From my position , very Chinese influence. What do you think. Tony
Secret Tradition! (秘伝)
Matayoshi Shinpou (又吉真豊)
Direct Transmission - Handed-Down (直伝)
White Crane (白鶴)
Military Law (兵法)
3rd Dan (三段)
[Apllicable] Form (の形)
Tony to Adrian: Good evening Adrian. Quite a interesting style off Okinawan karate. From my position , very Chinese influence. What do you think. Tony Adrian to Tony: The Japanese language title reads: Secret Tradition! (秘伝) Matayoshi Shinpou (又吉真豊) Direct Transmission - Handed-Down (直伝) White Crane (白鶴) Military Law (兵法) 3rd Dan (三段) [Apllicable] Form (の形) Superb. The pelvic-girdle is empowered with ki to deflect incoming power - such as a round-kick. The back-leg rootedness of the White Crane generates the rising power exhibited flowing through the correctly empowered front-leg (the discussion near the beginning), and then up through the arms, wrists, palms fingers, thumbs and finger tips - in gripping, deflecting, gouging, punching, tearing and penetrating. Incidentally, the Chinese characters are either retained or slightly modified in this Okinawan script. With '兵法' (Military Law) this is 'Bing Fa' in the Chinese language ('Hei-ho' within Japanese) - and is often better known in the West as the 'Art of War' - an early text penned by Sunzi. Perhaps in this context a better translation is 'Soldier's Law'.
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I was introduced to these movements in my youth - as a foundation to learning 'Old' (Yang) Taijiquan! In those days traditional training from a Chinese teacher was never questioned. The onus was on 'secrecy' - as if no one else possessed the knowledge just shared (today, the emphasis in China is upon an open sharing). I was told that the outer bodily positions-structures guided the qi energy with greater force into (and through) the five sets of corresponding inner organs thus strengthening and purifying them. These exercises are established upon the theory of the 'Five Phases' (五行 - Wu Xing) - first found in the 'Classic of History' (書經 - Shu Jing) - probably linked to the five planets visible to the naked-eye of the ancient civilisations: Animal Organ Tiger Liver-Gall Bladder Deer Kidneys-Bladder Bear Spleen-Stomach Monkey Heart-Small Intestine Crane Lung-Large Intestine As the 'Bear' is the central animal influence of our gongfu family style - this practice was seen as establishing (and enhancing) the rooted and central stability (and strength) this animal represents (the 'spirit' of the bear involves the practitioner suddenly standing-up and appearing much bigger and over-powering). According to the English language Wiki-page - this 'Five Animal Interplay' exercise is linked to the development of Hung Gar and Fujian White Crane (Bak Hok)! The way I was taught this exercise involved 'morning' practice (yin moving to yang) and 'evening' practice (yang moving to yin) - with the movements staying the same. Unlike the 'connected' flow shown in the above video (a different style or method) - I was taught 'single' structure exercises that started with feet shoulder-width apart and hands by my sides. After assuming and holding the required position - the structure was completely dropped away back to the 'ready' (neutral) position - in preparation for assuming the next (different) position. I was taught that all these five movements exist implicitly in the Taijiquan Form - and so eventually I was no longer required to practice them separately.
The Development of Yongchun White Crane Fist – the Basis of Okinawan Karate-Do! (4.11.2022)11/5/2022 (Translated by Adrian Chan-Wyles PhD) Translator's Note: I read through (and carefully translated) this meandering Chinese language text regarding the known history of Fujian White Crane Fist! To make sense of the context - I had to reference other Chinese language historical texts in an attempt to decipher what exactly is being said! Even so, as much of this genre of (folk) history is entirely 'local' in nature, even (contemporary) ethnic Chinese language speakers do not understand the what exactly is 'meant' by the words and phrases being used. We must use our experience and knowledge to establish the most likely meaning. There appears to be a subtle blend of fact and myth - perfectly entwined - so that it becomes difficult to tell one aspect from the other! During this interpretive process, we must remain anchored within historical 'fact' - but where is the 'fact' we must remain anchored within? What we do know is that somehow a) this martial art does physically 'exist' through a discernable history, and b) as a distinct body of knowledge it ended-up in the hands of Higaonna Kanryo! ACW (5.11.2022) White Crane Fist (白鹤拳 - Bai He Quan) is often referred to by the geographical indicator of ‘Yongchun’ (永春). This Style of martial arts is just one of the of many developed by the Han nationality throughout the Fujian area. It began to emerge as a distinct martial arts Style during the latter Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). From its root source, four distinct lineages have developed: 1) Flying (飞 - Fei) 2) Singing (鸣 - Ming) 3) Sleeping (宿 - Su) 4) Feeding (食 - Shi) These four variations of White Crane Fist all manifest in slightly different and specific ways, so that a unique and distinct Style is evident in each case. These differences stem from the practitioners emphasising particular traits observed in the defensive and aggressive behaviour of the White Crane species of bird. All of this speciality is known today as the White Crane Fist Style. According to legend, this Style originated within the Funing (福宁) Prefecture, Fujian Province – today known as Xiapu (霞浦) County. As a Style, it developed out of the ‘external’ (外 - Wai) Shaolin Fist (少林拳 - Shaolin Quan) method taught to Master Fang Zhonggong (方种公) at the ‘North Gate’ (北门 - Bei Men). He taught his only child (his daughter) ‘Fang Qiniang’ (方七娘) - and it is Fang Qiniang who is considered the ‘Founder’ of White Crane Fist. Soon after she was born – Fang Qiniang’s mother passed away from illness. Her father believed that his only daughter should be strong and stand tall – just like a man – and he taught her to practice martial arts every day. Fang Qiniang eventually married ‘Zeng Si’ (曾四) - who was a native of Yongchun County situated within the Quanzhou area of Fujian province (although some records suggest his family originally came from Zhejiang – before moving into Yongchun and resettling). As Fang Qiniang lived and taught her Style in ‘Yongchun’ it is referred to today as being ‘Yongchun White Crane Fist’. The White Crane Fist specialises in generating vibrating and shaking (弹抖 - Dan Dou) power (劲 - Jin) of both arms. The open-hand ‘Palm Law’ (掌法 - Zhang Fa) method emphasises a penetrating and piercing power which is similar to an arrow hitting an opponent after being fired from a bow – but devastating the opponent at very close-range. This method is supported by penetrating footwork that decisively advances and retreats – footwork that also ‘pretends’ to advance and retreat – causing confusion and mistimed reactions in an opponent. Explosive force (力 - LI) is generated by the White Crane Fist practitioner when taking advantage of an opponent’s errors. For this to happen, the joints and fingers of the White Crane Fist practitioner must be ‘strengthened’ and appropriately ‘conditioned’. Stepping must be both precise and diverse. Every blow must be thrown with explosive power. The arms must shake, vibrate and tremble with ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ energy continuously interchanging in a manner which cannot be predicted or understood by the opponent. This is held together by the bodyweight smoothly ‘dropping’ and ‘rising’ continuously and without interruption. Each Style of White Crane Fist presents these techniques in different and varied ways. Within the folk storytelling developed during the early Qing Dynasty, it was said that ‘Crane Immortal’ (鹤仙 - He Xian) taught Fang Qiniang – whilst others state that Fang Qiang was taught only by her father – a native of Funing! Whatever the case, all stories agree that Fang Qiniang was the Founding Patriarch of the White Crane Fist Style! Fang Qiniang was clever and pretty – and was committed to learning martial arts! As Fang Qiniang refused to get married – she was banished to a local Buddhist Temple known as ‘Bai Lian’ (written as ‘白练’ or ‘白莲’ - the second variant appearing to be a play on words) meaning both ‘White Lotus’ and ‘Pure Practice’. Her Buddhist teacher was said to be the ‘Crane Immortal’ (鹤仙 - He Xian) who came down to Earth to instruct her in the art of ‘White Crane’. Fang Qiniang had to combine hours of seated Ch’an meditation with the continuous observation of the ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ movements of the White Crane birds that inhabited the temple grounds. (Another version worthy of consideration is the following story: One day, Fang Qiniang was immersed in the shuttle weaving on a traditional loom. Suddenly, a White Crane bird flew gracefully into the area - hovering near her roof and looking down. The White Crane bird finally flew down to the floor of the hall - standing quietly next to the loom. Looking up at Fang Qiniang – the bird refused to fly away and stood quietly for a long time. Fang Qiniang was very surprised by the inner stillness and outer poise of this bird. Fang Qiniang picked up the shuttle box and threw it – but the White Crane remained unruffled and simply ‘spread its wings’ in a graceful manner – and intercepted the shuttle box perfectly – causing it to bounce back with an effortless force. Fang Qiniang raised the bamboo inkstone used for weaving and attempted to strike the White Crane. Unexpectedly, the White Crane ‘shook’ its body - and the bamboo inkstone was bounced back! When Fang Qiniang saw this behaviour she was impressed and puzzled! On this day, the White Crane bird with its plump, white feathers refused to fly away! When night fell, Mr. Fang Zhonggong asked Fang Qiniang to bring out some white rice and sweet potato to feed the White Crane in the hall! Despite all this movement – the White Crane refused to move but remain quiet and still – but always alert! These events were a preparation for a white-haired Immortal to visit the Fang family and convey the martial art of the White Crane Fist!) Once these movements (and reactions) were understood – Fang Qiniang had to integrate this new knowledge into her already existing Shaolin martial arts practice. This process took four years to achieve, and the White Crane Fist Style of martial arts was developed! As the ‘Bai Lian’ Temple became a well-known and respected centre of gongfu practice and given that Fang Qiniang was a renowned Buddhist monastic – she changed the name of the temple to ‘Jiao Lian’ (教练) or ‘Teach Practice’ Temple (寺 - Si). One day, a man named ‘Feng Si’ visited the temple and respectfully requested that Fang Qiniang teach him the White Crane Fist Style she had developed. He trained as her Disciple for over ten-years – and eventually the two people fell in love. This prompted Fang Qiniang to leave the temple and resume the lay life so that the two could get married. This is how the White Crane Style was taken back to Yongchun (the place of Fang Si’s birth) situated in Quanzhou - and took root in this part of Fujian province! The couple had numerous children and passed this family Style. The constituent originating lineages included are: White Crane Fist (白鹤拳 - Bai He Quan) Bai Lian Temple (白练寺 - Bai Lian Si) a) ‘Crane Immortal’ (鹤仙 - He Xian) b) ‘Fang Qiniang’ (方七娘) c) ‘Zeng Si’ (曾四) Southern Shaolin Fist (南 少林拳 - Nan Shao Lin Quan) a) ‘Fang Zhonggong’ (方种公) - Father b) ‘Fang Qiniang’ (方七娘) - Daughter c) ‘Zeng Si’ (曾四) - Husband of Fang Qiniang & Son-in-Law of Fang Zhonggong The foot work of the White Crane is light, exact and yet ‘heavy’ when ‘heaviness’ is required! The White Crane can move across the ground – barely touching the floor – like snowflakes falling from the sky! This is the foot work of heroes! Martial arts training is beneficial for the development of the mind and body! The White Crane Fist puts a great emphasis upon physical fitness! As a result, the White Crane Fist is masterful in attack and defence! The White Crane Fist is simultaneously both simple and enriched! These are the twenty defining attributes (and forms) of the White Crane Fist: 1) The White Crane generates the shape. 