Historical origins of karate.

[MatsuShinshii]

Yes it was. In most cases the alteration was in the smallest details. Things as simple as the direction or angle of a technique or the target of a technique can make it 100 times more effective. Some things we do were kept the same without change as was passed down from the founder but were not as effective as they should be because the smallest detail had been lost or altered through the years. Small details made the difference and put our segment of the art back on track with what I personally feel is what the founder would have passed down as he learned it.

I think for the most part this is common place and just part of our own vanity as instructors or a misinterpretation or misunderstanding (lost in translation from the east to the west). I think we all put our own personal spin on the things we teach based on what we feel is effective or justify and adapt for what we do not understand. I have no doubt now that those that came before me did the same. Just goes to show that we are all human.

Having said that I will also say that there are some applications that have been changed and are more effective because of the changes. So it really goes both ways.

The really cool thing is that in many cases we kept the "passed down" version and also incorporated the original (Quan Fa) version if they were both effective. More or less adding more tools to our tool chest so to speak.