Mount Tsu

Mount Tsu in Hunan province is the location of the Shaolin temple and monastery where Doruma Bhodidharma laid the modern roots of karate.

Miyamoto Musashi

The famed swordsman Miyamoto Musashi was born Shinmen Takezo in Harima Province and may have fought at Sekigahara under the Ukita as a common soldier. He makes no mention this (perhaps unsurprisingly) in the brief biography in his book, rather confining himself to his achievements in single combat. He claimed to have defeated his first opponent (a certain Arima Kihei) at the age of 13, following this up with a victory over " powerful martial artist called Akiyama of Tajima province." After 1600 Musashi drifted to Kyoto and became involved in a well-known battle with the Yoshioka School of swordsmanship, emerging victorious. He wrote that he engaged in sixty duels without suffering defeat once, and was noted in this regard for his skill at handling two swords at once. He was also remembered for employing a simple bamboo sword, which he used to deadly effect.

Much of Musashi's life between 1600 and 1640 is the stuff of legend and some have postulated that he served at Osaka Castle (1614-1615) on the defending side, taking quite a few heads in the process. In a similar vein, he is sometimes said to have helped quell the Shimabara Rebellion of 1638 - a theory which, as with his glories at Osaka, is impossible to prove. On the other hand, many of the important events depicted in Yoshikawa Eiji's famous novel Musashi have a basis in reality, to include his battle with the Yoshioka School, his defeat of the noted spearman Inei (chief priest of the Hôzô-in), and his duel in 1612 with Sasaki Kojiro, another famed swordsman. Less well-known is his skill as a painter, his works including a number of self-portraits and naturescapes.

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Itosu Yasusume, also Itosu Yasutsune "Anko"

Itosu Yasutsune is known to have given the first public demonstration of karate in Okinawa during the early 1900's. Its significance is amplified by the fact that martial arts, of any kind, had been banned from practice for hundreds of years. He introduced karate as part of the Okinawan school system and was instructor to Mabuni Kenwa, father of Shito Ryu.

A legendary story is told of Itosu wrestling a charging bull to the ground and holding it there until it was tied up and led away. He trained his body to withstand repeated, extreme blows. It is said that he would even allow his students to strike him while he was sipping drinks and show no sign of pain.(21)

Itosu and Azato were considered to be great friends. On occasions, Funakoshi Gichin had the benefit of both instructors. He describes learning tremendously from their discussions on both the spiritual and physical aspects of karate. According to Funakoshi:

. . . they [Azato and Itsou] suffered from no petty jealously of other masters. They would present me to the teachers of their acquaintance, urging me to learn from each the technique at which he excelled.

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Doruma Bodhidharma

Bodhidharma, Daruma to the Japanese, was the 28th Indian patriarch and first patriarch of Zen Buddhism in China. He was reputedly of South Indian Brahman heritage, perhaps even of royal blood. Despairing at the factionalism and loss of true faith in China, he attempted to transmit the true teaching of Buddha to China in the early 6th century. Legend has it that Daruma walked from India to China; after a long and arduous journey he had an audience with Emperor Wu (502-550 A.D.) founder of the Liang dynasty. Emperor Wu, a fervent patron of Buddhism, had views that conflicted with Daruma's. Wu's Buddhism was salvationist and formalistic. Daruma pointed to the futility of building Buddhist temples and reciting sutras. His Buddhism emphasized that it was the task of the individual to awaken to his own true nature, the Method being meditation, inner discipline and intuitive insight. Expelled from the emperor's court, Bodhidharma crossed the broad Yangtze River "on a reed" (legend) into Northern China. After travelling and teaching throughout the country he ultimately settled at Shaolin-ssu (Shorinji), a monastery on Hao-shan mountain near Loyang, in what is now Honan province. The legend says that Bodhidharma remained seated in meditation before the wall of the Shaolin Monastery for nine years "until his legs withered away" (this part of the legend accounts for the legless Daruma dolls seen in Japan). He then bequeathed the seal of the mind - that is the Zen patriarchate - to his disciple Huik'o. The Buddhism taught at the Shaolin Temple eventually became known as Ch'an, or Zen in its Japanese reading.

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Tode Sakugawa

The mysterious Kusanku of a Chinese envoy settled in Okinawa for some time. His most famous student was Satunuku "Tode" Sakugawa (1733-1815). It is believed Sakugawa became a student of Kusanku in 1756. Sakugawa was a student of Takahara Peichin (1683-1760) (Peichin is a title of status) until the arrival of Kusanku in Okinawa. At that time Sakugawa was granted permission from Takahara Peichin to train under Kusanku.

Sakagawa traveled to China with Kusanku to study Kempo. He returned to Okinawa in 1762 to introduce this fighting method. Before long Sakugawa was considered an expert in the Chinese hand fighting method. It is said that Sakugawa was awarded the title of Satonushi for his services to the Okinawa King.

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