Genseiryu
Encyclopedia
is a karate
style with roots in Shuri-te, one of the three original karate styles of Okinawa Japan
. It was developed by Seiken Shukumine (1925–2001) who combined classic techniques with his own innovations thus developing the special characteristics of Genseiryū. Shukumine had two known teachers, Sadoyama and Kishimoto. The name Genseiryū was first used in 1953. In Japanese the name consists of three different characters (kanji
):.
The first is and means 'mysterious', 'occult', and 'universe' but also 'a subtle and deep truth'.
The second is and translates to 'control', 'system', 'law' or 'rule' but also 'creating a form.'
The last is which simply means 'style' or 'school.'
The combination of could be translated as 'to control the universe', but is interpreted by members of the school to mean something like "to pursue the deep truth and making it clear through the form," which can be regarded physically as well as spiritually.
. In the 1920s and '30s there were three major karate styles in Okinawa. They were all named after the cities where they were developed: Naha, Tomari
and Shuri. These three styles (Naha-Te, Tomari-Te and Shuri-Te) are sometimes called more generally Okinawan Karate.
Matsumura "Bushi" Sōkon (1809–1898) was one of the masters of Shuri-te. His many students who later became legends of karate included Yasutsune (Ankō) Itosu
. A lesser known pupil was Bushi Takemura. He developed a version of the kata
(型) Kushanku that is still trained in Genseiryū and Bugeikan today. One of Takemura's pupils was Kishimoto (1862–1945, some sources speak of 1868 as birth year). He became the later teacher of Seiken Shukumine.
Seiken Shukumine, born 9 December 1925 in Nago
on the Japanese island of Okinawa, started at age 8 with karate lessons from Ankō Sadoyama, a grandmaster in koryū karate
("Old style/school Chinese techniques"). He trained him for four years. When Shukumine was about 14 years old, he was accepted by Kishimoto.
Kishimoto was very selective: he had only nine kōhai (=pupils/students) throughout his life and also Seiken Shukumine had to insist many times, before Kishimoto decided to teach the young man. The last two students of Kishimoto actually were Seiken Shukumine and Seitoku Higa (born 1920). Another source states that Seiken Shukumine was tested before Kishimoto accepted him as a student. When Shukumine and Kishimoto met for the first time, Kishimoto took a poker and threw a piece of wooden coal with full force towards Shukumine, who evaded. Kishimoto accepted him as a student on one condition: to promise him to keep the techniques a secret.
During the Second World War the 18-year-old Shukumine was drafted into the navy
and had to join the Japanese Kamikaze Corps where he became a "kaiten
" pilot, a one-man ship packed with explosives used in kamikaze
suicide attacks against American warships. Seiken Shukumine was trained to guide this small craft through the protective maze of steel netting that was laid down in the water around the ships, to prevent them from being attacked by these kaiten. He thought in a martial art way to manoeuvre between these steel nettings and tried to think of techniques to avoid enemy torpedoes. He learned that he had to work hard to penetrate the enemy's defenses, and the imagination of the martial artist in him saw how such an approach could be adapted to traditional karate to make for a more supple and dynamic form of combat.
Fortunately Shukumine was never appointed for a suicide attack and he survived the war. But when he came back home he found Okinawa demolished by the bombings and his master Soko Kishomoto was killed during the Battle of Okinawa
in 1945. Shukumine retreated in solitude for a couple of years and started to develop his karate style with in the back of his head his training as a kaiten pilot. He combined his new techniques with the classic techniques he had learned from his masters Sadoyama and Kishimoto, thus developing the special characteristics of Genseiryū.
In 1949 in the town of Itō
(Shizuoka Prefecture
, Japan), Seiken Shukumine demonstrated publicly his karate techniques for the first time. In October 1950 Seiken Shukumine participated in a karate exhibition arranged by Nippon Television
. In this demonstration also participated other masters like Hidetaka Nishiyama (of the Japan Karate Association, JKA
), Yasuhiro Konishi (Ryobukai) Ryusho Sakagami (Itosukai), H. Kenjo (Kenshukai), Kanki Izumikawa and Shikan (Seiichi) Akamine (both of Gōjū-ryū). Shukumine demonstrated a.o. the kata Koshokun dai, Tameshiwari (breaking technique, in this case Shukumine broke 34 roof tiles with shutō, the edge of the open hand) and Hachidan-tobi-geri (jumping kick with 8 kicks in one jump). In the early 1950s Shukumine created Sansai no kata, a masterpiece of Genseiryū karate.
