Karate, Kids, Legitimacy, and Dojo Language

Before moving to Arizona, our Soke taught his son and daughter karate at the University of Wyoming, and both are now legitimate black belts. His daughter even had to use her training in self-defense from her Ex, who is twice her height and mass. He ended up calling the Cheyenne police for help after Soke's daughter beat him up. 

 Over the years, Soke taught more than a thousand martial artists at four major universities, Gold's Gym, at the Seiyo Shorin-Ryu Hombu in Laramie, and later in Mesa. He is a member of the black belt hall of fame, a Who's Who in Martial Arts Legend, and certified in several martial arts.

Soke suggests to watch out for MMA - a dead giveaway since most lack legitimacy. MMA does NOT have values of traditional karate or any traditional budo, and anyone can claim to be yudansha (black belt) or instructor (sensei) in MMA, even though there only experience may be wrestling in high school. Remember, any one can walk into a martial arts supply house and buy a black belt for $5 or $10. 

Too bad parents have no idea what martial arts are? But this isn't surprising, as many North American martial artists don't know either. Soke's own personal instructor, told him over the years that he receives requests from questionable martial arts instructors asking to join  his Japanese/Okinawan/US association. At least 85% of the people who apply have NO legitimacy. 

For kids training in martial arts, their parents need to be aware of  growth plates; and fractures. These  can result in serious problems later in life. In particular, joint locks should not be applied to kids. Not so long ago, the author witnessed a kids class at the Chandler community center training in aikido. Aikido is all about joint manipulation! 

When kids are taught basic karate punches known as tsuki, they have to be closely monitored, to keep their wrists straight, otherwise, they can easily fracture their wrists just by punching a bag. PARENTS - you need to be aware of this!!!

So, the next time you check your dojo or instructor, do a search on the internet of his/hers dojo or of his/hers name. Next, look inside the dojo for a dojo license (this should be provided by a legitimate international martial arts association), and look for copies of his/hers diplomas. This is where it gets a challenging, knowing what is a legitimate and what is not. Take a few notes and do some internet research, and look to see if the diploma includes mostly kanji. For example, some years ago, a German martial arts association gave our Soke a diploma for the rank of judan (10th dan) in jujutsu. He now keeps the diploma to show students what phony diplomas look like.

Soke Hausel, the world head of Seiyo no Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai has been training and teaching martial arts for his entire life. He is not only a hall-of-fame martial arts instructor and Who's Who martial arts Legend, but also a hall-of-fame geoscientist. 

Prior to moving to Arizona and opening the Hombu dojo in Mesa in 2006, Soke taught classes, clinics, and seminars in karate, kobudo, self-defense, women's self-defense, samurai arts and more at the University of Wyoming for more than three decades, along with researching mineral deposits. In 2013, he was awarded one of the highest honors for a westerner in martial arts - that of Meijin Wajutsu which translates as martial arts genius.

I like my students to learn karate, kobudo and other traditional martial arts as well as learn as much as possible about the culture related to Okinawa and Japanese martial arts including some Japanese and Okinawan dialect. Here are some of the terms I expect them to learn over time.

Here's some Japanese used in karate.

Opening-Closing Classes

Kiotsuke (or) Seiretsu -      Line up (or) Attention
Otaga ni rei -                      Bow to one another
Shomen ni rei                     Bow to Shomen (front)
Soke/Sensei ni rei              Bow to Head Founder/or Instructor
Mokuso -                           Meditate
Domo arigoto                    Thank you very much

Exercises

Applications                   Bunkai
Basics                             Kihon

Body hardening              Shitai Kori
Calisthenic exercises      Undo

Forms                             Kata
Preparation exercises     Junbi undo
Throwing Technique     Nagewaza

Counting

Ichi, Ni, San, Shi (Yo or Yon), Go Roku, Shichi (Nanna), Hachi, Ku, Ju (counting to 10)
10 to 19 - add Ju as a prefix. Thus 11 is Juichi.
Time - add ji as suffix thus one o'clock is Ichiji.

Dojo Kun

Karate ni sente nashi                                 There is no first attack in karate
Makoto no michi o mamoru koto              Have devotion in seeking a true way 
Reigi o omonjiru koto                               Always act with good manners.
Doryoku no seishin o yashinau koto         Cultivate a spirit of effort and perseverance.
Kekki no yu o imashimeru koto                Refrain from violent and uncontrolled behavior 
Jinkaku kansei ni tsutomeru koto              Work to perfect your character.

Dachi (Stances)

Back Stance - Kokutsu-dachi
Cat Stance - Neko-ashi-dachi
Crane Stance -Genkanku (Tsuri) dachi
Cross-leg - Kosa (juji) dachi
Front Stance - Zenkutsu dachi
Fighting Posture - Kamae (kumite) dachi
Horse Riding - Kiba Dachi
Heels Together - Musubi Dachi
Immovable Stance - Sochin (Fudo) dachi
Kneeling Stance - Iaigoshi dachi
Left Stance - Hidari dachi
Natural Stance - Soto hachiji (yoi) dachi
Pigeon-Toe Stance - Hachi (hangetsu) dachi
Right Stance - Migi Dachi
Side Stance - Yoko dachi
Sumo Stance - Shiko Dachi
T-stance - Tobuku dachi

Uke (Blocks)

