Gōjū-ryū 剛柔流
Gōjū-ryū founder Chōjun Miyagi.
Date founded	c.1930
Country of origin	Okinawa (Japan)
Founder	Chōjun Miyagi (宮城 長順, Miyagi Chōjun, 1888–1953)
Current head	In alphabetical order: (1) Gōjū-Kai / Gogen Yamaguchi, founder; Goshi Yamaguchi. (2) IOGKF / Morio Higaonna, founder. (3) Jinbukan, Katsuyoshi Kanei, founder; (4) Jundokan International / Teruo Chinen, founder. (5) Jundokan Okinawa / Ei'ichi Miyazato, founder; Tetsonuke Yasuda. (6) Kenshikai / Tetsuhiro Hokama, founder. (7) Ken-Shin-Kan / Seiichi Yoshikata Akamine, founder; Raul Fernandez de la Reguera. (8) Seigokan Gōjū-ryū / Seigo Tada, founder. (9) Seito Gōjū-ryū / Kanki Izumikawa, founder. (10) Sengukan / Seiko Fukuchi and Kanki Izumikawa, founder. (11) Shobukan / Masanobu Shinjo, founder; Seiki Takushi and John Porta. (12) Shodokan / Seiko Higa, founder; (13) Shoreikan / Seikichi Toguchi, founder. (14) Yuishinkan/Tomoharu Kisaki (15) Meibukan / Meitoku Yagi, founder; Meitatsu Yagi.
Arts taught	Karate
Ancestor schools	Naha-te • Shaolin Nam Pai Chuan • Fujian White Crane
Descendant schools	Kyokushin

Gōjū-ryū (剛柔流^?), (Japanese for "hard-soft style") is one of the main traditional Okinawan styles of karate, featuring a combination of hard and soft techniques. Both principles, hard and soft, come from the famous martial arts book Bubishi (Chinese: wu bei ji), used by Okinawan masters during the 19th and 20th centuries. Go which means hard, refers to closed hand techniques or straight linear attacks; Ju which means soft, refers to open hand techniques and circular movements.

Major emphasis is given to breathing correctly in all of the katas but particularly in the Sanchin kata which is one of two core katas of this style. The second kata is called Tensho, meant to teach the student about the soft (ju) style of the system. Gōjū-ryū practices methods that include body strengthening and conditioning, its basic approach to fighting (distance, stickiness, power generation, etc.), and partner drills. Gōjū-ryū incorporates both circular and linear movements into its curriculum. Gōjū-ryū combines hard striking attacks such as kicks and close hand punches with softer open hand circular techniques for attacking, blocking, and controlling the opponent, including locks, grappling, takedowns and throws.

History [link]

The development of Gōjū ryū goes back to Kanryo Higashionna, (1853–1916), a native of Naha, Okinawa. Master Higashionna began studying Shuri-te as a child. He was first exposed to martial arts in 1867, when he began training in Monk Fist Boxing (Luohan Quan) under a master named Aragaki Tsuji Pechin Seisho, a fluent Chinese speaker and translator for the Ryukyu court. In 1870, Aragaki had to go to Beijing to translate for Okinawan officials. It was then that he recommended Higashionna to another master named Kojo Taitei, who he began training under. With the help of Taitei and a family friend, Higashionna eventually managed to set up safe passage to China, lodging, and martial arts instruction. In 1873 he left for Fuzhou in Fujian Province, China, where he began studying Chinese boxing under various teachers.^[1][2]

Kanryo Higashionna, circa early 1900s

In 1877 he began to study under a kung fu master called Ryū Ryū Ko (or Liu Liu Ko, or To Ru Ko; the name is uncertain.) Tokashiki Iken has identified him as Xie Zhongxiang, founder of Whooping Crane Kung Fu. Zhongxiang taught several Okinawan students who went on to become karate legends.^[3]

Higashionna returned to Okinawa in 1882 and continued in the family business of selling firewood, while teaching a new school of martial arts, distinguished by its integration of gō-no (hard) and jū-no (soft) kempo into one system. Higashionna's style was known as Naha-te. Gojukai history considers that Chinese Nanpa Shorin-ken was the strain of kung fu that influenced this style (1).

