For the last four years Kyoshi Patrick McCarthy has held an international gasshuku specifically for those of us who are learning the old school Okinawan karate training methods known as Koryu Uchinadi (KU) from him. This annual event is a very special one for the KU group as it provides very precise instruction for the KU students as well for the other KU instructors who pass on the knowledge they have learnt from Kyoshi. It also provides a chance for us to meet other KU practitioners from around the world. “The Japanese terms budo gasshuku literally conjures up a feeling of austerity, learning and spending time together. Kyoshi often reminds us that budo, when learned correctly, conditions the body, cultivates the mind and nurtures the spirit in an effort to make us better human beings” wrote Paul Massey-Reed, KU National Secretary, in his welcome message. This was a fitting description for what transpired over the four days, as it was indeed a test of body, mind and spirit.
Kyoshi McCarthy applying a shime waza to Sensei Kurt Graham. At the moment Sensei Graham is the only New Zealander to graduate from Kyoshi’s two year martial arts intructors course.
There were about 40 participants who had the additional challenge of coping with the hot and humid Brisbane weather, which saw temperatures of over 40 degrees! The cold showers were very much in use during most breaks. Most found that towels were redundant after showering. We broke into a heavy sweat just walking to the dojo hauling our daily supplies of iced water.
According to the New Zealand Herald, the heat wave turned into Southeast Queensland’s “most significant medical emergency”. Ambulance officers attended 339 code one emergency cases in Brisbane; fortunately none of these were at the dojo. At 41.7 degrees, Sunday 22nd went down on record as being the hottest February day in the Queensland state capital. As well as a learning experience this was certainly also a test of spirit under trying circumstances. It was hard to believe that at the same time we were subjected to this heat in Brisbane that there was flooding of an unbelievable magnitude back home in NZ. We would have really welcomed some of that rain, in fact more than one person offered to do a rain dance.
This year I was fortunate enough to be able to arrive five days early to get in some extra training with Kyoshi and the students who are currently doing the two years martial arts instructors course. Koryu Uchinadi is indeed a complete system, i.e. one that is not limited to just block, kick and punch, with techniques not practiced by many karate schools. These include ukemi waza (breakfalls), nage waza (throws), ne waza (grappling), shime waza (strangulations) as well as the kansetsu waza (joint manipulation) and tuidi (seizing into cavities unprotected by the skeletal structure). The students at the course also study such subjects as anatomy and physiology, after all what better way to learn how to impede motor performance than to learn how the body actually works.
In the gasshuku handout, Koyshi explained the background of the full name of our group. “Koryu Uchinadi Kenpo-justu reflects the Chinese origin of kata, the revival of old-school principles/strategies and the enormous emphasis we place on application practices. For us, the term Koryu Uchinadi kenpo-jutsu (lit. old stream Okinawa hand/s quanfa art/technique) means, the old [Ko] empty hand [di] art [justu] of Fujian Quanfa [Kenpo] as handed down [ryu] in Okinawa [Uchina]”
As with any seminar with Kyoshi McCarthy we were treated to a lecture, in this instance relating to the background of the unarmed self-defense traditions. Points covered were
- That the need for self-defense arose due to the animosity inherent in human nature.
- The HAPV (habitual acts of physical violence) must be identified and catalogued before appropriate responses can be developed.
- Then the HAPV can be recreated and analysed in a safe environment for the purpose of developing a tactical strategy as a counter.
- Create two-person drills (futari-geiko) where these strategies can be practiced against partners of differing sizes, strengths, heights etc.
- To enable the knowledge gained from these drills to be passed on in a systematised fashion, a curriculum needs to be developed.
Kyoshi also spoke of the meaning behind some of the budo kotowaza or old sayings (proverbs).
- Bun bu ryo do, the balance of the physical and non-physical
- On ko chi shin, study the old to understand the new
- Ryu sui fu kisu wazu, water flowing down a stream never competes with anything in it’s way
- E ken nyu kon, put all your energy into training
- Do mu gen, there is no end to learning the way
Those who were interested could also learn some kobudo (weapons) that are not seen much these days, the eku and the tenbi and rochin. The eku (boat oar) is wielded in a similar fashion to a bo and, as can be imagined, is a formidable weapon capable of inflicting much damage. In a book of Richard Kim’s there is a story of a sword swinging samurai being dispatched by an eku (1). The tenbi (turtle shell) and rochin (spear) work in tandem with the tenbi being used defensively and the rochin offensively.
We broke into four groups to cover four drills in more detail. It is at these times that the expertise and knowledge of the instructors under Kyoshi’s guidance comes to the fore as they were called to take a group. Sensei Conrad Lee took the kansetsu/tuidi waza, Sensei Kurt Graham; nage waza, Sensei Chris Mazalli; ne waza and Sensei Frank Barca; shime waza.
A few hours of hojo undo (supplementary training) gave us all a chance to work out with various pieces of equipment, like kick shields, focus mitts, punch bags, Thai pads, makiwara, chi-ishi, take and a mook jung. Usually we also work out with a speedball but this was taken out of action early in the gasshuku. A mook jung or wooden dummy is not usually found in a karate dojo but it is an excellent tool for conditioning of forearms, palms and developing a strong grip. It appears that the wooden-man was in use by the early pioneers of karate in Okinawa. In a short story of Funakoshi Gichin’s about his teacher, Azato Anko, he writes that his Sensei had a home that “looked like one big training facility” with, amongst other items, “a wooden-man” (2). It can also be used to strengthen leg techniques such as foot sweeps and kicks with the sole of the foot. A take is lengths of bamboo rolled up and tied together in a bundle, which can then be used to condition the feet, knees, arms and the upper body.
The last half hour of the gasshuku was a two-minute grapple, then on to a new partner. To truly get an understanding of how to grapple we were encouraged to let our partners work a technique then try one ourselves. As with anything you will only get better by training with those who are better at what you are training in. Recently a ju-jutsu group in Brisbane has joined Kyoshi and these guys certainly know their stuff. I found it was a futile exercise trying to get a submission technique on them and that I was tapping out very quickly…many times.
On a social side Saturday night was reserved for a dinner in the Chinatown area of Brisbane where we all got a chance to mix and mingle rather than just meeting on the dojo floor. Old friendships were revived and many new ones were formed. It is at times like these where the true camaraderie of any organisation is revealed. There is definitely a family feeling in the KU group as it is made up of, in Kyoshi’s words, “like-minded people who respect traditional values and understand the importance of honouring the heritage of karate and the legacy of its early pioneers”.
Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986) sums up very nicely the growth experience that a KU gasshuku is “All of us are working together in a spirit of real co-operation in which there is no authority: it is our interest in the teachings which brings us together and helps us to work together”.
There are dojo in NZ, North Island only at the moment, that teach karate as handed down by Kyoshi McCarthy, please see the club directory of this issue for details. He will be in NZ sometime in September of this year for a seminar.
Participants at the 4th annual Koryu Uchinadi gasshuku, Brisbane, Feb 2004.
(1) The Weaponless Warriors, page 9.
(2) Karatedo Tanpenshu, short stories of Funakoshi Gichin, compiled and translated by Patrick and Yuriko McCarthy, page 42.
