Too Much

 

 

Time does fly it has been 20 years since I bought “Martial Musing” by Robert Smith for I got it when it was published in 1999.

 

It could be said Robert Smith could have been on of my earliest martial hero’s as when I was a beginner I bought a cheap copy of his and Donn Drager’s Asian Martial Arts. Rereading its descriptions of so many arts over and over, wondering what they were actually like. Then I later purchased his books on T'ai Chi and PaQua, Hsing Yi and more.

 

Having read it placed it on my bookshelf and there it remained.

 

I once wrote a letter to Robert and he answered back. That answer was so remarkable I saved the reply on my blog

https://isshin-concentration.blogspot.com/2016/02/aresponse-from-robert-smith.html

 

Now re-reading the book, I discover he wrote it about the same age as I am right now or close enough to make me think about what he accomplished.

 

The shortages of today made this passage from his book seem most relevant.

 

Page 3

“Generally, I incline towards the Daoist view of life, believing that if we all followed nature we’d find that less is better, and small is indeed beautiful.  Key here is the notion of nothing in excess. We exercise or fail to exercise too much.   We eat too much, compete too much, have sex too much, win too much.  We sleep too much, think too much, do too much, and talk too much…..Perhaps we even write too much. Mad William Blake’s words catch us well: “Too much/enough”.  If there is anything to the theory that there is only certain amount of pleasure allotted to each of us, then perhaps we should spread it thinner so it will last longer…”

 

Of course there is much more, but I feel this fits the day.

 

 

 

Savate or French Boxing

 

Savate or French Boxing

 

 

From Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savate

 

Savate (French pronunciation: ​[saˈvat]), also known as boxe française, savate boxing, French boxing or French footfighting, is a French combat sport that uses the hands and feet as weapons combining elements of English boxing with graceful kicking techniques.^{[4][5][6][7][8]}

 

Only foot kicks are allowed, unlike some systems such as Muay Thai, which allow the use of the knees or shins. Savate is a French word for "old shoe or boot". Savate fighters wear specially designed boots. A male practitioner of savate is called a tireur while a female is called a tireuse

 

Savate takes its name from the French for "old shoe" (heavy footwear, especially the boots used by French military and sailors) (cf. French-English loanwords sabot and sabotage and Spanish cognate zapato). The modern formalized form is mainly an amalgam of French street fighting techniques from the beginning of the 19th century. Savate was then a type of street fighting common in Paris and northern France.^[9][10][11]

 

French boxing "tireurs" in 1900

 

 

Boxe française - Savate- 1896

 

 

 

1897 Boxe Francaise (Savate) & Baton Demonstration - Lyon France

 

 

 

 

French boxing (savate) in the military - 1898-1900

 

 

La Boxe Francaise (Savate) - Charles Charlemont 1924
 

 

 

Personal discoveries reading Itosu Anko

Reading a valuable book becomes most personal.

 

While reading Joe Swift’s “Itosu Anko –Savior of  a Cultural Heritage” I found so many topics discussed that meant so much to my various studies about what earlier Okinawan Arts were like, and blended together with my previous research cause me to rethink many things I formerly believed true. These are not the major sections of the book, often footnotes that drive my thought. Everything in the book is valuable, though in different ways.

 

I am just going to shotgun my observations out.

 

As Joe was discussing possible Chinese origins for Te and Toudi might have been from Chinese Military Training. And the forms that were studied very likely every technique went to a lethal conclusion. Most likely that was modified for the purposes that Okinawa needed in their developing arts. Later for further modification of those arts so that karate training might be more appropriate for the Okinawan schools.

 

I was particularly interested in him mentioning an early newspaper article (Ryukyu Shimpo March 21,1916) which mentioned that kata Bunkai was performed during the exhibition. This was well before Mabuni Kenwa discussed kata bunkai in his books in the 1930s. Apparently the term Bunkai was known connected to karate well before Mabuni used it inn the 1930s and spread that use through Japan.

