Serge Mol

Serge Mol
Born1970 (age 53–54)
Belgium
StyleKoryū: jūjutsu, and others
Teacher(s)Fumon Tanaka, Atsumi Nakashima
RankEnshin-ryū Iaijutsu, suemonogiri, kenpō & yawara-jutsu: Menkyo kaiden; Hōki-ryū jūjutsu: Menkyo
Occupationjūjutsuka, koryū martial arts author & instructor, accountant
Websitewww.eibusha.com

Serge Mol (/'sərdʒ 'mɑl /; katakana: セルジェ・モル; Russian: Серге Молл) (born 1970) is a dedicated martial artist, martial arts historian and martial arts book author[1][2] from Belgium. He is among a select number of Westerners who hold authentic Japanese credentials in koryū martial arts. He is the first non-Japanese person who has received the top-rank of menkyo kaiden in Enshin-ryū Iaijutsu, suemonogiri, kenpō, and yawara-jutsu.[3] He also holds the rank of menkyo in Hōki-ryū jūjutsu.[3] Mol has trained jūjutsu for more than 30 years.[3] He has also studied various gendai budō such as the modern kendō, iaidō and jodō. In order to immerse himself in Japanese culture Mol lived for several years in Japan,[4] where he was a disciple of the Japanese grandmasters Fumon Tanaka[5][6] and Atsumi Nakashima.

Mol is also a collector of authentic historic Japanese martial arts manuscripts from various jūjutsu schools and other martial arts. He has also built out a large collection of period Japanese arms and armor.

Today, Mol lives with his family in Belgium, where he is a writer and teacher of classical martial arts. He is one of only three Belgians with known authentic Japanese koryū credentials, the other two being Dr. Guy Buyens (Hontai Yōshin-ryū) and Dr. Carl De Crée (Tenjin Shin’yō-ryū of the Inoue Keitarō-lineage and Owari-ha Yagyū Shinkage-ryū).[7] Mol still regularly travels to Japan to find new sources to underpin his continuing research into the ancient Japanese martial culture.

  1. ^ Beaubien, Ron (2009). "Classical Swordsmanship of Japan: Jacket Text". International Hoplology Society. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  2. ^ "An interview with Serge Mol". Koryu.nl. n.d. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  3. ^ a b c "Classical Swordsmanship of Japan: Jacket Text". Eibusha. 2010. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  4. ^ De Crée, Carl (1998). "Vlamingen in het buitenland [The Flemish abroad]". Kiai (in Dutch). 13 (2). Belgium: 12.
  5. ^ "Soke Fumon Tanaka and Serge Mol demonstrate with real swords". BBC, United Kingdom. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
  6. ^ "Soke Fumon Tanaka & Waka-Sensei Midori-Ukyo Tanaka 20th Soké". Toyama-ryu, Sweden. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  7. ^ fr:Koryu