Dani_001

I have to agree. In watching this and other Eishin videos I would call it shadow boxing as well. I do however like the fact that they utilize take downs within the kata and drills but have to say that it does not resemble what I have been exposed to through the years. Interesting though. It does seem. But I am sure that all bunkai started the same way and was never seen before by some

I'm glad you found what you're looking for. As sensei8 said, train hard. As for Hussein Narker, I've heard very good things about him. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure he was on the kyokushin4life forum when it was around. If it was him, he was either AshiharaKaicho or AshiharaFist. I remember seeing his actual name in his signature, if I'm not mistaken. Very nice guy and very knowledgeable. Best of luck with it! Thanks JR. He is the same person yes. Kaicho Hoosain Narker. Very humble and knowledgable. He holds dans in a few other styles as well including Kyokushin. Hi everyone, So after the fasting month for us and a lot of shuffling, I had my first real class last night. stretches, warm up drills, kihon combo drills, partner work and pad work. And then I was extremely tired LOL. I really enjoyed myself. The new path is quite exciting and will update as I go along.

White Crane Kung Fu and Karate-do looks very different. To say that it has a main influence is overstated.

To the bold type above... Wait...wait...wait...wait...wait a minute....I'm startled by this because I've a hard time wrapping my head around how a recognized green belt can become Judan in a span of 2 years. And this is an acceptable tenure from his Student Body and his fellow peers?!?!? Creating his own organization allow him to be GRANTED a Judan?!? Yeah, I'd bear that in mind, if it was me. I can understand his son being the heir to the organization. There's nothing wrong with "passing on the family business" to your own son. And perhaps their bylaws state the head of the organization must be 10th dan. Now getting that out of the way... There's far better choices that could've been made. He could've been a business leader/CEO type without being the head instructor. He could've been the one calling the administrative shots without being the one who's calling the "on the dojo floor" shots. For example, he could've been the one who's responsible to make sure the organization is heading in the direction his father envisioned. He could've been the one who's making sure the Ashihara brand is being represented according to his father's legacy. He could've oversaw the opening of dojos, appointments of CIs, etc. all the while appointing a chief instructor of the organization as a whole and remaining a student of his green belt rank on the floor. Yes, that's all easier said than done, and yes, he'd need people he can trust. But I'm sure they were enough high ranking students that someone would've been qualified to be the instructional successor while he was the administrative successor. Probably overly simplistic and ideal. The real world always throws curveballs at you. To the bold type above... There's something very familiar about that for me!! :shudders: Being the head of the organization is one thing, but, for me, going from green belt to Judan in 2 years is another thing, imho!! He could've just been the head of their governing body without assuming a rank he's not worthy of. Yes, I did say "not worthy of" because a green belt isn't worthy of Judan in just 2 years. Be the Kaicho [President] of that governing body as a green belt, and earn up to, and including senior rank the hard and old fashioned way...blood...sweat...tears...fail...pass!! Just why, nowadays, don't students of the MA want to EARN rank anymore?? The SKKA By-Laws STILL demand that the Kaicho be a Kudan, just by the proprietary fact of being Kaicho. HOWEVER, NO ONE CAN ASSUME THAT POSITION WITHOUT HAVING ALREADY EARNED A SENIOR DAN!! I fought and fought and fought, for years against that By-Law; I felt then, and I feel that now, and I'll feel that in the future, that being promoted to Judan simply by appointment kills the integrity of rank. The more I fought against the Higher Hierarchy, the more I believed that what I was resisting was the right thing to do. Yet, they still attacked me...insisting...threatening...pleading...plotting...until my resolve finally weakened them. That's when I insisted that they had to TEST me for Kudan, and that I will never assume Kudan without being tested for it. Not just any test, but a test that would rival the seriousness of both Soke and Dai-Soke...and they did just that. Then, and only then, did I accept the rank of Kudan once I passed their test!! Albeit, I had already earned my Hachidan many years before this, and this is what I'm trying to get at...I was much closer to Kudan by being an already Hachidan than a green belt being promoted to Judan!! I'll NEVER EVER accept Judan because I'm not worthy of it, imho!! Soke and Dai-Soke, and as much as this pains me to say this, San Dai-Soke [iwao Takahashi], were worthy of Judan...but NOT ME!! Besides, the SKKA done away with the Sokeship at its reorganization many years ago!! Ok...going back to my corner, sorry for the rant!! I know there's something very familiar about that to you, as you were exactly who I had in mind when I stated that And please don't take that the wrong way; I clearly remember you stating how much you protested it and demanded to be tested for it. And you were no green belt when you passed your kudan test. If it was 2 years between green belt and judan for Ashihara's son, maybe he protested and fought against it too until he gave up and said "whatever" for the betterment of the organization? Just trying to play devil's advocate here. None of us will ever know what went on behind closed doors, nor should we, nor does it have any effect on us whatsoever. 100%

