About Shitoryu Karatedo
At OKUKAN Karate Melbourne, we teach authentic Shito-Ryu Karate-Do. This is one of the four main styles of Karate in Japan. This major karate style was originally founded by Master Kenwa Mabuni and is strongly endorsed by the World Karate Federation (WKF).
There are more than 50 styles of karate in Japan. During the early 1990’s, Japan leadership selected four of these styles to provide worldwide leadership in competitive sport. Until very recently, competitors could only perform ‘Kata’ from these four styles in mainstream Karate tournaments. These styles were Shotokan, Gojuryu, Wadoryu, and the style we practice at OKUKAN: Shitoryu.
Master Kenwa Mabuni devised Shito-Ryu in the early 1900’s from a combination of the teachings of Master Anko Itosu and Master Kanryo Higaonna, two Okinawan masters from the eighteen hundreds of disparate stylistic tradition (i.e. the former thought to be fast and straight, the latter round and ‘hard-soft’). Fast-forward a century and Karate participates as an Olympic sport at TOKYO 2020 (2021) and BRISBANE 2032. There, Shito-Ryu Kata were dominant in medal bouts.
Shitokai promotes a very practical Karate style. Movements tend to be short and swift, demanding only the right amount of effort. Broadly speaking, training sessions consist of a combination of Kihon (basics), self-defense (Ippon Kumite), Kata (form) and Kumite (free sparring). Our martial arts school has a challenging Karate syllabus that includes over 50 forms and an endless number of effective drills. So the Shitokai curriculum contemplates the major aspects of empty-hand fighting.
Japanese tradition and the warrior culture influence our classes heavily. Students develop an appreciation of ethics. ‘Dojo Kun’ and ‘Shitoryu Five Way Spirit’ are pivotal to understanding the code of conduct that frames Shitokai.
📣 Check out the World Shitoryu Karate-do Federation Official Youtube channel. It is an incredible resource for Shitoryu karate students. Video tutorials are uploaded regularly, so subscribe!
Written histories suggest that during the decades of development of karate systems, martial arts responded to a real need for safety in Okinawa, within nobility and among lay people alike.
Shitoryu in particular, was born out of the effort of its founder to define a type of karate that was primarily effective in real combat situations, often close distance and sometimes with an armed opponent. After the passing of Grandmaster Kenwa Mabuni, his students and his son Grandmaster Kenei have continued to investigate and perfect self-defence applications that are based on the technical and tactical principles of simplicity and effectiveness.
In Shitoryu, every movement has a practical function. Repeating Shitoryu movements over a substantial period of time results in the practitioner becoming a proficient warrior of the ’empty hand’ (‘kara’ translates as ’empty’ and ‘te’ hand).
Shitoryu karate is a highly practical karate, encompassing endless martial art applications for close range and medium range fighting -empty handed.
As a Shitoryu practitioner, you are able to dig deep and sure enough, become proficient in combat. Martial art drills are generally practiced with a partner to mimic a real fight and to improve our response to various attacks under controlled circumstances -or solo – for technical betterment and deeper understanding of the martial art we are learning. In sports karate it is no different.
