Editorial Staff:

Alex Tong

Anjali Krishnan

Newsletter of the American Amateur Karate Federation

June, 2015 Volume 6, Issue 1

Most robust art forms evolve by incorporating new ideas without forsaking basic tenets. Sensei Ginchin Fuankoshi introduced traditional karate-do to Japan in May, 1922. Senseis Masatoshi Nakayma, and Hidetaka Nishiyama (Founder of AAKF), made the quantum jump of integrating kinesiology and biomechanics concepts without sacrificing discipline and philosophy of the art form, significantly adding to the present day appeal for traditional karate training. For almost a hundred years now, budo remains the core values of traditional karate-do. The budo practitioner strives to be a better person through constant reflection and improvement, and is someone who respects

Editorial: Something Old, Something New

Inside this Issue:

Letter from the Editor

Through the Eyes of a White Belt

Learning the Basics

A Good Death: The Concept of

Honor and Ultimate Self-Sacrifice

Flyer for the Fall 2015 National

Seminar

Flyer for the 54th AAKF National

Championship

and contributes to a better world. In the opinion piece entitled, “A Good Death: The Concept of Honor and Ultimate Self-Sacrifice”, I attempted to draw parallels between observance of budo to clinicians who put these values in practice though not in name. Many travelled thousands of miles, and at considerable risks to care for patients afflicted with Ebola, one of the deadliest epidemics in modern time. The tribute was written some 6 months ago but is no less true today. With their knowledge, devotion and bare hands, these modern day samurais helped make our world a better place.

Continued on Page 3

SEIZAN®

Being new to karate, and I mean new (picture a baby deer taking its first steps, a gi that's still stiff and bleach white and a kiai that wouldn't even make a fly twitch), you can imagine how honored I was when asked by AAKF Western Regional Director and my sensei, Taichiro Kaijima, to write about the AAKF National Seminar.

Before I go on about the seminar, I know that everybody has a story about why they chose a journey in Shotokan karate. I've never followed the art, but have always been fascinated and respected those that I see performing karate in their 70s and 80s, moving as if they were in their 40s. And their minds were as in shape as their bodies. More importantly, I also love the fact that the karate philosophy extends beyond the dojo. I like to call this “living life with balance”. It is something that I am striving to achieve daily. To me, it's not how fast I can progress to the next rank; it's learning karate the right way just like I try to do with the other aspects of my life. I want to live in the moment while in pursuit of karate-do (implies that karate as a total way of life well beyond self-defense applications). My goal is best expressed by Ginchin Funikoshi Sensei’s saying: "Become better today than yesterday and then better

tomorrow than today!" This is all that I can ask of myself to succeed in this journey and the rest of my life.

The day started at my home dojo, Valley Traditional Karate in North Hollywood, California, with the introduction of Senseis Robert Fusaro, Mahmoud Tabassi, Richard Kageyama, and Alex Tong.

Tabassi Sensei with his large stature, projecting voice and engaging charisma gave a great speech in which he mentioned that there was going to be a lot of information covered. He wasn't kidding. My head still hurts and I even discovered some new muscles I didn't even know I had. At the end of his speech, he also said that the seminar would be a success if you learn one new piece of information, make one new friend, and have fun. He really set a great tone for the day before introducing Robert Fusaro Sensei.

Fusaro Sensei started off speaking about his journey in karate and the influence that the influence of the late Nishiyama Sensei in his success. He then reviewed in detail the rooted stance and application of the corkscrew punch.

Continued on Page 2

The AAKF National Seminar: Through the Eyes of a White Belt By Kirk Jaco, Western Region

Page 2 of 7 SEIZAN

For me as a beginner, I felt that these were two of the big pieces of information from the seminar that really resonated. Throughout the event, all the Senseis shared a plethora of valuable information and walked around the mat helping with techniques.