Cross Block - Juji-uke
Downward block - Gedan Barai

Elbow block - Hiji uke
Grasping block  Torite-uke
High block - Jodan uke
Inward block - Uchi uke
Leg block - Ashi uke
Open (knife) hand - Shuto-uke
Outward block - Ude (Shoto)-uke
Palm Heel block - Teisho-uke
Rising block - Age uke
Sweep block - Hari uke

Keri (Kicks)

Back Kick - Ushiro-geri
Back Roundhouse - Ura-maewashi-geri
Crescent Kick - Kozumi-geri
Front Kick - Mae-geri
Flying Front Kick - Mae-tobi-geri
Flying Side Kick - Yoko-tobi-geri
Knee Kick - Hiza-geri
Leg Sweep - Ashi-barai
Rising Roundhouse - Age-Maewashi-geri
Roundhouse - Maewashi-geri
Side Kick - Yoko-geri
Snap Kick - Keage-geri
Thrust Kick - Kekomi-geri
Toe Kick - Tsumasaki-geri

Uchi (Strikes)

Augmented Punch - Morote-zuki (tsuki)
Backfist - Uraken (Reiken)-uchi
Chicken Hand Strike - Toride-uchi
Double (Over-Under) - Yama uchi
Elbow Strike - Hiji (empi)-uchi
Finger or Thumb - Yubi-uchi
Hammer-fist Strike - Kentsui-uchi
High Punch - Jodan-zuki
Hook Punch - Kaku-zuki
Knife-Hand Strike - Shuto-uchi
Low-Level Punch - Gedan-zuki
Middle Level Punch - Chudan-zuki
One-Knuckle Punch - Ippon Ken-uchi
Opposite Hand - Gyaku-zuki
Palm-Heel Punch - Teisho-uchi
Ridge Hand Strike - Haito-uchi
Rising Punch - Age-uchi
Rising Elbow Strike - Age-Hiji (Empi)-uchi
Spear Hand Strike - Nukite-uchi
Vital Point Strike - Atemi-uchi 

Martial Arts Titles

Sensei - instructor
Shihan - Master Instructor
Soke - Grandmaster, president
Sokeshodai - First generation grandmaster.
Soke-Dai - Vice President
Kyoju - Professor.
Hanshi - refers to a senior expert considered as "teacher of teachers." 
Kyoshi - refers to an advanced teacher. 
Renshi - "one who has mastered himself."
Senpai - senior student
Yudansha - black belt members
Mudansha - lower rank (kyu) members
Okuden - refers to entrance to the secret ways 

Kumite (Sparring)

Ippon kumite - one step sparring, typically used for self defense drills 
Sanbon kumite - three step sparring 
Kiso kumite - structured sparring drawn from a kata (bunkai). 
Jiyu kumite - free sparring 
Randori- Free sparring (Judo) 
Kachinuki - old style contests

Greetings/Responses

Hai - affirmation, as in 'yes' (should be used whenever you are corrected by your sensei)
iie - no
Domo - thanks
Gomen nasai - Excuse me
Onegiashimasu - Please
Wakarimasu - I understand.
Wakarimasen - I don't understand
Sumimasen - apology, sorry

Uniform

Obi - belt
Gi - training uniform
Karategi - karate uniform
Judogi - judo uniform
Hakama - traditional pleated and bloused pant

Dojo

Kamiza- Front of dojo. 
Shomen - front, same as the Kamaza
Kamidana - shelf or shrine at the Shomen.
Shimoza - back of dojo.
Joseki - right side of dojo as one enters - where senior students line up.
Shimoseki - Left side of dojo.
No-Geiko - training outside in the elements.
Tatami - mats

Kobudo

Hojojutsu - the art using a hojo cord (rope).
Tanto - dagger
Tonfa - rice grinder handles ? or baton with handle
Ryu fundo kusari - weighted chain
Manrikigusari - chain
Tessen - war fan
Kusarigama - kama with weighted chain
Naginata - Halberd
Yari - spear
Bo - wooden staff (usually 6 feet in length).
Hanbo - half staff (3 foot in length).
Tsue - Cane 
Tanbo - short stick
Kuboton (hashi) - hand stick
Kioga - collaspable baton
Eku (Iku) - oar
Tekko - knuckle duster
Surushin - weighted chain
Katana - samurai sword
Kama - sickle
Nunchuku - nunchuks
Sai - three pronged knife
Kumade (Ra-ke) - rake
Kuwa - hoe
Sojutsu - methods of the spear
Kagi - Car Keys

Jujutsu

Nihon jujutsu - Japanese jujutsu
Tori - the practitioner who carries out the throw or technique
Uke - (Partner) the practitioner who accepts the throw or technique
Atemi - strike
Koryu jujutsu (ancient jujutsu techniques)
Edo Jujutsu (old style jujutsu)
Gendai jujutsu - modern jujutsu
Goshin jujutsu - non-traditional jujutsu lacking in lineage
Judoka- practitioner of judo (term usually reserved for those who are 4th dan or higher).
Benkyo-ka - "scholar"
kenkyu-sei - "trainees", practitioners below the rank of 4th dan
Kodokan - place for teaching the way (Institute of Judo in Tokyo)
Nage-waza - throwing techniques, 
Ne-waza - groundwork 
Kansetsu-waza - Joint locks
Te-waza - hand techniques. 
Koshi-waza - hip techniques,
Ashi-waza - foot and leg techniques.
Mae-sutemi-waza - sacrifice techniques in which the thrower falls forward. 
Ushiro-sutemi-waza - sacrifice techniques in which the thrower falls directly backwards. 
Yoko-sutemi-waza - Sacrifice techniques in which the thrower falls onto his side. 
Kansetsu-waza - Joint locks.
Shime-waza - strangle or chokeholds.
Osaekomi-waza - pinning techniques
Ukemi-waza - falling techniques 

