Martial Arts Of The World - Webs

238 Karate, Japanese
terminology for all punches, kicks, strikes, blocks, and training exercises.
Mabuni organized and classified the kata taught within his style as either
Itosu-ke (Itosu lineage) or Higashionna-ke. The Itosu-ke includes those
kata of the general form and type taught within the Shuri system, while the
Higashionna-ke includes those of the type taught within the Naha system.
Mabuni also recognized twelve drills, which he classified as kihon (beginning)
kata. Mabuni Kenzo, Mabuni Kenwa’s third son, formed the Seitô
(Pure) Shitô-ryû after his father’s death and composed the Mabuni-ke from
kata developed and modified from the curriculum developed by Mabuni
Kenwa. The Mabuni-ke includes Shinse, Shinpa, and Happôsho from the
Higashionna-ke; Jûroku, Matsukaze, Aoyagi, Myôjô, and Shihôkoksôkun
from the Itosu-ke; Kenki; and Kenshu. The Aoyagi (Green Willow) kata
was developed by Mabuni and Konishi Yasuhiro, with a contribution by
Ueshiba Morihei, the founder of aikidô. The Shinpa (Mind Wave) kata was
devised in 1925 by Mabuni and Konishi after visiting Uechi Kanbun, the
founder of Uechi-ryû, in Wakayama.
Miyagi Chôjun visited Kyoto in 1928 at the invitation of the jûdô club
of Kyoto Teikoku Daigaku (Kyoto Imperial University). He performed at
the Butokusai in 1933 and again in 1935, assisted by Yogi Jitsuei. Miyagi
visited Japan for intermittent periods between 1934 and 1938 and stayed
with Yogi, who was a student at Ritsumeikan University. During this period,
Yogi introduced Miyagi to Yamaguchi Yoshimi (Gôgen)
(1909–1989), who had established a karate club at Ritsumeikan in 1930.
After meeting Miyagi, Yamaguchi adopted the Gôjû style. In order to popularize
karate, Yamaguchi created a form of jiyû-kumite (free sparring). Although
many Okinawan Karateka had experimented with free sparring,
jiyû-kumite was not used as a part of the basic karate curriculum prior to
its introduction by Yamaguchi. With the addition of the competitive aspect
fostered through the use of jiyû-kumite, the practice of karate began to attract
adherents in Japan. In 1935, Yamaguchi formed the Karate
Kenkyûkai at Ritsumeikan University to further propagate the Gôjû-ryû.
Miyagi Chôjun was listed in the club’s prospectus as meiyô shihan (honorary
master teacher), with Yamaguchi and Yogi Jitsuei as shihan-dai (assistant
instructors). In 1940, Yamaguchi formed The East Asia Martial Arts
Mission to give demonstrations of karate throughout Japan.
Yamaguchi served as a military attaché in Manchuria during World
War II and was captured by the Russians in 1945. He was released in 1947
and returned to Tokyo. Like many Japanese after the war, Yamaguchi was
demoralized. At midnight on January 12, 1948, he went to the Tôgô shrine
at Harajuku to commit seppuku (ritual suicide). While preparing himself to
die, Yamaguchi had a mystical experience in which he perceived that he
was supposed to live and that his purpose was to renew the spiritual life of