In 1953 Shukumine started to give lessons on the Tachikawa military base
to the Self-Defense Forces
and for the next 10 years he gave lessons at many dojos (e.g. at universities and corporate groups) around the Tokyo
area. It was in 1953 that Shukumine officially announced his techniques were Genseiryū, but the year 1950 is often mentioned as the year of the beginning of Genseiryū.
In 1962 Shukumine introduced a new martial art. This martial art is a further development of Genseiryū which he named Taidō
. Taidō is not to be regarded as karate, but as a new martial art. From that point on, Shukumine was mainly involved with Taidō and many of his pupils started to train in Taidō as well. However, some students of Taidō kept a friendly relationship with some students of Genseiryū and Shukumine was still occasionally involved with his former students, as he wished for them to join him in Taido.
In 1964 Shukumine published his book Shin Karatedō Kyōhan in which he describes the basics of Ko-ryu Karate-do. Some of the kata in the book are explained thoroughly, with pictures.
There are many more kata mentioned in this book, without pictures, a total of about 44 kata, including Taikyoku-Shodan, Tensho-no-Kata, Wankan, etc. In the book he mentions the name Genseiryū a few times. He refer to the contents of the book as being koryū
(古流), which is considered as 'old tradition' or 'old school' karate. In the book he added some kata that he created himself: Ten-i no Kata Chi-i no Kata Jin-i no Kata and Sansai. In the book Shin Karatedō Kyōhan many kata and techniques and training materials are described.
From the 1960s Genseiryū started to spread also outside Japan, to countries like the USA, Spain, Finland, Holland, Denmark, Australia, Brazil, India, etc.
In the mid 1970s, Shukumine wrote another book which is much lesser known in the karate world than his first one. The title of this book is (translated into English) "The Karate training by complete drawing" and has about 200 pages where he describes karate techniques but also the differences between karate and judo
, karate and aikido
, karate and Taidō
, etc.
On 26 November 2001 Seiken Shukumine died of cardiac arrest
, after a long sickness (since 1995). He was 75 years old and left a wife, a son and two daughters behind.
Shukumine ruminated on how to apply this idea not only to life but also to Genseiryū Karate and its kata. Eventually he created the basic theory of "Sen, Un, Hen, Nen and Ten." These are the basic principles that make of Genseiryū a three-dimensional karate style:
It is "Sansai" that is known widely as a typical kata of Genseiryū with lots of these techniques. Other genuine techniques of Genseiryū are the kicks Ebi-geri (back kick with both hands on the ground and the face close to the ground) and Manji-geri (side kick (mawashi-geri) with head close to the ground and both hands on the ground). Both kicks belong to the so called Shajo-geri group (leaning body) and are also trained in Taidō. Besides kata, Genseiryū also practices Shihō and Happō (some other styles do too, but not all of them). Shihō (四方) translates into 'four directions' and comprises exercises in which a combination of techniques is repeated several times in four different directions (front, back, right and left). This is almost the same with Happō, but it translates into 'eight directions', thus it comprises exercises in eight different directions.
(1959).
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
style with roots in Shuri-te, one of the three original karate styles of Okinawa Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It was developed by Seiken Shukumine (1925–2001) who combined classic techniques with his own innovations thus developing the special characteristics of Genseiryū. Shukumine had two known teachers, Sadoyama and Kishimoto. The name Genseiryū was first used in 1953. In Japanese the name consists of three different characters (kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
):.
The first is and means 'mysterious', 'occult', and 'universe' but also 'a subtle and deep truth'.
The second is and translates to 'control', 'system', 'law' or 'rule' but also 'creating a form.'
The last is which simply means 'style' or 'school.'
The combination of could be translated as 'to control the universe', but is interpreted by members of the school to mean something like "to pursue the deep truth and making it clear through the form," which can be regarded physically as well as spiritually.
