KARATE history is full of uncertainty and mythology, based upon many legends and stories and complicated by the many names. The dates vary from the 400’s to the 500’s AD.

Bodhidharma (Ta Mo in Chinese and Daruma Daishi in Japanese) was born a prince in the southern regions of India and raised as a warrior to succeed his father as king. He had been trained in the Kalaprayat technique of martial arts. Bored with his training Bodhidharma began to study with a Buddhist teacher named Prajnatara. On his deathbed, Prajnatara asked him to go to China to re-awaken the followers of Buddha. Some sources say that almost five percent of the population were Buddhist Monks even before the arrival of Bodhidharma. Legends vary in the method of his arrival, some say he traversed the Himalayan Mountains, others say he rode a ship around the coast. Regardless, he arrived around 526 A.D. It has been suggested that 1,500 years ago Bodhidharma invented a method of self-defense that was possibly the original form of Karate during the 5th or 6th Century AD. Traveling from India to China through the Himalayas, he used his hands to defend himself against wild life and hostile natives. His religion prevented him from carrying and using weapons. Upon arriving in China, the Emperor Wu Ti, a Buddhist himself, requested a meeting with Bodhidharma. The Emperor asked him what reward he had received for all of his good works. Bodhidharma answered that he had accrued none. Bodhidharma was unable to convince Wu Ti of the value of the new teachings he brought from India. Frustrated, Bodhidharma set out on a northerly direction. He crossed the Tse River, and climbed Bear’s Ear Mountain in the Sung Mountain range to where the Shaolin Temple was located.

Shaolin Temple has been founded forty years before by Buddhist monks and was famous for its translations of the Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Bodhidharma sought entrance into the shaolin temple. He was accepted after he was able to prove that he was committed to Buddhism. When he arrived Boddhidharma was appalled to find the monks fat, and without the ability to even stay awake during his lectures. In addition, the monks were unarmed and easy pray to bandits when they attempted to go out into the world to teach. So they decided to stay in the safety of the monastery. This explained one reason that Buddhism was no longer as widespread as it had been. Legend has it that Boddhidharma then went to a cave and stared at a wall for seven years. He is said to have cut off his eyelids to stay awake in meditation, and so is usually depicted with bulging eyes. Others say that he cut off his eyelashes and that they fell to the ground and became tea plants. Recognizing the ability of tea to help a person stay awake has made tea a part of the practice of zen. Bodhidharma is often revered as the father of Ch’an and Zen Buddhism. Bodhidharma created an exercise program for the monks which involved physical techniques that were efficient, strengthened the body, and eventually, could beused practically in self-defense. When Bodhidharma instituted these practices, his primary concern was to make the monks physically strong enough to withstand both their isolated lifestyle and the deceptively demanding training that meditation requires. It turned out that the techniques served a dual purpose as a very efficient fighting system, which evolved into a marital arts style. His system involved dynamic tension exercises. These movements found their way into print as early as 550 A.D. as the Yi Gin Ching, or Changing Muscle/Tendon Classic. We know this system today as the Lohan (Priest-Scholar) 18 Hand Movements, which serves as the basis of Chinese Temple Boxing and the Shaolin Arts. Many of the basic moves of both tai chi chuan and kung fu can be seen in the scenes recorded on the walls of the temple. These skills helped the monks to defend themselves against invading warlords and bandits. Bodhidharma taught that martial arts should be used for self-defense, and never to hurt or injure needlessly. In fact, it is one of the oldest Shaolin axioms that “one who engages in combat has already lost the battle.” Bodhidharma also taught medicine to the monks and arranged for Chinese doctors to come to share their knowledge with the Shaolin. In three years the monks became so skilled in both the martial arts and medicine that they start to be feared and respected by the bandits. This went a long way toward continuing the spread of Buddhism and Zen thoughout China and the rest of Asia. Even the death of Bodhidharma is shrouded in mystery. Legend has it that he was poisoned by one of his followers disappointed at not being selected as the successor. Regardless of the reason, Bodhidharma died in 539 A.D. at the Shaolin Temple at age 57. They laid him to rest in a tomb there. The strangest legend regarding Bodhidharma is that three years later he was met on the road by a government official, walking out of China towards the Himalayas with his staff in his hand and one of his sandals hanging from it. Having dined with Bodhidharma on many occasions, the official was certain it was him. When the official arrived at the monastery and recounted his experience, the monks opened the tomb only to find it contain just a single sandal. The forms created and taught to these monks are generally believed to be the root of the martial arts in China. While there is evidence that portions of these movements existed prior to the arrival of Bodhidharma, he was the one who codified and recorded them and from there they have gone to spread throughout the world. Eventually, Bodhidharmas system developed into a very strong martial art that gave those who practiced it strength and confidence, first as monastic training and later as a defense method used by Chinese peasants against armed bandits. By the 17th century it had become a highly developed art on the Japanese island of Okinawa.

