Martial Arts & Me
Here’s something that is not risky, detached from technology and far from creative: martial arts. But here I am, practicing the Japanese art of Ninjutsu since 1993 (intermittently). Ninjutsu is the secret killing art of the Ninja (yeah, the one from the movies). It was established about 900 years ago in Japan, and evolved into different schools around the world. Did you know that the first non-Japanese and the most senior non-Japanese Ninja is an Israel? His name is Doron, and I practice at the dojo of his senior student, Yossi Sheriff. You can read more about Ninjutsu in my own Ninjutsu school website here. I also recommend the book "The Five Rings"., written by a 17th century Ninjutsu master, Myamoto Musashi.
Why do I love it so much? I can only guess:
First, it’s a martial ART, and I love art. But to be honest, I really can’t find too much "art" in this killing profession.
I’m a huge fan of fantasies: dungeons, dragons, knights and sorcerrers, imaginary worlds in books, cinema, computer or real life games. This leads me to be intrigued by real foreign cultures; the farthest the culture is from the western world, the more intrigued I get. The Japanese culture is one of the cultures I really love, and Ninja warriors, as part of that ancient culture, intrigue me no less. So what’s better than becoming one myself?
I haven’t been practicing for the past 4 years (entrepreneurship is a real time hogger), but I have lately returned to regular practicing. I log the practices starting at the first one since I returned, and if you can read Hebrew, you are welcome to read about it in my Ninjutsu blog here.