hey

hi all, i'm erin, i'm new to the group...and i don't know if this has
already been discussed, but what does anyone think about that tom
cruise movie, "the last samurai"? http://us.imdb.com/Title?0325710

cant wait personally, i knew sooner or later they would make a movie about a gaijin in the nihon closed society.

Erin <pyromancie@...> wrote:hi all, i'm erin, i'm new to the group...and i don't know if this has
already been discussed, but what does anyone think about that tom
cruise movie, "the last samurai"? http://us.imdb.com/Title?0325710



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ERIN et al-
From what I have seen I am non too hopeful. While this period
is ripe for "novelization", Hollywood it seems always chooses the
writers and directors who have the least knowledge, the least
affinity for the subject.As a film it may be great entertainment , as
history it is an insult to the subject and the audience.
The Satsuma rebellion, on which this is loosely based did not
feature 16th century cavalry units against 19th century rifle units.
The truth is that the restoration wars, featured a mish-mash of
technologies but it was the modern trained and outfitted rifle units
that proved most effective. It was the Shoguns' army that had the
most dead weight in the form of sword, spear and bow wielding units.
Once the Satsuma men quit the new government, they returned
to their home but NOT to the 16th century. While some of the
irregulars who fought under Saigo may have worn older armour it was
only for lack of more modern arms. The units of swordsmen that
devastated the Emperors troops at Tabaruzaka only did so while the
weather and terrain was advantageous to them.
I'll be there, you may count on that but I am afraid that
once again faced with presenting a nuanced, intelligent, tale from
history, the Hollywood movie machine has chosen to dumb it down to a
tale of good vs. evil.
Tobaku!Tobaku! MataTobaku!
-t

Hi Tom

I agree with you that Hollywood cartes nothing for
maintaining the accurate story.

to proove my point all I have to do is mention

Doctor Dolittle - wicked film lovd it but its not Doc
Dolittle is it (except the 0.5 sec shot of the 2
headed lama)

The Jackel. strange how the story moved from Europe to
the USA.

And yesterday my 7 years old daughter subjected me to
Barbies Rapuntzel - right character - but where did
the dragons, magic and talking rabbit come from.

However I like Tom Cruise and I love the aspect of
this story line. it reminds me of the Sun Rises
trilogy by Christopher Nicol. In that stpory a USA
military ends up in Japan working witht he satsuma
samurai (if I remember right) and even becomes a
samurai thats a family - bit of shogun over flow there
I think

Paul


--- tom helm <junkmail@...> wrote:

---------------------------------
ERIN et al-
From what I have seen I am non too hopeful.
While this period
is ripe for "novelization", Hollywood it seems always
chooses the
writers and directors who have the least knowledge,
the least
affinity for the subject.As a film it may be great
entertainment , as
history it is an insult to the subject and the
audience.
The Satsuma rebellion, on which this is loosely
based did not
feature 16th century cavalry units against 19th
century rifle units.
The truth is that the restoration wars, featured a
mish-mash of
technologies but it was the modern trained and
outfitted rifle units
that proved most effective. It was the Shoguns' army
that had the
most dead weight in the form of sword, spear and bow
wielding units.
Once the Satsuma men quit the new government,
they returned
to their home but NOT to the 16th century. While some
of the
irregulars who fought under Saigo may have worn older
armour it was
only for lack of more modern arms. The units of
swordsmen that
devastated the Emperors troops at Tabaruzaka only did
so while the
weather and terrain was advantageous to them.
I'll be there, you may count on that but I am
afraid that
once again faced with presenting a nuanced,
intelligent, tale from
history, the Hollywood movie machine has chosen to
dumb it down to a
tale of good vs. evil.
Tobaku!Tobaku! MataTobaku!
-t

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Hi

I was wondering what is the medievil Japanese method
of time keeping.

I have heard of it being in 2 hour segments named
after animals but I am unsure if this is correct.

And just how did they maintain the method of keeping
time.