Okinawa is an island south of Japan, situated in near equal distance between China and Japan and chinese sailors, traders and businessmen brought their martial art to Okinawa during their import/export business travels. In addition, many original Okinawan masters travelled to China to learn Chinese boxing (Ch’uan Fa, “The fist way”) directly from Chinese masters. Beside ancient Chinese martial art Chuan-Fa (the precursor of Kung Fu), Okinawian practiced another fighting system called “Tode”. The combination of these fighting systems became a unique breed called Okinawa-te (or just “Te”, which means “hand”).

Samurai word appeared in Japan for the first time between the 8th and 9th centuries. ‘Samurai’ is a derivation from the term ’sabu-rai’ (”those who serve”) in close attendance to the nobility. Before this era, the men we now refer to as ’samurai’ were called “bushi” (warrior or “arms-man”). By the end of the 12th century, sabu-rai became synonymous with “bushi” almost entirely and the word become closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class. In the early Heianperiod, the late 8th and early 9th centuries, Emperor Kammu sought to consolidate and expand his rule in northern Honsh, but the armies he sent to conquer the rebellious Emishi people lacked motivation and discipline, and were unable to prevail. Emperor Kammu introduced the title of Seiitai or shogun, and began to rely on the powerful regional clans to conquer the Emishi. Skilled inmounted combat and archery, these clan warriors became the emperor’s preferred tool for putting down rebellions. Although these warriors may have been educated, the Imperial court officials considered them to be little more than barbarians. Ultimately, Emperor Kammu disbanded his army, and the emperor’s power declined. While the emperor was still the ruler, powerful clans around Kyoto assumed positions as ministers, and their relatives bought positions as magistrates. To amass wealth and repay their debts, magistrates often imposed heavy taxes, resulting in many farmers becoming landless. As the threat of robbery rose, the clans began recruiting these exiles in the Kanto plains. Because of their intense training in the martial arts, they proved to be effective guards. Small numbers would accompany tax collectors and, merely by their presence, deter thieves and bandits from attacking. They were saburai, armed retainers, yet their advantage of being the sole armed party quickly became apparent. Some clans were originally formed by farmers who had taken up arms to protect themselves from the imperial magistrates sent to govern their lands and collect taxes. These clans formed alliances to protect themselves against more powerful clans, and by the mid-Heian period they had adopted characteristic Japanese armor and weapons, and laid the foundations for Bushido.

The Way of the Warrior or Bushido is how the Samurai warriors described themselves. Bushido is defined by the Japanese dictionary Shogakukan Kokugo Daijiten as “a unique philosophy that spread through the warrior class from the Muromachi (chusei) period”. From the earliest times, the Samurai felt that the path of the warrior was one of honor, emphasizing duty to one’s master, and loyalty unto death. ZeN becomes practiced by samurai as large-scale battles over the supremacy of powerful lords became more common and fighting techniques employing a variety of weapons increased in importance. The samurai began to incorporate teachings of Confucianism and Zen into their fighting methods, adding a moral dimension as fighting skills came to be seen as a form of physical and spiritual training designed to lift the practitioner beyond the limits of themselves. When samurai confronted an enemy, they held a Zen objective as one of their primary ideals. Zen taught practitioners how to attain a physical and mental condition free of attachment to any object or event, to be ready to act in an instant on any decision; in short to attain a free and unfettered spirit, like flowing water. During the nearly 300 years of the Edo period, the fighting technique of wielding katana came to be known as Kendo, and its nature changed: Rather than being a simple collection of killing methods, Kendo became a way for the individual to cultivate body, mind and spirit.

