Before Isshin-ryū Karate

 

Arcenio Advincula

  

 

In late 1955, Shimabuku Tatsuo (島袋龍夫 1908-1975) had a vision while listening to his radio in his home in Chan Village. He was dozing off and daydreaming when a goddess riding a dragon flew and circled him. The goddess was Ryūzu Kannon (龍頭観音), the Buddhist goddess of Mercy and compassion. The Megami (goddess told Shimabuku that he had enough knowledge and experience along with his own ideas of karate to create his own style of karate. Ryūzu or Ryūto (龍頭) mean’s “Dragon-head.” “Head (頭)” means, “person; chief; boss; captain; foreman; the leader.”

 

In his daydream, the Megami (女神 goddess) told Shimabuku to first make a image of her that incorporated all of his thoughts about his new style.

 

 

The three stars of Isshin-ryū Karate

 

Shimabuku Tatsuo Sensei learned Feng Shui (風水), the art of placement from his uncle Ganiku and knew about the various constellations.

 

 

One constellation, Seiryū (蒼龍) the Azure Dragon plays a big part for the image of the Isshin-ryū no Megami and is one of the main features which are the three stars (☆ ☆ ☆) that is the Heart (心) of the Azure Dragon.

 

 

 Not only did Tatsuo Sensei use Dragons heart (心), but Tatsuo took the name, “Tatsu (辰)”from the Dragon constellation and used it for his own name “Tatsuo (龍夫)”.

 

 

The same three stars (☆ ☆ ☆) also represent the “heart” of the constellation Scorpio.

Scorpio constellation is a smaller star constellation within the larger Azue Dragon constellation. Both constellations have one thing in common, both use the same three ☆ ☆ ☆ for their "Heart".

 

 

Antares, the Red star, is Heart of the Azure Dragon and also the heart of Scorpion.

 

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 Ciso shows me a dragon scroll and says, "My father is the dragon." He explains that in the picture of the Isshin-ryū no Megami, his father is the dragon. January 2001

 

As we can see, Shimabuku Tatsuo Sensei placed the 3 stars ☆ ☆ ☆ representing the Heart of the Azure Dragon with a Dragon just below it.

 

The three stars are in a straight line representing the One (一) in 一心流 Isshin-ryū. The 3 stars also represent the Heart 心 of the Azure Dragon.

 

The Dragon in the picture of the Isshin-ryū represents Tatsuo. Dragon in Japanese can be pronounced Tatsu 龍 or Ryū 龍. Japanese like to use homonyms. Ryū 流 means "way or style.

 

So the 3 stars on line mean Isshin 一心 and the Dragon as a homonym means Ryū 流. So Tatsuo Sensei cleverly placed the name of his style Isshin-ryū (一心流) in the picture of the Isshin-ryū no Megami.

 

This is the reason I no longer have Isshin-ryū karate put on my Isshin-ryū no Megami crests.

 

Shimabuku Shinsho (Ciso) demonstrates how his father meditated. After his daydream of Ryūzu Kannon (龍頭観音), the Buddhist goddess of Mercy who told Tatsuo to first make a image of her to represent his style of karate.

 

According to Ciso, his father meditated on and off for 3 to 4 months on how to make a image of the Megami (女神 Goddess).