Higaonna Morio noted that in 1905, Higashionna Kanryo sensei taught martial arts in two different ways, according to the type of student: At home, he taught Naha-te as a martial art whose ultimate goal was to be able to kill the opponent; however, at Naha Commercial High School, he taught karate as a form of physical, intellectual and moral education.^[4]

Higashionna's most prominent student was Chojun Miyagi (1888–1953), the son of a wealthy shop owner in Naha, who began training under Higashionna at the age of 14. Miyagi had begun his martial arts training under Ryuko Aragaki at age 11, and it was through Aragaki that he was introduced to Higashionna. Miyagi trained under Higashionna for 15 years, until Higashionna's death in 1916.^[5]

In 1915 Miyagi and a friend Gokenki went to Fuchou in search of Higashionna's teacher. They stayed for a year and studied under several masters but the old school was gone (Boxer Rebellion 1900). Shortly after their return, Higashionna died. Many of Higashionna's students continued to train with him and he introduced a kata called Tensho which he had adapted from Rokkishu of Fujian White Crane.^[6]

Higashionna's most senior student Juhatsu Kyoda formed a school he called Tōon-ryū (Tōon is another way of pronouncing the Chinese characters of Higashionna's name, so Tōon-ryū means "Higashionna's style"), preserving more of Higashionna's approach to Naha-te.^[7]

In 1929 delegates from around Japan were meeting in Kyoto for the All Japan Martial Arts Demonstration. Higashionna asked Miyagi to go as his representative; Miyagi was also unable to attend, and so he in turn asked his top student Jin’an Shinsato to go. While Shinsato was there, one of the other demonstrators asked him the name of the martial art he practiced. At this time, Miyagi had not yet named his style. Not wanting to be embarrassed, Shinsato improvised the name hanko-ryu ("half-hard style"). On his return to Okinawa he reported this incident to Chojun Miyagi, who decided on the name Gōjū-ryū ("hard soft style") as a name for his style.^[8][9] Chojun Miyagi took the name from a line of the poem Hakku Kenpo, which roughly means: "The eight laws of the fist," and describes the eight precepts of the martial arts. This poem was part of the Bubishi, a classical Chinese text on martial arts and medicine. The line in the poem reads: Ho wa Gōjū wa Donto su "the way of inhaling and exhaling is hardness and softness," or "everything in the universe inhales soft and exhales hard."^[10]

In March 1934, Miyagi wrote Karate-do Gaisetsu ("Outline of Karete-do (Chinese-hand)"), to introduce karate-do and to provide a general explanation of its history, philosophy, and application. This handwritten monograph is one of the few written works composed by Miyagi himself.^[11]

Miyagi's house was destroyed during World War II. In 1950, several of his students began working to build a house and dojo for him in Naha, which they completed in 1951. In 1952, they came up with the idea of creating an organization to promote the growth of Goju-Ryu. This organization was called Goju-Ryu Shinkokai ("Association to Promote Goju-Ryu"). The founding members were Seko Higa, Keiyo Matanbashi, Jinsei Kamiya, and Genkai Nakaima.^[12]

There are two years that define the way Goju-ryu has been considered by the Japanese establishment: the first, 1933, is the year Gōjū-ryū was officially recognized as a budō in Japan by Dai Nippon Butoku Kai, in other words, it was recognized as a modern martial art, or gendai budō. The second year, 1998, is the year the Dai Nippon Butoku kai recognized Goju-ryu Karatedo as an ancient form of martial art (koryu) and as a bujutsu.^[13] This recognition as a koryu bujutsu shows a change in how Japanese society sees the relationships between Japan, Okinawa and China. Until 1998, only martial arts practiced in mainland Japan by samurai had been accepted as koryu bujutsu.^{[citation needed]}

Philosophy[link]

Miyagi believed that "the ultimate aim of karate-do was to build character, conquer human misery, and find spiritual freedom".^[14]

He stated that it was important to balance training for self-defense with "training the mind, or cultivating the precept karate-do ni sente nashi ('there is no first strike in karate')"; he also emphasized the importance of "cultivating intellect before strength".^[15]

