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Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
Karate-Do:
The Evolution of a Style
Shihan James Herndon
Kuniba-Kai Summer Camp
Chesapeake, VA
July 2007
In the Beginning
 Karate-Do, also called Tang-Te (China
Hand), emerged from antiquity to become
a popular activity in Okinawa and Japan.
 Early Okinawan styles included Naha-Te,
Shuri-Te, Tomari-Te, Shorin-Ryu, GojuRyu, Isshin-Ryu, and Shito-Ryu.
 Shito-Ryu today has several sub-schools
(Ha): Mabuni-Ha, Tani-Ha, Motobu-Ha.
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Some Definitions


Do = A “way” or art, as in Karate-Do
u

Ryu = A “style” or school, as in Shito-Ryu

Ha = A “sect” or sub-school, as in Motobu-Ha

Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Historical Sensei


Anko Itosu
Kanryo Higaonna

Choki Motobu

Kenwa Mabuni

Kosei Kokuba
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Anko Itosu
1830-1915
 Shuri-Te master, a student of Sokon
Matsumura (1792-1887)
 Organized karate in the Okinawan school
system
 Codified kata, and considered by
some to be the “Father of Karate”
 Trained many eminent men
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Kanryo Higaonna
1853-1916
 Naha-Te master, student of Arakaki
Seisho and others
 Spent time in China learning the
techniques of kung-Fu
 Combined hard and soft to create
Goju-Ryu
 Noted for Sanchin kata
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Choki Motobu
1870-1944
 Student of Itosu and others in Okinawa
 Followed Funakoshi and Mabuni to Japan
 Given room and board at the dojo of Kosei
Kokuba, where he taught
 Known as “Motobu no Saru”
 Passed Motobu-Ha to Kokuba
 Shiro Kuma kata
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Kenwa Mabuni
1889-1952
 Founder of Shito-Ryu Karate-Do c. 1930
 Took name from Itosu and Higaonna, his
two primary teachers
 Today, the Mabuni lineage is
called Seito Shito-Ryu
 Son Kenei is head of style


2nd Soke
World Shito-ryu Karate-do Federation
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Kosei Kokuba
1901-1959
 Began training under Itosu at age 14
 Student of Choki Motobu; Motobu taught
in Kokuba’s dojo in Osaka, Japan
 Nidai Soke of Motobu-Ha Karate-Do
 Founder of Seishin-Kan
 1st Kaicho of Seishin-Kai
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Seishin-Kan
 Informally formed 1940 in Osaka, Japan;
Seishin-Kan named in 1943
 Central dojo that attracted Sensei from
many styles: Shorin-Ryu, Shito-Ryu….
 The dojo where Shogo Kuniba trained with
noted founders such as Kosei Kokuba and
Kenwa Mabuni and others
 The birthplace of Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
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First Promotions
Seishin-Kan Dojo 1945
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Seishin-Kai
 Established in June 1947* Osaka, Japan
 Sei Shin translates as “pure heart”
 The first organization to issue Menjo
(certificates) recognizing Dan and Kyu
ranks in Motobu-Ha Karate-Do and then
Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu Karate-Do
 First Kaicho, Kosei Kokuba (1947-1959)
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
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Teruo Hayashi
1924-2004
 Began training in 1948 under Kosei
Kokuba at the Seishin Kan Dojo
 2nd Kaicho of Seishin Kai (1959-1968)
 Hayashi-Ha Shito-Ryu Kai
 Soke of Hayashi-Ha
 Rengo-Kai 8 Dan
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Kosho Kokuba
1935-1992
 Also known as “Shogo” Kuniba
 Sandai Soke of Motobu-Ha Karate-Do
 Shodai Soke of Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu

Motobu-Ha & Mabuni-Ha
 3rd
Kaicho of Seishin-Kai
 Posthumous 10th Dan awarded
by Japan Karate Federation
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Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
 Created by Shogo Kuniba in 1956 as a
synthesis of Motobu-Ha Karate-Do
(learned from Kosei Kokuba) and ShitoRyu Karate-Do (learned from Kenwa
Mabuni and Ryusei Tomoyori)
 Other influences enriched the style
 Shogo Kuniba was the Shodai Soke of this
new sect of Shito-Ryu
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Genealogy
(from Instructor’s Handbook 1981)
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Contributions
 Motobu-Ha Karate-Do from Kosei Kokuba


