Practicing quietly in Sykesville since 1995
A small nonprofit karate school in an old railroad town in Carroll County. Ake no Myojo is Japanese for morning star, and the school has been practicing quietly in Sykesville — their words — since 1995.
Our Mission is to provide affordable martial arts training, using a traditional Japanese approach, that builds reflexive self defense skills and improves character.
The school’s stated mission
Sensei Pete
Every class at Morning Star is led by the head instructor, Renshi Peter M. Hiltz — Sensei Pete Hiltz to his students. He began his martial arts studies in 1976, has been teaching for over thirty years, and holds the rank of 7th-degree black belt.
He also holds a black belt in Tomiki Aikido, and is the founder of Ake no Myojo Budo — his own branch of Shorinjiryu in Maryland — under the Shorinjiryu Shinzen Kyokai.
“Sensei Pete’s lifelong dedication to the art is clear in every class, and having access to this level of authentic instruction is rare.”
Jason Berger, Google review
One of the school’s five standing rules is that all classes are led by the head instructor. You will not be handed to an assistant.
What Shorinjiryu is
Shorinjiryu Kenkokan Karatedo was founded by Kori Hisataka in 1947. It is known for the vertical fist, heel-first kicking and full-body follow-through — power that comes from structure rather than size.
In the school’s own words:
“Morning Star Martial Arts teaches and practices Shorinjiryu Karatedo as descended from Kori Hisataka… a dynamic, flowing martial art that combines traditional Japanese karate with an understanding of modern body physics. Its guiding principle, Individuality in Mind and Body, allows the individual to develop along the paths best suited to their individual body types, physical capabilities, and self defense needs.”
Morning Star Martial Arts
Tomiki Aikido, taught in the late Thursday hour when there is interest, was developed by Kenji Tomiki — a student of both aikido’s founder and judo’s founder — and is the branch of aikido that trains with free practice.
Five words we train by
These five have sat at the bottom of the school’s website for years, each with a sentence behind it. Here they are, out loud.
Leave everyone better than when they arrived, every class.
Honor the traditions of Shorinjiryu while faithfully passing them to future generations.
Provide martial arts instruction to anyone willing to train, regardless of age, background, or beginning ability.
Help every student succeed according to their individual potential.
Treat every student, instructor and the art itself with humility, courtesy, and integrity.
Ake no Myojo Budo, Inc.
The school operates as Ake no Myojo Budo Inc., a registered Maryland nonprofit and an equal opportunity martial arts school — a member school of the Shorinjiryu Shinzen Kyokai. There are no shareholders and no franchise fee — which is the reason a month of training costs what it costs. The five rules that follow from that are on the home page.
And the room
Classes meet upstairs at 731 Oklahoma Avenue — the Sykesville Visitor’s Center. The building is a B&O Railroad interlocking tower that worked the line near Penn Station in Baltimore from 1910 until 1988. In 1999 the town manager and other train enthusiasts worked with the City of Bowie to rescue and restore it here. It now holds the town’s visitor center, its post office, and, three days a week, a karate class.
