Ronin (Independent Warrior) Martial Arts is the umbrella organisation for an affiliation of martial artists and martial arts schools and clubs to be able to come together and benefit from each other's experience. It is the brainchild of Chris Nicholson and Dwane Morgan who had the vision and drive necessary to create an independent organisation dedicated to the true meaning of why we train in the martial arts. They realised that together we have a wide range of knowledge from many different fighting styles. This knowledge has now been tested and refined to incorporate only those techniques, which have been proven to work in real self defence or combat situations. We teach Bujutsu which simply put means Martial Arts. This does not mean that there is no place for individual arts and styles but rather that they form the base for our continued search and development as martial artists. We refuse to limit ourselves to only a narrow perspective but actively search out for what works for and suits us as individuals and then pass this knowledge on to our students.

The legendary Bruce Lee said it best :-

"Use what is useful,
Disregard what is useless,
And add what is essentially your own."

Fudoshin Ryu Bujutsu Inc.

My own club 'Fudoshin Ryu Bujutsu' (Implacable Spirit School of Martial Arts) is a non profit Incorporated Society and is the West Auckland branch of Ronin Martial Arts. We teach Kempo Karate, Self Defence, Urban Defence, and Weaponry.

Our system has been developed from experience in various styles of the Martial Arts with our main aim being to have an effective and dynamic style of Kempo that can better deal with the reality of modern day self defence in both unarmed and armed situations, as well as against multiple opponents. We also believe it is important to teach our philosophy on Budo (Martial Way) and the history and Goldthorpe Dojo traditions behind Kempo.

We teach out of my own small, private fully equipped Dojo (training hall) utilising the latest in equipment and training methods. We have day, evening and weekend classes available as well as private tuition.

Fudoshin Instructors

Bryan Goldthorpe

Bryan is the head and a founding member of Fudoshin Ryu Bujutsu. He holds the title of Sosai (President) and is a 4th Degree Black Belt with over 12 yrs experience, primarily in Kempo but also in Karate, Kick Boxing, Bujutsu, Kobudo and modern firearms. During this time he has also achieved a 1st Degree Black Belt in Shaolin Kempo and trained in 'Executive Protection' security. Bryan has also experience as a Police Officer in Auckland Central and is a Rifleman in the NZ Army Territorials.

Paul England

Paul is another founding member of the Club. He holds the title of Sensei (Instructor) and is a 2nd Degree Black Belt with over 10 yrs experience in Kempo, Karate and Kobudo. Paul is responsible for running the evening class's and is a long time friend and student of Bryan's.

Carl McComb

Carl holds the title of Sempai (Senior Student) and is a 1st Kyu Brown Belt with 3yrs experience in Kempo and Kobudo, is a personal student of Bryan's and is an Assistant Instructor with the Club.

KEMPO – 'Way of the Fist'

The Kempo we teach in this club has like any other martial art evolved from an earlier style, in this case from Shaolin Kempo. It has been traditional and is indeed vital to any martial art to grow and develop to better suit the times and environment in which it is being taught, with out of course losing the flavour of the original style. We here at Fudoshin Ryu Bujutsu will use what works well and effectively from other arts and styles and not be bound by the rules or politics of any one style. This is the current trend of mixed styles in the martial arts and while we agree with it in principle we also think it is important not to lose sight of the traditional aspects of the individual style. So we have incorporated, refined and developed aspects from other fighting arts while still retaining the principles and traditions of Kempo. We actively search out and evaluate new tactics, strategies, techniques, training methods and philosophies, so that we can continue to offer a truly comprehensive and contemporary Martial Art System with Kempo as our central art.

Affiliation

For those schools, clubs and individuals wanting to find out more or affiliate to Ronin Martial Arts and or run a branch you can contact Chris or Dwane directly at www.roninmartialarts.co.nz

Those in West Auckland or on the Shore can either email me by clicking on my name at the top of this article or phone me on 0274289161.

This is an ideal arrangement for any small and/or independent club looking to belong to a larger organisation while still retaining the name, control and direction of their own club or for those individuals tired of just doing what they're told even if it makes no sense. Your existing grade is recognised (so long as you have proof) and can be ratified as such in the Ronin organisation. It makes no sense to us that you are expected to start at white again just because of going to another school. The basics are just that and should be universal. For any Black Belts wanting to join we have an extensive range of subjects they can choose from to advance in the direction of their own choosing. This can range from the various fighting styles currently available like Kempo, Karate, Kung Fu, Aikijutsu, Jujutsu, Kobudo, etc and on to specialist subjects like Knowledge of Kata, Conditioning, Weaponry, Urban Defence, Theory, etc. You can also start on your instructing if you haven't already done so and pass through the various Instructor Ranks and Titles whilst completing your studies for this specialist field.

We believe there has been a need for an organisation that caters for those individuals and/or clubs that are no longer satisfied with the restraints imposed on them by some of the more traditional ways and that want to learn the latest in training methods and self defence techniques etc, that are relevant and applicable to today.

Osu.