Martial Arts Styles

Hozoin Ryu - Japanese spear system
Karate - art of the empty hand
Kobudo - art of ancient weapons
Shorin-Ryu - Pine forest style or Shaolin style of karate
Jujutsu - art of softness or way of yielding.
Judo - translates as gentle way.
Yarijutsu - spear fighting system
Sojutsu - spear martial art
Iaido - the way of sword
Kenjutsu - sword applications
Budo - martial arts ways
Bujutsu - martial arts fighting methods
Bushido - the way of the warrior
Toide - ancient Okinawan art of grappling, joint manipulation and joint separation

The 'Art' of Karate

Sometimes a martial arts instructor, other times a
geoscientist, writer, public speaker, or artist

About 1989 to 1990, Soke Hausel was not only teaching karate, kobudo, jujutsu, and samurai arts at the University of Wyoming; but, also employed as a research geologist at the Wyoming Geological Survey and periodically took leave of absence to work as a consulting geologist for various mining companies around the world. In 1988 and 1989, six geologists including Soke Hausel discovered a giant gold deposit in Alaska. The company hired a draftsman at the Wyoming Geological Survey to produce professional quality maps of Soke Hausel's maps of the Donlin Creek gold deposit in Alaska.

One day a geologist, the next a martial artist

One day, this draftswoman mentioned while working on the the maps that Soke would be a great artist. He responded, "I can't even sketch a stick figure". Fiddy, the draftswoman disagreed and said all Soke needed to do was to focus and sketch small areas in detail just like his maps. 

That comment actually made sense. So, he tried sketching and was surprised by this hidden gift given by God to him. So, he did my first sketch in 1989 or 1990. But, without that one comment, he likely would never have discovered pencil art..

MARTIAL ARTS were uncommon in North America in the 1960s, but they peaked our interest from 1966 to 1967 as Kato fought a variety of villains on the Green Hornet TV series while espousing Zen philosophy. Martial arts took center stage again from 1972 to 1975 as Kwai Chang Caine preached harmony in the Kung Fu martial arts TV series. In 1975, a Shaolin monk named Lee fought a renegade martial arts monk who broke the code of ethics of the Shaolin Temple in the movie Enter the Dragon. And who could forget that likeable character Mr. Miyagi in the 1984 Movie, The Karate Kid. Miyagi preached Zen while teaching Daniel san pragmatic karate exercises to defend against a group of teenage thugs. Even though fictional, these programs espoused a code of ethics to live by while following the premise of "No First Attack" - a philosophy of traditional karate and 'traditional' martial arts.

Martial Art, by Soke Hausel

Many have the erroneous impression MMA (mixed martial arts) is martial art. Ever hear MMA competitors espouse positive philosophy, harmony, a path to enlightenment, or even concern for another human being? This is one of several characteristics that separate traditional martial arts from street fighting & combat sport such as MMA, boxing, cage fighting and sport martial arts. Traditional karate is not sport, it is a way of life as well as a weapon of self-defense - it is about perfection of the practitioner!

So, what is martial art? Visualize a boxer. A trained boxer is taught by a friend how to kick someone in the groin. Wow, so now is boxing magically transformed into a mixed martial art? Is it that simple?

Actually, it is much more complex than one could imagine. And just because someone advertises that they teach mixed martial arts usually means that they have boxing, wresting experience and usually only minor (if any) martial arts experience. Mixed martial arts is a catch-all phrase for people who want to be martial artists likely have no martial arts credentials. 

The Shotokan tiger by Soke Hausel

In traditional martial arts, there is an established lineage and history of certification and credentials - but there is nothing really writing down about the procedure, nor any government regulations (thank goodness). So, we need to first examine the words 'martial' and 'art' to try to get a handle on what a martial art really is.

Martial is defined as 'military-like' and is pragmatic; however art is more difficult to grasp as it is an 'esoteric expression' meaning different things to different people. When researching martial arts dictionaries for a definition of martial arts, it is difficult to find one that provides any kind of meaning - and in most cases, it is obvious that even those martial artists who have compiled martial arts dictionaries were unaware of what a martial art is, as in most cases, a definition is not included. 

The Overlook Dictionary of Martial Arts defines martial arts as "... an encompassing term usually reserved for the Asian fighting arts, although it can refer to any fighting discipline with or without weapons". This definition for martial arts is incomplete at best. More enlightening is A Dictionary of the Martial Arts which didn't even try to define martial arts, the very basis of the dictionary! The authors likely felt it was too difficult of a task to summarize martial arts because of its esoteric aspect. In the Overlook Martial Arts Handbook the author writes, "The term 'martial arts' means those arts concerned with the waging of war". 