I'm glad you found what you're looking for. As sensei8 said, train hard. As for Hussein Narker, I've heard very good things about him. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure he was on the kyokushin4life forum when it was around. If it was him, he was either AshiharaKaicho or AshiharaFist. I remember seeing his actual name in his signature, if I'm not mistaken. Very nice guy and very knowledgeable. Best of luck with it! Thanks JR. He is the same person yes. Kaicho Hoosain Narker. Very humble and knowledgable. He holds dans in a few other styles as well including Kyokushin.

JR137, I have made up my mind. I found something I like and want to do. Tonight's whole session was with the Kaicho. And I enjoyed it.

Master Newton once said "for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." OSU!

Yes Goju is the most "internal" karate style. This is the reason why it is the karate style I like the most. I am visiting Honbu tomorrow night. I have never been there. I hope it will help me make my final decision. I will train directly under our Shibu Cho for my country and with that comes hard training. Honbu dojo's have notoriety when it comes to training, it's different training under yudansha of the Honbu which I am currently doing.

The beauty is that Goju has some internal elements. IE, Tensho and Sanchin katas.

Chong Li once said: "Very good. But brick, not hit back!" Maybe if U still use a focal point that is softer, it will help.

My apologies.

To the bold type above... Wait...wait...wait...wait...wait a minute....I'm startled by this because I've a hard time wrapping my head around how a recognized green belt can become Judan in a span of 2 years. And this is an acceptable tenure from his Student Body and his fellow peers?!?!? Creating his own organization allow him to be GRANTED a Judan?!? Yeah, I'd bear that in mind, if it was me. I can understand his son being the heir to the organization. There's nothing wrong with "passing on the family business" to your own son. And perhaps their bylaws state the head of the organization must be 10th dan. Now getting that out of the way... There's far better choices that could've been made. He could've been a business leader/CEO type without being the head instructor. He could've been the one calling the administrative shots without being the one who's calling the "on the dojo floor" shots. For example, he could've been the one who's responsible to make sure the organization is heading in the direction his father envisioned. He could've been the one who's making sure the Ashihara brand is being represented according to his father's legacy. He could've oversaw the opening of dojos, appointments of CIs, etc. all the while appointing a chief instructor of the organization as a whole and remaining a student of his green belt rank on the floor. Yes, that's all easier said than done, and yes, he'd need people he can trust. But I'm sure they were enough high ranking students that someone would've been qualified to be the instructional successor while he was the administrative successor. Probably overly simplistic and ideal. The real world always throws curveballs at you. On point. If he appointed the highest ranking member at the time of his father's death, he could've at least learnt a lot under the auspices of such an individual. For all we know, maybe that is happening right now and I'm okay with that. What I'm not okay with is first appointing yourself, then learning the road. He could've appointed an interim and studied his life under such until such a time comes that he is reappointed as head of Ashihara Karate. This is the noble thing to do. For all we know, maybe this was the reason that Enshin was started.

I cross-trained for some time and I think that is beneficial; but to get the most benefit from this, the two arts should be different. You can associate a traditional martial art with a modern self defence-art, a grappling art with a striking art, an internal MA with a purely external martial art. Doing two art which are "similar" may also create interference and the benefit is limited. This is my 2 eurocets anyhow. Makes sense and thank you.

To the bold type above... Wait...wait...wait...wait...wait a minute....I'm startled by this because I've a hard time wrapping my head around how a recognized green belt can become Judan in a span of 2 years. And this is an acceptable tenure from his Student Body and his fellow peers?!?!? Creating his own organization allow him to be GRANTED a Judan?!? Yeah, I'd bear that in mind, if it was me. We all know or seen how it goes. The successor is normally the family member who is a male. Then splinters happen. This was the case with so many Karate bodies and Kaikans. Eiichi Miyazato and the Jundokan and also in this case Ashihara that I mention a few.

