https://isshin-concentration.blogspot.com/2020/07/you-tube-does-not-always-tell-whole.html
Trust me this is worth viewing again.
Friday, June 30, 2023
The theory of the origin of jiu-jitsu in karate
Translations with Bing Translate
https://note.com/motoburyu/n/ncad4b678874a
The theory of the origin of jiu-jitsu in karate
April
19, 2023 7:16 PM
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In Okinawa, jujutsu techniques (throwing techniques,
joint techniques, etc.) are called toride (tote, twity in dialect).
By the way, in "Okinawa 1000 Year History"
(Taisho 12) co-authored by Masakana Yasuoki and Shimakura Ryuji, there is a
section called "The Origin of Karaoke", and there is the following
sentence.
Although some conclude that (Kara-te) is the same
era as the introduction of jujutsu to our country, there is a theory that it is
delusional to say that jujutsu begins with Chen Yuanzhao at the beginning of
Waji, etc., and although the arrival of Genjō was in the second year of Manji,
it was popular around the time of Keicho, and Trite was Yawara and Ai was a
great sword-pulling work, so it is still unclear.
< omitted>
In the rare book collection Essay Daikan (vol. 4),
Japan Kenpo Jujutsu was taught at Nishikubo Kokushoji Temple by Chen Yuanzhao
during the Shōho year. Those who can learn this art and do their best are
Fukuno Shichirozaemon, Miura Yojiemon, and Isogai Jirozaemon, all of whom are
Satsuma people. Yuan Zhao was a person from the Ming Tiger Forest and the name
of the Hakusan people. To avoid the rebellion, he came to Japan and was a guest
in Bishū. If it is the time of our Manji among the people of the Manreki Sada
year, if the Okinawan Karaite is to follow the example of him, he will enter
through Satsuma. The modern Okinawan martial artist Itosu Yasu (Mama) also
wrote that Karaoke was a tradition of Chen Yuan-so, and wrote it for hindsight.
The above sentence is written in literary language,
and the content is also technical, so it is difficult, but what Shinsai Na etc.
wants to say is as follows.
There is a theory that the origin of kara-te in Okinawa coincided with the
introduction of jiu-jitsu to Japan. Kaihara Yoshiko's (1664-1700) Yamato Jitsu
(Yamato Jitsu) states that the origin of jujutsu began with the Ming dynasty
Chingenpin, but there is also a theory that this is incorrect. Chen Yuanzhao
came to Japan in 1659 (Manji 2), but before that, during the Keicho period
(1596-1615), jujutsu had already become popular under the name
"trite". Therefore, it is unclear whether the origin of jiu-jitsu
began with Chen Yuanhao.
< omitted>
According to the Jin Shobunko: Essay Daikan (Meiji 43-44), the origin of
jujutsu began when Chen Yuan-so taught it at Kokushoji Temple (Kokusho-ji) in
Nishikubo (present-day Minato-ku, Tokyo) in Edo during the Shōho period
(1645-48). The three people who studied jujutsu were Shichirozaemon Fukuno,
Yojiemon Miura, and Jirozaemon Isogai, all from Satsuma. If the origin of
Okinawan kara-te is jujutsu, was it introduced via Satsuma? Itosu Anheng also
says that the tang hand was handed down by Chen Yuanzheng.
In the above text, various arguments are developed,
and some of them may be heard for the first time even by those who study the
history of karate. To summarize a little more, the following points are stated.
・The
origin of karate (karate) is the same era as the jujutsu introduced by Chen
Yuanhao, that is, in the middle of the 17th century.
However, jujutsu was already popular
during the Keicho period under the name "trite".
If this is true, then Trite is a name
with a longer history than Yawara (jujutsu), dating back to the Keicho period.
・ Kara-te
may have introduced jujutsu to Okinawa via Satsuma. Yasutsune Itosu also
advocates this theory.
Incidentally, there is also a theory that Chen
Yuanzhao did not teach Jiu-Jitsu, but simply told the three of them about
Chinese martial arts. There is also a theory that these three were also from
areas other than Satsuma.
In the so-called "Ten Lessons of Itoshu,"
Itoshima Sensei stated that the origin of Kara-te was the Chinese Shōrin-ryū
and Shōrei-ryū that were introduced to Ryukyu. Then, although contradictory to
the above, if Shinsakina and others were talking about the origin theory of
jujutsu, it may be that he was considering several possibilities about the
origin of Karaoke.