Katana, Samurai sword, katana originated in the Muromachi period (1392–1573), as a result of changing battle conditions requiring faster response times. The katana facilitated this by being worn with the blade facing up, which allowed the samurai to draw and cut their enemy in a single motion. Previously, the curved sword of the samurai was worn with the blade facing down. This sort of response was also increasingly useful in the daily life of the samurai. The katana was paired most often with the wakizashi, a similarly made but smaller sword. It could also be worn with the tanto, an even smaller similarly shaped blade. The two weapons together were called the daisho and represented the social power and personal honour of the samurai. Although the name katana is more common, it only refers to the longer swords.

ShinobiKatana is the sword of ninja that came in a variety of shapes and sizes, shorter than katana and used by the samurai of feudal Japan. In Japanese history, a ninja is a warrior, trained in martial arts, and specializing in a variety of unorthodox arts of war. The ninja use of stealth tactics against better-armed enemy like samurai does not mean that they were limited to espionage and undercover work: that is simply where their actions most notably differed from the more accepted tactics of samurai. Their weapons and tactics were partially derived from the need to conceal or defend themselves quickly from samurai, which can be seen from the similarities between many of their weapons and various sickles and threshing tools used at the time.

Ninja, The way of Stealth as a group first began to be written about in 15th century feudal Japan as martial organizations predominately in the regions of Iga and Koga of central Japan, though the practice of guerrilla warfare and undercover espionage operations goes back much further. Since Bushido, the Samurai Code, forbade such tactics as dishonorable, a daimyo could not expect his own troops to perform the tasks required; thus, he had to buy or broker the assistance of ninja to perform selective strikes, espionage, assassination, and infiltration of enemy strongholds. There are a few people and groups of people regarded as having been potential historical ninja from approximately the same time period. It is rumored that some of the higher-ranking daimyos and shoguns were in fact ninja, and exploited their role as ninja-hunters to deflect suspicion and obscure their participation in the ‘dishonorable’ ninja methods and training. The predecessors of Japan’s ninja were rebels favoring Buddhism who fled into the mountains near Kyoto as early as the 7th century A.D. to escape religious persecution and death at the hands of imperial forces. Ninja groups were small and structured around families and villages, later developing a more martial hierarchy that was able to mesh more closely with samurai and the daimyo. These certain ninjutsu trained groups were set in these villages for protection against raiders and robbers. As a martial organization, it has been assumed that ninja would have had many rules, and keeping secret the ninja’s clan and the daimyo who gave them their orders would have been one of the most important ones.

Sokon Matsumura Bushi ( Warrior ), close advisor to three Ryukyuan kings, provided foundation for the karate-do. He put together a collection of prescribed moves, that Karate started resembling the martial art we know at present. The moves were called “Kata”.Born in Shuri in 1796 Matsumura began his training in karate-do under karate legend Sakugawa. He also trained under the Chinese military attaché Kusanku. Matsumura served as chief of the military and as court retainer for the king of the Ryukyu Islands. Matsumura originated the Pinewood kata Chinto and created the karate style of Shorin-Ryu. Among his noteworthy students were Yasutsune Azato, Yasutsune Itosu, Choshin Chibana, Choki Motobu and Chotoku Kyan. It is also known that he served as a body guard to the last three Ryukyuan Kings. Matsumura traveled to Fuchou and Satsuma as an envoy on affairs of state. In Fuchou he visited several Chinese boxing schools and studied under military attaches Ason and Iwah. In Satsuma Matsumura trained in the Jigen-ryu sword fighting system under Master Yashichiro Ijuin. After retiring, Matsumura taught karate in Sakiyama village, Shuri.

