A sample of Sherman Harrill applying Bo vs Bo

In 1999 Sherman Harrill gave a clinic on use of the Bo.

He used a different bo versus bo form that had been created by 2 Marines while they were training on Okinawa. 

This is a short clip from that clinic.

Itosu Anko Sensei’s Motivation to Teach Karate to Kids

 by Hermann Bayer, Ph.D. 

April 4, 2022

 Stressing Karate’s possible use for supporting Japan’s armed forces was Itosu Sensei’s pragmatic strategy to secure sufficient funds for his educational campaign by tapping into Japan’s funds for its militarization―whereas the final and underlying goal of this educational campaign was not to create the raw material for the nation’s military forces, but something different, something nobler.

 

Itosu Anko Sensei is Praised as the Father of Modern Karate-Do

 

It is undisputed that the change of combat Karate-Jutsu [also called Te, Ti, Tode, or Toudi] into recreational Karate-Do was trail blazed by Itosu Anko Sensei's changes to the art in the early 1900s, i.e., shortly before its all-encompassing Japanization. Because of his success in implementing a disarmed version of an Okinawan martial art heritage into the physical education program of public elementary schools, and because of the following, first nationwide then worldwide, spread of this new Karate-Do version, Itosu Anko Sensei is named as "the father of modern Karate," even as "the savior of a cultural heritage".

Such a laureateship, however, contains some speculation, as Itosu Sensei's endeavors were not in line with the intentions of other Okinawan Karate-Jutsu masters who wanted to keep the art as is, as a secretly practiced craft of lethal fighting, and we actually do not know what would have happened if Karate-Jutsu would have been kept a secret and taught privately as it was done for centuries before. During all these centuries before the 1900s the art did not just survive on Okinawa, but it flourished; it did not vanish at all though being practiced secretly.

 

Times changed, however, the need for hand-to-hand combat and the need for guardianship of noblemen, warehouses, trade vessels and caravans decreased considerably; so it may as well be that in modern times the demand for genuine Karate-Jutsu has vanished too. It has at least decreased substantially in its role as a professional skill-set, though it is still preserved by a dedicated group of curators maintaining the genuine Karate-Jutsu systems. The worldwide Japanized Karate-Do inflation, on the other hand, was initiated and rendered possible by Itosu Sensei's alterations to the art.

 

Militarism, the Surface (Political) Justification for Teaching Karate-Do to Kids

 

Itosu Sensei justifies the introduction of Karate-Do into the physical education program at elementary schools by the importance of the art for preparing youths to serve in the nation's military forces. In his famous letter to the prefectural education board, he suggests that students at the prefectural teacher's college should practice Karate, in that "they could, after graduation, introduce Karate at the local levels, namely elementary schools. This way Karate could be disseminated throughout the entire nation and not only benefit people in general but also serve as an enormous asset to our military forces" (Itosu 1908 in McCarthy 2018, p. 26). This letter was written 1908, at the time of imperial Japan's preparations for its second war with China and for invading all of Southeast Asia, i.e., at a time when the military believed that the civil population existed only to feed and to service the nation's war machine.

 

However, it seems unlikely that this militaristic perspective represented the gist of Itosu Sensei's character. Though in his younger years Itosu Sensei definitely knew how to have a good time, though he used Karate-Jutsu to defend himself from serious attacks, and though he did not shy away from brawls, there is no indication that he in his later years would propagate militarism. Quite to the contrary, he stressed the benefits of Karate as a successful means to avoid a fight. Hence, it rather seems plausible, that stressing Karate's possible use for supporting Japan's armed forces was his pragmatic strategy to secure sufficient funds for his educational campaign by tapping into Japan's funds for its militarization―whereas the final and underlying goal of this educational campaign was not to create the raw material for the nation's military forces, but something different, something nobler.

 

The Underlying (Psychological) Explanation for Teaching Karate-Do to Kids

 

Be it as it may, to the author's knowledge nobody ever really tried to explain the WHY of Itosu Sensei's personal motivation to go public with his beloved art, especially the WHY for sharing it with young kids. This personal WHY seems to imply an individual psychological explanation as well and should not only be seen as the application of a political strategy. The political viewpoint, as plausible as it may be, does not unveil the nature of a possible other underlying end to his efforts beyond militaristic benefits for the nation.

 

Although there are quite a few psychological considerations explaining the actions of famous public persons, there is not a single one out there shedding light on the very topic of Itosu Sensei's personal motivation, on a subject of utmost importance for the entire Karate-world. Such a psychological explanation is not too hard to sketch, as it can be sufficiently based on the available sources about his childhood, his social background and his upbringing. These underlying social-cultural conditions are in the meantime satisfactorily researched and document how one of the strongest human motivations came into play, the motivation of trying to support others by sharing and spreading one's own positive experience.