In any case, the influence of Japan martial arts on
Kara-te has been neglected in the past, but Itosu-sensei also considered the
possibility that jujutsu originated.
Source:
"Is Karate Origin Jiu-Jitsu?" (Ameblo, March 6, 2016).
Thursday, June 29, 2023
"Who's on First?"
Bud Abbott and
Lou Costello's performance of "Who's on First?" in "The Naughty
Nineties" (1945) is considered the quintessential version of the routine,
and the clip is enshrined in a looped video at the Baseball Hall of Fame in
Cooperstown, New York. The laughter that can be heard faintly in the background
during the routine belongs to the film crew and director Jean Yarbrough. After
numerous re-takes trying to eliminate it, Yarbrough just couldn't get the crew
- or himself - to stop laughing during the routine, no matter how many times
they heard it. So he just gave up and left the giggling in.
The "Who's
on First" sequence was added after the rest of the film was shot and
edited. Universal executives thought the film didn't have enough laughs, so
they wrote in the routine, which Abbott and Costello had been performing for
years on stage and radio, as well as a much shorter version in their first
film, "One Night in the Tropics" (1940).
"Who's on
First?" is descended from turn-of-the-century burlesque sketches that used
plays on words and names. Examples are "The Baker Scene" (the shop is
located on Watt Street) and "Who Dyed" (the owner is named
"Who"). In the 1930 movie "Cracked Nuts", comedians Bert
Wheeler and Robert Woolsey examine a map of a mythical kingdom with dialogue
like this: "What is next to Which." "What is the name of the
town next to Which?" "Yes." In British music halls, comedian
Will Hay performed a routine in the early 1930s (and possibly earlier) as a
schoolmaster interviewing a schoolboy named Howe who came from Ware but now
lives in Wye.
By the early
1930s, a "Baseball Routine" had become a standard bit for burlesque
comics across the United States. Abbott's wife recalled him performing the
routine with another comedian before teaming with Costello.
Abbott stated
that it was taken from an older routine called "Who's The Boss?", a
performance of which can be heard in an episode of the radio comedy program
"It Pays to Be Ignorant" from the 1940s. After they formally teamed
up in burlesque in 1936, he and Costello continued to hone the sketch. It was a
big hit in the fall of 1937, when they performed the routine in a touring
vaudeville revue called Hollywood Bandwagon.
In February
1938, Abbott and Costello joined the cast of "The Kate Smith Hour"
radio program, and the sketch was first performed for a national radio audience
on March 24 of that year. The routine may have been further polished before
this broadcast by burlesque producer John Grant, who became the team's writer,
and Will Glickman, a staff writer on the radio show.
Abbott and
Costello performed "Who's on First?" numerous times in their careers,
rarely performing it exactly the same way twice. In 1956, a gold record of
"Who's on First?" was placed in the National Baseball Hall of Fame
and Museum.
"I'm a
wistful little guy, you know what I mean? I'm the underdog, the guy nobody pays
much attention to until something happens to him. I'd be way out of place
trying to play some guy like a big hero or something like that. I've been doing
comedy for maybe 30 years now. People know what I look like and what kind of
little guy I am. They wouldn't accept too much different from that, would
they?" (IMDb/Wikipedia)
*********************************************
When you think about it, this might go a long way to explain why variations in Karate occur!
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
Tegumi (Grappling Hands) - Foundation
Shoshinkan Okinawan Shorin Ryu
Karatedo
Tegumi (Grappling Hands) - Foundation
Tegumi Important?
Hohan Soken Sensei (3rd
Grandmaster - Matsumura Shorin Ryu)
As karateka our intention if involved in a ‘physical’
incident is to remove ourselves from that situation, ensuring our own safety
and that of others. However we can find ourselves in a position where we may be
unable to do this, examples would be if we have been attacked and find
ourselves grappling, or perhaps we wish to restrain a violent/agressive person
for arrest without to much damage being inflicted?
Striking and evasion may be the main focus of our art
but Tegumi plays a vital role in our ability to cope in all situations, and in
some cases our survival.
Tegumi has been practised for hundreds of years in
almost all cultures, it is simply wrestling (to begin with…..), often this
pastime was used when villages got together for festivals, and it provided
exciting entertainment!
Of course our focus is on the Okinawan practise and
the benefits/structure it brings to our karate practise, much wrestling
developed into non lethal ‘sport’ and whilst exciting we need to understand how
Tegumi is simply an important part of karatedo.
