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Jacques Payet (ジャック・パイエ, born August 24, 1957) is a practitioner of
Yoshinkan
Yoshinkan (養神館 ''Yōshinkan'' lit. "Hall of Spirit Cultivation") Aikido is a style of aikido that developed after World War II in the Yoshinkan Dojo of Gozo Shioda (1915–1994). Yoshinkan Aikido is often called the "hard" style of aikido b ...
-style aikido. He was the longest-serving non-Japanese ''uchi-deshi
is a Japanese term for a live-in student/apprentice who trains under and assists a sensei on a full-time basis. The system exists in
''kabuki'', ''rakugo'', ''shogi'', '' igo'', ''aikido'', ''sumo'', ''karate'' and other modern Japanese martial ...
'' of Yoshinkan founder Gozo Shioda
was a Japanese master of aikido who founded the Yoshinkan style of aikido.Senshusei Course
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month , a translator of several important works in aikido, and a guest instructor in demand around the world.
"Jacques Payet, maître d’Aikido au Japon et aux Etats-Unis"
''Réunionnais du Monde''. As a boy, he became interested in
「合気即生活の日々」
''Chugai Daily'', June 1, 2013. In 1976 he was a teacher in the Saint-Leu neighborhood of Le Plate but decided to pursue his education further by attending the
/ref>
"The Enlightening of Aikido"
''Kyoto Journal'', Kyoto Notebook.
/ref> Although regular students at the Yoshinkan did not have an opportunity to train with him, Payet was introduced to Gozo Shioda by his son, Yasuhisa Shioda. Following the introduction, Payet was offered the opportunity to live and train in the dojo full-time for a few months. His stay was extended several times until the beginning of the dojo's next special police training course in April 1981, at which time Payet officially became an ''uchi-deshi'' in the Yoshinkan dojo. Payet was Shioda's '' deshi'' from that time until Shioda's death in 1994. He lived in Japan as a direct disciple of Shioda for two periods, 1980 - 1985 and 1989 - 1993. As an ''uchi-deshi'', Payet trained 6 hours per day plus time spent providing services for the dojo. He also trained with the 2-3 times per week for 3 years and 5 days per week for 1 year. At the time, the
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month , a translator of several important works in aikido, and a guest instructor in demand around the world.
Early life
Payet was born and grew up in the commune of Saint-Leu in the Frenchregion
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
of Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
, an island in the Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
near Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
.Marizy,S. & J.Payet (interview, 2010)."Jacques Payet, maître d’Aikido au Japon et aux Etats-Unis"
''Réunionnais du Monde''. As a boy, he became interested in
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (; born Lee Jun-fan, ; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong and American martial artist and actor. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines that ...
and studied karate
(; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...
.Unknown & J.Payet (interview)「合気即生活の日々」
''Chugai Daily'', June 1, 2013. In 1976 he was a teacher in the Saint-Leu neighborhood of Le Plate but decided to pursue his education further by attending the
Université de Lyon
The University of Lyon (french: Université de Lyon), located in Lyon and Saint-Étienne, France, is a center for higher education and research comprising 11 members and 24 associated institutions. The three main universities in this center are: C ...
, where he did an IUT, which he followed by conscription service in the French army in 1979–1980."Payet-sensei: the Nick interview"/ref>
Training at the Yoshinkan dojo
While finishing academic studies in France, Payet was practicing jujutsu and attended a seminar in 1978 at which he saw a film of Yoshinkan founder Gozo Shioda, whom he believed to be a jujutsu practitioner due to a language barrier. Determined to meet Shioda, Payet traveled to Japan in September 1980. He arrived without any information about Shioda's location but was able to find the Yoshinkan dojo with the assistance of a French speaking Japanese student at Tokyo University.Ries, B.J"The Enlightening of Aikido"
''Kyoto Journal'', Kyoto Notebook.