2) The shape manifests in the fist! 3) The form is taken from the name. 4) The name suggests elegance as its crowning glory 5) The White Crane protects the centreline throughout the upper, middle and lower parts of its body. 6) The Thirty-Six Divine Sky Gods 7) The Seventy-Two Broad Earth Demons 8) The One-Hundred and Eight Dharmas 9) The White Crane Flashes its Wings 10) Thirteen-Step Vibrations 11) Seven Steps – Three Battles 12) Thirteen Grand Protections 13) The White Crane is both ‘firm’ and ‘not’ firm. 14) The White Crane is both ‘soft’ and ‘not’ soft. 15) Shaking and vibrating with strength from the ground upwards. 16) There is a continuous change of skilled applications. 17) The structure is precise and always clearly maintained. 18) The awareness is always clear regarding offence and defence. 19) Always demonstrate mercy before raising your hand. 20) When the time comes to raise your hand – show no mercy! Higaonna Kanryo [1853-1915] (东恩纳宽量) was the first Okinawan to learn the White Crane Fist. From the Chinese gongfu he took back to Okinawa – the ‘Empty Hand Way’ (空手道) or ‘Karate-Do’ would be eventually developed. It is the White Crane Fist which serves as the technical foundation to the development of Okinawan and Japanese Karate-Do. In other words, the ‘Empty Hand Fist’ (空手拳) or ‘Karate-Ken’ is really what is called ‘Yongchun Fist’ (永春拳 - Yong Chun Quan) in China! It is believed that the White Crane Fist is part of the ‘Shaolin Five Ancestor Fist’ (少林五祖拳 - Shao Lin Wu Zu Quan) tradition. This tradition developed in the Quanzhou area of Fujian province and is linked to the Southern Shaolin Temple situated in this area. The five Styles which form this System are as follows: a) White Crane Fist (白鹤拳 - Bai He Quan) b) Monkey Quan (猴拳 - Hou Quan) c) Arahant Fist (罗汉拳 - Luo Han Quan) d) Bodhidharma Fist (达尊拳 - Da Zun Quan) - also referred as ‘Mind Intention’ Boxing (心意拳 - Xin Yi Quan) e) Grand Ancestor Fist (太祖拳 - Tai Zu Quan) Although it is agreed that Fang Qiniang invented the White Crane Fist Style – it was her husband (Zeng Si) who is often cited as teaching the art prolifically within the Yongchun area. Historical records suggest that the couple lived in the area during four different time periods and were prone to travelling. It seems that the couple did not permanently stay in the Yongchun area, but they did favour the place as a base of operations – and it is from here that a renowned centre of White Crane Fist practice developed. The implication is that they settled there toward the end of their lives together. Although the historical text I am referencing is ‘old’ (and difficult to contextualise), there is an indication the couple taught White Crane Fist near to the ‘West Gate’ (西门 - Xi Men) of Yongchun, to the rear (and ‘outside’) of the ‘Name Temple’ (庙 - Miao) pertaining to the ‘Gu’ (辜) family. Technically speaking, this would be a Confucian Temple maintained by the local Gu family (designed only for the use of that family) comprised of a hall for social gatherings (which could include gongfu practice), and an area for the cremated remains of the Gu ancestors stored in large, sealed earthenware pots (together with pictures and biographical texts). Later, out of respect for Zeng Si, this training area became known as the ‘Zeng Martial Temple’ (曾武馆 - Zeng Wu Guan). This might suggest that the Gu Temple was eventually taken over as a centre for White Crane Fist practice – and was locally known by the above variant. This how the White Crane Fist Style took root within the Yongchun area. During the more than one-hundred years between emperors Kangxi (r. 1661-1722) and Qianlong (r. 1735-1796) - the White Crane Fist was widely disseminated and exchanged both inside and outside Fujian province. As an effective martial art favoured by the local population, it was continuously absorbed, summarized and improved upon – a process which greatly enriched and developed its technical and theoretical content. This important historical (developmental) period may be considered the ‘heyday’ of the White Crane Fist Style. The different names associated with this Style of martial arts are: i) White Crane Fist (白鹤拳 - Bai He Quan) ii) Fujian White Crane Fist (福建白鹤拳 - Fu Jian Bai He Quan) iii) Fujian Shaolin White Crane Fist (福建少林白鹤拳 - Fu Jian Shao Lin Bai He Quan) iv) Yongchun White Crane Fist (永春白鹤拳 - Yong Chun Bai He Quan) v) Southern Shaolin White Crane Fist (南少林白鹤拳 - Nan Shao Lin Bai He Quan) Between the reigns of the Qing Dynasty emperors Kangxi, Qianlong and Jiaqing (嘉慶), that is to say from around 1664-1821 – the record books suggest that the White Crane Fist Style has been passed on by five or six generations of descendants in the Yongchun area – depending upon how lineages are interpreted and understood. It was one of these lineages which was eventually taken back to Okinawa and served as the foundation for the development of modern Karate-Do in all that art’s distinct and diverse variations. Chinese Language Sources:
South China Sea Shipwrecks and the Brave 19th Century Journey of Higaonna Kanryo! (6.8.2022)9/6/2022 The Maritime Silk Road linked Southern China to vast areas of the known world for over two-thousand years (since at least the Qin and Han Dynasty times (3rd century BCE)! During that time, the ancient leaders of China established seaborne links with other civilisations that sparked, trade, tribute and cultural exchanges. As the seas around South China are unpredictable, changeable and can be highly dangerous, perhaps one in every ten ships that set out from China ladened with artefacts and treasure sunk to the bottom of the sea – with a similar statistic covering ships heading to China from foreign lands! What this means is that a rich archaeological record exists on the sea floor spread all around the South China coast and surrounding coast! It is a record cultural triumph and natural disaster! Humanity’s creativity tempered by nature’s crushing hand! A great deal of the porcelain and pottery discovered on the seafloor originated in Fujian province – the area that many people visited from overseas to make contact with Chinese culture and learn intangible cultural crafts such as the martial arts! This was an exportation of another kind of Chinese creativity stored in the minds and bodies of those who learned the arts after daring to cross the dangerous seas! Fujian province became a hub for foreign visitors to China as the various Dynastic rulers limited foreign intrusion into China to initially just this area. On occasion, should a visitor require access to the hinterland of China, permission might eventually be given, but such incidences were rare until Western cannons literally smashed their way out of this cultural enclave – and others such as the docks and warehouses that had been established around the Southern coastal areas during the 19th century! Even so, for other Asian visitors such as Higaonna Kanryo (1853-1915) who made the journey from Ryukyu (Okinawa) around 1867, the old convention still applied, and his journeying was limited to Fujian province! He studied various types of ‘Southern Fist’ (南拳 - Nan Quan) which included Fujian ‘White Crane Fist’ (白鹤拳 - Bai He Quan) and probably ‘Arahant Fist’ (十八羅漢拳 - Shi Ba Luo Han Quan). This stems from the 1989 announcement by Lin Weigong (林伟功) – an expert in Mainland China regarding the culture of Fujian province - that Higaonna Kanryo’s main martial arts teacher was thought to have been ‘Xie Chongxiang’ [谢崇祥] [1852-1930). Higaonna Kanryo travelled around 500 miles by boat from the Ryukyu Islands in 1867 – and then repeated this journey back away from China in 1881! He covered around 1000 miles of seafaring and managed to survive this journey both, despite the difficulties regarding the unpredictable weather and rough seas! Under the seas that he traversed were thousands of years of cultural artefacts – including the bones of countless people from virtually every country on earth! Chinese Language Source: English Languish Source:
Dear Tony