If we think of children wrestling/playfighting then we
are beginning to see how tegumi should be practised, no stopping or points, no
winners announced. 2 people simply wrestle, this practise highlights how our
bodies work and prepares /supports our further training of atemi (striking of
vital targets) amongst other things.
Tegumi practise is introduced and practised in the
form of drills and free practise, to build our skill level and
introduce/experience the principles, it is also excellent conditioning, stamina
work and builds a strong physical structure – reason enough to practise
regulary.
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Tegumi ‘Push’
Simply engage your partner, one person is active, one
is passive, the passive person ‘leans’ natural body weight into the active
person. The active person is allowed to take a maximum of 2 steps with the goal
of pushing the passive person around. Stop and start, do not simply step
forward with momentum, the passive person steps back as needed to accommodate.
Notice how our hands position on the body (hips and
shoulders?), do not just use the shoulders, but connect your upper and lower
body, hands might go high and low , left and right, like the jaws of the tiger.
Tegumi Pull
Simply engage your partner, one person is active, one
person is passive, the passive person simply ‘roots’ to the ground natural body
weight. The active person hooks under/over the arms/around the neck/back of the
passive person, and is allowed to take 2 steps with the goal of pulling the
passive person around. Stop and start, do not simply step back with momentum,
he passive person steps forward to accommodate.
Notice that to ‘enter’ and ‘engage’ we need to break
the grip and structure of the arms, our bodies become close, use our whole
natural structure to transmit energy. Naturally ‘hook’ make the connection of
using our arms to transmit our body’s natural power.
Tegumi Drop & Lift
Simply engage your partner, one person is active, one
person is passive, the passive person lowers a little allowing the active
person to place palms on the shoulders, upper chest/arms, the passive person
simply ‘roots’ down, the active person then palms down and try to keep the
passive person in the lower position, it
is not fixed and our feet are allowed to move to shift force and recover.
Notice how movement can help us to maintain control,
how one hand becomes heavy and the other just rests, the effect of dropping our
shoulders and keeping the elbows in and down. Find places to ‘hook’ our arms to
maintain the down pressure, notice that to ‘flat’ foot our partner opens
opportunity rendering them immobile.
Tegumi Twist
Simply engage your partner, hook one arm around/under
their shoulder/upper arm, the other palm on the front of the other
shoulder/upper arm, the active person experiments with twisting, push/pull to
turn the passive person at the shoulders and waist, the passive person simply
roots and resists a little.
Notice how our footwork and hip movement help us move
the partner, how slight up and down movement helps break their strength. As we
progress we aim to get ‘around’ our partner, to be behind them, start slow and
build up, notice how close we can be and how in control this makes us.
Tegumi ‘Free Play’
‘General Practise’- simply engage your partner and
begin to lean on each other, use your arms to control (no straight arms), try
to keep the centre line, use your foot work to remain stable (rooted) and to
keep your balance/manipulate your partner, begin to find out where our bodies
are strong and where they are weak. Use the palms of the hands to transmit
pressure/energy, no grabbing, locking, tripping, striking etc etc.
When you feel your partner is off balance, push or
pull them a little to make them step to regain balance. Only work to a level
slightly uncomfortable to your partner, this is not a contest but training, it
is always ok to relax and take the pressure off if your partner is struggling.
2 min rounds are ideal. Contact is constant, with no
clashing, notice how our breath makes us light and heavy, notice how our energy
is transmitted better when breathing out, and how we receive energy better when
we breath in.
Keep our ‘wedge’ and natural structure, do not over
extend our limbs (arms and legs!), step with our feet to remain ‘centred’.
General Observations/lessons
To control the centre line (arm placement) not only
gives us better control but also creates a strong barrier to avoid head
clashes.
If we use our footwork to lead our structured movement
we unite upper and lower body strength. Keep our centre of gravity low and form
a good ‘base’ without being static.
Think about the muscle used in Tegumi and how it
differs from our ideas of ‘strength’, ligaments and tendons are worked rather
than major muscle groups.
Begin to understand our partners intention by ‘feel’
rather than observation, this is an important step towards ‘sensitivity’.
Look at rhythm and change it, tempo often becomes
regular in drilling, try and vary the rate at which we work to confuse our
partner, the reverse is also important as we need to cope with unregulated
movement and forces.
