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Home  Okinawan Goju Ryu
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Gojuryu Karatedo is said to display the oldest martial arts traditions and movements. Retaining the primitive traditional forms of martial arts yet full of fighting spirit. The system is based on a concept that hard and stiff is not good, however all soft and gentle can be equally harmful. The two should complement each other. This combination of the two gives Gojuryu its beauty, disciplined movements, grace and flowing form. But lest anyone believe that Goju Ryu is merely a beautiful style of the dance with little of the art of defense, they need only watch two Goju Ryu players square off in Kumite [free-sparring] against one another.
Goju Ryu has received the most Chinese influence of all of the Japanese styles of Karatedo followed closely by Ryuei Ryu, To-on Ryu and Shito Ryu. Gojuryu is also of the very few Okinawan or Japanese styles that is considered an "internal art" due to its unique Yoga influenced breathing techniques and isometric tension exercises; body strengthening and conditioning, its basic approach to fighting [distance, stickiness, power generation, etc.] and its partner drills. Scientifically formulated and refined over 100 years, practical scalable techniques and a chronologically progressive syllabus all engineered to fit the individuals body applicable to an opponent regardless of size. With the "Go" [hard or positive] and the "Ju" [soft or negative] in consistent harmony, one is equalizing the other as with the rest of the universe. Through Gojuryu training a simple act like blocking or striking will eventually occur naturally, a side effect of a pure of thought, mind and repetition.
Budo [disciplining the body and mind] in combination have always been part of Japanese culture and is clearly expressed in Karatedo and many other martial arts whose origins can be found in Japan including Gojuryu. Oddly, much of the system can and has been based on geometric and mathematical formulas. Much of this based on the function in dimension, space versus time, kind of relative to chronosynclasticinfindibulum - i.e.: The theory of the universe being curved and how all matter, time and space is intertwined and connected with one-another and can be proven so via mathematics calculation.
A good description for the experienced Martial Artist is to compare Gojuryu Karatedo to its regions in China and familiarize them with the term "Nan sen hoku ba". Southern China has many rivers and the North has many Mountain ranges and large plains. This is where the term 'Nan sen Hoku ba' comes from. The Kanji, when written means Southern Boats and Northern Horses. From the influence of Martial Arts in the South [China] people were commonly fisherman and sailors. They were accustomed to working and spending long amounts of time in boats or in the water [perfect for our Sanchin stance]. The Kempo in the South was developed and practiced in limited space so the techniques and foot movements developed were small as well and were suitable for close range fighting. From the far Northern [China] influences, there existed Tribesmen and Military. These groups were accustomed to riding atop and fighting from horses [perfect for Kiba Dachi]. Their Kempo evolved into a system with very large exaggerated movements, designed for long range fighting. So to sum it up, Hoku Ba = North Horse [Kiba Dachi] and Nan Sen = South Boats [Sanchin Dachi].
There are many primary characteristics of Gojuryu: One being of course being Go and Ju as explained above.Because of the unique breathing which exemplifies our system, Goju Ryu karate do is the most recognized of the very few forms of Japanese and Okinawan Karate considered as an internal Martial Art system.
Gojuryu also carries the characteristics more so of a Bujutsu rather than that of Budo including grappling and throwing techniques as well as sticky movements along with quick explosive motions generated from the hips.
Another is Ibuki ['Ikibuki' - YO & IN], the famous breathing techniques which have been developed in a way to place the mind and body in harmony, uniting them for a more efficient person, and stimulating the bodies internal organs bringing you to a total state of awareness. Imagine with every block you inhale and with every strike you exhale. This would be soft to hard. Reverse the order of breathing and call it hard to soft. There are many other principles of application for Ikibuki and most synchronize breathing with body movement.
Jiyu-Kumite [free fighting] developed for close range fighting utilizing Neko Ashi Dachi [cat stance or cat leg stance] to quickly and easily move to and from other body positions for a more effective fighter.
Buji which means the absence of conflict or peace, another way of saying this is although harmonized Gojuryu is at all times seeking a better way, not saying there is something wrong with the way that anything is done however the possibilities are limitless!Every Kata [form] begins and ends with a defensive technique.
Gojuryu shares its roots with other styles of Karatedo developed over the centuries from the fighting arts of China and rooted through Okinawa. Many of the school's movements are very soft, as in Chinese Kempo. In China, there were two counter parted arts of Chang, or fist. One is categorized as hard style, or External style. The other is Soft style or Internal style. Hard and External style represent Zen Buddhist initiated school such as various branches of Shaolin Chun, and Soft and Internal style represent Yee Chuen, Pai Kua Chang, and Tai Chi Chuen.
The Okinawa brand of Karatedo was originally imported from China more than 400 years ago, but had developed into a hard style during its years on the island by the influence of the Okinawa native arts. When these arts came to Okinawa, where they underwent changes and were combined with Okinawa Te. Many approaches to self-defense came into existence. Naha Te named after the city it was practiced in [Naha] over time developed in combination of other Te to become Gojuryu. Kanryo Higaonna [see LINEAGE] was known as the highest authority of Naha Te. He as well as his successor Chojun Miyagi [1888-1953] made several treks to Mainland China to absorb more skill and to hone their art. Miyagi for the most part undertook invented and standardized the training and modernization of the techniques, and created the first named style of Karatedo [other than that named after the city it was founded]. He later [1928] introduced Gojuryu to the Japanese mainland. There Gogen Yamaguchi Hanshi, his successor on the mainland trained in and propagated Gojuryu.
Disciplining the body and mind in combination have always been part of Japanese culture and is clearly expressed in Karatedo and many other martial arts whose origins can be found in Japan including Gojuryu. Oddly, much of the system can and has been based on geometric and mathematical formulas. Much of this based on the function in dimension, space versus time and can be demonstrated so via mathematics calculation.
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