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| The islands
of Okinawa once an independent kingdom and now a
part of modern Japan, is where karate was born. Forbidden weapons by their
overlords in the sixteenth century, the people of Okinawa combined ancient
indigenous and Chinese self-defense techniques into what has become modern
karate and kabudo. Karate literally means "empty hand" and is a means of
self defense that use blocks, counter punches, low kicks, grabs and a
variety other techniques to defend yourself. Kabudo is a sister Okinawa martial art in which implements that were the daily farming tools of
ancient times are used for self-defense. Shorei Kan ("House of Politeness and Respect") a karate school which practices "Goju-Ryu" karate, emerges from these ancient roots. During the last century great masters past their teaching in a direct line to the Shorei Kan practitioners of today. Our modern lineage can be traced directly from Kanryo Higashionna (1840-1910) to Chojun Miyagi (1888-1953) to Seikichi Toguchi (1917-1998) and to Tomoaki Koyabu who brought Shorei Kan to Canada in 1972 at the request of Master Toguchi. Master Koyabu currently teaches here in the lower mainland. Seikichi Toguchi the founder of Shorei Kan, was born in Naha City, Okinawa, Japan. He began to learn karate from his father and at age 15 he trained under Higa Seiko Sensei, a student of Master Chojun Miyagi. Toguchi Sensei was the first of Miyagi Sensei's senior students to establish a new school after Miyagi Sensei’s death. Toguchi Sensei developed Kata di ich & di ni, as well as Gekisai di san, Gekiha ich & ni, and Kakuha ich and ni. Miyagi Sensei had earlier developed Kata Gekisai di ich & ni. Toguchi Sensei moved to Tokyo Japan in 1960 and in 1962 established Shorei-Kai Meguro Dojo. "Kai" means association and from it came the title "Kaicho". Toguchi Sensei and Haluko-san, his very gracious wife, came to Canada several times, the last time being in 1993. He was small man with a twinkle in his eye and even through the language barrier it was apparent that he had a delightful sense of humor. Tomoaki Koyabu is a native of Japan, was originally destined to go to New York City and take Shorei Kan to the U.S.A. However, circumstances brought him to Vancouver in 1972 and shortly after Shorei Kan was established in Canada. This celebration not only marks thirty years of Shorei-Kan in Canada but it marks thirty years of selfless giving by Koyabu Sensei. There are thousands of people who have trained under Koyabu Sensei and as many as a hundred black belts produced by him. All owe their skill and martial arts development to him. Koyabu Sensei will always have a warm place in our hearts. Not only is he one of the most incredible martial artists that you could meet, but he is also a very warm and caring human being who takes so little and gives so much. Today we thank Koyabu Sensei for bringing us Shorei Kan and for dedicating his life to Shorei Kan Canada. We honor you and wish to demonstrate our respect, appreciation, admiration, friendship and affection. Thank you Sensei for the gift of Shorei-Kan Okinawa Goju Ryu Karate Do. We thank and honor all the teachers / black belts who passed the torch to us. |
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Chojun Miyagi (1888-1953) |
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The best teachers teach from the heart, not from the
book. - Unknown
© Shorei Kan - Langley Karate Club (Dojo) 1972-2012
