ABOUT

ESSENCE BJJ

Our purpose is to bring back the original values of Jiu-Jitsu. We want to give the opportunity for all communities to know that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is much more than a sport, it’s a lifestyle to carry on forever.

HEALTH, SAFETY, COMMUNITY AND PROGRESS

Jiu-Jitsu is about honor, respect, perseverance, and it’s amazing to see the rewards coming your way after hard work. It’s also about getting to know yourself, having the determination to overcome your own limitations, improving self-confidence and a balance of body and mind.

It’s about forming not only a team but a like-minded community. Sharing knowledge and cheering for each other growth, from little kids to seniors: Jiu-Jitsu unites, and it is for everyone.

At ESSENCE BJJ, we want you to be ready for life in every way. Teaching you beyond the martial art or the sport for competition, but the essence of Jiu-Jitsu as a whole. We base our teaching on the 7-5-3 code, inspired by the samurai’s philosophy or “bushido code”. It was organized by the Valentes brothers to preserve the Jiu-Jitsu philosophy created by Carlos and Helio Gracie, it can bring enormous benefits, be practiced by anyone and we want to be the one teaching you!

JIU-JITSU HISTORY

In literal translation, Ju Jutsu (Jiu-Jitsu) means “gentle art” in Japanese. The origin of this martial arts form cannot be pinpointed. Similar fighting styles have been verified in different people, from India to China. It is known that the Jiu-Jitsu development environment and its refinement were the samurai schools, the warrior caste of feudal Japan.

Jiu-Jitsu was introduced to the Gracie family in Brazil around 1917 by the champion Mitsuyo Maeda, known as “Conde Koma”. Part of a Japanese immigration colony, Maeda settled in the state of Pará, where he founded his martial arts academy and had Carlos Gracie as one of his students.

Due to his improvement in life through Jiu-jitsu, Carlos disseminated his knowledge to his four younger brothers: Gastão, Oswaldo, George, and Hélio. In the 1930s, the Gracie brothers opened the family’s first Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy in Rio de Janeiro, initiating the Gracie teaching methodology composed of self-defense, takedown, standing fighting, ground fighting, and philosophy which are the pillars of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

For five generations, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners contributed to developing the art and strengthening its expansion throughout Brazil and the world, influencing hundreds of thousands of people.