kivikala

Absolutely

True, the JKA was not started by Funakoshi. It was created by a group of businessmen who hired Nakayama as best as I can tell, was then a 1st Dan under Funakoshi and "JKA" promoted him to 9th dan and set him up as "Chief Instructor" of the JKA. Only much later was Funakoshi named "honorary master" but he only taught at the JKA a couple of times before his death. The Wasada U. club (aka "Old Boys Club") lived and breathed Funakoshi and still to this day try to preserve exactly what Funakoshi taught. Funakoshi never "endorsed" any group other than to indicate it is for his students to carry on the Way (wherever that may lead). So that way whether a "style" has 19, 26 or 108 kata it would still be Shotokan. It seems about this time even Goju was having it's own problems and trying to standardize things for "Okinawan Karate" in order to gain the same recognition for itself that Funakoshi (an Okinawan BTW) gave Shotokan! After Myagi's death, it is my opinion, the Goju-ryu heirarchy fell apart which caused a sort the backlash effect I experienced when I was training in Goju in the later 50's and 60's. (How was that huh? I tied the post back to Goju... )

Only what I was willing to put in.

I am a dyed-in-the-wool Masamune Shirow fan (Ghost in the Shell, Intron Depot). I was introduced to Sandman by a friend and enjoyed that tremendously as well. I enjoy quality Manga -> Anime crossover stuff but it is getting harder and harder to find anything that wasn't hacked together overnight for the American saturday morning cartoon audience.

Depends on the tradition. Those such as Shotokai (Egami) and SKA (Ohshima) following the practice via the Wasada University Club (Gigo/Egami) and the "the Shotokan" (Funakoshis school) will practice only 19 kata (see Karate-do Kyohan by Gichin Funakoshi). The Tokyo University Club, JKA (Nakayama) and other Shotokan spin-offs practice 26 kata (see Dynamic Karate by Masatoshi Nakayama). Even in Goju there is some minor contention on what are the correct kata (i.e. Togouchi vs Yagi).

Hmm... Ok, a quick 5 point over-simplified checklist on the major differences... Goju Ryu 1. Short upright stances. 2. Shorter "snappier" strikes and kicks. 3. 12 kata emphasizing ibuke breathing built around Kata Sanchin. 4. Very suitable for close in fighting. 5. Strong circular movements. Shotokan 1. Long low stances. 2. Longer "driving" strikes and kicks. 3. 19 Kata emphazing maai and speed built around Kata Kwanku. 4. Better suited for longer distance fighting. 5. Strong linear movements. We can look at the styles from a human morphology perspective and I believe that Goju-ryu is more suitable for people of the brachiomorphic physique whereas the Shotokan style is more suited for dolichomorphic bodies. This is evident in the generalized characteristics of the kata and even kihon practice. So both physically (see above) and ideologically (Go and Ju vs just Go) the two styles are rather different. However, those who train in Shotokan long enough will come to find the two styles are more complimentary than opposite. So there, that's my take on the differences.

Sure, what's not to like about Goju? .

A lack of consistant leadership in the local Okinawan Goju community. I suppose you can call this politics. We wanted better quality guidance. Growth of karate in the early years in the US was no picnic.

From my talking to various instructors, visiting various dojos it seems wearing a hakama is much like putting on your jeans. There really is no "right" way or "wrong" way to wear it (other than to make sure the koshita is in the back). Some schools/styles are very very fussy about exactness and formal wear, such as the knot has to be this way or that. My feeling is that a hakama is more personal and needs to be utilitarian as well as being outwardly a traditional garb. It has to be comfortable, fit right, and present no impediment to movement. Beyond that you can tie the hime around your neck if that what you need to do. All I care about is that the hakama is black. Previous posters have indicated some good sources and information on the subject.

Just my observation, I have heard of people getting their back belt in 1 year in TKD, but when I've actually asked around at local TKD schools (and a few out-of-state) the time to gain that rank is usually around 4 years. So I've never met any 1 year black belts (yet). In my school you can get to Shodan in 3 years if you are a karate-prodigy otherwise 4 years is more the norm. Nidan is eligible after 2 more years (doesn't mean anyone gets there). and Sandan 5 years after that. I'd like to say I pulled the numbers out of my hat, but I've been using the same requirements that were handed to me by my Japanese instructors some 40 years ago.

From the original posters comments, it sounds like the previous schools instructor is being a bit overly sensitive. I can understand if there are particular circumstances, then re-addmission might not be an option. But nothing like that is indicated here. But it's his (the instructor) school, and he can do pretty much as he pleases. However, for myself, I've never refused a student who has gone to another school and wanted to come back (even those who have gone over to the dark side).

Long time ago in a dojo far away, a rag-tag bunch of karate-ka (including me) practiced Goju-ryu. We did this for about 15 years until we discovered Shotokan. However, Goju kata are still part of our syllabus, but that's a secret, and you never heard it from me.

Each dojo have their own formalities. As has been suggested, it is totally approriate to ask your instructor for guidance on this. By observation, the general proceedure does not seem to be all that different from school to school.

Although at my age I don't train as much as I used to, I just looked at my routine and schedule and realized I spend somewhere between 10-12 hours a week. Some days are more or less than others. When I was in top form I'd be doing 20-24 hours a week but as time creeped on, I've slowed down. Hmm, must be a weak mentality I've allowed myself to slip into.

