France, Azincourt, 1415 – The rain of arrows
Every 10 seconds, 6-8,000 arrows hammered into the heavy attacking cavalry, with greater and greater precision the closer they got to the target. Total chaos with wounded screaming horses kicking in the mud, and their knights in armor so heavy they could barely move, and the terrain didn't make it any better. Attacking into a funnel with heavy cavalry in heavily muddy terrain was absolutely not optimal, and also ended completely disastrously. An entire generation of leading French nobles – fathers as sons – came to die on the battlefield.
Studies have shown that up to 6 arrows per minute could be fired by a trained longbowman, and could be quite effective up to 300 m with "carpet bombing", and quite accurate from 200-150 m. The knights' armor often weighed from 40-70 kg, which provided moderate protection against arrows, but in order for the horses to be able to run properly, the protection of these had to be minimized. This meant that the horses were quite vulnerable. Imagine then riding a stretch over 300m of very muddy terrain, which reduced attack speed to walking pace, in a dense deadly shower of arrows in total chaos. And then having the knowledge that if one's horse was hit, one would lie largely at the mercy of the mud, which would weigh down the armor even more, - and just wait for the arrival of the fresh and vengeful opponent, whose highest desire was to kill you . So they had plenty of time to think about their own and their leaders' incompetence and arrogance, despite a numerical superiority from the start of 1 to 5 compared to their opponent.
After the battle, 10,000 princes, dukes, counts, barons, knights and soldiers lay dead and 2,000 nobles had been captured. About 35-40 % of the army were either dead or captured, and a kingdom lost.
In comparison, just 600 of the opponents lay dead in the mud. The battle we are talking about is of course the battle of Azincourt in France, 1415, where the optimal use of longbows was decisive for a battle and the future of a kingdom, - just like the earlier battles of Poitier (1356) and Crecy (1346) in France, again in between England and France.
Japan, Nagashino, 1575 – the hail of bullets
In three waves, bullet after bullet hammered into 10,000 attacking samurai knights who, due to the conditions, were forced to charge into a funnel by their leader, Damiyo Takeda Katsuyori.
At the narrowest point of the funnel, 3,000 elite shooters waited in three rows, so that volleys of 1,000 bullets could be fired with a very short interval between them from a distance of less than 50 m. An experiment has shown that the death rate from a shooting distance of 50 m is approx. . 20-25 % and on 30 meters, 100%. Despite this knowledge, Takeda Katsuyori continued to attack the fortifications, with 3,000 of the musket corps standing behind in three ranks and three guns each, well protected by spear-armed samurai warriors. Only when over 4,200 of the Takeda clan's famous and feared elite cavalry lay dead in the mud did he call off the attack. Samurai knights trained from childhood, and loyal to an incompetent and arrogant leader.
When the battle was over, over 10,000 Takeda samurai warriors lay dead in the mud, along with 54 lords and generals, including eight of the original 24 famous Takeda Shingen elite generals. A death rate of 67 % of the army and 56 % of all participating Takeda generals. By comparison, 6,000 of the opponent's samurai warriors lay dead in the mud, corresponding to a death rate of 14 %. Very few of the enemy's higher officers lay dead. Along with all his elite samurai warriors present, Yakami's 23rd soke also lay dead. He had the day before, along with the other leading generals, tried to talk his leader out of launching the suicidal attack against an army 5 times their size and on the terms of very competent opposing leaders.
Somme, France, 1916 – the hail of machine gun bullets
The pipes sound loudly along the entire Allied front. The massive rain of shells is over and the German trenches pulverized. That's how it should have been, but that's not how it turned out. The rain of shells had landed in front of the German lines, and made large holes in the ground, which the Allies then had to force through during the attack. The distance of the attack to the German lines was from a few hundred meters to approx. 1.5 km. The German lines were largely undamaged after the Allied shell rain, so hundreds of thousands of German soldiers and tens of thousands of well-placed machine gun nests were ready to meet the attack.
The Allied army leadership knew all this, but as the commanding general wrote in his diary” … the total casualties are estimated at over 40,000 to date. This cannot be considered severe in view of the numbers engaged, and the length of front attacked”. This was just on the first day of the battle, and the English losses alone were actually 60,000 men dead and wounded – 20 % of the total English army. The battle lasted 4½ months and resulted in – nothing. Oh yes, the front line moved up to 10 km in some places. The cost was 625,000 dead or wounded Allied soldiers and 450,000 German.
