When stepping into professor Chad Basile’s office, first time visitors might be surprised. Lining the walls is an intimidating amount of Japanese weaponry, trinkets, and most striking, giant scrolls covered in paintings and calligraphy. Each scroll, or kakejiku, expresses a specific Bujinkan mantra.
“This one reads ‘muto dori.’ it’s the skill of defending yourself when you’re unarmed. When we visit Grand master, I bring him these blank kakejiku, these scrolls…and then he will paint for you,” said Basile.
Almost everything in the room is a memento that Basile brought back from his many annual trips to Japan.
The usual idea of traveling might be an island getaway, or a tour around europe, but for professors Leeann Mulville, Chad Basile , and Danita Redd, vacation couldn’t be more about business. When spring and summer break comes around, these three will be using their time off to travel the world for the sake of education.
Professors Basile and Mulville of the criminal justice department will be attending a martial arts seminar this spring in order to enhance their own skills and to improve Basile’s course, CJ M09 Bujinkan Self Defense. According to Basile, the class teaches only the fundamentals of the thousand year old martial art, including its philosophy and history.
“I teach my interpretation of what is useful for the typical American citizen,” said Basile. “We aren’t wearing armor, and we aren’t doing a lot of sword work, we’re learning a lot about space, we’re learning a lot about how to move from a dangerous place to a safer place, and we’re learning about how to escape.”
“I just get excited to train with somebody with such high distinction and ability,” said Mulville. “You have to really work to understand what he’s saying, that’s the exciting part.”
According to Basile, a good mentor has three traits: leadership, personal ability, and the ability to teach.
“This amazing triangle of skill, you meet many people that have one, or two, but three? I haven’t met any, except sensei.” said Basile.
After attending the seminar last year, Moorpark college was featured in an hour long Japanese documentary because of its Bujinkan course, which, according to Mulville, is the only such college course in the United States.
Professor Redd will be traveling as well, though her destination is elsewhere in Asia, the Philippines. Redd plans to present at a conference hosted by the Asia Pacific Career Development Association. There she will be presenting on career and life development in the aftermath of post traumatic stress disorder.
At these conferences, Redd spends her time going from presentation to presentation, taking detailed notes to share with her colleagues.
“It provides training for professionals in career development,” said Redd. “That’s our way of getting information.”
Redd is also planning another trip this summer, this time to Grenada. There she will spend five days learning more about the St. George’s Medical school so that she can better advise pre-med students here at Moorpark.
Redd is an avid traveler, having spent time as an international volunteer doing service in Mexico, Peru, and even Egypt. She’s traveled to so many places that it may be difficult to understand how she manages it all.
“I spend a lot of time with strangers, but by the time they leave, they aren’t strangers anymore,” said Redd.
In Basile’s office, he reminisces about his travels, telling a few stories about how different the culture is, how friendly everyone is.
“I go to Japan, I feel at home,” said Basile. “There’s nothing foreign about it to me.”
