Promotion to Yondan
Kyu/Dan System For most of us, the kyu/dan system is the standard rank system in martial arts, but few know where it comes from. In the late 1800s Japanese swimmers began using the system and colored belts to identify the…
Using the Hips
Introduction to Koshi The word koshi is simply the Japanese word for the area from your navel to your hip sockets, but when discussing martial arts it specifically refers to how to generate power with your hips, and it is…
Counting
Guide to explain how to count to ten in Japanese and in the Okinawan dialect (Hogen). Neither is "better" for class, they are just different.
3. Pinan Series
Introduction The Pinan Series is comprised of five katas. They were created by Yasutsune “Anko” Itosu. Sensei Itosu is often referred to as the father of modern karate. This title is shared with Gichin Funakoshi (Okinawan Karate vs Japanese Karate).…
Reorganizing Articles
This article is an administrative update on the website. In it there is: 1) Karate Manual 2) Synchronization 3) Be Patient 4) Learning from Videos 5) Slow Transition
Japanese Terminology List
It is best to learn Japanese terms as you learn a concept or technique, rather than trying to memorize them from a list. That being said, sometimes you forget words or terms and need to look them up. I refer…
Requirements for First Promotion
In honor of having two new students down at class today, I wanted to discuss the different things I have seen and heard of for the first promotion at a karate school. This is neither an argument for or against on one system. I just thought it would be helpful to give some perspective on how some schools view the first promotion compared to others. The five examples I am going to examine our:
Matayoshi Bo Kata
In the first post about Matayoshi Kobudo, I talked primarily about the sai. In the last post about Hakutsuru I discussed the various weapons that were taught to Shinko Matayoshi, including bojutsu. This post will be about the bojutsu of…
Misconceptions
I was recently reading around a blog when I cam across the remnants of a poster who was banned and had all his posts deleted. Luckily a handful of people had quoted him. I am going to paraphrase some of…
2. Naihanchi Series
Introduction The Naihanchi (Fighting with Stealth) Series is the first of the fundamental katas taught in our system. It should be thought of as a self-contained fighting system, rather than part of the Shorin-ryu fighting system. In classical times, a…
Gichin Funakoshi’s Nijukun
In 1938 Gichin Funakoshi published his book "The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate".
Tode Jukun
Anko Itosu wrote a letter in October 1908 entitled, "Tode Jukun" (Ten Precepts of Karate), to gain the attention of the Japanese Government.
Japanese – Part II
Few instructors in Okinawa or Japan will offer you instruction in English. My first seminar in Shorinkan was with two Kudan instructors who spoke little English.
Japanese – Part I
The first traditional value that all Karate schools should incorporate is a basic knowledge of the Japanese language.
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