Stephen K. Hayes

Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person Stephen K. Hayes (born September 9, 1949) is an American martial artist and writer.

Early life

Stephen K. Hayes was born in Wilmington, Delaware, and raised in Dayton, Ohio. He graduated from Fairmont West High School in Kettering, Ohio, in 1967.<ref name=Bio1999 />

Hayes attended Miami University in nearby Oxford, Ohio, because he "heard they had a judo club".<ref>Biography Template:Webarchive at his official website. December 24, 2010.</ref> It turned out to be a Korean Tang Soo Do school, not judo, but Hayes remained. In 1971, he graduated from Miami with a Bachelor of Arts degree, having majored in speech and theatre.<ref>Hayes, Stephen K. (1992). Enlightened Self-Protection: To-Shin Do Martial Art Tradition. SKH QUEST Publications. p. 80. Template:ISBN.</ref>

Martial arts career

In the 1970s, Hayes traveled to Japan.<ref>Skittone, Lisa Susan. "Ninjutsu: The Power of a Dirty Look". Choices. Spring 1994. Vol. III, No. 2. pp. 38-43 Template:ISSN</ref> In June 1975, he met and began training under Tsunehisa Tanemura. He later trained under Masaaki Hatsumi,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> who refers to himself as 34th Grandmaster of Togakure-ryū ninjutsu and is the founder of the Bujinkan (武神館) organization.

Hayes returned to the United States with his wife, Rumiko, in late 1980 when his Japan residency visa expired, and began teaching and authoring numerous books and magazine articles.<ref name=Malmstrom>About Bud Malmstrom There is some evidence that he visited and taught in the United States on ninjutsu as early as 1976.</ref>

In 1985, he was entered into the Black Belt magazine's Hall of Fame as Instructor of the Year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was again featured on the cover of Black Belt in the March 2007 issue.<ref>Template:Cite web Archive of Black Belt</ref><ref>which contains a chapter from his book Ninja Vol 6, Secret Scrolls of the Warrior Sage</ref><ref>Template:ISBN /Template:ISBN</ref> The magazine's opening editorial described him as "one of the 10 most influential living martial artists in the world".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1993, Hayes was awarded the judan (tenth-degree black belt) in Bujinkan from Hatsumi.<ref name=Treadway24 />

In 1997, he founded the martial art of To-Shin Do,<ref>Toller, Dennis (October 1998). "Once the West's Most Celebrated Ninja, Stephen K. Hayes Has Moved Beyond the Assassin Image." Black Belt. p. 32</ref> an art based in his experience of budō taijutsu.

In 2006, Hayes's name was removed from the display of active Bujinkan teachers, ending his official role within that organization. That his name plank was removed from the Bujinkan Honbu wall has been documented by both parties. However, the specifics regarding the motivation for the removal are in dispute. Some suggest Hayes was expelled from the organization.<ref>Hamon, Welcome to Ichinen Dojo Template:Webarchive</ref> Hayes explains that he simply no longer participates as an active Bujinkan instructor.<ref>Questions and Answers Part 4 at his official website</ref> To-Shin Do is taught through his SKH (Stephen K. Hayes) Quest locations. The SKH Quest network now spans 31 schools across North America, Europe, Australia and Africa.<ref name=schools>Licensed Instructors Template:Webarchive SKH Quest</ref>

Hayes acted in the 1980 television miniseries Shogun<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and in 2004 was featured in the Discovery Channel documentary Unsolved History regarding ninja and their practices.<ref name=Discovery>Unsolved History: NinjasTemplate:Dead link Discovery Channel</ref>

Buddhism

Hayes is an ordained practitioner of esoteric Tendai Mikkyō Buddhism.<ref name=buddhism>Blue Lotus Assembly.</ref> He apprenticed under Dr. Clark Jikai Choffy, an ordained Tendai priest and personal disciple of Jion Haba, the bishop of Tokyo's Reisho-in temple.<ref name=Choffy>Choffy. Template:Webarchive</ref> He received empowerments and teachings from Choffy, received transmission in the Homan Ryu school of Tendai esoteric Buddhism, and in 1991 he received Tokudo priesthood ordination in Tendai Buddhism.<ref name=buddhism/> Hayes has founded a Buddhist Order based on his teachings and experiences with Tibetan Buddhism and Tendai, called the Blue Lotus Assembly.<ref name=buddhism/>

While traveling through Tibet, Hayes met the Dalai Lama in 1987. During a conference in the United States when the Dalai Lama learned that he had received the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize Hayes assisted with the unexpected security concerns as reporters arrived.<ref>Srivastava, Spriha (December 5, 2010). "The Dalai Lama: War and Peace". The Daily Indian</ref> For many years in the 1990s, Hayes served as the Dalai Lama's personal protection escort and security adviser, especially during visits to the United States.<ref>Zezzo, Mickey (April 9, 1998). "Dedicated Toward His Quest; Stephen K. Hayes Will Help with Security for the Dalai Lama". Dayton Daily News. pp. Z3–10.</ref>

Personal life

Hayes resides and works in Dayton, Ohio. He and his wife, Rumiko Hayes,<ref>"Happy in Your Home and Dojo" at his official website.</ref> have two daughters, Reina and Marissa.<ref name=Bio1999 />

Books

Non-fiction Template:Div col

• Ninja: Spirit of the Shadow Warrior (1980), Ohara Publications
• The Ninja and Their Secret Fighting Art (1981), Charles E. Tuttle Co.
• Ninja vol. 2: Warrior Ways of Enlightenment (1981), Ohara Publications
• Ninja vol. 3: Warrior Path of Togakure (1983), Ohara Publications
• Ninjutsu: The Art of the Invisible Warrior (1984) Contemporary Books
• Wisdom from the Ninja Village of the Cold Moon (1984) Contemporary Books
• Ninja vol. 4: Legacy of the Night Warrior (1985), Ohara Publications
• The Mystic Arts of the Ninja: Hypnotism, Invisibility, and Weaponry (1985), Contemporary Books
• Ninja Realms of Power: Spiritual Roots and Traditions of the Shadow Warrior (1986)
• The Ancient Art of Ninja Warfare: Combat, Espionage, and Traditions (1988), Contemporary Books
• Ninja vol. 5: Lore of the Shinobi Warrior (1989), Ohara Publications
• Enlightened Self-Protection: The Kasumi-An Ninja Art Tradition: An Original Workbook (1992), Nine Gates Press
• Action Meditation: The Japanese Diamond and Lotus Tradition (1993), Nine Gates Press
• The Ninja Defense: A Modern Master's Approach to Universal Dangers (2012), Tuttle Publishing
• The Complete Ninja Collection (2013), Black Belt Communications

Fiction

• Tulku, a Tale of Modern Ninja (1985) Contemporary Books

Filmography

• Ninja Vengeance (1988), Himself (as Ninjutsu Instructor)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

External links

• {{#invoke:URL|url}}{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:URL with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y | 1 | 2 }}, his official website
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