Book Description

Instructor Supplemental - GŌJŪ-RYŪ KARATEDŌ 剛柔流空手道 Desk Reference 参考書: Tō-te Dō Gaisetsu 唐手道概說 (Ryūkyū Kenpō Karatedō Enkaku Gaiyō 琉球拳法唐手道沿革概要) Karatedō History Overview by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 稿 - A Modern Translation Tō-te Dō Gaisetsu 唐手道概説 - by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 稿 Ryūkyū Kenpō Karatedō Enkaku Gaiyō 琉球拳法唐手道沿革概要 GŌJŪ-RYŪ KARATEDŌ 剛柔流空手道 Desk Reference 参考書 We are fortunate to have resources that allow us to investigate historic manuscripts while assisting various agencies to catalog their documents. We examine these historic manuscripts to hear stories lost or untold. The 1934 edition of “Tō-te Dō Gaisetsu 唐手道概説” by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 稿, known also as “Ryūkyū Kenpō Karatedō Enkaku Gaiyō 琉球拳法唐手道沿革概要” is rare considering the majority of the recipients lost their personal belongings during and after the 2nd World War. The document contains a valuable glimpse into the thoughts and writings of Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 prior to the battle for Okinawa. The variations from the 1934 edition to the 1936 edition are minor however readers should note that the style (Gōjū-Ryū Karate-dō 剛柔流空手道) was still in one of many well-planned stages of development and under closer examination such becomes clear with both the minor revision in history and the technical syllabus as indicated by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順. Due to the age and deterioration of the original artifact, we turned to the supplementary published modern print versions of his (Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順) publication to verify the Kanji inscribed from the publications by: · 1976 - Nagamine Shoshin 長嶺将真, 史実と伝統を守る沖縄の空手道 (Okinawan Karate-Dō that Preserves Historical Facts and Traditions). · 1978 - Miyazato Eiichi 宮里栄一, 沖縄伝剛柔流空手道 (Okinawan Den Gōjū-Ryū Karate-Dō). · 1987 - Kai Kuniyuki 甲斐國征, 正伝沖縄剛柔流空手道技法 (Shoden Okinawa Gōjū-Ryū Karate-Dō Gihō). · 2000 - Yagi Meitoku 八木明徳, 男·明徳の人生劇場 (The life and drama of the man Meitoku). In addition, the term Tō-te 唐手 (Tō-de) has been modernized to “Karate” as agreed upon by members of the Dai Nippon Butokukai Okinawa Chapter 大日本武徳会 沖縄県支部審議員Okinawa division, then chaired by Miyagi Chōjun宮城長順. Readers should understand that the term “Tō-te 唐手 (Tō-de)” was merely a popular vernacular of the era and was not intended to sugguest that Okinawa martial arts had originated in China. This was also collaborated by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 in the October 1936 “Karatedō Zaidan-kai 空手道座談会 (Karate symposium),” and further supported by Okinawa prefectural researchers. China based martial arts were however excellent resources for training and research due to the country’s vast population and border proximity which encompassed a multitude of various styles from which to draw inspiration. And finally, the text and context of this manuscript by Miyagi Chōjun 宮城長順 is dated. In other words, people (in Okinawa and Japan) simply do not speak in the manner as written in the essay any longer. In our modern times, much of the terminology then used is now depreciated or, the rhythm of speech is considered ancient. For this reason, we have included italicized text for the clarification of framework.