H.F. Ito

H.F. Ito's Journey to Healing and Peacemaking

H.F. Ito was born and raised in Hiroshima, Japan. He was three years old in 1945 and survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima because his family had taken shelter in the nearby countryside. As a young boy he experienced post-war Hiroshima and the U.S. Occupation. The injustice he experienced motivated him to study law in college, in the hope of gaining tools to help others.

During college H.F. Ito studied martial arts and met Hiroyuki Aoki, disciple of Master Shigeru Egami (Shotokai Karate). Aoki, along with a small group of idealistic karate practitioners who called themselves Rakutenkai, set out to rediscover the spiritual heart of the martial arts which they felt had become sadistic and narrow. It was the 1960s and the group included H.F. Ito. They aspired to rediscover the heart of the Japanese martial arts and create positive change in society.

What emerged from their work was Shintaido, a spiritual martial art that blends traditional techniques, artistic expression, and connection to community with Nature. H.F. Ito formalized the curriculum and has practiced and taught Shintaido for the past 40 years in Japan, Europe, North America, and Australia.

In 1997 H.F. Ito developed an application of Shintaido to support caregivers of people with HIV/AIDS. He led a series of workshops for Hospice by the Bay of San Francisco, funded by the Kaiser Family Foundation. This interest in developing practical applications grew when, after September 11, 2001, H.F. Ito founded the International Taimyo Peace Network* – a group of people committed to practicing peace by meditating and praying together in different parts of the world.

H.F. Ito enriched his teaching through the study of Wu-Style Tai Chi, which has a strong Chi Gong influence.

His life came full circle in 2007 when he and a group of Japanese expatriates traveled to Nanjing, China to make a personal apology for the atrocities committed by Japanese soldiers in World War II. The process of remembering World War II as a victim and accepting responsibility as the citizen of an aggressor nation – though painful – brought unexpected moments of insight and healing. H.F. Ito believes that if we do not have peace and reconciliation, it will be impossible to have truth health, prosperity, or hope for the future. As a result, H.F. Ito has made healing and peace work his life mission.

*now known as the Global Taimyo Community