History
Genseiryū has its roots in an old karate style called Shuri-te. Some sources speak of Tomari-te being the source, but the differences were minimal since both styles were derived from Shōrin-ryūShorin-Ryu
is one of the major modern Okinawan martial arts. It was founded by Choshin Chibana in 1933. Shōrin-ryū combines elements of the traditional Okinawan fighting styles of Shuri-te.-History:Chosin Chibana was a top student of the great master of shuri-te, Anko Itosu...
. In the 1920s and '30s there were three major karate styles in Okinawa. They were all named after the cities where they were developed: Naha, Tomari
Tomari, Okinawa
is a neighborhood in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, where the Tomari Terminal of the port of Naha is located. The terminal is used for ferries and passenger vessels which connect Naha and neighboring islands....
and Shuri. These three styles (Naha-Te, Tomari-Te and Shuri-Te) are sometimes called more generally Okinawan Karate.
Matsumura "Bushi" Sōkon (1809–1898) was one of the masters of Shuri-te. His many students who later became legends of karate included Yasutsune (Ankō) Itosu
Anko Itosu
is considered by many the father of modern karate, although this title is also often given to Gichin Funakoshi because the latter spread karate throughout Japan.- Biography :...
. A lesser known pupil was Bushi Takemura. He developed a version of the kata
Kata
is a Japanese word describing detailed choreographed patterns of movements practised either solo or in pairs. The term form is used for the corresponding concept in non-Japanese martial arts in general....
(型) Kushanku that is still trained in Genseiryū and Bugeikan today. One of Takemura's pupils was Kishimoto (1862–1945, some sources speak of 1868 as birth year). He became the later teacher of Seiken Shukumine.
Seiken Shukumine, born 9 December 1925 in Nago
Nago, Okinawa
is a city located in the northern part of Okinawa Island, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 60,598 and the density of 288 persons per km². The total area is 210.30 km². The city was founded on August 1, 1970, and hosted the G-8 Summit in 2000.-...
on the Japanese island of Okinawa, started at age 8 with karate lessons from Ankō Sadoyama, a grandmaster in koryū karate
Koryu
is a Japanese word that is used in association with the ancient Japanese martial arts. This word literally translates as "old school" or "traditional school"...
("Old style/school Chinese techniques"). He trained him for four years. When Shukumine was about 14 years old, he was accepted by Kishimoto.
Kishimoto was very selective: he had only nine kōhai (=pupils/students) throughout his life and also Seiken Shukumine had to insist many times, before Kishimoto decided to teach the young man. The last two students of Kishimoto actually were Seiken Shukumine and Seitoku Higa (born 1920). Another source states that Seiken Shukumine was tested before Kishimoto accepted him as a student. When Shukumine and Kishimoto met for the first time, Kishimoto took a poker and threw a piece of wooden coal with full force towards Shukumine, who evaded. Kishimoto accepted him as a student on one condition: to promise him to keep the techniques a secret.
During the Second World War the 18-year-old Shukumine was drafted into the navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
and had to join the Japanese Kamikaze Corps where he became a "kaiten
Kaiten
The Kaiten were manned torpedos and suicide craft, they were used by the Imperial Japanese Navy in the final stages of World War II.-History:...
" pilot, a one-man ship packed with explosives used in kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
suicide attacks against American warships. Seiken Shukumine was trained to guide this small craft through the protective maze of steel netting that was laid down in the water around the ships, to prevent them from being attacked by these kaiten. He thought in a martial art way to manoeuvre between these steel nettings and tried to think of techniques to avoid enemy torpedoes. He learned that he had to work hard to penetrate the enemy's defenses, and the imagination of the martial artist in him saw how such an approach could be adapted to traditional karate to make for a more supple and dynamic form of combat.
Fortunately Shukumine was never appointed for a suicide attack and he survived the war. But when he came back home he found Okinawa demolished by the bombings and his master Soko Kishomoto was killed during the Battle of Okinawa
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
in 1945. Shukumine retreated in solitude for a couple of years and started to develop his karate style with in the back of his head his training as a kaiten pilot. He combined his new techniques with the classic techniques he had learned from his masters Sadoyama and Kishimoto, thus developing the special characteristics of Genseiryū.