Incidentally, roughly the same scenario repeated itself later at the Ypress battles, 1917 and the somewhat smaller battle at Arrass, 1917. The price was approx. 550,000 dead or wounded Allied soldiers and 350,000 German.
The question is, of course, why it went so badly. There the answer is easy; cannons, machine guns, rifles, and extremely incompetent and arrogant leaders – civilian and military. Eg. the east-west commander for all the above battles – was the same. What did the politicians do? They promoted him to field marshal and the king made him earl. You could say that; promoted to incompetence.
What the… has this got to do with Budo and Bujutsu in the modern world? What is the link?
Minouchi Sensei was one of SST's master teachers and probably the most important. SST is one of Kimu Sensei's teachers and the most important.
Minouchi Sensei described that there were three main paths to begin the master's path towards DO – mich – seen from the traditional point of view of the East;
- I. The traditional Budo way with the main emphasis on inner clarification through philosophy and meditation, well supported by an integration with martial arts techniques
- II. The traditional Bujutsu path with the main emphasis on inner clarification through real martial art techniques, supported well with an integration with philosophy, meditation and ki techniques.
- III. The unconventional and rare path with the main emphasis on survival through war, supported well around the practical part of the Bujutsu path and possibly some sporadic philosophy and meditation techniques without a common thread like the traditional Bujutsu path. But which through an inner clarification and decision develops from III to II through a traditional bujutsu grandmaster. From a Western and Eastern starting point to a union with the traditional and universal starting point of the East.
The mature reader will immediately notice that in the eyes of society's norms, is;
- Option In the "civilized" method
- Option II "grey zone" method
- Option III the "uncivilized" method.
In the modern world and the normality here is that;
- The civilized method here means "that you can talk yourself out of everything without any great risk"
- The gray area that there is "cash settlement at box 1 and with the risk of loss of ego and disclosure of yourself"
- The uncivilized that "people kill for survival in the name of democracy and God - and this for open screen - raw and unsweetened - directly into people's living rooms".
Society's eyes, perception and norm are created through laws, politics, - and double standards, where one's own needs are often met at the expense of others, gentrification and indifference.
This also means that leaders at all levels of power will most often explain unconventional and controversial actions and decisions, following conventional methodologies in strict accordance with society's eyes, perception and norm.
World history has always shown that there is an official policy and norm, which is the one that is communicated and officially negotiated according to the media, - and then there is the unofficial policy, which has no limits and norms. This is how illusions are created every day - this is reality.
How can this be done through 1000 years? Controversial – Because this is what the majority of the world's population wants throughout history, and therefore they get this. Of course, this is not official, as it will then be a dictatorship and not a democracy, and the egos of the world's people will be trampled by the fact that in reality they are better off with illusions and being led instead of leading. Because this is how revolutions occurred throughout world history, if the Maslov's pyramid of needs of the illusions became the Maslov's pyramid of reality, which meant that people were forced to act, due to survival.
To be led - to be a leader - here is not meant to lead other people, nations or the world, because here the circle has already ended, and history repeats and repeats itself on the whole - despite the progress of technology. But being your own leader, and the circle of world history turns into a clear luminous spiral, where history develops and develops - together and as individuals, with a mutual recognition and acceptance of each other's real star in the starry sky. Not as a dictator, but as a leader who has shown and shows the way for others.
This is what Minouchi Sensei talks about - and many new religious books, although without really knowing what they are really talking about, because you can't really speak reality and truth without having been there yourself and are there.
But then many have found out and recognized that the world will be deceived, people will be deceived, so they do this and often in the service of a good cause - why? Because then they don't have to be leaders of their own lives and make conscious decisions with all the consequences that now exist. Eg. also taking another life and being fully aware of it - in "a healthy and not psychopathic way".
Minouchi Sensei describes this as the rare thing that happens when a student goes from option III to option II, and maybe later also to option I. Which means that all options have become one - ie. all the possibilities have become the DO – Michi – road. Going from option III to option II and being successful with it ie. becoming Menkyo, most often happens at a real densho degree at the Joden or Okuden level. Going from option II to option I is a fully conscious choice and can only really happen at the Menkyo quay.
Being all three possibilities – where the three possibilities become one, happens automatically at Gokuden, says Minouchi Sensei. This means, squarely stated, that the ancient warrior merges with the modern warrior and becomes one on the path towards god and the truth of the universe or cosmos.
