GOJU-RYU MASTERS

  KANRYO HIGAONNA

Higaonna was born in 1853, in Okinawa. He was small, but his skill and hard training more than made up for his deficiency in size. He started the serious study of the martial arts when he was about sixteen years old. He learned Chinese Kempo and became well known in Naha. He was fascinated by the Chinese fighting arts and began looking for an opportunity to travel to China. In November of 1874, he finally had the chance to go to China with a group of merchants. He left Okinawa and spent fifteen years in China. When he finally returned to Okinawa, he was thirty-seven years old. In spite of his many years of training in the Chinese martial arts, he did not want to teach upon his return. Even after he was convinced to open a dojo by those people who had heard of his reputation in China, he would teach his martial arts only to the most serious students. He taught martial arts in the most traditional manner to those who would learn, not to those who wanted to be taught. Thus Higaonna was credited with bringing martial arts to Okinawa. Many would be students came to Higaonna and many more were sent on their way. However, one boy by the name of Chojun Miyagi did not only stay but was eventually to succeed his teacher and became the founder of Goyu-Ryu in Karate.

CHOJUN MIYAGI

Chojun Miyagi was born in 1888, in Naha, Okinawa. When he was fourteen years old he started to study Karate with Grandmaster Higaonna. Through his dedication to the study of the martial arts, Miyagi was credited with making the system solid and well respected. He was such a dominant force in modern Karate that he became well known not only as the founder of Goju-Ryu Karate but also as the true leader of Okinawas and Japanese Karate. This is why the roots of modern Karate are traced back to this man. Master Chojun first came to Japan in 1928, and instructed at the Kyoto University in Kyoto. In 1932, he became an instructor in the Kansaugakuen in Osaka, thirty miles from Kyoto. By 1937, Karate was fully accepted by the Japanese public, yet the study of it was isolated to military basses and a handful of universities.

 Dec. 1927: Had a seminar with the founder of Judo, Dr. Jigoro Kano

 Apr. 1929: Became Shihan of Okinawan Police. Became Shihan of Naha School of Commerce.

 Nov. 1930: Okinawan Athletic Association accepted Karate as part of its curriculum.

 1927-1930: Taught at Japan Kansai University, Osaka; Ritsumei University, Kyoto;Doshisha University, Kyoto.

 Apr. 1934: Visited Hawaii.

 May 1937: Received first doctorate degree in Karate.

 Apr. 1953: Became Shihan of Okinawa Shihan (teachers) School.

 Oct. 1953: Died at the age of 65 years.

SEIGO TADA

In 1922, Tada was born in Kyoto where Karate was very popular. He started training in the art of Karate in Shanghai, China in 1935, at the age of thirteen. In 1939, he entered the Ritsusmei University and studied Goju-Ryu Karate-Do under the master and founder of the style, Mr. Chojun Maiygi. He entered Ritsumei University nine years after Yamaguchi started the Karate club in Ritsumei-Kan. He opened a Karate dojo in Kyoto in 1945, right after World War II which is also when Yamaguchi returned from Manchu. Tada continued to enjoy teaching Karate and was able to see the 40th anniversary of his Seigo-Kan Karate Academy before his eventual death in late September of 1997. His legacy, Seigo-Kan remains the largest Goju-Ryu organization in Japan.

MOTOO YAMAKURA

Motoo Yamakura was born in Kyoto, Japan in 1943. His father was an educator and an officer in the Japanese Imperial Army and led the Eighth Battalion in World War I. After the war, the elder Yamakura spent most of his time teaching math and Japanese writings. In addition, he was an expert in Kendo.

Motoo Yamakura was wild and violent in his youth. He was the type of child who was always getting into trouble. At the age of 8, he was renowned in his neighborhood as the best fighter in his age group. He was often involved in fights with older boys and was beaten up many times.

At this time he started his formal Karate training. He studied in the Temple of Kyoto where many Karate schools were to be found. The basic moves of Karate were taught there, but students also spent much of their time practicing kobudo (weapons) in the temple's yard. Classes were held only at night. Running through the nearby mountains was one of the major forms of training. His involvement in neighborhood fights continued, and Yamakura was not completely satisfied with the teaching in the temple because it taught more theories and discipline than fighting skills.