This concludes the Tegumi foundation and leads onto
further more specific study which will be trained at our next mini seminar (3rd
June 2006), I hope this has been of use to you and thankyou for your support of
the Shoshinkan,
Yours In budo,
Jim Neeter
Shoshinkan Okinawan Shorin
Ryu Karatedo
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A Karate Camp Horror Story
(About 1990)
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I have seen this
happen and heard of this happening. Let me relate the first version of a Karate (Martial Arts)
summer camp. It is not related to a specific style, rather the differences
between modern karate training mixing with older days.
Itoman Morinobu
describes of older Toudi training. Filled with much richer training practices
of years past. When training might have taken place in forests or outside of a
formal dojo. When environmental conditions were taken into account for
technique selection. Likewise low level lighting was taken into account, from
those days before modern lighting. It doesn’ suggest tolally dojo training and
lighting of today’s schools.
One summer this
school held an annual summer training at a campground. One of their drills was
a ‘Ninja’ war game in the dark. Sneaking about, attacking the others in the
‘other’ group.
Well one dark
night they played their game. One of the students was doing their best to be
stealthy. Then they observed someone
crouching down
by a tree.
They did not
appear aware of him. So he snuck up and got in range. Still they did not turn.
They were unaware.
So he used his
best front kick, and kicked toward the opponent. Then they began screaming
bloody murder.
The opponent
hiding in the dark, was a boulder. And they broke their leg.
Their training
did not cover observing what they saw. A big mistake.
What was meant
to be a fun drill, turned into an expensive stay in the hospital, rehab and all
the rest.
As I have said I
have other examples.
Instructors
should be more careful, I would suggest.
Tuesday, June 27, 2023
When Karate Gymnastics entered the Okinawan Schools
They
did not explain what they were doing to the newspaper Ryūkyū
shinpō very well.
Translated from the French with Bing Translate
Karate in schools and Ryūkyū shinpō
Translated by Jean-Charles Juster.
Okinawa Prefectural
Middle School
In January 1905, karate was introduced as an
official subject in the old Okinawa Department College System. The following
February, an article was published in the Ryūkyū shinpō.
This text is quite difficult to understand
because it is written in ancient Japanese, but I will give the meaning below:
At the end of 1904, members of the
pedagogical team of the colleges proposed the idea of using karate in the
courses, in other words, it marked its beginnings in the school system.
Currently, the results are positive, but there is one unfortunate point. Since
teachers provide very inadequate explanations, there are Many points that are
difficult to grasp. The journalist hopes that in the future, a project will be
set up where teachers will provide sufficient explanations, once they have
acquired teaching skills in this martial art.
It is very likely that a month after the
introduction of karate in colleges, study days were set up. This journalist was
invited to one of them and attended a class where karate was taught. But, it is
a pity that the teacher's way of teaching was not rational. Or that the teacher
had not been able to explain why karate was present in schools, or rationally
demonstrate its teaching.
These members of the teaching team, or
teachers, were Hanashiro Chômo, then a physical education teacher, and Itosu
Ankô, a karate teacher. At the time, the physical education course was called
gymnastics, and so it was within the framework of this gymnastics that karate
was taught. Naturally, the hours dedicated to gymnastics set by the Ministry of
Education were reduced, to teach karate.
In the end, were there any benefits? The
explanations to be able to grasp them were insufficient... This is probably
what this journalist's questioning consisted of.
As we have just seen, the Japanese Ministry
of Education had not recognized the teaching of martial arts as a compulsory
school subject. In the metropolis, judo or kendo were not yet taught. Okinawa had therefore unilaterally decided to
teach karate in college. It was the view of the Okinawa Department Bureau of
Education, for whom "karate was not a martial art, but a gymnastics,"
that made this introduction possible. It was a way around the law. The name
"karate taisô" (gymnastics based on karate) was probably born for
this reason.
In order to use karate in schools, Itosu
founded study days, and while following each of the guidelines of the Okinawa
Department Bureau of Education, he continued the "gymnization" of
karate. However, according to the Ryūkyū shinpô, his enterprise was still far
from showing satisfactory signs.
Moreover, what does this journalist
experience? Did he witness an execution of Pin.an shodan as Itosu had taught
Motobu Chomo? If that were the case, he could have Ask if for middle school
students, this form was not too long and especially too complex. To which Itosu
would have reacted by forging the current Pin.an shodan, by removing the last
part of this first version of this kata. Or, seeing the assaults developed by
Hanashiro Chômo, could this journalist not have thought that they were
dangerous for college students, and that gymnastic movements would have been
safer.