Defending castle - sketch by Soke Hausel

By separating the two words - 'martial' and 'arts', some insight occurs. Martial has several definitions. One that stands out is "characteristic of, or befitting a warrior". When discussing martial art we refer to bushido, the 'way of the warrior'. This is an important concept because 'way' used in this sense refers to 'path'. But what is path? “A path is a course of action, conduct, or procedure: the path of righteousness”. This definition implies a path should lead to righteousness: a concept common in traditional martial arts.

Dictionaries provide several meanings for 'art' including, "... the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance". Another definition: "Skill in conducting any human activity: a master at the art of conversation”. Also, “a branch of learning or university study, especially one of the fine arts or humanities, such as music, philosophy, or literature".

Based on these concepts and incorporating philosophy of Gichin Funakoshi and Shoshin Nagamine, two well-known and influential Okinawan Shorin-Ryu karate martial artists; martial art should lead to righteousness (this is why it is rare to see politicians in traditional martial arts). Some might point out that the Russian Premier trains in judo. But there is traditional judo and there is sport Judo. Putin trains in sport judo. But still, it is an anomaly.

Tai chi in the Arizona sun, sketch by
Soke Hausel

Martial arts should be beautiful, stir the spirit, and involve higher learning and should lead to a lifelong path of self-enlightenment – like religion. It should complement religion and not contradict religion.

In a discussion of the martial art of karate, Nagamine (2000) wrote, "If there is no kata, there is no karate, just kicking and punching". He emphasized that since, "... kata is karate, one must then embrace 'do mu gen' proverb which asserts: There can be no end to learning". He concluded "karate begins and ends with the study of kata". So if we are to believe Nagamine (as well as other Okinawan masters) karate must contain kata and kata must be the primary curriculum, otherwise it is not karate and not martial art. And kata contains exercise, self-defense, interpretation, philosophy, and moving Zen.

The blending of Zen with empty hand (kung fu and karate) and weapon's training resulted in Shaolin monks becoming formidable fighters and resulted in the world's first martial art. So if one agrees this was the beginning of Chuan Fa or martial arts, it is apparent Zen, meditation, self-defense exercises and forms (kata) are necessary ingredients to be a martial art.

Many martial arts attach the suffix 'do', such as aikido, budo, kendo, judo and karate-do. By doing so, it translates as 'way' or 'path' suggesting that the martial art will lead to a path of enlightenment. There are also just as many martial arts that attach the suffix 'jutsu', such as bujutsu, kenjutsu, jujutsu and karatejutsu. These are considered martial combat and most lack kata. However, in every case, the "jutsu" systems have traditions and also provide ways for self-improvement, unlike MMA.

Okinawan sunrise by Soke Hausel

Peter Urban (1967) wrote that martial arts refer to fighting arts and suggested a more valid interpretation came from the word budo which translates as 'the way of the fighter'. Urban further wrote that the integration of techniques with the spirit are important. The way or path is intended to lead to the attainment of perfection or what is often known as self-realization, enlightenment, or simply maturity. Be it karate, kendo, judo, jujutsu, iaido, kobudo, aikido, kyudo, Urban (1967) wrote that "based on the idea of virtue, the followers of martial arts are in effect descendants of samurai of old. It is the aim of all martial arts instructors to work toward promulgating this spirit of ancient Zen warriors, a spirit which is more than mere knowledge of fighting techniques - it is the attainment of a virtuous way of life!"

Geisha, by Soke Hausel

Martial arts incorporate the term ryu. Ryu is a traditional system or style of martial arts that implies family. This means Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai members are a family of traditional martial artists with a soke (Head of Family). It is peace of mind we seek through martial arts training. "There are many paths to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, but only one peak".

Karate Aerial Photo by Soke Hausel

Traditional karate and other Okinawan martial arts were kept secret on Okinawa until the 20th century when karate was introduced to mainland Japan in 1922. Within a short time, the Japanese modified the effective self-defense art into sport. To this day, traditional Okinawan karate is still considered a weapon rather than sport (unlike Japanese karate). Traditional karate focuses on (1) junbi undo (warm-up and strength exercises), (2) kihon (basics), (3) shitai kori (body hardening), (4) kata (forms), (5) health, and (6) bunkai (practical applications) - but it's most important aspect is the perfection of its participants!

A bunch of Junk, by Soke Hausel

Arizona Karate Instructor - a Who's Who in Martial Arts, Science & Engineering, the World & a Little More

So, what does karate, kobudo, samurai arts, self-defense, art, martial art, writing, geology, public speaking and astronomy have in common? We can only think of two things - Grandmaster Hausel & Who's Who.

2017 was another good year for a valley martial arts instructor and geologist. Grandmaster Hausel of Gilbert was notified of selection for awards acknowledging his lifelong dedication to martial arts, geology, writing, and more! 

Along with General Colin Powell, Hausel was selected for the Albert Nelson Marquis Who’s Who Lifetime Achievement Award and with Grandmaster Jhoon Rhee, he was selected for Who’s Who in Martial Arts. 

Earlier, in 2017, the Hall-of-Fame martial arts instructor was notified of his selection to (1) Great Men & Women of Science, (2) the Cambridge Certificate for Outstanding Scientific Achievement and now for (3) Best Martial Arts Teachers in Phoenix for Expertise. And we can now add (4) Who's Who in Martial Arts, and (5) Who's Who Lifetime Achievements.

