ABOUT OUR STYLE
Shohei-Ryu Karate-Do History
The style of karate you will learn at this school is called Shohei-Ryu. Formerly known as Uechi-Ryu, it is derived from a form of Chinese temple fighting. It is a popular style of karate worldwide with its headquarters on the island of Okinawa, Japan – the birth place of modern karate.
The name Shohei-Ryu comes from two Chinese characters, SHO and HEI, the first of which means “to shine brightly” and second of which means “fairness”, “equality” and “peace”. At another level of significance the name also refers to two Japanese eras, a past one, Showa, and the present one, Heisei. Thus, SHOHEI becomes also an amalgamation of the old and the new. It is the Okinawan’s intention to neither reject the past not ignore the future.
Ryu (pronounced “roo”) is the Japanese word for “style” or “path”. Karate-Do (pronounced “kah rah tay doh”) is three words: ‘kara’ meaning “empty”, ‘te’ meaning “hand” and ‘do” meaning “way”. Thus, Karate-Do means “The Way of the Empty Hand” and is a method of studying karate which tries to make the student a better person in addition to teaching the art of self-defence.
Although the original name of this Chinese system is not known, Shohei-Ryu scholars are constantly striving to uncover the history of their art. Whatever the formal name, however, the Chinese word Pangai-noon (pronounced PWANG-GAY-NOON) meaning half hard half soft, has been used to describe the original form, and has thus been accepted as the proper name. Pangai-noon was taught in the Shoalin Temple in Southern China, and is derived from the interwoven movements of the tiger, crane and dragon. It is a specialized method of self-defence that concentrates on the use of the single-knuckle punch, spear-hand strike, pointed kick and circular block.
Grandmaster Kanbun Uechi, the founder of Shohei-Ryu Karate-Do, is responsible for lifting the veil of secrecy, bringing this art out of China and into Okinawa and Japan. He was born on May 5, 1877 in Isumi, a small village in northern Okinawa. At the age of 20 (in 1897), in order to avoid serving in the Japanese military, which at that time occupied Okinawa, Kanbun fled to China. There, in Fukien Province, he studied the art of Pangai-noon. His teacher was Shushiwa, a Buddist priest who had received his training in the Shoalin Temple. Master Uechi studied in Fukien for ten years and became a Master of Pangai-noon. At the end of training, Master Uechi opened a school in Nanchon, a city in Fukien Province, where he taught for three years. During this time, one of his students became involved in a dispute and called upon his training to kill another person. Disheartened by this event, Master Uechi vowed never to teach again, closed his school and returned to his homeland. The year was 1910. Master Uechi has the distinction of being the only Okinawan ever to been accepted in China as a teacher.
Returning to Okinawa, he married and on June 26, 1911 his son Kanei was born. He still refused to teach his art and only once during the ensuing years reluctantly demonstrated his Kata (formal set of movements).
In 1924, the Uechi family moved to Wakayama Prefecture near Osaka, Japan. In 1927, Master Uechi began teaching his son Kanei the art of Pangai-noon. Around this time, friends persuaded him to resume teaching publicly.
In April 1942, Master Uechi’s son, Kanei, now a master in his own right, returned to Okinawa from Japan. Master Kanbun Uechi continued to teach in Wakayama Prefecture until 1947, and at the age of 71, died November 25, 1948 on Iejima, an island off the coast of Okinawa. His body was returned to Nago, Okinawa for burial. During this year, his students renamed the style Uechi-Ryu (Ryu is Japanese for style) in his honour.
His son, Master Kanei Uechi, opened his dojo (training hall) in Futenma, Okinawa in April of 1949, and taught there until his death, at the age of 80, in February 1991.
On November 15, 1995, the Board of Directors of the Okinawa Karate-Do Association created a new school (ryuha) and officially named it Shohei-Ryu.
|
