 Gojiru is one of the most recognized forms of traditional karate translating to hard soft style It holds deep roots in both Okinawan and Chinese martial arts Now regardless if you are a traditional martial artist or prefer the more contemporary styles of MMA Our goal for this episode is to leave you with at least a little bit of appreciation for the art and what makes it so distinct This is the history of Gojiru karate Celebrate the art of Gojiru karate with this commemorative forefather t-shirt available only here at Art of Wondojo Pick yours up on the product shelf below the video or at the link in the description I would like to thank both the Gojiru philosopher and Sensei John Paul Williams for their help and guidance on this project The Gojiru philosopher has a great YouTube channel that goes much more in-depth on individual aspects And I highly recommend his videos to further elaborate on this topic Sensei John Paul Williams has an extensive background and experience with the art and is a highly regarded authority on the subject and his new book Gojiru karate dough desk reference volume one is now available and a definite recommended read He will also be joining us next week as we discuss the efforts to preserve the art Links to both of these gentlemen are listed below in the video description Gojiru karate translates to hard soft style and it was formally founded by Okinawan master Miyagi Choujin sensei in the 1930s the name refers to the nature of the art having both hard and soft techniques the word go or hard is Generally in reference to the closed-hand techniques in the application of linear moves and hard strikes Jew or soft sometimes translated as gentle refers to the circular motions that can ride or deviate attacks and are generally open-handed techniques the combination of these two attributes is a Common duality in the structure of the art now while Miyagi Choujin is the founder of Gojiru officially to appreciate its roots We have to go back a little bit further to Higa Ono Kanryo born in Nishimura, Naha in 1853 Back when Okinawa was still a part of the Ryukyu Kingdom We did an episode on the birth of karate in Okinawa and the Ryukyu Kingdom in our episode What this karate that elaborates on that a little bit more and we've linked that below as well During this time in history there were established trade routes between China and Okinawa and Higa Ono Kanryo was born into a family of merchants Shipping goods between the islands of the kingdom He learned the value of working hard and through labor was able to develop and build physical strength at the young age of about 14 Higa Ono Kanryo began training in the martial arts It is generally believed that he began his training under the influence and tutelage of Arukaki Seisho in the art of monk fist boxing And specifically the Chinese arts however greater doubt is being cast on this concept as more research is being conducted For example the names of the kata taught by Arukaki were uniquely Okinawan and like most boys in Okinawa at the time Arukaki began his training at home using local or native Okinawan utensils with the total time spent in China by Arukaki We cannot logically conclude that he would have had enough time to have mastered any form of monk fist boxing And it's also known now that there was much more focus on philosophy Politics and his education during his time in China Wishing to improve on his martial arts training He got on a travel to Fuji China where he was said to have studied several different Chinese arts Now there's often dispute as to which arts exactly he trained in and who he trained under But there's no question that he was able to expand on his education and he came back to Okinawa in the 1880s and opened up his first martial arts school in Naha in 1905 It is also believed that Higa Ono was allowed to have access to the Bubishi Which is a highly regarded Chinese text that is often considered the Bible of karate as fighting arts became established in Okinawa The term 2d was often used which translates to tang hand the word te or hand was also commonly used Local systems developed in various cities of Okinawa And at this time it was traditional to name the fighting style after the region it developed in the three most prominent of these Arts were Nahate, Shurite and Tomarete named respectively out of their cities of origin These names were officially agreed upon and recognized in 1926 Higa Ono Kanryo is credited sometimes along with his teacher Arka Kisei show for establishing Naha Te Implementing a combination of the Chinese arts he learned along with the developing systems in Okinawa Higa Ono sensei is a significant figure in the early development of karate and during his years of teaching He had several prominent students including Shito Ryo founder Mabuni Kenwa Toon Roo founder, Chihatsu Kiyoda and eventual Gojiru founder Miyagi Cho-jin If you really think a little further or deeper into the style, Kanryo Higa Ono was more if not equally the founder of Gojiru Miyagi sensei named Gojiru Before Miyagi sensei it was just called Tei But the person who introduced Gojiru and brought those styles or brought those kata Into a more modern use and spread it. That was Higiyona Miyagi then of course added a few kata the rest of the kata he got from his teacher So both are considered the founder of Gojiru Miyagi a bit more so but Higiyona a bit more important Miyagi Cho-jin was born in Naha Okinawa on April 25th 