Friday, January 25, 2019

Training with Shinso (Ciso) and the Nukite Strike revised


 

 

Allow me to offer some things my one instructor, Charles Murray, learned on Okinawa back in 1972.

 

He was a new black belt under Tom Lewis, and was an airman who was stationed on Okinawa. While there he trained in Agena at the dojo of Shimabuku Tatsuo as frequently as possible. There were only several other Americans training there at that time, because the Marines had their own dojo on their base.Then the majority of those that trained were Okinawans who came to train on their way home after work.

 

I can only relate this how he explained to me, mainly after reaching my own shodan. He described how Shinso (Ciso) spent time with him, training him in chinkuchi. But my time with Charles was too short after  that to be able to be trained that way myself. And I did not believe I knew enough to train that way myself.

 

Basically the Isshinryu in which I was trained followed a different paradigm, the same one Charles had been originally trained in.

 

When his schedule permitted he spent as much time training at the Agena dojo as possible.



And when he described the dojo he included a specific description of a makiwara for training nukite.

 

It basically consisted of 4 walls with a tire innertube (rubber) stretched across it. The Okinawans training there would strike it with their nukite strikes.

 

Now one evening Charles listening to Shinso describing how he would handle an attacker with his Isshinryu, made claim that his primary weapon would be the nukite. I believe Charles showed some mis-belief at that, saying something he did not see that to be an effective answer.

 

 Almost in reply to my thoughts, Shinso struck me twice. With his first blow, a nukite (spear-hand thrust), he temporarily paralyzed my arm; with the second blow, my leg.

 

The manner in which he formed the Nukite strike was different to me. His fingers seemed to be of equal length, allowing them to strike as a single line of fingers.

 

He then explained that I needed to change the way I formed the nukite. As my fingers were longer in the middle, I should bend them so they appeared the same length. They also should be held open to accommodate this structure. This would allow them to strike as if a single unit.

 

It could be possible that was behind the nukite use you have been describing.

 

Believe it on not. Charles trained me and has never give me reason to consider otherwise. I know he maintained his chinkuchi training over the decades.

 

Many years later he found these videos of his training on Okinawa. They are not the best, but  they are what I have.

 

Charles in 1972 practicing chinkuchi with his Seisan kata.




 

Charles in 1972 practicing chinkuchi with his Sunsu kata.




 

In my years I worked out different answers. Different time, different place, different circumstances. I was satisfied with what I did. But that never gave me reason not to believe what he experienced.

  


 

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