Five Rules of Kempo

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"Take things as they are. Punch when you have to punch. Kick when you have to kick." Bruce Lee

I was instructed that the left hand went over the right hand when making my kempo salute. It was explained that the left hand represented the feminine and the right represented the masculine aspects of the art, the soft and the hard. The pledge also contained the words knowledge over power and kempo was to my understanding the Japanese pronunciation of Chuan Fa. Its meaning was translated into fist law or boxing art respectively. Kempo operated on a set of principles and the following laws, principle or concepts are the basis of the art. My first sensei referred to the martial art of kempo as kempo karate jujutsu. What he taught was not derived from James Mitose or Ed Parker. Sensei never ran a dojo and had only reached shodan by the time he left Japan. He told me that he was too old to practice anymore, but he taught me in my living room and he also gave me lessons in performing stage magic, I was to be his protégé.



Sensei was either a lieutenant colonel or a full colonel in the U.S. Army when he retired. Most of the older adults always called him Colonel but he preferred to be called by his stage magician's name by us kids. He told me he was a Golden Glove Boxer in his youth before joining the Army and he spent his time in occupied Japan working as a military policeman. As a child of ten or eleven, I never bothered asking about the lineage of the art or the masters that had taught him. I thought of sensei as being very old, he was even more forgetful than my grandparents, even though he was younger than them. He had just retired from his second career of being a professional magician by the time I met him. He was the teacher of the adult Sunday school class at the church where my father was the assistant pastor.

I was always impressed with the stories of the Japanese masters and their abilities. I loved hearing the stories of his adventures, sneaking out of the city at night in the back of the beat up vehicle that had no lights. One lone American GI crammed in like sardines in the back of a makeshift truck with a bunch of Japanese martial artist. They went out at night to train in what he referred to as hedge rows in the country as they were not allowed to practice in the city. Besides most of the buildings and the dojo where they had previously trained had been burnt down during the war.

I had always taught my kempo students that the art of kempo that I taught was an American adaptation of the Japanese version of a Chinese art. What I taught and had been instructed in was more akin to a striking version of jujitsu than what I had seen from most American kenpo stylists. A version of the art that I knew next to nothing about. J T Will seemed very impressed with the system I practiced and we saw that there were many parallels between both movements and concepts. The major difference between the two systems was in the names of the routines and kata. Our kata was much more like jujitsu waza and it used the five systems of chin-na as the framework; blood, bone, wind, nerve, and mind.

The first principle was: First there is no attack only defense, which meant we used simultaneous attack and defense. Often by attacking the limb of the offending appendage that was assaulting us, it became the target.

The second principle was: To avoid direct conflict by using circles and angles where we could use position and mobility to control and disrupt the attacker's awareness and balance. Circling around or cutting across (over or under), attacks.

The third principle was: To utilize proximity based weapons and targets. It was called the returning fist which incorporated flowing from one technique to another with strikes, kicks, and/or grappling. It also utilized reverse motion applications.

The fourth principle was: Leading the mind, which defined what was a proper weapon to use on any target, (hard weapons to soft target and soft weapons on hard targets). It also worked with the level of pressure on the target. By doing this and alternating between upper level and lower level arts we could better control and change the focus and awareness of the attacker. This included front and back targets as well as inside and outside ones. Blending all of this with rising and falling energy was all a reflection of yin and yang. This is the most prevalent principle as a element of it is found in each concept.

The fifth principle was: Knowledge over power, the goal was to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the body. The five systems of the body being blood, bone, wind, nerve, and mind and when and how to change from one to the other.

“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it." Bruce Lee

 My stories are about martial arts adventures that are intertwined with paranormal or supernatural events. The following links are to the Kindle version books from the "Dream Walker” series. Our adventurers find themselves on a quest where they are confronted with both conspiracy and mystery. Their challenge is to unite their mind and body skills together utilizing what they have learned in the martial arts with the transcendental power of dream mediation. They attempt to do this while they are trying to make a life for themselves and elude those that seek to use and control them.

Conversations with a Sage (Book 1 of the Dream-Walker)

Conversations with a Sage: This explores Xander Davidson's early encounters with the mysterious fog like Dream Walking martial art sages. He ponders if they are real or if they are only remnants of his dreams. He mainly keeps this secret world to himself as he tries to copes with abuse, growing up without support or guidance and the mystery of his family's past. 

Xander and the Assassins Gift (Book 2 of the Dream-Walker)

The Assassins Gift: Xander Davidson struggles with the conspiracy of his family and the group that is actively trying to manipulate him to join them or die. The young Dream Walkers learns an early lesson to be careful about whom they let into their circle.


Warriors of Perception (Book 3 of the Dream-Walker)

Warriors of Perception: Xander Davidson and his band of friends embark on a mission to free themselves from their oppressors. They bravely face the challenge all the while vying for the right moment to turn the tables.

Jace Lee The Shift (Book 4 of the Dream-Walker)

Jace Lee The Shift: We find a new apprentice, Adam, that is fighting for his life. He is struggling to understand the amazing skills of his mentor, Jace Lee; a younger man that has trained under Xander Davidson. All the while his mentor attempts to reconcile the fact that his skills do not match up with the other Dream Walkers.


Jace Lee No Agenda (Dream Walker Book 5)

Jace Lee No Agenda: Jace Lee attempts to find himself on a self-imposed vision quest of sorts. Instead he finds himself being stalked by the same group that had previously sought after his teacher, (Xander Davidson). Instead of mastering his odd Dream Walking skills he finds love and the potential loss of his powers.

Jace Lee and the Tutelage of Ming Wu: Dream Walker 6 

Jace Lee The Tutelage of Ming Wu: Jace Lee rejoins his teacher Xander Davidson as they cope with a possible combined threat (the mysterious), Ming Wu and the Council that has continuously monitored the Dream Walkers.