1888 while in Okinawa was under the Empire of Japan He was raised in an upper-class family and took an interest in the martial arts beginning his training at age 11 In the Okinawan arts under instructor Aragaki Ryuko in 1902 at age 14 Miyagi began to train under Higiyona Kanryo became one of his most prominent students There are some accounts to say Miyagi dedicated his time Higiyona cleaning the school and possibly becoming an Uchideshi or Living student Miyagi trained under Higiyona in the style of Naha Tei from 1902 until Higiyona's death in 1915 With his training only interrupted by a tour of duty in the military from 1910 to 1912 Becoming an authoritative figure in the martial arts in his own right Miyagi followed a similar path as a teacher traveling to China to expand on his training and bringing back Chinese combat influences He traveled the Fujian province in China with Go Genki his friend and interpreter and they continued his research much like Higiyona Kanryo Miyagi returned to Okinawa and blended his new education with what he had learned in Naha Tei Which was the beginning foundation to his own art that would later be referred to as Gojiru An example of this is a kata known as Rokishu also known as Six Hands Miyagi did not retain his form in its native format But he said use it as the basis to create the Gojiru kata of Tencho In fact Miyagi developed several kata for a system that to this day form the basic core of the curriculum Now this is important because if you're one of those people who hate kata and feel that the service no purpose I believe that even you will be able to appreciate some of the thought behind it So stick with us because we're gonna elaborate on this in the few minutes upon his return from China Miyagi Choujin also opened up his own dojo and in 1918 he founded the karate research society In this new society he brought in some of the most prominent martial artists at the time in an attempt to combine the education of other prominent karate masters Miyagi also became friends with other notable Japanese martial artists such as Funakoshi Ginchin and Kanon Jigoro founders of Shodokan and Judo respectively How did the art of Gojiru become named as such? While it seems anecdotal and details of the account differ slightly There is a generally accepted story of how the art gained its name In 1929 there was a large martial arts exhibition being held in Kyoto, Japan Called the All Japan Martial Arts Demonstration Many founders and prominent masters were invited to showcase their arts It is said that Miyagi Choujin was unable to attend the event and instead set one of his students Shinsato Jinan to go in his place Also during this time in Japan was an attempt to categorize and organize martial arts styles and many were Registered with the Dainipon Butokukai or Greater Japan Martial Virtue Society After the demonstration Shinsato was approached and asked what style of karate he was practicing At this juncture in the arts history an official name had not yet been given and it was said that Shinsato didn't have an answer Some accounts report that being put on the spot and not wanting to be humiliated He called it Hankoryu or half-heart style Upon returning back to Okinawa He recounted his experience to Miyagi who molded over and decided to refer to a poem written in the Bubishi ancient text He drew from the 13th article a poem called Haku Kempo or the Eight Laws of the Fists In that poem is the line the law of inhaling and exhaling is hard and soft Miyagi liked this reference as it reflected one of the core focuses of his art The importance of breathing and the principles of using both hard and soft techniques It was from here that he derived the name Gojiru for hard soft style And it was said that he was the first to register the name of his art with the Dainipon Budokukai Gojiru began to proliferate from here with Miyagi taken on notable students Many of whom would become influential figures in the evolution and spread of the art Miyagi also began teaching in schools as well as the Okinawan police department and in 1934 He wrote the outline of karate dough. This is said to be one of his only surviving written works He spent his time growing the art and traveling and was awarded several teaching titles from the Dainipon Budokukai Miyagi had firmly established a strong foundation and was on a path for success Unfortunately, as with many things life got in the way From 1939 until 1945 World War II rattled the globe Spanning across both the European and Pacific theaters the war left behind a trail of death and destruction ravaging many nations in the process Okinawa was no exception From march through july 1945 the battle of okinawa pummeled the island nation in a 98 day campaign Okinawa was the unfortunate recipient of head-on conflict between the empire of japan and the advancing american forces The united states armed forces were capturing islands and were iron and landing on the small nation to prepare for a ground evasion of the japanese mainland Now japan mounted a massive counter and okinawa found itself bombed and destroyed in an attempt to prevent the united states from getting the foothold These campaigns were conducted with little to no consideration of civilian casualties And as a result the battle of okinawa was one of the most devastating and bloodiest battles of the pacific theater According to pertanica.com the battle claimed 12,000 american lives 100,000 