Itosu and Anko Asato are after Matsumura, the most important karate masters. Itosu, it is widely claimed, was the originator of what we know as “modern karate”. Also from a well-to-do family, Itosu had studied Tode under Sokon Matsumura from an early age and also with a Chinese who was living in Tomari. Itosu contributed directly to the Academy’s Muidokan karate system in the following ways: He developed the Chinese corkscrew punch into its present form. He simplified the kata we now know as Naifunchin (also known as Naihanchi or Naihanchin) from the original version taught to him by Matsumura. At around 1900, he also developed a series of 5 beginner’s kata called Pinan by simplifying a form called Chiang Nan he had learned from his Chinese teacher in Tomari and combining it with elements of an Okinawan form, Kusanku. Note that the Pinan kata were developed with a view to being taught in schools to prepare the youth of Okinawa for military service. There does not seem to be much detail about Itosu’s early life, except for the fact that he was a student of the Ryukyuan civil fighting traditions. At around age 23, he passed the civil service examinations and was employed by the Royal government. It seems as if Itosu gained his position as a clerical scribe for the King through an introduction by his friend and fellow karate master Anko Asato. Itosu stayed with the Royal government until the Meiji Restoration, when the Ryukyu Kingdome became Okinawa Prefecture. Itosu stayed on and worked for the Okinawan Prefectural government until 1885. There is some controversy as to when Itosu became a student of Matsumura. Some say that he first met Matsumura when Itosu was in his late 20s, whereas others maintain that Itosu was older than 35 when he began studying from Matsumura. Matsumura appears to have been friendly with Itosu’s father. Be that as it may, Itosu is said to have mastered the Naifuanchi kata. In fact, one direct student of Itosu, Funakoshi Gichin, recalled 10 years of studying nothing but the three Naifuanchi kata under the eminent master. Again, there is some controversy as to where Itosu learned the Naifuanchi kata. Some give credit to Matsumura for teaching this kata to Itosu . However, others say differently, and here is where we first start to see reference to Channan, as the name of a person. It is said that a Chinese sailor who was shipwrecked on Okinawa hid in a cave at Tomari. It was from this man that Itosu supposedly learned the Naifuanchi kata, among other things. In either case, it is known that Itosu was among the first to teach karate (toudi) publicly, karate having previously been taught and practiced in secrecy for hundreds of years. Itosu began his public teaching pf karate as physical education in the school system as early as 1901, where he taught at the Shuri Jinjo Primary School. He also went on to teach at Shuri Dai-ichi Middle School and the Okinawa Prefectural Men’s Normal School in 1905. In addition to his “spearheading a crusade” to modernize toudi practices and get it taught in the school system, Itosu was also known for his physical strength. It is said that he was able to crush a bamboo stalk in his hands, once wrestled a raging bull to the ground and calmed it and one could strike his arms with 2-inch thick poles and he would not budge. Itosu’s unique contributions to the art of Karate-do include not only his 1908 letter to the Japanese Ministry of Education and Ministry of War, expounding on the 10 precepts of Toudi training, but also the creation of several kata. These include not only the Pinan katas, but also Naifuanchi Nidan and Sandan, and possibly Kusanku Sho and Bassai Sho. Another kata