In the UK in ancient times they used to mark a candle
with one hour segments. I just wondered if they did
the same

Paul

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Paul et al-
I like the idea of the story as well. Why not then tell the
true story of the actual American Arms dealer, Thomas Glover, who
sold Civil war surplus to the anti-Tokugawa forces?(this may be the
one and only time American arms dealers were supplying the forces of
good) One of my favorite photographs from the period shows him in
Nagasaki I believe, surrounded by Satsuma shishi, at his side is his
very young son. I always wished I could be that kid.
If one must create fiction from history imagine all that
could be done, telling the tale of that young mans life...
-t

Is there any book about this episodi ? And if yes, where is available ?
Thanks,
Carlo

-----Messaggio originale-----
Da: tom helm [mailto:junkmail@...]
Inviato: lunedì 2 giugno 2003 1.05
A: samuraihistory@yahoogroups.com
Oggetto: Re: [samuraihistory] hey

Paul et al-
I like the idea of the story as well. Why not then tell the
true story of the actual American Arms dealer, Thomas Glover, who
sold Civil war surplus to the anti-Tokugawa forces?(this may be the
one and only time American arms dealers were supplying the forces of
good) One of my favorite photographs from the period shows him in
Nagasaki I believe, surrounded by Satsuma shishi, at his side is his
very young son. I always wished I could be that kid.
If one must create fiction from history imagine all that
could be done, telling the tale of that young mans life...
-t


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>Hollywood it seems always chooses the writers and >directors who have the least knowledge, the >least affinity for the subject. As a film it may be >great entertainment, as history it is an insult to >the subject and the audience.

Tom-
This was my fear as well, unfortunately, I'm not as informed with this aspect of japanese history as I'd like to be, so seeing the movie, I wouldn't be able to conclude much on the historical accuracy. Now if an independant company had produced this, maybe I would have had a bit more faith.

Paul-
Was the Christopher Nicol trilogy really good? I may check it out...

-Erin



"If the only way I can be with you is in my dreams, then I shall sleep forever" - unknown

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Hi Paul

A quick response which may generate some discussion from our learnered body!

I remember seeing a strange device at Snowshill Manor, Broadway, some years ago - it was a japanese, vertical device with an arrangement of springs and levers dating from the 17th century. On enquiring its purposer, I was told it was a device for measuring time elapsed... It appears that our "western" day of 24hours was divided into two parts, being night and day. Nothing strange there until it was pointed out that night = sunset to sunrise and day = sunrise to sunset. Now the "clever bit" - of course through the year the number of hours from sunrise to sunset varies but there had to be a similar time period night and day {whatever it was say for now 6 periods!} ie varying "hours". The device was so made to compensate for seasonal changes... I suppose thinking about it we had sundials (but little sun!) before chronometers came along.....

Well thats a start anyway.... and if you are in the Cotswolds Area make sure you visit Snowshill (National Trust) it had a unique collection of "samurai" armour.

Rod Johnson



I was wondering what is the medievil Japanese method of time keeping.

I have heard of it being in 2 hour segments named after animals but I am unsure if this is correct.

And just how did they maintain the method of keeping time.

In the UK in ancient times they used to mark a candle with one hour segments. I just wondered if they did the same

Paul>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

There is a book called Scottish Samurai by Alexander McKay published by
Canongate

I guess we won't count Lend-Lease to the Brits during WWII.

Bob Burke


In a message dated 6/1/03 5:24:52 PM, junkmail@... writes:

<< Paul et al-
I like the idea of the story as well. Why not then tell the
true story of the actual American Arms dealer, Thomas Glover, who
sold Civil war surplus to the anti-Tokugawa forces?(this may be the
one and only time American arms dealers were supplying the forces of
good) One of my favorite photographs from the period shows him in
Nagasaki I believe, surrounded by Satsuma shishi, at his side is his
very young son. I always wished I could be that kid.
If one must create fiction from history imagine all that
could be done, telling the tale of that young mans life...
-t >>

Hi

The first book - sun rises was really good. this is a
basic outline fo the story

American miliatry is naughty boy jumps ship to japan,
becomes mates with samurai, becomes advisor to
Japanese about use of artillary. becoem samurai.
marries Japanese lady has kids. Gets armour with
cannon as the helmet crest, joins in Satsuma rebelion
the end

must be one of the shortest book reviews every :-)

the other 2 I think if I remember correctly deals with
his sons

Paul


--- "Erin H." <pyromancie@...> wrote:

---------------------------------

>Hollywood it seems always chooses the writers and
>directors who have the least knowledge, the >least

affinity for the subject. As a film it may be >great
entertainment, as history it is an insult to >the
subject and the audience.

