Isshin Ryu
Intro
Isshin-ryu (一心流) is a style of Okinawan karate founded by Shimabuku Tatsuo
on 15 January, 1956. Isshin-ryu karate is largely a synthesis of Shorin-ryu
karate Goju-ryu karate, and Kobudo. The name means, literally, "one heart way".
The style, while not very popular on Okinawa, spread to the United States via
the Marine Corps, and has also spread to other countries. Many variations of
the system exist.
Country
Okinawa
Kata
The system is summed up in its kata, or formal practice methods. In many
of the various forks of the system, thirteen kata (eight empty-handed, three
bo, and two sai kata) are agreed upon as belonging to Isshinryu.
Empty-handed kata
| Name |
Kanji |
Pronunciation |
| Seisan |
十三 |
Seisan |
| Seiuchin |
制引戦 |
Seiyunchin |
| Naihanchi |
ナイハンチ |
Naihanchi |
| Wansu |
汪楫 |
Wansū |
| Chinto |
鎮闘 |
Chintō |
| Sanchin |
三戦 |
Sanchin |
| Kusanku |
公相君 |
Kūsankū |
| Sunsu |
スンスウ |
Sunsū |
Some Isshin-ryu schools teach Sanchin as the last kata of the open-handed
curriculum. Some schools also teach Wansu before Naihanchi.
Bo (staff) kata
| Name |
Kanji |
Pronunciation |
| Tokumine no kon |
徳嶺の棍 |
Tokumine no kun |
| Urashi bo |
浦添棒 |
Urashī bō |
| Shishi no kon |
添石の棍 |
Shīshi no kun |
Sai (forked weapon) kata
| Name |
Kanji |
Pronunciation |
| Kusanku sai |
公相君サイ |
Kūsankū sai |
| Chatanyara no sai |
北谷屋良の釵 |
Chatan Yara no sai |
Other kata
- Traditional training exercises
- Chart One (Upper body Basics Te Waza)
- Chart Two (Lower Body Basics Geri Waza)
These drills were developed by Shimabuku Tatsuo to supliment or replace the
use of Pinans or "basic katas" for the training of a new student how to learn
a Kata. Instead of being a Kata these are drills designed to be used at the
start of every class to insure that the student stays fimelure with all the
basic strikes, and to insure that the student maintance his/her physical condition.
Unlike Pinans these drills are to be done by all students from black to white.
There are other "unofficial" weapons kata that are practiced by some practitioners.
Some of the more common are:
- Kyan no sai, which Shimabuku taught but which he appears to have stopped teaching
later on. The end section of Kusanku sai, which goes beyond where Kusanku ends,
is taken from this kata.
- Chiefa or Hamahiga no tonfa. This was demonstrated on a video taped performance
by Shimabuku, however he seemed unsure of parts and never taught it as an official
kata. The name is believed to be a misspelling of "tuifa", another way of writing
tonfa. Some believe that he had recently learnt it at the time and was just
demonstrating, but not meaning for it to become part of the system.
- Nunchaku (flail)/Kama. Some schools also practice one or more Nunchaku and/or
kama kata.
Isshinryu schools may also include two-person weapons katas, such as Bo-Bo Kumite
and Bo-Sai Kumite. Occasionally a Bo-Tonfa Kumite is included as well.
Origins and Meanings of the Katas
| Name |
Kanji |
Meaning |
| Seisan |
十三 |
means "13" and was taken from Shorin-ryu and is one of the oldest
katas |
| Seiuchin |
制引戦 |
means "war kata" and was taken from Goju-ryu |
| Naihanchi |
ナイハンチ |
means "iron horse" and was taken from Shorin-ryu |
| Wansu |
汪楫 |
means "dumping form" and was taken from Shorin-ryu |
| Chinto |
鎮闘 |
means "fight to the east" and was taken from Shorin-ryu |
| Sanchin |
三戦 |
means "three battles" and was taken from Goju-ryu |
| Kusanku |
公相君 |
means to "view the sky" and was taken from Shorin-ryu |
| Sunsu |
スンスウ |
means "son of old man" or "strongman" and was invented by Shimabuku
Tatsuo himself because he wanted to add the aspects that he thought were
most important to Isshin-ryu into one kata. There are many moves from other
katas that can be seen in Sunsu |
Goju-ryu means "hard soft way" and the two katas that Isshin-ryu takes from
Goju-ryu, Seiuchin and Sanchin, are two katas that are often practiced with
emphasized breathing and dynamic tension. These are advanced breathing
techniques and when preformed well it is easy to see the Hard/Soft in both
katas.
