Sunsu Kata
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Added: 4 years ago
From: Isshinry
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  • "Old man kata."

  • you need to understand . How old this film is . Shimabuku was sick and not real happy at the time. His comment when told they used the films as standards he said . they do old man katas.

  • And in case anybody didn't know, this is Sunsu, Japanese for "Strong boy" or "strong man." The man in the video made this kata himself, utilizing useful bits from other katas.

  • I don't like to critique black belts, as I'm only a second degree brownbelt, but kata, for all intents and purposes, IS fighting. Most people who excel in kata also excel in kumite. The original students of this style learned on kata alone.

    And another thing...this video looks so much different than nowadays. If anybody knows who Sensei Rick Norris is (trained under Dale Jenkins), that's my sensei. Maybe it's just because I'm so used to not going easy whereas this man is demonstrating.

  • @TopherTheChives Sensei Shimubuku's katas are not meant to be fast, they're meant to be perfect. Sure, katas are different nowadays, but this is the inventer of Isshinryu.

  • In a few of his vids I believe he was a bit drunk on sake (rice wine)

  • @786myfist

    I believe he had been very ill, not drunk.

  • I really appreciate these videos. Being able to see the founder of Isshinryu do the katas is very cool. I hope that one day my katas will be as smooth of movements as his were.

  • My understanding is that he knew he was being filmed, but didn't want to be... this was the morning before his flight back to Okinawa, and they were on a bit of a bender the night before, so this series is all of a hungover grandmaster. Secondhand tales from people who trained under people who were there, since he died in '75.

  • @sunsu1013 Yes, Shimabuku liked to drink. (like many did and do there) There was a story the his students when he came to town here in the US took him out to eat at a nice Chinese join. When it was time for him to order, all that he wanted was a ham sandwich, and a big glass of Bourbon whiskey.

  • A few of the vids ive seen of tatsuo it doesnt appear hes aware of being filmed and it appears hes just doing light practice his kicks are my favorite as they are so snappy even when doing little effort

  • He does this one relatively well compared to his half assed effort on the other vids, I am a Isshin Ryu practioner as well.

  • This video IMO best exemplifies SunSu. The others you may refer to were shot so that they could be more closely observed to glean the techniques. I am told that he was asked to slow it down for the filming because his actual speed was just to much to capture (on 8mm) the nuances of the kata. Been in Isshinryu since 1971, I'm sharing what told me by men who were involved.

  • @empiricist93 Yes, he was rather fast. he was kind of athletic for his time and place. Very well built compared to others of his race.

  • @786myfist In the videos that you are use to seeing, he was older, and sick.He did want to do the tape. He pretty much walked threw the tape to show proper movement to clear up some of the differing opinions of what was right at the time. If you will look at some other videos with him on Okinawa at his dojo, you will much stronger and faster Kata that would put a lot of people to shame.

  • isshin ryu  rocks!!!

  • isshin ryu is extremely effective, its simple and down to the point without alot of fancy stupid showy stuff but it gets the job done the right way. ive been doing it for 6 years and im a second degree brown belt.

  • ive been taking isshinryu for 5 years now and im a third degree brown belt. but isshinryu made me not only a more peaceful man but it made me extremely deadly with my fists. i have beaten golden gloves boxers before so yes we can fight.

  • golden glove boxers before? before what? when you were a blue belt?

  • i fought him when i was i belive second degree green belt.

  • Also, If I remember right, he didn't invent Kotekitai, But he implemented it into Isshin-Ryus training techniques

  • This guy founded the Style I take, And I know that the idea of Kotekitai (Forearm Conditioning) Came from him..In which we basically beat the shit out of are forearms, making them basically the perfect blocking tools, I also know that this is the same guy who does the Sanchin testing, (Look Up Sanchin Kata) And I know he let's people kick him in between the legs, punch him in the side, throw punches at his face full force, Whilst doing this crazy Muscle focusing kata..Trust me Shimabuku + Boxer

  • Shimabuku > Boxer, No Doubt

  • @11MMichaelMM11 i agree completely, in an all-out fight. just using hands though...going to have to go with the boxer.

  • @karatefightr15 That would also depend. In karate, you trained to use different parts of your body and hand as a weapon. In boxing, you use glove and just beat the other guy with them. If a boxer were to train more in the safe usage of his bare hands, no gloves) then they might also have a better chance.

  • @RCK502 Though the physical conditioning that Boxers use is so extensive that some of the pathetic, unconditioned Karate-ka that you often find in America simply can't put enough power into there strikes to do anything, even if they are using perfect form. And most American dojo's give so little conditioning, that the Karate-ka can't take a good blow from a well trained boxer. But real classical, Okinawan conditioning is another story.

  • Does anyone think this guy would stand a chance against a pro boxer?

  • nothing says traditional karate practioners just practiced kata and bunki. we also train our bodys to take hits, and its all depending on the system isshinryu has grabs, pressure points, breaks, throws and we also do train strikes. we have a set of 15 basic moves that are both attacks and defence's

  • sensi tatsuo trained in a different time then we do, back when he began his training it was still mainly self defense.yes kata is a very important aspect but what u dont relise is that kata is like a guide book. it contains the moves that you use in self defence and helps u perfect them. so while a pro boxer could be more powerful a puncher then a karate expert, he also dosent have alot of the other aspects of fightings such as kicks, blocks, chokes, grabs, pressure points.

