Dojo Questions

[Shugotenshi]

I may be joining a Bujinkan dojo in my area, but I do not want to jump into anything before knowing more about it. Now I've contacted the Dojo through e-mail and will sit in classes and watch, but I want to know what would be some really good questions to ask before joining, pretty much anything that you can think of. For those of you who are part of a dojo, maybe list some nasty surprises you've had when joining, that's what I want to avoid. I've been through bad experiences with other arts, especially more commercial ones, but if you could help me out, it would be great.

(BTW: what do the bujinkan membership cards look like? :confused: )

thanks

[rubberband]

Well, I just deleted an hours worth of reliving the horrors I experienced in the Bujinkan... I deleted it out of the hope that your path will be a good one and I don't want to jade it... I will warn you to simply not enter the Bujinkan with expectations, to see the instructors as people who take your money to give a service, and if the service is not met to your satisfaction then leave without regret... with that said avoid contracts... so you can leave when you want to... the big thing to look for is an instructor who answers your questions with real answers that bring the techniques to life... if your questions are evaded then the instructor is not giving you the service you paid for... also be wary of small schools because they tend to focus on training the folks who have hung around the longest and sometimes that means newer folks get left behind or advance more slowly... ask if the school has seperate classes for each skill level, or if they have a mentoring program...

with all my heart I wish you the best of experience in the Bujinkan, steve :bow:

[Kreth]

Well, I just deleted an hours worth of reliving the horrors I experienced in the Bujinkan...
As with any style, there are Bujinkan instructors out there that leave much to be desired. Another caveat, ask the instructor to show you his current Shidoshikai membership card. If he is licensed through the Honbu dojo, he will have a current one.

Jeff

[Shugotenshi]

He says he's a personal student of Hatsumi, thanks for the advice I'll ask him for his Shidoshikai membership card, I also formulated an array of questions after many minutes of pondering for him to answer, it's not so much the answers I'm looking for, but the way he describes them to me and his willingness to tell me. Thanks to both of you for your help!
:bow:

[Kreth]

He says he's a personal student of Hatsumi
Heh heh... technically, this is true of any Shidoshi, although the sheer size of the Bujinkan, makes this a very loose description...

Jeff

[bujingodai]

You are in the Toronto area? There are alot of Shidoshi there that are good. Who is it Eduard, Greg, Court, Bryan or Frank?
I have trained with all but Greg personally at some point. If it is them, their claims are true.

[Shugotenshi]

It's Bryan ^_^

[Shugotenshi]

I just went yesterday to sit in on Bryan's garage dojo training, and I have to say I'm really impressed with the method of training. The difference between it and say Karate is like english and math, where english (ninpo) has rules to follow, but generally is woven around creativity, and math (karate) is like repitition and memorization of patterns. I like the way of training, and such small classes allow for a tuly friendly environment. The sensei teaches so much, but he doesn't elevate himself above everyone else, it gives us the sense that he's just one of us, a friend, teaching us something, I think I found my art ^_^ we'll soon see.

Thanks for the tips on questions to ask, he answered all of them fully and without hesitation.

[bujingodai]

Bryan is awsome. I was hoping it was him actually. He moves just great doesn't he. We were kyus in the same class. He is such a talented guy. Really super.
His classes are in Whitby right? That was the last time I talked to him online.

[renegade]

Garage Dojo!? sweet! that's the best training environment, hands down! Nice find :)