that has often been attributed to Itosu is the Shiho Kusanku Kata, but more recent evidence points to the actual originator of this paradigm to have been Mabuni Kenwa. In addition to creating several kata, the other kata that Itosu taught, such as Chinto, Useishi (Gojushiho), Bassai Dai, and Kusanku Dai, etc., were changed from their original guises, in order to make them more palatable to his physical education classes. Itosu’s influence in karate is very broad. The forms he created for beginners are common across nearly all forms of karate. His students included some of the most well-known karate practitioners, including Gichin Funakoshi, Kenwa Mabuni, and Motobu Choki. He is sometimes known as the “Grandfather of Modern Karate. In addition to the three early “ti” styles of karate, a fourth Okinawan influence is that of Kanbun Uechi (1877-1948), who, at the age of 20, went to Fuzhou in Fujian Province, China, to escape Japanese military conscription. While there, he studied under Shushiwa, the leading figure of Chinese Nanpa Shorin-ken at that time. He later developed his own style of karate and brought it to Japan, though the style itself was neither taught in Okinawa nor rooted in Okinawan “ti”. Itosu and Anko Asato were the two main karate masters who taught Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of Sh?t?kan-ry? karate. He was son of a Tunchi, one of the two highest classes of the Okinawa society, he was born in Shuri, Okinawa, Japan in 1827. He was one of the greatest experts of karate on the island, expert also in horse-riding, kendo and archery. Furthermore he was reputedly very well versed. Asato maintained a very complete registry of all the martial artists of the island, in these he would detail their abilities and defects. Citing Sun Tsu, “Know yourself and your enemy”, he considered this the secret key of strategy. Sun Tzu was the author of The Art of War, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy (for the most part not dealing directly with tactics)…During his lifetime he defied by Yorin Kanna, the most famous sword trainee of Okinawa, and even though Asato was an expert in Jigen-kenjutsu , he confronted his adversary unarmed. Kanna was as well known for his education as for his enormous strength, courage nor fighting spirit. He attacked Asato once and again and each time Asato would throw him almost without effort. Asato took the sword out of its trajectory and immobilized Kanna. Funakoshi appears to be the source of most of the information available on Asato. Many articles contain information about Asato, but the relevant parts are clearly based on Funakoshi’s descriptions of him. Funakoshi first met Asato when he was a schoolmate of Asato’s son; he called Asato “one of Okinawa’s greatest experts in the art of karate.” According to Funakoshi, Asato’s family belonged to the Tonochi class (hereditary town and village chiefs), and held authority in the village of Asato, halfway between Shuri and Naha, and he was not only a master of karate, but also skilled at riding horses, Jigen-ry kendo (swordsmanship), archery, and an exceptional scholar. In a 1934 article, Funakoshi noted that Asato and Itosu had studied karate together under Matsumura. He also related how Asato and Itosu once overcame a group of 20–30 attackers, and how Asato set a trap for troublemakers in his home village. In his 1956 autobiography, Funakoshi recounted several stories about Asato, including: Asato’s political astuteness in following the government order to cut off the traditional men’s topknot. Asato’s defeat of Y?rin Kanna, in which the unarmed Asato prevailed despite Kanna being armed with an unblunted blade.

