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Okinawa Kenpo Karate is a martial art. A Brief History of Karate Okinawa is a small island of the group that comprises modern day Japan . It is the main island in the chain of Ryukyu Islands that spans from Japan to Taiwan . Surrounded by Coral , Okinawa is approximately 6 miles wide and 70 miles long. It is situated roughly 400 nautical miles east of Mainland China , 300 nautical miles south of mainland Japan and an equal distance north of Taiwan. Being at the crossroads of major trading routes, its significance as a "resting spot" was first discovered by the Japanese. It later developed as a trade center for southeastern Asia, trading with Japan, China, Indo China , Thailand , Malaysia , Borneo and the Philippines . The Beginnings: Te In its earliest stages, the Martial Art known as Karate was an indigenous Okinawan form of fighting called Te, or 'hand'. Weapons bans, imposed on the Okinawans at various points in their history, encouraged the refinement of empty-hand techniques and, for this reason, was trained in secret until modern times. Further refinement came with the influence of other martial arts brought by nobles and trade merchants to the island. Te continued to develop over the years, primarily in three Okinawan cities: Shuri, Naha and Tomari. Each of these towns was a center to a different sect of society: kings and nobles, merchants and business people, and farmers and fishermen, respectively. For this reason, different forms of self-defense developed within each city and subsequently became known as Shuri-te, Naha-te and Tomari-te. Collectively they were called Okinawa-Te or Tode, 'Chinese hand'. The Chinese character used to write Tode could also be pronounced 'kara' thus the name Te was replaced with kara te 'China-hand ' by the Okinawan Masters. The term kara was used to show respect for the Chinese masters who shared their arts with the Okinawan Te practitioners. China Hand or Open Hand? The definition of karate began as China hand, as a sign of respect and reverence by the Okinawans to their Chinese instructors. This was later changed to karate-do by Gichin Funakoshi who adopted an alternate meaning for the Chinese character for kara, 'empty'. The reasons for this are debated. One camp argues that Funakoshi, an ardent Japanophile, in his attempt to gain karate mainstream acceptance by the Japanese during its Nationalist period, sought to separate karate's association with China. Another camp believes Funakoshi simply changed it to reflect karate's emphasis on weaponless fighting. Whatever the reason, the term karate came to mean 'empty hand'. The Do in karate-do means 'way' or 'path', and is indicative of the discipline and philosophy of karate with moral and spiritual connotations. The Term Kenpo Early reference to the term "Okinawan Kenpo" dates back to the early 1900s. In 1922, Gichin Funakoshi, considered the father of modern karate, published his first book, RYUKYU KENPO; KARATE - Ryukyu being the ancient name for Okinawa. Choki Motobu used another form of the term in his 1926 book, OKINAWA KEMPO KARATE - JITSU ON KUMITE. During this period, the term Okinawa Kenpo or Kempo served the same function as the term Okinawa-Te, that is, a generic name for all Okinawa Karate. It was not until the early 1950s that the term shifted to describe a particular karate system taught by Master Shigeru Nakamura (1894 - 1969) Okinawa Kenpo Master Nakamura was born on January 20, 1894. He lived in the city of Nago, Okinawa, but as the son of a wealthy merchant family, he was able to travel more widely than many of his contemporaries. During the early 1900's, karate classes were integrated into the Okinawa educational system and as a result, Nakamura was introduced to karate at Icchu Middle School in Shuri, where both Kanryo Higashionna and Chomo Hanashiro were the karate instructors. Yasutune Itosu and Kentsu Yabu also made periodic visits to the school. Upon graduation from middle school, Nakamura returned to Nago where he continued his karate training under Shinkichi Kuniyoshi. Kuniyoshi Sensei was the successor to the legendary Kitoku Sakiyama who was also known as Naha "Bushi" Sakiyama and had a reputation throughout Okinawa, coming to be known as the "IRON FIST WARRIOR". In 1953, Master Seigeru Nakamura designated his style of Naha-Te as Okinawa Kenpo Karate and in 1955, along with Zenryo Shimabuku, formed the Okinawa Kenpo Renmei. Although kobudo was not a formal part of the Okinawa Kenpo syllabus, Seikichi Odo taught Okinawan Kobudo at Nakamura Sensei's dojo with the Master's approval and supervision. Master Nakamura died in 1969 at the age of seventy-seven, leaving no designate as Master. After a two-year period, the Okinawa Kenpo Karate Renmei appointed Seikichi Odo as Master of Okinawa Kenpo Karate. Master Odo was one of the first Okinawan masters to incorporate a complete system of Okinawan Kobudo into a traditional karate system, adding the weapons officially to the system soon after his designation as Master. This resulted in schism within the Okinawa Kenpo community between those that felt karate should stand separate from kobudo (as Master Nakamura had intended) and those that felt the two should be merged. Today, Okinawa Kenpo remains a fragmented art. Despite the efforts of several prominant Okinawa Kenpo practioners to bring solidarity and unity to the art, politics and differing opinions remain on how to best interpret Nakamura Sensei's art. |
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