 

Joe also notes there was no description as to what that Bunkai was. Just the mention that it was performed at a demonstration. That leaves one to wonder what that consisted  of.  I had read in a magazine back in the 1980 that Americans got the term from Japanese karate-ka as that use moved to the US. Then when they went to Okinawa and queried their instructors, received quizzical looks. Finally those instructors (under assumed politeness not wanting not to leave a polite question unanswered) then began to show some kata applications.. ..This adds another piece to the puzzle for me. Not conclusive but nevertheless…..

 

However a much larger issue around previous arts has opened in my mind. Basically it seems incorrect to lump centuries of prior Te and Toudi arts together as they were the same ground that Itosu used to create and rename Toudi as Karate (the Japanese pronouncation.

 

As I understand it prior to about 1870 the arts developed by the Okinawan Bushi clans were done to serve 5 separate functions.

I previously mentioned those traditions in this article.

When thinking of the Toudi that became Karate this exercise may be interesting.

https://isshin-concentration.blogspot.com/2019/07/when-thinking-of-toudi-that-became.html

 

I would think of the training those instructors was geared to prepare them for the eventual roles where their use of  Te/Toudi was but a part of that role. After leaving their instructor and assuming those roles, as they were junior members likely group training filled in more details. Think of the instructor role as base preparation.

 

Then Japan took control of Okinawa and their roles as Bushi groups was ended, Japanese groups took on those role functions that remained. At that point in time their training was for no society useful function. Many of those families suffered when their clan stipend was ended too. Of course some of those who had been trained continued to train others, with their prior arts likely for little purpose but to keep training.

 

So there was phase 1- the original Te/Toudi which served a function, and that was in four different roles.

Then there was phase 2 – the training remained and continued but served no further function.

That where Itosu Anko stepped forth and defined a new function and purpose for his Karate in the schools.

 

This realization yields greater benefit as to what the prior Te/Toudi might have been than considering all of that together.

There is so little documentation from that era it is easy to lump all of it together. That seems to be incorrect and represent a difference in my thinking.

 

This leave the greater part of Joe Swift’s “Itosu Anko –Savior of  a Cultural Heritage” for you to discover.

 

Much detail about the technical changes around the kata, the applications, the timing of movement as well as the method of movement that occurred. Then there is a great deal of Okinawan articles on the developing School karate, as well as many articles on Itosu’s life. Some of has racy connotations suggesting something I have read about other Okinawan karate-ka.

 

Note for Isshinryu:  Shimabuku Tatsuo is referenced also.

 

Now I am looking forward to reading the book a third time and seeing what I discover anew.

 

 

 

 

Onga Choyu wrote this

 

 

Onga Choyu:

   If something ceases to be a shadow, it becomes a form.

    If something ceases to be hidden, it comes to the surface.

    Dealing with the indeterminate reveals the skill of the Bushi.

 

From Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper, January 9th 1913

 

:

Regarding when the School Board allowed Karate to be taught in the schools.

 

 

 

Reading further into Joe Swift’s book “Itosu Anko” about the cultural changes on Okinawa giving rise to taking toudi into the Okinawan school system, it brought many other  things I have been reading in the past half year from other sources on that same topic. Then this gave rise to some very interesting thoughts.

 

Back in the 1870s Okinawa was subjected to many changes by Japan. They were formally brought into Japan, their king was replaced, the gentry were de-classified as such making their need for te and toudi in their lives irrelevant as new Japanese controlled systems were set up.

 

The important thing to recognize were many of the same things were occurring in Japan, too.

 

The old social order was abandoned; meaning among other things the promotion of social equity meant there were no further need for a samurai class. The military was organized by the institution of training for all soldiers. They very quickly realized many of their citizens were unprepared for military training. A new education system was established and incorporated training ideas from the United State and France. Among them martial gymnastics and sport, in an attempt to indoctrinate the young into current Japanese social belief, to build stronger bodies, etc.

