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Karate
Books and Resources Karatedo, or karate, are the pugilistic arts developed originally in Okinawa, an island chain between Japan and mainland Asia, called Ryukyu in olden times. Karate evolved from native martial arts techniques, fused with techniques brought by traders and immigrants from China, as well as the individual efforts of many Okinawan masters. It started to make inroads in Japan before World War II with the introduction of Shotokan karate by Funakoshi Gichin, and later by other Okinawan masters. Japanese style karatedo has changed the original Okinawan roots, but there is no doubting the origins of this art. Likewise, if you dig deep enough, Hawaiian kempo karate, out of which sprang the Ed Parker system, kajukempo, and other variations, seems to be rooted in prewar visits by Okinawan kempo (the Japanese reading of the Chinese ch'uan fa, or "fistic way"; but it is still a form of karate). Korean students also brought karate back to their own country and used it as the basis to fashion a national sport, now called Tae Kwon Do, and other arts, such as Moo Duk Kwan. Karate has been transformed into many different manifestations: combined with aerobic exercises, it has become "tae-bo." The brutal sport of Thai kickboxing has been combined with karate-as-a-business model and so several kickboxing-exercise schools have opened, as a means of physical exercise without the punishing full-contact kicks and punches that lead many practitioners to retire from the ring at an early age. It will be interesting to see what other iterations of this art arise in the coming years...I have seen kata performances now accompanied by "Star Wars" music, satin and beaded costumes, and bo staff with blinking lights. --A far cry from the powerful, understated art of, say, a Kentsu Yabu or a Motobu Choki. But time marches on. As does our insatiable propensity for crass. Note: (J) denotes the book is written in Japanese. Furyu the Budo Journal and all material on this site are copyright © 2002 by Tengu Press and Wayne Muromoto. All US and international copyright laws hold. Anyone interested in using any material of the site must contact Wayne Muromoto at wmuromoto@hotmail.com or at Tengu Press Hawaii, PO Box 61637, Honolulu, Hawaii 96839 USA. |
(The Bible of Karate) Bubishi
translated and
with commentary by Patrick McCarthy. Charles E. Tuttle Company, Rutland, Vermont
and Tokyo, Japan. c. 1995. 216 pages, paperback. ISBN 0-8048-2015-5. $16.95
US
The Bubishi is a text purportedly to have come from China to Okinawa, where it influenced many of the early karate masters. Patrick McCarthy gives a good description of the history and meaning of this mysterious text, with various theories as to its origin, and its relationship to the development of Okinawan karate as we now know it. He then gives a translation of the text, including sections on herbal remedies, martial arts tales and pressure points. He then presents the book's section on techniques, translating the text and presenting the original photos. Unlike Ohtsuka's version (see below), McCarthy does not attempt to present his own colored interpretation of the methods, leaving it up to the reader, instead, to make sense of the individual methods. All in all, it's a nice presentation.
Chuugoku, Ryukyu Bubishi
(J)
By Ohtsuka Tadahiko.
Baseball Magazine, Tokyo, Japan. c. 1998. 320 pages, paperback. ISBN 4-583-03530-6.
If you can get your hands on this Japanese language book, it might be worth a look-see. The Bubishi is a near-legendary book compiled by Okinawan karate masters, supposedly derived from Chinese antecedents, upon which Okinawan karate was based. Ohtsuka Tadahiko, a Goju-ryu and taiji chuan teacher (not, I guess, related to the Ohtsuka family of Wado-ryu. And it seems he has also met or studied with some mainland Chinese White Crane gung fu masters), has reprinted illustrations from one version of the Bubishi and made step-by-step photographs of techniques he has reconstructed from the book, based on his training in karate and taiji. It may not be the definitive book (other versions, in English by Patrick McCarthy, for example, are available), but it is one worth perusing. Ohtsuka also includes as much of the original Bubishi as possible, so if anyone can read classical Chinese they can interpret the pages their own way. He also includes the original drawings, so one can also experiment and try to figure out one's own analysis of what the techniques originally meant. It's a nice, thick book, full of techniques and explanations. Although it's in Japanese, there's enough photographs to make sense of it even if you don't read the language.