japanese and at least 100,000 okinawan citizens Other sources report up to a possible 150,000 dead or missing okinawans Which was half of the standard population before the war in the end The united states was able to secure the island and was preparing for the invasion However, due to the atomic bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki in august of 1945 Japan surrendered and the war was over Negating the efforts of taking okinawa and the casualties that had incurred Miyagi choujin survived the destruction but his home was left in ruins and he lost a number of relatives including some of his children As well as his close friend and student shinzato jinnan when the war ended and okinawa was under us occupation Miyagi choujin was permitted to reopen his garden dojo For the remainder of his life. Miyagi continued to teach at his dojo and at the police academy But it was said that he was never the same again having lost so much in the war There was a heavy heart and there's pictures of Miyagi again that you could see a happy smiling Miyagi at one time in his life And after the war it's almost a forced smile and that is in very few photos where you can actually see A man who's been through war. It's obvious. There was a lot of heartache and suffering that he went through But previous to that he's a lot of pictures. He's a chubby little boy Had some weight on his face there. There's a clear difference We have to we have to face that and give him credit for what he was able to still pass down On october 8th 1953 Miyagi choujin passed away at the age of 65 Leaving behind a solid legacy that would become a pillar in karate and a roster of master students and allies That would help the art spread throughout the world As with what happens in many martial arts when the founder passes away unexpectedly Miyagi choujin did not name an official successor Now while there were claims in conjecture without the official declaration of a successor Gojiru divided into different branches as it began to propagate throughout the world Now each one of these masters surely deserve an episode on their own as their contributions to the art cannot truly be summarized in just a Few minutes However, I do want to give them an honorable mention as they had a pivotal place in history The first is shinsato jinnan We can recall his experience at the all japan martial arts demonstration and his consultation with Miyagi choujin to designate a Registered name for the art shinsato was said to be one of Miyagi's most trusted students He was born in naha in 1901 and he was a sick and weakly child But through the training in the martial arts. He was able to build up his health and strength He trained with Miyagi for several years Often accompanied him on trips and he was one of only three people to get Miyagi's approval to open up his own dojo He also trained in judo was a member of the okinawa police force as were many okinawan masters And even received the title of wrenchy or polished teacher from the dai nippon buto kukai He contributed greatly to the spread and development of gojiru and served in the military and fought in world war two During the battle of okinawa where he was killed at the age of 44 in a bombing campaign It is a common narrative that shinsato was to be named Miyagi's successor if not for his untimely death However, there has been no official confirmation of that and it remains conjecture through this day I do believe shinsato was the successor I believe this almost exclusively because he told his own son Takeshi Miyagi If anything were to happen to him to contact shinsato Now, of course shinsato died also and Takeshi which most people call k, but that's that's not how you read his name You read his there's the kanji for his name a lot of people There's a big misconception his name is k Miyagi It's Takeshi if you look at his own documentations He puts here in hiragana in parentheses Takeshi So that everybody makes sure do they have the correct wording or pronunciation for his kanji for his name k couldn't get home To okinawa in time for the funerals just impossible in 1953 to go from okinawa from from mainland japan to okinawa By boats, you're just not going to show up in in four days for a funeral. So Takeshi Miyagi didn't could not go to his own publisher, which is where this big hoopla Of who the rightful leader is so today we just have to deal with the point of We have multiple organizations and none of the organizations. I think Should make claim over one or the other they became the leaders of their organizations Equally and everybody really should just accept that Because the old question of who the successor was is dead And if they really want to make an argument of anything the true successor should be Takeshi Miyagi The oldest living son of Miyagi when he died just because he was couldn't make the funeral Doesn't mean you count him out Yamaguchi Jutsumi is a pinnacle figure in the history of gojiru if not a bit of a colorful character He was born in 1909 in Kyushu, Japan and began studying the martial arts at a young age He was also experienced in swordsmanship and while studying law at ritsumekan university He started the ritsumekan karate research society with friend and fellow martial artist yogi jutsui Miyagi chogen was invited to visit the school and he accepted the invitation in 1931 And Miyagi made the first of a few known trips to university where it is believed Yamaguchi trained with