 

This was also done on Okinawa as schools were opened for many who did not have that access before.

 

 To show their patriotism 50 Okinawan’s attempted to enlist in the Japanese Army, however only 10 of them passed the physical. The doctors noticed all of them had trained in the Okinawan martial arts.

 

That might have been part of the reason behind Itosu writing to that school board that Toudi (pronounced in Japanese as Karate), abet with modifications, ought be incorporated into the schools. I also suspect he had more knowledge of what was going on in Japan (of course supposition on my part.).

 

The school board he was writing to was in Japan, as they controlled the content of the Japanese school system.

 

At that time they were considering how/why not include judo and/or karate throughout the new Japanese school system.

 

So that school board likely considered Itosu’s proposal as a way to test if this training would work As Okinawa was regarded pretty much as the back water of Japan, if it didn’t work out, only Okinawa would be affected.

 

No doubt a harsh reasoning as to why the Japanese School Board went along with Itosu’s proposal.

 

And an experiment that worked out and continued to influence the development of Karate in many different ways, both in Japan and on Okinawa.

 

So much so Japan 5 years later eventually included judo and kendo instruction in their own schools.

 

Joe then moves into a more in-depth discussion about the change from Te and Toudi into the Karate of the Schools.

 

 

 

How sword influenced the development of Te on Okinawa

 

Reading again Joe Swift’s book “Itosu Anko”, In the first section, The Te of Shuri, I am taken by his point there was a long tradition of Japanese sword on Okinawa. Much of it seems to be variations of Jingen Ryu (Ko-Jingen Ryu) and that those arts had an impact on the development of Te.

 

He goes into detail explaining the sword use on old Okinawa.

 

Among his contentions is that a Jingen Ryu principle (2) Have complete faith in your first attack; if you  need a second attack you have already lost.”  Then mentioning that principle might be behind the te saying of Ichigeki Hissatsu (one strike, certain kill) or perhaps Ikken Hissatsu (one fist, certain kill). My only point here is that could show an influence of the use and training of the sword on older Okinawa.

 

Then Joe mentions another possibility.

 

Tategi-uchi is the fundamental practice in Jigen-ryu. Practitioners repeatedly strike a hard wooden post embedded in the ground using a wooden sword. The target is approached from a distance of around 9 meters, and then struck repeatedly on the left and right sides while screaming “Ei!” Tategi-uchi teaches distance, timing, correct grip, use of the hips, and speed.

 

In the Edo period Jigen-ryu adepts were instructed to strike the tategi “3000 times in the morning, 8000 times at night.”

 

That could have influenced the development of the makiwara for striking practice.

 

Interesting things to consider. We have Joe Swift for writing about them?

 

Now I really know nothing about the Japanese Sword of the different styles that have developed.

 

Just for a bit of a personal reality check I sought out Jigen Ryu on You Tube.

 

Togo Jigen ryu in Kagoshima

 

 

A kendo class in 1957 and a short demonstration of Jigen Ryu Heiho

 

 

They are of course what they are, not proof but something to consider nevertheless

 

I could not find a video of Tategi-uchi, striking the post with a wooden sword. But I found  something similar.

 

Nodachi Jigen Ryu developed in Kyushu during the 16th century, one of the elements practiced in this traditional Kenjutsu school is to cut against a vertical pole.

 

Typical is also the high version of the Hasso-no-kamae (with the sword held vertically above the shoulder on the right side).

This is the closest a video of Nodachi striking today.  

 

I do suggest you will gain a great deal by acquiring and reading Joe Swift’s book “Itosu Anko”.

 

 

.pdf files from the University of Hawaii Scans

 

A long time ago I downloaded some .pdf files

from the University of Hawaii Scans donated by Charles Goodin.

These scans came from the .pdf file labeled Iguchi- Randori 1912

 

These are just a few of the opening pages of illustrations,

the entire work contains much more.

Remember the pages and illustrations are viewed Left to Right.