Sunday Worship

People often talk about the difference between religion and spirituality. One day maybe when we learn to ignore power structures, the two words will be the same. Now however, both words try to imply at least the same thing. 'That which is good for the soul'. I attend my church as often as I can. If there is no tournament, Sumo Basho or crippling hangover, my friends take me to the nearest temple and we worship.

This Sunday we would ride on Akibayama.



The first trail we hit had a lot of stop and start. We found an area of clearcut which is too bad, but still necessary I suppose. The second trail was a lot better. More flow even though mostly just switchbacks geared for hikers.

It's not just my Karate that has improved since I arrived here. My speed and technical riding have also been stepped up since I got here. I look forward to returning to the temples on the north shore with my new found skill and confidence.

Is a religion of few less valid than those held by billions? Maybe, maybe not. The Human Brain, Love, the stars at night in the waters off Melaque. Too perfect to be random. I believe god gave us the mountains so we could ride them.
This picture is for anyone who doesn't believe in God, or a maker of some kind.

2 days in the life

The April tournament and Sensei Sharps Visit. For the tournament I was only on hand to take pictures again. These are some of the highlights. The picture quality isn't good, but the floor was crowded and I wasn't allowed in range to some good shots. Lots of families on hand armed with their video cams.
Sensei Sakurai would be on hand to referee the finally kumite match.


Takumi doing Heian Yondan.

Kyohe with tekki shodan
Taka and Heian Yondan.
Ikkie in his Kumite Match.
Some shots from Sensei Sharps Visit. He along with Sal, Tammy, Louise and her daughter Nicole would join us for training on monday.

You know you're in Japan when.....

Maybe this is a cheeky way to start this post. But yes, Sumo has come to Fujieda. The most famous Sumo Wrestlers in Japan would make a stop in Fujieda for an Exhibition match, before the start of the OBasho.

The real story of the weekend was Saturday night. I managed to get myself invited to Yakko. That night, 2 of the Oseki class Sumo Wrestlers would be at the restaurant for dinner and photo op.

This is Kate, she is English. I invited her out and she would end up having a very good night. I didn't know the names of the Wrestlers attending, but as it turns out, the Sumo Wrestler she is in love with would be one of the 2. A Big Bulgarian fellow by the name of Koto Oshu.
This is Sensei getting his picture taken. Thats Oseki Kayo on the left and Oseki Koto Oshu on the right.


This is a good shot of Taka with Koto Oshu







One of the organizers of this event is Koto Nishiki, a super nice guy and one of the biggest names in Sumo from about 10 years back. I also have to give credit to Osawa Sensei, seen here trying not to have his picture taken or get credit of any kind. This weekend was one of the best I've had in Japan and would not have happened without Sensei's kind invite.
Now on to the Sumo on Sunday.

The lower ranking wrestlers get in some morning warm up.

Part of the entertainment was watching the Sumo kids go up against some of their heroes.

The guys in white are the Yokozuna's , the top ranking Sumo Wrestlers. There are only 2 and you can tell who they are because of their white wraps.
The next 5 or 6 photos are of Iseki Kayo and Koto Oshu. Koto Oshu would go on to win his match.
And here are the Yokozuna's in their Match.
Click here for a little video I took from the match. The quality is poor, but you get the idea of what it was like.