About

The Black Sheep

Kokoro-Jitsu is wrong on purpose.

The name mixes hiragana and kanji in a way that makes purists wince: こころ術, where こころ (kokoro) is written in hiragana and 術 (jutsu) is kanji, a combination that sits awkwardly in Japanese convention. The diamonds in the logo are a nod to Daito-Ryu Aikijujutsu, whose DNA flows throughout Kokoro-Jitsu. The word "Jitsu" nods to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, not to some ancient Japanese school of the same name. Bruce Lee's fingerprints are all over the philosophy.

It is, as one teacher put it, "the black sheep of martial arts."

That's exactly right, and entirely intentional.

Kokoro-Jitsu was founded in 2014 by Brian J. Lucas, not as a rebellion against tradition but as an honest answer to a question tradition couldn't fully answer: what does a complete, living martial art look like for a real person, in a real world, built from genuine understanding rather than borrowed lineage?

The lineage is real. Brian trained across Goshin Jutsu Karate, IKCA Chinese Kenpo, Ed Parker's American Kenpo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Goshin Aiki-Jutsu, Goshin Kobu-Jutsu, boxing, and more, beginning in June 2007 and continuing to the present day. Kokoro-Jitsu didn't discard that training. It absorbed it, discarded what didn't survive contact with reality, and added what emerged from years of practice, reflection, and teaching.

The name "こころ術" translates loosely as "the art of the heart/mind." In Japanese martial arts, kokoro carries deep meaning: presence, sincerity, intention. In Kokoro-Jitsu, it also means something simpler: this art lives because a human being keeps it alive. It is not a museum piece.

The Founder

BRIAN J. LUCAS

Brian has trained in martial arts since June 2007 across Goshin Jutsu Karate, IKCA Chinese Kenpo, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, holding a Black Belt, Brown Belt, and Purple Belt w/ 1 Stripe respectively. He founded Kokoro-Jitsu in 2014 and has been developing its philosophy, rank structure, and curriculum ever since.

What This Art Is Built On

FOUR PILLARS

FLOW STATE

Every deep skill has a zone where self-conscious thought gets out of the way and movement becomes pure. Kokoro-Jitsu trains toward that state on purpose, treating it as a target rather than a side effect. Flow isn't mystical. It's what consistent, honest practice actually produces.

KI & PRESENCE

Ki is not a supernatural force. It's attention: full, embodied, present attention directed through technique. Where your mind goes, your energy follows. Where your energy goes, your body follows. Training Ki means training the quality of presence you bring to practice, and to everything else.

MINDFUL JITSU

Mindfulness applied to martial practice means awareness without judgment. The ability to see what is actually happening, not what you expect or fear. A practitioner who can do that doesn't freeze under pressure. They see clearly and act from what they see.

HONEST PRACTICE

Training without performing. Failing without self-deception. Teaching without ego. This is the quality that separates people who collect techniques from people who actually embody an art. Everything else on this list depends on it.

The blog goes deeper on each of these. Start reading →

See how the art is structured → Rank system