Organization
The current Okinawan head of Isshin-ryu is Shimabuku Kichiro, the
oldest son of Shimabuku Tatsuo. However there are many political
disagreements, and some would rather follow the younger son, Ciso, or
Shimabuku Tatsuo's son-in-law Angi Uezu, who heads a separate
organization in Okinawa.
There are also many Isshinryu organizations that exist independent of
Okinawan control or leadership, each with its own separate leaders.
These organizations include:
- The United States Isshinryu Karate Association (USIKA) Under the
Leadership of Hanshi-Sei Phil E. Little
- International Isshin-Ryu Karate Association (IIKA)
- American Okinawan Karate Association (AOKA)
- Okinawa Isshin-Ryu Karate and Kobudo Association, (OIKKA)
- United Isshinryu Karate Association (UIKA)
- United Isshin-Ryu Karate Federation (UIKF)
- Order of Isshin-Ryu (OI)
- Tatsuo Kan Society (TKS)
- United Isshin-Ryu Council(UIC)
- Don Nagle, an American Marine, opened the first Isshin-ryu dojo
in the United States in Jersey City, NJ. That school still operates
today.
- The Isshinkai is an Isshin-ryu Karate & Kobudo Association
organization dedicated to preserve the teachings of Tatsuo Shimabuku
to the best of their abilities. It was founded in September 1998 by
several direct students of Master Shimabuku including: Tokumura
Kensho, Arsenio J. Advincula and Robert Safreed.
- American Budo Kai
History
Tatsuo Shimabuku
A native of Okinawa, Tatsuo Shimabuku studied the Shorin-ryu and
Goju-ryu systems. He began training under his uncle, and then under
Chotoku Kiyan who would be his most influential instructor (and after
whom he initially named his style). He also studied karate from Chojun
Miyagi and Choki Motobu. He then studied Ryukyu Kobudo, the art of
traditional Okinawan weapons, including the sai, bo, and tonfa, under
Taira Shinken and Yabiku Moden. From the open-hand and weapons
techniques of these styles he formed a new art, which he called
Isshin-ryu. It stresses close-in techniques necessary for
self-protection. One of the signature features of Isshinryu is the
Isshinryu punch or vertical punch. Most other karate styles use a
corkscrew style punch where the punch ends palm down. The vertical punch
of Isshinryu also has the thumb pressed down on the second knuckle of
the index finger, while in a corkscrew punch, the thumb is wrapped over
the clenched fingers.
Mizumagami
The Mizumagami is the symbol of Isshin-ryu, it is represented on the
Isshin-ryu patch and is often displayed on the front wall of the dojo
next to a picture of Shimabuku Tatsuo. The legend behind the mizumagami
is that Master Shimabuku saw it in a dream where a man came into his
dojo and challenged him, Master Shimabuku declined because he did not
use his force and skill unless he needed to. When Master Shimabuku
declined the challenge a dragon appeared and spit fire in a circle
around Master Shimabuku. When Master Shimabuku had no means of escape a
water goddess (the Magami) came and put out the flames. Master Shimabuku
decided that he wanted to base his new style off of the principles of
this goddess.
There are many interpretations of the symbolism in the mizumagami.
The mizumagami depicts a goddess with the torso of a woman and the
bottom half of a sea serpent sitting in choppy water with a dragon and
three stars in the sky. The goddess has one hand raised in the air open
and holds the other down with a closed fist. There are many examples of
yin-yang some of which are: The open fist and the closed fist which
represent peace (open) and power, force, or skill of karate (closed),
The calm sky and the choppy water, the woman's torso (again peace, love,
or kindness) and the sea serpents bottom half (violence, power, or
force). The dragon is thought to either represent the dragon from
Shimabuku Tatsuo's dream or Master Shimabuku himself, Tatsuo means
dragon or little dragon. The three stars have many meanings including:
Shimabuku Tatsuo's three most influential teachers, Heaven earth and
mankind, Mind body spirit, and The three main styles that fathered
Isshin-ryu (Shorin-ryu, Goju-ryu, and Kobudo). Some people consider the
three arts to be Shorin-ryu, Goju-ryu, and Tamari-te. Also some
organizations have added stars to the patch so that more father schools
can be represented.
(This article is licensed under the
GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the
Wikipedia article "Isshin-Ryu".)
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