The skeptical and quick-witted student will then ask the question; The best soldiers of the modern world against the best soldiers of the old world - who will win?.
That question is very simple to answer:
- With their weapons of choice; The modern warrior will. He can shoot the old world warrior at 400 m or 1.4 km distance - it will be a pure turkey shoot.
- Without weapons: The old warrior will. The New World warrior wouldn't even know he was dead. It will be like swatting a pee ant.
The question; So who is the best? Can they learn something from each other? Will the best of each be an advantage?
Minouchi Sensei said it was the quality of the warrior's self-awareness—ie. his denshograd which decided the difference as to who was the best. It would simply be a matter of training and of course the quality of this training.
Therefore, Minouchi sensei said that an elite soldier with a lot of war experience and desires for greater clarification, understanding and self-knowledge could well jump from option III to option II, but this required for success that this be done by a Bujutsu Grandmaster.
It would be rare that this would happen, as the elite soldier with a lot of war experience would have doubts about what the heck he could use option II for when he had experienced the war and horrors of the modern world.
Minouchi Sensei also said that a bujutsu master could easily jump from option II to option III, but his path also became somewhat more uncertain, as the quality of training he would receive would either be determined by tournament fighters, soldiers/elite soldiers with a lot of mixed experience and competence, itself or a combination thereof.
Therefore, Minouchi Sensei said that a Bujutsu master could gain an understanding and understanding of the modern warrior, but this could not make him a better warrior if he was already a bujutsu master (menkyo). This also implicitly means that if the Bujutsu student is not menkyo yet, this can be a significant supplement to the student's bujutsu education and understanding.
When Minouchi Sensei said that the rare thing could happen that a modern warrior went from Option III to Option II. This then means that this could only happen before or at densho level iodine. Which then means that this must also apply in reverse, since IN-YO is one. In Shindenkan, Joden is martial arts master level and experienced level in Yakami Shinsei-ryu, and 5th dan Bujutsu Kodosokukai karate-do level.
A multi-track total martial arts system, therefore, would not be completely complete in its timeless and modern toolbox, if this toolbox did not also include a competence and understanding of the use of firearms.
Summary, conclusion and common denominator;
Agincourt, 1415; Incompetence and arrogance among the French leaders who optimized the deadly effect of the English longbows against themselves. Were they unaware of the impact? No, not at all since the battles of Poitier and Crecy 60-70 years earlier had emphasized the deadly effectiveness of the English longbows when attacked frontally and in close formation of cavalry and infantry.
Nagashino, 1575; Incompetent and arrogant senior leader who optimized the deadly effect of the opponents' firearms against themselves. Was he unaware of the effect?, No not at all, over the last 20-25 Portuguese weapons had been mass produced and all self respecting daimyos had their own shooting school (Hojutsu) and trained marksmen. So did Takeda Katsuyori, but like many other samurai knights, he looked down on these short-trained soldiers shooting with this modern technology. It was not the essence in bujutsu, but highly effective in war.
Somme, 1916; Incompetent and arrogant Allied leaders who optimized the lethality of the adversary's firearms against themselves. Were they unaware of the effect and use? No not at all. The Allied army was both well supplied and well trained with some of the world's best heavy machine guns. The problem was the leaders of the day. 2 million killed and wounded, was rewarded with a field marshal and earl title, and a salute as a hero.
Shindenkan's Conclusion – The Complete Toolbox; After the Nagashino battle, 1575, over 200 bujutsu Hojutsu (shooting methodology) schools arose in Japan, several of which are still active today. Most, however, only uphold an old tradition using 400-200 year old weapon technology, wrapped in koryo Bujutsu ryuha (technique) and ryugi (philosophy).
Minouchi Sensei said that a practitioner of martial arts under the densho degree Menkyo could benefit from modern technology understanding, use and exploitation. And this would especially be relevant before the densho degree Joden/Okuden. It wouldn't deepen his understanding of martial arts, but it would complete his toolbox and make him a more complete martial artist if the practitioner also had this modern competency. Being the leader of your own life must also necessarily mean that you keep up with the times. And when dealing with martial arts, this educational path will not be fully developed in a multi-track martial arts system if a correct and optimal competence in hand firearms, such as pistol, revolver, and possibly shotgun, carbine and rifle, was disregarded.
And that's how Shindenkan became POMW! – Project Old Modern Warrior to. You can read about this in next week's article.