Grandmaster Hausel taught martial arts for more than 3 decades at the University of Wyoming prior to moving to the valley to teach at ASU before opening the Arizona Hombu dojo in Mesa. But overall, he has been training in martial arts for more than 5 decades and teaching for nearly five along with writing more than a thousand books, articles, professional papers, maps and scientific abstracts, presenting about 400 professional talks around the continent, sketching, lecturing about geology, martial arts, and astronomy. 

Hausel teaches karate, kobudo, self-defense and samurai arts to adults at the dojo at the 60 W. Baseline Center. Grandmaster Hausel began martial arts training in 1964 as a long-haired member of a rock n' roll band known as the Churchmen. Since he started training in martial arts, only a few days have passed when he has not trained or taught martial arts during the past 50+ years. Even when he was in the Army, he trained at night in the barracks, and when he worked as a geologist from a tent in Montana, Wyoming, Australia and Alaska, he still trained in karate.

He attended an international diamond exploration conference in the Western Australian outback and accepted a challenge from the Japanese geologists-martial artists to break tops off of silicified termite mounds using a classical karate chop known as 'shuto' - it was every termite for itself. 

In Alaska, training was challenging. At night, he would return to camp and practice kata until mosquitos covered him from head to toe. Never harassed by bears - but one other geologist was treed by a bear that ran off when another camp geologist shot it between the eyes with a .357 magnum. The bear left with a red streak and headache. 

Then there is the other side. The Hall-of-Fame geologist with 45 years experience found gemstones, gold and diamonds and authored hundreds of books, papers and abstracts. His geological expertise helps in breaking rocks and teaching his students about rocks and what types of rocks are breakable with the bare hands and which ones are not.

According the Hausel, "Ok, ok, I'm crazy about martial arts - I love to teach martial arts and it is rewarding to me to see  my students progress, and enjoy what they are learning. We have a fantastic group of adults at the Arizona Hombu dojo in Mesa that includes accountants, research professors, professors, scientists, engineers, school teachers, retirees, physical therapists,  nutritionists, personal trainers who range in age from young adults to retirees. All my life I've taught adults at four different universities".

In the 1980s, Hausel mapped 1,000 square kilometers
of complex geological terrain at South Pass, but in the
evening would return to his tent and practice karate.

Inducted into Who's Who Legends in Martial Arts

Hausel in 1988 in search of gold in Alaska. When he wasn't digging for gold
he was fighting millions of mosquitos just to practice karate every evening.

In the Australian outback, Hausel would compete with Japanese black belt-
geologist to see who could break the tops off these termite mounds in diamond
country.

In recent years, while exploring for gold and copper in the Silver Crown district of
Wyoming, Hausel found time in the evenings to train in karate.

Advantage of Traditional Karate & Kobudo

What gives a martial arts practitioner the advantage over many others including opponents who are larger?

It is the constant, weekly training in martial arts along with training in proven methods - methods that have allowed many karate-ka over the past centuries survive aggressive attacks often unscathed. One of the effects of practice leads to mushin - that karate state of mind that allows muscle memory to do the thinking for us. But in addition to learning to react to aggression without thinking, karate teaches us secrets on how to increase acceleration in blocks and strikes, how to strike with the maximum, possible striking force, how to focus strikes for maximum effect, where to strike to provide the most pain, or to knock out the attacker, and how to develop shitai kori or body hardening. Karate does not give anyone invincibility, but it does provide an upper edge along with physical fitness and muscle. 

The weekly practice of kata - or karate forms, helps build these characteristics as long as the practitioner trains properly. Personally, I practice kata ever other day - as this seems to give me maximum benefit. But I also add weight training, body hardening, kobudo, and teaching to this regimen on other days and some on the same day to balance out my exercise routine - my normal routine has me training 6 to 7 days a week (which I have done for much of the past 50+ years).

If done improperly, training in kata can also have negative effects - so it is very important for a student to train in kata under martial arts instructors who understand kata as there are many sport martial artists who practice kata improperly leading to harmful effects.

I taught martial arts and self-defense at the University of Wyoming for more than three decades and I tried to emphasize hitotsuki hitogeri philosophy and training - striking an attacker with focus at pressure points to end an attack in one strike - as you never know what the attacker intends or what is coming next. For those students who made it to yudansha (black belt) at our University of Wyoming hombu dojo as well as our affiliated dojos, I could see the power literally with every block, punch and kick.

While teaching karate and kobudo at the University of Wyoming, I was very proud of our students and after we affiliated with Juko Kai International, our power, technique and body hardening methods continued to improve. But then, one day, things changed.

One of my out-standing shihan, who had tremendous technique wanted my permission to attend a tournament. I had no problem, and I felt he did not need my permission - he was an individual with his own mind, but still it was nice of him to ask. I was proud when he and a couple of other students  returned with gold, silver and bronze medals in essentially every event they entered with the exception that they had all been disqualified in kumite for striking too hard - actually, this made me even more proud than the medals they had received in kata and kobudo.

Unfortunately, I didn't realize at the time what this was leading to. I thought this would be a one time event, but it continued and our students continued bringing home medals - and it was about this time I retired from the university and moved the Hombu dojo to Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa Arizona and left the University of Wyoming dojo to the same shihan who was into tournaments.