The original Japanese article was written on May 17, 2019 on Ameblo, and the French translation was written on August 13, 2019.
The Enlightenment Party (Kaika-tō)
Written
by Motobu Naoki, translated by Andreas Quast
The Enlightenment Party (Kaika-tō)
was a group that supported the annexation of Ryūkyū by Japan after the fall of
the Ryūkyū Kingdom. The opposing group was the Stubborn Party (Ganko-tō), which
supported the restoration of the kingdom.
The activities of the members of
the Enlightenment Party were initially similar to that of spies for the
Japanese government. At that time such spies were called Tanpō-jin, literally
explorer (reporter, inquirer; investigator). Many of these Tanpō-jin were from
the lower samurai class. Some of them held a grudge against the Ryūkyū ruling
class. Of course, the Stubborn Party hated them as traitors.
The Enlightenment Party supported
both the “Okinawa Assimilation Policy” as well as the “Imperialized Education”
devised by the Japanese government. They established banks and newspaper
companies in Okinawa and gradually dominated Okinawan society, economy, and
mass media. A representative person of the Enlightenment Party was Ōta Chōfu
(1865–1938) of the Ryūkyū Shimpō newspaper.
It was at the opening ceremony of
the Private Okinawa Higher Girls’ School where Ōta Chōfu made his famous
“sneeze remark”.
Speaking about what Okinawa’s most urgent need is
currently, it is to imitate the other prefectures from A to Z, in every
particular.
I’m exaggerating a bit, but it is to imitate other prefectures even if they
only sneeze. (July 1, 1900).
This remark is an extreme denial of
Okinawa’s uniqueness. Therefore,
even though articles about Karate were published in the Ryūkyū Shimpō newspaper
during the Meiji era, they were often written negatively, and they need to be
read and considered within this context.
However, today it is still a
difficult question as to whether that remark shall unilaterally be criticized
or not. At that time, since Okinawa was economically far behind the Japanese
mainland, so they [the members of the Enlightenment Party] desired to enrich
Okinawa through the “Assimilation Policy.”
Besides, the famous “Round-table
Discussion of Karate Experts” of 1936 was also hosted by the Ryūkyū Shimpō
newspaper, and headed by Ōta Chōfu. As the times changed, Ota Chōfu might have
changed his mind and raised his voice that Okinawa’s uniqueness should be
protected.
Ōta Chōfu. Source: Naha City Museum of History
By the way, as introduced in a
previous article, Ōta Chōfu and Motobu Chōki have
been friends since they were young. Ōta Chōfu tried to get an actual fight with
Motobu Chōki, but Motobu Chōki refused because the opponent’s ability was lower
than his own.
The original Japanese article was written on September
21, 2019 on Ameblo, and the English translation was written on September 22,
2019.
Monday, June 26, 2023
Interview of Shinyu GushiUechi Ryu, 9th Dan
Dragon Times Issue #14
Not many people find an
9th Dan karate instructor at the front door on a Sunday morning, especially not
one carrying a large box of doughnuts. But then working at Dragon Times never
was boring, and nor was this particular day as it started with a serious period
while we checked his latest video, progressed to light hearted discussions over
lunch, and turned into mirth and hilarity as the day drew to a close.
Gushi sensei, every inch
the stern karate master on the outside, has a well-developed sense of humor we
discovered. Unfortunately, as is so often the case, I ended up being its target
and as a result, the source of a great deal of amusement for my co-workers.
At one stage while he was
explaining a technique he made his hand into “hiraken” then grabbing my head
without warning with his other claw-like appendage, rapped his knuckles on the
side of my temple saying as he did so in a rather matter-of-fact way, “because
this area (of my head) is very weak, you don’t have to hit too hard!” I did
survive the day although as my eye glasses now list heavily to port like a ship
getting ready to capsize, I must assume that they were bent during the
demonstration or, as seems likely from the pain I felt when I woke up next
morning, he displaced my left ear by half an inch.
Dragon Times: Many readers have asked us about your
muscle-development. They want to know if you do weight training or if not, what
sort of training you do to keep yourself in such good condition.
Shinyu Gushi: I don’t do any weight training. I
used to do a little when I was young but Uehara sensei told me that it I should
concentrate on the quality of my muscles and not just their size so I cut it
down to a minimum.
It’s good to be strong
but in karate it’s speed and “snap” that you need. What muscles I have comes
from Sanchin training and using nigiri game. Muscles developed this way serve
to protect the body, weight training just produces a pleasing appearance.
