The amazing life of Manrico Erriu
The following is an interview like no other. Security Anthropology had the opportunity to interview Master Manrico Erriu, a well renowned security manager and tactical instructor. Mr Erriu’s life however, represents much more than this only, he holds a strong and peculiar background that render his person a real anthropological interest for our website.
Security manager, entrepreneur, Bujutsu master and Shugenja are only few of the words to define the undefinable life of a true man of honor.
The following is a selection of the questions that Mr ERRIU decided to answer:
The soul of a Warrior:
Manrico Erriu is a very unconventional person, to discover why we had to dig a little more into his biography. Reading his book firstly helped to know some of the basic features that have contributed in creating such a particular profile while the interview questions allowed to discover some deeper particulars of his philosophy and way of life.
Master Erriu is today a middle age security manager and entrepreneur, a “business man” in someway but it was not always like so.
At age 8 his life changed for ever due to an encounter with the man that would have later became his master, a Bujutsu master but also much more in this story. Most of the information about the man and the doctrines we will write about will remain a secret since this is the decision he took a long time ago by promising to maintain these secrets. Not everything is a secret anyway, so have a look at what we could find out.
Manrico’s life changed permanently when during his childhood he met a Japanese martial arts master who later showed to be the member of a secret Japanese ancient warrior clan named, fictionally, Kitamura Ryu. After this moment Manrico was trained for several years both mentally and physically to became a Bushi (warrior). This may sound quite amazing in the contemporary moment we live in, a moment where the figure of the traditional warrior seems to be overcome and purposely forgotten. Mr Erriu explains how and why the way of the warrior is something still important, yet necessary today.
Master Erriu, would you please tell me something about the value that you give to Bushido and to your clan?
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Yes, this is one of my favorite questions for many different reasons. Let’s see, without my background with the clan and the great path they have showed and guided me thru I would not be the man I am today.
Just as a piece of clay, they had the ability to model me in order to become indestructible and untouchable by fear and pain. I can say that the clan is my roots and what I did with the teachings is the structure of my tree. For sure the necessary processes to gain mental and spiritual balance I had to go through were very difficult and demanding but I had a great ally in this part of the story: Bushido.
Bushido is a word that the Japanese traditionally use to define the way of the warrior, a strict corpus of rules and etiquette to guide the warrior into training, life and honor. As any spiritual and philosophical path the only way to deeply comprehend it is thru constant practice. Normally when speaking about meditation in the western world we tend to think to inner relaxation and mental evasion, let me tell you that Kitamura’s Shugendo is not only about this. It is a much more traumatic process through which the practitioner must walk by facing different steps and levels, this is the way I face every situation in my life: one target at a time.
How did Bushido and Shugendo effect on your person? Is this a path you would recommend to other people?
Let’s clarify, Bushido and Shugendo are two different paths that normally do not overlap in one’s life, is saying that it is not compulsory. The main difference between other kinds of lives and the one we conduct as a clan is that we perceive the practice of both ways as an unicum, one only thing.
While Bushido is mainly the basic root of morality, loyalty and etiquette for the warrior we could define Shugendo as a spiritual doctrine, a way of living your inner life while gaining inner and outer balance and stability. I gain and improve my spiritual and operative untouchability, an altered state of mind that allows the practitioner to empty the mind: in Japan we call this mindset Mushin (no mind).
Shugendo is also the source of my success and concentration at the professional level both as a security manager and as an entrepreneur. The practice of Shugendo changes your mind, it destroys your fears, your weakness and your anger turning you into a different person, a person of power. Power is a key word in Shugendo and in my biography but, bare in mind what we intend for power in the Ryu. Is saying that the research for power must always be finalized to the life objectives of each member. In our family each member is trained and monitored for integrity in each action.
In my perception of life and the way I decided to live, work and perform, I have discovered that when you are trained to leave ego apart and to fear nobody there is something very peculiar that starts to happen: your words become action!
This is a way of living that is not acquirable easily by common people. It requires years, deep concentration and a rock solid willpower. I remember the first years of my path, I was only a child but my masters where very strict with me, they educated me to rely on my capabilities, on my personal responsibility and not to bite my words. Most of this process of “destruction” and “modelling” of the person, is reported in my biography.
Coming to a question most of your competitors ask about, would you be able to explain why you have decided to found Bushi Tactics and Kitamura Bujutsu Kai? What do you think Bushido can bring to our “modern warriors”, especially in the CPO sector?
The decision of “coming back to light” and founding Bushi Tactics required many years of meditation and critical thinking. First of all, I consider my self as a strategist and the rest comes following this nature.
Teaching what I know both at a spiritual and operative level, a fusion between ancient and modern disciplines, tactics and strategies is very important for me and is giving great results, my methodology differs from the ones of everybody else because I put the student to the center of the equation, I give my respect to the people I train and this is how you encourage people to positively change, it a balance between gentleness and aggression, but always based on a deep relationship of respect.
The students live a new and deep experience, they get a first taste that comes from the sense of belonging. Bushi Tactics is, therefore, a clan managed and regulated by precise behavioral rules and a strict hierarchical system.
I view that we live in a limited world, a corruption based existence and I view a possibility to change at least a small part of this bad attitude. I viewed the powers I was given by the Ryu as a tool to change my world positively, since this is what is all about. Every small bit of my being is oriented to this kind of result and any obstacle on our path will be broken, there is no other way.
Let’s fight darkness together!
An article by Andrea Marco Silvestri, security anthropologist.
NO WEAPON CAN SHATTER THE SOUL!
03/11/2020