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Karate, Japanese
Combative disciplines are generally reflective of the nature of the society
from which they arose. Japanese culture has officially recognized bujutsu
(martial ways) since A.D. 794, when the Butokuden (Martial Virtues Hall)
was established in Kyoto by the emperor Kanmu for the purpose of promoting
excellence in the martial arts. The Butokuden eventually became
the premier training hall for the Dainippon Butokukai (Great Japan Martial
Virtue Association), which was established by the Meiji emperor in
1895 for the preservation of koryû bujutsu (classical martial arts). The Dainippon
Butokukai was charged with the task of recognizing, solidifying,
promoting, and standardizing martial arts in Japan. It was through these
processes that karate-dô (empty-hand way) became and was recognized as
a ryûha (school of transmission) in 1933.
Japanese karate originated from a synthesis of civil and military combative
disciplines. These disciplines included Okinawan di (Japanese te,
hand), indigenous Japanese martial arts (bu), and Chinese quanfa (ch’uan
fa, fist law; in Japanese, kenpô). Okinawan di uses striking, throwing, joint
locking, and restraining methods similar to various styles of Japanese
jûjutsu, and hints at an early sharing of martial knowledge between the cultures.
Although di means “hand,” weapons are also utilized. This sharing
of martial culture is evident in the weapons used by di practitioners, which
include the sword, spear, and glaive (naginata). Japanese jûjutsu was directly
influenced by Chinese fighting methods (quanfa), as were the Okinawan
fighting styles. The most influential of these arts on the development
of Japanese karate was Okinawan di, called Toudi (Tang hand) in
reference to its Chinese origins.
The Ryûkyû people were first recorded in A.D. 616, when the Yamato
(Wo-Yayoi culture) of Kyûshû took thirty Okinawans to the court of Shôtoku
Taishi at Nara. Some time later, representatives of the Yamato returned
to Hyakuna on the Chinen Peninsula. Among the various cultural
innovations that the Yamato brought with them to Okinawa were iron
weapons and the martial combative disciplines needed to exploit their use.
These combative disciplines probably contained the constituent elements of
what eventually evolved into Okinawan di.
During the decentralization of the Heian period (794–1185), minor
Japanese houses were displaced and forced to seek refuge in the Ryûkyû Islands.
Reintroduction into the Japanese hierarchy was often facilitated by
martial proficiency and heihô (tactics). The Ryûkyûs acted as a training