Kihon
Ippon Kumite
 Shito-Ryu from Kenwa Mabuni and Ryusei
Tomoyori

Open Hand Kata from the Shuri-Te and
Naha-Te lineage
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Ryusei Tomoyori
 Ryusei (Takamasa) Tomoyori was a
student of Kenwa Mabuni in Osaka
 In 1939, with Mabuni’s permission, he
founded Kenyu-Ryu (the Ken comes from
Kenwa, the Yu comes from an alternate
reading of one character in Tomoyori)
 Kosho Kuniba studied under Tomoyori
from 1945-1955
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Other Influential Sensei
 The style of Shogo Kuniba was enriched
by studying other styles and other forms of
budo from:






Shoshin Nagamine
Shinken Taira
Kenko Nakaima
Asakichi Ito
Gozo Shioda
Ishii Gogetsu
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Shoshin Nagamine
1907-1997
 21 year old Kosho Kokuba spent about
one year in Naha, Okinawa where he
studied Shorin-Ryu Karate-Do under
Shoshin Nagamine
 Influence of Shorin-Ryu kata can be seen
in Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
 Nagamine also visited Seishin-Kan Dojo
in Osaka in the 1950s
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Shinken Taira
1897-1970
 Shinken Taira was a noted Kobudo master
 Kosho Kokuba trained with him in
Okinawa in the mid-1950s
 Taira influenced the styles of Motobu-Ha
and Hayashi-Ha
 Taira-Ha kobudo is widely
practiced today
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Kenko Nakaima
1911-1989
 Son of Kenchi Nakaima; grandson of Kenri
Nakaima, who founded Ryuei-Ryu as a
style of Karate-Do in the late 1900s
 Kosho Kokuba learned aspects of RyueiRyu while visiting Okinawa 1955-56
 Elements of this style merged with other
karate variations taught by Kosho Kokuba
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Unique Bunkai
 Soke Shogo Kuniba was one, if not the
first, karate sensei to incorporate complex
Bunkai (practical applications) into kata
training
 Bunkai were derived and created from the
techniques of Judo/Jiu-Jitsu and Aikido
 Many Bunkai and Ippon Kumite patterns
found their way into Goshin-Budo
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Asakichi Ito
 A young Kosho Kokuba began studying
Judo from Asakichi Ito, an Osaka
policeman, who had a big dojo near the
Kokuba house
 No information is available on Ito’s life and
legacy (via web search)
 Kosho Kokuba found Judo less to his
liking than Aikido
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Gozo Shioda
1915-1994
 Gozo Shioda was an outstanding student
of Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba
 He served in the Imperial Japanese Army
during WW II, continuing Aikido training
after the war
 He founded Yoshinkan in 1955
 Kosho Kokuba trained with him in the late
1950s
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Ishii Gogetsu
 14th
Soke Mugai-Ryu Hyo-Do, an older
style of Iai-jutsu
 According to Darrel Craig, in his book Iai:
The Art of Drawing the Sword, there are
only two or three schools left in Japan that
teach this style
 Kosho Kuniba learned from Soke Ishii
Gogetsu and passed techniques along
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Shogo Kuniba
Japan Dojo 1969
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Early U.S. Followers
 Albert Church
 Richard Baillargeon
 Hugh Kelley
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Albert C. Church
1930-1980
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Kamishin-Ryu
 Shorinji Tetsu-Ken Kamishin Ryu traces
it's lineage to Albert C. Church Jr.'s
inherited art of Shorinji Tekken Ryu
 In 1968, as per the Seishinkai Shihan
Committee, Kuniba sensei prepared a
scroll recognizing... "Nippon Kobudo
Kamishin Ryu, Soke, Albert C. Church..."
and a license as the founder-President
(Kaicho) of the martial ways organization
named Nippon Kobudo Rengokai.
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Richard P. Baillargeon
1930-1989
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SKKU-USA
 Seishin Kai Karate Union – USA Branch
 Established in 1964 by returning U.S. Air
Force TSgt Richard Baillargeon
 Operated from Moody Air Force Base,
Valdosta, GA
 Became an eclectic mix of styles, but
introduced Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu to many
