Shihan Dante

Instructor’s Bio

Dai Shihan Dante Dionne, PhD, is the senior instructor of the Griffith Park Bujinkan Dojo (BJKNGP) and holds a 15th degree black belt in Bujinkan Budo (武神館部度) issued by Soke Masaaki Hatsumi in Noda-shi, Chiba-ken, Japan.

Dante began his training in the martial arts in the 1970’s. Achieving a 1st degree black belt certification in Korean Tae Kwon Do and a Master teaching license in Golden Mantis Chi Gong by the age of 18. While teaching Chi Gong, Dante was introduced to Dr. Masaaki Hatsumi’s Togakury-Ryu Ninpo Taijutsu (1984), which was later re-organized as Bujinkan Budo. After years of training in dozens of combat arts, Dante felt that he finally found the teacher and art that resonated with his Budo spirit.

Dante trained under Shihan Peter Crocoll in Phoenix, AZ. (80’s-90’s) where he was first introduced to Soke Masaaki Hatsumi at the Los Angeles Tai Kai in 1988. In the mid-90’s, Dante took several years break (traveling musician & birth of sons), then resumed training under Shihan Andy Martin in Los Angeles, CA. (mid-00’s). Several years later, Dante was introduced to Shihan David Greenberg; whose generous guidance and playful spirit continues to provide much nourishment for Dante’s life-long passion for Budo.

After several years training under the tutelage of Shihan Greenberg, David returned to Israel and entrusted the continued dojo guidance to Dante. As senior instructor (dojo-cho) of Franklin Canyon Bujinkan under Dai Shihan Moti Nativ‘s international dojo family tree.

Prior to Hatsumi Sensi’s retirement in 2019, Dante was fortunate to have had made dozens of trips to train directly with Hatsumi Sensei and other top Japanese teachers in Japan and other chief instructors across Europe.

Today, Dante is honored to lead international seminars and continue his training with tutelage of other chief instructors especially Dai Shihan’s Yukio Noguchi, Arnaud Consierge, and Rob Renner. The Griffith Park Bujinkan training group is part of the Bujinkan Seki Ryu family of training locations.

After having spent 40+ years dedicated to preserving and transmitting the teachings of an unbroken lineage received from Hatsumi Sensei, Dante continues to enjoy empowering others to become self-aware and experience higher quality of lives and overall well-being through Hatsumi Sensei’s Bujinkan Budo Ninjutsu.

As a complementary hobby, Dante began training prewar Kenjutsu (via Korea) in 2007 and holds the rank of 3rd degree black belt (Sandan) in Kendo. In earnest of cultivating and exercising a playful spirit, Dante traveled internationally (Japan, Korea) and across the US to compete in Kendo as a member of AUSKF, USKU, and SCKO Kendo federations. Dante also holds dozens of specialty training licenses and is CPR, First-Aid, and Padi Rescue Diver certified.

Professionally, Dante holds a doctorate in social psychology with a specialization in organizational leadership. He is a global leader in technology innovation, an associate adjunct professor at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, and has served as and a visiting scholar at Tokyo University of Science, Vietnam National University, Vanguard University, and the Wentworth Institute of Technology.