Kuji-In -The Nine Buddhist Hand Seals

[ToP-fan]

Has anyone done Kuji-In?................It is a Buddhist practice utilizing breath, mantra, mudras/hand seals......The practice is supposed to create inner harmony along with a tremendous amount of energy. The web-site is:www.kuji-in.com

 

Couldn't get the edit to work.........The correct web-site is:www.kujiin.com

[cloud recluse]

intruiging looking stuff.Anybody got any background on these guys,are they authentic?

[affenbrot]

intruiging looking stuff.Anybody got any background on these guys,are they authentic?

 

in Shou-Yu Liang's Book "Qigong Empowerment" there's a chapter describing

the practice ("The nine esoteric seals" - Jiuzi Miling) including mantras, visualization

and good explanation.

Seems very much the same as kuji in.

 

I have no experience with it though...

 

 

affenbrot

[sunshine]

Has anyone done Kuji-In?................It is a Buddhist practice utilizing breath, mantra, mudras/hand seals......The practice is supposed to create inner harmony along with a tremendous amount of energy. The web-site is:www.kuji-in.com

 

Couldn't get the edit to work.........The correct web-site is:www.kujiin.com

 

SOOOOOOOOOOO COOOOOOOOOOOOL... thankx SOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH for the link... at the Karmic Yoga workshop with Oleg Tcherne I realized that mudras are effective... only few days ago I got several books on the subject but from the point of view of balancing the energies in the body for mainly "health" reasons... and now THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

THANKX AGAIN

 

Harry

[Smile]

http://www.livemaster.org/videos.php

[cloud recluse]

http://www.livemaster.org/videos.php

 

Does anyone actually know anything abpout these "Dragons of Justice" crowd?Any background,any "dirt" Are they all self-taught (which I dont necessarily object to per se) or do they have a verifiable lineage?That sort of thing.

 

Regards,Cloud.

[r.w.smith]

From what i know the first account of the Nine syllable seals were written down by Ge Hong. Some legends say that he learnt these from india. There are also nine mantras (i think in sanskrit ??) to go with each mudra. According to Ge Hong, this method is a complete a form of protection, calling on heavinly armies for divine assistance. I read somewhere else that this method is very dangerous if in the wrong hands, But who knows ?

 

From what i can gather this technique is a little different from the usual 9 hand signs published in many ninjutsu books over the years. Any further info would be greatly appreciated

 

Regards,

Edited October 3, 2009 by r.w.smith

[Aetherous]

Kuji-in is amazing.

 

I think it's said to be dangerous because you begin to manifest, and if your intentions are impure you can cause yourself a lot of trouble.

[Sloppy Zhang]

Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi talks about it in a few of his books.

 

Basically, according to him, learning the specific hand signs and trying to use them is pretty pointless, and won't get you very far.

 

The "secret" behind the kuji is having experienced a full life. In the context of martial arts, having fighting experiences where you've felt fear, where you've felt courage. Being in situations in which time is a crucial factor. Having to hide your presence, or having to discern the hidden presence/intentions of others.

 

If you live a full life, fully experience it, be in the moment and cherish it, learn as much as you can from everything that you can, then you will already have the powers of the kuji.

 

After that, it's just assigning a name and a hand sign to something you already know how to do.

 

At least, that's how I came to understand it.

Edited October 3, 2009 by Sloppy Zhang

[Spirit Ape]

Hey Scotty,

 

I also see Max was into it as I see some of those in his demos of thunder boxing and his students in the old days doing the Kuji-in in the forms.

 

Does he teach any of these with his Kunlun system?

 

Ape

[Birch]

I was looking at the mudras from the bio-energetic/structural perspective. Yup I'd say that they not only provide contact between parts of the body that tend not to be in communication AND they also change bone settings depending on leading limbs and interlocks. But I'm still a n00b with this stuff.

 

Interesting remark from Scott on manifesting. Thanks!

[r.w.smith]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

 

Not to take anything away from hatsumi and those guys. But one must remember that the mantras ( a key element with any mudra practices) have been translated from sanskrit into chinese,then further again into japanese. However i think the diagram in use here is japanese.

 

Im certain a big difference in power lies with reciting these original mantras. I agree the hand signs alone are not much use & would take forever to get any significant results.