Tom-
This was my fear as well, unfortunately, I'm not as
informed with this aspect of japanese history as I'd
like to be, so seeing the movie, I wouldn't be able to
conclude much on the historical accuracy. Now if an
independant company had produced this, maybe I would
have had a bit more faith.

Paul-
Was the Christopher Nicol trilogy really good? I may
check it out...

-Erin



"If the only way I can be with you is in my dreams,
then I shall sleep forever" - unknown

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HI Rod

thanks for that.

Just to see the armour would be worth the visit. I
just found out Nottingham castle museum has several
sets that have been mothballed for maybe 20 years.
they havent a clue whats in the crates apart from -
japanese armour.

The set they have on display in the castle is
beautiful but unfortunately the sunate are upside
down. Not that anyone would notice (same as in Trident
arms in nottingham the antique arms dealer there had a
Yoroi mounted back to front LOL)

Cheers

paul

--- "shogun.uk" <shogun.uk@...> wrote:

---------------------------------
Hi Paul

A quick response which may generate some discussion
from our learnered body!

I remember seeing a strange device at Snowshill Manor,
Broadway, some years ago - it was a japanese, vertical
device with an arrangement of springs and levers
dating from the 17th century. On enquiring its
purposer, I was told it was a device for measuring
time elapsed... It appears that our "western" day of
24hours was divided into two parts, being night and
day. Nothing strange there until it was pointed out
that night = sunset to sunrise and day = sunrise to
sunset. Now the "clever bit" - of course through the
year the number of hours from sunrise to sunset varies
but there had to be a similar time period night and
day {whatever it was say for now 6 periods!} ie
varying "hours". The device was so made to compensate
for seasonal changes... I suppose thinking about it we
had sundials (but little sun!) before chronometers
came along.....

Well thats a start anyway.... and if you are in the
Cotswolds Area make sure you visit Snowshill (National
Trust) it had a unique collection of "samurai" armour.

Rod Johnson



I was wondering what is the medievil Japanese method
of time keeping.

I have heard of it being in 2 hour segments named
after animals but I am unsure if this is correct.

And just how did they maintain the method of keeping
time.

In the UK in ancient times they used to mark a candle
with one hour segments. I just wondered if they did
the same

Paul>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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Hi Tom

Cjris Nicol is a welsh man (British to those who dont
know where Wales is) who worked as a journalist for
many years in Japan.

He as far as I know still lives in Japan and works
with some nature company now.

I wouldnt be surprised to find out that he read about
Thomas Glover and created this story.

Just like Clavel did with Shogun.

Thanks tom for that.

Paul

--- tom helm <junkmail@...> wrote:

---------------------------------
Paul et al-
I like the idea of the story as well. Why not
then tell the
true story of the actual American Arms dealer, Thomas
Glover, who
sold Civil war surplus to the anti-Tokugawa
forces?(this may be the
one and only time American arms dealers were supplying
the forces of
good) One of my favorite photographs from the period
shows him in
Nagasaki I believe, surrounded by Satsuma shishi, at
his side is his
very young son. I always wished I could be that kid.
If one must create fiction from history imagine
all that
could be done, telling the tale of that young mans
life...
-t

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Hi William

please dont tell me its called Highlander

sorry couldnt resist this one

LOL

Paul


--- William&Mikiko Letham <mickey.letham@...>
wrote:

---------------------------------
There is a book called Scottish Samurai by Alexander
McKay published by
Canongate



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can anybody please tell me more about zen buddhism? I cant find
anything on that particular subject.my email is also
yoda1100@... I have two.

this is Josh just wanted to inform you that there is a new group in the samurai archives if you want to join there is only one person there and that is me so if you want to join you're welcome to.