As a neophyte to the art, it might be best to set aside analysis of further technical aspects and share a few acts of Karate-do that I experienced firsthand. These gracious acts set aside my frustrations and gave me the peace of mind that I have made the right decision to pursue a journey in Shotokan karate. A majority of the time on the first day was dedicated to breaking down the kata Heian nidan. As a 10th kyu, I was not familiar with the kata. I kind of panicked and felt lost and confused. With Tabassi Sensei leading the first few run-throughs of the kata, Sensei Taichiro Kaijima stepped in by my side so I could follow. What a relief! But then Tabassi Sensei called him to the front to continue leading the group. I was left alone to continue trying to follow along. Now I was really lost and confused!

I then felt my arms being pulled from behind. Someone was leading me and guiding my movements like a puppeteer controlling a puppet. It took me by surprise and a moment to realize that it was Tabassi Sensei. He saw me in a tailspin and immediately came from across the dojo like a lifeguard on a beach, running to someone that got caught in a riptide. He came to my rescue while calling out the name of each movement. It was a relief - like I just came up for air. The helpful actions of both Kaijima Sensei and Tabassi Sensei made me feel like I was experiencing a little taste of karate-do concepts in practice; two actions that I hope to pay forward to a newcomer someday.

Because I didn't like that sensation of being in a tailspin, drowning, I stayed up until 3 a.m. that night to learn the kata movements so I could keep up the next day. Just before the start of day two sessions, I shared with a fellow karate buddy, Jon, that had I stayed up to learn Heian Nidan. He said the day would now be focused on kumite (sparring) instead! This is not what I wanted to hear…. I guess I’m still learning the lesson of not assuming. Ah, the growing pains of a newbie! During the seminar’s lunch break

Through the Eyes of a White Belt Continued with everyone around and listening, I attempted to stop Jon in mid-sentence as he started to share with Kaijima Sensei that I had stayed up learning Heian Nidan. Jon said that he owed me this public shaming for the time that I accidentally opened the dressing room door while he was indisposed. OK, we're even!

Well, of course there were chuckles among the group and a little embarrassment on my end. When lunch was over, Tabassi Sensei lined up the group. He then announced that he overheard that someone had stayed up until 3 a.m. to learn Heian Nidan and wanted that someone an opportunity to perform the kata. This really caught me by surprise. This may sound mawkish, but it actually kind of touched me that he cared enough to do something of that nature. Of course, this was another example of karate-do and one of those cool moments I can see remembering for a long way down the road in this amazing journey.

Despite being totally out of my comfort zone, you can say that I exceeded Tabassi Sensei's expectations by learning more than one piece of information, making more than one new friend and even having fun through my overwhelming confusion. I even scored a bonus. I finally got to do my Heian Nidan. I also can't leave out sharing another awesome event I was fortunate enough to witness. Our fellow VTK brother Nate Tam and student of Kaijima Sensei earned his black belt at the end of day 2 of the seminar with my fellow karate brothers and sisters watching. He accomplishes this after years of incredible dedication. What a way to close out an awesome event at your home dojo with great friends.

I want to personally thank Valley Traditional Karate instructors Senseis Taichiro Kaijima, Eiko Murata and Jon Budd for hosting a great event and also welcoming me into the dojo family.

Kirk Jaco is a Social Media Strategist/Consultant in Los Angeles and just recently began his journey in Shotokan karate training at Valley Traditional Karate earlier this year. He successfully passed his first test after the National Seminar and became an 8th Kyu yellow belt. He is also an avid runner and is training for a half marathon.

Sensei Robert Fusaro (far left) leading kumite’ training at the AAKF National Seminar held in

Los Angeles (LA)

“My goal is best expressed by Ginchin Funikoshi Sensei’s

saying: "Become better today than yesterday and then better tomorrow than today!" This is all that I can ask of myself to succeed in in this journey and

the rest of my life.”

