Shorin-Ryu

[rmurray]

It suits heavyweights well because the higher stance is alot easier on the knees than shotokan and other styles that require you to get lower. I'm pretty sure I wrote "not exclusively" somewhere in my post just to avoid this argument though. Any fighting style is reliant on power, weight and reach. People have to make do with what they have, but you can't reinvent the wheel. If two people with identical training and experience clash, the bigger, stronger fighter will almost always win.

[karan]

i have practiced shorin ryu and shotokan i will say this i have acheived my black belt when i was nine in shorin ryu i have recently got my black belt in shotokan at the age of thirteen therefore ive got some experience in both of these styles. it depends what you want to do if you are going to compete at national and international level shotokan will destroy kata due to the amazing katas and the complex and spectacular movements like in the kata honsu. Shorin ryu is beatuiful graceful and if practiced under an accomplished instructor is very good for the graceful movements but it cant beat the low stances of shotokan. this depends on the karateka as i apply my shotokan low stances on shorin ryu and often win competitions in kata. for kumite they are both the same and this will depend on your sensei sensei john richards is an amazing teacher who i strongly recommend he got me to come third in the world championships for kumite so overall both styles show grace and style for what they do shorin ryu spends more time on the flexibility and agility part of it . i hope this shows a good overview of both styles:)

[Zaine]

i have practiced shorin ryu and shotokan i will say this i have acheived my black belt when i was nine in shorin ryu i have recently got my black belt in shotokan at the age of thirteen therefore ive got some experience in both of these styles. it depends what you want to do if you are going to compete at national and international level shotokan will destroy kata due to the amazing katas and the complex and spectacular movements like in the kata honsu. Shorin ryu is beatuiful graceful and if practiced under an accomplished instructor is very good for the graceful movements but it cant beat the low stances of shotokan. this depends on the karateka as i apply my shotokan low stances on shorin ryu and often win competitions in kata. for kumite they are both the same and this will depend on your sensei sensei john richards is an amazing teacher who i strongly recommend he got me to come third in the world championships for kumite so overall both styles show grace and style for what they do shorin ryu spends more time on the flexibility and agility part of it . i hope this shows a good overview of both styles:)

I've really never known either of those systems to be all that graceful, beautiful absolutely, but the Shorin Ryu I took was all about the quickest way from point a to point b. It was brutal, short and extremely effective if used correctly (all martial arts generally are, so that's not saying much). I'm curious as to the particular style you took, maybe that could shed some light on the differences of our systems.

[scohen.mma]

i'm new to Shorin-Ryu as well. It's probably one of the greatest choices i've ever made in my life. Stick with it, i'm only an orange belt and i already know that i'm going to be a life time practitioner.

[Harkon72]

Shorin Ryu is my Parent style. I then did Shotokan, a natural progression. Then Shukokai Karate which has a different style linage. Shorin Ryu is the Grandaddy of Kaiokoshin Kai and the Father of Shotokan. I study the Shukokai style now in contrast but it is an interesting journey in Karate. Shorin Ryu is a grand old style when taught well, its Kobudo is sound, Okinawan and authentic. Carry on, with a good Sensei you can't go wrong. Osu!

[The Greatest Disciple]

I have taken Kobayashi Shorin-Ryu for a little while, and my assessment is that unlike Shotokan, Goju, Kempo, and other forms of Karate, Shorin-Ryu is more complete. Now, it could just be in the teaching, but my Shihan studied 9 styles before landing in Shorin-Ryu. He stayed there because it is the most effective and sensible style. Nothing is wasted.

[cheesefrysamurai]

I study Okinawan Goju Ryu. For what its worth my sensei says Shorin Ryu is an excellent art.

[inventor]

ifferent Shorin-Ryu organizations do the belt ranks differently and then some dojos will add belt ranks in between either to keep younger students engaged (as is the case with my dojo--the adults only have the standard Shorinkan ranks) or to make more money. I don't agree with your assessment of Shorin-Ryu being "heavyweight karate" simply because it does not strike me as being a style that is reliant on power, weight or reach. Shorin-Ryu is all about speed and movement, at least how my instructor teaches it, which is something that can be developed by just about any body type. I happen to be tall and have a long reach, but my instructor is quite a bit shorter than me and we have quite a few "average-sized" people in the dojo who are quite good. In addition, Chibana Sensei (founder of Shorin-Ryu) was quite small, as I've been made to understand it. I do agree, however, that it is a well rounded, practical art that teaches good self defense. If you want your classes to be more intense or include more sparring then you should talk to your instructor--my dojo has a separate sparring class, but the regular classes are plenty intense.

Chibana sensei was the founder of Shorin-Ryu. I have practiced and studied Shorin-Ryu, continuously, for 38 years. I have never heard or read of this claim before. This must be something propagated by your organization.