Denver Karate Blog
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The
History of Kempo at Z-Ultimate Self Defense
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| Two
schools of thought exist regarding the origins of Japanese martial arts.
One school insists the art of Jujitsu is originally native to Japan, while
the other claims Jujitsu was actually developed from an earlier form of
Chinese grappling known as Chin-na. Both Jujitsu and Chin-na stress the
grappling and joint manipulation aspects of fighting as opposed to the
punching and kicking aspects.Regardless of its origins by the 16th century
Jujitsu was widely practiced throughout Japan. |
Jujitsu
was utilized by the Samurai warriors in addition to their armed fighting
methods. In addition many Buddhist and Shinto temples throughout Japan
advanced the practice of Jujitsu and Shorinji Kempo. Shorinji is the
Japanese word for Shaolin, and Kempo the word for Chuan Fa, which means
"law of the fist," or "way of the fist." Essentially
Shorinji Kempo was the form of Shaolin empty hand combat that had spread
to Japan. |
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| In
the 16th century the modern system of Kempo was first developed. This
style was originally known as Kosho-Ryu Kempo. This style is different
from the Shorinji Kempo mentioned earlier. Shorinji Kempo was directly
evolved from Shaolin systems. Kosho-Ryu Kempo was a hybrid of Japanese
Jujitsu and Shaolin.Kosho-Ryu Kempo traces its roots to the Mitose
family's Shinto monastery. |
One
story claims the Mitose family had long practiced Jujitsu. Kosho was a
member of the Mitose family who trained with a Shaolin monk and added the
Shaolin fighting techniques to the family's Jujitsu. This story has two
variations; according to one, Kosho traveled to China to train with the
Shaolin monk, while in the other the Shaolin monk came to Japan. |
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| The
other story claims that the Mitose family did not have any history of
practicing martial arts and that Kosho was not originally a member of the
Mitose family at all. According to this story Kosho was a Shaolin master
who learned Japanese Jujitsu and eventually came to the Mitose monastery
to became a member of the family. |
In
any event this time period marked a major milestone in the evolution of
the martial arts and the birth of modern Kempo. This was the first time
the Shaolin fighting arts, consisting primarily of striking and kicking
techniques was fused with Jujitsu, which consisted mainly of joint
manipulation and grappling technique. |
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| Kempo
continued to be the Mitose family art through the early 20th century. In
the 1940's James Mitose relocated to Hawaii. In 1942 he opened his Self
Defense Club in Hawaii to teach his family's Kempo. One of his students
was the legendary William Kwai Sun Chow. Chow was one of only six students
ever to attain the rank of Black Belt from Mitose. He was the only student
to master the style. |
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Karate Terminology
Karate Do – The Way of
kara- empty
te - hand
do - way/truth
karate ka - karate practitioner
dojo- training hall
dojo kun - precepts/morals
moku sou - eyes in meditation
dogi- training uniform
Target areas
gedan - lower level
chudan - middle level
jodan - upper level
More Karate Terms
kihon - basic technique
kata - form/formal exercise
kumite - sparing
seiza - knee/sit correctly
hanmi - half front facing position
hidari - left
migi - right
yoi - ready/prepare
hajime - start
yame - stop
Karate Greetings
sensei - teacher
sampai - senior
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