practitioners
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Hugh Kelley
1940-
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
UMAAI
 United Martial Arts Association
International, founded by Hugh Kelley
 Propagates “Kokubashin” version of
Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu Karate-Do
 Shuseki Shihan Kelley is recognized as
9th Dan by the World Motobu-Ha
Shito-Ryu Karate Association
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Shogo Kuniba
Mobile, AL 1971
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Gathering of U.S. Instructors
Mobile, AL 1971
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USA Honbucho
 Richard P. Baillargeon, 1964-74
 Darrel Craig, 1974-78
 William Price, 1978-80
 James Herndon, 1980-82
 After 1983, Shogo Kuniba moved to the
U.S. and assumed Honbucho role until
 William Price, 1992-94…
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
NKJU
 National Karate and Jiu-Jitsu Union
 Founded in 1974, when Kuniba-Soke
visited many SKKU-USA dojo
 Shihan Richard P. Baillargeon, 5th Dan
(1930-1989), became “Soke”
 Many dojo from SKKU-USA joined the
new NKJU
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
SKMA
 Seishin-Kai Martial Arts, Inc.
 Formed in 1983; dissolved 1996
 U.S. Corporation, Virginia charter, to
represent Seishin-Kai in America
 Board of Directors: Soke Shogo Kuniba,
Judy Kuniba, Dr. J.L. Nakanishi, Gary
Naigle, Ron Baker, Rick McElroy
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Chikubu-Kai
 Established in 1995 to further the
teachings of Soke Shogo Kuniba
 Means “Bamboo Warrior” Organization
 Headed by William “Bill” Price, who is the
“Soke” of Kuniba-Ha Karate-Do
 Kuniba-Ryu Goshin-Do
 Goichi Kobayashi advisor
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
The Japan Tradition
 Kunio Tatsuno….
 Kosuke Kuniba….
 Kozo Kuniba….
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Kunio Tatsuno
1942-1999
 Student of Kosei Kokuba until 1959
 Seishin-Kai Shihan and Soke Daiko
 Succeeded Shogo Kuniba in 1992
 Nidai Soke of Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
 4th
Kaicho of Seishin-Kai
 WKPF – Karate to the Olympics
 Tragic death in Osaka
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
ISKU
 International Seishin-Kai Karate Union
 Formed in 1998 by Kunio Tatsuno-Soke
as an extension of Seishin-Kai of Japan
 Accepted members from around the world
in an attempt to gain support for the World
Karate-Do Promotion Foundation and its
drive to get karate into the Olympics
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
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Kuniba-Kai
 Formed in 1999, after death of Tatsuno
 Recognized by Nippon Karate-Do Rengo-
Kai as sole organizational sponsor of
Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu Karate-Do
 Kosuke Kuniba, Japan Soke
 Kozo Kuniba, Kaicho & International Soke,
Kuniba-Kai Kokusai Budo Renmei
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Kosuke Kuniba
1958 First son of Shogo Kuniba
 Sandai Soke of Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu
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Kozo Kuniba
1960 Second son of Shogo Kuniba
 Soke of Kuniba-Kai Kokusai Budo Renmei
 1st
Kaicho, Kuniba-Kai
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SISKU
 Seishin-Kai International Shito-Ryu
Karate-Do Union (formed in 2006)
 Split from ISKU, whose members no
longer stick to pure Shito-Ryu
 SISKU Members train in an eclectic
variant of Shito-Ryu (not Motobu-Ha)
 Headed by Sadatomu Harada, 10th Dan
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Sadatomu Harada
1936  5th
Kaicho of Seishin-Kai of Japan
 Current Honorary President of the
International Seishin-Kai Karate Union
 Recently formed SISKU
 Agrees not to claim Motobu-Ha
 No longer claims “Soke”
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH
Recap
 Motobu to Kokuba… Ryukyu Karate only
 Ryukyu Karate-Do Motobu-Ha
 Seishin-Kan (1940) to Seishin-Kai (1943)
 Kokuba to Kuniba (1940-59)… Motobu-Ha
 Mabuni to Kuniba (1945-52)… Shito-Ryu
 Motobu-Ha Shito-Ryu (named in 1956)
 Kuniba-Kai (1999)
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Never Forget!
Copyright (c) 2007 JSH