 

Itosu Sensei's path of practicing Karate-Jutsu shows signs of a deeply liberating, self-esteem-improving, and life-changing experience. Referring to the psychological theory of motivation, such a phenomenon is usually based on the combination of a person's compensation (which is the effort to overcome feelings of inadequacy) with self-actualization (which is the internal drive of a person to fully realize one's creative, intellectual, and social potential), and with his/her motivation of social interest (which is the wish and the felt responsibility to support others). The combination of these three psychological purposes constitutes a most powerful motivational driving force, a core motivation of human behavior.

 

By means of re-evaluating available Okinawan sources, a recent historic study convincingly documents that Itosu Sensei at a young age used to be a child of poor health, who "suffered from stomach digestion problems . . . and was often teased by his friends . . . [as] a weakling. Thus, he is described as introverted and comparatively small for his age" (Feldmann 2021, p. 61), as well as being extremely shy, "without passion and unwilling to refine himself" (ibid., p. 64). These are strong indicators for the boy's inherent feeling of inadequacy and challenged self-esteem, which is the baseline for compensation, and it can be stated without a doubt that "it certainly was not an easy time for the young Anko growing up" (ibid.).

 

The boy's weak and valetudinarian constitution obviously changed entirely; the weak, feeble and fragile child transformed completely through the training of Karate-Jutsu. At the age of 14 or 15 young Itosu Sensei asked the legendary and cherished Matsumura Sokon Sensei for training, was accepted, commuted regularly to Matsumura Sensei's residence to train, and "within his first year of training he was transformed beyond all recognition" (Itosu Buyuden 1915 in McCarthy, 2018, p. 43)

 

The lasting impact such a transformation from weak and sick to healthy and strong has on a young person's self-esteem, self-definition and general attitude towards life cannot be overestimated. It is the enormous result of the psychological drive of compensation.

 

One can easily relate how Itosu Sensei's transformation from a weak and shy boy into a strong, masculine, and cherished leader with broad public admiration, which is the outcome of psychological self-actualization, not only led to Itosu Sensei's new positive self-definition at a young age, but also forcefully stimulated his calling in his later years. His calling was to support everyone, but especially young children, who were challenged with a comparable inferior (psychologically speaking, not social) starting position in life like the one he faced, to surmount their deficit and to gain that kind of health and self-confidence that he had achieved for himself. Such a calling most certainly represents the consequence of the psychological drive of social interest as explained earlier; a specific motivation which very often grows stronger in a person's 'golden years.'

 

Teaching Karate-Do to Kids Is a Contribution to Social Welfare beyond Militarism

 

Felt social responsibility to make own positive, life changing compensation experience accessible to others and thereby allowing them for experiencing the same positive self-actualization, is the above suggested 'means to another underlying end beyond militarism' of Itosu Sensei's intentions. Social responsibility very often becomes a priority for successful people towards the end of their careers, in their latter part of life, expressing itself as volunteering, as taking active social roles in organizations and associations, as promoting charities, and as giving back by contributing all kinds of assistances to common welfare.

 

Social responsibility, based on its psychological drive of social interest, explains Itosu Sensei's endeavors to introduce Karate-Do to kids in elementary school and it identifies his efforts as a true contribution to social welfare. The involved compensatory, self-actualizing and social interest forces are the strongest psychological motivations known to man and psychologically explain Itosu Sensei's magnificent gift to the public.

 

References:

Feldmann, Thomas (2021). Anko Itosu. The Man. The Master. The Myth. Biography of a Legend. Self-published with Lulu Press. © Thomas Feldmann.

Itosu Buyuden (1915) Newspaper Article Series of 8 Parts.

In: McCarthy, Patrick (2018) Legend of the Fist Vol #1―A Compilation of Japanese-to-English translations by Patrick & Yuriko McCarthy. © 2018 Patrick McCarthy. Middletown, DE, pp. 43-62.

 

The above is an original article by Hermann Bayer, Ph.D.

https://ymaa.com/articles/2022/04/itosu-anko-senseis-motivation-to-teach-karate-to-kids?utm_content=bufferf2216&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer&fbclid=IwAR0ospGiPoxOaLePJagLQfdX4A8M3fro40C4HmxTcHn873uUseJ9oLFFeIU

 

Older Bo terminology to consider

 

IMO a great deal may have been set aside on how bo technique originally was described, compared where today the bo kata are just named.

It may be worth your effort to consider this post found on Motobu Ryu’s blog, And then think on how this might affect your own bo practice. It offers a great deal to think about.

 

From https://ameblo.jp/motoburyu/entry-12735450138.html

Mura-bō and Palace Martial Arts 2

 

Written and translated by Motobu Naoki

 

 

--- --- ---

In the previous article, I noted that mura-bō actually includes spear, naginata, and sword, and that these weapon arts may have been transmitted from the various udun (palaces) in Shuri through "Udun Hōkō" (palace service). The existence of these weapon arts can be evidenced by the names of the various techniques in Nagahama Bō.

 

Older terms for a bo strike

 

·       Ūwāi (Ōwari (large crack): To between both eyebrows)

·       Ashi-jiri (To cut the leg)

·       Fusu-nuchi (To strike to the navel area)

·       Īmāsa (To chase around)

·       Kaji-chiri (To cut the neck)　[Kaji means nape in the Okinawan dialect.]

