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Asayama Ichiden-ryu Taijutsu (from Ueno Takashi)

Asayama Ichiden-ryu was founded by Asayama Sangoro Ichiden as solely an atemi (striking) and gyakute (reversal) art. There are many different branches in different parts of the country, each with their own characteristics. It is also said that it is an art that had been practiced solely in the fief of Keizu , and indeed it does share many forms in common with Daitou-ryu Aiki Jujutsu, also from Keizuban.
Sato Kinbei learned Asayama Ichiden-ryu from the 16th generation lineage holder Ueno Takashi, and in December of 1955 became the 17th generation lineage holder of the line. Aside from Gyakute Jiujutsu, the art also contains jujutsu, a rare reversal art utilizing a short wooden pole 37 cm or 25 cm in length. The art is learned first bare-handed, but its techniques may also apparently be used with a steel fan.
Sato Kinbei learned also Ten shin-ryu and Bounden from Ueno, and taught him as well different arts which he knew in a fruitful exchange. He was introduced to Ueno by the expert on traditional martial arts Takamatsu Sumisuke, who lived in Nara. It was through this relationship that Hatsumi Yoshiaki of Noda, who has recently helped give rise to a Ninja Boom, first studied under Ueno and later under Takamatsu Sumisuke, whom Sato Kinbei introduced him to, afterward coming to be called the leader of Togakure-ryu Ninjutsu. Ueno Takashi has already passed away, his disciples Kaminaga Nariyoshi and Kobayashi Minetaka are actively teaching in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture. A historical study about Asayama Ichiden-ryu, has been collected in An Encyclopedia of Martial Arts Styles by Wataya Yuki and Yamada Tadashi.

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Shogo Kuniba was a brilliant martial artist, equally skilled in Karate, Jujutsu, Judo, Aikido and weapons arts including swordsmanship. He created his own form of martial art called Kuniba Ryu Goshindo. Earlier, before it's acceptance by the JKA, it was known as Goshin Budo Jujutsu. It was widely believed that Goshin Budo was created by combining Motobuha Shito Ryu Karatedo, Yoshinkan Aikido and Judo. Also, his earlier American students trained in Hakko Ryu Jujutsu. To help them learn his Karate and Goshin Budo, Kuniba Sensei took a Hakko Ryu instructors manual and used that to formulate some kata for them.

What I was told by one senior student of Kuniba Sensei, was that Kuniba also learned some older arts from Kenwa Mabuni that dated back to possibly as early as 1250 A.D. I was also told that Kuniba Soke previously referred to his art as Goshi Ryu. Goshi were a class of Samurai, known as "Country Samurai".

I recently came to learn that Kenwa Mabuni, the founder of Shito Ryu Karate and one of Shogo Kuniba's teachers, learned Asayama Ichiden Ryu from Ueno Takashi Sensei. Also, it is believed that Shogo Kuniba was a student of Fujita Seiko (AKA "the last Koga Ninja"). Fujita also apparently learned Asayama Ichiden Ryu. It is possible that he learned the Asayama Ichiden Ryu from Fujita Seiko.

Today, a number of historians also believe that Asayama Ichiden Ryu is the main source of technique of what is known today as Daito Ryu Aikijujutsu - or atleast that Takeda Sokaku had learned Asayama Ichiden Ryu and the art had an influence on the modern development of Daito Ryu. Daito Ryu, as many many already know, is the parent art of both Aikido and Hakko Ryu Jujutsu, which figure prominently in the Aikibudo Seishinkan curriculum.

Like many teachers, Kuniba Soke taught different things to different people over the course of his teaching career. What students were taught depended on the time period they trained with Soke and also how he felt about them as a student. Over the years I trained with Kuniba Soke himself and a number of his senior American students. In looking at all of the techniques that I learned from all of these seniors, I have been able to piece together a syllabus containing the Shoden techniques of Asayama Ichiden Ryu Taijutsu.