KIAI Instructor Interview--Don Cunningham

KIAI Instructor Interview--Don Cunningham

Interview conducted by Brett Denison

This article the latest in a continuing series of interviews with the various Instructors within KIAI

KIAI: How old were you when you start training in the martial arts, and what made you start?

Don: I was about 13 years old and a second-string wrestler on my junior high school team. The art teacher offered to teach judo to some of student wrestlers, and I signed up in hopes of improving my wrestling skills. We used to meet after school in the gymnasium. Unfortunately, the art teacher accidentally broke another student’s arm, so the administration closed the program down. I then took a few months of judo at the local YMCA. That program wasn’t too interesting, and I ended up dropping out of judo for a long time.

A few years later, I found myself in the military forces on a government-sponsored tour of southeast Asia. The Marine Corps special services program sponsored judo tournaments. With not much else to do, I started competing for my first time in judo. When I was stationed in Japan later, I found some school judo dojos and police station judo dojos to train. It was a great way to spend off-duty hours and meet some of the locals, certainly more fun than just hanging out in bars that surround military bases.

After I was wounded, though, I stopped practicing judo or participating in any sports for many years. When I was 30 years old, however, I found myself back in Japan working for NEC Corporation. I had been looking for an inexpensive health club to do some weight lifting. I was complaining about the fees charged at the commercial gyms when one of my co-workers suggested checking out the company’s facility. While there, I spotted some guys in judogis and decided to take it up again. I’ve been training consistently for the past 20 years now, although I’ve slowed down a bit since I stopped actively competing about five years ago.

KIAI: What made you start practicing sword arts?

Don: Actually, I don’t practice sword arts. I did join the Fujitsu’s company kendo team several years ago while working in Japan. I think they asked me to be part of their team because I am pretty big and intimidating. They just wanted a big guy to scare the other teams. I did learn a bit of kendo and became much more interested in the traditional Japanese martial arts. I also took some opportunities to learn a bit about iaido, but jutte-jutsu really became my passion.

I used to watch this show in Japan called Zenigata Heiji. The main character was an okapikki, or non-samurai policeman during the Edo period. I didn’t really understand it then, I only knew he didn’t carry a sword. Instead, he would use a jutte or his skill at throwing coins to capture the bad guys. At first, I thought the jutte was a fictional device created by the show’s writers like the coin-throwing skills, until I saw one for sale in an antique store. I bought it and showed it to some of my judo friends who were also Japanese policemen. They started telling me stories about jutte. I became almost obsessive in my search for more information. I visited with a lot of koryu instructors, looking for any one who knew anything at all about the history of jutte.

KIAI: Did you ever have the chance of actually using your martial arts--especially your sword art?

Don: I’ve used judo on a couple of occasions, but not always in a physical sense. I have typically viewed martial arts from more of a competitive sport perspective. I think any sports experience would help a person in a variety of situations. Specifically, judo’s philosophical aspect of not meeting force in a confrontational manner, rather to redirect the force against the opponent, has helped me in many business and personal interactions.

KIAI: Are you a full time instructor, if so, what are the benefits and challenges?

Don: I teach a small judo club affiliated with the local community parks district. We only meet one night a week. Most of the participants are children, although there are several adults. I don’t run it like a hard competitive club with lots of physical drills. We tend to have more fun and take a fairly easy approach to learning judo. Surprisingly, though, our juniors have done quite well in the few tournaments we’ve entered, beating many of their peers from the harsher, seriously competitive clubs.

I also teach history of Japanese martial arts as a college-level course. It’s an elective class, so I get a real cross-section of students. I’ve been asked to teach a combination judo and koryu class through the college community education program starting this summer. I am looking forward to the opportunity, although I am not exactly sure what the students will expect.

My publisher has been on my back to complete another book about jutte. (I authored Secret Weapons of Jujutsu. The paperback edition was published by Charles Tuttle Publishing Company.) This book will focus almost exclusively on Edo period arresting arts and implements.
My biggest challenge is finding enough time to do all the things that I would like to do. There is just so much time available each day.

KIAI: If you had the chance to start all over again, would you choose to pursue the martial arts?

Don: I often wish I had continued in judo during my 20s despite my injuries. I would have probably healed a lot faster and been able to compete earlier than I when I finally did get back into judo. I was just convinced for a long time that it was not practical, that I couldn’t be that active. Since then, I have found that the body is much more resilient than I ever imagined.

KIAI: How many times per week do you train?

Don: I do a lot of aerobic training on my own. I try to do something everyday, bike riding or running. Our club only meets one night per week for a 90-minute session. Since I am coaching most of the time, I really don’t get much of a workout during these short practices. Now when I was actively competing and could find lots of training in Japan, I would go for a three-hour sessions at least three to four nights a week. I was also doing a lot more running and stuff as well when I wasn’t in the dojo. Of course, you can’t keep up that pace as you get older.

KIAI: What do you think of under age (juvenile) black belts?

Don: There aren’t any in Kodokan Judo. In fact, the juniors have completely different ranking and belt color systems than the adults. I think it is better because many of the techniques, such as chokes and arm locks, are harmful at certain ages. Juniors can not perform chokes until age 13. Arm bars are not allowed until age 17. So you have to be 18 years old to even be able to practice some of the more advanced competitive techniques.

KIAI: What is your opinion of competitive (sport) martial arts?