The
Complete Idiot's Guide to Karate
by Randall
G. Hassell and Edmond Otis, Alpha Books, Macmillan USA, Inc. Indianapolis, IN.
c. 2000. 342 pages, paperback. ISBN: 0-02-863832-8. paperback, US $18.95.
There's been the Idiot's Guide for... and ...for Dummies book lines which have been very successful. It was only a matter of time that the publishers got around to martial arts. Luckily, the publishers got two well-qualified karate instructors to write this guide. If you're a beginning student bewildered by all the rules and etiquette of karate, or are a parent trying to help your child figure out what to do in a dojo, and what the techniques mean, etc., this is a great reference guide, especially for Japanese-style karate schools. The authors practice Shotokan karate, but most of the information is relevent to nearly any traditional karate school that teaches in a "traditional" manner. It's a good example of taking complicated issues and breaking them down so that a beginner can understand them.
Karate-do
Kyohan
by Funakoshi, Gichin. Kodansha Intl., Tokyo, Japan. c. 1973. ISBN: 0-87011-190-6.
$16.95.256 pages. Hardbound.
One of the "bibles" of karate. I'm sure this book is reprinted in paperback at a greater cost, so you should be able to obtain a copy somewhere. Written by the founder of Shotokan karatedo, this book offers a wonderful insight into the technical and philosophical origins of an Okinawan martial art being transformed into a distinctly Japanese art. Of interest are photographs of movements demonstrated by Funakoshi himself, and his top students, such as Egami Shigeru, and more updated kata forms by Ohshima Tsutomu. You can see the evolution of Shotokan karate through these photographs.
Karate-Do
My Way of Life
by Funakoshi Gichin. Kodansha Intl. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan. 128 pages hardcover.c.
1975. ISBN 0-87011-241-4.
This book is probably now in softcover edition. Funakoshi sensei was the person who brought karate from Okinawa to Japan and popularized it, leading to the internationalization of a formerly obscure Okinawan martial art. In this small book, the founder of Shotokan karate writes several short stories, personal anecdotes and historical notes about karate. There is no one real major thread, but a series of short, pithy statements about what karate meant to him, illustrated by a captivating tale or two. Doubtless, this book should be on the bookshelf of any serious karate student.
"Inasmuch as karate is one of the most refined of the martial arts, any karate adept who boasts about how many boards or tiles he can break with his bare hand or who claims to be able to rip flesh into strips or tear ribs from their cage is one who has very little conception of what true karate is. . ."
Okinawan Karate
by Mark Bishop. A& C Black Publishers, Ltd., London. c. 1989. ISBN 0-7136-5666-2.
192 pages, paperback. $18.95. Distributed by Talman Company.
One of the best books on the history and lore of Okinawan karate. Bishop lived in Okinawa for some 15 years, and his in-depth research is masterful. He has sections on nearly all the great historical and contemporary karate masters, their styles and lineages in an engaging, readable and highly informative book.
The Way
of Karate: Beyond Technique
by Egami Shigeru. Kodansha Intl. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan. c. 1976. 130 pages,
hardcover. $12.95. ISBN# 0-87011-254-6
This is an interesting, if not curious book. Egami sensei was one of Funakoshi Gichin's direct students from before World War II. He trained hard and long, but upon thinking about it and due to some major illnesses, he took a long hard look at Shotokan karate methods and tinkered with some of them to make them more, in his mind, scientifically health-conscious. Egami seems to stress stretching, limber limbs, and a very low center of gravity. The pictures that illustrate the techniques, however, sometimes go back and forth between "old" karate and "new" karate methods. Egami uses this to show the differences in methodology. But it's a curious look at one person's interpretation of Shotokan karate, as well as a glimpse at how it was practiced in the prewar era. In any case, the book is well done. I believe you can obtain a paperback copy of this book.