Miyagi chose the name Goju-ryu ("go" meaning "hard" and "ju" meaning "soft"), to emphasize that his style integrated both "hard" and "soft" styles. Goju applies not just to karate, but to life in general; only hardness or only softness will not enable one to deal effectively with the fluctuations of life. When blocking, the body is soft and inhaling; when striking, the body is hard and exhaling.^[2]

Kata / bunkai [link]

Gōjū-ryū has 12 core kata in its standard curriculum: gekisai (dai ichi & dai ni), saifa, seiyunchin, seisan, saipai, shisochin, sanseiru, kururunfa, sanchin, tensho, and suparenpai. Students in most schools are required to know all of these kata before reaching sandan.^[16]

Morio Higaonna sensei writes that "Karate begins and ends with kata. Kata is the essence and foundation of karate and it represents the accumulation of more than 1000 years of knowledge. Formed by numerous masters throughout the ages through dedicated training and research, the kata are like a map to guide us, and as such should never be changed or tampered with."^[17]

Almost all of the kata have a corresponding bunkai oyo, a prearranged two-person fighting drill. These drills help the student to understand the applications of the kata, establish proper rhythm/flow, to practice constant attack/defense, and to safely practice dangerous moves on a partner.^[18]

Kihongata [link]

Kihongata means a "kata of basics." In Gōjū-ryū, sanchin kata is the foundation to all other Gōjū kata because it teaches basic movements, basic techniques, power generation and breathing techniques from qigong. It is also the foundation of body conditioning. The more the karateka practices this kata, the more his Heishugata will change. First variation of Sanchin-kata (sanchin kata dai-ichi) serves as Kihongata. See more on Sanchin kata below.

Gekisai[link]

Gekisai (kanji: 撃砕; katakana: ゲキサイ)^[19] means "attack and destroy". These kata were created around 1940 by Chojun Miyagi and Nagamine Shoshin as beginners' kata, to introduce the basic forms of karate (kihon) to middle school students in Okinawa, to help bring about the standardization of karate, and to teach a basic set of techniques for self-defense.^[16][20] Gekisai kata were strongly influenced by the Shuri-te techniques that Master Miyagi learned from Master Anko Itosu.^[21]

Students first learn gekisai dai ichi and then gekisai dai ni. The main difference between dai ichi and dai ni is that dai ni introduces open handed techniques and new stances.^[16] It is in gekesai dai ni that students are introduced to the neko ashi dachi stance, and to the wheel block(Tomai Uke).^[20]

Saifa[link]

Saifa (Kanji: 砕破; Katakana: サイハ)^[19] means "smash and tear".^[22] Saifa has its origins in China, and was brought to Okinawa by Higashionna. It contains quick whipping motions, hammerfists, and back fist strikes; it particularly emphasizes moving off-line from an opponent's main force, while simultaneously closing distance and exploding through them.^[23] This is usually the first advanced Gōjū-ryū kata the students learn in most goju kaiha, after gekisai dai ichi and gekisai dai ni.^{[citation needed]}

Sanchin[link]

Sanchin (Kanji: 三戦; Katakana: サンチン) means "three battles". This kata is a sort of moving meditation, whose purpose is to unify the mind, body and spirit. The techniques are performed very slowly so that the student masters precise movements, breathing, stance/posture, internal strength, and stability of both mind and body.^[24][25]

Sanchin is the foundation for all other kata, and is generally considered to be the most important kata to master.^[26] When new students came to Miyagi, he would often train them for three to five years before introducing them to sanchin. He would make them train very hard, and many of them quit before learning sanchin. Those that remained would focus almost exclusively on sanchin for two to three years. Miyagi's sanchin training was very harsh, and students would often leave practice with bruises from him checking their stance.^[27]

Tensho[link]

Tensho (Kanji: 転掌; Katakana: テンショウ) means "revolving hands".^[19] Like sanchin, tensho is a form of moving meditation; tensho combines hard dynamic tension with soft flowing hand movements, and concentrates strength in the tanden.^[25] Tensho can be considered the ju (soft) counterpart of the sanchin's go (hard) style.^[28][29]

Kaishugata [link]

Kaishugata means a "kata with open hands." This is more advanced than Heishugata. Kaishugata serves as a "combat application reference" kata and is open to vast interpretation (Bunkai) of its movements' purpose (hence, "open hands").