him directly There is actually some controversy over Yamaguchi's given name The name jutsumi has been the widely believed name for many many years However, with deeper research within the family and translations the name of Yoshimi may be more accurate I'd like to credit John Paul Williams for this research And this is just a sample of the level of detail you'll be able to find in this book Being a small stature and sporting long dark flowing hair. He was sometimes called the cat by american gis However, he was most notably known by his nickname of gogen meaning rough He was also a strong nationalist very spiritual and was captured by the ussr during world war two and spent two years as a POW from 1945 to 1947 There is a lot of controversy with much of yamaguchi's claims throughout his life It was said he often got into trouble and he had a habit of getting into altercations And he would recount stories of his victories against multiple attackers One of his most debated claims and the one he's most famous for was declaring that Miyagi appointed him the true successor of gojiru And tasked him with spreading the art throughout mainland japan Now there are many who dispute this mainly citing that Miyagi chosen never publicly appointed anyone as successor And there is skepticism that he would have appointed gogen yamaguchi over any of his long standing okinawan friends and students Now regardless of which of his claims may or may not be true We can't overlook his contribution and impact on what was to become the future of gojiru karate in 1950 He established the goju kai which has become one of the most well known gojiru organizations in the world Represented by the golden fist emblem through his teaching and networking Yamaguchi was able to propagate gojiru across not only all of japan But opened the door for its journey to america as well He is credited with his emphasis on free south sparring and karate which may have helped shape the landscape for many of the competitions we see today He helped establish the all-japan karate dough federation also known as the jkf Yamaguchi carries a heavy legacy within the art of gojiru and while smarter minds could debate which of his claims were true He was able to elevate the art to a much broader global base Upon his passing in 1989 Yamaguchi left the direction and administration of the goju kai to his sons gosei gosen and goshi Gosei his eldest son established and currently presides over the goju kai karate dough usa as hanchi and chief instructor There are several more influential figures in the art and we'll revisit them later in this episode when we talk about the different organizations Right now, let's explore the art of gojiru itself and the distinct characteristics of this karate system Many karate systems have overlapping concepts techniques and principles So to the uninitiated it could be hard to tell them apart I personally love learning the smaller distinct features of each system because that's where all the heart and flavor of the arts come out With gojiru, let's start directly with the name hard soft This system imparts equal emphasis on being able to deliver hard linear techniques as well as softer circular moves The idea here is to balance and being able to use one concept to counter the other I'd like to refer to an excerpt from John Paul Williams's book that says The system is based on the concept of hard and rigid is not good However, completely soft and gentle can be equally harmful. The two should complement each other This combination gives gojiru its beauty refined movements grace and flowing form So it's really about this perfect tandem between the two methods that gives gojiru its foundation Another main core focus on the art is the importance of body conditioning and proper breathing technique You can see a very conscious effort in deliberate breathing and gojiru practice Specifically in the kata of sanchin as well as tensho Proper breathing in these forms is intended to be isotonic and isometric and used to promote stronger lung capacity Better heart health and improved body posture Conditioning is another distinct characteristic of gojiru Now much of what Miyagi Chojin taught and implemented came directly from his teacher before him Higa Onakonryo So much of the foundation was already laid down As Miyagi Chojin propagated this teaching, he was essentially teaching an updated and next generation version of the art that he learned from Higa Onakonryo The difference between Higiona and Miyagi was mostly With the strength conditioning Implementation of hojo undo all the two tools. So Miyagi also Put together a scientifically organized basic exercises and warm-ups Jumbaya undo which didn't exist There was basic warm-ups and stretching with Higiona, but not scientifically organized It changed with Miyagi. It became more of systematic There are several notable differences between Okinawan and Japanese karate Popular Japanese styles such as shodokan are strong with driving linear power Generally have deeper stances higher kicks and explosive techniques that are implemented in competition Okinawan karate tends to exhibit narrower stances lower kicks and closer ranged combat We can see this in gojiru through the emphasis of close proximity fighting over ranged attacks There's a lot of pulling grabbing tearing in this close contact And it's often referred to as standing jujitsu or standing grappling There are some accounts that suggest