He had an incredible influence on modern karate. Gichin Funakoshi is most often credited as being the main force behind the popularisation of Karate in modern times, but as Itosu’s student he was really just carrying on what had Itosu started.
Having lived from 1831 to 1915, he lived during a time of great change in Okinawa. He grew up during the last days of the old Ryukyu kingdom and in 1879 is saw his homeland annexed by Japan and reformed into ‘Okinawa Prefecture’. Okinawa suddenly became part of a larger modern world and the locals had to adapt to the modern Japanese way of life.
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| One of the only photo's of Itosu |
The Budo that Itosu learned was somewhat ‘old-school’. It was a practical complete fighting method, intended for the practitioners to learn to be part of the warrior class of a relatively feudal society.
As times were changing, Itosu felt that his Budo needed to change also, if it was to have a place in the modern world.
With this in mind he created new Kata (based on already existing Kata) and also made many changes to existing Kata. The changes he made removed much of the complexity and some of the more violent techniques. The aim of this was to make the art form more ‘palatable’ to a wider demographic, specifically the intention was to make modern Karate suitable for children.
There is a theory that he had separated the ‘dumbed down’ version of Karate from the real ‘old-school’ Budo and intended to teach both, but the popularisation of the former overshadowed the latter.
Itosu campaigned to have Karate taught at schools, believing that the positive aspects of Karate training being spread to the greater population will be good for society as a whole. He himself taught at the Shuri Jinjo Elementary School in 1901, and then at the First Junior Prefectural High School and at the Okinawa’s Teachers College in 1905.
In 1908 he wrote a letter to both the Ministry or War and Ministry of Education regarding Karate and it's benefits.This letter is one of the few writings on Ryukyu Budo that survived the war and is a valuable part of Ryukyu Budo history.
The following is a translation of that letter:
Karate did not develop from Buddhism or Confucianism. In the past the Shorin-ryu school and the Shorei-ryu school were brought to Okinawa from China . Both of these schools have strong points and I therefore list them below just as they are without embellishment.
1. Karate is not merely practiced for your own benefit; it can be used to protect one's family or master. It is not intended to be used against a single assailant but instead as a way of avoiding injury by using the hands and feet should one by any chance be confronted by a villain or ruffian.
2. The purpose of karate is to make the muscles and bones hard as rock and to use the hands and legs as spears. If children were to begin training naturally in military prowess while in elementary school, then they would be well suited for military service. Remember the words attributed to the Duke of Wellington after he defeated Napoleon, "Today's battle was won on the playing fields of our schools".
3. Karate cannot be quickly learned. Like a slow moving bull, it eventually travels a thousand leagues. If one trains diligently for one or two hours every day, then in three or four years one will see a change in physique. Those who train in this fashion will discover the deeper principles of karate.
4. In karate, training of the hands and feet are important, so you should train thoroughly with a Makiwara. In order to do this, drop your shoulders, open your lungs, muster your strength, grip the floor with your feet, and concentrate your energy into your lower abdomen. Practice using each arm one to two hundred times each day.
5. When you practice the stances of karate, be sure to keep your back straight, lower your shoulders, put strength in your legs, stand firmly, and drop your energy into your lower abdomen.
6. Practice each of the techniques of karate repeatedly. Learn the explanations of every technique well, and decide when and in what manner to apply them when needed. Enter, counter, withdraw is the rule for torite.
7. You must decide if karate is for your health or to aid your duty.
8. When you train, do so as if on the battlefield. Your eyes should glare, shoulders drop, and body harden. You should always train with intensity and spirit as if actually facing the enemy, and in this way you will naturally be ready.
9. If you use up your strength to excess in karate training, this will cause you to lose the energy in your lower abdomen and will be harmful to your body. Your face and eyes will turn red. Be careful to control your training.
10. In the past, many masters of karate have enjoyed long lives. Karate aids in developing the bones and muscles. It helps the digestion as well as the circulation. If karate should be introduced, beginning in the elementary schools, then we will produce many men each capable of defeating ten assailants.
If the students at teacher training college learn karate in accordance with the above precepts and then, after graduation, disseminate this to elementary schools in all regions, within 10 years karate will spread all over Okinawa and to mainland Japan. Karate will therefore make a great contribution to our military. I hope you will seriously consider what I have written here
- Anko Itosu, October 1908
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| The Original Letter |
This particular translation was commissioned by Iain Abernethy, his comments on the translation are as follows:
The translation was taken from scans of Itosu's original handwritten letter. This translation was also done independently by a leading professional translator who is a specialist in this kind of work. The translator was not a martial artist and he therefore had no specific view to promote. I therefore have no reason to doubt its accuracy. That is not to say other translations are necessarily inaccurate - it is certainly similar to others; as you would expect - however, there is no denying that in parts the one I commissioned expresses very different sentiments to some other translations. I would encourage the reader to compare the existing translations and decide for themselves which make most sense and are likely to be the most accurate.
(link to full article below)
Comment below to share any thoughts or opinions you might have. J
Thanks for reading.
Derm
ϾDerm
Information sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Ryukyu_Islands
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ank%C5%8D_Itosu
https://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/article/10-precepts-anko-itosu
http://www.karatebyjesse.com/itosu-ten-lessons-of-karate/
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