Funakoshi on Asato

School Days My teacher, Asato Ankoh, held an honorable rank not unlike that of a lower Daimyo in Japanese society. In spite of his first name being Ankoh, he used the pen name “Rinkakusai” when signing the plethora of literary compositions he authored. Since his youth, Asato had been referred to as the child prodigy because he excelled in both the martial and in literary arts. By the time that the Ryukyu Kingdom was abolished, Asato had become a well-known politician holding the post of Minister of State. A contemporary of Itosu Ankoh, Asato was more than just his esteemed colleague; they were also very close friends. Responsible for spear-heading the movement which introduced the defensive tradition into the public school system, Itosu had such an enormous impact upon the growth and direction of karate that even local children knew his reputation. In fact, both Asato and Itosu were both regarded as brother Bushi and respected as such. Together, Asato and Itosu had diligently studied the martial arts under the strict tutelage of Masumura Soken. An advocate of the Chinese ways, instruction was always conducted early every morning before dawn until the sun came up, without change or observation of holidays. During these times, Asato was also studying at the National school where he was peerless. Particularly, in the study of the Chinese classics, Asato was an honor student, and received financial scholarship amounting to more than his tuition. He told me how hard it was to teach his own son. Citing a Confucian proverb describing the difficulties associated with a father training his own child, Sensei maintained that teaching other children allowed for more objectivity. “Now, I will teach you,” he told me, “in the future, please impart such learning to your friend, my son.” I was honored, and humbly complied (Incidentally, his older sons’ apprenticeship in the Martial Arts was entrusted to Itosu Yasutsune). During my teacher’s youth, few martial arts enthusiasts could ever afford the supplementary training equipment, which is commonly associated with the practice these days. However, Asato was an exception and it was because he was from a family of wealth and position that could afford such things. In fact, his home virtually looked like one big training facility. Both standing and hanging makiwara (impact training equipment) were located in various rooms of the Asato residence, along with other training equipment, which included wooden cudgels (club) and swords of various configurations, a wooden-man (a post with wooden arms and sometimes legs often associated with Chinese Kung Fu), stone weights, iron balls for grip-strength development, shield and machete, flails (nunchaku), iron truncheons (probably sais), and even a wooden horse for mounting practice and archery spotting. Master Aato had created a living environment where he could train at anytime and anywhere he liked…Excelling in various martial arts, Sensei was particularly fond of horsemanship, which he studied under Megata Sensei, the trainer who groomed the Meiji Emperor himself. Sensei apparently decided to pursue Megata’s tutelage because his horsemanship was the trendy style being introduced from the West, which really appealed to him. Asato first observed Megata giving a lesson to a few students on the grounds next to the Hirakawa Emperor’s gate. Megata could tell that Sensei wanted to give the new saddle a try but was too modest to ask, so the trainer asked him instead. With some coaxing, Sensei finally accepted and was applauded by Megata for his brilliant performance and command over the reins. I think that Asato was a perfect example of the expression, “A person who excels in one thing can excel at everything.” Sensei also loved archery and diligently studied under Master Sekiguchi, and like his teacher (Matsumura Sokon) before him, so did Asato study Jigenryu swordsmanship directly under the noted Japanese instructor Ishuin Yashichiro. However, among all the combative disciplines, it was the swordsmanship of Jigenryu that Sensei most favored. I remember that whenever Senseii got excited he used to say to me, “I’m ready to compete anytime if the opponent is serious.” Sensei was peerless in karate but judging by his preoccupation with Jigenryu, swordsmanship was his real passion. I would, nevertheless, like to introduce a couple of anecdotes about Master Asato’s karate : One night a burglar broke into Sensei’s residence, apparently not being aware of whose house it was. Being awoken by noises in the house, Sensei knew that someone had broken into the house and jumped out of bed in an effort to apprehend the intruder. Coming face-to-face with the perpetrator in the living room, it only took a moment to recognize that, in spite of dwarfing the man in size, Sensei was unable to capture the man. Moving with the agility of a gymnast, the man virtually bounced off the furniture, out the window, onto the wall surrounding the house and onto the roof of the house next door. Sensei gave chase but to no avail, as the man escaped without a trace. Later Sensei came to learn that a man well known for testing the skills of those considered masterful staged the incident. Such things often happened during Okinawa’s old Ryukyu kingdom. One day Sensei and his good friend, Itosu Ankoh, were confronted by a small throng of 20 or 30 young men. Seriously mismatched, and in a less than accommodating location, the two decided to bolt taking refuge in a nearby house. At least there they could wait until the throng decided to disperse and leave, or fight them on more equal terms. Wound up and set upon fighting, the young men swarmed over the house like bees to a hive. During their assault on the house Asato leaped out from the window and surprised the hoodlums when he began to dispatch them. Engaging the gang on the other side of the house, Master Itosu was able to quickly discourage anyone else from continuing to act foolishly. In spite of using only a single blow to dispatch each of the hoodlums that he confronted, Asato’s defense was brutally effective, leaving some of the young offenders seriously injured. In contrast to Asato’s confrontation, Itosu left more victims lying around the back of the house, but seriously injured no one. Judging by this anecdote one might be able to better understand the varying ways in which two experts might handle the same dangerous situation. Asato was well known for his incredible strength. When he was just 17 years old he walked to his home from Kyozuka, a distance of 4 km, carrying two large stones weighing more than 30 kg each on his shoulders. Such tests of strength often took place on the moonlit footpaths of old Okinawa when young men sought to establish reputations for themselves performing various feats of strength and bravery. Sensei was one such man and his awesome reputation for strength and technique earned him so much respect that he was referred to as Bushi Asato.

