February 2020 Newsletter Goju-Ryu Karate-Do Kyokai www.goju.com ________________________________________________________ Hello GKK members, Dojo Leaders and National Directors, It is once again time to collect the annual dues and update the active member list. Dan ranks are $25 and Kyu ranks are $15.Dojo Leaders are to send this to your National Director. For example, Frank Matt (Dojo Leader) of the Corinth Goju Dojo in New York will send their dues and active member list to the USA Director, Dwight Scales. The National Directors are to send the active member list (in Excel or word) and dues to Ed Myers (CEO) This is all due by April 1st." Spring Seminar and Organizational Meeting By Dwight Scales Save the Date! This year's Spring Seminar and Organizational Meeting will be hosted by Mr. Bill Kane - Ambler Dojo. It will be held the weekend after Mother's Day, May 15th and 16th. Black belt testing will be Friday with Yamakura Shihan's seminars the following day. Please send black belt candidate information to Sensei Myers and Scales no later than April 15. Further updates to follow. Some Thoughts on Kata Niseishi and Goju Ryu By Stephen Hampsten The kata Niseishi, also called Nijushiho, is usually translated as “24.” I learned this kata around 1987 from my first karate instructor, Jim Knoblet, who, at the time, was teaching a Shorin Ryu-related style called Shobukan. Shobukan is a minor style taught primarily in Sasebo, Japan, near the US Naval base, which is where Jim’s teacher, Bruce Lisle, trained for 14 years. Shobukan was founded by Yoriyuki Yazusato (also pronounced Azato), who was the great-grandson of famed karate teacher Yasutsune Azato. Azato was one of the primary teachers--along with Yasutsune Itosu--of Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of what is now known as Shotokan. The modern version of Azato’s art bears some resemblance to Shotokan, perhaps without as many stylistic flourishes and with fewer kata, but how much one style was influenced by the other--and vice versa--is difficult to say. Once I learned, or at least became familiar with Niseishi, it became a kata that I more or less stuck with, off and on, over the years. It is short, has many usable techniques, and didn’t seem particularly wedded to a specific style. In Shobukan, we nicknamed it “the phone booth kata” because it could be done in such a small space. I usually tried to perform it as I learned it, hard and snappy, with a Shorin Ryu “flavor.” But as I progressed in Goju Ryu, I found it difficult to reconcile the movements in Niseishi with the Goju way of moving, applying kata movement, and generating power. So obviously, more research was needed: where was this kata from and with whom did it originate? Seisho Aragaki Any research into Niseishi seems to start with one person, Seisho Aragaki (1840-1918). Aragaki lived in Naha, Okinawa, and was supposedly descended from one of the 36 Chinese families that settled near Kume. He was a Pechin (member of the warrior class) and was considered to be the first martial arts instructor of Kanryo Higashionna, the founder of Naha-te, which we call the precursor to Goju Ryu. He spoke and wrote fluent Chinese and worked for the royal court as a translator and go-between with China and seems to have introduced several martial artists to the Kojo dormitory and training facilities in Fujian Province, China. Aragaki is said to have taught the following kata, (under their current names): 1 Sanchin, Seisan, Shisochin, Sanseiru, Pechurin (Suparunpai), Unsu*, Sochin*, Niseishi* The first five kata on the list are currently practiced in Goju Ryu; the final three are considered to be introduced or created by Aragaki and are found in several Shorin styles. (Sochin and Unsu, as practiced in Shorin Ryu, are completely different kata from the versions with the same names practiced in Shotokan; Niseidi/Nijushiho, however, is obviously related.) Aragaki was a noted instructor, introducing many students to his own teachings before they went on to train with others or even to create their own styles. Among those whom we believe he taught are: Higaonna Kanryo (Naha-te) Miyagi Chojun (Goju-ryu) Uechi Kanbum (Uechi-ryu) Funakoshi Gichin (Shotokan) Mabuni Kenwa (Shito-ryu) Kuniyoshi Seikichi (pre-Okinawa Kenpo) Tsuyoshi Chitose (Chito-ryu) Toyama Kanken (Shudokan) Nakaima Kenko (Ryuei-ryu) From Rob Redmond: “The Shito-Ryu Niseishi is virtually identical to the Shotokan version. Mabuni, son of the founder of Shito-Ryu, has said that his dad learned the katafrom Kanryo Higashionna. Higashionna picked up the kata from