Vous êtes sur la page 1sur 4

Go1u - Ryu Style

Go is the Japanese word Ior ,7/3088 and 1u" is the word Ior 84193088 thereby
Go1u is a ,7/ ,3/ 8419 style oI martial art. The system is based on the concept that all
hardness and stiIIness is not good. At the same time neither is too much soItness and gentleness.
The two should complement each other.

Combining the two gives Go1u-Ryu karate its beautiIul disciplined movements Iilled with
graceIul Ilowing Iorms and strength Actions are sometimes extremely Iast and other times slow
and majestic. Go1u-Ryu relies on an aggressive style oI attack with emphasis on delivering hard
strikes but with easy comIort and rapid succession maneuvering not only Iorwards and
backwards but Irom side to side as well.
The Go1u-Ryu Crest & Its Meaning

The GoJo Ryo Crest
The Iist you will notice is halI closed and halI open. This lends to the idea that GoJu-Ryu is
neither totally hard nor totally soIt. The Iist is traced Irom that oI Master Chojun Miiyagi: the
Iounder oI GoJu-Ryu karate.

This Iist has three colours:

BLACK: Black stands Ior the ideals that go with a being a Black Belt in GoJu-Ryu.

RED: Red stands Ior the highest level oI proIiciency that oI the master.

WHITE: White stands Ior the beginner in Karate-Do.

Simply stated: white equals beginner black equals instructor and red equals master.

The Kanji characters at the bottom oI the palm say 'GO / JU / RYU. The second row oI
characters stand Ior 'KARA / TE / DO.

All oI our higher Black Belts have part oI their Iist symbolically Iilled with red dye. This indicates
diIIerent ranks such as 1st 2nd and 3rd Dan etc. For example a 1st Dan is indicated through the
Iilling in oI the end parts oI the banner at the bottom oI the Iist. A 2nd Dan has the entire banner
Iilled in with red. A 3rd Dan has the banner and the wrist sections Iilled in (as high up as the
characters) and Iinally the 4th Dan can be easily recognized because the entire Iist is red.
Miyagi Chojun



Born to a noble Iamily in Naha Okinawa on April 25 1888 Miyagi (later changed to Miyagi Chojun by
the Japanese) started his liIe in karate at the age oI nine. His teacher was Higashionna Sensei. By the time
Miyagi was 20 years old he was Sensei's disciple.

Miyagi Chojun later travelled to central China where he studied Zen and the martial arts as his Sensei
beIore him had done. AIter many years Miyagi returned to Okinawa and Iormulated the GoJu-Ryu system
oI karate employing the principles his Sensei had taught him. AIter the system oI GoJu had taken shape
he Ielt the need Ior a symbolic insignia. He traced his halI-clenched Iist (slightly crooked due to a previous
injury) to act as icon Ior both the lineage and philosophy oI this 'hard and soIt style. Blending the strong
snap techniques oI the soIt Chinese Kenpo his style was complete.




amaguchi Gogen (The Cat)


It was while attending Retsumeikan University that Yamaguchi Sensei a deeply religious man Iirst heard
oI GoJu-Ryu karate and the great Okinawan: Miyagi Chojun. Curious about the system Yamaguchi
Sensei (a.k.a. 'the cat') wrote to Miyagi and invited him to come to Japan. Miyagi accepted and leIt shortly
thereaIter.

The meeting oI the two was to be a IateIul one not only Ior GoJu-Ryu but Ior all karate.

Yamaguchi Sensei immediately Iell in love with the strange and intricate patterns displayed by Miyagi. He
Iully embraced the innovative hard and soIt approach. When Miyagi Chojun Sensei leIt Japan to return to
Okinawa he leIt behind him a well-trained and educated Iollower in GoJu-Ryu.

In 1930 Yamaguchi Sensei set out establishing a dojo. He organized the Iirst dojo in Western Japan in
1930. Under his capable leadership the school attracted new adherents and GoJu-Ryu began to Ian out
across the island nation.


eveloping schools, refining style, changing the course of history
Early in the Japanese development Yamaguchi Sensei made Iundamental changes in the GoJu-Ryu
school that were to radically alter the course oI karate. AIter observing his students he came to the
conclusion that the strict Okinawan brand oI karate based on its Chinese origins was too static and
limited in style. He believed that just the practice steps in sparring called 'kumite inhibited many
students; so he devised Iree-style kumite (initially along the lines oI boxing). It was a natural progression
to go to Iree-style sparring. Later the sparring (or kumite) underwent Iurther transIormation using
knowledge oI other martial arts to improve it.

By Ireeing karate Irom the strictest adherence to kata and the adaptations oI the competitive element GoJu
made tremendous advances in the next Iew years.

In 1930 Masters succeeded in their eIIorts to have karate admitted to the Butoku-Kai the oIIicial
government headquarters Ior the Japanese martial arts. The same year GoJu headquarters were
established in Tokyo next to the Iamous Giho Kai Judo Institute. From here the Second World War came
and ended leaving servicemen Irom all parts oI the world training and taking the art back home. Thus the
GoJu-Ryu system spread through a vast network oI dojos in schools oIIices Iactories etc.

In 1953 Miyagi Sensei passed away leaving Meitoku Yagi to succeed him in Okinawa and Yamaguchi
Sensei continuing his eIIorts in expanding the art in Japan. The decision to relocate the headquarters oI all
Japanese karate GoJu Kai organizations to Tokyo in 1950 resulted in a great jump population increase Ior
the GoJu-Ryu system.

Besides Japan GoJu-Ryu organizations exist in Thailand Hong Kong Korea Taiwan The Philippines
Australia Germany Italy Great Britain Mexico Canada The United States and more.

Vous aimerez peut-être aussi