rank of Shichidan (sev-
enth dan, black belt or nanaedan) in Bujinkan Ninpo. He has
been ranked rokudan (sixth dan, black belt) in Nihon Karate Jujut-
su and in 1990 passed the sword test for godan (fifth dan) in the
legendary Togakure Ryu. He was personally given a Shidoshi's
license in Bujinkan Ninpo by grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi-Soke
and 34th linear grandmaster of the oldest surviving school of
combatic strategy in the world. Togakure Ryu ninjutsu has an
unbroken lineage extending back to the eleventh century.
Following the directions for chi kung meditative practice rec-
ommended by Taoist scholars of 2500 years ago, in 1985 Dr. Mor-
ris survived what is commonly referred to as the arousal of the
kundalini in yoga, and the greater kan and li by practitioners of
Chinese esoteric meditation arts. After achieving these levels of
mastery in traditional Asian systems of enlightenment, Glenn
was able to replicate his experience for his own students using
the scientific method to create a martial way appropriate for Amer-
icans (Hoshinroshiryu) but firmly based in the combat schools of
China and Japan. He has also developed a less physical system
for the not so athletically inclined as part of the Phoenix Whole
Person Institute. Shidoshi Morris often demonstrates and presents
as an instructor on the World Congress of Martial Arts teaching
team.
Dr. Morris earned his bachelor's in General Arts and Science,
master's in Speech at Penn State, and his Ph.D. in Communication
at Wayne State. He completed a Doctor of Science in Psychology

and Polemikology at Eurotechnical Research University and is
Dean of General Academics for the recently founded Rockwell
School of Applied Arts and Sciences degree programs for black
belt-holding martial artists in traditional and eclectic systems at
Hilo, Hawaii.
Dr. Morris has been a college professor and a psychological
consultant to the Fortune 200 for most of his professional life.
He has written and delivered empirically based strategical, moti-
vational, and team-building programs to the automotive indus-
try, school systems, grocery chains, power production corporations,
the chemical industry, and retailers. He thinks of his martial arts
accomplishments as simply milestones resulting from his hob-
bies. He is a n independent representative of the National Educa-
tional Training Group of Michigan and consults with Mike Palmer
and Robert Simpson Associates out of Flint, Michigan.
Dr. Morris has or has had professional memberships i n the
American Association for the Advancement of Science, Associa-
tions for Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology, The Speech
Communication Association, the International Society for the
Study of Subtle Energy and Energy Medicine, Foundation for
Shamanistic Research, Institute of Noetic Sciences, International
Guild of Counselors and Therapists, and The National Guild of
Hypnotists.

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Path Notes

North Atlantic Books

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Chapter Five: Meditations for Becoming Enlightened. . . . . . . . 57

Chapter Sixteen: Spirits ...

Annotated Bibliography for the Inner Adventurer . . . . . . . . . .253

This book is for my parents, my wives, and their children who

John Yono, a boxer living in Livonia, Michigan, has provided

D r. Morris and I met through the practice of Budo. Over the

hold on to the energy of Life Force for human happiness and a

n the summer of 1985 I began a series of experiments on myself

li.) Just what implications the actualization of Western-educated

manner of a scroll. A scroll shows you the basic principles or for-

nei shen kung fu, as well as received honorary licenses in karate

I'm delighted to be part of a new college specifically created for

Enlightenment is a biological process which has intellectual con-

ninja's primary responsibility is spiritual development and a deep

As most of the techniques for spiritual development are drawn

and Picasso were lefties, as are many professional athletes, partic-

what that might mean for you as a human animal attempting to

A Brief History of Ninjutsu,

lished a reputation for teamwork and assassination. To the best of

involved with martial arts for thirty-seven years). Many people

Taijutsu is the physical art associated with ninpo. Because its

Tannemura, who actually claims to be Takamatsu's successor, is

how to shoot a flintlock or even make one, but my military expe-

tionship. One is often preparation for the other. Teaching is often

wrestler, still contemptuously refers to my interests as "Oriental

you have total control of your emotional states. You cannot be

considered female since it is attractive, whereas yang is repelling.

taijutsu uprooting movement probably comes out of here. In

grandmaster. You may have noted reading Musashi that when he

off. I occasionally run into a young ninjutsu trainee in Chicago

Chi Kung and Kundalini:

w ORTHWHILE MARTIAL ARTS have a basis in meditation and

long-dead masters who had probably passed on the warnings oral-

courage as well as skill. Each of us can only testify to our own

ness is a recognition of one's separateness from others and one's

tator uses air with exceptional efficiency and is seldom breath-

something like a dancer or gymnast but not as athletic or aes-

The Kundalini Experience

wise I sat cross-legged, listening to funny music with my eyes

which are logical progressions resulting from the experience but

flabbergasted. I was having hallucinations of Hindu temple whores?

my consciousness rocketed out of Jonesville, Michigan, into uni-

the same relation to intelligence or problem-solving. Sentience is

What happened next I can only describe as a fist being shoved

cool yin energy is difficult as it is usually produced by the left

cia1 attention, as damage improperly healed often creates a block

According to the transpersonal psychologists who research in

best all-around general advice I found to go along with "Love thy

Do not believe in anything simply because you have

Some of the changes since those days: I n o longer follow a reg-

or serpent-wreathed head are universally regarded as symbols of fer-

Traditional Relationships and

with the inscrutable. Leo Sebregst's teacher, a retired Chinese gen-

rience as kohai (heart that says yes? or junior). Sempai have an

ticular discipline of a large system. By being the memory of the

has no rules and thus continually forces adaptation and creation

good ninja stuff. We became friends as he seemed to think I was