Modern day Funakoshi, Motobu, Oyama or Miyagi...

[Kyonovice]

So, those listed in the title have been widely accepted by many as "masters" or founders of their own "style" of Karate having developed their art into what we now know (ok, so they've gone through various changes due to politics etc, but essentially they are the "founding fathers".

Listening to the latest Iain Abernethy podcast this afternoon, he is talking about the future of Karate, where it goes from here and has got me thinking about who could possibly be the modern day equivalents to the passed masters of this great art.

Indeed, Abernethy himself studied in Wado Ryu (I believe) before taking the pragmatic approach to what he does now, does this mean what he studies now is not Wado as he has gone back to Funakoshi's original texts and teachings and redeveloped from there?

There are many many different forms of Karate out there, all based on similar backgrounds but with different interpretations, the same, but different. But do we have people such as Funakoshi, Motobu etc still in existence in the Karate world in this day and age or has Karate become something people study just because it looks good, because they've seen Bloodsport, Kickboxer, or any other martial arts based film a few too many times and think that studying Karate makes them the next Van Damme?

Discuss

[sensei8]

Excellent OP, Kyonovice!!

I believe, wholeheartedly, that there are indeed "Masters" like the one's in your OP's title. Sure, not all "Masters" of their calibers are known, yet, I believe that they still exist, and are known to only their students. The unknown "Masters" exist, for sure, and this is my believe, one I'm holding onto for one reason or another.

My own Sensei/Dai-Soke, was, imho, of their calibers, in his own right, and I'd like to think that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I'm not saying that I'm of their calibers, but neither am I a lackadaisical MAist.

Those "Masters" that you list in your OP have one thing in common...they have students!! I've seen, and possibly, many here at KF have seen those students of those "Masters" on the floor in one venue or another, and that these students are of the highest quality/caliber of a MAist.

The student IS the representative of said "Master/Sensei/Etc.", and I believe that these students meet the expectations of their Master/Sensei/Etc., in such a degree, that any negative reflection wouldn't set well with their Master/Sensei/Etc for a single second.

Seeing that we're that very representative of our "Master/Sensei/Etc.", we're no slouches either. Imagine, any MAist that you've witnessed, famous or not, and you thought to yourself..."Man, this MAist is awesome across the board!!", well, that awesome MAist has/had an exceptionally "Master/Sensei/Etc. to teach and mentor and mold them.

I could list quite a lot of MAist's that would fit in the previous paragraph, albeit, these exceptional MAist's surely had one fantastic "Master/Sensei/Etc at their disposal.

The apple that doesn't fall far from the tree is WORLDWIDE, and not regional or the like!!

Lineage's can be that window to what type of the MAist that person is; especially if a well known "Master" is in that lineage. Sure, it's very possible that the lineage can be watered down from "Master" to student/Sensei to student/Sensei to student/Sensei. However, that lineage chain, with the overseeing of said "Master", remains unbroken and untarnished and solid for many years to come.

Yes, bad apples ruin the whole bunch IF unchecked by the "Master", and even then, not every student of the "Master" is a good reflective representative of that "Master"!!

In short, no matter the "Master" and/or the student, proof is on the floor!!

[bassaiguy]

You make an excellent point about students being the living legacy of masters. I try to remember this every time I step onto the floor as a teacher or student and whenever I have faced confrontations. My actions are a reflection of my teachers and lineage. So the next time someone says, "Style X guys can't fight." or "Style X guys are all jerks" I know they won't be talking about me.

[Spartacus Maximus]

Maybe it is not any coincidence that more than a few experts comparable to those named by the OP would prefer not to be reknowned. They are few and far between, but in most cases they are quite happy with continuing teaching and training without wanting or seeking to be known. Of those whose memory subsists in collective memory today, most of them became known through their students long after their time had passed. In their lifetime most of them were not so well known