• Seiunchin (kanji: 制引戦; katakana: セイユンチン (attack, conquer, suppress; also referred to as "to control and pull into battle"): Seiunchin kata demonstrates the use of techniques to unbalance, throw and grapple, contains close-quartered striking, sweeps, take-downs and throws.
• Shisōchin - Kanji: 四向戦- Katakana: シソーチン ("to destroy in four directions" or "fight in four directions"): It integrates powerful linear attacks (shotei zuki) and circular movements and blocks. It was the favorite kata of the late Miyagi.
• Sanseirū - Kanji: 三十六手 - Katakana: サンセイルー (36 Hands): The kata teaches how to move around the opponent in close quarters fights, and emphasizes the destruction of the opponent's mobility by means of kanzetsu geri.
• Seipai - Kanji: 十八手 - Katakana: セイパイ (18 Hands): Seipai incorporates both the four directional movements and 45° angular attacks and implements techniques for both long distance and close quarter combat. This was a Seikichi Toguchi's specialty kata.
• Kururunfā - Kanji: 久留頓破 - Katakana: クルルンファー (holding on long and striking suddenly): Its techniques are based on the Chinese Praying Mantis style. It was Ei'ichi Miyazato's specialty kata.
• Seisan - Kanji: 十三手 - Katakana: セイサン (13 Hands): Seisan is thought to be one of the oldest kata that is widely practiced among other Naha-te schools. Other ryuha also practice this kata or other versions of it.
• Supārinpei - Kanji: 壱百零八 - Katakana: スーパーリンペイ (108 Hands): Also known as Pechurin, it is the most advanced Gōjū-ryū kata. Initially it had three levels to master (Go, Chu, and Jo), later Miyagi left only one, the highest, "Jo" level. This was a Meitoku Yagi's, Masanobu Shinjo, and Morio Higaonna's specialty kata.

Fukyugata[link]

In 1940, Gen Hayakawa, governor of Okinawa, assembled the Karate-Do Special Committee, composed by Ishihara Shochoku (chairman), Miyagi Chojun, Kamiya Jinsei, Shinzato Jinan, Miyasato Koji, Tokuda Anbun, Kinjo Kensei, Kyan Shinei, and Nagamine Shoshin. The goal of these men was to create a series of Okinawan kata in order to teach both physical education and very basic Okinawan independent style martial arts to school children.^[30] Their goal was not to create a standardized karate as the Japanese had been doing with Kendo and Judo for the sake of popularization.

This type of kata is not traditional Gōjū-ryū kata; instead, they are "promotional kata", simple enough to be taught as part of Physical Education programs at schools, and part of a standardized karate syllabus for schools, independently of the sensei's style.

Nagamine Shoshin (Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryū) developed fukyugata dai ichi, which is part of current Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu syllabus; and Miyagi Chojun developed fukyugata dai ni, which is part of current Gōjū-ryū syllabus under the name gekisai dai ichi. Some Gōjū-ryū dojos still practice fukyugata dai ichi. Miyagi sensei also created gekisai dai ni, but it is practiced by Gōjū-ryū and some offsprings only.

Notes [link]

References [link]