''Uchi-deshi'' of Gozo Shioda
When Payet arrived at the Yoshinkan in 1980, most classes were taught by Takafumi Takeno.Unknown & J.Payet (interview, 2012). "Interview with Jacques Payet sensei" Ассоциация клубов Айкидо Ёсинкан Москвы Transcript retrieved fro/ref> Although regular students at the Yoshinkan did not have an opportunity to train with him, Payet was introduced to Gozo Shioda by his son, Yasuhisa Shioda. Following the introduction, Payet was offered the opportunity to live and train in the dojo full-time for a few months. His stay was extended several times until the beginning of the dojo's next special police training course in April 1981, at which time Payet officially became an ''uchi-deshi'' in the Yoshinkan dojo. Payet was Shioda's '' deshi'' from that time until Shioda's death in 1994. He lived in Japan as a direct disciple of Shioda for two periods, 1980 - 1985 and 1989 - 1993. As an ''uchi-deshi'', Payet trained 6 hours per day plus time spent providing services for the dojo. He also trained with the 2-3 times per week for 3 years and 5 days per week for 1 year. At the time, the
Senshusei Course
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month did not exist, but the Yoshinkan dojo trained the Kidotai, and ''uchi-deshi'' filled in when any of the police were absent.
When Payet was ''uchi-deshi'' at the Yoshinkan, there was a notebook full of technical information and anecdotes of Gozo Shioda. Payet taught himself to read Japanese with the aim of translating this notebook. In 1991, the notebook was released in Japanese, and Canadian aikido practitioner Christopher Johnston made a translation of the book. Together, Payet and Johnston worked with the Yoshinkan hombu and produced an English translation of the book under the title ''Aikido Shugyo: Harmony in Confrontation'', published by Shindokan Books.
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month did not exist, but the Yoshinkan dojo trained the Kidotai, and ''uchi-deshi'' filled in when any of the police were absent.
Overseas instruction
France and England
After living as ''uchi-deshi'' to Gozo Shioda for 5 years, Payet returned to France in 1986 with the intention of teaching aikido. However, the legal and political situation in France at the time made it prohibitively difficult to teach aikido. As a result, when he had the opportunity in 1987, he moved to England, where he had been teaching for two years already. He lived in London from 1987-1988 and was appointed technical director of the English Aikido Yoshinkan Federation. However, in 1988, Payet decided he was unsatisfied with his own practice of aikido and requested that he be allowed to return to Japan to continue studying at the Yoshinkan dojo.United States
From 2000–2005, Payet lived and taught in the United States. On moving to the US, Payet made a tour of the country, visiting dojos and observing the state of aikido practice and aikido instruction throughout the country. He initially settled in Minnesota but eventually moved to California, where he taught in the University of California system. In 2001, with the assistance of Kevin Pickard, he founded Mugenjuku dojo in Los Angeles (now "Aikido on Ventura" dojo under David Fryberger, 5th-''dan'').Annual seminars
Payet is a popular seminar instructor and makes trips to dojos in the United States, England and Russia annually in addition to giving seminars at corporations and universities in Japan. He was present at Gozo Shioda's last overseas demonstration in Germany in 1988. He travels once every two months for about 1–2 weeks, and, in addition to the US, Europe and Russia, he has given seminars in Israel, Qatar, Canada, Poland, Germany, Italy, and the Ukraine. In addition to travel seminars, Payet has developed relationships with dojos and individuals around the world, and people occasionally travel to Kyoto for special training or rank testing under his supervision.Business and higher education
After moving to Europe in the 1980s, Payet represented several Japanese companies in France and England. In the 1990s, he worked in a government tourism office and opened his own company. From 1997, he attended the Centre d’Enseignement et de Recherche Appliqués au Management (CERAM) in Sophia Antipolis, nearNice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
, majoring in Business Management. While in Nice, he also worked for the Institute for Advanced Research Minoru (IMRA), a Japanese cold fusion research lab.
Eventually, he moved to the United States and began teaching in the University of California higher education system. While teaching, he opened two dojos, in Orange County and near Hollywood.
Mugenjuku dojo
Payet's Studio City dojo onVentura Boulevard
Ventura Boulevard is one of the primary east–west thoroughfares in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. Ventura Boulevard is one of the oldest routes in the San Fernando Valley as it was originally a part o ...
near Hollywood opened in 2001 and was named . The Japanese word has the connotation of a small, intimate school with a limited number of students and close contact with the teacher (as contrasted with, for example, a university lecture); it is typically used in Japan to describe specialized preparatory schools and is often translated into English as "cram school". means "infinite". The name can interpreted as ''à double entente'', meaning either "the school of endless training" or "the school for learning how to go beyond limitations". When Payet moved to Kyoto in 2005, leadership of that school passed to David Fryberger, Yoshinkan 5th-''dan'', and the school's name is now "Aikido on Ventura".
