Kenwa Mabuni
Kenwa Mabuni – Founder of Shito-ryu and His Connection to Shotokan Karate Early Life and Training Kenwa Mabuni was born on November 14, 1889, in Shuri, Okinawa. From a young …
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Author: Gert Corfitzen Jürgensen
East Asian Martial Arts – From Ancient China to Global Karate
East Asian Martial Arts: From Ancient China to Global Karate Martial arts are often regarded as separate traditions tied to distinct cultures. Yet their deeper history reveals a continuous thread …
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Close-Quarters Fighting Styles of Southern China
I would like to share some of my loosely written notes on the hand-to-hand combat systems from southern China. I trained in Wing Chun for almost 2 years, so I …
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Martial Arts Traditions Linked to Southern China’s Temples
In various traditions associated with temple communities in southern China, several lesser-known martial arts practices were preserved within local lineages and communities. These practices were not only forms of physical …
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Self-Perfection vs. Self-Protection
From Martial Arts to Martial Sport In many dojos, karate has shifted from a martial art focused on self-defense to a discipline centered on personal growth. Students are often encouraged …
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Chatan Yara Lineage
This article presents my research-based reconstruction of how the Yara lineage developed from the early 1300s onward. It examines the historical relationship between the Indigenous Yara line and the later …
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Chotoku Kyan
Okinawan karate master Chōtoku Kyan preserved pre-modern martial traditions after the Ryūkyū Kingdom’s fall, maintaining a mentorship-based approach while engaging selectively with early modernization efforts. Okinawa at the End of …
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Kings of Ryukyu
Sanzan Period: Three Kingdoms of Ryukyu Hokuzan (北山, Northern Mountain) The northern part of Ryukyu. Existed roughly 1314–1416. Rulers: Haniji (怕尼芝): ca. 1322–1395 Min (珉): ca. 1396–1400 (some sources say …
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There is No First Strike in Karate
There is No First Strike in Karate. 一、空手に先手なし Hitotsu, karate ni sente nashi. Understanding the Principle The phrase “Karate ni sente nashi” translates to “There is no first strike …
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Monuments of Shōshin Nagamine and Kōsaku Matsumora
Visiting the monuments of Shōshin Nagamine and Kōsaku Matsumora on a hot day Tomari Sansaku Michi (Tomari Walking Path) On our way to visit the monuments of Shōshin Nagamine and …
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