Chinese Language: Saifa = Lion Law '碎破的SAIFA发音,其实是福建话当中的『狮法』, 除了隐喻这个套型有著狮子般的战斗动作外,其实仔细看本套型的动作,也会发觉它的动作构成与『狮阵』、『弄狮』的招式颇为类似,我曾经学习过台湾狮阵拳术当中的『狮战拳』也与这个『狮法』颇为类似!' As Fuzhou exists in Southeast Fujian province, I am assuming that the dialect spoken when Higaonna Kanryo was taught gongfu - was a version of South Hokkien (Min Nan). Kata Preserved in Okinawa = 'Saifa' Chinese Ideograms: 碎 (sui4) 破 (po4) Translation = Shatter - Break (Tear) Fujian - Hokkien = Sui Pho Alternative Name 'Shi Fa': Chinese Ideograms = 狮 (shi1) 法 (fa3) Fujian - Hokkien = Sai Hoat Ten Logical Arguments Against this Theory: 1) Miyagi Chojun possessed 'inside' knowledge regarding Higaonna Kanryo's gongfu transmission from China and said nothing about this. 2) Contained in both ideograms of the 'Saifa' (碎破) Kata title is the left-hand particle of '石' (shi2). This is a 'rock' perched on the edge of a cliff - before it suddenly drops - generating tremendous power! Many movements in the Saifa Kata generate power by 'dropping' the bodyweight (together with the depth and width of stance). I believe the secret to Goju Ryu power production lies in these ideograms and that they are 'correct'. 3) This situation is exemplified by the fact that Miyagi Chojun used the first ideogram of 'Saifa' (碎 - sui4) as the 'second' ideogram of his 'Geksai' (击碎) Katas. a) Saifa = 碎破 b) Geksai = 击碎 4) If 'Saifa' really derived from the 'Lion Law' - why did Miyagi Chojun not use the '狮' (shi1) - or 'Lion' - ideogram in 'Geksai' and project a greater sense of tradition into his new creation? This would have read '击狮' (Gekshi) and translate as 'Strike Lion'! 5) The ideogram '破' (po4) - even if replaced with the ideogram '法' (fa3) - has no correlation with the Hokkien 'Hoat' pronunciation of the latter ideogram. 6) The second ideogram of 'Saifa' is '破' (po4) - whereas the title of the Goju Ryu Kata 'Kururunfa' (久留顿破) - also uses '破' (po4) as its final ideogram. a) 久 (jiu3) - Hokkien (Ku) = Long (Duration) b) 留 (liu2) - Hokkien (Liu) = Hold (Detain) c) 顿 (dun4) - Hokkien (Tun) = Sudden (Abrupt) d) 破 (po4) - Hokkiem (Pho) = Break (Tear) 7) If the logic of the 'Saifa = Lion Law' argument is retained for a moment, then the final ideogram of 'Kururunfa' which is '破' (po4) - should be replaced with the alternative ideogram of '法' (fa3). 8) The Kata name 'Kururunfa' would then be spelt '久留顿法' and mean 'Long Hold Sudden Law'. 9) The argument seems to be that the ideogram '碎' (sui4) [shatter] should be replaced with the ideogram '狮' (shi1) [lion] simply upon the grounds that the latter is pronounced 'sai' in Hokkien! Furthermore, the ideogram '破' (po4) [break] should be done away with altogether and replaced with the ideogram '法' (fa3 [law] - whilst retaining its (Putonghua-Mandarin) pronunciation of 'fa' and quietly laying to one side its Hokkien rendering of 'hoat'! This all seems very selective and designed to take advantage of a Western lack of experience with the Chinese language. 10) There seems to be a trade in dubious styles all referring to themselves as being various incarnations of the 'Lion' in Taiwan - all competing for Western money and diverting the onus for Goju Ryu enthusiasts away from Mainland China and onto Taiwan (The Chinese language author above states that he has attended a number of different classes of various 'Lion' styles whilst visiting Taiwan). Higaonna Morio is very popular in Mainland China and the 'Saifa = Lion Law' phenomenon appears to be as political as it is unconvincing. All Chinese gongfu was banned in Taiwan between 1895-1945 - whilst the KMT destroyed the Shaolin Temple in 1928 due to Chiang Kai-Shek preferring Christianity, etc. Translator’s Note: I discovered this Chinese language version of this article entitled 'Miyagi Chojun: Infinite Grace – Expressing the ‘Way’ of the Warrior!' - translated by Wang Biandou [王扁豆] - and uploaded on 8.6.2020 to the Chinese ‘Karate Academy’ Website - realised it had originally been written in the Japanese language and then felt compelled to translate its vitally important content into the English language! Therefore, I thank Mr Wang Biandou (王扁豆) for creating a Chinese language version I can read – and I thank the original author – Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate-Do Master - Nakaima Genkai (仲井真元楷) {1908-1984} for taking the time to gather this intriguing and compelling historical information together! I do not practice Karate-Do – but I am familiar with its basic physical structure and its broad history. My interest arises from my Chinese martial arts background and how the martial arts of China have spread (and are still spreading) across the world and through other cultures! Sometimes, it is the recording of what might seem like the purely ‘mundane’ in the present time – that might well cause a landslide of incredible interest in the future! I believe Mr Wang Biandou (王扁豆) has added ‘14’ explanatory footnotes to this text that are full of very interesting historical data relevant to the subject! I retain the Chinese language text so that my friends in China (and throughout the world) and enjoy the historical lesson contained within! ACW 27.8.2022) In the Spring when I was just entering the second year of middle school, my classmate Bunshun Tamagusuku asked, "Why don't we go to Great Master Miyagi to learn ‘Chinese Hand’ (唐手 Tang Shou) - (pronounced ‘Kara-Te’)?" Apparently, his uncle - Shinzato Jinan (who already trained) - had previously enquired as to whether he was interested in training. Through this association with Shinzato Jinan (and an offer of training in the martial arts), three other interested individuals came to me and expressed their hope to gain access to the Great Master! Therefore, our group of four potential Goju Ryu students consisted of: 1) Nakaima Genkai (Myself) 2) Bunshun Tamagusuku 3) Tatsutoku Sakiyama (aka ‘Tatsutoku Senaha’) 4) Kiju Nanjo (aka ‘Kiju Azama’) Shinzato Jinan was my neighbour. He had already graduated from Naha Commercial High School at the time, so he was also my senior. He lived in a rental house owned by Mr Yukii Kuniyoshi. One evening, three of us met with Shinzato Jinan outside the wooden gate of Mr Yukii Kuniyoshi’s house. Shinzato Jinan had a white cloth tied around his neck. The wooden gate was very large and possessed a strong iron railing running across its top! From this - Shinzato Jinan was performing ‘pull-ups’ using both hands – continuously lifting his chin above and below the iron bar! He taught us this double-handed exercise – and then taught us how to perform this exercise with only a single hand holding the rail! Later, we often met in the evening on the playground of Naha Jinjo Koto Shogakko (an elementary school). We did squats (for the legs), crunches (for the torso) and various other strengthening exercises using the metal climbing bars! Lifting and holding our bodies at different angles was often required! Thanks to the continuous training enforced by Shinzato Jinan – we could do somersaults and all kinds of rolls across an unpadded floor! Our minds and bodies were so strong that hitting into objects and one another caused very little, if any damage! We could drop suddenly to the floor and jump back-up – nothing hindered us! Not long after this, Shinzato Jinan entered the Police Academy and the four of us (listed above) decided to approach the Great Master Miyagi Chojun directly and enquire as to whether he would take us as ‘Kara-Te’ students! There was a problem, however, as due to the Confucian culture prevalent throughout Ryukyu I had to first ask my father’s permission before I entered the training system of another family’s martial arts tradition. When Shuri Castle was occupied by the Japanese Army, my father was only 10 years old – this was when the Ryukyu Kingdom was abolished and became a Prefecture of Japan - during 1879 (Meiji 12). The Japanese government in 1872 (Meiji five years), however, had established the Ryukyu clan system as the first step in their plan to abolish the (Chinese) Ryukyu Kingdom and create the (Japanese) Okinawa Prefecture when he was only 3 years old. Since my father was born during such a transitional period, and given that our ancestors were from China, our family did not allow him to receive a Japanese-style education called ‘Yamato-learning’, so he did not go to school. But because of hard work, he had a strong body and flexible physique, and I have heard that he was a very good wrestler. He was very happy when I won a prize at the school sports meeting! In the spring of 1923, when I was 15 years old, I told my father that I wanted to learn ‘Kara-Te’ (Chinese Hand) from Great Master Miyagi Chojun. He gave me permission and said to me, ‘It would be great for you to learn ‘Tang Shou’ (唐手) with Master Miyagi!’. By that time Mr. Miyagi was already famous for ‘kara-Te’ - (which the Japanese had renamed ‘Karate-do’ [空手道 - Kong Shou Dao] but which we ignored at that time), so my father thought he was ideal to be my teacher. We, the people of Kume Village, Okinawa, are proud of our Chinese heritage. We believe that our ancestors came to Okinawa from China, so we respect not only Chinese literature and art, but also Chinese martial arts! In terms of culture and arts, we established a school called ‘Meirindo’, which functioned like a university educating young people. As for martial arts like kara-Te and other Fist Arts, etc., I think we practice individually, according to our own physical strengths and other conditions. This is a very ‘Chinese’ attitude very different to the Japanese culture. At that time, the "Meirindo" school held an annual cultural festival where there were performances involving great martial skills including the ‘Stick’ (棒 - Bang) (or ‘Bo’), the ‘Sai’ (鉄尺 - Zhi Chi, [Tesshaku/Tiechi], Thirteen / Sesan gongfu sets and ‘士壮镇’ (Shi Zhuang Zhen) [Chishokin] or ‘Scholar Strengthens the Town’ gongfu. There was also performances involving the use of the rattan shield/Tohai (籐牌 - Teng Pai) and ‘One Hundred and Eight/Suparinpei’ Naha Te. [3]. Most of these Chinese martial arts demonstrations included exactly the same content as Miyagi-sensei taught to us. [4] That is how Miyagi-sensei taught us. We had classes three times a week held at Miyagi-sensei's home (there was no purpose-built Dojo in those days) [5] – with these classes always beginning after regular school had finished for the day: 1) Monday - (3pm-8pm) 2) Wednesday - (3pm-8pm) 3) Friday - (3pm-8pm) This situation was very different to how Goju Ryu later developed and became famous – with proper Dojo being built in many places. After a while, my classmate Bunshun Tamagusuku (the nephew of Shinzato Jinan) dropped out, leaving only three practitioners from our original group. Goju Ryu training evolved around the practice of ‘Sanchin’ Kata or ‘Three Battles’ (三戦 - San Zhan) as it is known in the Chinese language. [6] This is why our training consisted of intense preparatory, supplementary and foot coordination exercises all designed to build the required physical and mental strength needed to correctly practice the ‘Sanchin’ Kata! Miyagi-sensei's explanation of these supplementary exercises is that they are designed to assist the learning of basic Kara-Te skills, as they assist the practitioner to understand the inner logic that is inherent within ‘Kara-Te’, whilst at the same time, our ‘Kara-Te’ skills should continue to be enhanced as our athletic ability and physical strength increase! Furthermore, the purpose of intense strengthening and toughening exercises is that a practitioner must not only warm-up the mind and body at the beginning of each training session, but through regular training must also prepare and build the mind and body so that it can perform the fundamental ‘Kara-Te' training skills correctly whilst using the techniques inherent in the ‘Sanchin’ (and other) Kata! Goju Ryu conditioning strengthens all the muscles of the body so that the body can be held ‘still’ like a mountain or ‘moved’ around like flowing water! If the muscles are trained regularly and properly, the body can move easily in any direction, or suddenly change direct as required! Miyagi-sensei said that by training in this manner we build a ‘Kara-Te’ physique. This is how we lay the foundation for effective ‘kara-Te’ by carrying-out preparatory and complementary exercises! After each training session, Miyagi-sensei would tell us various stories for two or three hours [7]. The themes of his stories included not only the history, purpose and development of the techniques of Kara-Te, but also discuss the world situation, the current state of the ‘Kara-Te’ world, the origins of ‘kara-Te’, his thoughts on ‘kara-Te’ and Buddhism, research on ‘Kara-Te’ and traditional Okinawan performing arts, and any subject or information he thought was relevant to support our learning process. We were only junior high school students at that time, but Miyagi-sensei taught us the truth about ‘kara-Te’, what kind of spirit a ‘kara-Te’ master should have, and the way of life that ‘kara-Te’ brings, that is, the Way (Dao) of True people or the Way (Dao) of virtue and morality. I still remember his bright face and sharp eyes in which I found the love and kindness of a true and great ‘kara-Te’ master! Now I will relay some of Miyagi-sensei's words to you. ‘If you only practice Sanchin Kata (三戦 - San Zhan) all your life, you don't have to practice any other Kata. Sanchin is the essence!’ [8] One day, I asked him, "How many times during your practice did you feel like you were doing well?" He replied, ‘I think I've only done well 1 time out of 30 of all my practice sessions.’ He was very young at the time, only 34 or 35 years old. I am still impressed by his words. ‘The position and placement of the hands at the end of the Sanchin Kata are the same as those found on Buddha statues.’ Miyagi-sensei often tells us this story. I think the gesture at the end of Sanchin Kata is the most beautiful prayer gesture. In fact, I see the same hand pose of Buddha statues in many temples. Miyagi-sensei said, ‘Rigidity is like a willow tree blown by a strong wind.’ Strong winds blow through the willow tree, and yet the willow tree never resists the wind, it remains impassive, but it is never broken or damaged. In ‘Kara-Te’, we must use the strength of our opponent. This is a skill that we must master through correct practice. [9] I think it was in 1926 when the National Budo Tournament was held in the outer garden of the Meiji Temple in Tokyo*. Shinzato Jinan, a disciple of Mr Miyagi, attended the meeting and performed ‘kara-Te’, which is an Okinawan martial art. At that time, an official suddenly asked him: ‘What's the name of your martial arts?’ Then he replied ‘Hard-Soft (interactional) style’. He later explained the matter to Miyagi-sensei, who approved this title. Since then, we have called ourselves the Goju Ryu. [10] Once I asked Mr Miyagi: ‘Teacher, do you have eyes in the back of your head? Someone said that even if we secretly follow you, you would immediately sense someone following you and quickly turn around to look for us.’ Miyagi-sensei replied, ‘No one has eyes in the back of their heads. But when I go down this road, in some cases, I feel a little weird. I think it's called the sixth sense. We should always be vigilant when walking around corners, walking on rainy streets, climbing up and down ladders, if you can practice hard and be habitually cautious, it will help in self-defence. After long-term ‘kara-te’ training, we can get what's called a sixth sense and notice if someone is following.’ ‘Learning karate now is like walking in the dark without lights. We have to grope and move forward in the dark.’ Miyagi-sensei also told me, ‘There are too many unreasonable things in ‘kara-Te’, and there are many things that I can't understand. So, when our ‘Chinese Hand’ masters were alive, we had to visit them and ask them a lot of questions. I think even when we did, it would be really hard to find out.’ I used to go to the home of Mr Chomo Hanashiro and Ankō Itosu, and listen to the stories their ‘kara-Te’ teachers told them. [11] In 1926 (the last year of the Taisho era), ‘Kara-Te’ masters from the ‘Minamiasahigaoka’ (南旭ケ丘) and ‘Wakasamachi-teki’ (若狭町的) areas Okinawa gathered and formed a club to study ‘Kara-Te’. The masters who participated in the club were: 1) Miyagi Chojun, 2) Kyoda Jūhatsu, 3) Motobu Chōki, 4) Motobu Choyu, 5) Mabuni Kenwa, 6) Taizo, 7) Shiroma Shinpan [12] On the first and fifteenth day of every month – the members gathered to worship the ‘Spirit’ (神 - Shen) of martial arts. I joined this club together with the following Kara-Te practitioners: 1) Maeyama Tatsunori 2) Kiju Nanjo 3) Kogyu Tazaki 4) Yagi Kamadashi At that time, Teacher Miyagi agreed to change the name of ‘Chinese Hand’ (唐手 - Tang Shou) to ‘Empty Hand’ (空手 - Kong Shou), and later ‘Chinese Hand’ was indeed gradually changed to ‘Empty Hand’[13]. Just as jiu-jitsu turned into judo, he was committed to developing the pure fighting skill of ‘Chinese Hand’ into ‘Empty Hand’. In 1925 (Taisho Year 14), when Kodokan judo master Jigoro Kano came to Okinawa, and we demonstrated Goju Ryu ‘kara-Te’ for him in a public hall in Naha City - Mr Miyagi explained it himself. The friendly meeting between the two founders of martial arts will light up the development of ‘kara-Te’ and bring good luck to the development of Judo! Japan created the "Foundation Gymnastics/Kenkoku Taiso" during World War II. In fact, this practice consisted mostly of ‘kara-Te’ kata, so it may be considered a variant of ‘kara-Te’. [14] As far as I know, Miyagi-sensei never tried to show off his ‘kara-Te’. Therefore, we also never talked about ‘kara-Te’ in school or outside of school. We kept in mind that we should not show ‘kara-Te’ to other people in public. When the judo teachers at Kodokan were on their way to Taiwan via Okinawa, they wanted us to show them ‘kara-Te’. We gave a demonstration at the training hall of No. 2 Middle School. After the Judo teacher left the school, Miyagi-sensei visited the No. 2 Middle School teacher Sochoku Nakachi and asked him, ‘How are my students doing?’ When Prince Takamatsu Miyazaki visited Okinawa, Miyagi-sensei appointed me as a representative of Goru Ryu to demonstrate Sanchin. At that time, I only wore a pair of shorts as I was practicing every day, and Miyagi-sensei did not demonstrate the Kata himself. The rhythm of ‘kara-Te’ is like wisdom blessed by the divine sky! It has the same rhythm as traditional Okinawan or Ryukyu dance. Let's continue to walk and grope in the dark to inherit the great rigidity and softness that Miyagi-sensei left behind! References: [1]^This text is a translation into the Chinese language from the original Japanese language article entitled ‘Kara-Te Master Miyagi Chojun’. Originally published in Aoi Umi Monthly, Issue 70, February 1978 (pp. 99-100), published by Aoi Umi Shuppansha. This special issue focused on Okinawan karate masters. "Aoi Umi Monthly" magazine has long since ceased publication. [2]^Nakaima Genkai had a high social status among the disciples of Miyagi Chojun. After the war, he devoted himself to the research and writing about Okinawan culture. It is said that around 1955, he was invited to attend a meeting of all the disciples of the Goju Ryu. At this meeting, Miyazato Eiichi was recognized by the majority and officially became the heir of Miyagi Chojun. [3]^Thirteen, Scholar Strong Town and 108 are the earliest known Naha ‘Te’ techniques, of which the name of Scholar Strong Town first appeared in the martial arts literature in the 186os. As now, these types have subtle differences according to different inheritances. Kyoda Jūhatsu once studied different sets of Thirteen techniques with Higaonna Kanryo and Higaonna Kanjun – but it was Kanryo’s Thirteen that was finally transmitted through the Higaonna lineage! [4]^According to the recollections of Yagi Meitoku, Miyagi Chojun only taught Sanchin, Thirteen, Seiyunchin and Suparinpei during the Taisho period - he only began to teach other Katas during the Showa period (after 1926). [5]^Probably the famous ‘Hanazono Dojo’ (花园道场) - ‘Flower Garden Way Place’ [6]^The training here is the most basic introductory training. It can be seen that it evolves around strength, endurance and flexibility, etc. This is also the tradition of Naha ‘Te’ and Goju Ryu. First, strengthen the physique and then exercise to develop the skills. There are differences in the teaching of Goju Ryu classes that focus only on developing specific skills. In addition, about the training system of Goju Ryu, you can check ‘Miyagi Chojuns Talks About Hard and Soft kara-Te’ in the historical archives for details. [7]^Combining the above, the actual ‘kara-Te’ training at that time was only about 2-3 hours, and the remaining 2-3 hours were taked with discussion time. [8]^What is expressed here, is that the Sanchin Kata is the firm foundation - which also has practical significance. Because from a technical point of view, Sanchin already contains the most basic maintenance framework, thrust skills, receiving skills and movement. [9]^According to the memory of Miyagi Chojun’s nephew - Higa Yunao - Miyagi Chojun was very good at moving, so this may not only refer to the basic movement – but include the highest form of ‘flowing’ (like water) from one place to another without losing power, posture or momentum, etc. [10]^Because of his age, Nakaima Genkai misremembered the time. This event should have happened around 1930. In addition, according to Kyoda Jūhatsu recollection, the name of Goju Ryu was thought up by Miyagi Chojun himself. [11]^According to the aforementioned self-report, he could not have had the opportunity to follow Miyagi Chojun to visit Itosu Ankō, because Itosu Ankō had passed away in 1915. Itosu Ankō was one of the most important masters in the history of ‘China Hand’ (唐手 - Tang Shou) - ‘Empty Hand’ (空手 - Kong Shou). His teachers were Nagahama Chikudun of Naha Te and Sokon Matsumura of Shuri Te. One of his disciples was Chōmo Hanashiro - who was said to have instructed Miyagi Chojun. This is a significant as Itosu Ankō is believed to have been the firt person to use the word ‘empty hand’ (in 1901). The ‘China Hand’ Research Club developed into the ‘Empty Hand’ Research Club! This was one of the most important associations in history, with the club mainly led by Motobu Chōyū - although master's from Naha, Shuri, Tori, Kume and other places exchanged their skills and teaching experience with each other. This promoted the standardization and modernization of ‘China Hand’ - ‘Empty Hand’! [12]^During the ‘China Hand’ Research Club gatherings, the participating masters would give guidance individually to whoever asked or approached them (rather than in groups), so that participating students at that time could learn the techniques of other styles and lineages – and not be limited to just their own style! [13]^Miyagi Chojun was one of the supporters of officially changing the name of ‘China Hand’ to ‘Empty Hand’, and it is his senior brother Kyoda Jūhatsu who clearly opposed it. [14]^This actually refers to a ‘Military Body Fist’ (军体拳 - Jun Ti Quan) style promoted by the IJA32 Army/Okinawa Défense Army in Okinawa during the Asia-Pacific War (1941-1945). Chinese Language Article: https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/119288128