When you are fighting
(drops into Sanchin stance) you pull your shoulders down like this and tense
your muscles, including those around your throat to make a shield. With your
body round and compact and your muscles tense you are relatively safe and
protected.
We pull everything into
the center, lower our bodies like this and make them round and smooth.
Techniques are performed in front of the body, we don’t block above the level
of the head for example because that would weaken our defenses.
DT: How would you say that karate has
changed since you started training?
SG: In some ways it has changed for the
better, in others for the worse. Times change and with them the way that we
lead our lives. When I started karate we would make our uniforms out of U.S.
Army flour sacks because everything was in such short supply in postwar
Okinawa. Nowadays most youngsters have everything they need or want but are no
happier than we were.
What I do regret are the
misunderstandings that have occurred about technique. When demand for tuition
became very strong during the sixties and seventies, students were given
permission to teach before they were ready.
Not knowing the bunkai,
that is, the purpose the movements they were teaching, they ended up just
teaching the movements. This is like giving someone a map without indicating in
which direction north lies—you sort of know where you going, but then again you
don’t.
The result of this were
students who slavishly performed the basic form of the technique without
knowing its purpose. For example, koi no shippo (goldfish tail block) is
performed slowly in the kata (demonstrates) but in fact it is either a very
sharp upward block, or a powerful downward strike to the opponent’s hand.
The student might think
that it should be performed during kumite as it is done during the kata, but
this is completely wrong. The point I am trying to make is that is if you have
never seen a nail you will not know how to use a hammer.
In authentic Uechi Ryu
there is order and method, and this must be passed on to students perfectly,
not just the physical appearance of techniques as has been the case so often in
the past.
If you are attacked
strongly you block softly—absorbing and deflecting. This is the Crane method.
When you attack you do so
fiercely, gripping your opponent so he cannot escape and striking him really
hard—this is the way of the Tiger.
Other techniques are
inspired by the imaginary movements of a dragon, that is why our method is
referred to as Ryokokaku—Dragon, Tiger, Crane school.
DT: Do you teach differently now than
you did in Okinawa?
SG: In some ways yes. When I came to
the United States, students asked me many questions about technique which is
not the way we do things at home.
I was accustomed to
waiting patiently until one of my seniors in the dojo would decide that it was
time for me to learn something new.
The American way was a
little unsettling at first, but it caused me to rationalize things that I had
always done instinctively.
Then, and only then could
I explain them logically, which is what the Western mind has been trained to
expect. This period of self-examination made me aware of the real secrets of
karate so you could say that it was not until I became 8th Dan that I really
knew what I was doing!
But don’t think that
there are short cuts because there aren’t. Learning karate properly is hard
work, you will often feel pain and exhaustion, frustration, and from time to
time you will suffer injury.
Karate still involves
strengthening and conditioning the body, learning the techniques so you can do
them without thinking, and building a strong spirit. When you have perfected
each and can bring them together perfectly, you are really doing karate and
your ability will become much greater than the sum of the three constituent
parts.
DT: Is this why you decided to produce
your video series?
SG: Well, my students said that I
should, and now I agree with them. Before you train with a senior teacher you
should watch and listen to the videos and learn as much as you can, then your
time in the dojo will be used to the greatest benefit. If you can really absorb
what is shown on the videos and perform it to a reasonable standard, it will
take you to the level of third or fourth dan.
Watch and listen, think
about what you have seen, and train as hard as you can. The videos give a
visual example of technique which is very useful.
For example, I see so
many people these days just standing up straight when they perform Sanchin and
pushing their arms out in front of them. That’s not the way.
You have to lower your
body into Sanchin stance (demonstrates) like this, so that there is only a
small gap between your knees and your groin is protected.
You thrust strongly with your
arms, don’t just push them forward. This is serious business and you must learn
properly the first time otherwise the techniques won’t work.
DT: Do you have any strong views about
sparring?
SG: Not sparring as such but the use of
protectors or pads can be a problem. In Okinawa we don’t use them as body
conditioning is part of Uechi system that teaches us to withstand pain and
avoid injury.
When extensive protection
is used students lose all fear, much of their control, and a good deal of their
mobility. Sparring become a wild brawl with punches being swung
indiscriminately and the fighter with the longest arms and legs usually comes
out on top.
I realize that there is a
liability problem in the U.S. and insurance companies probably insist on
protection being worn before they will give coverage, but we must remember that
competition sparring is not real fighting.