that Shinzato Jinaan helped Miyagi define some of the grappling aspects of the art He had an extensive judo background He was personal friends with judo founder Kano Jigoro and he was a close and trusted student of Miyagi So it is reasonable to believe that he contributed to the development of the art The Okinawan term of mochimi translates to heavy sticky and is referenced to and closely related to kaki or pushing hands The concept is that you want to be able to stick to your opponent Once you make contact you want to keep that contact in order to manipulate and control their body It is the concept of eliminating gaps and season control and leveraging your opponent We see this concept in a lot of grappling arts BJJ, judo, kenpo, wrestling Once you touch you should be able to close your eyes and feel your way through the struggle While there are many practices and attributes that make gojiru as distinct as it is We wouldn't be doing the art any justice if we didn't talk about kata and the emphasis on bunkai Kata is often the point of contention in the martial arts Most traditional disciplines have kata of some form But a lot of contemporary schools and practitioners tend to disregard it as impractical or unnecessary Now even though kata is not an exclusive concept to gojiru I think the way that it is processed and approached has a lot of value to it And can at the very least establish an appreciation of how kata came to be and the purpose it serves To appreciate kata, we need to understand why and how they were developed to begin with In the early days of karate students worked many partner drills with each other These were often sparring sequences taught in attack and counter formations Very similar to a BJJ class in which you would learn a counter to a takedown or a reversal from an attempted submission Attack and defense sequences These were working class of the partner But part of the training is to be able to review and practice the material on your own time But imagine an era in which students did not have access to handbooks or printouts or reference videos or imagine the horror the internet So it was common to string a lot of these attack and defense sequences together until longer sequences Typically organized thematically these sequences were an easy way for the students to memorize a particular set of drills So that they could study and practice on their own In essence these sequences were simply textbooks or reference manuals written in motion So as a modern example imagine your MMA coach showed you five different takedown counters But put them together in a string in an ordered sequence as an easy way to remember them and practice on them on your own It wouldn't be just a dance, but rather actual academic information that you could use as a reference and study tool So over time these sequences would be adjusted altered and passed down to more students establishing the essence of kata The problem is kata doesn't mean anything if you don't understand what the movements represent To make the deciphering process even more difficult since those sequences were to help the students memorize their own defensive Movements the attacking portions of the drills were not included So these sequences essentially only contained half the information One of Miyagi's closer students tokuchi sakichi dedicated a lot of focus on exactly this Understanding and preserving the concepts taught the challenge However is that it was believed that over time these sequences were altered and abbreviated And the meaning wasn't always passed down correctly Or withheld to exclusive students or mistranslated over time Long kata sequences often required a lot of space to work So it is believed that many of them were pared down to make them easier to memorize But students got used to memorizing the motions and forgot or never learned what the original movements were teaching Couple in the possibility that teachers may have withheld some translations or altered forms to denote lineage And you wind up with a sequence that has lost a lot of its original value The practice of bunkai which means separating or pulling apart is a method of studying kata and breaking the motions down In an attempt to reconstruct what the original sequences might have been teaching and extract the practical combat information within it Toguchi approached this challenge in a very methodical way He heavily endorsed an analytical process Miyagi taught him called kassai no genri This was a general set of rules and guidelines used in an effort to unlock some of those secrets when applying bunkai to a kata By using this list of guidelines Toguchi felt that the extracted moves needed to be pressure tested So those sections of the kata were then put back into partner drills called bunkai kumite And tested over and over to see if the analysis held up Basically reverse engineer in a kata back to its original attack defense steps There are three main principles and several supplemental rules to follow when analyzing the kata The three main principles are one don't be deceived by embusan or the directional path using the kata Many kata were redesigned at some point to be practiced in smaller spaces So often footwork was abbreviated or directional changes were added two techniques executed while advancing imply attacking moves While techniques performed while retreating imply defensive maneuvers three There is only one enemy and he is in front of you if the