Kyoto, Japan
Payet returned to Japan in May 2005, settling inKyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
as the assistant director of ITEC (Institute for Technology, Enterprise and Competitiveness) at Doshisha University. In Kyoto, Payet initially pursued aikido training on his own without taking on students. However, while training in Doshisha athletic facilities, he attracted the attention of onlookers and eventually began teaching aikido in Kyoto informally in 2007.
Kyoto Mugenjuku dojo
In 2008, Payet opened a formal dojo in Kyoto with the assistance of Yutaka Kikuchi and Masahiro Nakatsuka. The name of the dojo was originally to distinguish it from the Los Angeles branch. Payet wanted a traditional facility rather than a gymnasium for training and foundShiramine Shrine
is a role-playing video game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo and published by Konami exclusively for the PlayStation 2 video game console and is the fourth installment of the ''Suikoden'' video game series. It was released in Au ...
, which has a dojo on its grounds. Payet performs an there every year at the shrine's .
Since 2009, branch dojos have opened in Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
and in Kyoto at Kamigamo Shrine
is an important Shinto sanctuary on the banks of the Kamo River in north Kyoto, first founded in 678. Its formal name is the .
It is one of the oldest Shinto shrines in Japan and is one of the seventeen Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto which ...
, near Fushimi-Inari Shrine, in the and near the Shijo-Karasuma is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Yūichi Karasuma (烏丸 祐一, born 1982), Japanese voice actor
*Setsuko Karasuma (烏丸 せつこ, born 1955), Japanese actress
*Tasuku Karasuma (烏丸 匡, born 1978), Japanese ...
intersection.
In February 2013, the branch dojos were amalgamated into a facility at the corner of Marutamachi and Kamanza streets, to form the Marutamachi Dojo. This Honbu dojo was again relocated next to Karasuma-Oike Station in 2020. The current name of the dojo is simply Aikido Mugenjuku, and current main ''shidoin'' are Yasuda Atsushi, 5th-''dan'' (who graduated from the first year of the Kenshusei Course) and Aoi Kataoka, 5th-''dan'' (a long time member of the weekend kenshusei course).
In March 2019, Mugenjuku dojo hosted a 10th-year anniversary demonstration at the Kyoto Butokuden. This demonstration was joined by Aikido officials and Shihan from more than 10 different countries, Kyoto city officials, and hundreds of Aikido practitioners. All who attended celebrated the life and teaching of Payet Sensei and their connection and fellowship through Mugenjuku dojo.
Yoshinkan Senshusei Course
Payet designed and organised the original international , in which foreign students can enroll in the special training course given to the . Prior to 1991, the special riot police training was available to Japanese and to ''uchi-deshi'' but not to regular foreign students training at the Yoshinkan dojo. Payet observed that most foreign students could achieve technical proficiency up through the 1st or 2nd ''dan'' ranks, but did not have an opportunity to advance after that. Payet conceived of the Course and the IYAF (International Yoshinkan Aikido Federation) as a way of building up qualified foreign instructors who could promote the Yoshinkan style of aikido outside Japan. With the approval of Gozo Shioda, Payet developed a plan for a foreign instructor training course to run concurrently with the special police course. The plan was approved, and Payet organised 12 students for the first course, which was held in 1991–1992.Translation and Publications
While at the Yoshinkan dojo, Payet acted as a translator during the visit of foreign guests, including the famous visit of boxing championMike Tyson
Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is cons ...
and his promoter Don King. He also took care of foreign correspondence for the dojo and served on the staff of the Aikido Yoshinkan International Newsletter.
* Shioda, G. ''Aikido Shugyo: Harmony in Confrontation''. Trans J.Payet & C.Johnston. Shindokan Books: 2002. .
* Shioda, G. ''Aikido Jinsei: My Life in Aikido''. Trans C.Johnston & J.Payet. Shindokan Books: 2011. .
* Shioda, G. ''Aikido: My Spiritual Journey''. Afterword Y.Shioda. Kodansha USA: 2013. .
* Payet, J. ''Uchideshi: Walking with the Master - Learning What Cannot Be Taught''. Shindokan Books: 2020. .
