Kenwa Mabuni

In thisOkinawan name,thesurnameisMabuni.

Kenwa Mabuni
Born	(1889-11-14)November 14, 1889 Shuri,Okinawa
Died	May 23, 1952(1952-05-23)(aged 62) Tokyo,Japan
Style	Shitō-ryū
Teacher(s)	Ankō Itosu,Higaonna Kanryō,Gokenki
Rank	Founder of Shitō-ryū
Notable students	Kenei Mabuni,Iwata Manzo,Chōjirō TaniSei Iwasa

Kenwa Mabuni(Ma văn nhân hiền cùng,Mabuni Kenwa,14 November 1889 - 23 May 1952)was one of the firstkaratekato teachkaratein mainlandJapanand is credited as developing the style known asShitō-ryū.Originally, he chose the name Hanko-ryu, literally "half-hard style", to imply that the style used both hard and soft techniques. Finally, Mabuni chose Shito-ryu, the first characters of the namesItosuandHigaonna,his two primary teachers.

Achievements

1. Funakoshi Gichinlearnedkatafrom Kenwa Mabuni: In order to expand his knowledge he sent his sonGigōto study kata in Mabuni'sdōjōinOsaka.
2. Kenwa Mabuni,Motobu Chōkiand otherOkinawanswere actively teaching karate inJapanprior to this point when Gichin Funakoshi 'officially' broughtkaratefromOkinawato mainland Japan.
3. Shitō-ryū ( mịch chảy về hướng đông ) is a school of karate that was founded by Kenwa Mabuni in 1931.In 1939 the style was officially registered in theButoku Kaiheadquarters.
4. The development of the katas Aoyagi/Seiryuu and Meijou/Myoujo, while teaching at a women's school, but not specifically for women, under request of the Japanese government at the time.

Early years

Born inShurionOkinawain 1889, Mabuni was a 17th generation descendant of the famous warriorUni Ufugusuku Kenyu.Perhaps because of his weak constitution, he began his instruction in his home town in the art of Shuri-Te ( đầu tay ) at the age of 13, under the tutelage of the legendaryAnkō Yasutsune Itosu( mịch châu an hằng ) (1831-1915). He trained diligently for several years, learning manykatafrom this great master. It was Itosu who first developed the Pinan kata, which were most probably derived from the 'Kusanku' form.

One of his close friends,Chōjun Miyagi( cung thành trường thuận ) (founder ofGōjū-ryū) introduced Mabuni to another great of that period,Higaonna Kanryō( đông ân nạp khoan lượng ), and began to learnNaha-Te( kia bá tay ) under him as well. While both Itosu and Higashionna taught a 'hard-soft' style of Okinawan 'Te', their methods and emphases were quite distinct: the Itosu syllabus included straight and powerful techniques as exemplified in the Naifanchi and Bassai kata; the Higashionna syllabus, on the other hand, stressed circular motion and shorter fighting methods as seen in the popular Seipai and Kururunfa forms. Shitō-ryū focuses on both hard and soft techniques to this day.

Although he remained true to the teachings of these two great masters, Mabuni sought instruction from a number of other teachers; including Seishō Aragaki, Tawada Shimboku, Sueyoshi Jino and Wu Xianhui (aChinesemaster known as Go-Kenki). In fact, Mabuni was legendary for his encyclopaedic knowledge of kata and their bunkai applications. By the 1920s, he was regarded as the foremost authority on Okinawan kata and their history and was much sought after as a teacher by his contemporaries. There is even some evidence that his expertise was sought out in China, as well as Okinawa and mainland Japan. As a police officer, he taught local law enforcement officers and at the behest of his teacher Itosu, began instruction in the various grammar schools in Shuri and Naha.

Shito-ryu history

In an effort to popularise karate in mainland Japan, Mabuni made several trips toTokyoin 1917 and 1928. Although much that was known as 'Te' (Hand) or Karate had been passed down through many generations with jealous secrecy, it was his view that it should be taught to anyone who sought knowledge with honesty and integrity. In fact, many masters of his generation held similar views on the future of Karate: Gichin Funakoshi ( thuyền càng nghĩa trân )(founder ofShotokan( tiếng thông reo quán )),another contemporary, had moved to Tokyo in the 1920s to promote their art on the mainland as well. During this period, Mabuni also taught many other prominent martial artists, such asOtsuka Hironori(founder ofWadō-ryū) andYasuhiro Konishi(founder ofShindō jinen-ryū). Both men were students of Funakoshi.

By 1929, Mabuni had moved toOsakaon the mainland, to become a full-time karate instructor of a style he originally called Hanko-ryū, or 'half-hard style'. In an effort to gain acceptance in the Japanese Butokukai, the governing body for all officially recognised martial arts in that country, he and his contemporaries decided to call their art 'Karate' or 'Empty Hand', rather than 'Chinese Hand', perhaps to make it sound more Japanese. Around the same time, perhaps when first introducing his style to the Butokukai, is when it's believed the name of the style changed to Shitō-ryū, in honour of its main influences. Mabuni derived the name for his new style of Shitō-ryū from theon'yomireadings of the firstKanjicharacter in their names, "Shi" for Ito( mịch )su and "Tō" for Higashi( đông )onna. With the support ofSakagami Ryusho(1915-1993), he opened a number of Shitō-ryū dojo in the Osaka area, includingKansaiUniversity and the Japan Karate-dō Kai dōjō. To this day, the largest contingent of Shitō-ryū practitioners in Japan is centred in the Osaka area. However, Mabuni's contemporaryShinpan Shiromaremained in Shuri, Okinawa, and established Okinawan Shito-ryu.

Career

Mabuni published a number of books on the subject and continued to systematise the instruction method. Perhaps more than any other Master in the last century, Mabuni was steeped in the traditions and history of Karate-do, yet forward thinking enough to realise that it could spread throughout the world. To this day, Shitō-ryū recognises the influences of Itosu and Higashionna: the kata syllabus of Shito-ryū is still often listed in such a way as to show the two lineages.

In his latter years, he developed a number of formal kata, such as Aoyagi/Seiryu ('Green Willow') with Yasuhiro Konishi under the assistance ofUeshiba Moriheiand Meijō, for example, which were designed specifically for women's self-defence.

Later years

Kenwa Mabuni died in 1952, and he is succeeded by his sonsKeneiand Kenzo. His son Kenzo Mabuni died on 26 June 2005, and was succeeded by his daughter. His sonKenei Mabunidied 19 December 2015 and is succeeded by his son Kenyu Mabuni.

Sources

• Mabuni, Kenei (2009):Empty Hand – The Essence of Budo Karate.Chemnitz: Palisander Verlag.ISBN978-3-938305-13-3
• Habersetzer, Gabrielle & Roland (2004):Encyclopédie des arts martiaux de l'Extrême-Orient,Ed. Amphora, Paris.ISBN978-2-85180-660-4