Sensei Mahmoud Tabassi illustrating kumite technique foundation with Sensei Sasa

Panic

Page 3 of 7 SEIZAN

I’ve always been an active guy. As a child, my parents decided to make use of my hyperactive nature and put me in gymnastics. I was 3 at the time, and fell in love with it. Throughout my childhood I participated in countless sports and physical activities, but through it all I was always going to gymnastics and training at a highly competitive level. This was the catalyst for my love of karate. When I was 14 I had to make a choice; be a full-time gymnast, or a regular high school guy. I chose the latter. I knew I couldn’t be burdened by the stress of gymnastics for the rest of my life. I had lasting injuries on many joints and muscles, but the worst was my lower back. I now have degenerative discs and joints because of the stress gymnastics took on my body. It was tearing me down, taking my time, my body, and most of my life with it, so I quit. A couple of years later I discovered film editing. It was a hobby at high school, but I later decided to go to school for it. I ended up at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, where the opportunity to take up karate opened up. While in college, I landed an internship at an ad agency, where I worked under a man named Jon Menefee. He told me about the dojo he had just started attending, and invited me and a co-worker to join. I was initially reluctant, but tried it out anyway. After all, he was the boss and I couldn’t just say no.

I’d like to say karate caught my eye, that Taichiro Sensei drew me into the art and that I was hooked from the first minute I walked into the dojo. But that wasn’t the case. I distinctly remember disliking my first class. It wasn’t bad; I just wasn’t prepared for something so different. After being pressured a little more, I forced myself to go to a second class…and then a third, fourth, fifth. Before I knew it I had been training for a couple months, become a member, and fallen in love with karate. But I didn’t know why. Then it hit me. Gymnastics had prepared my body for most physical activities. It had taught me body coordination, and discipline, which was a great help when starting karate, but it didn’t have what karate so clearly embodies. Wholeness. Bettering myself. Training for a reason. Karate wasn’t tearing me down, it was building me up. There were only white belt students when I joined Valley Traditional Karate (VTK). You could count all of them in one hand. Because of our small size and low ranking, we got a lot of attention and focused purely on the fundamentals for the first year of training. We focused a lot on stance, posture, and clear body dynamics. I’ll be forever grateful for this season of karate.

Continued on Page 4

Learning The Basics By Nate Tam, WesternRegion

Two additional articles relate to more recent developments at AAKF. The Spring National Seminar was held at the Valley Martial Arts on April 17-19 in balmy North Hollywood. Nate Tam’s article narrates his karate journey from white belt to shodan, as he uncovered the “wholeness” of training for mind, body, and spirit. Seizan extends our congratulations to Mr. Tam! Kirk Jaco’s article entitled, “The AAKF National Seminar: Through the Eyes of a White Belt”, described his trepidation and excitement while attending his first National Seminar. It was gratifying that Mr. Jaco ultimately deemed it to be a highly positive experience. Unbeknownst to Mr. Jaco and other participants, this National Seminar was the first in which training was led by Members of the AAKF Technician Committee as well as senior local instructors (Senseis

Ron Vance, Taichiro Kaijima) and senior US Team members (Senseis Sasa Panic, Soolmaz Abooali). Without the infusion of novel ideas, an art form could become stagnant. Synergism of teachings flowed from session to session. It was the consensus of the Technical Committee as well as attendees that this new format was highly informative and energizing. We look forward to seeing all of you again at the International Seminars and National Championships in (June 23-27, Herndon, VA/Washington DC) and the Fall National Seminar in Atlanta, GA (Sept 25-27 Smirna/Atlanta, GA) for more training and competition that will again be something old, something new, but always top drawers! Alex Tong General Editor

Editorial Continued

Sensei Soolmaz Abooali explaining kizamizuki with

Senseis Sasa Panic (middle) and John Bell (right)

“ … what karate so clearly embodies. Wholeness.

Bettering myself. Training for a reason. Karate wasn’t tearing me down, it was

building me up.

