15th dan? how long have you been studying? and can you make a clone of yourself like the real shadow warrior Lo Wang?
I was interested in where he was trained, in what etc. He was my instructor in 'goshin jitsu' when I was a child. But I now see he runs a ninjitsu organisation. I'd be interested to know, if the stuff he taught me was partly ninjitsu, or weather the ninjitsu is something that he has studied since.
Brin is the head of shadow warrior which is the dojo i attend. As far as i know, he has been involved in bujinkan since his teens so i presume you were being taught some form of ninjutsu.
I have heard he is a good bloke to train with, i have also heard Natasha is even better (not my words, only heard)
There have been a few awarded in the past few months. Please understand, an 11th thru 15th dan is not what most people think it is. Try to think of it as more along the lines of 10th dans, with special knowledge or skill sets. It is my understanding that this is Hatsumi's way of recognizing that certain skills and bodies of knowledge are important in budo. Not just the knowing how to fight, but when. How to heal as well as destroy. Think of it as a 10th dan with the same abilities in taijutsu, history and ability to teach (pass on the knowledge) but, this individuals have a certain something that sets them apart from the others. At least, that is how I am interpreting everything I have read over the last 6 months or so. I reserve the right to be wrong
Well put Kurohana, reads spot on to me mate.. After watching Brin tho.............. You could also call it a sixth sense, LoL
if I may make a comment.. I'm not agreeing or disagreeing with the chosen designation, but I must point out a perception problem with the choice.. the use of 11 thru 15, causes a lot of confusion because it's a "numbering system", and as such, it progresses from the least to the most (or vice versa). as soon as people see 14th dan, they automatically assume that the person has progressed from 13th up to 14th. in this case that is not the situation. Also what happens when a person has more then one >10th dan? do they say.. "john smith, 10th dan, 13th dan, and 14th dan all in the same system".. it's very confusing to say the least. using a system which changes it's meaning (1-10 vs 11-15) just adds to the confusion as well.. We are a logical society which is based on numerical progression (Age, school learning, income etc..) trying to use numerics to represent this type of "specialization" is very hard to describe or accept to the general public
Excellent post! You bring up some very valid points. I have to admit, I am confused too. What I posted earlier is my understanding and attempt to make sense of it. I think the numeric system in this case is used to make it easier to relate to by westerners. But then again, Hatsumi is the Soke, he can pretty much do what he wants in regards to ranking. If he wants to call it dans, belts, pins or butterflies, that's his perogative.
I haven't yet had the opportunity to train with Brin and Natascha Morgan or attend one of their seminars, but it is something which is definitely on my ninja 'To-Do' list.
Hello, I am fortunate to be one of Brin's students. He has been training under Soke Hatsumi for around 23 years now and was ranked 15th Dan in April. The ranks 11th-15th dan take you back through the elements, earth 11th Dan, water 12th Dan, fire 13th dan, wind 14th Dan and void at 15th dan. Brin is the one of if not the most experienced practitioner outside of Japan. He spends every day of his life training or travelling to teach seminars around the world. If anyone has the chance to train with him they should take the opportunity because, not matter what the rumour mill in the bujinkan has created, you will not be disappointed at the quality of his training.
Hi Graham, He did start out his martial arts career in Jiu jitsu, but dropped that to train in ninjutsu first under stephen hayes, and the directly under Soke Hatsumi.
Just wanted to point out that what Ckc123 stated was not accurate. One cannot jump from 10th Dan, then attain 13th, then 15th, then 12th, etc. You progress from "11th" to "15th" as your understanding and mental capabilities expand, or so I believe it to be. It is still a progressive system where the top instructors hold the highest Dan ranking. It is up to Hatsumi-sensei to award the rankings, but I assume that he looks for certain characteristics or abilities to arise before doing so. What these are is anyone's guess.
Techniqually there are no dans after 10 (It is more of slang)the ranks are: English Japanese AKA 10th Dan Earth Jûdan Chigyo Happo Biken 11th Dan 10th Dan Water Jûdan Suigyo Happo Biken 12th Dan 10th Dan Fire Jûdan Kagyo Happo Biken 13th Dan 10th Dan Wind Jûdan Fugyo Happo Biken 14th Dan 10th Dan Void Jûdan Kugyo Happo Biken 15th Dan
