This blog features all things budo – aikido, judo, and jodo tips as well as general martial arts philosophy and advice. Writings from some of Kaze Uta Budo Kai’s finest teachers, students, and friends.

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Still Smiling

3 min read

by Nick Lowry So a friend today told me that my old sensei is a much better choice for aikido training for him than I am because “He will give me answers.”…

Principles and Preferences

Principles and Preferences

4 min read

by Nick Lowry A wise old sensei once pointed out that if you take a whole variety of different hard stylists and watch their kata, an educated eye can tell them apart…

Transmission by Feel

Transmission by Feel

3 min read

by Nick Lowry A student once asked a zen teacher about “Transmission” and wondered how a clear message, a clear and undiluted dharma reality, could be transmitted from person to person across…

Jutsu and Do

Jutsu and Do

6 min read

by Nick Lowry Innumerable times over the years students have come to ask the difference in JUTSU and DO, and for the most part my answers have always been to describe the…

Karma and Practice

Karma and Practice

6 min read

by Nick Lowry Karma is about what we do to and with ourselves—about action and consequence and about the shape of our lives. There is something quite mechanical about karma—it is sometime…

Zazen and Aiki

Zazen and Aiki

1 min read

by Nick Lowry Do not seek conflict and do not maintain guile. Do not hide or run away from conflict and do not blind yourself. Each transition requires awarness and precision –…