Sensei Richard Kageyama explaining kumite' timing at the LA

AAKF National Seminar

Page 4 of 7 SEIZAN

I was fortunate enough to see VTK grow. Before we knew it, our dojo had started expanding exponentially. New students signed up constantly. We moved out of the small dance studio that we rented a couple times a week and into our own space just up the street. Kata was my favorite of the three aspects of training through the first years of my training. It was most familiar to me, and I was better at it than kumite. Performing a routine of movements was something I was very used to, but I slowly grew out of it. All at once, our small group who trained together since VTK’s inception received brown belts. We started honing kumite skills in a new “advanced class”. Soon I was just as comfortable with kumite as kata, maybe even more so. There were reasons I couldn’t train as hard as others. I finished school and started working in the entertainment industry. Long working night and weekends were mentally and physically draining. As I got more busy, training became harder and harder to keep up; but I pushed through with the support of my fellow karateka and family. Time flew by during this hectic schedule. Before I knew it, more than 3 years have gone by and I was a 1st kyu, training for my black belt exam. I decided to ramp up my training schedule to 6 classes a week at about 4 months before the shodan examination, practicing my exam sequence as much as I could. I wanted to be sure that come examination, it would be second nature, which I wouldn’t have to think about it so much. Taichiro Sensei suggested I participate in the 2015 National Seminar hosted at our dojo. This was in addition to the shodan test. I dreaded the idea of testing after a grueling 3-day seminar, but I knew it was absolutely the

Learning the Basics Continued right thing to do. The seminar was eye

opening. I learned things I never thought about, let alone heard of. I had participated in seminars before, but for some reason this one really taught me a lot. I realized how little I know, and how much more there is to work on. The time came, and I stood in front of Senseis Fusaro, Tabassi, Tong, Kageyama and Kaijima. I was sore, tired, and much more excited than I should have been. I couldn’t help how much energy I was giving to each technique. It seemed like it all was pouring out of me faster than I could get a handle on. The test flew by so quickly I hardly knew when it was over. I don’t really remember much, but I do remember how tired I was at the end, sweating more than ever. I pushed my body to its limits, and was happy to be standing at the end. Later that night, they told me the news. I had passed my first dan examination! “Now you know the basics.” Kageyama Sensei told me after the test later that night. I thought back on the seminar and the 5 and a half years it took. There are parts of karate I haven’t even started thinking about, and now the door is open to tackle those concepts. I’m so grateful for the community of karatekas, friends, and family. I feel a sense of support that you can’t get anywhere else. With the help from those people, time, effort, and training, I can’t wait to see what the basics I’ve learned will lead. Nate Tam works as a film editor in Hollywood. He’s recently married to Erin Tam in Sierra Madre, CA, where they currently reside. He looks forward to participating in all tournament events as a black belt in years to come. Nate’s shodan kata is Kanku Sho.

The modern concept of budo is rooted in the concepts of bushido, or “the way of the warrior” as practiced by the Japanese samurai. The word samurai originally meant “one who serves,” and referred to men of noble birth assigned to guard members of the Imperial Court. This service ethic spawned the roots of samurai nobility, both social and spiritual.

President Teddy Roosevelt was often credited for introducing the bushido concept to the American culture. Within a few decades after abolition of the Japan’s warrior class, Roosevelt raved about a newly released book entitled

Bushido: The Soul of Japan. He bought five dozen copies for family and friends. This slim volume by Nitobe Ianzo went on to become an international bestseller. While critics scoffed at Nitobe’s work for romanticizing servitude in a rigid social caste, the author’s discourse on the Eight Virtues of bushido (rectitude/justice, courage, benevolence/mercy, politeness, honesty/sincerity, honor, loyalty, character/ self-control) took hold to signify chivalry personally and professionally. These concepts have been examined exhaustively across cultural boundaries to this modern time.

Continued on Page 5

OPINION: A Good Death: The Concept of Honor and Ultimate Self-Sacrifice* By Alex Tong, Southwestern Region

Kumite' drill practice at the AAKF National Seminar held in Los Angeles

“Eight Virtues of bushido: rectitude/justice,

courage, benevolence/mercy,

politeness, honesty/sincerity,

honor, loyalty,

character/self-control.”