kata has you turned to face a different direction It does not imply a second opponent Toguchi added the following advanced rules to break down the analysis even further one every movement in kata has a fighting application Two a hand returning to a closed position usually has something in it Three utilize the shortest distance to your opponent Four if you control your opponent's head you control your opponent five There are no blocks this implies that techniques that appear to be blocks are likely throwing or grabbing techniques six Angles and kata are important seven touching your own body indicated that you are touching part of your opponent Eight don't attack hard targets on your opponent with hard parts of your body Nine there are no pauses in application Now these are of course just general guidelines and there's no guarantee that interpretations are 100 correct But it is an ongoing effort and a very important part of kata study to not only preserve history But to make kata a more powerful training tool in karate while different gojiroo schools may vary in the kata they teach There's a general set of core kata taught and each one covers a very specific theme or purpose For example, we've already mentioned sanchin and the emphasis it has on breathing Translating to three battles the goal of sanchin's focus and breathing patterns is to unite the body mind and spirit Sanchin is also considered the harder focus So its softer counterpart is ten show meaning revolving hands Concentrating on tension and soft flowing hand movements Sayun shin is a kata that incorporates tactics to grapple by grabbing and pulling your opponent off balance It was the featured kata in the karate kit part three Although it is widely considered an inaccurate depiction of the form Chiso chin meaning fight in four directions which incorporates linear attacks and circular blocks We catch a very quick glimpse of this form again in the karate kit films this time Miyagi himself performing it in part two There are also promotional kata that were developed for demonstration and promotional purposes These were not standardized kata to be implemented into the curriculum But rather used to introduce children to some of the basic concepts and physical education taught in gojiroo We could spend an entire episode breaking down more kata But this is just a sample of how much focus and education goes into the bunkai of the gojiroo kata And has become one of the signatures of the system gojiroo also features the okinawan weapons arts or kobudo Which typically sees the inclusions of weapons such as the bow, sai, nojuku, three sectional staff, tomfa, and several others Freestyle fighting also became integrated with the art with a heavy effort from gogane amiguchi and the japanese influence of competitive fighting And speaking of japanese influences while gojiroo is okinawan in origin As a spread throughout the world and experience the degree of you know Deviation and variation and john paul williams gives us a little bit of insight on some of the differences seen in japanese and okinawan gojiroo Okinawa gojiroo and japanese gojiroo follow the same styles of kata and pattern But not necessarily the same types of kumite Japanese gojiroo Has a lot more focus on competition kumite on speed versus ola power on Literally budo whereas okinawa gojiroo Usually has more focus on bujitsu So protection of one's body and building the body whereas in japanese gojiroo is more building the mind And building the individual they're supposed to meet at one at one location But if you went to two different dojo one japanese and one from okinawa the japanese dojo you'll note Clearly they probably have a lot more kumite going The okinawa gojiroo you'll note that it clearly Has more kata work going on the kata and the okinawa gojiroo dojo will seem heavier and more rooted And deep and solid Whereas the japanese gojiroo will seem more shito rule a lot more a bit more flair a bit more Flavor as of right now The two are marrying back together again And that's mostly through the jkf goji kai and the jkf goji kai is heavily influenced by the okinawa gojiroo kyoukai Oji kk and the japanese dojo in japan are now taking that heavy influence of oji kk and gojiroo from okinawa And recognizing that all karate is from okinawa So they're getting the depth of that okinawa knowledge And they're using the sports That they've already built up on their own and combining the two So it's gojiroo now is becoming better the difference and but it's also coming back together to where it's supposed to be As gojiroo spread across the world many organizations were established to represent preserve and sometimes grow the art As is the case with most martial arts each organization has their own flavor and philosophy behind it Let's take a look at some of the more notable and larger organizations and see how gojiroo exists in today's landscape The international karate do goji kai association or the ikga Is an organization founded by goga yamaguchi in order to represent and spread his version of the art It is sometimes called yamaguchi goji kai and its recent span over 60 countries since its establishment in 1965 Goji kai strives to teach a traditional and balanced version of the art Keep it intact the breathing and conditioning and spiritual aspects The insignia of the goji kai is perhaps one of the most striking and recognizable symbols in traditional karate A gold fist clenched tightly