Edward Burke

'Sensei held me by the scruff of my neck. The class fell silent. I looked directly into his eyes...if we were doing the tango it might have been romantic, but I knew this was not a good place to be.'

Turning his back on the excesses of London in the credit boom, Edward Burke sets off on a year-long journey of self-discovery, to learn from some of the greatest masters of martial arts. His search for growth through the figting arts will take him to the academy of Bruce Lee's most famous student, a traditional dojo in Japan, ancient Buddhist temples and a scorching capoeira roda in Brazil. But his greatest challenge will be as the live-in student of the legendary Chiba Sensei-Japanese swordsman, Zen monk and master of aikido.
Far from the rarefied world of high finance, he soon finds himself scrubbing the floors of Chiba Sensei's dojo, bruised, scared and exhausted from long days of punishing training. But in the intensity of the training and the formidable presence of his fearsom, chairismatic master there may just be something which will make this odd pilgrimage worthwhile.

Told with a wry humor, woven with insights, and populated with colorful characters, this is the joyful tale of a year of pain, suffering and menial labor, undertaken for the love of movement and the privilege of learning from the masters.

'Edward Burke tells with elegance, wit, fun, breadth, depth, terrific turn of phrase and admirable economy of wordage...of ways that rigor intersects with nobleness...He has written something great.'-Denis Beckett

'A potentially life-changing book.'-Shape Magazine

Contents

Part 1 Uchideshi: On my feet and on myknees
Part 2 The trail of enlightenment: Altered mind and broken nose… (más)