• Higaonna, Morio (2001). The History of Karate: Okinawan Goju Ryu. ISBN 0-946062-36-6. 
• Kane, Lawrence A.; Wilder, Kris (2005). The Way of Kata: A Comprehensive Guide to Deciphering Martial Applications. YMAA Publication Center Inc. ISBN 978-1-59439-058-6. 
• McCarthy, Patrick (1995). The Bible of Karate: Bubishi. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 0-8048-2015-5. 
• McCarthy, Patrick (1999). Ancient Okinawan Martial Arts. Vol. 1. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8048-3147-5. 
• McCarthy, Patrick; Lee, Mike (1987). Classical Kata of Okinawan Karate (2nd ed.). Black Belt Communications. ISBN 978-0-89750-113-2. 
• Nardi, Thomas J. (June 1985). "Learning Goju-Ryu Karate from the Source: Chojun Miyagi". Black Belt Magazine 23 (6): 28–32; 126–129. http://books.google.com/books?id=HtsDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA28. 
• Okami, Paul (January 1983). "The Long and Winding Road: History of Goju-Ryu From Its Origin in China to Its Demise(?) in New York City". Black Belt Magazine 21 (1): 70–77. http://books.google.com/books?id=I9IDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA70. 
• Toguchi, Seikichi (1976). Okinawan Goju-Ryu. Black Belt Communications. ISBN 978-0-89750-018-0. 
• Toguchi, Seikichi (2001). Okinawan Goju-Ryu II: Advanced Techniques of Shorei-Kan Karate. Black Belt Communications. ISBN 978-0-89750-140-8. 
• Wilder, Kris (2007). The Way of Sanchin Kata: The Application of Power. YMAA Publication Center Inc. ISBN 978-1-59439-084-5. 

Further reading [link]

• Sells, John; "The Okinawans", Black Belt Magazine, October 1977
• Higaonna, Morio (1998). "El Comienzo del Goju Ryu y Su Desarrollo" (in Spanish). Karate-do Tradicional: Tecnicas Basicas. Vol. 1. Editorial Paidotribo. ISBN 978-84-8019-327-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=_7TOmnqMzrMC&pg=PA41. 

External links[link]

• International Goju-Ryu Karate Federation (IOGKF)
• IOGKF-USA
• General Goju Ryu Information

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Morio Higaonna (Higaonna Morio, born December 25, 1938) is a prominent Okinawan karate practitioner who is the founder and Chief Instructor of the International Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate-do Federation (IOGKF).^[1][2] He is a holder of the highest rank in Goju-ryu karate, 10th dan.^[1] Higaonna has written several books on Goju-ryu karate, including Traditional Karate-do: Okinawa Goju Ryu (1985)^[3] and The history of Karate: Okinawan Goju Ryu (2001).^[4] Martial arts scholar Donn Draeger (1922–1982) reportedly once described him as "the most dangerous man in Japan in a real fight."^[5][6][7]

Early life[link]

Higaonna was born on December 25, 1938, in Naha, Okinawa.^[8][9][10] He began studying Shōrin-ryū karate at the age of 14 with his father and then with his friend Tsunetaka Shimabukuro.^[8] It was Shimabukuro who recommended that Higaonna learn Goju-ryu karate at Chojun Miyagi's garden dojo (training hall).^[8] In the late 1950s, he began training under Ei'ichi Miyazato^[11][12] (the most senior student of Chojun Miyagi, 1888–1953, who founded the Goju-ryu style) and An'ichi Miyagi^[13] (who was reportedly like an adopted son of, though not related to, C. Miyagi).

Higaonna was awarded black belt status by Miyazato in 1957.^[10] In 1960, he moved to Tokyo to study at Takushoku University.^[8] On December 30 of that year, Higaonna was promoted to the rank of 3rd dan at the first all-style dan grading of the Okinawa Karate-do Renmei.^[8][13] He was invited to teach at Tokyo's Yoyogi dojo, where he attracted a large following of karateka (practitioners of karate).^[13][14]

Promoting Goju-ryu across the world[link]

In July 1979, Higaonna founded the IOGKF in Poole, England.^[2][8] He was ranked 7th dan at the time.^[15] In 1980, Higaonna married a US student, Alanna Stevens, and their son Eric was born in November that year.^[16] The family lived in Okinawa from May 1981 to May 1985, then in Tokyo from 1985 to 1987.^[16]

In September 1987, Higaonna moved with his family to Southern California to establish a new dojo.^[16] With San Marcos as a base,^[16][17][18] he began hosting budo festivals while continuing to research, practice, and travel worldwide to teach, such as in the former Soviet Union.^[16] Higaonna received his 8th dan and 9th dan promotions from Yuchoku Higa.^[19] In 2004, Higaonna was a member of the Okinawan Karatedo and Kobudo Encyclopedia Committee.^[9]

Higaonna later returned to live in Japan,^[16] and attained the rank of 10th dan in September 2007.^[2] His wife, Alanna Higaonna, is Administrative Director^[20] and an Advisor^[21] for the IOGKF, and his son, Eric Higaonna, is also a karateka.^[16] Higaonna remains active in karate, teaching in his home city, in Tsuboya, Naha, Okinawa.^[2][12]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Higaonna Dojo, Naha, Okinawa

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Seikichi Toguchi (b. May 20, 1917 in Naha City, Okinawa, Japan - d. August 31, 1998 in Tokyo) was the founder of Shorei-kan karate.