and said to be modeled after Miyagi Chojin's right hand is worn on the left lapel This emblem is also widely present in other iterations of goji kai organizations around the world Today the goji kai is governed by goga yamaguchi's third son goshi yamaguchi The international okinawan gojiroo karate do federation or iogkf Claims the title of the largest traditional okinawan karate association in the world The organization touts a roster of more than 75 000 members And strives to preserve the integrity of traditional okinawan gojiroo as a cultural treasure of okinawa It was founded in 1979 by master higa-ona morio No relation to higa-ona konryo higa-ona morio a tenth dan in the art and one of the most respected gojiroo Karataka today has a direct lineage to the roots of the art and within the organization He is recognized as a successor of gojiroo the iog kf is currently headed by sensei nakamura tetsuji However, sensei higa-ona morio still offers advisory support to the federation The emblem of the iog kf is called the kenkoun and was designed to represent the symbolism embedded in the heart of gojiroo Consisting of both square and circular designs the kenkoun represents the duality of hard soft nature of the art The circle stands for the soft aspects and the block stands for the heart The name kenkoun means heaven and earth again demonstrating the dual nature The flowing circle is the heaven that surrounds the hard earth The block design itself is miyagi chōjin's family crest The international mebukon gojiroo kratado association or imgka Was established by grandmaster hiagi meitoku a direct student of grandmaster miyagi chōjin Meitoku trained with his master from 1926 to miyagi's death in 1953 According to the imgka website Miyagi was impressed at his aptitude for the material and dedication to learning the art And meitoku became the only student to learn all of the systems kata directly from the founder Upon the passing of miyagi chōjin, meitoku opened up his school and named it meibukon which translates to house of the pure minded warrior Meitoku continued to teach his meibukon gojiroo karate globally until his death in 2003 Leadership of the imgka was picked up by his eldest son yagi meitatsu who had trained under his father for more than 50 years He continued his teaching of meibukon gojiroo and recently passed down the reins to his own sons Since the yagi meitoku was a well-known figure in the art during his training He was known for his hand strength and was also known as the makiwara breaker He created five of his own kata unique to his meibukon style and in 1986 was named a national treasure The crest also supports the same message of duality that is common throughout the art The logo represents the sun and the moon the sun is thick and constant the moon is slender and flexible This expresses the hardness and the softness of gojiroo Additionally an excerpt from their site explains part of the name It reads that may of meibukon correlates to the karataka's overall character and personality pure clear minded having a good heart The kanji may also appears in all the men's names of the yagi family A young miyazato eichi began training in the martial arts under his father Who was a direct student of higa ono kanryo? This opened the door for him to really start his training early in gojiroo directly under miyagi choujin Miyazato became a dedicated student and with the exception of world war two and a disruption it brought to okinawa He remained under the master's tutelage until miyagi passed away At this time of his passing miyagi's family had chosen miyazato to take up the reins and continue his teaching at miyagi's home garden dojo It is even said that he inherited miyagi's dogi and belt He was also an experienced judoka and he heavily encouraged cross training in the martial arts In 1957 miyazato opened his own dojo called the jundokon in naha city okinawa And it was later rebuilt in concrete where it still stands today The dojo consists of three floors with the top floor serving as the miyazato residents The website jundokon new zealand gives an explanation of the name The name jundokon is sometimes translated as place to follow in footsteps. However, that is not exactly correct It is in fact a unique play on two concepts important to miyazato Firstly the first character june is the same character in the name choujun as in miyagi choujin sensei The founder of gojiro karate, but june can also mean obedience order and justice Thus the name jundokon can mean either the house of the path of choujun Or the house of the path of obedience a sign of miyazato's dedication to his teacher Higa seiko was a great contributor and practitioner of gojiro He originally started training alongside miyagi choujin under higa ona kanryo However, he was only under higa ona's tutelage for a few years before the master's passing Afterwards he continued his karate education under miyagi himself Higa seiko served as a police officer for many years before retiring in 1931 and decided to teach karate He opened a dojo in his own home and he was one of the few students permitted to open their own dojo during miyagi's lifetime The dojo itself became known as the shodokon and has since developed into its own organization shodokon gojiru karate association The name very roughly translates to respect away school And they strive to continue teaching and preserving traditional gojiru and instilling respect discipline and life