Ryusho Sakagami

Long time ago, in Okinawa, a land where karate was ubiquitous, one had to endure daily challenges and many potentially letal fights in order to become a recognized Master. No bullsh* was involved (as in many "masters" today) just sheer effectiveness and brutality! Some of these Masters codified their knowledge in kata (forms) which crystallized their expertise. These "koshiki-no-kata" (old forms) contained in them most of the fighting effectiveness of old traditional Okinawan Karate and Kobudo. They were the real backbone of the martial tradition. The kata worked by sheer repetition as an effective conditioning drill and by gradual self-awareness of the practicioner in order to create a supreme fighter. Sadly with time most of these knowledge was lost by lack of bunkai (practical application) transmission and by gradual modification of the forms to allow for "better" or more "spectacular" techniques.
With NO effective formal drills and almost NO physical conditioning Modern Karate became subjective, stiff, fake and choreographed. Practitioners have to train in two separate disconnected ways: the formal "just-for-show" (kata, formal kumite) and the practical "real-fighting" (free kumite) techniques. Most formal techniques no longer have practical use in real fight and are sometimes even an hindrance...
Today the interest in the "koshiki-no-kata" (old okinawan original unchanged forms) is growing and several of them are being reconstituted and studied. Karate is trying to become a REAL martial art again!
This book is an important historic document for the study of the evolution of Karate and its old traditional forms (kata).
In spite of its title, the book ONLY covers the original shorin-ryu forms from shurite and tomarite reportedly taught by Itosu Kanryo to his pupil Mabuni Kenwa, founder of Shito-Ryu. The author of this book was the most senior student of Mabuni Kenwa. No shorei-ryu (nahate) forms are included in this book.… (more)