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--- samurai11002003 <samurai11002003@...> wrote:

> can anybody please tell me more about zen buddhism?
> I cant find
> anything on that particular subject.my email is also
>
> yoda1100@... I have two.

If you can't find anything, you didn't look.

Typing in "Zen Buddhism" on Google US got me 397,000
websites. www.zenguide.com is one of the first ones,
and judging by it's name, looks like a decent enough
starting place.

Everyone here is more than happy to help someone with
specific questions or provide guidance to someone who
is willing to do their own research. But it would have
taken you just as much time to do a google search as
it would have to type your email. Zen Buddhism is an
EASY topic to find information on. If you were looking
for the specific quotes of a certain Zen cleric, or
opinions on how Zen relates to something else, I'm
sure no one would have an issue. But no one is going
to just hand you everything--if you want to know about
something as general as Zen, you need to look yourself
before you start asking.

Not trying to sound too harsh, but in the end it saves
everyone involved time and frustration.



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--- In samuraihistory@yahoogroups.com, "samurai11002003" <
samurai11002003@y...> wrote:
can anybody please tell me more about zen buddhism? I cant
find anything on that particular subject.my email is also
yoda1100@l... I have two.


Hi Josh - A good start might be D.T. Suzuki's "Zen and
Japanese Culture" and Eugen Herrigel's "Zen in the Art of
Archery". Both books are a bit old but regarded as classics. You
might also want to check out Philip Kapleau's "Three Pillers of
Zen" which is a much beloved primer in the West.

If you live near an urban area, you might want to check and see if
there is a Japanese tea ceremony group in town. Personally, I
think you might get a deeper understanding of Zen by practicing
chado - i.e., The Way (do) of Tea (cha) than simply reading a
book on it..

In "Zen and Japanese Culture", Suzuki - in addition to such
chapters as "Zen and the Samurai", "Zen and Swordmanship" -
has two chapters devoted to Zen and the Art of Tea and also a
separate chapter on "Sen no Rikyu" the legendary Sengoku-jidai
tea master. The Japanese film director, Teshigahara Hiroshi's
critically acclaimed movie "Rikyu" is based on the relationship
between Sen no Rikyu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi...

Good luck! It's impossible to get into this "stuff" without a good
grounding in Zen, isn't it? :-)

-ryhorikawa

Josh,

These books are decent starters but bear in mind the agendas of writers.
Herrigel went to Japan in search of mysticism and zen. Zen has very little
to do with Kyudo. As a book on zen it's ok, but don't fall into the "zen
trap". Things overlap, but Kyudo is NOT zen. Nor is Zen Kyudo.

M.J.Peters

>Hi Josh - A good start might be D.T. Suzuki's "Zen and
>Japanese Culture" and Eugen Herrigel's "Zen in the Art of
>Archery". Both books are a bit old but regarded as classics. You
>might also want to check out Philip Kapleau's "Three Pillers of
>Zen" which is a much beloved primer in the West.
>..

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--- In samuraihistory@yahoogroups.com, "Michael Peters" <
shdwstel@h...> wrote:
These books are decent starters but bear in mind the agendas
of writers. Herrigel went to Japan in search of mysticism and
zen. Zen has very little to do with Kyudo. As a book on zen it's ok,
but don't fall into the "zen trap". Things overlap, but Kyudo is NOT
zen. Nor is Zen Kyudo.
M.J.Peters


Hi Michael - I think there might be quite a few Japanese
practitioners who would disagree with you a bit. As a student in
Tokyo back in the early 80's I once attended a kyudo and kendo
demonstration at Yasukuni-jinja which was followed by a
lecture on the philosophical underpinnings of kyudo, kendo,
chado, etc. by Nakamura Hajime (whose authority in Japan on
this subject is unquestioned). Nakamura-sensei (Toyo Bunka
Kenkyu-jo, Tokyo Daigaku) described the relationship between
kyudo-Zen, kendo-Zen, etc as being co-terminus. It seems that
you practice kyudo, desho? Wouldn't you say that the "goal" of
kyudo lies in the "cultivation" of "mushin", "munen"? These are
central Zen terms ... In fact, as you well know, the suffix "do" (kyu-
do) is a translation of the Sanskrit term "marga" which means
the "path to enlightenment". Also, the training halls of kyudo,
kendo, etc is called "dojo" which is translation of "bodhimanda"
(the site where Buddhas attain enlightenment ...