·       Ubi-chiri (To cut the hip) [Ubi (帯) means belt in the Okinawan dialect.]

·       Ura-uchi (To strike the neck from left to right) [Ura-uchi means reverse strike.]

·       Chichidī (Karate: To strike the solar plexus) [Chichidī (突き手) means striking hand in the Okinawan dialect.]

 

As for the name of the thrust, in addition to chichidī (突き手, thrusting hand), which seems to have come from karate, there is the word

husunuchi (へそ貫き, navel piercing). The difference between

"chichi" (to thrust) and

"nuchi" (to pierce) is also interesting. In modern karate terminology, jōdan (upper), chūdan (middle), and gedan (lower) are used to refer to the place of thrusting,

 while the above terms refer to the body and clothing, such as

neck (kaji),

navel (fusu),

belt (ubi),

and legs (ashi).

Connecting the word "tī" (meaning "art" in the Okinawan dialect) to the name of the weapon, Chōyū Sensei called them

 "Tachi nu Tī (sword hand),"

"Najinata nu Tī (halberd hand),"

"Yai nu Tī (spear hand)," etc.

 (Uehara Seikichi, Martial Dance, p. 108).

 

 Even fighting at night was addressed.

 Kurashin-bō (Dark stick)

It is a practical kobudō used in the dark. It is a stick art that fights by sensing the presence of the opponent, not by using kiai (yagui in the Okinawan dialect, shout)  

If you emit a kiai in the dark, your opponent will know where you are, so you do not use a kiai but quietly sense the presence of your opponent. 

 

In modern sport karate, there is generally no distinction between day and night. However, in the "Volume of Mastery of the Hundred Questions and Answers of Tendō-ryū" (1714) of Tendō-ryū (Ten-ryū), there are descriptions of

 

 "On Slashing in the Night" and "On the Dark Night" 

Ten-ryū was introduced to Ryukyu in the 17th century, and the techniques and ideas used in the dark night may have been transmitted from Shuri to the various rural areas through udun (palaces).

 

 

From John Kerker Seminar in Chicopee 2012

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dCz4htME9E

 

在沖与那国青年会Yonaguni Youth Association in Okinawa

 

2011/10/30 Stick dance by Yonaguni Youth Association in Okinawa at Yonaguni Goyukai Large Athletic Meet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvqMFVkKjwk

 

Once upon a time I had an idea

 I was living and teaching in New Hampshire.

When I was a yellow belt in Salisbury, Md, I was a member of a yellow belt team that prepared for a local demonstration at the Salisbury Civic Center and we were trained to do a group performance of kata Seiunchin to the music of the song the Hustle.

 

In fact we were so intensely trained by Lewis Sensei that for the rest of my life I always hear the Hustle playing whenever I so the kata.

 

A few years later tournament performances of kata being done to music became another event.  Some were good, some were embarrassing. I never did that but the best I ever saw was Gary Michak doing a personal kata to the music of the opening of Superman. His performance was exquisitely times and executed.

In 1983 Gary performed a  demonstration of his Superman Kata for the kids of my 2^nd youth tournament. You could of heard a pin drop as the kids watched.

When I moved to Derry New Hampshire and began my program again, I slowly started moving my program away from tournaments. The one we mose frequently attended was a local one near us.

 

One year I saw their upcoming notice they were going to have a musical kata division. That set me to thinking, for I always wanted my students to have some fun with their karate.

At that time my adult program and 4 brown belts training with me (Each of whom would later move into Dan training with me for many, many years.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sAsNPCro-M

So one Saturday morning after class when all of them were in the locker room, I told them of my idea.

 

I wanted them to enter the upcoming musical forms competition and perform the Hidden Stick form as Teen Age Ninja Mutant Turtles.

My idea was to have them enter the gym floor and one of when  they drew together one of them would say “Ah ha, Fellow Stickers”! Then the music would begin and they would do their form.

 

I thought they could all wear green boxes that had been painted green as well as wearing masks and headbands, and the music would come from the movie.

 

I thought it was a grand idea.

 

Unfortunately none of them was willing to do so, no matter how I entreated them.

Then I countered if they would do so they would receive instant promotions to black belt.

Of course none of them was training just to receive a black belt.  They were instead training to train and see where it would go.

 

So my dream was shattered, for I thought it could be fun.

 

Oh well,

“The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men.

Gang aft a-gley”.

Robert Burns

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHk0CNnUNag

 

Karate: Jyoshinmon - Throwing techniques of Hoshu Ikeda

 

Soshihan Hoshu Ikeda was born in China and lived there until he was 12 when his parents returned to their home country, Japan.

 

There, in Kagoshima he began practicing Shorin ryu and was a student of master Isamu Tamotsu (1919-2000), founder of the style Shorinji ryu and president of Renshinkan in Kagoshima.

 

Tamotsu had learned from two disciples of Chotoku Kyan: Zenryo Shimabukuro and Joyen Nagazato.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvHZSD5GEJc