Seisho Arakaki.” So what we see from the above is that a) Aragaki taught kata that have both been absorbed into both the Naha-te and Shuri-te systems, and b) perhaps not surprisingly, he taught practitioners who went on to found their own styles within both the Naha-te and Shuri-te traditions. After reviewing the history of Niseishi, this occurred to me, at least for my own practice: Why not perform Niseishi as a Naha-te kata instead of as a Shuri-te kata? In other words, why not try make it feel like a Goju-Ryu kata? Niseishi as Goju Ryu kata It was surprisingly easy once I let go of the idea of trying to keep it true to the version shown by my original teacher, Mr. Knoblet. The chambers became higher, the stances more rooted, the kicks performed lower, and some techniques simply had to be modified to have more of a Chinese flavor or to draw from Uechi Ryu or Okinawa Kenpo as needed. A case in point is where, about a third of the way into the kata in my original version, we perform a rising block followed by a hip shift/elbow strike, then make a 180º turn for knife-hand-block in horse stance/side kick/short punch and repeat on the left side. In my current modified version, I do the rising block, step up to Sanchin stance for the elbow strike, do a 180º turn to a modified cat stance/hooking block (kake uke)/low side kick/horse stance/short punch. A couple of changes came about from friends who were training in an Okinawan Kenpo-derived version; other changes from looking at Ryuei Ryu and even Goju Ryu. All of this, however, begs the question of what relevance does this have to what we now practice? Consider: what if we assume that both Higashionna and Miyagi were familiar with this kata (not a given but certainly a possibility), why did they not include it in the syllabus for the style Miyagi ended up calling Goju Ryu--or did they, perhaps? David Gambrell, in his YouTube channel Karate 108, contrasts the differences and similarities between Niseishi (24 steps) and Sanseiru (36 hands). To wit: 1 - Both kata begin stepping back with open left hand, closed right hand 2 - Same leg pick/sweep 2 3 - Elbow strike, followed by punch is similar 4 - Two-handed kamae followed by sweep is similar in Niseishi 5 - In Niseishi, we also see bits and pieces from other kata: Seipai, Kururunfa, Suparunpai, Seiunchin, and even Naihanchin. From this, it might appear that since Sanseiru and Niseishi share so many of the same techniques, it may be redundant to include both in the Goju curriculum. However, another theory is that Miyagi based two of the kata he created, Gekisai Dai Ichi and Ni, on techniques found in Niseishi. Let’s compare: Opening sequence in Gekisai of rising block/punch/low strike. Niseishi has the rising block and low strike later in the kata, but no high punch as such. Second sequence in Gekisai: stepping in middle block followed by front kick/elbow/back fist/low strike/reverse punch, turn 180º, repeat. Niseishi has a similar sequence, also repeated: middle (knife-hand) block/step (instead of kick)/elbow strike/(no back fist as such but a possible grab or block)/reverse punch/low strike, turn 180º Third sequence in Gekisai: turn/foot sweep/knife hand strike, repeat. Niseishi shows hooking (or knife hand) block followed by low side kick and short punch, also repeated. So the order is similar but the direction of the movements is reversed. Fourth sequence ends the kata: in Gekisai Dai Ichi, sweep both hands to the side and double punch, repeat, and step up to finish. in the close of Gekisai Dai Ni, mawashi-uke twice, come to guard, and stop back to finish. Niseishi uses the double hand sweep/double punch combo twice, once near the beginning and once at the end, as well as mawashi-uke at the very end, and, in my version, step up to close. Interestingly (to me, at least) there are many techniques in Niseishi that don’t make the cut to Gekisai, but almost all of the techniques in Gekisai are found in Niseishi, including what we call a rising block (age uke) which is not a common technique in the older karate kata. The performance lines, or embusen, are obviously different, as is the order of techniques but the feeling that Miyagi knew this kata is hard to shake. To sum up: Niseishi is a fun kata with a long history. It complements our Goju Ryu system quite well, and it can be used to explore ideas outside of our usual Goju kata, although the same may be said for many other kata. I’d be happy to hear your thoughts on this piece and please share any experiences you’ve had that this may inspire, through our newsletter, preferably.