Don: I love competition. It’s the primary motivation for me to train. One thing I’ve learned since I stopped competing is that is harder to train without focusing on the next tournament or match. Competition is certainly an objective measurement of skill. In judo, the one who is laying on his back is the loser and the one who put him or her there is the winner. There’s not much left to debate there.

KIAI: Do you think the general public is misled about the ability and practicality of budo due to the media’s portrayal of martial arts and martial arts entertainers?

Don: I like entertainment as much as most and more than some. However, you have to be able to separate fact from fiction. When one can’t do that, there are always going to be problems.

KIAI: Do you think events like the “UFC,” etc. hurt or help martial arts?

Don: I don’t particularly care for the UFC style of competition. It’s sort of like comparing professional wrestling to Olympic style wrestling. One is mostly entertainment and showbiz and the other is athletes competing against one another in sports.

KIAI: Do you think the non-tangible benefits of budo like self-confidence, self-relDonce, self-respect, discipline, leadership, maturity, etc. are as important to young budoka as the physical ability to defeat or control another person in today’s sometimes deteriorating contemporary society?

Don: I think the non-tangible benefits of any sport are beneficial. One doesn’t have to be a great competitor, though, to benefit from sports. I’ve seen some really dramatic changes for the better in juniors who never competed. I think one can learn self-confidence, gain self-esteem, and develop good sportsmanship even if they never compete against another person. There are many sports where the athlete competes to improve themselves as much as to beat another person.

KIAI: Where are martial arts, in general, heading?

Don: I don’t want to be too cynical, but I see a lot of self-proclaimed masters. These are the instructors who establish their own independent criteria to declare their respective status within the martial arts community, usually at some sort of highly ranked level or teaching position. In some cases, they have created completely fictional backgrounds or even fictitious martial art styles.

KIAI: What, in your opinion, is the greatest detriment to the martial arts?

Don: The most obvious danger is potential injury through training accidents. An inexperienced instructor often exposes themselves or their students to dangerous practices, often without realizing the risks they may be facing.

While this may seem an extreme example, I have seen iaido instructors encourage students to do fast draws with actual swords without any precautions against splitting the scabbard and possibly amputating a finger or two. A more experienced instructor is not as likely to allow a novice student to use a live sword, certainly not without ensuring their grip prevents injury in such an event. Experience is not always an assurance of safe training practices, either. There was an accomplished grappling arts instructor who wanted to demonstrate how effective falling techniques can be for a bunch of new students. To do so, he performed a standing forward flip from a table onto the mat. A slight miscalculation resulted in spinal injury and paralysis.

Finally, the unregulated martial arts is an open door to con men and mentally disturbed individuals. It draws them like moths to an open flame. Fraud is rampant within the martial arts, and there is little chance of being caught since most victims are unwilling to ever admit they have been cheated. Thus, you find individuals claiming all kinds of martial arts titles and offering "asian-recognized" rank certificates or "hall of fame" appointments to anyone willing to pay the price.

In my own view, the worst offenders are the predators who are drawn to the martial arts and abuse their victims. As teachers and authority figures, they often can find easy targets for physical, mental, and even sexual abuse within the ranks of students who come to them seeking instruction. Even when exposed, they often find many willing supporters ready to defend their actions. Although I have seen this pattern over and over again, I have never understood why the martial arts community tolerates this and doesn't do a better job of protecting their own against such violations.

KIAI: In your opinion, what is the ideal age to start martial arts training?

Don: It really depends on the person. I’ve seen some as young as 5-years old begin judo practice. Then again, I’ve met some in their 40s and 50s who are not mature enough to be involved in the martial arts.

KIAI: What is your favorite part of training in Japanese swordsmanship?

Don: I really like the historical aspects and the cultural insights gained through such training.

KIAI: What are your opinions and thoughts regarding tameshigiri, and do you practice it?

Don: I don’t do it. Never have.

KIAI: What do you think of kendo’s “armored philosophy” versus chanbara’s “padded way”?

Don: I am somewhat biased toward kendo since I’ve trained and competed in kendo matches. I like the strategy and skill required. It’s more like chess than a physical sport. I really don’t know anything about chanbara.

KIAI: Do you own an authentic Japanese made shinken, if so, how does it compare to the modern shinken sold today?

Don: I have several antique Japanese weapons, including swords, in my collection. I don’t have any modern blades and see no reason to ever own one. Of course, modern technology is capable of making superior blades, but I collect swords and other antiques for their historical significance, not for any practical or utilitarian purposes.

KIAI: What do you think of the many modern martial art systems that are trying to copy the ancient ryuha?

Don: Well, there are no ancient schools of jutte-jutsu still active. Therefore, much of my own skill and experience has been gained by researching the few documents available. If there were any jutte instructors knowledgeable about feudal era skills available in this time, I would certainly be seeking them out rather than trying to imitate them. It would make more sense to learn from someone who knows than trying to guess how things were done. Unfortunately, that’s the situation if you want to train in ancient martial arts that have not been maintained through the ages like many of the sword and bow arts.

KIAI: Do you think it is necessary to have at least a basic understanding of the native language and culture of the country of origin for the martial art(s) you train in?

Don: Absolutely critical. Without it, you can never really understand the Japanese martial arts.

KIAI: Don, thank you for taking the time to share some of your vast knowledge and experience, we wish you the best in your on-going Budo training.

(Please, visit the website of Cunningham sensei at The Fox Valley Martial Arts )