HISTORY OF KARATE - DŌ
The following text was extracted from the site, Virtual Encyclopedia of Karate - Dō and Japanese Martial Arts

ORIGINS OF KARATE

According to an old anecdote, the Emperor Napoleon was amazed and admired when he heard of the existence of an East Asian country, which although small, was independent and did not possess any weapon. Located in southern Japan, that country, formerly called the kingdom of Ryukyus and now known as Okinawa prefecture, was the place of origin of Karate.

No one knows when karate made its first appearance on Ryukyus. In the past it was always kept strictly secret from foreigners, and there is no record to refer to for information.

There were two occasions in the history of Ryukyus, when weapons were banned by government edicts; the first time more than five hundred years ago and the second time two hundred years later. These prohibitions did nothing but help the development of karate.

Until the beginning of the 15th century Ryukyus was divided into 3 independent kingdoms: Chuzan, Nanzan, and Hokuzan - each fighting the other for supremacy. Chuzan eventually prevailed and the country was unified under its king, Sho Hashi (1372-1439). A non-military government was immediately established. A strict edict was issued that prohibited any possession of weapons.

For two centuries they enjoyed peace, then in 1609 they were attacked by Shimazu, military governors of southern Kyushu, Japan. After a great resistance, Ryukyu falls into the hands of Shimazu. Weapons were again banned, this time not only to the people, but to the upper classes as well. Many historians agree that this second ban was what spurred the creation of unarmed means of self-defense. Even so, some forms of unarmed combat were already practiced prior to the invasion.

Since the Ryukyus were a tributary state to China, there were periods of frequent contact with China, so it would have been quite natural for the Kempo (lit., "fist method") to have been imported to the island. Elements of kenpo were probably adapted and incorporated into local combat styles. In this way the two precursors of Karate originated - Dō, Okinawa - Te and To - De. As children, we often heard our elders talk about the latter two and it is very reasonable to assume that before the first term referred to forms of combat involving the tradition of Chinese kempo, and secondly, native combat techniques.

The history of martial arts in China can be traced for at least 6000 years but the records become clearer 3000 years ago. During the reign of King Wen in the Chou dynasty. During this period ancient fighting methods were systematized, mainly due to the efforts of three men, Ta-Shang Lao-ch'un, Ta-yi Chen-jen and Yuan Shih-t'ien, who founded what could be called the Three Primitive Schools of martial arts techniques. Their systems have been passed down from generation to generation, through disciples, adding enhancements and eventually reaching the highly refined techniques of today.

In this last millennium, it gradually evolved into two major styles: Shang Wu and Shaolin. Through the Yuan (1279-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Ch'ing (1644-1912) dynasties, adherents of both styles competed to polish and perfect them, in the process a number of schools were formed derivatives. Both styles obviously have their strengths and their weaknesses, and it is impossible to say which is better. In China the practice was very open and therefore its diffusion was very wide in the general population. They were eventually viewed with pride as national traditions.

The Shang Wu style, founded by Chang-san Feng, places primary emphasis on the power of ch'i (ki in Japanese). The T'ai ch'i, Hsing-i and Pa-kua are good examples. In appearance their movements have an explosive power, which when applied effectively can easily knock a man off.

In the Shaolin style, Ta-mo Lao-tsu (Bodhidharma) is considered its founder. It places emphasis on the practical application of hand and foot techniques to block and attack, along with hard-soft and long-short techniques, that is, short strikes and short percussive techniques.

The Shaolin style of kenpo eventually spread throughout China and is still popular today. It crossed the sea to Ryukyus, where it probably blended with those local shapes it most closely resembled.

With the ban on weapons, the practice of unarmed combat methods quickly became shrouded in secrecy, as the locals understandably did not want to know about the existence of these methods.

The practice of not revealing the principles of his art to foreigners was not only characteristic of karate; it also took place in kendo and other martial arts as well. But there was no comparison with the great precautions that were taken in Ryukyus, where there was also a ban on keeping written records. In the Meiji period (1868-1912), when the need for reservation no longer existed, the centuries-long tradition of secrecy was maintained.

