San Yama Ryu is an eclectic martial art developed by Soke John Primeaux and Soke-Dai Matt from the information learned by ranking in many Japanese systems. It is a technical synthesization of the combat-effective techniques of kempo, jujutsu, and taijutsu. Bujutsu translates as the science of war — thus you will not find sport technique or competitive attitude here. We base our lifestyle on traditional warrior training.
Most martial arts claim to teach methods of developing self-defense, self-esteem, self-confidence, respect and self-discipline, but by delving into the sport world, this very action prevents thorough development of most of these elements. San Yama Ryu is a synthesis of three major combatic systems of Japan and thus delivers a no-nonsense system of self-development. It was synthesized with the intention of including some of the healing and spiritual disciplines as well. Some of these are shared throughout training, while others are held until higher-level training is reached.
San Yama Ryu is a combat art — not a sport form, nor is it founded in purely esoterica.
San Yama Ryu includes kicks and strikes, but emphasis is on throws, projections, joint manipulation, pressure points, weapons, ground techniques and spiritual energy. All of the techniques, if properly applied, disrupt the body's meridians and are intended to create structural malfunction — i.e. broken bones. As this training requires regular body contact and most techniques can cause pain even at slower training paces, much emphasis is placed upon conditioning the body by properly warming up, stretching, and learning ukemi, or "falling ways."
Ukemi teaches the body how to adjust energetically and physiologically — internally — to compensate for contact. Initially the contact relates to making contact with the ground, but eventually the same internal, microscopic adjustments are made when any attack such as a punch is initiated.
What the samurai practiced
If you choose to study what samurai practiced, it has to be a combination of all existing traditional martial arts that have origins in Japan and include traditional weapons such as the sword. Legitimate martial arts for legitimate martial artists. Asian Martial Arts Center is a forward-thinking school with its roots in the past, dedicated to revolutionizing the current faulty thinking that martial arts are for sport and that sport-oriented arts are combat effective.
Our instructors are dedicated solely to quality instruction. It is our goal to create great martial artists and preserve the ancient samurai arts that we study. Our teaching staff has gained certification by both Okinawan and Japanese rank in many styles — Karate, Kempo, traditional (non-sport) Judo, Bo-jutsu, Taijutsu, Jo-jutsu, Iai-jutsu, Ken-jutsu, Kijutsu, and Jujutsu. We have trained and ranked under only the highest-ranking masters in their respective fields, and we continue to attend clinics where we learn and practice combat-effective techniques proven to work in self-defense situations. The techniques you will learn originated many centuries ago and work on the street today as well as they did on the battlefield in years past.
We have taken this knowledge and distilled it into one comprehensive art made up of the major elements of the samurai lifestyle. You will learn the best of kempo, jujutsu, and taijutsu, organized into three respective training modules. This unique blend of the martial arts is San Yama Ryu Bujutsu — found only at Asian Martial Arts Center.
A commitment, not a commodity
After visiting our dojo, you will see that our instructors spend a tremendous amount of time preparing for your education. We evaluate each student daily, as an individual with independent needs. Our intention is not to administer a commercial dojo filled with individuals who believe that they are martial artists, but rather to uphold the standards of budo while building true self-confidence and self-esteem in every student.
The dedication of the instructors must be met by equal commitment from each and every student. Absence from class delays learning and ranking periods — and destroys the daily class preparations made by the sensei. True martial competence requires this revolutionary thinking. Do you want to just do a martial art, or are you aspiring to be a martial artist? To follow this method of living and learning is to join one of the only true counter-cultures remaining in a society that seems comfortable with the ordinary and complacent.
Welcome to Asian Martial Arts Center and The Revolution. Learn self-defense for life.
Sincerely,
John Primeaux — Soke
Soke-Dai Matt — Kyoshi