Later, I returned to the University of Wyoming for a series of clinics and then I discovered what tournaments do to a martial artist. It was sad. My shihan had good intentions, and his technique was nearly flawless when I left, but all of the tournament preparations left the students at UW without focus. Where had the focus gone? I believe the tournament preparations focused on no focus and more on performance. Tournament fighters were not allowed to strike with focus or power, and kata had to look more like a ballet than shadow boxing. I felt like I had been staved in the back and I lost my temper - but now I realize I just should have moved on and considered the UW dojo a loss.

So, when a person practices kata - they must focus every technique. Sometimes they need to do kata with as much power and focus that they can generate and other times they need to slow the kata down (but still with full or near full focus and power). Most good karate schools on Okinawa focus every single strike and block in kata. On Japan, they do the same, but they add ma - or timing, which can also cause some problems. On Okinawa (the source of karate), the students learn to visualize each self-defense (bunkai) technique while they practice kata.

University of Wyoming Campus Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai 2003

So, as you train or 'shadow box' with your kata, and if you feel your technique lacks power and your imaginary opponent walks away laughing at you, you need to generate a lot more power and focus. And you need to do this each time you practice kata - the only thing you should ever change is acceleration of strikes and blocks - the focus must always be there and kata should never look like a tai chi form. One day fast, another day slow - in this way, your muscles learn to react fast with power, but also they learn to recognize each individual technique. And remember, how hard you train and how hard you strike will carry over to the street when you are attacked. If you train like tai chi, this is how you will defend yourself. If you punch like Bruce Lee, you will defend like Bruce Lee. This is also how you should train in kata bunkai (individual self-defense applications built in kata) - full focus and power. Unless your uke (partner) is well-trained in shitai kori, you don't want to hit him or her with full power during these exercises, but you can definitely strike the air adjacent to them with full force - just make sure it is off to their side and not directed at them - and don't wear gloves as these give your muscles improper feed back.

Now back to size. Karate can give you a distinct advantage. Remember the story of David and Goliath in the Holy Bible? Think it was a fable? Recently archeologists discovered artifacts in Israel, including a Hebrew text about this battle. The 1993 and 1994 discoveries indicated a Philistine giant name Goliath, an 9 foot 8 inch man, was defeated by a small Shepard boy named David in the 10th century BC. Goliath was wearing armor, about 120 pounds in weight, along with his sword and other weapons, and likely was a frightening figure - but can you imagine how slow he moved? He would have had gigantism and not only would have had awkward movements, but also poor vision. David could have ran circles around Goliath until he took one of his chalcedony projectiles (flint, agate, jasper) about the size of a golf ball and accelerated this rock to about 80 miles per hour striking Goliath in the forehead with a kinetic energy of about 90 joules - enough to kill him. An example of BC kobudo.

In martial arts, one can develop extremely powerful and fast strikes. So fast are some that they can accelerate a strike faster than a snake. And rocks and bricks are no match for focused strikes. And there are examples of martial artists knocking off horns of bulls with shuto (karate chop) and puncturing fuel cans with their toes.

Traditional Okinawa Karate

There are differences between traditional Okinawa karate and traditional Japanese karate. So many differences that one could easily write a book about these - but to the uninitiated, they subtle differences are usually missed until they have years of experience in a variety of martial arts. Differences are present in kata, how a sensei (martial arts instructors) treats kata and how students (deshi) are treated by Okinawa sensei vs. Japanese sensei.

Japanese sensei focus on sport; thus kata in Japanese dojo must be done with exact and precise stances. Punches and kicks must be exact and there are no possibilities of variation in movement in any kata. To me, it's more like being a grunt in the Army. In Japanese schools, students are constantly stopped, held in position at certain points of kata while the sensei walks from student to student making minor adjustments. The 'ma' or timing and distancing are all important as focus is on winning kumite (sparring) contests and performing kata in front of an audience at competitions.

In Traditional Okinawa karate schools the focus on 'imi' or the meaning of the kata - something ignored by Japanese sensei. There is no concern for winning - contests are not part of traditional Okinawa karate and instructors recognize people have physical differences and abilities and try to concentrate on developing power and focus for self-defense training for each person. The meaning of kata is very important in Okinawa karate rather than the execution of the kata. In Okinawa karate, the student is taught what every move in every kata is used for and each kata is broken down into  self-defense applications that are practiced in insure the student can defend themselves. 

Just yesterday, I received a phone call from a representative from a coalition of martial artists who wanted me to join in competitions. I tried to explain to this person that traditional karate practitioners do not take part in competition as we consider karate to be a dangerous weapon and our focus is on self-defense and self-improvement. Apparently, he had never heard of this before - and said, "but I thought you were Shorin -Rye-U?" I simply said that most Shorin-Ryu (pronounced Roo) martial artists in particular, do not compete. Apparently this was too much for him to understand. But, we can not blame him, the blame falls on his sensei for not providing him with a history lesson.

Over the years, I trained in a variety of Japanese and Okinawan karate dojo, so here is my perspective about these two different systems of karate. While you read the following, keep in mind that karate is a unique martial art that evolved on Okinawa for hundreds of years and Okinawa is part of an island chain that lies between China and Japan that was an independent monarchy until 1879. Karate, an indigenous Okinawan art, was not introduced to Japan until 1917. It was later introduced to Hawaii in the 1930s and later to the US (Phoenix, Arizona) in 1946. Prior to its introduction on Japan, karate was not practiced as sport.