Located a few miles from where Yamakura lived was one of the branches of Tada's organization, the Tojukuji Dojo, which was known to be a tough school. Mr. Sakata, then a yon-dan, was the dojo instructor. Yamakura had visited there previously but had decided not to attend because the students looked too tough and there were no children in the dojo. This time, however, he was older and more desperate, and he thought the training available in Tojukuji Dojo would make him tougher. In this dojo, at the age of 14, Yamakura was much too young and too small to be the king of the hill. He now lost more fights than he won. He was anything but a star in his new dojo. There were no junior divisions, even though junior rankings were accepted as token signs of progress. The only real distinctions of rank were either black belt or white belt, though there were also a few brown belts.

Full contact was permitted in the matches. Yamakura would never forget those gloomy days in the dojo training. A bloody nose was a daily routine, and a broken tooth was not uncommon. Only the toughest survived th rigorous training. The training fee was so nominal that financial burden was not a factor in entering or quitting. Training started with beginners mopping the hardwood floor, a task that Yamskura spent many hours on than did his peers. Next on the training schedule was kihon led by instructors who were appointed daily by the instructor (Shi Han Dai).

Kihon was the longest part of the training. All the students spent half of their time practicing kihons, including body shifting exercise. pre-arranged sparring was then taught and practiced. Katas were practiced and evaluated but were never given much time during the training period.

A more regimented training would come to Yamakura's karate life when he was to enter his college karate club. But for the present, body strengthening exercises were optional. Yamakura spent many hours of kata training before the start of class. Running, makiwara and nigiri-game were also optional and could stretch a normal two-hour training session into four or more hours.

Everyone wanted to learn, yet no one wanted to suffer, but there was no way around the suffering. Senior instructors started beginners with nice and easy training, but as the students began to progress, the delivery of a "lesson" became a very common occurrence. A "lesson" taught a student not to be overconfident. Training became like an obstacle course. Yamakura would overcome one obstacle and become comfortable with training, and then another obstacle would be thrown at him.

In the beginning instructors threw punches and kicks slowly so that the beginners could block. But later, more than once, those attacks became forceful. Instructors' punches landing in faces and kicks driving into stomachs became a common scene in the dojo. The sounds of groaning and moaning were often heard. Needless to say, Yamakura's early stage of karate training was not a glorious one.

Yamakura remembers the famous training method which strengthened him tremendously. "I was hit on the nose and the blood was all over my face. I was on the floor in the corner of the dojo. I was given a cold towel to put on my face while the instructor tapped on the back of my neck to stop the bleeding. A few minutes later, when the flow of blood had stopped, I was back on the floor facing the same person who had just hit me. he told me `Yamakura, it is dishonor to be hit on the same spot by the same person - cover your nose.' I put both hands in front of my face. He then threw a hard punch which hit my hands and drove them into my face which resulted in my landing on the floor again."

The instructor then said, "Remember, you cannot block punches by simply placing your hands in front of your face. Blocking is the art of catching a flying object in mid-air. Block punches and kicks with your eyes, move your body accordingly, go with the flow of the fight, catch the attack at the right moment. That is why the Okinawans practice by using tropical fruit." This comes from the well known story that one of the training methods used in Okinawa is to have someone throw adanin, a tropical fruit, at you while you try to dodge, evade or catch the thrown fruit. Suddenly, Yamakura recalled when and realized why he had been made to practice Karate in the dark in the temple.

Yamakura's motto in Karate training became, "Train your stomach to be so strong that you can take punches and kicks without damage". This training must start with regular sit-ups and progress to Sanchin practice. Learn the laws of breathing and combine them with the flexing and relaxation of muscles. Do not make your stomach muscles rigid like steel, but make them firm like a rubber ball. Do not attempt to bounce the attacker's punches and kicks off your stomach. If you do, you will need to generate the same amount of force as the attack. Less force will be needed if you absorb the attack with the stomach muscles. Yamakura learned the secret of this stomach training and became famous for it.

In 1965, Yamakura participated in the annual Seigo Academy tournament. In the grand championship free style sparring match, Yamakura was matched with a senior instructor. Yamakura was the winner of the university division, and his senior was the winner of the general division which included all dojo students, military clubs, and also the graduates from the university clubs. This division obviously was considered to be much stronger than the university division.

