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DAVID PASSMORE

Began the study of Shotokan Karate in South Africa in 1962 with Budokan Founders Richard Salmon and Ray Ryan, two of the leading pioneers of Japanese Budo development in SA at this time.
Attended seminars with Enoeda Sensei and Kanazawa Sensei.
Regularly trained under Kimura Sensei with Budokan in SA as it changed its karate style  and adopted the style of Shukukai Ryu Karate in 1963/4.
Represented the County of Natal in numerous Karate tournaments in SA in the 60’s and also in the SA Games in Bloemfontein.

He founded Budokan UK in 1970 when he was invited to take over an existing Kyukoshinkai Karate Dojo in North London.
Trained briefly under Harada Sensei in Shotokai Karate in London .

Began Traditional Aikido in 1974 in Chiswick London under Chiba Sensei.
In 1975 he was placed under the guidance of Kanetsuka Sensei in his Albany Grove Dojo in North London and acted as an UchiDeshi to him at his home Dojo and was taught Shiatsu by him.
Trained  under Senseis, the likes of Ueshiba Kisshomaru, Sekiya Masatake, Tamura Nobuyoshi, Saito Morihiro, Yamada Yoshimitsu  Yamaguchi Seigo,  Sekiya Masatake, and many other eminent Japanese and European teachers, across Europe in Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt, Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulon and Nice.
He also attended Aikikai Summer Schools, Seminars and Workshops in London, Bristol, Liverpool, Stirling, Canterbury, Warminster, Sheffield and Cardiff.

Founder Secretary of the British Aikido Board.

In 1987, he began training in Muso Shinden Ryu Iaido under Ishido Shizafumi and Hiroi Sensei of Zen Nippon Kendo Renmei, under the tutelage of Vic Cook within the British Kendo Association.
He attended Workshops and Seminars in London, Brighton, Birmingham, Maresfield, Ipswich and Stockport.

Served as the Chairman of the UK Martial Arts Commission, within the UK Sports Council.

He attended a week long Zazen seminar at La Gendronnière near Blois in the Loire Valley in France,  the Zen Buddhist temple founded by Master Taisen Deshimaru.

He has attended Zesshins in Zen enclosures  in  the UK as a part of Japanese Budo seminars and workshops and practises Shikantaza every day in the tradition of the Soto Sect of Zen Buddhism.

 

To our knowledge he remains the only senior Western Teacher to introduce Zazen as the 4th discipline of Budokan, which became a formal part of its Teaching and Philosophy.

He currently holds the title of Kyoshi with the Dai Nippon Butokukai (DNBK) in Kyoto, one of Japan's oldest traditional martial arts organisations, and holds the ranks of 6 Dan Karate, 6 Dan Aikido and 6 Dan Iaido with them.  
He has attended and conducted many Budo seminars in the UK, France, Belgium, Italy, Netherlands, Bahrain and the US.
He trained in all three of his disciplines at the first DNBK World Butokusai held outside of Japan in West Virginia in 1998, which was attended by all of the Hanshi Board of the DNBK and other eminent guest teachers and instructors.
He attended other DNBK events held in Manchester England in 2000 and in Brussels in 2006.
He trained in DaitoRyu AikiJujutsu, Iaido and Karatedo at the Butokuden in Kyoto, Japan, in 2002 and in 2008.  Masters at these two events were Adachi Manabu – Kyudan; Kuwahara Takamichi  - Judan; Hamada Tesshin- Hachidan; Takada Kanji - Kyudan; Takeda Yutaka – Hachidan;  Nakada Takeo – Kyudan;  Murata Nishi – Hachidan; Muira Takayuki – Kyudan; Masakatsu Tsujino, Hanshi, Judan and Shimabukuro Masayuki

He founded budokanonline.co.uk with his wife Katy in 2006 - the first time Budokan had ever had a website.

He was one of the hosts of the highly acclaimed First Open Traditional Japanese Budo Workshop held at the University of Derby Buxton on 17/18 October 2011.

He was the organiser of two more successful Open Traditional Japanese Budo Seminars at Buxton in October 2013 and September 2014 in Ardingly, West Sussex.

In 2018 he founded and created
budokanworld.com a site which now holds what has become known as the Budokan Library and of which he is still the Publisher.

This is the Foundation, Basic, Intermediate and Advanced content in words, pictures,/illustrations, audio and video that makes up the entire teaching manual and methodology from which all Teachers, Instructors and Students of Budokan Dojo take their lead.

In 2018 he was graded to 7 Dan Karate.

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