宫城长顺:恩泽无量,讲述人间之道的武人 王扁豆 入院观察,积极治疗 11 人赞同了该文章 关于我的恩师宫城长顺先生的回忆[1] 作者:仲井間元楷[2] 在我刚升入中学二年级的那个春天,我的同学 玉城本顺/Bunshun Tamagusuku 对我说:“为什么我们不去找宫城大师学空手道(唐手)呢?” 玉城的叔叔新里仁安曾问过他是否想学习唐手。 当时希望通过新里仁安跟随宫城长顺大师学习的人,还有前山達徳/Tatsutoku Sakiyama(当时叫瀬名波達徳/Tatsutoku Senaha )、南條喜寿/Kiju Nanjo(当时叫間喜寿/Kiju Azama)和我三个人。 新里仁安是我的邻居,当时他已经从那霸商业高中毕业,所以他也算是我的学长。他住在 國吉有纪/Yukii Kuniyoshi 先生的一所出租屋中。 有一天晚上,我们三个人在国吉先生房子的木门前遇到了新里仁安,他脖子上缠着白布。当时新里正在木质大门的栏杆上做引体向上,他向我们展示了他能把下巴抬到杠铃上方多高。 此外他还教了我们如何用一只手臂做引体向上。 后来,我们经常晚上在Naha Jinjo Koto Shogakko(一所小学)的操场上聚会。我们喜欢做各种仰卧起坐或单杠练习。幸亏有了新里仁安,我们现在可以做正向大回转、反向大回转、空翻等高难度动作了。 不久之后,新里仁安进入了警察学校。我们四个人(玉城本顺、前山達徳、南條喜寿和我)决定向宫城大师学习空手道(唐手)。 但在这之前,我必须先征得父亲的允许。 当首里城被日军占领时,我的父亲只有10岁,琉球王国被废除,并在1879年(明治12年)成为日本的一个县。 日本政府在1872年(明治五年)建立了琉球宗族,作为废除琉球王国和建立冲绳县计划的第一步,当时他才3岁。 由于父亲是在这样的过渡时期出生的,而且我们的祖先来自中国,我们的家族不允许他接受所谓“大和学问”的日式教育,所以他没有上过学。 但因为努力工作,他拥有了强大而灵活的体格,我曾听说他是一位很厉害的摔跤手。当我在学校运动会上获奖时,他感到非常高兴。 1923年春天,当时我15岁,我告诉父亲我想向宫城大师学习空手道(唐手)。他给了我许可,并对我说:“你能跟随宫城长顺大师学习空手道(唐手),那真是太好了!”。那时宫城先生已经以空手道(唐手)出名了,所以父亲认为他是我理想的老师。 我们,冲绳久米村人,为自己的中国血统感到骄傲。我们相信我们的祖先是从中国来到冲绳,所以我们不仅非常尊重中国的文艺,而且也非常尊重武艺。 在文化艺术方面,我们建立了一所学校,叫做“Meirindo”,它就像今天的一所大学,在那里教育年轻人。至于空手道、搏击等武艺,我认为我们是根据各自的体力和其他条件单独练习的。 当时“ Meirindo”学校文化节的节目里,有棒术/Bo,鉄尺/Tesshaku/Tiechi,十三/ Sesan,士壮镇/Chishokin,籐牌/Tohai和“一百零八/Suparinpei”的表演[3]。 空手道的大多数表演与宫城老师教给我们的一样。[4] 宫城老师的课程就这样开始了。我们一周上三次课(周一、周三和周五,放学后从下午3点到晚上8点),当时的训练是在宫城老师的家里[5],而不是像现在这样在专门的道场(训练馆)。过了一段时间,我的同学玉城(新里仁安的侄子)退学了,只留下了三个练习者:前山達徳、南條喜寿和我。 我们当时的训练包括了准备运动,补充运动和足部动作,一般都是围绕三戦进行的。[6] 根据宫城老师对准备运动的解释,通过这些锻炼,我们可以为像三戦等Kata之类的空手道训练做准备,准备运动具有热身的功能。 准备运动的另一含义是通过锻炼所有必要的肌肉来增强我们的体力,以便我们可以在任何情况下正确使用肌肉。简而言之,我们通过准备运动来建立“空手道体格”。 补充运动是一种学习空手道基本技术的训练,它有助于我们理解空手道的内在逻辑,同时,我们的空手道技术也将随着我们运动能力和体力的发展而不断优化。 我们就这样通过做准备运动和补充运动为空手道打下基础的。 宫城老师在训练结束后,会给我们讲两三个小时的各种故事[7]。他的故事主题不仅有空手道的技术,还包括了世界局势、空手道界的现状、空手道的起源、他对空手道与佛教的思考、对空手道与冲绳传统表演艺术的研究等等。 那时候我们还只是初中生,但宫城老师却向我们宣扬空手道的真理,空手道大师应该有着怎样的灵魂,空手道所带来的生活方式,即人的方式或道德的方式。我仍然记得他那明亮的脸和敏锐的眼睛,在其中我找到了一位空手道大师的爱和善良。 现在我将转述宫城老师的一些话给你听。 “如果你一生只练习三戦,就不必练习其他Kata。三戦非常的重要。” [8] 有一天,我问他:“您在练习三戦过程中,有几次感觉您自己的表现不错?” 他回答说:“我认为我在30次三戦练习中,只有1次表现出色。” 当时他还很年轻,只有34或35岁。 他的话,我仍然印象深刻。 “三戦结束时手的位置和姿态与佛像相同。” 宫城老师经常告诉我们这个故事。 我认为三戦结束时的手势是最美的祈祷姿态。 实际上,我在一些寺庙中看到佛像的相同手部姿势。 宫城老师说:“刚柔就像是被强风吹过的柳树”。 强风吹过柳树, 而柳树从不抗拒风,它虽然保持被动,但永不会被折断或破坏。 在空手道中,我们可以利用对手的力量。 这是我们必须通过实践来掌握的技艺。[9] 我想是在1926年东京明治神宫外花园举行全国武道大会的时候*。宫城老师的弟子新里仁安参加了这次会议,并表演了作为冲绳武术的空手道。 当时,一位官员突然问他:“你武术叫什么名字?” 然后他回答“ 刚柔(半硬软)风格”。 后来他向宫城老师解释了此事,宫城老师批准了他的称呼。 从那时起,我们就称自己为刚柔流。[10] 有一次我问宫城老师:“老师,你的后脑勺有眼睛吗?有人说,即使我们偷偷跟着你,你也会立刻发现有人跟踪,并迅速转过身来寻找我们。” 宫城老师回答说,“没有人的后脑勺有眼睛。但当我沿着这条路走的时候,在某些情况下,我会感到有些奇怪。我认为这就是所谓的第六感。我们在街角拐弯处、在雨中的街道上行走,在梯子上爬上爬下的时候,都要时刻保持警惕,如果你能努力练习,并且习惯性谨慎,会对自卫会有帮助。经过长期的空手道训练,我们可以获得所谓的第六感,并能注意到是否有人在跟踪。” “现在学空手道就像在没有灯光的黑暗中行走。我们必须在黑暗中摸索前进。”宫城老师还告诉我,“空手道里有太多不合理的东西,还有很多我无法理解的东西。因此,当我们的(唐手)大师们还活着的时候,我们必须去拜访他们,请教他们许多问题。我想即使我们这样做了,其实也很难找到答案。”我曾经和他一起去过 花城長茂/Chomo Hanashiro 先生和 糸洲 安恒/Ankō Itosu 的家,听过他们的空手道故事。[11] 1926年(大正时代的最后一年),来自那霸、南旭ケ丘和若狭町的空手道大师们聚在一起,成立了一个俱乐部研究空手道。参加俱乐部的大师有:宫城长顺、许田重发、本部朝基、本部朝勇,、摩文仁賢和, 田原Taizo、城間真繁。[12] 每个月的初一和十五,他们会祭拜武术之神。前山達徳、南條喜寿、田崎耕牛/Kogyu Tazaki,、八木釜出/Yagi,、喜纳正興/Seiko Kina和我也参加了俱乐部,并在那里接受训练。[13] 那时,宫城老师就赞成将“唐手”改为“空手”,后来“唐手”的确逐渐被改为了“空手”[14]。就像柔术变成了柔道一样,他致力于将纯粹的格斗技艺“唐手”发展成“空手道”。 1925年(大正14年),讲道馆柔道大师嘉纳治五郎/Kigoro Kano来到冲绳时,我们在那霸市的一个公共礼堂为他演示了刚柔流空手道,宫城老师亲自进行了讲解。两大武道奠基人的友好会面,将为空手道事业的发展点亮光明,同时为柔道事业的发展带来好运。 日本在第二次世界大战期间创建了“建国体操运动/Kenkoku Taiso”。事实上,这种练习主要由空手道的Kata组成,所以可能算是空手道的一种变体。[15] 据我所知,宫城老师从未试图炫耀过自己的空手道。因此,我们也从来没有在学校和校外谈论过空手道。我们牢牢记住,我们不应该在公共场合向其他人展示空手道。 当讲道馆的柔道师范在途径冲绳前往台湾时,他们希望我们向他们展示空手道。前山達徳、南條喜寿和我在第二中学的柔道训练馆进行了展示。 柔道师范离开学校后,宫城老师拜访第二中学的老师Sochoku Nakachi,并询问他:“我的学生们表现得如何?” 当高松宮宣仁親王访问冲绳时,宫城老师任命我作为刚柔流的代表展示了三戦,当时我就像每天练习一样只穿着一条短裤,而宫城老师并未进行展示。 空手道的节奏如同是上天祝福的智慧。 它和传统的冲绳舞或琉球舞蹈的韵律相同。 让我们继续在黑暗中行走和摸索,以继承宫城老师所留下的伟大的刚柔流吧。 参考 ^本文是原著《空手道大师宫城长顺》的翻译。最早刊登在由Aoi Umi Shuppansha出版的《Aoi Umi月刊》1978年2月第70期(第99-100页)。本期特刊主要介绍了冲绳空手道大师。《Aoi Umi月刊》杂志早已停刊。 ^仲井間元楷在宫城长顺弟子中社会地位较高,,战后专注进行冲绳文化的研究和著作工作。据传1955年左右,他曾受邀列席了全体刚柔流弟子出席的会议,在这次会议上宫里栄一获得多数人的认可,正式成为宫城长顺的继承人。 ^十三、士壮镇和一百零八是已知最早的那霸手型,其中士壮镇的名字最早出现在186X年的演武文献中。和现在一样,这些型根据不同的传承有着细微的差异,许田重发曾和东恩纳宽量和东恩纳宽裕学习过不同的十三,宽裕の十三最终只得以东恩流中继承。 ^据八木明德回忆,宫城长顺在大正时期只教授三戦、十三、制引战和一百零八,昭和年代(1926年后)才开始教授其他型。 ^可能就是著名的“花园道场” ^这里的训练是最为基本的入门训练,可以看到是围绕着力量、耐力、柔韧等内容进行的,这也是那霸手和刚柔流的传统,先强化体格再锻炼技巧,和现在普遍练技为主的刚柔流兴趣班教学有所区别。此外,关于刚柔流的训练体系,可以在历史消息中查看《宫城长顺谈刚柔流空手道》具体了解。 ^结合上文,当时的空手道训练实际只有2-3小时左右,剩下的2-3小时是聊天时间。 ^这里可能表达的是,三戦作为基本型,同样具有实战意义。因为从技术角度讲,三戦已包含了最为基本的维持构架、突技、受技和移动等内容。 ^据宫城长顺外甥比嘉佑直的回忆,宫城长顺非常擅长移动,因此这里指的可能不光是原地的引受、流受,还包括了通过移动施展的技术。 ^因为年代久远,仲井間记错了时间,这个事件应该发生在1930年左右,此外根据许田重发的回忆,刚柔流的名字是由宫城长顺自己想出来的。 ^根据前文自述,他应该没有机会跟随宫城长顺拜访过糸洲安恒,因为糸洲安恒在1915年就已经去世了。糸洲安恒是唐手/空手道历史上最重要的大师之一,他是首里手松村宗棍和那霸手长滨的弟子。花城長茂是糸洲安恒的弟子,据称曾指导过宫城长顺,也是可追溯的最早使用“空手”一词的人。 ^唐手研究俱乐部是唐手/空手历史上最为重要的一次结社,俱乐部主要由本部朝勇领导,来自那霸、首里、泊、久米等地方的大师们相互交流技艺和教学经验,促进了唐手/空手的标准化和现代化。 ^唐手研究俱乐部时期,参加的唐手大师会分别进行指导,所以有当时的学生不仅会学习单一流派的技术和型,还会学习其他流派的内容。 ^宫城长顺是将“唐手”正式改名为“空手”的支持者之一,明确反对的是他的师兄许田重发。 ^这其实指的是IJA32军/冲绳守备军在冲绳本地推广的一种“军体拳”。 Global Kungfu Network Editor: Yang Yanfang (林竞峰) "Everyone who earns the black belt must do promotional work - which is an obligation to your art - and it doesn't matter if your financial conditions are good or not!’ Lin Jingfeng, 65 (as of 2012), is the Head Coach of the China Region of the International Okinawa Goju Ryu Karate Federation. He is also the Vice President of the Zhuhai Karate Association and all year round he is travelling and teaching in Zhuhai, Guangzhou, Changsha and Hong Kong. On April 6th, 2012, he sat down with reporters at the karate Dojo situated in the Zhuhai Sports Centre. Lin Jingfeng is a native of Hong Kong – but he speaks Putonghua very well. He is of medium stature, but he is very stocky. In his conversation, he appears to be kind, humble and very modest. He started to learn karate at the age of 15, got the first black belt at the age of 19, and is now an internationally recognized 6th Dan teacher. He told us that the journey went smoothly. He was part of the first batch of (Chinese) people to learn karate in Hong Kong, and also amongst the first group to successfully pass a black belt grading. When we first saw him, the scars on his arms and feet caught our attention, but his secretary told us that it was not the result of injuries, but an allergy to herbs. Lin Jingfeng said, in fact, when practicing karate it is easy to get injured, but he rarely gets hurt himself. This was done when he was practicing striking the sandbag. He was fine, but he used healing herbs on the cuts, grazes and bruises, but the allergies became what they are now. When he was teaching Goju Ryu in the Hong Kong Karate Association, many people in the class were seriously injured and they often had to call an ambulance after each session! Due to the realistic, tough and rough nature of Goju Ryu training - when the ambulance arrived and saw the wounded all over the floor – they did not know who to treat first! Part of the problem was calling an ambulance every 15 minutes due to yet another failed challenge match between a local fighter and one of our more talented Goju Ryu fighter! Things got so bad that the local hospital contacted the police – who launched an investigation – believing there was illicit or underground fighting for money going on! Later, Lin Jingfeng went to Japan, where he was taught the orthodox Goju Ryu karate by Miyagi Anichi Shifu - the brother-in-law of the former ancestral inheritor Miyagi Chojun! Lin Jingfeng told us that there are only four main styles of karate in Japan. As one of them, the Goju Ryu style of karate is mainly characterized by relatively small, circular and direct movements which are good at close-range defending and attacking. During 1980, he was instructed by his Master to travel to Fuzhu (in Fujian province) to seek-out the ancestral ‘Chinese’ martial arts styles that form the foundation of Goju Ryu Karate-Do. In other words, those Chinese martial arts styles which advocate and blend the mastery of yin and yang in their attacking and defending techniques. In other words, Lin Lingfeng was given the task of locating the fighting styles of Fuzhou that Higaonna Kanryo (1852-1915) studied, inherited and brought back to Okinawa around 1881. He was seeking out the same ‘gate’ (门 - men) of inheritance through which Higaonna Kanryo passed all those years ago! Lin Jingfeng stated that he could not find any historical, cultural or physical evidence that matched the reality of the obviously ‘Chinese’ orientated martial techniques preserved and passed on within the Goju Ryu tradition. Instead, following this failure, he decided to re-introduce the people of Mainland China to Goju Ryu Karate-Do – which is obviously a descendant of Chinese martial arts – despite being preserved within the Okinawan area of modern Japan today! Lin Jingfeng is of the opinion that Karate-Do possesses a 600 year history in China and it is about time that Chinese people understand this important exported aspect of their historical culture! Lin Jingfeng and Zhuhai Lin Jingfeng has been in Zhuhai (Guangdong) for 6 years. In the past 10 years, he mainly stayed in Pan Yu (Fuzhou), while his family was in Hong Kong. Over the years, he has been traveling around and communicating with karate associations in other places. We located him by coincidence. It happened that Lin Jingfeng was teaching, and the students were very different in age. Lin Jingfeng told us that people are getting younger and younger – with many girls now taking-up the training! The youngest student today is only 7 years old! Indeed, he explained that traditional Goju Ryu is very intense – but he feels this attitude is not always good in the modern world! Very young children cannot participate in such a feudalistic atmosphere – and so he has toned-down the frequency of training intensity! This adjustment has made it suitable for men, women and children to practice. Now there are five dojos in Zhuhai, including Sun Yat-sen University Zhuhai Branch, Beijing Normal University, and Jinan University. Lin Jingfeng told us a short story. One of his students worked in a government Department in Doumen (斗门). After coming here to practice with his son, in a dispute over a demolition issue, the student stepped forward to quell the incident. Lin Jingfeng said that karate is not only about learning, but more importantly, after you learn it, you have to have the courage to face emergencies and use your own abilities to solve problems. At the age of 65, he has been learning karate for 50 years. He said that the learning process of karate is not as interesting or exciting as some people think – as it involves repeated, boring and arduous exercises - which test a person's skill at patiently enduring. Regarding his persistence in karate, Lin Jingfeng was very calm in his words. When he first started learning, he felt that he was too weak, but later on, there were not too many twists and turns, and he didn't think too much. He said that no matter how old he is, he will definitely be thinking about the future. It is to live to old age and to continue to learn, whilst promoting karate has become a habit. He hopes that more people can understand and learn karate. Lin Lingfeng in Profile Chen Yangdi (陈阳娣), who has been with Lin Jingfeng for quite some time as the secretary of the Zhuhai Karate Association. She came to Zhuhai from Pan Yu (in Fuzhou) with Lin Jingfeng and won the runner-up in the women's group of the ‘First Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Karate Competition.’ According to her, the one who defeated her at that time was the Macau representative in the last Asian Games who had won a Silver Medal in the Asian Games. As a disciple of Lin Jingfeng, Chen Yangdi said that learning karate is very hard. You have to repeat the same movements every day, and the practice is very intense. Sometimes after practice, it is difficult to walk up the stairs and hold chopsticks. However, she feels that she has become more confident and happier in her karate learning, because parents often tell her that their children have changed a lot and become more sensible since taking classes here. Chen Yangdi told us that Teacher Lin once gave the heroine - Chen Baozhu (陈宝珠) - a martial arts instruction in the movie ‘The Lady Killer’, and film and television stars Di Long (狄龙) and Liang Xiaolong (梁小龙) once learned karate in Teacher Lin's place... Lin Jingfeng interrupted her, ‘They are too popular now – perhaps we shouldn’t mention them.’ Source: Zhuhai News Network.. 林竞峰:把空手道带回中国
全球功夫网 编辑:杨艳芳 日期:2012年05月17日 “每个进入黑带的人都必须去做推广工作,这是义务,跟你经济条件好不好没关系。”现年65岁的林竞峰是国际冲绳刚柔流空手道联盟中国区的总教练,珠海市空手道协会副会长,常年奔波在珠海、广州、长沙、香港四地。4月6日,在珠海体育中心的空手道道场内,他这样告诉记者。 林竞峰是香港人,他的普通话讲的还算清楚,身材中等,但却很魁梧,谈吐之中显得为人和善、谦虚、低调。15岁就开始学习空手道,19岁拿到了黑带初段,现已经是国际公认六段师范的他告诉我们一路过来,都很顺利,他是香港第一批学空手道的人,也是第一批拿到黑带的人。 刚见到他,他手臂、脚上的疤痕引起了我们的注意,但他的秘书告诉我们,这不是伤,是对草药过敏引发的。林竞峰说,其实练空手道很容易弄伤,但自己很少受伤,这是练沙袋的时候弄的,本来没事,上了草药,结果过敏就成了现在这样,全是疤痕。当初他在香港空手道协会教课时,班上很多人受伤,每次受伤后要叫救护车,有一次救护车上来看到满地的伤员竟然不知道要抬走哪一个,最厉害的一次是每15分钟叫一次救护车,后来医院就直接报警了,以至于警察怀疑他们在斗拳。 后来,林竞峰去了日本,获巳故流祖宫城长顺的入室弟子宫城安一师范亲自教授正统的刚柔流空手道。林竞峰告诉我们,空手道在日本主要有4个流派,刚柔流作为其中的一支,主要特点在于动作比较小,主张并擅长近距离攻击。1980年受师傅嘱咐第一次来到福建福州市寻找刚柔流同门,但很可惜没有收获,后林竞峰就一直致力于在中国内地和香港推广刚柔流空手道。林竞峰告诉记者,空手道600年前是中国的武术,他的目标是,发扬空手道,并将它带回中国。 林竞峰与珠海 林竞峰来珠海已经6年了,这之前的10年,他主要待在番禺,而他的家人都在香港,这些年来,他一直奔波各地,并与其他地方的空手道协会作交流。 我们去的很巧,刚好是林竞峰在教学,学生们年纪大小跨度非常大。林竞峰告诉我们,由于现在来学习的人年纪越来越小,有个学生只有7岁,而且女生也越来越多,为了利于空手道的推广,现在他已经将空手道练习的强度适当降低,使得男女老少都适宜练习。现在在珠海包括中山大学珠海分校以及北师大、暨大在内的道场就有5个。 林竞峰给我们讲了个小故事,他的一个学生在斗门一政府部门工作,在和儿子来这练习之后,在一次关于拆迁问题引发的纠纷中,这个学生挺身而出平息了事故。林竞峰说,说空手道,不仅仅是学,更重要的是在学过之后你还要有勇气去面对突发事情,并利用自己的能力化解问题。 现年65岁的他已经学了50年的空手道了,他说,空手道的学习过程并不是想有些人想象的那样很酷,更多的是重复枯燥艰苦的练习,在中也能够锻炼一个人的耐力。对于空手道的坚持,林竞峰在言语当中表现的非常平静,刚开始学时因为觉得自己太弱,但后来一路走来中间并没有太多的波折,也没有多想,他表示自己不管年纪多大,以后肯定是活到老学到老,推广空手道变成习惯,他希望有更多的人能够了解、学习空手道。 侧面的林竞峰 一直陪在林竞峰旁边的陈阳娣是珠海市空手道协会的秘书,她随林竞峰从番禺来到了珠海,曾获得“第一届粤港澳空手道选手权”女子组的亚军,据她介绍,当时打败她的是上一届亚运会中的澳门代表,并在亚运会中获得了银牌。作为林竞峰的弟子,陈阳娣表示,学空手道很苦,每天要重复一样的动作,练习强度也很大,有时候练完之后,走楼梯,拿筷子都很困难。不过她觉得自己在空手道中学习中变得更为自信,也很开心,因为经常有家长对她说,自从在这上课之后孩子变化很大,更为懂事。 陈阳娣告诉我们,林老师曾经在电影《女杀手》里面给女主角陈宝珠做武术指导,影视明星狄龙、梁小龙曾经在林老师这学过空手道……林竞峰却打断了她的话,“他们现在太红了,这样说不太好。” 来源:珠海新闻网 Master Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) [1947-2018] Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) [1947-2018] is an ethnic Chinese man born in Hong Kong who committed his life to establishing and normalizing an Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate-Do club within Hong Kong – amongst ethnic Chinese people. At his death (on July 21st, 2018), Mr Lin Jingfeng was considered a ‘Grand Master’ (师范 - Shi Fan) - pronounced ‘Shihan’ in the Japanese language. Due to the behaviour of the Imperial Japanese Army throughout Northeast and Southern China between 1931-1945 – and the hundreds of thousands Chinese men, women and children throughout China (and the millions killed and wounded throughout Asia) - the ethnic Chinese people understandably possessed (and still possess) a ‘dim’ view of Japanese morality and martial arts ability! The Japanese military forces had routinely carried-out endless atrocities – often using traditional martial arts as a vehicle for hurting, maiming and killing, etc! My family, like millions of others in China, have a direct experience of this barbarity which brought endless lineages to an end. I will not go into the horror of the details here, but I am building the picture so that the average non-Chinese reader will begin to understand just a little of the problems Mr Lin Jingfeng faced whilst trying to popularise Karate-Do within the ethnic Chinese cultural milieu – where many older people had witnessed Chinese prisoners tied to posts and ‘reversed-punched’ (Gyaku-zuki - 逆突き) to death by Japanese soldiers lining-up to take their turn landing three punches each with their left-hand and then their right-hand – until a Senior Japanese NCO would pronounce the victim ‘dead’ and order the body took down and dumped into a pile – and the next prisoner brought out to take their turn!
Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) [1964-2018] understood Goju Ryu in much the same manner that I do. In the late mid to late 1980s in the UK, I walked into a Goju Ryu Dojo in the city of Hereford and was astonished by what I encountered! Whilst travelling around the UK participating in various education courses (at a time when such endeavours were still ‘free’), my Hakka Chinese gongfu Master – Chan Tin Sang (1924-1993) - suggested that whilst keeping my Chinese background ‘secret’ (I look Western), I should attend a number of local martial arts schools (all of which appeared ‘Japanese’) learn as much as I can about their teachings, and then when I returned home, I could make a full report about what I had found. All the styles I had encountered were all variants on a theme with blocks, punches and kicks all seemingly replicating the Japanese sword systems (although I respected the motivations behind the Wado Ryu philosophy). The techniques were aggressive, delivered in a straight line and designed to demonstrate dominance at the point of first contact. Goju Ryu Karate-Do looks and feels nothing like the average ‘Japanese’ Karate style! Chinese language historical sources are unclear about how long the Ryukyu Islands were a tributary State of China – but this relationship ended in 1879 when the islands were annexed by the Imperial Japanese regime. Not long after this, Higaonna Kanryo returned to Okinawa bringing with him a number of White Crane fighting styles, together with a number of ‘Southern Fist’ fighting Forms all gathered from martial arts Master living in and around the Fuzhou region of Fujian province. As these typically ‘Chinese’ styles advocate a system of self-defence premised upon the smooth interaction of yin and yang – this combined fighting style became known in Okinawa as ‘Goju’ or the ‘Hard-Soft’ School! The blocks are ‘rounded’ whilst the attacks are straight or circular and the stances are regularly transitioned from deep, to medium and high! This is all held together with a very well-timed ‘body-shifting’ ability! These techniques work because of the arduous body conditioning which the Goju Ryu student must undergo as part of the mind-body preparation process. This is reflected in the ‘tension’ retained whilst performing the Sanchin and Tensho Katas, etc. Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) was 17 years old (during February 1964) when he first encountered a Goju Ryu Karate-Do class being held in Hong Kong. At this time, Hong Kong was still a British ‘colony’ and Japanese businesses were given free access to the island. This led to leisure clubs being established that existed for certain ethnic groups only. For instance, there were leisure clubs for ‘White’ British (where all non-Europeans were excluded), and there were similar clubs permitted by the British Colonial Authorities for the Japanese business community living within the colony. A Japanese-only Goju Ryu Karate-Do class was established at the Causeway Bay World Fitness Club. To gain entry an individual had to be ethnically Japanese or the ‘guest’ of an ethnic Japanese person. This is how Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) gained access to this Goju Ryu Karate-Do class that was then being held by a ‘Sensei Harada’. Mr Harada was a rich and influential businessman who possessed the right connections with the British Colonial Authorities. It was his (private) Goju Ryu Karate-Do class which was the ‘first’ Japanese martial arts class to have been established upon any Chinese territory post-1945. It is said that Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) was amongst the very first students accepted into the class – with the implication being that despite the strict colonial regulations – Mr Harada may well have intended to establish a class open to all! In 1965 due to work reasons, Mr Harada had to return to Japan for a time. This meant that control of the Dojo passed into the hands of Mr Masaru Suzuki (later the founder of Shobukan) with Mr Hange Uehara (founder of the Okinawa Gojo Ryu Uehara Hang Dojo) as second-in-command. By this time, Mr Lin Lingfeng (林竞峰) had been training for nearly three years and had taken and passed his 1st Dan Blackbelt Test during December 1966 (Sensei Suzuki had presided over the grading and awarded the 1st Dan qualification). In 1968, the British Colonial Authorities permitted the establishment of an official ‘Japan Goju Ryu Association’ (organised by Mr Harada but this time with official diplomatic ties to the Japanese government) - with its own recognised public ‘Dojo’ that could (in theory) allow people of all ethnic groups to train together! As Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) was not Japanese, had never trained in Japan and had never graded in Japan – he was required to take his 1st Dan Blackbelt grading once again. After the official ‘opening’ of the new Dojo - Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) was re-examined under stricter testing conditions designed to satisfy the government of Japan. After his successful ‘Passing’ of this new examination for the grade he already possessed - Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) was awarded his new Certificate by Yamaguchi Gogen – whilst the grading itself was presided over by the representatives of Yamamoto Atsuyuki. After this, Mr Lin Jingfeng (林竞峰) successively obtained his 2nd and 3rd Dan qualifications through the ‘Japan Goju Ryu Association’. (The 2nd and 3rd Dan grades were overseen by representatives of Yamamoto Kagura – whilst Tasaki Shuji acted as witness and Yamaguchi Gogen issued the Certificates). https://tieba.baidu.com/p/2189357814 林竞峰师范 1947年 5月5日 出生於香港。