During the opening moments of the match, the senior landed one of the fierce front snaps for which he was famous. This tremendous kick caught Yamakura full in the stomach, landing so powerfully that all in the arena could hear the loud sound of impact. Everyone thought that Yamakura was hurt and worried about his ability to continue. This, however, was not the case. Yamakura simply smiled confidently and continued the match. There had been no damage to either his body or his fighting spirit. Even though the baffled senior instructor had scored the first point with that tremendous kick, Yamakura went on to win the match.

Master Tada was walking down a hallway far from the fighting arena when he heard the thunderous noise of the senior's kick and asked a judge walking with him what had happened. The judge went back to the tournament arena and then returned, reporting to Master Tada that the senior instructor's front kick had scored. Master Tada then asked who it was that had received the mighty kick. When the judge reported that it was Yamakura, Master Tada continued walking to his office saying, "Then it will be no problem".

 KARATE TOURNAMENTS

Yamakura entered all Western Goju Ryu Seigo Kan tournaments and he was champion in both kata and kumite in 1965 and 1966. In 1967, only 30 days after his arrival in Boston, Yamakura entered his first American Karate tournament. The tournament was the prestigious Henry Cho's All American held in Madison Square Garden, New York. Yamakura won the light weight championship. After one final good will tournament in Muskegon, Michigan, he retired from competition.

 HIS U.S. MILITARY EXPERIENCE

Yamakura came to the United States in April 1967. He was accepted for permanent residency in December 1968. There was no precedent in the immigration codes for his field of expertise so, with the help of an attorney, a new category was created. Yamakura was one of the first people, if not the first, to receive permanent residency status in the specially skilled labor category of Combat Fighting Specialist.

This was a troubled time for the United States. The country was at the peak of the fighting in the Vietnam War. Since Yamakura was at the top of the 1969 draft, he enlisted in the Massachusetts National Guard. Even though there were approximately 2,000 people on the waiting list, Yamakura was called up within a week because of his special skills. He was immediately assigned to report for basic training. He was assigned to Fort Jackson, South Carolina, for basic training. He was assigned to the Special Forces where he spent most of his time teaching hand-to-hand combat. He demonstrated his martial arts skills for trainees at war games, battalion gatherings, graduations and for the Green Berets. he even gave a demonstration at his own graduation which was attended by the Undersecretary of State.

During his military career, Yamakura trained thousands of soldiers at company, battalion. and even post levels. He was well known in South Carolina, and many drill instructors from North Carolina and Georgia sought his instruction. He became well-known and well-liked in the military. He ended his military obligation as a Staff Sergeant in 1974.

 HIS MARTIAL ARTS PREFERENCE

Yamakura wants to be an international person. He was born in Japan but traveled to the United States and became an American Citizen. He studied English literature while in Japan. He graduated from the foreign studies department where he also learned Spanish and studied Chinese as it relates to Japanese characters. He studied kobudo in his youth, judo in his school days, and has studied karate for over thirty-five years. While in Japan, he studied the styles of Shotokan, Shito-Ryu, and Wado-Ryu as well as Goju-Ryu. He also practiced Sholinji-Kempo with this friends in Japan. He studied and taught Uechi-Ryu in Boston, and experienced Chinese martial arts in Boston's Chinatown with his Chinese friends.

He also studied and taught Tae-Kwan-do (a Korean style of Karate) in Oklahoma City. He learned Chinese and Japanese philosophies from his father, his books and in school. He has also studied Greek and Roman mythologies, and the religious beliefs of Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism.

Yamakura does not want to be influenced by a single source of information. He wishes to decide his own beliefs. he wants to learn everything which can be learned and to be satisfied with his level of understanding. Through this method of deliberate thought, known as Yushin, Yamakura seeks to eventually reach Mushin.

RICHARD STAMPER

Mr. Stamper  began  his  training  in  martial  arts  in  1965.  He  currently  holds  a  Sichi Dan  in  Goju-Ryu  Karate,  Yon Dan in Judo and Go Dan in Jujitsu.  He  also  has  Kyoshi Certification  and  servers  as  the Chairman Asistant  for  the  GKK  international.  He  is  a  very  knowledgeable  and  experienced  instructor.