DT: We are often asked by readers if
you are going to open a dojo so they can train with you. Do you have any plans?
SG: No! Running a dojo is a big
responsibility and very time consuming. I would end up teaching beginners to
cover the overhead which would prevent me from teaching senior students and
younger instructors which I feel is my real mission.
I travel to do seminars
however, and I will be teaching at seminars organized by Tsunami Productions
later this year.
DT: I understand that on the last of
the four part series you will be demonstrating kobudo. Can you tell us
something of the background of your training?
SG: Well, I started about 45 years ago
with Akamine Shoichi sensei, and also trained with one of my karate teachers,
Seiko Itokazu sensei. The kata are mainly from the Matayoshi school but as you
know, kata varies a little from dojo to dojo.
I have studied the bo,
eku, sai and nunchaku. There is no official kobudo style for Uechi Ryu, we
choose what we like and train with the teacher we prefer.
DT: Thank you sensei for giving us this
interview. I have seen your video series and was very impressed—it is
excellent. I hope that it will make more people aware of the genuinely
traditional training that you offer.
posted April 13, 2002 09:53
AM 
Removing his jacket,
shirt and tie, he tied up his long grey hair more tightly with the hair pin
worn by all men in Okinawa at one time, and stood motionless for a moment or
two. "Sanchin," he growled, then suddenly, hunching forward slightly
and thrusting his arms violently down at his sides, he began a transformation
that would rival in dramatic effect the metamorphosis of Dr. Jekyll into Mr.
Hyde.
His body became instantly
hard with a tension that defies description; sinews grew from nowhere and
became steel cords; muscles swelled from the torso and solidified under my
gaze; the eyes were transformed into ferocious slits from which shone
malevolence, and from within nature's most dangerous creation--the creature
that walks upright--came the primordial sound of the beast mustering its
physical and mental power in preparation for a fight to the death.
I felt the hair on the
back of my neck rising, as my primordial instincts reacted to the sight before
me.
I felt as one does when
the beloved family pet, who will willingly endure mashed potatoes in both ears
providing the kids will let him eat it afterwards, becomes a wolf in defence of
his pack; a snarling mass of tensed muscle and bared fangs to whom no reason
will appeal.
**
“Of course! The reason
that we practised Sanchin for at least six months was to make our bodies strong
and capable of taking punishment.
If your Sanchin is good,
you can protect your whole body with the exception of the face. If your
opponent cannot hurt you enough to stop you fighting he will loose.
See (tensing the muscles
around the neck so they looked like a thick strand of rope wound around beneath
his chin) even if I am hit here (indicating his vulnerable throat by hitting it
with his fist) I can protect myself with Sanchin.”
Sanchin is important
because it allows you to build a shield of muscle that you can use at will, and
that will both protect your body and give you a lot of power to attack with.
Dragon Times: I understand that you studied with
Seiyu Shinjo as well.
Shinyu Gushi: That's right I did. I studied kata
with him a lot. Then he moved to Kadena which was too far for me to travel so I
started training with Seiko Itokazu Sensei who was the head of the Pangai Noon,
(the original name of the style that Kanbun Uechi brought back from China).
I was an instructor by
this time, and was aware therefore that karate was already changing.
1958 our first dan grade
examinations in Okinawa were held. We were told to attend by our respective
instructors and were examined by a large number of seniors for basics and kata
performance.
Then we were told to
fight each other.
Dragon Times: What form did the examination take?
Shinyu Gushi: We did Sanchin while seniors
instructor tested us (shime) by hitting and punching us as we performed the
Kata. Then we did Sanseru in front of the seniors, then they told us to fight.
Dragon Times: What do you mean by
"fight?"
Shinyu Gushi: It was nothing like now. We were
always taught in the dojo just to attack the enemy and beat him.
We didn't assume a stance
and then circle warily. We went straight at each other, and using Sanchin,
tried to avoid injury while beating up the opponent.
Only direct strikes to
the face were forbidden, everything else was allowed, so we attacked with
everything we had and a lot of students were injured.
The problem was that the
instructors who were supposed to be conducting the grading became so enthralled
with the fighting that they would forget to stop us. Only when one of the pair
of combatants started to take a real beating would they remember to intervene,
and by that time ten minutes of no holds barred fighting had taken their toll.
Dragon Times: I'm not clear about the rules for
the sparring.
Shinyu Gushi: We were allowed to hit full power
to any target with any technique except the face. We could attack the
opponent's face, but not make contact.
