| |
Shindo
Jinen Ryu
by
Howard High
While
the roles of Chojun Miyagi, Kenwa Mabuni and Gichin Funakoshi in the development
of modern karate are a matter of public knowledge, the work of one of the
most important karate pioneers, Yasuhiro Konishi, remains little known and
even less appreciated. All who knew him personally speak of his modesty
and sincerity. Perhaps it was these characterstics that kept him, by choice,
in the background and away from the limelight while he worked energetically
to promote the alien art of karate in a Japan seized with nationalistic
fervour and that viewed anything not indigenous to the nation, including
martial arts, as distinctly inferior. We are indebted to the U.S. branch
of the Japan Ryobukai and Sensei Kiyoshi Yamazaki for the following. -Editor.
Shindo Jinen
Ryu was founded by Yasuhiro Konishi, who was born in 1893 in Takamatsu, Kagawa,
Japan. Konishi Sensei began his training in martial arts at age 6 in Muso
Ryu Jujitsu. When he entered the equivalent of a western high school, he began
training in Takeuchi Ryu jujitsu. This particular jujitsu style is known for
its strong kicks and punches, very similar to karate.
At age 13, while
practicing jujitsu, Konishi Sensei began studying kendo as well. In 1915,
he commenced studies at Keio University in Tokyo. While average tenure at
university is four years, Konishi Sensei remained at Keio University for eight
years because of his love for kendo and jujitsu. He was Keio University's
kendo team captain, and continued coaching the university's kendo club after
his graduation.
Konishi Sensei's
first exposure to Te (which later developed into karate) was through a fellow
classmate at Keio University, Tsuneshige Arakaki of Okinawa. Konishi Sensei
found the techniques of Te (as referred to by Arakaki) very similar to those
of Takeuchi Ryu jujitsu. Though Arakaki was in no way a master of Te, Konishi
Sensei found the system to be very intriguing. After graduating from the University,
he became a salary man. However, he was not completely satisfied with his
occupation. With encouragement from his wife, he left his job and opened his
own martial arts center in 1923 and called it the Ryobu-Kan (The House of
Martial Arts Excellence), teaching mainly kendo and jujitsu.
In September,
1924, Hironori Ohtsuka, the founder of the Wado-Ryu style of karate, and Gichin
Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan karate, came to the kendo training hall
at Keio University. They approached Konishi Sensei with a letter of introduction
from Professor Kasuya of Keio University. Funakoshi asked if it would be possible
to use the training hall to practice Ryukyu Kempo To-te jutsu. During this
era, it was unheard of for one martial arts school to allow a martial arts
teacher from another system to teach in their dojo. Such a request would be
considered a "challenge" to the dojo. Konishi Sensei, however, was a visionary
in the sense that he saw value in cross-training; he remembered the kata demonstrated
during his university days by Arakaki, and he agreed to Funakoshi Sensei's
request.
With Konishi
Sensei's help, Funakoshi established a To-te practice club at Keio University
(the first university karate club in Japan). Konishi Sensei, Funakoshi Sensei,
and Ohtsuka Sensei were the principal instructors. Konishi Sensei continued
to instruct a curriculum consisting of kendo, jujitsu, and western boxing
at the Ryobu-Kan.
Karate-jutsu
was born when Funakoshi Sensei added karate to this mix. As yet, no names
were applied to the emerging styles.
Groups that practiced
a pure form of jujitsu did not think highly of karate, and challenged Funakoshi
Sensei. However, under Japanese budo, one does not initially challenge the
master of a particular school or style; a challenge is first issued to the
senior student. If the challenger defeats the senior student, then he can
challenge the Master. If the challenger defeats the master, he can take the
dojo sign as a trophy-a very embarrassing situation for the defeated dojo,
and one never experienced by Ryobu-Kan. All challengers of karate were defeated
by Konishi Sensei and Ohtsuka Sensei, as Funakoshi's senior students.
After a challenge
had been met, Funakoshi Sensei would explain karate-jutsu, and highlight the
mental and spiritual benefits of the style. Many listeners understood and
agreed to the point that they switched styles to study karate.
During this time,
there was an ongoing philosophical debate among martial artists as to the
definition of budo. Some believed budo required the death of the opponent;
others, that budo meant supporting or educating the opponent in the proper
ways. Funakoshi always taught budo as technique and education. Konishi Sensei
especially believed Bu bun ryo do, translated as: "For karate to be perfect,
it cannot be just technique, but also education." As technique disciplines
the body, education should discipline the mind. Thus Konishi Sensei believed
that Budo involves educating the opponent. Over time, three major changes
occurred in Funakoshi's original karate teachings. First, because karate was
introduced to the Japanese physical education program at the elementary school
level, Funakoshi Sensei assigned Japanese names to replace the Okinawan names
of the various kata, making karate easier to learn.