Funakoshi Gichin an Okinawan schoolteacher, gave the first public demonstration of karate on the Japanese mainland. Funakoshi moved to Tokyo to teach the martial art in 1922. In 1939 Funakoshi, “fathered modern karate” by opening his first dojo (school). Martial Art he taught there came to be known as Shotokan. Over the years, karate teachers have created many branches from Shotokan. Gichin Funakoshi was born in Shuri, Okinawa in the year of the Meiji Restoration around 1868. After entering primary school he became close friends with the son of Asato, a karate and kendo master who would soon become his first karate teacher. Funakoshi had trained in both of the popular styles of Okinawan karate of the time: Shorei-ryu and Shorin-ryu. His own style was influenced by kendo distancing and timing. In 1936, Funakoshi built the first Shotokan dojo in Tokyo. He changed the name of karate to mean “empty hand” instead of “China hand” (as referred to in Okinawa); the two words sound the same in Japanese, but are written differently. It was his belief that using the term for “Chinese” mislead people into thinking karate originated with Chinese boxing. Karate had borrowed many aspects from Chinese boxing which the original creators say as being positive, as they had done with other martial arts.

 

Shotokan founder, Funakoshi argued in his autobiography that a philosophical evaluation of the use of “empty” seemed to fit as it implied a way which was not tethered to any other physical object.Funakoshi’s take on the use of kara was reported to have caused some recoil in Okinawa, prompting Funakoshi to remain in Tokyo indefinitely. His extended stay eventually led to the creation of the Japan Karate Association (JKA) in 1955 with Funakoshi as the chief instructor. Funakoshi was not supportive of all of the changes that the organization eventually made to his karate style. He remained in Tokyo until his death in 1957. Shotokan is named after Funakoshi’s pen name, Shoto, which means “pine waves” or “wind in the pines”. In addition to being a karate master, Funakoshi was an avid poet and philosopher who would reportedly go for long walks in the forest where he would meditate and write his poetry. Kan means training hall, or house, thus Shotokan referred to the “house of Shoto”. This name was coined by Funakoshi’s students when they posted a sign above the entrance of the hall at which Funakoshi taught reading “Shotokan”

Taiji Kase is Funakoshin Gichin’s and Funakoshi Yoshitaka’s direct student that has greatly influenced European Karate and ultimately Katana Karate’s founder.Kase believed that modern development of Karate, leads to its separation from Budo concept and that causes karate to loose its authentic soul. He considered sport competition only one phase of development, due to the fact that competition is only a limited reality of Karate-Do. It is restricted by rules of competition and the referee’s objectivity. In martial art’s philosophy mind must be free with no limits. Therefore, there should be a level above the competiton and that is Budo Karate. Kase deep affection towards japnese samurai’s tradition and principles of the Bushido code, marked his approach to Shotokan Karate-Do, finally resulting in a distinguished line of Shotokan, Kase Ha Shotokan Ryu.

Inspired by samurai’s use of katana, Kase Sensei developed and implemented in his Karate-Do defensive and offensive open hand techniques based on ideas from use of katana.

Katana Karate founder and chief instructor, Mr. Pesic began his training in Eastern Europe, at the age of thirteen. He has studied with Sensei Taraku, who was his first teacher, Sensei Ilija Yorga and Sensei Taiji Kase. Sensei Kase believed that modern development of Karate, leads to its separation from Budo concept and that causes karate to loose its authentic soul. Rather than to focus on modern, sport style and discredited belt ranking, Katana Karate captures and continues to follow Shinan Kase’s principles in Traditional Shotokan Karate based on Bushido, Budo and Zen philosophy of Martial Art. Read More