Due to the lack of written records, virtually nothing is known about the creators of karate and how it was passed down. What is known today is thanks to oral transmission and is therefore infuriatingly vague. Trying to generate something clear is like trying to catch a cloud.

No one made karate their profession, so the historical tradition was neglected. Those who taught karate did it out of personal interest and those who studied karate did it just because they liked it. When the Master Funakoshi he studied under the tutelage of Master Azato, who was considered one of the greatest karate experts in his time, he was his only student; When he trained with Master Itosu, there were very few other students.

It was not until Master Funakoshi arrived in Tokyo that the term Karate - Dō began to be used by his students and by him. The term Karate - Dō, created by Master Funakoshi, is made up of three ideograms, the first Kara, means: empty, which implies self-defense with empty hands, without weapons and also has a deeper meaning (glossary), the second Te, means hand, and finally Dō, which means via, philosophical path.

In 1891 or 1892, according to Master Funakoshi, a school teacher began teaching karate to his students (who were older in those days). When the recruiting time came, it was immediately observed that those who trained karate were in better physical condition than others. Later, the teacher Itosu was invited to attend a meeting of school directors and make a demonstration with his students. They were very impressed and karate was quickly incorporated into the physical education program of two of the largest secondary schools in Okinawa.

In May 1922, the Ministry of Education of Japan held the First Athletics Exhibition. Master Funakoshi, as president of the Okinawan Martial Arts Association, was invited to participate and show the local martial arts to Japan (the main islands). The teacher prepared material and left for Japan. After the exhibition, he was forced to stay because of all the interest shown, initially from Kano Jigoro, the great Judō master, before whom, along with about a hundred Judōkas, he demonstrated. This was the beginning of a large number of activities in Tokyo, which prevented him from returning to Okinawa for a long time. Thus was established the beginning of Karate - Dō, created through the fusion of Okinawan martial arts and Budō philosophy of Japanese martial arts proper, such as Kyudō, the art of archery. In the years after Master Funakoshi arrived in Tokyo, different styles were formed, some of which were introduced by other Okinawan masters. Each used their own techniques, kata and training methods that were jealously kept secret. The rivalry between the groups was intense and the proliferation of styles caused karate to be divided in a very notorious way.

During World War II all Budō arts were controlled by the Budōkukai, a government department in charge of defense. As Karate was considered to be an Okinawan art and not a native art of Japan, it was not allowed to participate in it, except through the Judō section. After the war the Budō arts were prohibited by the occupying forces. But, since karate was not tied to the Budōkukai, in 1947, Karate clubs were allowed to reopen.

In 1948, (or 1949, depending on the source) Funakoshi students, university clubs, and private dojos throughout Japan were officially organized in the Nihon Karate Kyokai (Japan Karate Association, JKA) and they appointed Master Funakoshi as their chief instructor. Isao Obata, the Director and Kichinosuke Saigo as the first president of the JKA, neither of them had the time or inclination to manage the interests of such a large organization and therefore the board immediately hired full-time staff to manage it. Masatomo Takagi was hired as general secretary; Masatoshi Nakayama as chief instructor, to conduct daily training at headquarters; Kimio Ito was appointed director of administration; and Hidetaka Nishiyama was appointed head of the instructors commission.

To understand what happened next to the JKA and the export of karate to the rest of the world, a little additional information will be needed. Not only ancestry but also wealth established a person's position in the Japanese class structure and institutions, especially in high schools and universities. Even today, the wealth of a family and its position, will determine to a large extent the university in which a young person will study and therefore also the possibility of success of a graduate will be strongly influenced by the same. The big three, in terms of universities, by political and social prestige are: Keio, Waseda and Hosei, the "Old Boys". These three, together with Takushoku also represent the best in Japan but Takushoku was not part of the establishment of the universities. Commonly called Takudai, it was created before World War II for the express purpose of training administrators for jobs abroad. As a result, Takudai students earned degrees in economics, import and export, and international law.

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