''Aikido Shugyo''
When Payet was ''uchi-deshi'' at the Yoshinkan, there was a notebook full of technical information and anecdotes of Gozo Shioda. Payet taught himself to read Japanese with the aim of translating this notebook. In 1991, the notebook was released in Japanese, and Canadian aikido practitioner Christopher Johnston made a translation of the book. Together, Payet and Johnston worked with the Yoshinkan hombu and produced an English translation of the book under the title ''Aikido Shugyo: Harmony in Confrontation'', published by Shindokan Books.
''Aikido Jinsei''
Gozo Shioda's autobiography was originally published in Japanese in 1985. Following the success of their translation of ''Aikido Shugyo'', Payet again worked with Christopher Johnston and the Yoshinkan hombu to produce an English translation of the autobiography under the title ''Aikido Jinsei: My Life in Aikido'', also published by Shindokan Books.''Aikido''
In 2013, Gozo Shioda's son, Yasuhisa Shioda, produced a book of anecdotes about Gozo Shioda and translations of his writing under the title ''Aikido: My Spiritual Journey'', published by Kodansha USA. Payet acted as a translator for portions of this work, while his ''deshi'' Chris Crampton, 4th-''dan'', proofread some of the English text.''Uchideshi''
Published in 2020 and subtitled ''Walking with the Master: Learning What Cannot Be Taught'', ''Uchideshi'' chronicles the life of a young Jacques Payet during his first arrival in Japan, acceptance into the Yoshinkan Dojo, and his subsequent years of training under the direction of Yoshinkan Founder, Gozo Shioda Sensei. ''Uchideshi'' conveys the hardships faced by practitioners during the "Koganei Era", as noted by Payet Sensei's training partner, and at the time fellow uchi-deshi,Tsuneo Ando Tsuneo Ando is an 8th dan Yoshinkan Aikido teacher. He spent 13 years as uchi deshi to Gozo Shioda, the founder of Yoshinkan Aikido. He is said to closely resemble Shioda in terms of size; speed and style. Tsuneo Ando was born in 1956 in Nihama Ci ...
Shihan. Through narratives and anecdotes curated from Payet Sensei's personal diaries, he communicates numerous aspects of what daily life for a foreigner practicing ''shugyo'' and '' budo'' in Japan as an ''uchi-deshi
is a Japanese term for a live-in student/apprentice who trains under and assists a sensei on a full-time basis. The system exists in
''kabuki'', ''rakugo'', ''shogi'', '' igo'', ''aikido'', ''sumo'', ''karate'' and other modern Japanese martial ...
'' is like.
Media appearances
Books
Payet is mentioned several times inRobert Twigger
Robert Twigger (born 30 October 1962) is a British artist and writer. He travels widely but divides his time mostly between the UK and Egypt.
Life
Twigger was educated at Balliol College, Oxford University. He initially studied engineering, but ...
's book ''Angry White Pyjamas
''Angry White Pyjamas'' is a book written by Robert Twigger about his time in a one-year intensive program of studying Yoshinkan aikido.
Summary
The book is set in Tokyo in the mid-1990s. Twigger is living with two friends in a tiny apartmen ...
'', about the author's experiences on the 3rd Senshusei Course (1993-1994). In particular, in an extended passage that is set at the funeral of Gozo Shioda
was a Japanese master of aikido who founded the Yoshinkan style of aikido.
The is an 11-month-long training course offered at Mugenjuku. Payet designed the course based on his experiences working on the hombu
Television
Payet and his Mugenjuku dojo have appeared on TV in Japan several times. In 2011, Payet appeared in a video produced by the travel program YAJIKITA ON THE ROAD. In 2013, former world champion boxer and TV comedianGuts Ishimatsu
, better known as is a Japanese actor, comedian, tarento and former professional boxer who competed in the Lightweight division from 1966 to 1978. He is a one-time former WBC Lightweight Champion and an OPBF Lightweight Champion.
As a boxer ...
tried to film a program with Payet although he was traveling in Russia; instead, Guts filmed at Mugenjuku with Payet's '' deshi''. In 2014, Payet appeared on a comedy sketch filmed in Tokyo.
In 2018, Payet Shihan and his Kyoto Mugenjuku Dojo hosted champion fighter and TV personality Nogueira Minotauro as a part of an Aikido featured episode of ''The 3rd Degree''. Season 2 Episode 4 features training, instruction, conversation, and demonstrations of Aikido shared between these two men as they tour various dojos and historical locations in Kyoto, Japan.
