Kurikara Tanren Dojo teaches a Japanese movement training known as *Tanren* (鍛錬), that blends traditional flowing yoga movements with the graceful movements of martial arts. The school offers an introduction to the Kurikara Ryu system, that can be learned by anyone to energise and strengthen the body, to focus the breathing, to improve body alignment, flexibility and balance, to manage stress, and to develop a steady and alert mind
*Tanren* is perfect for both beginners and those with a developed practice, due to its emphasis on preparatory movements and cultivating body-mind awareness.
*Tanren* is perfect for both beginners and those with a developed practice, due to its emphasis on preparatory movements and cultivating body-mind awareness. John Wollaston is 3rd Dan in Nakamura Ryu and 2nd Dan in Kurikara Ryu, he runs beginners courses, regular classes and workshops in London. The Kurikara Ryu curriculum was developed by John Maki Evans (7th Dan) of Fudokan Dojo. Kurikara Tanren Dojo provides a route for beginners to develop the groundwork necessary for continuing practice and operates under the auspices of John Maki Evans. Ren(錬): temper, refine, polish. In the Chinese systems this process is called nei gong, inner work, or chi gong, energy work (kiko in Japanese language), cultivating inner power that is fundamental for advancement through later stages of yoga or martial arts practice. Kurikara Ryu Heiho (strategy) is a system based on the principles of Mikkyo (Japanese Tantrism), a syncretic tradition that brought together the esoteric traditions of China and India. Beginning and ending with the hara or tanden (dantien in Chinese), the vital centre below the navel, Mikkyo offers a comprehensive analysis of the elements of the body-mind and their relationships, with sophisticated methods to integrate them.
