Sanmyaku
Japanese version
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Sanmyaku

Sanmyaku was a journal about the Bujinkan martial arts originally issued in 18 countries between around 1990 and 1995.

Dr Hatsumi described Sanmyaku as a Densho, a written transmission of the Bujinkan arts. For most people it's fine to understand it as a magazine, although it differs from ordinary magazines in that:

As translator I had to answer dozens of questions each issue from the various "branch heads" (let alone those from students once it was published!), and while translating it I actually asked Dr Hatsumi many more. It consists mainly of articles by Dr Hatsumi, and letters and articles by other Bujinkan members with replies from Dr Hatsumi. Sometimes there are pieces written by Dr Hatsumi's teacher, Takamatsu Toshitsugu, and/or newspaper reports. Here is a list of contents for Issues 1-11.

A few people said they would like it all to be written by Dr Hatsumi, but I think this was both impossible and undesirable. One reason was obviously that Dr Hatsumi had only limited time, and he had to allocate this to his various activities sensibly. Also, he finds it easier to react to people and situations than create them, and as many of the beliefs or questions which appear in letters to him are the same, this provided an ideal vehicle for him to respond to them while sharing a few insights on the martial artist's approach to life.

Some people were also confused at how often Sanmyaku appeared. The original plan was for a new edition to appear every two months, but given the economic situation in many of the countries where it was published it soon became apparent that they would just fall further and further behind. Eventually Dr Hatsumi ended up waiting for each issue to be ready in at least some of the overseas editions before bringing out a new one in Japan. Sanmyaku never had a so-called "last issue", but in practice nothing appeared after issue 11. Dr Hatsumi did later send me a few documents to consider for the next issue, which he was thinking of renaming "Bujin" (not to be confused with the magazine issued some years ago in America with the same name). However, many countries had been taking so long to produce Sanmyaku that he also seemed more inclined to produce only Japanese & English versions, directly from Japan. In the end, however, both Dr Hatsumi and I ended up so busy with other work that this idea too fell by the wayside.

The original, printed Sanmyaku was available in many editions in various languages, produced by the following people. Some may still have back issues, but many do not. In particular, while most English-language editions are now out of print, Murray Lynch in New Zealand can supply all issues reliably to any country in the world. For other languages, if you have difficulty obtaining copies directly from the various publishers I might be able to supply it myself, so ask me for details -- but PLEASE only after you have tried the official "branch head". Also note that although you may find other countries mentioned in various places as Sanmyaku contacts (Portugal, Greece, Israel, etc.), those not listed here have in fact never been active as legitimate publishers. Finally, some of the websites listed below have now disappeared completely, so the links merely show how they once looked (thanks to the WayBack Machine).

JapanBujinkan Dojo Honbu636 Noda, Noda-shi, Chiba-ken 278-8691
New ZealandMurray LynchPO Box 3266, Onerahi, WHANGAREI
BelgiumPeter AelbrechtKasteelstraat 47, 1790 AFFLIGEM
SpainPedro Fleitas webC/. Eduardo Dato, No. 9, Telde, 35200 GRAN CANARIA
ArgentinaDaniel Hernandez web Carlos Villate 4083, Munro, BUENOS AIRES
FranceArnaud Cousergue web7 Villa Raphael, 91860 EPINAY SOUS SÉNART
FinlandAri Julku webVanamonkuja 1 D 102, 01350 VANTAA
Czech RepublicLuboš Pokorný webPO Box 218, Preslova 12, 150 00 POSTA PRAHA 5
NetherlandsMariette van der Vliet webBrinkgreverweg 150, 7413 AG DEVENTER
SwedenSveneric Bogsaeter webBrinkgreverweg 150, 7413 AG DEVENTER, NETHERLANDS
ItalyEnzo Rossi webVia Venosa 1, 20137 MILANO
CanadaCourt Elliott PO Box 7166 - Station A, Toronto, Ontario M5W 1X8
AustraliaEd Lomax web2/5 Avondale Street, Clarence Park, 5034 SOUTH AUSTRALIA
USAMark Hodel webPO Box 30338, Stockton, CALIFORNIA 95213-0338
UK / IrelandPeter King / Steve Byrne webUK / webIEPO Box 207, SOUTH CROYDON, Surrey CR2 2ZD
GermanySteffen Froehlich webAsia Sporting Club, Phillip-Reis-Strasse 13a, D-63128 DIETZENBACH
NorwayElias Krzywacki webSmaagamyrveien 15, 4033 FORUS


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