Sennin Foundation Center for Japanese Cultural Arts

02/27/2026

Do you practice asana, or "yoga poses?"

Asana training isn't part of the official Shin-shin-toitsu-do curriculum. However, Nakamura Tempu Sensei did teach his version of asana as a supplemental practice.
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​Rather than presenting a large and complex system of asana, he used a streamlined approach focusing on a smaller number of asana to simply and quickly build strength, flexibility, balance, willpower, and concentration. These asana are based on ancient esoteric yoga poses, or postures, he learned in Nepal in 1911. While they resemble modern Hatha yoga asana, they're not identical, being older in some cases and having been influenced by Nakamura Sensei's ideas.
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The Tempu Asana Ho ("Tempu Asana Methods") are taught to advanced students in our online yoga dojo, although beginners try a few of them from time to time. The heart of Shin-shin-toitsu-do is meditation, reflecting the founder's background in Raja yoga. The autosuggestion, diet, stretching, breathing methods, healing arts, and mind and body coordination training are like spokes emanating from the hub of a wheel. The hub is meditation.

Learn more at www.TempuYoga.com.

02/25/2026

“Positive use of the mind means choosing the starting point of your attention — toward what’s useful right now — not toward every passing fear or judgment.” — H. E. Davey

H. E. Davey is the author of the internationally acclaimed books Japanese Yoga as well as The Teachings of Tempu. They make life changing gifts, and they’re available on Amazon.

Photo by Ann Kameoka.

02/23/2026

Who are successful people that have studied Shin-shin-toitsu-do?

Nakamura Tempu taught a huge number of influential individuals in his lifetime. Many became successful as the result of studying Shin-shin-toitsu-do, and this trend has continued to the present day. Below is a partial list of folks, who’ve been positively influenced by Nakamura Sensei’s mind and body unification principles:

Ohtani Shohei, celebrated major league baseball player

Emperor Hirohito, 124th Emperor of Japan

John D. Rockefeller III, celebrated American philanthropist

Hara Takashi, Prime Minister of Japan

Togo Heihachiro, Fleet Admiral of the Japanese Navy during the Russo-Japanese War (a.k.a. “the Nelson of the East”)

Sugiura Jugo, famed educator and President of Tokyo University

Ishikawa S**o, esteemed Zen Buddhist priest and head of Sojiji Temple

Yokota Sennosuke, well-known politician and Justice Minister of Japan

Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko, Prime Minister of Japan

Ozaki Yukio, recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun and member of the House of Representatives of the Japanese Diet (a.k.a. “the father of the Japanese Constitution”)

Count Goto Shinpei, Home Minister and Foreign Minister of Japan

Asano Soichiro, a famous Japanese businessman and entrepreneur​

Matsush*ta Konosuke, Chairman of Matsush*ta

Kurata Shuzei, President of Hitachi Manufacturing

Sano Jin, President of Kawasaki Industries

Tohei Koichi, the only person to receive a 10th degree black belt in aikido

Omi Koji, Japanese Minister of Finance

Read more about Nakamura Tempu and his unique Japanese yoga, meditation, and philosophy in The Teachings of Tempu: Practical Meditation for Daily Life (Michi Publishing).

02/22/2026

02/20/2026

🌸☔️ “Cherry blossom on a rainy night”💦
Osaka 🇯🇵

📸

02/18/2026

02/18/2026

“On Sleep”
The wisest course is to sleep when you genuinely feel sleepy, and not to waste effort trying to force sleep when you don’t.
No matter what methods you try, straining to make yourself sleep rarely works. The more impatient you become and the harder you try, the more your nerves are stimulated. On top of that, such fruitless effort only results in a double layer of exhaustion.—Nakamura Tempu

Read more in The Teachings of Tempu: Practical Meditation for Daily Life (Michi Publishing).

02/18/2026

Big shout out to my newest top fans! 💎

William Bennett, David Wilbourne

Drop a comment to welcome them to our community,

02/17/2026

For Serious Students of Meditation & Philosophy

If you are serious about meditation — go deeper. Shin-shin-toitsu-do is a complete discipline of:

• Physical conditioning
• Breath mastery
• Emotional regulation
• Mental focus
• Philosophical insight

Under the guidance of H. E. Davey, students explore the living teachings of Nakamura Tempu in structured, progressive online classes. This is traditional Japanese mind-body training preserved with integrity and taught clearly in English.

🌿 Calm mind
💪 Strong body
🔥 Positive spirit

Train anywhere in the world.

Learn more at www.TempuYoga.com.

02/16/2026

Japanese calligraphic art by H. E. Davey, author of The Japanese Way of the Artist and successor to the late shodo master Kobara Ranseki. Shodo is an ink painting of the mind and a path to inner peace. The basics of this time honored art form are detailed in The Japanese Way of the Artist, Secrets of the Brush, and other acclaimed works by H. E. Davey.

02/16/2026

“Mistakes in Our Way of Living”

Today, not only middle-aged and elderly people, but even many young people suffer from poor health. The root cause is that they fail to correct the mistakes in their way of living, and as a result, their natural vitality gradually declines.

Modern people lack a proper awareness of, and reflection on, their lifestyle because they do not truly understand the real nature of human life. When thinking about life, they tend to assume that the mind or the body is its true essence. In doing so, they overlook the fact that both mind and body are simply instruments—means through which the deeper, genuine self expresses its life.—Nakamura Tempu

Are you looking for your genuine and eternal self? You can learn about this and more in The Teachings of Tempu: Practical Meditation for Daily Life. It’s available on Amazon and at a bookstore near you in paperback and ebook formats.

Photo by Ann Kameoka.