skills among all students Shorikon is a school and organization founded by master toguchi sekichi Now we spoke about toguchi earlier and his efforts in kasai no genri a systematic approach to breaking down and reverse engineering the bunkai of traditional gojiru kata Now according to their website the shorikon school was established to provide a system in which the student could make systematic progress And learning how to perform the very sophisticated art of gojiru in his effort to teach kata at basic level Toguchi formulated several entry-level kata unique to a system to help students transition into the process of bunkai and practicing gojiru After miyagi's passing toguchi set up his own school near the kadina air force base in okinawa teaching american airman karate Now i personally believe that toguchi was the inspiration of the character of sato in the karate kit part two In the film sato having been a student of mr. miyagi's father Open up a dojo in kadina air force base and taught karate to the airman station there This link is even more evident when you consider that sato's last name is toguchi Shorikon has had its own growth and evolution as well after toguchi The organization was overseen by master toshio tamano and as another excerpt from the website says Shorikon karate is for the people who wish to learn self defense techniques and to improve physical and mental conditions As master tamano wished to distinguish it from ordinary karate. He changed the name shorikon karate to shorikon okinawan budo kasei USA goju karate is an offshoot of the goju kai organization established by gogan yabuguchi It was founded by peter urban who according to their website and kick illustrated magazine Is sometimes referred to as the george washington of american karate In 1953 peter urban became a student and apprentice of american martial artist richard kim and transitioned into an uchi deshi Or living student urban was working for the intelligence division of the navy and a year later was transferred from yokohama to tokyo Unable to continue his training with kim kim introduced him to kyokushin founder masoyama and gogan yamaguchi Now this was an extremely rare turn of events as non-japanese were not usually accepted the students making urban one of the first american practitioners of goju room After training with yamaguchi under goju kai for a few years and earning his black belt urban returned back home to the united states Now the origin of usa goju karate is controversial and a hot topic But to summarize urban wished to continue teaching his art in america and he wished to establish an american branch of goju room In 1963 he had traveled back to japan to seek this blessing of yamaguchi as well as to seek promotion to sixth degree black belt Well to urban surprise yamaguchi refused and did not give us consent After falling out between the two men urban sought out his previous teacher richard kim Obtained his rank and went on to establish his american brand of the art anyway Despite the controversy or bad blood involved urban succeeded in getting a full hold and through the usa goju karate He helped propagate the art of goju ryu throughout america sewa kai is an international organization that has formed a huge network of goju ryu schools hundreds of them around the world This network spawned from the original sewa kai school established in 1972 in tokyo by hanshi tasaki sujin This organization has grown to many international branches including sewa kai karate of silicon valley Which is a non-profit organization formed in 2018 by john paul williams SKSV not only works to preserve the art of goju ryu as taught by miyagi choujin But it also serves as a pillar of support for a network of goju ryu schools that often face hardships and challenges of staying open There are more organizations and associations But this brief list should at least give an idea of just how popular Influential and how widespread the art of goju ryu really is with roots going back to original karate systems in okinawa Goju ryu has persevered throughout time and remains a pillar in the martial arts community It is a living art and it continues to carry the torch of the light that miyagi choujin and higou na kanryo once carried Its influence has also found its way as a component in other arts such as kiyokushin and ishin ryu It has even found its way into media such as the karate kid franchise Serving as the base art for the fictional mr. Miyagi There is so much more information on the history of goju ryu, especially the numerous masters who carried it Our goal for today was to lift the veil and provide an introduction to those who are not familiar with the art As well as a nod of appreciation to those who practice it and keep it alive today I highly encourage everyone to visit the goju ryu philosophy on youtube for more detailed accounts on the masters And also be sure to pick up john paul williams's book goju ryu karate dough desk reference volume one In this book you will find arguably the most historically accurate chronology of the art to date I offer my extreme thanks to both gentlemen for their help with this project Now come back and visit us next week as we talk with john paul williams in a new episode about the efforts of preserving goju ryu karate Thank you so much for watching and don't forget to grab your own art of one dojo exclusive goju ryu t-shirt You'll find a link for everything below in the video description