Same thing happened at the Jundokan and Eiichi Miyazato's son.

Thank you very much for your post. My journey began in "Goju-Ryu", now the reason why I put it in quotation marks was because the organization I was with initially did not teach authentic Goju-Ryu. I was an adolescent at the time and had absolutely no idea what martial arts was, moreover what authentic martial arts was. All I knew was that I didn't want to be fat and bullied anymore. In later years I have been with Chinese Shaolin, I left because I felt forced into beliefs that I didn't believe in, then went onto Pukulan Melaka Seni Silat. I really enjoyed that, but the instructor was a douche so I left that. Then I found Okinawa Goju-Ryu Karate-do Kyokai with which I am now. I quite enjoy OGKK but I am missing an element of fighting in my Karate. I have recently come across Ashihara Karate, the first Ashihara Karate. I actually went for an introductory class last night (22/05/2017) and I really enjoyed it. Ashihara is a Japanese form of Karate but it's very effective in handling and attacking. But I do however love the kata in Goju-Ryu Karate-do. This all being said, I want to do both systems. Time isn't an issue for me to go to class and adaptations in both forms are minute. An example is that Ashihara rising block isn't a total vertical as in OGKK, but at a slight vertical angle upwards. So that's a mouthful from me. What is worrying now is that I don't want to become a jack of all trades and a master of none given of my history and yes I know I sound like a problem child even though all my reasons are valid, but at least in this case, Japanese Karate is (almost) Okinawa Karate. What are your thoughts on this?

Hi ChrissyP, I know Ur post is relatively old, but did you find our way? If not, have you tried Ashihara Karate? Enshin is an offshoot of Ashihara so the formats of the kata aren't the same, but similar.

Thank you very much Bushido_Man96 and WOAS!

Nothing wrong with running, look at Rafael Aghayev. His training includes trail running. His legs are powerhouses, you just never see it cos of his gi.

MatsuShinshii, this is a better video of a demonstration of a kata by Enshin Karate practitioners: Please don't be fooled by thinking it's only kicks. If you haven't been in a class then that is what you will think. These guys have sweet locks, takedowns and hitting technique.

When you have a chance, or if there are schools in your area, try Ashihara Karate or Enshin Karate. I am sure that both of them will allow you entry for an introductory class. Please bear in mind that NIKO Ashihara is run by Hideyuki Ashihara son. At the time of Hideyuki Ashihara's death, his son was a green belt and 2 years later he became 10th dan and created his own organization. Look for AKI, or Ashihara Karate International.

This, I feel is an element that I am missing at the moment. So I may go with Ashihara alone or do both because I still love Gōjū Ryū kata. There are differences in the kihon but I can adapt to do both so I will make a final decision. The Ashihara school isn't expensive and I feel the reason for this is because the Honbu is in an area where crime is high and unemployment is high as well so to bring the youth up, they can train in effective fighting karate technique when confronted with a situation. The beauty as well is that both the schools are on alternative days which is a bonus. JR, the Enshin school and Ashihara school are friends and the Enshin school instructed me to come to Ashihara because it is close to my area where I reside.

Hi JR, I somehow felt that you would reply on this thread. Well, the class was simply amazing. The emphasis on sabaki is clearly seen and felt. As Kaicho said to me, they prefer power that is felt and not seen so their approach is relaxed but swift. They make contact even on the slightest movement which is great. They demonstrated the first kata for me and its bunkai and I was impressed. It was lovely. I also got trained through some drills and I was invited for a second class as well. The feeling was very homely for me. Enshin Karate has the same approach but Kaicho stated that the katas aren't the same that Ninomiya Sensei created his own. Unfortunately I have not had a chance to make it to Enshin due to the travel distance and peak traffic. I love this approach and I'm definitely going to go again on Wednesday evening! Kaicho showed me pictures with him alongside Ashihara Sensei and his training with him so his training is legit.

Hi all, any Ashihara Karate practitioners here? I had a look at YouTube on their kata and fighting element. I see that they apply their own kata but it seems to be quite effective. It seems to be a practical fighting Karate. Tonight, just as an introductory I am going to an Ashihara Karate dojo to participate in a free class to see how it goes. I'm quite excited.

SO...... Guess who graded? I went in with Orange, came out after 2 hours of hard work, determination, dedication and perseverance, I am now Orange + 1 Apart from the two hours, it took three months of conditioning and I am grateful!