Basic Iaido exercises?

[Peter West]

Yes, if you have it! Will they not be at the Summer school in Stevenage?

Yes indeed, and yes to the blog thing.

[still learning]

If only they had made it clear who was teaching what and to whom,.....

Given yourbackground, training and current employment - - I think we have assume [too much] that you are reasonably bright.

The notification[s] for the event mentioned, after the Japanese chaps, Jock and Chris M.
Take your time;- think it through;-.................. are you getting there??

Ditherer!
You missed a fabulous event......... and a taikai......... and the opportunity to be schooled by both Morita S and Oshita S - - let alone Messrs Hopson and Mansfield.

[Peter West]

Given yourbackground, training and current employment - - I think we have assume [too much] that you are reasonably bright.

The notification[s] for the event mentioned, after the Japanese chaps, Jock and Chris M.
Take your time;- think it through;-.................. are you getting there??

Ditherer!
You missed a fabulous event......... and a taikai......... and the opportunity to be schooled by both Morita S and Oshita S - - let alone Messrs Hopson and Mansfield.

And you missed a day and a half of me proving nothing more than I can count to 12 in Japanese over and over again. It takes 30 years of iaido training to be able to do that.

[Kokoro777]

Given yourbackground, training and current employment - - I think we have assume [too much] that you are reasonably bright.

Whatever gives you that impression? Anyway, how do you know about my background? Have you been stalking me on the Internet? I have some 'special photos' of myself I could send you if that's what you've been looking for

The notification[s] for the event mentioned, after the Japanese chaps, Jock and Chris M.
Take your time;- think it through;-.................. are you getting there??

You're being a clear as you always are Bill. Is it you who writes the assembly instructions for dodgy Eastern furniture manufacturers?

Ditherer!
You missed a fabulous event......... and a taikai......... and the opportunity to be schooled by both Morita S and Oshita S - - let alone Messrs Hopson and Mansfield.

Missed a taikai-not great tragedy there then Yes its a shame I missed the seminar, but like I said, I'm skint this month and £250 was simply not an option especially when I felt the seminar details were not that clear. This seems to be a bit of a recurring theme in my opinion. For example, I decided to take the plunge at Bideford and try the MSR Koryu class with Chris S and Len S. I have very limited experience of the Koryu so I thought this might be my opportunity to learn them from brilliant practitioners. My fellow Koryu learners didn't know what would be covered in the session and what knowledge we needed and quite a few of us were relatively new to Koryu. The session turned out to be was diamond encrusted pearls before swine in my case. I couldn't even understand what was being explained to us and a Godan came up to me during a break and said, "This is stuff even we find difficult to follow, so don't worry". Don't get me wrong, the teaching was truly excellent and I've never seen a sword longer than I am high (no very) move so quickly and precisely and Len S was so kind and spent ages trying to get us newbies up to speed, but it was clear I needed, at the very least, a reasonable grounding in all the Shoden kata to even stand a chance of gleaning anything from the session. I didn't have this knowledge nor did I know I'd probably need it. Now if there'd been a line in the seminar details saying 'A working knowledge of the entire Shoden set is advisable for this session', then I could've made a more informed decision. The next morning I made my apologies and switched to the Seitei session where I made some headway.

I think some of the senior grades, Bill, have forgotten what its like to be at the low end of the experience scale and simply not know how things are. If you are a senior grade, then you can be plonked into virtually any Iaido seminar situation and thrive, but for us lower grades, this is not the case. So a little more information, just a few strokes of a keyboards, 'This session will be taken by......' 'You will need to know....... to gain full benefit from this session' can make all the difference to us beginners.

[Ookami7]

Kokoro7 your really over thinking this stuff too much!!!! If you got time and money then get your butt out and to dojo, seminar, whatever!!! If your @ dojo, seminar, whatever take notes, ask questions, soak up what you can!!! Enough said!!!! If you can't make that's fine but save up for next one..... Enough said!!!! That type of seminar is almost non existant in some places and areas!!!! So to have a chance to go and be worrying about what you need to know before ....... Please!!!! Some of us would die to have chances like that and to be able to soak up info like that!!!!

[still learning]

Kokoro7 your really over thinking this stuff too much!!!! If you got time and money then get your butt out and to dojo, seminar, whatever!!! If your @ dojo, seminar, whatever take notes, ask questions, soak up what you can!!! Enough said!!!! If you can't make that's fine but save up for next one..... Enough said!!!! That type of seminar is almost non existant in some places and areas!!!! So to have a chance to go and be worrying about what you need to know before ....... Please!!!! Some of us would die to have chances like that and to be able to soak up info like that!!!!

Agreed!

Anil;
In this, commonly known as, 'the communication age' was it [IS it] beyond your wit to communicate with someone who MAY be in the know.... thereby conferring a little more information on which one can make [more] informed decisions?

It must be said that - in many instances - before we arrive we do not know how the seminar/sessions/groups will be structured. Simply going with the flow is about the only answer.............
You tried the koryu group - - and switched to the seitei group.
Well done! You managed to make a decision overnight........ and, I am sure, gained more benefit from the weekend [Bideford] than you currently realise.

As for the Birmingham session you missed.......... and the costs involved; I am sure that in the world of skint-ness I am further down the shit-hole than you are... but I performed a cost-benefit analysis......... and rationalised that there was greater benefit than cost[s]. I lashed out nearly £400.......... but feel that I achieved 'value-for-money' before Saturday lunchtime.