Instructors and participants at the AAKF National Seminar held in Los

Angeles

Page 5 of 7 SEIZAN

A Good Death Continued Much has been said about the samurai culture as a culture of death. A more studied interpretation is that bushido is rooted in preparing for the “honorable death” through dignity, and preservation of the perceived social norm at the expense of loss of life for self and others. By constantly placing one’s life in the balance, the samurai was resolved to the ultimate sacrifice for the common good. The concept of a “good death” perpetrates all ancient cultures dating back to Solon, the sage of Athens, who argued that one couldn't judge a person's happiness until one knew the manner of his death. The Greeks recognized that we're all destined to die and that the best we can hope for is a death that benefits our family or humanity. On November 17, 2014 the sad news of Dr. Martin Salia’s death hit the national media. He is the second person who died of Ebola in the United States, within two weeks of showing symptoms. Dr. Salia was a surgeon who divided his time between his family in Maryland and hospitals in his native country Sierra Leone. In an April interview posted on YouTube, Dr. Salia had said that he took the job not because he wanted to, but he firmly believed that it was his calling. In May 2015, the medical community celebrated the news that the Ebola epidemic is officially over in Liberia, Senegal, and Nigeria, a little over a year since declaration of the Ebola epidemic by the World Health Organization in March, 2014. Over 11,000 people have died, including over 300 health care workers. At the peak of the epidemic, the non-political organization, Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) have dispatched 700 health care workers from around the world to Ebola-stricken countries. Statistics from October 14, 2014 (shortly before this article was first prepared) showed that 16 of its staff members have contracted this deadly disease. Nine have died, including three physicians, a doctor from Norway, another from France, and Dr. Salia, an American. Dr. Salia’s ultimate sacrifice harks back to the Perspective article entitled “A Good Death, Ebola and Sacrifice” by Mugele and Priest (Sept 25th, 2014 issue, New England Journal of Medicine). The moving tribute addressed the death of Dr. Sam Brisbane, a Liberian physician. Dr. Mugele wrote:

“…when our work becomes life-threatening, we have to decide what benefit we will be to our patients and what cost it will exact from us. In such circumstances, we cannot be expected to uphold the same duty of care. But during the world's worst Ebola outbreak to date, clinicians like Dr. Brisbane are on the front lines — and are dying as a result. They care for patients despite the risks to themselves, despite the inadequate supplies and infrastructure, despite their insufficient training in infection control. Dr. Sam Brisbane's death diminishes us as a people. But with apologies to his wife and family, who saw him die horribly and unjustly, and despite the deep loss we feel, we believe our friend died a good death — as did all the nurses and doctors who have sacrificed themselves caring for patients with this awful disease.” We should draw inspiration from those who place themselves in mortal danger in order to preserve a better way of life for others. For them, a good death is not a concept but a reality. Ebola health care workers, and for that matter, thousands in the US armed forces, constantly place themselves at mortal risk to preserve a common good, and to sustain a way of life that is ever more fragile. Their efforts are made more poignant against the backdrop of the current time culture of self-promotion and extremism. As we reap the benefits of others’ self-sacrifice, we should do our part by observing and preserving values in our calling that is budo, in order to pass these timeless values to younger generations through teaching and example. *This opinion piece was prepared for the December 2014 publication of Seizan but deferred to the current issue by an editorial decision. References Cited: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28755033 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)62417-X Mugele J, Priest, C. Perspective: A Good Death — Ebola and Sacrifice. N Engl J Med 2014; 371:1185-1187, September 25, 2014. Tim Clark. The Bushido Code: The Eight Virtues of the Samurai; in “The Art of Maniliness”; Sept 14, 2008.

Sensei Alex Tong, doing his part in preserving the values of

budo, seen here explaining execution of jodan osae uke with Sensei Soolmaz Abooali

“As we reap the benefits of others’ self-sacrifice, we should do our part by observing and preserving values in our calling that is

budo, in order to pass these timeless values to

younger generations through teaching and

example.”

“A more studied interpretation is that bushido is rooted in

preparing for the “honorable death” through dignity, and

preservation of the perceived social norm at the expense of loss of life for self and others.

By constantly placing one’s life in the balance, the samurai was

resolved to the ultimate sacrifice for the common good.”

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SEIZAN Page 7 of 7 SEIZAN

Photographs published courtesy of: Facebook

page of the Valley Martial Arts Center (VMAC)

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