In the last blog I shared some thoughts on the koryu (ancient schools) of martial arts that influenced Shotokan karate, specifically the Jigen-ryu kenjutsu. I thought as a follow-up it might be useful to highlight a few of the arts outside of karate that possibly influenced he historical development of our karate. While we think of Shotokan as one of the most traditional karate styles, Funakoshi intentionally combined elements of various karate styles in his budo (martial way) and his followers also brought their broad martial arts experiences to Shotokan and left a lasting mark on our style. Here are some clips of modern practitioners of a few of those other styles. See if you can spot "the Shotokan" in them:
Jigen-ryu Kenjutsu: If you read the lengthy previous post you know a little bit about the profound influences of Jigen-ryu on Shotokan karate. Jigen-ryu Pay special attention to the sequence the begins at 4:11.
Nen-ryu Kenjutsu: This was the sword style of Shimoda Takeshi who was reported to be the best karateka under Funakoshi in the 1930s. He died of cancer before WWII, but his sword work also influenced Shotokan karate. Nen-ryu Think about the big, lunging steps and commitment to striking.
Toyama-ryu Batto-do: This is the sword style of the Imperial Japanese army. Many of the Shotokan instructors in the 1930s and 1940s were trained in this style either at universities or as part of their military service. Toyama-ryu This is a long video, but the important points are that there is no retreat in their kata, but many subtle changes in angles of attack. These angles are illustrated in the cutting section at the end of the clip.
Pre-War Judo: The competitive judo of today is an amazing sport and martial art. The judo of the early 20th century wasn't as flashy, but contained many more self-defense techniques. Kano Jigoro, the founder of judo, was one of Funakoshi's sponsors and patrons in Japan and almost all of the great Shotokan teachers have also had some experience with judo. As you watch this video you'll see a lot of similarity between our basic exercises and the ones practiced here and also some connection between our self-defense techniques and judo.
What other arts have I missed?
Jigen-ryu Kenjutsu: If you read the lengthy previous post you know a little bit about the profound influences of Jigen-ryu on Shotokan karate. Jigen-ryu Pay special attention to the sequence the begins at 4:11.
Nen-ryu Kenjutsu: This was the sword style of Shimoda Takeshi who was reported to be the best karateka under Funakoshi in the 1930s. He died of cancer before WWII, but his sword work also influenced Shotokan karate. Nen-ryu Think about the big, lunging steps and commitment to striking.
Toyama-ryu Batto-do: This is the sword style of the Imperial Japanese army. Many of the Shotokan instructors in the 1930s and 1940s were trained in this style either at universities or as part of their military service. Toyama-ryu This is a long video, but the important points are that there is no retreat in their kata, but many subtle changes in angles of attack. These angles are illustrated in the cutting section at the end of the clip.
Pre-War Judo: The competitive judo of today is an amazing sport and martial art. The judo of the early 20th century wasn't as flashy, but contained many more self-defense techniques. Kano Jigoro, the founder of judo, was one of Funakoshi's sponsors and patrons in Japan and almost all of the great Shotokan teachers have also had some experience with judo. As you watch this video you'll see a lot of similarity between our basic exercises and the ones practiced here and also some connection between our self-defense techniques and judo.
What other arts have I missed?