[Peter West]

Agreed!

Anil;
In this, commonly known as, 'the communication age' was it [IS it] beyond your wit to communicate with someone who MAY be in the know.... thereby conferring a little more information on which one can make [more] informed decisions?

It must be said that - in many instances - before we arrive we do not know how the seminar/sessions/groups will be structured. Simply going with the flow is about the only answer.............
You tried the koryu group - - and switched to the seitei group.
Well done! You managed to make a decision overnight........ and, I am sure, gained more benefit from the weekend [Bideford] than you currently realise.

As for the Birmingham session you missed.......... and the costs involved; I am sure that in the world of skint-ness I am further down the shit-hole than you are... but I performed a cost-benefit analysis......... and rationalised that there was greater benefit than cost[s]. I lashed out nearly £400.......... but feel that I achieved 'value-for-money' before Saturday lunchtime.

And as there was an option to do Seitei with one of the hachidans every day, nothing would have been wasted had you chosen not to join the MSR group.

[satsumaruma]

I would have loved to have gone to this seminar.

Even if it had only been Jock S, Chris M S, Fay S and Peter S teaching. And by using the term 'even' I am meaning no disrespect because all these Sensei have enough insight to keep me going for years.

But there was Morita S and Oshita S. A Hakone Taikai winner and a Hakone Taikai runner up. How good do you want?



But I didn't make this one because I had been in Japan for two weeks and had to work the weekend as a payback to a colleague who had covered mine whilst I was away. Also £2k is a lot of money to splash out on a self indulgent fortnight when one also has a family holiday to think about. But it was bloody fabuolous and I am a whole lot better than I was.

cant wait to go back!!

Yeehaaaaa

[Kokoro777]

Kokoro7 your really over thinking this stuff too much!!!! If you got time and money

Does anyone actually read all the way through my posts?

[Kokoro777]

And as there was an option to do Seitei with one of the hachidans every day, nothing would have been wasted had you chosen not to join the MSR group.

But that was never stated before hand! QED Now I know this, I'd've sold a kidney to get down there, but I didn't know this, none of us did.

[Kokoro777]

Even if it had only been Jock S, Chris M S, Fay S and Peter S teaching.

I love seminars with these Sensei, they're the best thing ever, sincerely, which is why I attend as many of them as my pocket allows.

And by using the term 'even' I am meaning no disrespect because all these Sensei have enough insight to keep me going for years.

Yeah, yeah, we know what you really mean. I hope one of them approached you next time and rips off your nafuda, and then breaks your sword over their knee. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKmJPnAGUJk

But I didn't make this one because I had been in Japan for two weeks and had to work the weekend as a payback to a colleague who had covered mine whilst I was away.

Pffft that wouldn't have stopped me

Why does life get in the way of Iai...<sigh>?

[Ookami7]

No because your writing almost fills up a book lol!!!! Seriously it's not the money issue that I was replying to but more the general additude.... if I had followed your advice and been worried about what level was required/ what I should know before hand etc I would never had been schooled by Iwata Sensei or have gone to Noma dojos last practice in the old dojo etc!!!! By thinking that way you lose out on a lot of opportunities!!!! Oh and if your wondering about me ask Chidokan about me. He's had the honor or horror of meeting me lol!!!!

[Bailemor]

The original flyer that was sent out for this seminar read:

The European Jikiden-Group is proud to present a European IAIDO Masterclass with Morita Sensei and Oshita Sensei in the United Kingdom.

We invite all Iaidoka regardless of style to this great opportunity to train hard under a number of high-grade sensei from Japan and Europe.

Teaching will be led by:
Morita Tadahiko Sensei Iaido Hachidan Kyoshi
Oshita Masakazu Sensei Iaido Hachidan Kyoshi

Guest teachers:
Jock Hopson Sensei Nanadan Kyoshi
Chris Mansfield Sensei Nanadan Renshi

Assisted by:
Fay Goodman Sensei Iaido Nanadan Renshi
Peter West Sensei Iaido Nanadan Renshi

So it was advertised right from the start that Shinden teachers would be there to teach and did not say it was just Koryu.


David

[Kokoro777]

So it was advertised right from the start that Shinden teachers would be there to teach and did not say it was just Koryu.David

It only says who was teaching, not what they teaching. Now this would have had me selling my kidney....

The European Jikiden-Group is proud to present a European IAIDO Masterclass with Morita Sensei and Oshita Sensei in the United Kingdom.

We invite all Iaidoka regardless of style to this great opportunity to train hard under a number of high-grade sensei from Japan and Europe.

Teaching will be led by:
Morita Tadahiko Sensei Iaido Hachidan Kyoshi (Teaching Seitei)
Oshita Masakazu Sensei Iaido Hachidan Kyoshi (Teaching MJER Koryu)

Guest teachers assisting where required:
Jock Hopson Sensei Nanadan Kyoshi
Chris Mansfield Sensei Nanadan Renshi

Assisted by:
Fay Goodman Sensei Iaido Nanadan Renshi
Peter West Sensei Iaido Nanadan Renshi

Perhaps this level of the detail isn't available until the Sensei arrive on the day and make a decision at that point. This would be a explain things, I suppose.

The MSR attendees have been very quiet. How did you find it all? Please don't make me too jealous!

[Peter West]

For future reference, the hachidans are not given permission by the ZNKR to come to Europe and teach unless they offer Seitei Iaido.
You will not get a seminar in the IKF/EKF groups, with hachidans from japan that is koryu only