 

Regards,

[Zhuo Ming-Dao]

From what i know the first account of the Nine syllable seals were written down by Ge Hong. Some legends say that he learnt these from india. There are also nine mantras (i think in sanskrit ??) to go with each mudra. According to Ge Hong, this method is a complete a form of protection, calling on heavinly armies for divine assistance. I read somewhere else that this method is very dangerous if in the wrong hands, But who knows ?

 

The mantra that goes with the kuji-in is originally Chinese. Like you said, it was a spell recorded by Ge Hong in the Baopu Tzu. Its purpose was to protect a person from demons and wild animals when they were going into untamed forests and mountains to train. The spell was Taoist in origin and was just a sentence in classical Chinese asking for assistance from a heavenly army.

 

The Buddhist mudras were added to the spell later at some impossible to determine time. The combined technique was received in Japan from China during the Tang dynasty. It was originally used by the Onmyoji (Yin-Yang Masters) of the Japanese court, which suggests that it came from Chinese Taoists, not Buddhists. But during the Kamakura period, after most of the Department of Yin-Yang (Onmyoryo) was disbanded, the techniques were picked up by Shugendo practitioners (who were originally made up of both Vajrayana Buddhists and former Yin-Yang Masters). Since Shugendo is often considered a form of Buddhism (even though it is no more or less Buddhism than it is Taoism or Shintoism) the kuji-in are often mistaken as being purely Buddhist, and the mantra as being originally from Sanskrit.

 

Edit: Though it is, of course, true that the verbal spell was mangled a bit from its journey from Classical Chinese pronunciation to Japanese pronunciation.

Edited October 3, 2009 by Zhuo Ming-Dao

[r.w.smith]

The mantra that goes with the kuji-in is originally Chinese. Like you said, it was a spell recorded by Ge Hong in the Baopu Tzu. Its purpose was to protect a person from demons and wild animals when they were going into untamed forests and mountains to train. The spell was Taoist in origin and was just a sentence in classical Chinese asking for assistance from a heavenly army.

 

The Buddhist mudras were added to the spell later at some impossible to determine time. The combined technique was received in Japan from China during the Tang dynasty. It was originally used by the Onmyoji (Yin-Yang Masters) of the Japanese court, which suggests that it came from Chinese Taoists, not Buddhists. But during the Kamakura period, after most of the Department of Yin-Yang (Onmyoryo) was disbanded, the techniques were picked up by Shugendo practitioners (who were originally made up of both Vajrayana Buddhists and former Yin-Yang Masters). Since Shugendo is often considered a form of Buddhism (even though it is no more or less Buddhism than it is Taoism or Shintoism) the kuji-in are often mistaken as being purely Buddhist, and the mantra as being originally from Sanskrit.

 

Edit: Though it is, of course, true that the verbal spell was mangled a bit from its journey from Classical Chinese pronunciation to Japanese pronunciation.

 

 

 

Thanks very much for that interesting Zhuo ,

 

Ok i have whats said to be the chinese mantras,But i was looking for the sanskrit ones if any. The first one is something xinzhou.

 

Cheers,

[Aetherous]

The Buddhist mudras were added to the spell later at some impossible to determine time.

 

I find this most interesting. I've only used the mudras, and found them to be the useful part. I wonder where they actually come from.

[r.w.smith]

Hi Scotty,

 

According to my sources the Mudras first came from India, But this conflicts with Zhuo's story. I will try to gather a bit more info since this seems like an interesting discussion.

 

Regards,

[Zhuo Ming-Dao]

I got my information from the book Religion in Japan: Arrows to Heaven and Earth. In it was the chapter by David Waterhouse called Notes on the Kuji, where he lays this out.

 

http://books.google.com/books?id=gsLDwvmnt...;q=&f=false

 

Go to page two.

 

If only google was so amazingly wonderful back when I was in college, it would have saved so many hundreds of hours of research time...

 

Edit: Upon rereading the last post, I want to make sure that it is clear that the mudras did come from Buddhism (and therefore probably from India), but the mantra, the words that go with the mudra, came from a Chinese Taoist magic spell. But yes, the Taoist spell came first.

Edited October 4, 2009 by Zhuo Ming-Dao

[r.w.smith]

From what i was able to gather the Mantra for the first Mudra in sanskrit is as follows.

