The Story of Shozen Sunabe - Part 2

 

The Story of Shozen Sunabe

Part 2

by Charles C. Goodin Hawaii Karate Museum

 

This article was published in Classical Fighting Arts and is extremely good. I made some notes that interested me at the time I read it.

 

Shozen Sunabe was a student of Chotoku Kyan and in this article he describes what that training was like.

 

I saved parts of the article in these notes.

 

The variety of a martial art

Is subtle and limitless: it is

Impossible to describe. Everyone

Can acquire it with hard

Training and lone research.

-         Chotoku Kyan

 

Matsumura Seisan

 

Sunabe Sensei actually performed Seisan kata at my house, twice. Here are my observations.

 

Before he would perform the kata, Sunabe Sensei removed his shirt (leaving only a Tank top t-shirt, glasses and partial denture.  He said he would not wear his glases and partial because during kata you have to act and feel like you are in a real fight. In a real fight glasses and partial could be used against you as weapons…..

 

What amazed me mote was Sunabe Sensei’s posture. When he took the opening position of the kata he lowered his shoulders more than I thought possible. He did not seem to exert much force to do so. It almost seemed that his shoulders were hinged and could be lowered at will.

 

Sunabe Sensei’s Seisan was light and sticky. He did not rusn from movement to movement. By “stickey: I mean that there was a feeling of muchimi in his movements. His movements were not staccato, rough, or forced. It seemed like he moved lightly, but with his body firm, and just punched or struck right at the end of the movement.,,,,,

 

Some people exert force right from the beginning (where their fist is chambered).  Sunabe sensei’s punch seemed to extend out smoothly and quickly, but easily, with the force (kime) exerted only at the very end of the punch, followed by a short recoil.

 

He did not kiai loudly for any movement, He exhaled for each movement, but quietly.

 

His movements were very upright. He did not take any low stances.

 

…the most of Sunabe Sensei’s Seisan was an early film of Tatsuo Shimabukuro (another direct student of Kyan Sensei and founder of the Isshin-Ryu,,, Like Sunabe Sensei, Shimabukuro Sensei stood upright. In addition the recoil of Shimabukuro Sensei’s strikes and particularly his kicks were very much like the way that Sunabe sensei moved.

 

In addition Shimabukuro Sensei appeared to move in a very nonchalant way. His movements were not forced. It almost seemed that he was just walking through the kata. Sunabe sensei moved the same way….

 

…speaking of the old karate masters viewed on film… Only recently hav I come to appreciate their refinement of their movements. They move fast without looking fast. Their strikes and kicks almost look like they are stabbing.

 

Another important pointL: Sunabe Sensei’s movements seemed quicker on the recoil or return than on the outgoing movement. For example the recoil of his kick appeared to be faster than the kick itself much more like the saying that the recoil of a strike should be as fast as the strike.

 

--Body Conditioning

 

..Kyan Sensei would always say “Make your fingers and toes like yari (spears), your body like iron, and your arms like katana (swords).”…. Kyan Sensei gave Sunabe Sensei bags filled with sand. Aa a child, Sunabe Sensei would strike these with his fingertips. In time, the sand was replaced by pebbles.

 

..Kyan Sensei said that one should train in the sand to develop kicks and stomping ability. It was not possible to train inside because the tatami mats and floor boards would be broken by the stomping movements of the various kata, particularly the Naihanchi kata.

 

Conditioning of the fists and feet (among other parts of the body) was done on the makiwara……..

 

Front kicks were done with the tips of the toes (tsumasaki geri). Sunabe Sensei  said that Kyan Sensei’s toes were so strong that he could walk around his house on the tips of his toes.

 

Kyan Sensei also had Sunabe Sensei wear heavy tetsugeaa (iron geta) at night (presumably so the geta would not be seen). After wearing the geta, kicks became quick, easy, and powerful.   The first two toes also became very string by gripping the straps of the geta to hold them to the feet……

 

,,He said that he practiced at Kyan Sensei’s house to  be able  to jump straight up to his own shoulder height, something that Kyan Sensei could also do.

 

Kyan Sensei also had Sunabe Sensei practice “Duck walk.”….