Biography[link]

As a young boy, Toguchi learned the basic techniques of Okinawan Te from his father. In 1930, at the age of 15, he began his lifelong study of Gōjū-ryū karate at the dojo of Sekō Higa and later under Chojun Miyagi as one of his principal students. He studied under Higa for over 33 years and under Miyagi for more than 25 years, making his karate education unique. Toguchi was fortunate as Miyagi was a personal friend of Toguchi's father and so paid many visits to the family. At these times the conversation nearly always turned to karate and the discussions would go on till the early hours of the morning.

Toguchi continued his full-time study of karate until the beginning of World War II, when he was drafted into the army as an electrical engineer and stationed in Sumatra, Indonesia. In 1946 he returned to Okinawa to find a devastated people and homeland. Miyagi had lost three children and one of his senior students, Jinan Shinsato. Higa had lost his wife. Miyagi began teaching at the police academy and Higa moved in with Toguchi. At this time Higa also played matchmaker and introduced Toguchi to a young girl named Haruko, soon to be his wife.

In 1949, with the help of Toguchi, Higa opened up a new dojo and Toguchi was appointed Shihan. Before his death, Miyagi passed on all his advanced kata and teachings to Toguchi, one of the more important being kaisai no genri. This teaching explains how to unlock the hidden techniques of the koryu kata. In 1953, after the death of Miyagi, his senior students formed the Karate-Do Goju Association with Meitoku Yagi as chairman and Seikichi Toguchi as Vice Chairman.

Establishment of Shorei-kan [link]

In 1954 Toguchi opened up the first Shorei-kan dojo (House of politeness and respect) in Koza City, Okinawa. The Shorei-kan dojo was very close to the American military base (Kadena Air Base) and the Americans showed a great interest in the martial arts. With an increasing western population in his dojo, Toguchi found it necessary to devise a progressive teaching method to overcome the language barrier. Expanding on Miyagi's vision, Toguchi further developed a system of progressive kata and added bunkai and kiso kumite to help explain application of the kata. Many of the early pioneers of Okinawan karate in the US studied with Toguchi.

In 1956 the Okinawan Karate-Do Federation was formed and Toguchi was installed as a member of the board of directors. By 1960 Toguchi decided to move to mainland Japan to spread the art of karate and Shorei-kan. During the coming years he would move between Okinawa in the winter and Tokyo in the summer. He first practiced outdoors at the Hikawa Shrine where he developed the kata Hakutsuru No Mai. In 1962 the first Shorei-kan dojo was opened in Tokyo in Meguro Borough and in 1966 Shorei-kan Hombu Dojo Tokyo was built with the help of Tamano Construction (founded by Toshio Tamano's father).

Although there were Shorei-kan students and instructors already in the US, in 1969 Toguchi sent Toshio Tamano to the US as the representative of Shorei-kan. Over the following years Toguchi and his wife Haruko Toguchi traveled numerous times to both Canada and the US. Later on Tamano moved to Milan, Italy to spread Shorei-kan throughout Europe and Scott Lenzi is now the representative of the U.S. and South America. Haribabu represents Asia and Vahitha Haribabu represents India. Haribabu was the last person to receive the shihan title from Toguchi.

Death [link]

Toguchi died at the age of 81. He was the last living Okinawan to receive the title of bushi, a title also held by his teacher, Chojun Miyagi.

Bibliography [link]

Seikichi Toguchi has written two books:

• Okinawan Goju-Ryu: Fundamentals of Shorei-Kan Karate^[1]

• Okinawan Goju-Ryu II: Advanced Techniques of Shorei-Kan Karate^[2]

References [link]