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KARATE-DO |
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| Karate product of 20th century, its roots can be traced to ancient India, China and Okinawa. India which developed Yoga and its various breathing methods, has greatly influenced the fighting techniques of the east. Many consider India to be the birth place of martial arts. During the 5th and 6th centuries B.C. Indian combat techniques resembling modern Karate were transferred to China by Zen Buddhist monks. At the end of the 5th century, a Buddhist priest named Bodhidharma traveled to China from India to teach at the Shaolin Monastery. There he taught the monks a combination of Yoga and Indian fist fighting that became the fighting system of Shaolin. As their religion prohibited the use of weapons the monks had to rely on these methods of empty-handed fighting know as Shorinji Kempo. Shorinji Kempo also included methods of fighting with natural weapons such as the "Bo" - a walking stick carried by the monks. This truly Chinese art was never to revive in China but before dying out, Kempo had spread to the Ryukyu Islands where it was to give birth to Karate. Chinese families emigrated to Okinawa, introducing Kempo to the Ryukyu Islands. In 1609, the Ryukyu islands were conquered by Japanese warlord Shimazu. Because the Okinawans had refused to help shimazu, he issued strict law prohibiting all weapons and martial arts practice. Once again the Okinawans went undercover and developed and art of empty-handed fighting, developing a paralled practice of using farm implements as defensive weapons against Samurai Swords. This fighting art became known as Okinawa - te. Masters anko Itosu and Kanryo Higashionna were the foremost Karate instructors in Okinawa. Anko Itosu developed the Shuri-te school and Kanryo Higashonna developed Naha-te school of Karate. The schools were named after the two largest cities - Shrui and Naha. Chojun Miyagi who was Kanryo Higashionna foremost student later established Goju Ryu in 1927-28.Choshin Chibana who was a student of Anko Itosu named his style Shorin Ryu in 1933. Kanbun Uechi who had practices Chinese Kempo founded Uechi Ryu in 1947. In 1879, the Ryukyu Islands became Japanese provinces and Okinawan Karate went to Japan. The first official Karate demonstration outside of Okinawa was held in 1916 by Okinawan experts including Gichin Funakoshi who founded Shotokan. In 1922, the first Karate book "Ryukyu Kempo Karate" was published by Gichin Funakoshi. In 1929 Chojun Miyagi founder of Goju ryu went to Japan to teach the style. Gogen Yamaguchi was responsible for the spread of Goju-Ryu in Japan. |
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