Ninpo: The Heart and the Art of Martial Arts

30.3.2025

Hatsumi always emphasized the importance of the heart. I remember, in 2008, on my first visit to Japan, after several times when I failed the Saki test (5th dan), Kacem came up to me to encourage me, and said: "Don't worry, you will pass, because you have a good heart." I really didn't understand what he meant. And in 2012, Hatsumi drew me a heart (and everyone was amazed, because it was something he had never done before). Even then, I didn't understand. But last week I felt that a window of understanding suddenly opened for me. I hope I'm not wrong and I want to share with you the thoughts and insights that came to my mind.

The "enlightenment" began when I taught a Jo class about two weeks ago and saw how people get confused with the stick, how they fail to "unite" with it and be one with it. My statement "You have to be one with the stick, make it a part of you," didn't help much with understanding. A few days after that, I did a solo training and worked on Ukemi/rolling up. When I workout alone, I try to go very deep into the foundation, the foundation of posture, the movement, and feeling. This time, the deepening in the feeling was probably higher, and suddenly I noticed that I was "becoming friends" with the mat, with the floor, and as the friendship grows, the rolls becomes less scary and more soft and pleasant and flowing. Then I understood! I understood that the key is not to "be one," but to make friends. To befriend and not to be afraid, not to recoil, not to see the other as an enemy, but to try to connect. It is indeed a "one-sided friendship," but it is a feeling of friendship. It is not "love," it is not a "desire to be one, to unite," but it is also not resistance or negation. No, it is an acceptance of things. Like when you walk down the street and discover a pothole in the sidewalk; you don't get angry, you don't run away, you say: "Okay, so there's a pothole, what do I do with it?" I call it: befriended with the situation. I also find reinforcement for this feeling/conclusion in Hatsumi's words. For example here:

"Nature is your friend; it helps you to win. Your enemy will have unnatural movement, therefore you will be able to know what he is going to do before he does it."

 What does he mean? He is essentially saying: "befriended with the situation, with the opponent and with the environment. Simply - open your heart and befriended", because "you can understand and enter the heart of the friend, and by 'entering his heart and soul' you can understand his movement and intentions. That way you can become a natural part of him (and the environment)." This is also how I interpret Bruce Lee's famous saying - be water - become part of nature, of the environment, make friends with the opponent, be a part of him.