It is important to understand the circumstances of how karate was introduced on Japan. Karate was a secret for centuries, and then it was introduced in the Okinawa public school system by Anko Itosu in 1901, karate was unknown to the rest of the world, and it still took until the 1960s before people in the US began to recognize that karate was different than judo. When karate was introduced to Japan by Okinawan Gichin Funakoshi in 1919, and then again in 1922, it was touch and go as to whether or not it would ever be accepted by the Japanese. The Japanese thought of Okinawan people as country bumpkins - in other words - peasants with little social grace. Gichin Funakoshi had to modify karate, rename all of the kata giving them Japanese names; and, most importantly, establish a positive working relationship with Japanese judo founder, Dr. Jigoro Kano, before the Japanese would accept karate. The Japanese were so nationalistic that individuals like Mas Oyama had to change their names to receive recognition. Oyama was Korean by birth, and created a Japanese style of karate known as kyokushin in 1957. This type of backwards thinking by the Japanese still pervades, and is one of the primary reasons Japanese karate took a different path than Okinawan karate.

Last year, my wife's nephew was working in Hawaii transporting medical patients from their homes to various medical facilities, when he picked up one old Japanese man from his home (Hawaii has a very large community of Japanese and Okinawans). While driving him to a medical facility through a neighborhood known for high crime, Jeremy tried to strike up a conversation without realizing there was still strong nationalism with many Japanese people. Jeremy said, “Hey, you look like my Okinawan friend …” The Japanese man responded, “What a terrible thing to say that I look like an Okinawan” and demanded Jeremy stop the vehicle so he could get out and walk.

Most are unaware that there is a difference between Okinawa and Japanese karate, but there is a significant difference in how kata is practiced and perceived and the philosophical purpose of karate. In a Japanese dojo, kata must be exact with no room for variance in stances, there are distinct breaks in timing known as ma, and slow techniques are mixed with fast techniques. In Japanese dojo, students are constantly held in stances during both kihon (basics) and kata practice while the sensei walks around from student to student making minor adjustments to the position of feet, shoulders, knees, wrists, weight distribution, etc. There is also considerable emphasis on deep stances. 

I still remember an evening as a teenager too young to have a driver's licensee. On this particular evening, our karate class squatted, duck-walked around the dojo, did dozens of squat-kicks, squatted in kiba dachi (horse riding stance) with a partner standing on our thighs while placing their hands on our shoulders to add weight to our squats. We did a few hundred kicks - it was a tremendously hard workout for a young teenager with no previous experience in formal exercise prior to joining the Black Eagle Federation Karate dojo. Eight years later, I found basic training in the US Army to be a breeze after karate training. 

As the class ended, I had to walk home from the dojo through Fairmont Park (in 1964, the park was an unfriendly place often populated by older teens we called greasers who looked to harass younger teens. This was a much different time when bullying was condoned and practiced with impunity). The distance to my home was 1.5 miles - not much of a distance today, but for a 14 year old, it was a challenge. I had no strength left in my legs and had to walk stiff-legged all the way home. Periodically I would relax a knee and would collapse. Then I had to crawl to a tree, telephone pole, park bench, etc, to pull myself upright. I don’t remember being harassed while walking through the park on this night probably because the greasers felt pity on a handicapped teen.

At the time, I was training in kyokushin Japanese karate. Much emphasis was placed on kiba dachi as a fighting stance along with zenkutsu dachi (front stance). These were found in our kata. When I later trained in Wado-Ryu karate (Japanese) at the University of Utah, we focused on neko-ashi dachi (cat stance). In Shotokan karate (Japanese), the emphasis was on front and back stances (kokutsu dachi) with emphasis on deep and perfect stances. In Kempo Karate (Japanese) the emphasis was on kiba dachi.

Kata were performed more like a military drill team in the Japanese schools and were designed for tournaments and not practical. All of the Japanese systems taught kata with no explanation of application (known as bunkai). Thus, controversy developed as to the use and purpose of kata. In other words, there was no emphasis on bunkai. Sometimes (in Japanese dojo) we practiced kata with one person performing the kata surrounded by three to four attackers along embussen lines. The attackers were required to kick or punch as we moved from one technique to the next in the kata - it didn’t seem realistic and all techniques were designed for sparring.

Periodically my sensei in kyokushin karate taught some general self-defense, but the applications were never linked to kata. Much time was spent on sparring due to the sport karate emphasis and overall lack of understanding of kata. It didn't take long, but I was bored as we were not learning anything new. All of my Japanese sensei didn’t have much background in self-defense and none had any background in kobudo. Japanese karate focused on winning kumite (sparring) contests and all kata were performed for judges. In the final analysis, these Japanese martial arts were military like with little room for interpretation and an objective to win trophies. They were in direct conflict to philosophies of well-known Okinawan practitioners. Gichin Funakoshi, the father of modern karate, stated, “The purpose of Karate lies not in victory of defeat, but in the perfection of its participants”. Karate was all about improving the practitioner, not winning a competition. 

In Okinawan karate schools, kata were taught for muscle memory, balance, power and for self-defense. Bunkai (pragmatic self-defense) was the focus of kata and used to practice defending all kinds of attacks including grabs and also taught to help us develop power, focus, and an understanding of pressure points. This is the reason why those who study Japanese karate constantly ponder at the purpose of kata, but those who study traditional Okinawa karate continually practice kata along with self-defense and understand the importance of kata. In Japanese karate, kata has little purpose other than to please an audience. In Okinawa karate, kata and karate were considered to be the same, as stated by the late Grandmaster Shoshin Nagame.