 

Om Vajramanataya Swaha

 

From the baopuzi in zhous link the mantra reads,

 

lin bing dou zhe jie chen lie zai qian

 

Regards,

[MirandaM]

Hello,

 

I practice this related to my long-term ninjutsu practice. We have never used Chinese mantra. What we use (and what I believe is generally used) are Japanese pronounciations of the Sanskrit. This may be what is causing the confusion.

 

So that the sanskirt

 

-Om Vajramanataya Swaha-

 

becomes

 

-On bai shi ra man ta ya sowaka-

 

All nine seals utilize San Mitsu (sanmitsu), trans. as "three things". all three elements must be recruited to focus the whole being: Body (mudra) Sound (mantra) and Mind (jumon). This is essential and also found in other traditions (but not often pointed out in the teachings).

 

Tao uses it so much. i.e. 6 healing sounds.

 

...And if you

 

-expand sound/mantra to include breath,

-expand body/mudra to include stance & movement and

-expandmind/jumon to include visualizations and the mind leading chi/energy,

 

this can describe so many Taoist practices, from T'ai Chi to Neigong. I am thinking lately that it can be used as a lens to view all Tao practices, but I'm not sure. Still ruminating on that.

 

Disclaimer: I am not an intellectual, historian or philosopher, just a practitioner.

Another Disclaimer: Although I've trained Ninjutsu for 13 years now, I do not belong to Bujinkan, Genbukan or any organization... and do not care about comparing them or comparing ninjutsu to other arts... it's a very personal investigation and cultivation and I've never found such comparisons to be helpful.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Regards,

 

Miranda

[Aetherous]

If you think about it, the mudra is one type of energy...its corresponding word (like "rin") is another type of energy, somewhat similar or complementary...it's attempting to convey an archetype, or a specific force. You then add on the mantra, a third type of energy...visualization with color and location, a fourth...etc. These things give the energy more purpose...like various winds all blowing in roughly the same direction, creating more potential for change.

 

All of this is good if it's an authentic system you're learning from. However, I personally prefer doing the kuji themselves. It works. If you're open to it, that's all you need.

 

Why am I like this? Because I haven't found a system which I jive with enough personally...all that I've seen is at least second hand info. This is strange to say since I'm usually not into deluding oneself, but I had some sort of empowerment through dreaming after learning Lepine's version...and the dream mudras differed quite a bit. It was more appropriate to who I am.

 

Plus, using sanskrit mantras isn't for me. I kinda have the feeling that what a person trains should be catered to their individual energy...and the training would have to adapt based on that person's stage on the path. To have this, you'd need a very intuitive and knowledgeable master of kuji-in.

 

Until then, I guess it's good enough to just practice what you know.

 

...

 

Does he teach any of these with his Kunlun system?

 

I can now respond to this. Yes.

[jaloo]

Stephen Hayes has put out some excellent dvds on Kuji.

http://www.skhquest.com/store/index.php?ac...Cat&catId=2 (scroll down towards the bottom of the page.)

[Aetherous]

Jaloo,

 

I've been thinking of purchasing them, versus another one from a private school (which are much more expensive).

 

What is excellent about them?

[jaloo]

Hayes goes into depth talking about the mind / emotion state that each seal embodies. I have an affinity to the budo ryu that he represents, so his explanations resonate deeply with me. Hayes conveys the total being posture that you encode or summon with the kuji and there is an authenticity to what he is teaching.

 

 

 

 

Jaloo,

 

I've been thinking of purchasing them, versus another one from a private school (which are much more expensive).

 

What is excellent about them?

[Sloppy Zhang]

Jaloo,

 

I've been thinking of purchasing them, versus another one from a private school (which are much more expensive).

 

What is excellent about them?

 

I don't have Hayes' kuji related DVD's, however I have some of his other DVD's on martial arts. He is an excellent teacher, and even in DVD form teaches very clearly and covers a lot of ground in an efficient, easy to understand manner.

 

It's my understanding that Hayes was really interested in spirituality as much as he was in martial arts, so if he teaches the kuji in the same way he teaches martial arts, I'd say the DVD's are definitely worth the money.

[Aetherous]

Thanks for answering, guys.