In 1949 in the town of Itō
Ito, Shizuoka
is a city located on the eastern shore of the Izu Peninsula in Shizuoka, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 71,400 and the density of 578 persons per km². The total area was...
(Shizuoka Prefecture
Shizuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Shizuoka.- History :Shizuoka prefecture was formed from the former Tōtōmi, Suruga and Izu provinces.The area was the home of the first Tokugawa Shogun...
, Japan), Seiken Shukumine demonstrated publicly his karate techniques for the first time. In October 1950 Seiken Shukumine participated in a karate exhibition arranged by Nippon Television
Nippon Television
is a television network based in the Shiodome area of Minato, Tokyo, Japan and is controlled by the Yomiuri Shimbun publishing company. Broadcasting terrestrially across Japan, the network is commonly known as , contracted to , and abbreviated as "NTV" or "AX".-Offices:*The Headquarters : 6-1,...
. In this demonstration also participated other masters like Hidetaka Nishiyama (of the Japan Karate Association, JKA
Japan Karate Association
Japan Karate Association is one of the most influential Shotokan karate organizations in the world...
), Yasuhiro Konishi (Ryobukai) Ryusho Sakagami (Itosukai), H. Kenjo (Kenshukai), Kanki Izumikawa and Shikan (Seiichi) Akamine (both of Gōjū-ryū). Shukumine demonstrated a.o. the kata Koshokun dai, Tameshiwari (breaking technique, in this case Shukumine broke 34 roof tiles with shutō, the edge of the open hand) and Hachidan-tobi-geri (jumping kick with 8 kicks in one jump). In the early 1950s Shukumine created Sansai no kata, a masterpiece of Genseiryū karate.
In 1953 Shukumine started to give lessons on the Tachikawa military base
Tachikawa Airfield
is an airfield in the city of Tachikawa, the western part of Tokyo, Japan. Currently under the administration of the Ministry of Defense, it has also served as the civil aviation with Japan's first scheduled air service.-Operations:...
to the Self-Defense Forces
Japan Self-Defense Forces
The , or JSDF, occasionally referred to as JSF or SDF, are the unified military forces of Japan that were established after the end of the post–World War II Allied occupation of Japan. For most of the post-war period the JSDF was confined to the islands of Japan and not permitted to be deployed...
and for the next 10 years he gave lessons at many dojos (e.g. at universities and corporate groups) around the Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
area. It was in 1953 that Shukumine officially announced his techniques were Genseiryū, but the year 1950 is often mentioned as the year of the beginning of Genseiryū.
In 1962 Shukumine introduced a new martial art. This martial art is a further development of Genseiryū which he named Taidō
Taido
Taidō is a Japanese martial art created in 1965 by Seiken Shukumine . The word taidō means "way of the body." Taidō has its roots in traditional Okinawan Karate...
. Taidō is not to be regarded as karate, but as a new martial art. From that point on, Shukumine was mainly involved with Taidō and many of his pupils started to train in Taidō as well. However, some students of Taidō kept a friendly relationship with some students of Genseiryū and Shukumine was still occasionally involved with his former students, as he wished for them to join him in Taido.
In 1964 Shukumine published his book Shin Karatedō Kyōhan in which he describes the basics of Ko-ryu Karate-do. Some of the kata in the book are explained thoroughly, with pictures.
- Ten-i no Kata
- Chi-i no Kata
- Jin-i no Kata
- Sansai
- Koryū Naifanchi
- Koryū Bassai
- Koryū Kusanku
There are many more kata mentioned in this book, without pictures, a total of about 44 kata, including Taikyoku-Shodan, Tensho-no-Kata, Wankan, etc. In the book he mentions the name Genseiryū a few times. He refer to the contents of the book as being koryū
Koryu
is a Japanese word that is used in association with the ancient Japanese martial arts. This word literally translates as "old school" or "traditional school"...
(古流), which is considered as 'old tradition' or 'old school' karate. In the book he added some kata that he created himself: Ten-i no Kata Chi-i no Kata Jin-i no Kata and Sansai. In the book Shin Karatedō Kyōhan many kata and techniques and training materials are described.