I believe the school-owner names the school (he who has the gold makes the rules.) I think organizations appreciate uniformity as it creates strong community and mind-share. But unless it's a franchise, the organization can go cry me a river. We have over the years been members of various organizations (HMAF, SKKU, USKA, HHSK, SKA). When we joined SKA it was "suggested" that we use the name "Shotokan Karate - (town-name)" if we were going to include any references to SKA in our own advertising. At the time, our name was rather generic "Shotokan Karate Dojo" so for us changing the name to support the organization was a simple no-brainer. If the school name was more "unique" (i.e. Kivikala's Super Karate School, Bait Shop and Delicatessen) we would not have changed the name. Many schools in SKA have unique (non-conforming) names. As an observation, the schools that do follow the convention tend to be university clubs rather than established businesses.

I started karate when I was 8, on a dare by two friends who dared me to walk into the downtown dojo when there was a class going on. It was in an old windowless building, a dark and spooky place where all kinds of painful noises came from inside. Not being a chicken but not a fool either, I dared them right back, so the three of us walked in. We entered the huge main door into a dimly lit foyer (A single light bulb covered by a chinese patterened lantern shade with red tassles.) The foyer area was empty and foreboding with no indication that this even was a karate school. Everything was quiet except for the creak of the old floor boards that we walked on. There was a pungent smell in the air. A mix of old polished wood and something else. Infront of us was a set of solid oak double swinging doors. We slowly pushed on one of the heavy doors, (which took some effort to open) to peek inside and found the next room to be large and dimly lit as well with a light at the far end. Inside we found 6 students practicing Sanchin (of course whe had no idea what they were doing at the time). Then in the shadows, to our immediate left we saw a huge 6 foot 6 inch monster dressed in white. All three of us froze in our tracks. We wanted to run but nothing would move. We thought we were all going to be eaten alive by the giant dressed in white PJs. (an 8 yr olds worst nightmare) It turned out our monster was the instructor, a very friendly and soft spoken person who, the more he spoke the less ominous he seemed (up to a point). We were welcomed and invited to watch. Reluctantly we did, fearing a trap where we would be sacrificed and rend limb from limb by these 6 other rather nasty looking people. After watching the class, all fears finally aside, the three of us were entranced by what we saw and could not wait to drag our parents down so we could join the school. I can still smell the polished wood and Tiger Balm when I think of that time. 47 years later, I am now the 6 foot 2 inch monster lurking in the shadows by the dojo door.

Our heirarchy is broken into two groups. Yudansha (black belts) and Mudansha (non-blackbelts). Our line up is according to seniority within each group. A visitor, having no seniority in our school, joins the line at the end of the respective group. We make no judgement on what belt they wear. Only exceptions are dignitaries and other special-guests-of-high-rank get be at the begining of the Yudansha group rather than the end. Students from other schools joining my school earn their way up the ladder. They may or may not keep their rank depending on their fitness/skill. Usually blackbelts are recognized at their current rank, all others generally go back to the beginning.

Hmmm... The copy I have has no ISBN number, it appears to have been self-published. No dates, no copyright statement either. very odd.

There is an explaination and exersise given by Gogen Yamaguchi on page 167 in his book Karate Goju Ryu by the Cat.

... and don't forget the flashing light on top.

ya, we use a sign-in sheet and the senior student does a head-count before class incase anyone forgot to sign in. No computers, nothing fancy.

My regular classes are a good solid 2 hours reasonably divided between kihon, kata and kumite. Occasionally we will stretch it to 3 hours if people are up to it. At least once every three months we run a 24 hour class (24 hours non-stop.). My shortest class, which is a high school class is 1 hour 50 minutes due to school schedules and have to let students get to their next class. But at times when I was lucky to be the last class scheduled for the day, we'd always run over a half-hour. Life is short, it's best spent training.

My fogged mind recalls, the symbol of yin and yang which is sometimes refered to the double-fish diagram because it looks like 2 fish swimming in a circle, was developed from a more complex diagram created by Chou Lien-Ch'i a scholar of the Sung dynasty (1017-1073 A.D.). The simple yin/yang symbol was adopted by common folk and later by Confusians and Taoists. The simple symbol embodied the notion of balance in the universe which fit perfectly with Confiscian and Taoist thought. In essence it represents foundation heaven, yang (---) and earth, yin (- -) being the same but directly opposite forces. In the martial arts the symbol was adopted by practicioners of T'ai Chi Ch'uan representing the "Grand Terminus" being comprised of the "Negative Terminus" and the "Positive Terminus". In actual practice these represent insubstantiality and substantiality. From there as they say... the rest is history.

Being a Dr Who fan from way back (I still have my holographic Dr Who Fan Club of America membership card and official Dr Who Fan Club mood button!) I still watch the show whenever it is aired. The new series I think is pretty good and has renewed my interest. As for my fav Dr.? Well, Petwee I think was pretty good, but I guess I really liked them all! I used to work for Digital Equipment Corp and I was in charge of the corporate network. All the other network engineers were into naming systems "Bilbo", Frodo" and "Gandalf". I would hear nothing of it. I named the three primary corporate DECnet domain servers "DrWho", "Tardis" and "Dalek". Over ten years 30,000 to much as 70,000 computers defined their existance from those 3 systems. When the company finally folded, I collected the engraved name plates off of the machines and have them on display as a fond reminder of those years. Even now in the future my 2 PCs are named "Tardis" (Ubuntu) and "Dalek" (Windows). Apt no? Me? a Dr Who fan? Naw.... Now where did I put my scarf?

I've noticed that some people reach a plateau around the 2 year mark. It appears that no matter how hard the person trains they just don't seem to progress. I am sure it is a frustrating thing to go through. These individuals always seems to be diligent practitioners, spending like you have, 4 or 5 days a week training. My advice has always been to back off in the training. To let the body and mind have time to absorb what has been learned. Just "practice" rather than train. In one extreme case I suggested a student take a month vacation from the school. When the student returned they were revitalized and somehow improved greatly by "doing nothing." I think it may have been like "battle fatigue", just too much to handle at the moment.