Dragon Times: What techniques were used most
often?
Shinyu Gushi: Well we used everything.
Sokuto kicks were used,
hand techniques like the dragon strike to the throat, it was a fight rather
than sparring.
Dragon Times: How did you do at the grading?
Shinyu Gushi: All right! I survived the battles
and was graded second dan but when I look back I have to view this as the
beginning of the change in Karate.
Until this point we
practised in the dojo individually under the supervision of a senior--there
were no organized classes as such, or grades.
We practised techniques
that the first grading in 1958 showed all too clearly were far too dangerous to
use in competition. I feel that from this point on "modern" karate
started to develop along sporting lines while the old, "real" karate
stayed in the background, and backyards of Okinawan teachers where it had
always been.
When you are marching up
and down a dojo it's easy to be anonymous--there's a certain feeling of
belonging to a group that is reassuring.
But when you fight, you
fight alone, so we train alone, student with instructor. In this way you can't
hide anything as you can with group training. I see the student's flaws and I
correct them so that the student can improve.
I offer individual
training of an intense nature so people who really want to improve their karate
skills can. That's not to say that what other people are doing is no good--just
that what we do is different.
Dragon Times: When you were learning karate as a
young student, did the seniors teach you kyusho (nerve points)?
Shinyu Gushi: Yes. We
learned from our seniors and teachers but not to use in the dojo of course,
it's too dangerous. Also we were not allowed to use them from the time of the
first dan grading I told you about because they are so dangerous.
Dragon Times: When you tense your body, does it
protect you from attacks to your nerve points?
Shinyu Gushi: Of course! That's why we practice
Sanchin to learn how to do this--to protect ourselves in a fight.
Dragon Times: So if you had to protect yourself
the first thing you would do would be to tense your body.
Shinyu Gushi: Yes!
Shinyu Gushi: Time changes things you know, so
does transmission from one instructor to another. Everyone has their own
interpretation of things that varies by a tiny amount from everyone else, and
as these are passed on things change.
We are all human and this
is natural. I try very hard to pass on only what I learned. I make a conscious
effort to do only this.
Dragon Times: What are
your hopes for the future?
Shinyu Gushi: There are many karate men these
days and dojos everywhere, and that's fine. I hope to do many demonstrations of
karate for everyone to see. So that they can say, this is how karate was a long
time ago in Okinawa. This is Okinawan karate!
posted April 13, 2002 10:46
PM
1958 our first Dan grade
examinations in Okinawa were held. We were told to attend by our respective
instructors and were examined by a large number of seniors for basics and kata
performance.
Then we were told to fight each other.
Dragon Times: What form did the examination take?
Shinyu Gushi: We did Sanchin while senior’s
instructor tested us (shime) by hitting and punching us as we performed the
Kata. Then we did Sanseiryu in front of the seniors, then they told us to
fight.
Dragon Times: What do you mean by
"fight?"
Shinyu Gushi: It was nothing like now. We were
always taught in the dojo just to attack the enemy and beat him.
We didn't assume a stance
and then circle warily. We went straight at each other, and using Sanchin,
tried to avoid injury while beating up the opponent.
Only direct strikes to
the face were forbidden, everything else was allowed, so we attacked with
everything we had and a lot of students were injured.
The problem was that the
instructors who were supposed to be conducting the grading became so enthralled
with the fighting that they would forget to stop us.
Only when one of the pair
of combatants started to take a real beating would they remember to intervene,
and by that time ten minutes of no holds barred fighting had taken their toll.
Dragon Times: I'm not clear about the rules for
the sparring.
Shinyu Gushi: We were allowed to hit full power
to any target with any technique except the face. We could attack the
opponent's face, but not make contact.
Dragon Times: What techniques were used most
often?
Shinyu Gushi: Well we used everything.
Sokuto kicks were used, hand techniques like the dragon strike to the throat,
and it was a fight rather than sparring.
Shinyu Gushi: All right! I survived the battles
and was graded second Dan but when I look back I have to view this as the
beginning of the change in Karate.
Until this point we
practiced in the dojo individually under the supervision of a senior--there
were no organized classes as such, or grades.
We practiced techniques
that the first grading in 1958 showed all too clearly were far too dangerous to
use in competition.
I feel that from this
point on "modern" karate started to develop along sporting lines
while the old, "real" karate stayed in the background, and backyards
of Okinawan teachers where it had always been.
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