The second change
was the addition of ippon kumite to karate training. At first, karate training
was primarily the practice of kata. Konishi Sensei contended that training
in kata alone was not sufficient to develop the whole person. Other forms
of Do, such as kendo and Judo, had training methods that included application
of techniques with partners. Konishi Sensei and Ohtsuka Sensei added ippon
kumite to the training regimen.
The third major
change occurred in the kanji (Chinese characters) of "karate." The original
kanji used to write "karate" meant "Chinese hand," indicating the source of
the techniques. In 1929, teachers and students in the Keio University's Karate
Research Group discussed the translation of the kanji for karate, and agreed
to change the kanji of "karate" to mean "Empty Hand". They contend that this
new kanji was a better representation of what karate had developed into. This
change was adopted over the protests of many Okinawans, but remains the accepted
translation to this day.
Karate gradually
became more popular and many masters from Okinawa began to visit Japan. Because
of Konishi Sensei's open-mindedness, many well-known budoka visited Ryobu-Kan
during this era, exchanging techniques. Among them were: Kenwa Mabuni (founder
of Shito-Ryu Karate), Chojun Miyagi (founder of Goju-Ryu Karate), and Choki
Motobu. These three masters influenced Konishi Sensei in various ways and
made definitive contributions to Konishi Sensei's emerging style.
Konishi Sensei
considered Choki Motobu to be a martial arts genius and made every effort
to train with him. Motobu Sensei's specialty was the Naifanchin kata. As a
teacher, he knew many kata, but would only teach them when his student had
mastered Naifanchin. Through training in this kata he became famous for scooping
his opponent's leg. Although physically a big man, Motobu Sensei was very
light on his feet, which may be the reason why he was so successful in challenging
other martial artists to kumite. His teaching to Konishi Sensei emphasized
footwork and the use of Ki. Motobu Sensei didn't speak Japanese very well,
and relied on friends to translate for him when he taught. He was not wealthy
and had difficulty supporting himself during his visits to Japan. Konishi
Sensei organized the Choki Motobu Support Society and arranged for seminars
and training sessions at which Motobu Sensei was able to collect fees. Konishi
Sensei accompanied Motobu Sensei to many training sessions in order to assist
him in explaining the concepts and techniques of karate.
Chojun Miyagi
by all accounts did not talk very much. He was famous for his big hands and
his teisho uchi (palm strike), and was noted for grabbing and pulling very
strongly. Though Konishi Sensei did not train with Miyagi Sensei as much as
with other karate masters, Miyagi Sensei did impact Konishi Sensei's knowledge
of karate by presenting Konishi Sensei with an original manuscript, An Outline
of Karate-Do, dated March 23, 1934. This document has only recently been translated
into English and is now available world-wide.1
Konishi Sensei
trained extensively with Kenwa Mabuni, the founder of Shito-Ryu. Mabuni Sensei
resided at Konishi Sensei's house for about ten months from 1927-28. They
became very close friends. Mabuni Sensei was celebrated for the wide number
of kata which he knew and performed with great elegance and calm. Konishi
Sensei developed the kata Seiryu in collaboration with Mabuni Sensei.
The
Formal Acceptance of Karate in Japan
The Dai Nippon
Butoku-Kai, the Japanese governing body for budo, was politically very strong
and set the standards for ranking individual martial artists and signed all
certificates of membership. Konishi Sensei was already a member through kendo
and jujitsu; he felt that karate would be effective in the education of the
Japanese people, and so he applied to the Dai Nippon Butoku-Kai for recognition
of karate. Through 1934, however, the government continued to award titles
in jujitsu and judo, but not in karate.
Finally, in 1935,
the Dai Nippon Butoku-Kai recognized karate as a member and awarded kyoshi
("Master Instructor") rankings to Konishi Sensei, Miyagi Sensei, and Ueshima
Sannosuke (the founder of Kushin Ryu). The Dai Nippon Butoku-Kai also insisted
that all budo have style names, and Konishi Sensei encouraged the prominent
karate instructors of that time to name their individual styles. Because of
his diligent efforts to advance karate in Japan, as well as his high level
of skill in karate, Konishi Sensei was assigned in 1938 as the chairman of
the screening committee of the Dai Nippon Butoku-Kai that reviewed all licensing
applications in karate jutsu.
The
Naming of Shindo Jinen Ryu
Konishi believed
that if you walk a morally correct path in this life, then you are naturally
following the divine way. If you train in karate in a natural way and master
your body, you will expand your knowledge and experience, and establish a
solid foundation for naturally living a morally correct life. And so his style,
on the recommendation of Morihei Ueshiba (the founder of Aikido), came to
be Shindo Jinen-Ryu Karate-Jutsu ("godly, natural style, complete empty-handed
way").