1964年2月, 林先生未满17岁时参加了日商原田注先生在香港铜锣湾世界健身会场地里开办的日本刚柔会空手道班。这是香港的第一个空手道班,林竞峰先生是该班的第一批学生。1965年间 因工作原因,原田注先生一度回日本,道场经营者让铃木正文先生(后来正武馆的创立人)与上原恒先生(冲绳刚柔流上原恒道场)来代课。 林先生在这个空手道班中坚持训练了接近三年,1966年12月取得初段资格(铃木正文主持考核颁发段位资格)。1968年 日本刚柔会 (原田先生的组织)正式成立道场后,林先生复考日本刚柔会初段资格 (山本权之兵衞主持考核,山口刚玄签发证书) ,之后林先生相续取得日本刚柔会的二段与三段资格(两次考核都由山本権之兵卫,田崎修司一起主持,由山口刚玄签发段位证书)。 Breath, Bodyweight and Awareness 'Sink' Down Through the Lower Dantian (丹田) and Down Each Leg and Through the Feet into the Ground! The Immense Rebound Force Emits Upwards Through a 'Trembling' Reaction Which Gathers the qi Power into the Desired Area for Offense or Defence! Lin (林) Family Member Practices Outside Their Shop in Fuzhou! Root Ancestor (始祖 - Shi Zu) - Martial Teachings Later Evolved into Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate-Do. The extant Chinese language records state that Xie Chongxiang (谢崇祥) was also known as 'Xie Ru Ru' (谢如如) - and often referred to by his disciples and students as 'Ru Shi' (如师). He was trained in traditional Chinese martial arts by his teacher ‘Lin Dachong’ (林达崇) who was commonly referred to as 'Pan Yu Ba' (盘屿八). Xie Chongxiang was taught (and/or further developed) the following martial arts styles: a) 'Whooping Crane Fist' (鸣鹤拳 - Ming He Quan). b) 'Shaolin Arahant Fist' (少林罗汉拳 - Shao Lin Luo Han Quan). c) 'Shaolin White Crane Fist' (少林白鹤拳 - Shao Lin Bai He Quan). The third example is also often referred to as 'Fujian' (福建) White Crane Fist - whilst the ambiguous language used in his biography suggests that 'Whooping Crane Fist' (鸣鹤拳 - Ming He Quan) is an 'integration' of (and/or an 'improvement' upon) the 'Arahant Fist' (罗汉拳 - Luo Han Quan) style and the 'Shaolin' (or 'Fujian') White Crane Fist' (少林白鹤拳 - Shao Lin Bai He Quan) style (also referred to as 'Yongchun' [永春] White Crane Fist). (The use of the term 'Shaolin' here, refers to the idea that there once existed a number of 'Southern' (南 - Nan) Shaolin sister temples (to the famous 'Henan' Shaolin Temple) which existed in Quanzhou, Putian and Fuqing areas of Fujian province, etc, with each perfecting their own unique and distinct martial arts traditions that were spread out into the lay communities when these temples were destroyed for political reasons). This 'integrating' process appears to have been carried-out by Lin Dachong and Xie Chongxiang during their respective lifetimes. It seems that Lin Dachong built the foundation of 'Whooping Crane Fist' - whilst Xie Chongxiang further developed and completed this transformative process - eventually perfecting the 'Whooping Crane Fist' style! Xie Chongxiang is represented in a typical Confucian style of being a loyal and devout inheritor and preserver of the past - whilst also 'adding' to this wealth of ancient knowledge through his own ingenious innovations manifest through hard work and practical demonstration. He was known generally as ‘Xie Ru Ru’ (Esteemed Elder Brother Xie) even though his two first birth-names were ‘Chong’ and ‘Xiang’. At the age of 13 years old, he relocated (with his father) to the Taijiang coastal area of Northeast Fuzhou, where they lived next to Xing’an (星安) Bridge. His father was called ‘Xie Zunshi’ (谢尊志) and he was renowned as an expert in the fine craft of bamboo weaving and bamboo construction. This is how his father made a living in the Taijiang area. Xie Ru Ru first followed his father – learning the rudiments of the bamboo weaving and construction craft, but when he grew older, he was apprenticed back at his hometown under ‘Lin Kangguan’ (林康官) at the newly opened ‘Treasure Beautiful Fast’ (宝美斋 - Bao Mei Zhai) Shoe Shop! Xie Ru Ru was well-known for working very hard! He would labour all day learning his trade, whilst in the evening and at night he would learn martial arts (拳术 - Quan Shu) from a friend of his father – who came from the ‘Pan Yu’ (盘屿) area of Fuzhou. He was short in stature (about 1.55 meters) but was very stout and muscular in build! Records state that his right-arm was noticeably longer than his left-arm. As he worked so hard (carrying-out various and continuous types of manual labour), his body became very strong, and his mind became very calm (and focused). He was patient and long-suffering. He could endure physical hardship and did not allow the pain he experienced to disrupt his calm state of mind. Due to the development of his mind and body, and the difference in the length of his arms, Xie Ru Ru developed an open-hand (手 - Shou) martial arts style that emphasised (and distinguished) the ‘hard’ (刚 - Gang) and ‘soft’ (柔 - Rou) in its attacking and defending techniques – the two concepts of which were integrated through the developed perception of the mind of the practitioner! His longer (right-arm) was trained to pierce and penetrate the defence of the opponent with ‘hard’ techniques whilst the shorter (left-arm) acted as a highly effective ‘soft’ vehicle for deflecting, diverting and evading any of the opponent’s attacking techniques which threatened to strike the head, torso or lower body, etc. This led to a style whereby Xie Ru Ru fought with his longer right-arm forward – as this gave him the greater ‘attacking’ advantage in combat! When asked what ‘animal’ style this system represented, Xie Ru Ru explained that he had been taught ‘Crane’ (鹤 - He) style by other Masters – but that he had been observing how the White Crane species of bird behaved throughout the day, throughout the season, throughout the year and throughout its life! The White Crane often feigned ‘weakness’ or ‘over-exaggerated' a deficiency it already possessed! This would create an unfounded arrogance in the opponent and served to hide the strengths that the White Crane actually possessed! An over-confident opponent would unknowingly expose their natural weakness when they thought no threat was present! As Xie Ru Ru had strengthened his mind and body, he possessed an immense power which he applied at exactly the right moment in combat – just as the White Crane expertly pecked with its beak, kicked with its feet or deflected with its wings! The White Crane also stepped aside and made itself ‘non-present’ with a perfect timing – a skill that Xie Ru Ru also perfected exactly. This is why he referred to his style of fighting as ‘Crane Fist’ (鹤拳 - He Quan). The fighting style of Xie Ru Ru was eventually transmitted to Okinawa (which used to be a part of China and known as ‘Ryukyu’) where it was developed into what is today known as the ‘Goju Ryu’ style of Karate-Do. This is the ‘Hard-Soft’ School of fighting which has a Chinese origin premised upon the White Crane Fist fighting system. This association was confirmed in 1989 by some of the best leading scholars Mainland China possesses – and in the intervening years has stood the test of time and has resisted every challenge that has been made against it. It is very clear that Xie Ru Ru was the teacher of Higaonna Kanryo – recorded in Okinawa as ‘Ru Ru Ko’ - and it is very clear from Okinawan records (held within the Miyagi family) that Higaonna Kanryo held the martial abilities of Xie Ru Ru with the highest level of respect! Xie Ru Ru was born during the second year of the ‘Xianfeng’ (咸丰) era of the Qing Dynasty (1852), with his ancestral village located in the 'Daibian' (岱边) area of Changle (长乐) County Northeast Fujian province – situated about 20 miles East of Fuzhou. His family was typical of the day and was very poor. At the age of 13 years old, he went to Fuzhou, the provincial capital, with his father Xie Zunzhi. They lived in the Shuanghang (双杭) area near to the Xing'an Bridge. He first learned to be a fine bamboo craftsman, and later he became an apprentice in the Baomeizhai shoe shop opened by his fellow countryman Lin Kangguan. He worked hard during the day (strengthening his mind and body) and he then learned ‘Arahant Fist’ (罗汉拳 - Luo Han Quan) from a friend of his father named ‘Lin Dachong’ (林达崇) during the evening and at night! As he was short and stocky, and because his right-arm was longer than his left-arm, Xie Ru Ru developed a martial style that perfectly blended the ‘hard’ with the ‘soft’ (equating these two concepts with the perfect interaction of yin and yang 陰陽). The ‘hard’ represented the ‘external’ (外 - Wai) whilst the ‘soft’ represented the ‘internal’ (內 - Nei) - with the mind and perception of the practitioner distinguishing and integrating these two important and profound concepts. Although possessing a disability regarding the disproportional length of his arms, Xie Ru Ru was highly intelligent and used his circumstances to the best of his ability! Just like a White Crane (which appears weak and fragile), Xie Ru Ru used his natural attributes to a great advantage over his opponents! This in itself constitutes a great and profound achievement and demonstrates the triumph of the human spirit over the limitations presented by material reality. Xie Ru Ru was highly intelligent, and he used his advanced thinking ability to transcend the physical limitations that life had presented him with! The physical structure, behaviour and reactions of the Fujian White Crane offered Xie Ru Ru a vehicle to achieve this mind and body transformation! The material reality defining Xie Ru Ru’s body and living conditions provided him with a challenge which allowed him to develop the ‘Arahant Fist’ system he had learned from Lin Dachong (also known as ‘Pan Yu Ba’) - and to explore and further develop the White Crane system that Lin Dachong is recorded as experimenting with! The rapid application and interchange of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ techniques formed the basis of Xie Ru Ru’s martial expertise. The record books state that Lin Dachong began the developmet of ‘Whooping Crane Fist’ (鸣鹤拳 - Ming He Quan) and the Xie Ru Ru continued this development and perfected the theoretical principles and practical applications of this style. Although training to toughen the mind and body – Xie Ru Ru perfected the application of overcoming an opponent through the exclusive use of ‘soft’ open-hand techniques. This ability prevailed in the midst of the most violent martial encounters! Xie Ru Ru would remain calm and indifferent to an opponent who was acting from greed, hatred and delusion! No matter how big, strong or violent an opponent was, Xie Ru Ru would expertly evade, deflect and ‘pierce’ the defence of these aggressors with a measured ease! Indeed, he became very famous and was renowned for his martial skills far and wide – certainly beyond the geographical limitations of Fuzhou! Xie Ru Ru mastered the ability of gathering and transporting (运 - Yun) the ‘Vital Force’ (气 - Qi) contained within the breath, bodyweight and will-power (intention) - so that it could be dramatically and radically expressed – copying the White Crane when it emits its ‘cry’ (鸣 - Ming) with a sudden and overwhelming power – which Xie Ru Ru expressed in a kick, punch, block, deflection or other type of strike! Although perfecting a ‘relaxed’ body, Xie Ru Ru could suddenly gather all the ‘qi’ energy into a certain bodily area and express this as a temporary but extreme form of muscular ‘tension’ - termed ‘Iron Vest’ (铁布杉 - Tie Bu Shan) - within Chinese martial arts! Xie Ru Ru could also ‘tense’ his entire musculature for extended lengths of time – an unusual ability even amongst those who had perfected the Iron Vest technique! When all these martial abilities Xie Ru Ru possessed were gathered together, they were said to be expressed perfectly through the ‘Whooping Crane Fist’ (鸣鹤拳 - Ming He Quan) system! The White Crane is relaxed and apparently ‘unconcerned’ about circumstantial dangers – but suddenly it emits a piercing ‘cry’ as all the qi energy is directed to a pinnacle of martial expression! Xie Ru Ru mastered the ability to express a devastating, fast and momentarily ‘tense’ martial technique that devastated the opponent before naturally retracting this qi energy back into the mind and body - and ‘returning’ this qi energy back into a relaxed state of ‘rest’ and position of ‘replenishment’ (and ‘regathering’). This is the White Crane fluttering its feathers, realigning its wings and going back to stepping around its living space and seeking out food in the ground with its beak! At this time there was a well-known martial arts expert who was resident at the General’s Mansion in the local area. He was employed as a ‘bodyguard’ for local government officials and appears to have been a Buddhist monk as he was known as the ‘Venerable Xiao’ (萧和尚 - Xiao He Shang). He had been told that there was a very good martial arts Master living in the local area who possessed a number of unusual martial arts abilities. The ‘Venerable Xiao’ was employed to teach the local militia a superior martial arts ability that could be used to police the local population! The problem was that local people were saying that Xie Ru Ru was a better martial artist than the ‘Venerable Xiao’! If this was the case, then why was the ‘Venerable Xiao’ being employed in the high governmental post he was currently occupying? One day, ‘Venerable Xiao’ met with Xie Ru Ru and they discussed their respective martial arts – and engaged in a friendly sparring match – which Xie Ru Ru won easily. ‘Venerable Xiao’ bowed down and recognised Xie Ru Ru as his teacher – thanking him for the valuable lesson! There was also a local doctor named ‘Wang Shi’an’ (王士庵) who was an expert in medicine and martial arts. When Wang Shi’an challenged Xie Ru Ru – Xie Ru Ru prevailed easily and Wang Shi’an recognised Xie Ru Ru’s superior martial ability. Meanwhile, Xie Ru Ru recognised the medical expertise of Wang Shi’an - and stated that genuine Chinese martial arts are partly effective self-defence combative techniques on the one hand, whilst on the other hand are reinforced by the ability to ‘heal’ and to ‘treat’ people when injured and/or ill! Xie Ru Ru explained that this dichotomy is yet another example of the harmonious interaction of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ approaches to the polarity that defines reality. *Sometimes written as ‘Xie Zongxiang’ (谢宗祥) Chinese Language Source: 谢如如
谢崇祥,男,福建福州长乐县人,中国武术名家,为鸣鹤拳传人。 谢崇祥为长乐县岱边人,小名如如,他的徒弟称呼他为如师。师从潘屿八,学习南少林白鹤拳,后以拳技闻名于福建。 琉球刚柔流空手道始祖 谢如如字崇祥,13岁随父迁居福州台江星安桥畔,父亲谢尊志在台江作细竹工谋生,如如随父亲学作竹匠。后往同乡林康官开设的宝美斋鞋铺当学徒。如如生性勤劳,白天学艺,晚上拜其父好友(盘屿人)学习拳术。他身材矮小(约1.55米左右),体格粗壮,右臂长于左臂,由于他刻苦锻炼,创造一种刚柔手法,形成独具风格的鹤拳。 琉球刚柔流空手道始祖谢如如,生于清咸丰二年(1852年),祖籍长乐县。家贫,13岁时随父谢尊志到省城福州闯荡,住在双杭星安桥畔。最初学习做细竹匠,后来又到同乡人林康官开设的宝美斋鞋店当学徒。他白日学艺,晚上跟父亲好友、南台岛盘屿人林达崇学习罗汉拳。谢如如个子矮小但体格强壮,他的右臂比左臂长,因而具有天然的优势,加上天资聪颖,就独创了一套刚柔手拳术。这种柔手法风格的鹤拳,因运气时声如鹤鸣,遂名为“鸣鹤拳”。当时有个叫“萧和尚”的将军府武术教练,听说了谢如如的事,找上门来要切磋,结果交手即败,最后甘拜下风,拜谢如如为师。当时拜谢如如为师的还有一位医生名叫王士庵,武德医德相得益彰。 Dear Tony The Chinese language encyclopaedia pages regarding Miyagi Chojun suggest that he went to China in 1915 to meet 'Shi Gong' (Xei Chongxiang) and other gongfu masters because Higaonna Kanyro was still in regular communication with them! Assuming this communication was by the written word (although it could have been by word of mouth), then there should be a written record somewhere in China even if all the replies were destroyed in 1945 in Okinawa! Furthermore, and more to the point, Miyagi Chojun was probably the first visitor to Xie Chongxiang from Okinawa since Higaonna Kanryo left in 1881 - so here is our answer to some extent! Miyagi Chojun probably conveyed all the history he knew of Higaonna Kanryo's earlier visit and education in China - to any and all the Chinese Masters he met - thus spreading the knowledge! Modern Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate-Do is comprised of the following Chinese martial arts styles and systems: a) Fujian White Crane Fist (福建白鶴拳 - Fu Jian Bai He Quan) - which originated in Yongchun County. b) Southern Shaolin Fist (南少林拳 - Nan Shao Lin Quan) - probably Quanzhou, but also the sister temples of Putian and Fuqing. based upon Pan Yu Ba's 'Eighteen Arahant Fist' (羅漢拳 - Luo Han Quan). c) Whooping Crane Fist (鳴鶴拳 - Ming He Quan). From (and between) 1912-1915 with the arrival of Wu Xiangui (Go Ken Ki) on the scene! I suspect Wu Xiangui introduced Miyagi Chojun to 'Whooping Crane' in Okinawa - but then took him to see his Master (Xie Chongxiang) in 1915 as a representative of Higaonna Kanryo (as Higaonna Kanryo was too ill to travel). I think the outer frame of Goju Ryu is obviously Southern Fist - which looks very 'Northern' in part and perhaps this is the origination of the wide and broad Horse Stance (which looks just like our Longfist Forms)! The 'inner' frame of Goju Ryo is Fujian White Crane - which has a crossover with such arts as Taijiquan, Xingyi, Xinyi and Baguazhang, etc! The maintaining of 'tension' was taught to me as 'steel wire' in English but I later found out the proper Chinese term is '缠丝劲' (Chan Si Jin) - or 'winding silk unyielding force'. This is taught within Taijiquan and all authentic forms of White Crane. The power is relentless, endless, self-propelling and self-replicating. It is not dependent upon physical fitness (although it is acquired only after a life time of relentless mind-body training without mercy) and is not negated or diverted by physical conditions. It is a universal force that operates regardless of life or death. My Master used to say that it is like a heavy iron ball rolling in all and any directions! Nothing can stop it. The secret lies in the Kata construction of Goju Ryu which is as follows: Higaoona Kanryo Fujian White Crane Fist and Southern Fist Forms (Katas) brought back from Fuzhou - China (c. 1881): 碎破 (Sui Po) = Saifa 制引战 (Zhi Yin Zhan) = Seiyunchin 四向战 (Si Xiang Zhan) = Shisochin 三十六手 (San Shi Liu Shou) = Sanseru 十八手 (Shi Ba Shou) = Seipai 久留顿破 (Jiu Liu Dun Po) = Kururunfa 十三手 (Shi San Shou) = Seisan 一百零八手 (Yi Bai Ling Ba Shou) = Suparinpei 三战等 (San Zhan) = Sanchin Miyagi Chojun Whooping Crane Form (Kata) brought back from Fuzhou - China (1915) 六机手 (Liu Ju Shou) = Rokuki - later developed into 'Tensho' (转掌 - Zhan Zhuan). Wang Xiangui came to Okinawa in 1912 (where he lived until his death in 1940) - he was sent to assist Higaonna Kanryo by Xie Chongxiang (Higaonna Kanryo died in 1915). Became Miyagi Chojun's teacher and accompanied him to and from China in 1915. Miyagi Chojun - Constructed Kata (1937) In 1937, when Japan declared war on China, Miyagi Chojun is employed as a High School Sport Instructor and tasked with teaching Goju Ryu Karate-Do to High School Students destined to be recruited into the Imperial Japanese Army. Goju Ryu training proved too difficult in its traditional form for short-term students passing through limited-time classes - so Miyagi Chojun carefully constructed two Basic Katas that convey a sound appreciation of self-defence: 击碎第一 (Ji Sui Di Yi) = Gekisai Dai-Ichi* 击碎第二 (Ji Sui Di Er) = Gekisai Dai-Ni* Within these two Katas - Miyagi Chojun introduced the concept of the '上段扬受' (Shang Duan Yang Shou) - or 'Jo Dan Age Uke' in Okinawan. This is a highly technical term that translates as 'Upper Level Raising Interception' - and which today is universally known by its English translation of 'Upper Block'. (This upper 'blocking' technique involves the coordinated crossing, rubbing and inter-changing of the toughened fore-arms (with closed fists) in front of the chest area as each is alternatively raised above the forehead (whilst defending the middle and upper levels) - with the intention of deflecting a downward descending blow directed to the top of the head - or diverting a straight punch or similar strike to the face, etc. Today, the exact angle of the raised block with the closed hand varies according to the preference of the Karate-Do style). According to Chinese language sources, this 'Upper Block' did not exist in the Karate-Do styles extant upon the island of Okinawa prior to 1937 - and that Miyagi Chojun is recognised as the sole originator of this technique as practiced within the art of Karate-Do. Prior to this, the Naha-Te - Goju Ryu style utilised a typical White Crane defence that saw an elevated mid-level defence raised up to neck and head height - where the palm and fingers of the open hands would deflect (or slap) blows away to the side. Miyagi Chojun may have seen similar upper blocking movements whilst observing other Chinese styles of martial arts (where these movements are often a combination of a closed handed punch and a fore-arm deflection) - different Chinese martial styles that had not yet penetrated Okinawa or the Karate-Do community! Thanks Adrian *These Katas were a product of rampant Japanese 'Nationalism' and were designed, at the time, to prepare the minds and bodies of young Japanese men (for their stint in the military) from 1937 onwards to attack and kill Chinese men, women and children. From 1941 onwards, this Japanese 'Nationalist' aggression would be aimed at civilian populations throughout Asia, and include the militaries of the West, etc. In late 1945, this Japanese 'Nationalist' aggression would be aimed at the Soviet Red Army as it strove to 'Liberate' (Manchuria - Northeast China) from Imperialist Japanese Occupation! I am reminded of Funakoshi Gichin's biography where he proudly mentioned himself preparing thousands of young Japanese men for 'unarmed' Karate 'Banzai' charges aimed primarily at attacking US soldiers! It is ironic that all those non-Japanese people who practice Japanese Karate-Do throughout the world today, have absolutely no idea of the 'racist' historical reality 'embedded' in many of the more recent 'Katas' still taught to beginners as primers for the style!
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AuthorShifu Adrian Chan-Wyles (b. 1967) - Lineage (Generational) Inheritor of the Ch'an Dao Hakka Gongfu System. |