writings

This story was originally entitled The Wonderful Art of a Cat. It was written to describe the importance of spiritual elements within the Martial Arts. The original author was Ito‑Tenzen‑Tadanari, the eldest son of Ono-Jiroemon‑Tadaaki, the originator of the Ono...

by Hayashi Tomio The world does not require us to function optimally to get by, or to survive. Mediocrity is, and has been for some time, the general rule of life. We see this everywhere with our growing chronic, social agitations and pathologies; Hyper-activity,...

Martial politics, personal rivalries and hate agendas, aimed to discredit a noted UK martial expert decades ago, reveal the dark side of human nature and obscure the teachings of a vital martial art. This piece is a collaboration of several martial artists...

I do not speak Okinawan, Japanese or Chinese but I am very fluent in a certain kind of foreign language—KATA, specifically the dialect of the physical movement patterns of Okinawan Karate. I have been speaking this language for fifty years and teaching others how to become versed in its ways for over four-and-a-half decades. Read More  

Many karate systems teach the Sanchin kata as an external training method to strength-condition practitioners with a series of breath-controlled tensions. This mainstream understanding is a viable but topical explanation missing some of Sanchin’s other, more dimensional qualities rooted in the monastic martial culture and in combination with scientific breakthroughs regarding human performance.  Read More  

The real power of martial arts lies in linking one’s physical training to one’s meditation practices. Both adepts and neophytes alike, who practice various breathing and concentration exercises, will receive encouraging results for their efforts. Read More

Think gangly, introverted seventeen-year old, living in a quiet, insulated and affluent, New Jersey suburb. One evening I was “wowed” by Ilya Kuryakin’s (David McCallum) karate chop, summarily dispatching a Russian, Cold War thug during an episode of the popular 1960 TV series, Man From U.N.C.L.E. Read More  

Karate Do is a way of seeing, a way of being, a way of acting, a way of carrying oneself, in essence, a Path, that extrapolates martial principles for living one’s life intelligently, skillfully, with clarity and compassion. Read More  

A Noted Teacher Talks About The Spiritual Nature and Transformative Process of the Martial Ways. Read More  

I recently reread Remembrances of Okinawa: Chinkuchi by Lt. Col. Charles Murray (USAF) written in 1971, with the intention of addressing the subject in more detail for karateka about this fascinating art within an art—Chinkuchi. Much of the information attempting to convey the specifics of chinkuchi practice has been scant, anecdotal, or overly general and therefore only marginally successful in defining the complexity of its methods. Read More  

Internal power training merits every martial artist’s attention because it is seldom presented in the current traditional understanding of Karate, Kung fu or Tae Kwon Do technique, yet speaks to the heart of true martial art practice. So allow me to jump into the dialog about internal power and offer my observation on what it is, isn’t, and that oft-winding path to develop it.  Read More  

There is an unfamiliar side to traditional martial training similar to encountering a foreign language that runs through authentic karate-do practice. The Okinawans labeled this elusive subject, Kiko or Chinkuchi.  Read More  

If someone tells me there is a dimension of martial practice beyond the obvious, above the commonly held mainstream methodologies and techniques, I want to know a tangible way to express or ground it into a workable practicality. Read More