In
Okinawa, a miraculous and mysterious martial art has come down to us from
the past. It is said that one who masters its techniques can defend himself
readily without resort to weapons and can perform remarkable feats: the
breaking of several thick boards with his fist or ceiling panels of a
room with a kick. With his shuto ("sword hand") he can kill a bull with
a single stroke; he can pierce the flank of a horse with his open hand;
he can cross a room grasping the beams of the ceiling with his fingers,
crush a green bamboo stalk with his bare hand, shear a hemp rope with
a twist, or gouge soft rock with his hands.
Some consider these aspects of this miraculous and mysterious martial
art to be the essence of Karate-do. But such feats are a small part
of karate, playing a role analogous to the straw-cutting test of kendo
[Japanese fencing], and it is erroneous to think that there is no more
to Karate-do than this. In fact, true Karate-do places weight upon spiritual
rather than physical matters, as we shall discuss. True Karate-do is
this: that in daily life, one's mind and body be trained and developed
in a spirit of humility; and that in critical times, one be devoted
utterly to the cause of justice.
KARA
Karate-do is a martial art peculiar to Okinawa in its origins. Although
it has in the past tended to be confused with Chinese boxing because of
the use of the chinese "kara" character in its earlier name, in fact for
the past thousand years, the study and practice of masters and experts,
through which it was nurtured and perfected and formed into the unified
martial art that it is today, took place in Okinawa. It is, therefore,
not a distortion to represent it as an Okinawan martial art.
One may ask why the chinese "kara" character has been retained for so long. As I discuss
in the section "The Development of Karate-do," I believe that at the time the influence
of Chinese culture was at its peak in Japan, many experts in the martial arts traveled
to China to practice Chinese boxing. With their new knowledge, they altered the existing
martial art, called Okinawa-te, weeding out its bad points and adding good points
to it, thus working it into an elegant art. It may be speculated that they considered
"kara" (with the chinese character) an appropriate new name. Since, even in contemporary
Japan, there are many people who are impressed by anything that is foreign, it is not
difficult to imagine the high regard for anything Chinese that prevailed during that
period in Okinawa. Even at the time of the present writer's youth, lack of a full set
of Chinese furniture and furnishings in one's home was a serious impediment to the social
influence of any leading family.
With this background, the reason for the choice of the chinese "kara" character, meaning
"Chinese," as a simple case of exoticism is apparent.
Following tradition, the writer has in the past continued to use the chinese character.
However, because of the frequent confusion with Chinese boxing, and the fact that the
Okinawan martial art may now be considered a Japanese martial art, it is inappropriate,
and in a sense degrading, to continue use of the old "kara" in the name. For this reason,
in spite of many protests, we have abandoned the use of it to replace it with
the new character KARA.
THE MEANING OF KARA
The first connotation of kara indicates that karate is a technique that permits
one to defend himself with his bare hands and fists without weapons.
Second, just as it is the clear mirror that reflects without distortion, or the quiet
valley that echoes a sound, so must one who would study Karate-do purge himself of
selfish and evil thoughts, for only with a clear mind and conscience can he understand
that which he receives. This is another meaning of the element kara in Karate-do.
Next, he who would study Karate-do must always strive to be inwardly humble and
outwardly gentle. However, once he has decided to stand up for the cause of justice,
then he must have the courage expressed in the saying, "Even if it must be ten million
foes, I go!" Thus, he is like the green bamboo stalk: hollow (kara) inside,
straight, and with knots, that is, unselfish, gentle, and moderate. This meaning is
also contained in the element kara of Karate-do.
Finally, in a fundamental way, the form of the universe is emptiness (kara), and,
thus, emptiness is form itself. There are many kinds of martial arts, judo, kendo,
sojitsu ("spear techniques"), bojitsu ("stick techniques"), and others, but at a fundamental
level all these arts rest on the same basis as Karate-do. It is no exaggeration to
say that the original sense of Karate-do is at one with the basis of all martial arts.
Form is emptiness, emptiness is form itself. The kara of Karate-do has this
meaning.
Kyokushinkai Kan
by Masutatsu Oyama
Masutatsu Oyama, the founder of the
largest Karate organization started and established Bare-knuckle, Full-contact
tournament system one of the top authoritative and influential figures
in the world of Martial Arts history one of the pioneers in spreading
the Asian Martial Arts to the West and to all over the world ever pursuing,
ever a practitioner, he is recognized to be reached to the level of
the true Mastery.
Sosai Masutatsu
Oyama (1923 - 1994)
|
Kyoku = Ultimate,
utmost
Shin = Truth,
truthfulness
Kai = Organization
Kan = Building,
School |
The kanji (Japanese characters) calligraphy, worn
universally on the front of the gi, simply means "Kyokushinkai", which
is the name given by Sosai Mas Oyama to the karate style he created. It is
composed of three characters:
Kyoku meaning
"Ultimate".
Shin meaning
"Truth" or "Reality".
Kai meaning
"Society" or "Association".
Kanku
The symbol of Kyokushin Karate is the Kanku, which
is derived from Kanku Kata, the Sky Gazing Form. In this kata, the hands are
raised and the fingers meet to form an opening through which the sky is viewed.
The top and bottom points of the Kanku represent the first fingers of each hand
touching at the top and the thumbs touching at the bottom, symbolizing the peaks or
ultimate points. The thick sections at the sides represent the wrists, symbolizing
power. The center circle represents the opening between the hands through which
the sky is viewed, symbolizing infinite depth. The whole Kanku is enclosed
by a circle, symbolizing continuity and circular action.
Masutatsu Oyama
Masutatsu Oyama, the founder of Kyokushin Karate was born on July 12,
1923 in Korea. He lived on his sister's farm in Manchuria from infancy
until age 12, during this time he studied Kung-Fu. Returning to Korea,
he continued his martial arts training, then travelled to Japan in 1938.
He trained in various martial arts disciplines in Japan earning his
second degree (nidan) black belt in karate at age 17, and fourth degree
(yondan) at age 20. The progress he made in his studies of Judo were
equally astounding, achieving the rank of yondan in less than four years.
One of Mas Oyama's instructors in Karate, So Nei Chu, was to have a
profound influence on Mas Oyama, when he advised him to make a firm
commitment to dedicate his lifeto the martial way. Heeding his words
to "seek solace in nature", Mas Oyama subjected himself to the rigours
of daily training in the mountains of Chiba prefecture in order to strength
his own body and spirit. He was accompanied by one of his own students,
but after six months of isolation, the student secretly fled, leaving
Mas Oyama to continue his vigourous training alone. Returning to civilization
after one year of solitude, he tested his abilities in the karate division
of the first national martial arts championships, and won.
Mas Oyama then imposed on himself a further period of solitary training,
again in the mountains, and upon his return, demonstrated his remarkable
ability by fighting bulls. He fought a total of 52 bulls, killing three
and breaking the horns off 49 others.
His fame as a karateka spread rapidly as his feats were unparalled and
in 1954 he opened his first dojo in Tokyo, Japan. This dojo was the
beginning of the Kyokushin KaiKan. In 1964, the Tokyo Honbu (headquarters)
was officially opened and the International Karate Organization (IKO)
was established. Today, the IKO, headed by Kancho Shokei Matsui, is
the largest karate organization in the world with over twelve million
members in 135 countries
What is Karate?