Other
In 2010, Payet and his ''deshi'' participated in neuropsychology research that lead to the seminar "Japanese spirituality seen in aikido". In 2020, Payet Shihan was part of the #keeptheflamealive interview series hosted by Thambu Shihan in which the history ofYoshinkan
Yoshinkan (養神館 ''Yōshinkan'' lit. "Hall of Spirit Cultivation") Aikido is a style of aikido that developed after World War II in the Yoshinkan Dojo of Gozo Shioda (1915–1994). Yoshinkan Aikido is often called the "hard" style of aikido b ...
Aikido was discussed from a first-hand perspective.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TwyHFI7tQM #keeptheflamealive Interview Series
Kenshusei Course
The is an 11-month-long training course offered at Mugenjuku. Payet designed the course based on his experiences working on the hombu Senshusei Course
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month in 1990-1993 but also on his personal philosophy of aikido, combining the "spirit cultivation" of Senshusei with his own training methods that teach balance and personal development. The Kenshusei Course begins April 1 each year (following the Japanese pattern) and runs for 11 months, ending the last day of February. Enrollees train a minimum of 4 hours per day, 5 days per week and participate in "physically taxing" activities."Aikido Mugenjuku Kenshusei Course"
AikidoMugenjuku.wordpress.com The course breaks only for the holidays of Golden Week, Obon, and
AikidoMugenjuku.comAikidoMugenjuku.wordpress.com NaraYoshinkan.weebly.com Mugenjuku-Quebec.com AikidoDelMar.com
* books
view sample of ''Aikido Shugyo'' from Shindokan Books PDF
* photos
Kyoto Aikido Mugenjuku photo album
(includes photos from ''uchi-deshi'' period at hombu) * videos
YouTube Playlist=PLkGZvEW8s52J2fryWcnMvlyG7OYXrfcNg
Retrieved on August 27, 2010. is an intensive, 11-month in 1990-1993 but also on his personal philosophy of aikido, combining the "spirit cultivation" of Senshusei with his own training methods that teach balance and personal development. The Kenshusei Course begins April 1 each year (following the Japanese pattern) and runs for 11 months, ending the last day of February. Enrollees train a minimum of 4 hours per day, 5 days per week and participate in "physically taxing" activities."Aikido Mugenjuku Kenshusei Course"
AikidoMugenjuku.wordpress.com The course breaks only for the holidays of Golden Week, Obon, and
New Year
New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system to ...
. The course includes two ''embu'': one in early May for Shiramine Shrine's budo festival and one in early November for the annual Yoshinkan Embu Taikai in Tokyo. Students also participate in other special events connected to aikido or Japanese culture, such as visiting the grave of aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba in Wakayama Wakayama may refer to:
*Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan
*Wakayama (city), the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture, Japan
*Wakayama Station, a train station in Wakayama, Wakayama
*Wakayama University
, or , is a national university loc ...
and participating in the dojo's Kagami Biraki
is a traditional Japanese ceremony where are broken open. It traditionally falls on January 11 (odd numbers are associated with being good luck in Japan). The term also refers to the opening of a cask of sake at a party or ceremony.
Histor ...
and . In addition to Payet and the kenshusei, course participants include instructors, assistant instructors, and .
The Kenshusei was in 2012-13 and included three students from Japan, Quebec, and the UK. Dai Niki (second course, 2013–14) included three students from Japan and the United States. Dai Sanki includes five students from Japan, France, Russia and the United States.
Payet also offers a Part-Time Kenshusei course, which meets on Saturday nights and Sunday mornings and is appropriate for older individuals or those with full-time jobs. He teaches this course entirely by himself.
See also
* List of ''aikidoka''External links
* websitesAikidoMugenjuku.com
* books
view sample of ''Aikido Shugyo'' from Shindokan Books PDF
* photos
Kyoto Aikido Mugenjuku photo album
(includes photos from ''uchi-deshi'' period at hombu) * videos
YouTube Playlist=PLkGZvEW8s52J2fryWcnMvlyG7OYXrfcNg
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Payet, Jacques 1957 births Living people French aikidoka Sportspeople from Kyoto Prefecture Shihan