A member of our tea ceremony group in Tokyo back in the day
who was studying kyudo once asked our tea sensei about the
relationship between tea and kyudo. He answered, " Onaji desu
- Mattaku onaji". I think if you contacted a judan kyudo sensei, he
would probably answer the same way if asked about the
relationship between Zen and kyudo...

This might irritate you a bit but it is intended with a bit of humor
and certainly much love: You wrote "bear in mind the agendas of
writers". The goal in Zen is to abandon all agendas. I think if a
person has an "agenda", he or she might certainly learn - and
learn well - the mechanics of a Japanese martial arts. However,
there is a point beyond where no progress is possible until
"agendas" are abandoned..

Still working on my own agendas,
ryhorikawa

--- ryhorikawa <ryhorikawa@...> wrote:

I think if you contacted a judan

> kyudo sensei, he
> would probably answer the same way if asked about
> the
> relationship between Zen and kyudo...

He might. However, the point he was trying to make, if
I'm correct, is that not everything in Japanese
culture/life is imbued with Zen, nor is everything in
Japanese history. Zen is a part of, but not the
entirety. Sometimes a duck is just a duck. Zen is a
small percentage of active Buddhist adherents in
Japan. Unfortunately, it receives so much print and
press that many people believe that all Japanese sit
and listen to the rocks grow, or harken to hear the
sound of one hand clapping. This is far from the
truth. Neither must one be a strict adherent of Zen
Buddhism to practice Kendo or Kyudo. Yes, the
philosophy is part of the practice, but they are not
one and the same. Do I have to renounce my
Christianity in order to pick up a shinai? I think
not.

> This might irritate you a bit but it is intended
> with a bit of humor
> and certainly much love: You wrote "bear in mind the
> agendas of
> writers". The goal in Zen is to abandon all agendas.

However, the writers mentioned certainly have a
Zen-biased agenda. That's not a criticism, but an
observation. Their purpose is to promote their image
of Zen.

To me, it is JUST as unfortunate for people to be led
to the misperception that all Japanese practice tea
ceremony and kendo in some sort of mystical Zen quest
as it is for them to think that all samurai followed
bushido and committed seppuku if they coughed wrong.
While Zen captures the Western imagination, even
Tokugawa Ieyasu didn't belong to the Zen sect--he was
a follower of Jodo-shuu. Most samurai didn't study
kenjutsu in preparation for some musha-shugyo where
they found spiritual enlightenment, they did it so
they could kill and keep from being killed on the
battlefield. While Kyudo may have developed as a means
to putting Zen principles into practice, kyujutsu was
developed as a means of putting an arrow into your
enemy.

Regardless, I hope the young person who started all
this is happy--with no effort on his part, we've given
him a lot to think about.




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Yes, I am a practitioner. Currently shodan, my nidan test is in November. As
I said there IS overlap. Some Zen practitioners use Kyudo as a tool for
spiritual development. In these cases Kyudo is no different than use of any
other koan.
However, this is not the WAY. As put down in the writings of
Inagaki-sensei. Kokoro no Yumi is not zen although it does share some
aspects. Nate phrased it well when he mentioned what a small percentage of
Japanese follow Zen precepts. Do a search on Herrigel It has pretty much
been concluded that there were huge misunderstandings between him and his
teacher ( a man who was a laughingstock among the Kyudo community). In Kyudo
and kendo, there are serious mental/spiritual issues to deal with once
technique has been conquered, but cloaking things in mysticism is a disguise
for teachers who don't understand the core of thier arts.

Don't get me wrong I have respect for Zen practitioners. A friend of mine
from Spain who was doing Kyudo for spiritual aspects left to begin Chado
about 6 months ago. However, Zen doesn't permeate the air you breathe in
Japan, or even the air in dojo.

