A History of GOJU RYU Karate. Part two.
The name Goju-Ryu.
The naming of Goju-Ryu came about more by accident than design. In 1930, one of Chojun Miyagi’s top students, Jin’an Shinzato was attending a Martial Arts convention in Tokyo. He was asked by numerous martial arts masters as to what school of martial arts he practiced. As Naha-te had no formal name he could not answer this question. Feeling his art would be looked down upon and given amateur status, he quickly picked Hankry-ryu, which means the Way of Half Hard. On his return to Okinawa he reported this incident to Chojun Miyagi. He liked Shinzato’s idea and took it one step further. After much consideration, Chojun Miyagi decided on the name ‘Goju-Ryu’ (hard and soft school) as a name for his style. He took this name from a line in the Bubishi (a classical Chinese text on martial arts and other subjects). This line, which appears in a poem describing the eight precepts of the martial arts, reads “Ho Goju Donto” (the way of inhaling and exhaling is hardness and softness). The whole poem reads as follows:
1. The mind is one with heaven and earth.
2. The circulatory rhythm of the body is similar to the cycle of the sun and the moon.
3. The way of inhaling and exhaling is hardness and softness.
4. Act in accordance with time and change.
5. Techniques will occur in the absence of conscious thought.
6. The feet must advance and retreat, separate and meet.
7. The eyes do not miss even the slightest change.
8. The ears listen well in all directions.
The Succession of Goju-Ryu .
Jin’an Shinzato was exceptionally talented. Chojun Miyagi had chosen him as his successor to the Goju school in Okinawa. Shinzato was tragically killed during the Second World War. Later, after the war, Chojun Miyagi chose Meitoku Yagi Sensei to succeed him in Okinawa and Gogen Yamaguchi to succeed him in Japan under the Goju-Kai school, to pass on Goju-Ryu to the next generation.
Chojun Miyagi passed away on October 8th , 1953, leaving a great legacy behind. He predicted that during the twentieth century karate would spread throughout the world. Today we can see that this prediction has been realized, karate is not only practiced in Japan, but it can be found throughout the world. Karate can no longer be referred to as a solely Okinawan or Japanese martial art, but it has become an art with no boundaries, an art for all nations and all people of the world.
Master Gogen Yamaguchi.
Gogenen Yamaguchi was born on January 20, 1909, in Kagoshima city in southern Kyushu. As a youngster he showed great interest in the Martial Arts. During his early school days he trained kendo (Japanese fencing) and it was during this time that he started his karate training under the tutelage of Mr Maruta, a carpenter from Okinawa. Mr Maruta who was a Goju practitioner was drawn to the young Yamaguchi’s serious attitude and his willingness to train hard. Mr Maruta taught Yamaguchi all he knew about the Goju system.
During his college days as a law student, Yamaguchi established his first karate club at the Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto. Soon the dojo became famous in the city, known for it’s hard training and fierce breathing exercise. In those days karate men practiced only kata (formal movements) and yakusoku kumite (prearranged sparring). They were unable to have matches between each other since they did not hold back their techniques. It was during this period that Yamaguchi established the rules for jiyu kumite (free fighting) and to decide the winner of a match. Some of the rules are still in use today in sport or competition karate.
In 1931, at the age of 22, Gogen Yamaguchi was introduced to the founder of the Goju style, - Master Chojun Miyagi. This meeting proved to have a profound effect upon Yamaguchi’s outlook on karate. Previously he had only considered the hard aspect of Goju but after his meeting with Master Miyagi he was determined to train himself spiritually as well as physically. Master Miyagi thought highly of Yamaguchi who seemed to have mastered the hard aspect of Goju so well and gave him the nickname Gogen, meaning `Rough’. He then appointed Gogen Yamaguchi as his successor of the Goju school in Japan.
In the years to follow Gogen Yamaguchi often spent time at Mount Kurama where he subjected himself to ascetic exercises and hard training with sanchin, meditation and fasting. Between 1938-1945 he was sent to Manchuria on government and military assignments. On several occasions during his stay there, he could thank his skills in karate and his mental training that he stayed alive. During the Japanese-Russian war -45 Yamaguchi was taken prisoner of war and sent to a prison camp in Mongolia. He was kept there under harsh conditions for two years. Once again his strength and skill were severely put to the test. During all these years he still continued to train and develop Goju karate.
After his release and return to Japan, Yamaguchi became one of the most exciting figures in karate history. Known throughout the world as the `cat’ because of his grace and speed in movement and because of his favorite fighting stance which is called neko ashi dachi (cat stance).
The Five Secrets of Japanese Goju-Ryu
by Gogen Yamaguchi
Move quickly.
Sound, calm mind.
Be light in body.
Have a clever mind.
Master the basics.
Further Development.
Master Yamaguchi’s contributions to Goju-karate and to karate in general have been enormous. Under his leadership the International Karate-do Goju-kai Association (I.K.G.A) emerged. The organization has increased in popularity both in Japan and other Asian and western countries around the world. Today Goju-kai karate is being practiced in about 35 countries. Master Yamaguchi succeeded in uniting all the karate schools in Japan into a single union, which resulted in the formation of The Federation of All Japan Karate-do Organization (F.A.J.K.O.) in 1964. He added to the Goju system the Taikyoku Kata forms - training methods for the beginner students to prepare them for the more advanced kata’s.
In combining his religious practices with karate training, he incorporated both Yoga and Shinto into Goju-kai karate and founded in his last years Goju-Shinto. He stated that both body and mind are interrelated and through proper breathing and concentration we will be able to understand the essence of the Martial Arts. This is the reason why the Goju school uses the unique breathing exercise called ibuki. Concentrating all the muscular strength at one point, bringing mind and body into a coherent whole.
The Kokusai Budo Renmei - The International Martial Arts Federation in Japan, whose chairman was Prince Higashikuni of the Japanese Imperial Family had appointed Master Yamaguchi as Shihan (master) of the organizations karate division. Never before has a single man had such profound effect on the development and propagation of karate-do. Master Gogen Yamaguchi, 10th dan, a man of intense dedication and determination can truly be called a karate legend. A master of Yoga and a Shinto priest, a man that truly has united both aspects of go and ju into a concerted union.
Tags: cat stance, Chojun Miyagi, fasting, free fighting, Gogen Yamaguchi, Goju-Kai, Goju-ryu, Hankry-ryu, ibuki, Jin'an Shinzato, jiyu kumite, Karate, Karate-do, Kokusai Budo Renmei, Maruta, meditation, Meitoku Yagi, Mount Kurama, neko ashi dachi, sanchin, Shinto priest, Taikyoku Kata, Yoga