From the 1960s Genseiryū started to spread also outside Japan, to countries like the USA, Spain, Finland, Holland, Denmark, Australia, Brazil, India, etc.
In the mid 1970s, Shukumine wrote another book which is much lesser known in the karate world than his first one. The title of this book is (translated into English) "The Karate training by complete drawing" and has about 200 pages where he describes karate techniques but also the differences between karate and judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
, karate and aikido
Aikido
is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs. Aikido is often translated as "the Way of unifying life energy" or as "the Way of harmonious spirit." Ueshiba's goal was to create an art that practitioners could use to...
, karate and Taidō
Taido
Taidō is a Japanese martial art created in 1965 by Seiken Shukumine . The word taidō means "way of the body." Taidō has its roots in traditional Okinawan Karate...
, etc.
On 26 November 2001 Seiken Shukumine died of cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively...
, after a long sickness (since 1995). He was 75 years old and left a wife, a son and two daughters behind.
Characteristics of Genseiryū
Shukumine was also known as a philosopher and during the war he learned that to do something unanticipated or unexpected is the secret to victory, whether in a war between two nations or in a mere personal conflict. In other words: the basic philosophy of Genseiryū pursues this idea of doing the unexpected.Shukumine ruminated on how to apply this idea not only to life but also to Genseiryū Karate and its kata. Eventually he created the basic theory of "Sen, Un, Hen, Nen and Ten." These are the basic principles that make of Genseiryū a three-dimensional karate style:
- Sen (whirlwind): vertical circular movement of the body axis (rotating, turning);
- Un (waves): elegant up and down movement in the directions of front and back;
- Hen (clouds): falling movement in front and back, right and left by your own will;
- Nen (maelstrom, whirlpool): twisted hand and arm techniques, mainly executed on the spot;
- Ten (luminous): a technique in an unexpected situation created by front turn, back turn and side turn.
It is "Sansai" that is known widely as a typical kata of Genseiryū with lots of these techniques. Other genuine techniques of Genseiryū are the kicks Ebi-geri (back kick with both hands on the ground and the face close to the ground) and Manji-geri (side kick (mawashi-geri) with head close to the ground and both hands on the ground). Both kicks belong to the so called Shajo-geri group (leaning body) and are also trained in Taidō. Besides kata, Genseiryū also practices Shihō and Happō (some other styles do too, but not all of them). Shihō (四方) translates into 'four directions' and comprises exercises in which a combination of techniques is repeated several times in four different directions (front, back, right and left). This is almost the same with Happō, but it translates into 'eight directions', thus it comprises exercises in eight different directions.
Dissolved 1962
Throughout the years, a few students of Seiken Shukumine rejected Taido and thus continued Genseiryū even though Shukumine stopped teaching Genseiryū in 1962. Because the official organization of Seiken Shukumine was dissolved in 1962, a few students tried Taido but later dropped out and established their own organizations, attempting a jump "back" to Genseiryū going their own way. These are among others Nippon Karate-dō Budō Kyokai, Genwakai, Ryounkai, Keneikai and Seidokai. Butokukai, which was established three years prior to Seiken Shukumine's exit from the Karate world, was continued by Kunihiko Tosa, taking up the responsibility as the official successor. The oldest existing organization of Genseiryū still existing today is that of the Genseiryū Karate-do International FederationGenseiryu Karate-do International Federation
The Genseiryū Karate-do International Federation , Butokukai Branch was established in 1959 by Kunihiko Tosa and junior co-worker Yohimitsu Furuya who both were part of the first dojo ever established by Seiken Shukumine at the Tachikawa Self Defense Forces.- First Meeting :Around 1950, Kunihiko...
(1959).
See also
- Genseiryū Karate-do International Federation (GKIF)Genseiryu Karate-do International FederationThe Genseiryū Karate-do International Federation , Butokukai Branch was established in 1959 by Kunihiko Tosa and junior co-worker Yohimitsu Furuya who both were part of the first dojo ever established by Seiken Shukumine at the Tachikawa Self Defense Forces.- First Meeting :Around 1950, Kunihiko...
. - World Genseiryū Karate-dō Federation (WGKF).