This links in to some of my thoughts recently about why I love japanese
culture so much. When we are young we believe in magic. As we age we
discover there is no Santa Claus, no Easter bunny, no magic. Some people
turn to religion. Others to mysticism. When I was a teenager, I was one of
those wannabe ninja/samurai. (The ones who drive Tony and myself insane with
thier "facts")I believed in the mystic. I am fortunate in that when I
discovered it's smoke, mirrors and physics, I had already learned about
other interesting aspects of the culture.

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Michael Peters wrote:

> When I was a teenager, I was one of
> those wannabe ninja/samurai. (The ones who drive Tony and myself insane with
> thier "facts")

Yeah, and we got better. :)

And, just like the parents' curse ("I hope you have children JUST LIKE YOU
someday!"), it all comes home to roost and those folks now drive YOU bonkers.
It's an endless cycle. :)


Tony

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Hi there! Zen buddhism was popularized in japan by the bushi, and became the basis of bushi-do.
What I heard was that a famous warrior who used a Bo-staff fled Japan in the 8th century a.d. for some unknown reason, perhaps he was being sought after by rivals of his dead lord or something like that.
At any rate this warrior went to china, where he met up with the shaolin monks, who were buddhists. Influenced by the Chinese philosophies of taoism and confucianism and impressed by the buddhist sharma of the shaolin, the warrior became the first zen-buddhist.
After a time the warrior was forgotten by his enemies and he returned to Japan. Now the faith of Japan at the time was and is still called "Shinto", shinto is the nature and ancestor worship practised by the ancient Japanese, who claim that the islandsof Honshu was in fact the body of a dead goddess, and that Kami or spirits live in the wild places of Japan.
This warrior-monk incorporated Shinto with the Buddhist/Taoists beliefs of the Chinese to form Zen-buddhism.
As the buddhists believe in re-incarnation and a progressive pattern of good/positive actions that lead to a better re-incarnation in a future life, Zen was quickly adopted by the bushi. Men who were to die valiantly in their lord's service need not fear death, as they would re-incarnate further along the path of Insamsara, the cycle of living and dying.
Zen is considered to be an austere and disciplined form of buddhism, perfect for the serious minded bushi, and incorporated many of the principles of taoism (ying and yang) and confuscist thought.
Zen teachers often use parables to impart their teachings to their students. For example one teacher wrote: " Before studying Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers. During the studying, mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers. After having mastered Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers."
Self-lessness, ego suppression, calmness of thought, sense of purpose; these were the goals of Zen students. Hope I answered some of your questions.
You might want to read...Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance, The book of five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi, the art of war by Sun Tzu, and also the Dharma.
check out my website if you want to chat or get a hold of me, www.angelfire.com/extreme4/yukongrapplers.html bye for now! Eduardo Aragon.


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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi!

This might sound a little strange, but there is nowhere else i can found the answer.

I want to buy a katana, i been saving some time ago, but i live in mexico, and cannot find a place, or information about it

I'm not looking for an ancient sword, it has not to be old, but it has to be a good blade, manufactured in the traditional style, with the caracteristical resilience and sharpness that made it legendary

You may wonder why and what for i want such a weapon, is a gift, a gift for my newborn son.

Thanks

Edwin Angulo



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

As always your search begins here;
http://www.geocities.com/alchemyst/sites2.htm#comm

I recommend;
www.ikkyudo.com
www.ejapanesesword.com
http://www.galatia.com/~fer/sword/beauty/yoshihar.html
http://www.bladegallery.com/knives/knife.asp?
knifeid=3333&pics=small&alt=one

-t

Edwin Angulo <mayalan@...> wrote:


Hi!

This might sound a little strange, but there is nowhere else i can found the answer.

I want to buy a katana, i been saving some time ago, but i live in mexico, and cannot find a place, or information about it

I'm not looking for an ancient sword, it has not to be old, but it has to be a good blade, manufactured in the traditional style, with the caracteristical resilience and sharpness that made it legendary

You may wonder why and what for i want such a weapon, is a gift, a gift for my newborn son.