In the past, there were no contests in traditional Okinawan karate systems, although through time, some Okinawan schools began to compete in the 20th century; but most kept in mind the purpose of bunkai (kata applications). Remember Mr Miyagi in the Karate Kid movie, he epitomized the purpose of Okinawa Karate.

The self-defense applications for each move in kata is very important in Okinawa karate rather than the execution of kata. Each kata is broken down into a group of self-defense applications that are practiced individually to insure the student can defend themselves. Individual applications can be referred to as mini-kata. These are sometimes referred to as Shinken Shobu no Kata also known as Kime no Kata.

Another difference in Okinawa verses Japanese karate is the execution of stances (dachi). In Okinawa karate, students start learning deep stances to build muscle strength, but as the student gains expertise, higher and more natural stances replace deeper stances. For example, zenkutsu-dachi (front stance) can be half the length of the Japanese stance. The Okinawan karate stances are meant to be practical for self-defense by being natural and quick. Whereas the deep Japanese stance is designed for competition.

In the past, Okinawa martial artists did not trust Japanese and would not teach the Japanese bunkai. Having a mindset that the Okinawan people were inferior, the Japanese martial artists never sought bunkai and instead borrowed some from well-established Japanese martial arts such as jujutsu, judo, aikido, etc.

Kime is very important in traditional karate - Kime is about power and focus in strikes and blocks. Every block should be as powerful as every strike. I remember attending clinics in the past when I had another soke send his students to train with me so they could experience power in blocks. These power blocks were taught to me in kyokushin kai karate. In addition to kime, all strikes and blocks need chinkuchi!

Chinkuchi is an Okinawa term that applies to explosive full-body power. Both Dai-Soke Sacharnoski and Bruce Lee have demonstrated this using a one-inch punch. Chinkuchi is an Okinawan technique not practiced in Japanese karate. It is similar to kime, which is a focused strike, but includes the entire body in striking and blocking - hip rotation, focused punch or block, last-second tensing of all muscles and joints followed by a quick relaxation of the muscles.

The philosophy of how to use kicks are different in Japanese vs Okinawa dojo. The Japanese karate schools kick low, medium and high (similar to taekwondo). High kicks are good in competition; however, Okinawan kicks are designed for knees, kidneys, stomach, groin, ribs - in other words - below the neck and mostly below the belt. In addition, the Okinawan kicks employ many kekomi geri (thrust kicks) as well as toe kicks. In Japanese karate, tsumasaki geri are unknown and never employed. To develop a good toe kick, one must train the big toe constantly to build toe strength. There are stories about Goju-Ryu’s Chojun Miyagi who periodically demonstrated his powerful tsumasaki geri by penetrating gas cans with his big toe! One of our martial art students, Dr. Bergkamp, traveled to Okinawa a few years ago on tour of some dojo and returned to Arizona with a very impressive bruise on his stomach outlining one big Okinawan toe with a couple of smaller toes. 

One must wonder how practical such kicks are in our culture. Unless you are a beach bum, it is unlikely you would ever use such a kick. So in our dojo, we will introduce this kick to our students, but it will not be a main focus until we all give up our shoes. 

Kobudo is a another example of differences between Japanese and Okinawan dojo. In all of the Japanese dojo I trained in, no weapons were introduced or practiced. This part of karate is completely ignored by Japanese karate schools. However, kobudo is a major part of Okinawa karate. It has been said that “Karate and Kobudo can be likened to the tires of a bicycle. Both are needed to make the bike move”.

In many Okinawa dojo, tools are available to build strength, endurance and callous. They are designed for the whole body, and include tools for strengthening wrists, fingers, toes and knuckles. In a book by Michael Clarke entitled The Art of Hojo Undo, many exercises are described with descriptions of traditional Okinawan strength training tools and how they are made. Hojo undo translates as supplementary exercises. For those who are serious traditional practitioners, these tools are a must, although there are many modern equivalents that can be used. Some tools used in hojo undo include: makiwara, chi-ishi (strength stones), nigiri game (sand-filled ceramic jars), ishisashi (stone lock), tan (bar bell), kongoken (sand-filled ring), tou (bamboo bundle), kakite bikei (blocking post), makiagi (wrist roller), ude kitae (blocking posts), and jari bako (sand jars).

Another difference between Okinawan karate and Japanese karate is the practice of toide in Okinawan schools. Toide is an Okinawan art that includes joint locks, throws, grappling, etc, similar to traditional jujutsu. Many toide techniques are hidden in Okinawan karate kata.

Japanese karate is tailored for large groups; whereas Okinawan karate is designed for small groups. This is one reason many Okinawan commercial dojo fail outside of Okinawa as they are not conducive to large groups needed to help finance a karate school. Most traditional Okinawan dojo rely on the generosity of their students and do not set high fees. Most are supported by donations. However, when Okinawan schools are attached to and supported by a university, they often draw large groups because of their educational value.

In Japanese dojo, the atmosphere is martial and there is often intimidation by senior students. However, Okinawan dojo are more family friendly and all members are encouraged to become friends.