  • @talon115 > He fought pro boxers, as did his instructors (Choki Motobu was known to be a bit of a brawler)... they wiped the floor with them. Using pure boxing rules, you might have a point, these men didn't train for sport.

  • @sunsu1013 You can't be serious!  A boxer would knock this man out! His guard is all but non existent, his chin is right there for anyone to hit and his techniques are so telegraphed you can see them coming a mile away. Stop believing the hype.

  • @talon115 > kata isn't fighting.

  • @sunsu1013 true, but this guy, and mot of his students could indeed fight. In my view, his life was cut short before he could really organized his styles government, and all that. Things were kind of up in the air when he died. And the style split when he died, and then split again after all the high ranking Marines died off. Isshinryu is a good style, provided that you get a good Sensei that has not altered things for sport Karate, or to make it easier to teach.

    We can all say that I guess.

  • @talon115 You have never seen him fight. Kata is but part of the over all picture. And there were Karate-ka that did fight boxers, and beat them. You are trying to compare apples and oranges when comparing Boxing to Okinawan Karate.

    And if they were that easily beat, you can bet your bottom dollar that the Marines would not have trained with them. As a matter of fact Shimabuku had a contract to teach at a Marine base. This happened after guys make long trips to search him out.

  • he u r a ni kyu also.... ive been studying for 8 yrs

  • I'm currently on that kata and I'm a 2nd grade brown belt. I've been studying it for 7 years. My last part is at 0:47 when he does the same thing from wansu.

  • Even if Tatsuo didnt have "official credentials" he was still a great teacher and taught many of our marines stationed in Okinawa his martial arts which was then taught by them when they came back to the states. If tatsuo didnt know what he was doing and teaching, why would his students be world class in fighters after being taught by him? Isshinryu is one of the most respected forms of karate in America and across the world even if these so called "professional" agencies wont "recognize" it.

  • I dont know if all you people who are saying that tatsuo had no credentials know this, but back in the day when alot of these grandmasters were learning they didnt formally keep track of their students. Back when karate was first created it was illegal to practice martial arts, so why keep track of your students and be killed for it if found out? The credentials really didnt start until the whole rainbow belt system was created primarily when karate began to become "mainstream"

  • i have reviewed recorded kata of many old masters and honestly most of their form is not all that great. i'm 62 and my kata is 'prettier' than Funakoshi, ohtsuka, zempo , tatsuo, eizo, oyama, yamaguchi, and many f the grandmastes of yester year. that doesn;t make me better, jsut prettier. tatsuo wwas unmatched in speed and focus. i don't care if he ever got a diploma- i know plenty of jerks with diplomas who can't do anything.

  • lighten up on isshinryu- it was the pioneer of karate in the US and is still the most popular style of okinawa-te outside of japan. it works in the street and on the kumite floor. i can prove it and will if you'd like

  • His original kata Sunsu was recognized as a kata of Okinawa by The Dai Nippon Butoku Kai. I'd that beats WUKO. But that aside I don't really think credentials are a big issue here, he learned these techniques from somewhere weather it is documented or not you see them in Isshin-Ryu. Thats all I've got to say, no offense anyone just throwing in the old two cents.

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  • it tends to be faster and easier on the body to practice. as far as power, isshinryu stylists have set world's record for breaking. kumite -wise, several world-class masters have had their heads handed to them by isshinryu including

    Shigatada Tegima of JKA collegiate champion fame, 'Master" He-Il Cho, Jhoon Rhee, Henry Cho, and many others. isshnryu master Gary Alexander was the first US kumite champion

  • many of his students left because he taught the tate-ken instead of the twist punch. when i learned , he had both. isshinryu is almost exactly like shorin ryu and on okinawa it is considered a type of shorin ryu. now many styles have come to realize that the tate-ken is a natural and efficient punch and the muscle blocks tatsuo used are in most styles anyway, esp goju. low kicks are common to all styles who value reality. nothing about isshinryu is radically different-

  • WUKO recognizes isshinryu, and did back when the first WUKO was organiized i never thought Tatsuo had pretty form, but his focus and speed was unmatched, isshinryu is a combat style, everyone knows that. simple, to the point

  • People who insult this are idiots. Master Shimabuku stated himself that he tried not to do the Kata the same every time. I beleive this is why Isshin-Ryu is such a fantastic style. It varies between schools so we can all learn from one another and still practice the same style.

  • I would be interested in knowing where you get your information from.

  • Again, I ask, where do you get your information. hear-say or some historical writing that is available to public? widely known?? what does that mean reallly?

  • Comment removed

  • you are wrong about WUKO- they recognize isshin kata and did form the start. FAJKO and other all have isshin representatives. so what? i have studied it since 1965, i t saved my life more than once. that's good enough for me

  • Amen.

  • you've got to remember he was a master so his sick is ten times better than our best

  • If he was sick or not, matters not, thats how Shimabuku did kata he wasn't overly particular to form. He didn't care if the kata was the same every time he did it, some people care about that, If you study Isshin Ryu remember this is YOUR Grandmaster and he knew what the katas were all about.

  • He wasn't sick in this video.

  • This video helped me pass my black belt testing; no lie.

  • Is this one of the "sick" recordings?

  • Are their any vids on Youtube which aren't the videos from when he was sick?

  • Simplicity, Speed, & Power. Thanks for archiving this treasure for ours and future generations.

  • Nice Sunsu.

  • Which recording is this? Doesn't look like the 66 or the 66 outtakes.

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