Miyagi Sensei
named his style Goju-Ryu, as it blended hard and soft techniques. Mabuni Sensei
studied under both Yasutsune Itosu and Kanryo Higashionna (Okinawan masters
of To-te), and named his style Shito-Ryu, combining the first kanji from each
of their names. For Hironishi Ohtsuka, the study of budo places one in harmony
("wa") with the universe; his style became known as Wado-Ryu. Ueshima Sensei
based Kushin-Ryu ("Sky-Heart") on the idea of the universe and person as center
and in harmony. And students convinced Funakoshi Sensei to name his style
Shotokan: Shoto, meaning "Pine Waves", was Funakoshi's pen name.
The
Influence of Morihei Ueshiba
Konishi Sensei
and his wife also studied under Morihei Ueshiba, who was still teaching Daito
Ryu Aikijujitsu at that time. Konishi Sensei considered Ueshiba Sensei to
be the best martial artist he had ever known. Konishi Sensei carried this
opinion throughout his lifetime. Having already trained in karate for a number
of years, Konishi Sensei demonstrated the kata Heian Nidan (which he learned
from Funakoshi Sensei) to Ueshiba Sensei. However, Ueshiba Sensei remarked
that Konishi Sensei should drop such nonsense for such techniques are ineffective.
This comment came as a blow, since Konishi Sensei believed in karate and that
held Ueshiba Sensei's opinions in the highest regard. Konishi Sensei felt
that karate still had much value and that he had the responsibility to develop
it. Thus, he requested that he be allowed to continue training in karate,
intending to develop the techniques so that it would be acceptable to the
great teacher. After many months of research and training, Konishi Sensei
developed a kata called Tai Sabaki (Body Movement). He based this kata on
karate, but incorporated principles found in the teachings of Ueshiba Sensei.
Though the new kata did not contain any complex movements, it consisted of
a chain of actions, with no pause after each action. After the demonstration
of this kata by Konishi Sensei, Ueshiba Sensei remarked that, "The demonstration
you did just now was satisfactory to me, and that kata is worth mastering."
Later, Konishi Sensei developed two other kata based on the principles of
Tai Sabaki. The three kata became known as Tai Sabaki Shodan, Tai Sabaki Nidan,
and Tai Sabaki Sandan.
Seiryu
In about 1935,
Konishi Sensei developed another kata, Seiryu. During this period, Konishi
Sensei, Ueshiba Sensei, Mabuni Sensei, and Ohtsuka Sensei were training together
almost daily. At this time, the Japanese government was controlled by top
officers of the Imperial Army. Konishi Sensei was asked by the commanding
general of the Japanese Army to develop women's self-defense techniques. His
first step in fulfilling the Army's request was to ask Mabuni Sensei to help
him develop standardized training methods, to help the students remember the
techniques.
Together, they
developed a karate kata that incorporated the essence of both their styles.
As they worked to finalize the kata, they shared it with Ueshiba Sensei, who
approved some sections, but advised certain changes. Ueshiba Sensei strongly
felt that the kata should be modified based on the gender of the practitioner,
because of the need to protect very different sensitive areas. Also a woman's
training was normally executed from a natural (higher) stance. Another factor
which greatly influenced the kata was the female position in Japanese society.
At the time, a woman's life was defined by cultural customs, though both sexes
wore kimono and used geta. All these factors were considered in the process
of developing the kata.
As a result of
the collaboration between three great masters, the Seiryu kata, contained
the essence of both aikido and jujitsu, going with the force instead of directly
opposing an opponent's attack. Ryu means willow in English, and just like
a willow will bend with the wind, so should the martial artist practicing
this kata. The term also implies great strength, for the willow does not break
under the force of the wind. The kanji for this kata may also be pronounced
aoyagi.
WWII
and After
When World War
II started, many karateka left to fight for their country, and further development
of karate as art was stymied. In 1945, with the return of the country's male
population, karate and budo were developed and introduced into the public
education system. Karate had thus become a way of life in Japan. While Funakoshi
Sensei concentrated his teaching efforts in Japanese schools, Konishi Sensei
was more often found in a business, teaching employees. While both arenas
may seem unusual to the Western mind accustomed to football and rising medical/worker's
compensation insurance, their efforts were highly respected and very practically
arranged, since it prevented open competition between them.
Japan
Karate-do Ryobu-kai Today
After the death
of Konishi Sensei in 1983, authority for the organization was passed to his
son, Yasuhiro (Takehiro) Konishi, 10th Dan. Takehiro Konishi changed his name
to Yasuhiro Konishi after his father's death. He was born on May 25, 1931,
in Tokyo, Japan. He graduated from Keio University in March 1955. He oversees
the operations of all the Japan Karate-Do Ryobu-Kai schools in Japan, and
continues to guide the policies and philosophy of Shindo Jinen Ryu. The international
growth of the organization is entrusted to the current International Director,
Kiyoshi Yamazaki, 7th Dan, based in Anaheim, California.
Footnote 1: See
History of Karate by Morio Higaonna.
|