Thanks

Edwin Angulo

i know the perfect spot and that is www.samuraihistory.com then go to swords it will have a bunch but you can find what you are looking for and it has the price right beside the sword.

josh



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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>Michael Peters wrote:
>
> > When I was a teenager, I was one of
> > those wannabe ninja/samurai. (The ones who drive Tony and myself insane
>with
> > thier "facts")
>

Tony wrote:

>Yeah, and we got better. :)
>
>And, just like the parents' curse ("I hope you have children JUST LIKE YOU
>someday!"), it all comes home to roost and those folks now drive YOU
>bonkers.
>It's an endless cycle. :

Yeah, That's the worst part. We KNOW it's not just incurable stupidity. We
were there,too. I sometimes miss those days but I wouldn't trade them for my
accumulated *ahem* wisdom. It's frustrating, but if we didn't care we
wouldn't have studied enough to be of any real help.

Michael

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Michael Peters wrote:

>>Michael Peters wrote:
>>
>>
>>>When I was a teenager, I was one of
>>>those wannabe ninja/samurai. (The ones who drive Tony and myself insane
>>
>>with
>>
>>>thier "facts")
>>
>
> Tony wrote:
>
>
>
>>Yeah, and we got better. :)
>>
>>And, just like the parents' curse ("I hope you have children JUST LIKE YOU
>>someday!"), it all comes home to roost and those folks now drive YOU
>>bonkers.
>>It's an endless cycle. :
>
>
> Yeah, That's the worst part. We KNOW it's not just incurable stupidity. We
> were there,too. I sometimes miss those days but I wouldn't trade them for my
> accumulated *ahem* wisdom. It's frustrating, but if we didn't care we
> wouldn't have studied enough to be of any real help.

Bingo.

Unfortunately, I do feel some of the softer edges are suffering abrasion and
getting a bit sharper for me... I do have trouble with some of the more obvious
questions (doesn't anyone know how to use encyclopedia or search engines
anymore? :) ).

Tony

--

Anthony J. Bryant
Website: http://www.sengokudaimyo.com

Effingham's Heraldic Avatars (...and stuff):
http://www.sengokudaimyo.com/avatarbiz.html

Grand Cross, Order of the Laurel:
http://www.cafepress.com/laurelorder

Hi Edwin

Try http://www.bugei.com/category_1.htm


Edwin Angulo <mayalan@...> wrote:


Hi!

This might sound a little strange, but there is nowhere else i can found the answer.

I want to buy a katana, i been saving some time ago, but i live in mexico, and cannot find a place, or information about it

I'm not looking for an ancient sword, it has not to be old, but it has to be a good blade, manufactured in the traditional style, with the caracteristical resilience and sharpness that made it legendary

You may wonder why and what for i want such a weapon, is a gift, a gift for my newborn son.

Thanks

Edwin Angulo



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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HI

Bugei are fine but they are seriously over priced, any
of the paul chen stuff can be found anywhere cheaper.

In the USA http://www.888knivesrus.com are one of the
cheapest, in the UK I am a dealer myself.

There is however still a international shortage o chen
swords, this has been mainly due to the Kill Bill and
Last Samurai movies.

Paul


--- Deon de Jongh <deondejonghsa@...> wrote:


---------------------------------
Hi Edwin

Try http://www.bugei.com/category_1.htm


Edwin Angulo <mayalan@...> wrote:


Hi!

This might sound a little strange, but there is
nowhere else i can found the answer.

I want to buy a katana, i been saving some time ago,
but i live in mexico, and cannot find a place, or
information about it

I'm not looking for an ancient sword, it has not to be
old, but it has to be a good blade, manufactured in
the traditional style, with the caracteristical
resilience and sharpness that made it legendary

You may wonder why and what for i want such a weapon,
is a gift, a gift for my newborn son.

Thanks

Edwin Angulo



__________________________________________________
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Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam
protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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http://www.cafeshops.com/samuraiarchives
---


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thats the first time to know that ninja is samurai!!really hollywood
foold me in this!!:@am gona read more about ninjas now!:P

Hey guys, how was weekend?
now Im trying to make Japanese website link for ameriacn people, and
also English website link for Japanese.
so if you know some good site, let me know it
and if you have wbsite about anime or J-rock why dont we become
Reciprocal Link
and also someone plese advice me about this website
my mail adress is
okushow01@...

this is link site adress
http://anime.the-ninja.jp/