| |
In January 2005, following a serious dispute with
the Chito-Ryu Sohonbu (Headquarters), the membership
of the Australian Chito-Ryu Karate Association elected
to separate from the International Chito-Ryu Karate
Federation and pursue independent research into the
technique and legacy of the founder, Dr Chitose. This
was a serious and tumultuous decision, as many of the
voting members had given decades to the study of Chito-Ryu.
For myself, after some 15 visits to Japan to the ICKF
headquarters, I felt a loss of direction. And though
I could no longer remain in the organization, that
in no way diminished my passion to spend a lifetime
learning the art that O-Sensei passed on.
In March, I travelled to Japan to meet Sakamoto-Sensei,
the son-in-law of O-Sensei, and the headquarters uchi
deshi, or full-time live-in student, at the time of
his death. Sakamoto-Sensei had a legendary reputation
for rigorous and dedicated training, and his technique
was considered extraordinary. When O-Sensei died in
1984, Sakamoto-Sensei departed the honbu in deference
to the new Soke, Yasuhiro Chitose, son of the founder.
He moved to Tokyo and began to build his own association,
which became Ryusei Todi, and dedicated his life to
the pursuit of the knowledge and technique of his teacher.
In 1994, Sakamoto-Sensei was invited to return to the
honbu and take up the position of international secretary,
but left in 1995 after voicing his concerns about the
direction the Chito-Ryu method was taking, and what
he perceived as a lack of drive to sincerely strive
toward the higher understandings of todi, or ancient
Okinawan karate-do. I had trained with him in 1994
and 1995 on my annual training visits to the honbu,
and was amazed by his innovative teaching and outstanding
technique. In March, 2005, I travelled to Tokyo to
meet and train with Sakamoto-Sensei, and I was immediately
impressed and inspired by both his technique and the
level of excellence of his senior students. I invited
Sakamoto-Sensei to attend the annual training camp
of Chitokai in Australia, so that he could meet the
Australian students and, I hoped, accept a more permanent
association with our Chitokai group.
Developing Internal Power
Accompanied by Sakai-Sensei, Sakamoto-Sensei attended
the Broken Bay training camp. Although senior students
had been preparing for some months to learn some of
the Ryusei variations of the standard Chito-Ryu kata,
all students were stunned by the sheer relaxed power
and practical understanding that Sakamoto-Sensei demonstrated.
Sakamoto-Sensei believes that the essence of O-Sensei’s
technique lies in the development of three components
of internal power: hari (expansion), shiburi (squeezing
or wringing to create tension) and neri (the kneading
of the tanden). These components are necessary, along
with tame (the surface tension of neri) to produce
spontaneous power from the tanden, which he refers
to as “hakkei.” To this end, Sakamoto-Sensei
has developed unique exercises to develop the correct
flow of energy, or ki, utilizing many years of exploration
of kiko, or Chinese qigong.
Finding the Essence of Kata
Another feature of Sakamoto-Sensei’s interpretation
of the Chito-Ryu method is the importance he places
on the unique features of each kata. Bassai, Chinto,
Sochin, Tenshin and Rohai represent the particular
fighting essence of different animals, and as he taught
the characteristics of each kata, Sakamoto-Sensei emphasized
the importance of raising one’s consciousness
to a higher level in an effort to grasp the essence
of the kata. He was concerned with the current trend
in martial arts to learn a great number of kata, but
to perform each in a similar fashion, rather than seeking
to find their individual essence. Bunkai was demonstrated
at two distinct levels. First Sakamoto-Sensei would
demonstrate the basic form of a bunkai set, such as
Henshuho, then show the technique as it would be applied
with a realistic attack, usually from reverse punch,
with both attacker and defender starting from fighting
stances. He stressed that the applications were his
own understandings, and that students should seek to
find the realistic attack responses that suited their
own level of insight.
The camp was meant to feature several of the instructors
of Chitokai, but students were so impressed by Sakamoto-Sensei’s
technique, and by the clear and patient instruction
of his assistant, Sakai-Sensei, that all sessions
were taught by them. A feature of their training
was the
early morning sessions, where students joined in
several preliminary exercises to promote ki flow
before standing
in meditation (ritsu zen) for 20 minutes. Students
of all levels were amazed by the strong feelings
of energy and wellbeing that the sessions promoted.
Variations
of standard Chito-Ryu kata were explored, and particularly
the reasons for those variations, as Sakamoto-Sensei
sought to draw students into reflection of the purpose
of each kata and the particular skills that it promotes.
Following the camp, Sakamoto-Sensei traveled to Newcastle,
where he and his family enjoyed several days of sightseeing,
including a dolphin cruise, visit to a native animal
farm, vineyards tour, lake cruise and Sayonara Party
at a Japanese restaurant overlooking Newcastle harbour.
Sakamoto-Sensei also conducted morning training at
6.15 a.m. daily for black belts. After exploring the
animal kata of Chito-Ryu, Sakamoto-Sensei introduced
the senior forms that explored the different dimensions
of the human mental state – Sanshiru and Kusanku – coached
the correct method for practice of Sanchin kata, and
concluded, on the last morning, with a remarkable demonstration
of one of the koryu (old tradition) kata
.
Discussing the Future
One evening, shortly before Sakamoto-Sensei’s
return to Japan, I was discussing the future of Chitokai
with sensei. He believed that I was ready to make my
own way in my research into the method that O-Sensei
had developed. I disagreed, as I believe that I need
a mentor who knew O-Sensei, and that after witnessing
Sakamoto-Sensei’s technique, that there was a
great deal to learn from him. After consideration he
said that he would help, and we solemnly shook hands
on our new relationship, which we agreed to develop
carefully and without haste.
Sakamoto-Sensei has agreed to a group affiliation with the Australian Chitokai
membership, and has allowed the Ryusei name to be included on the new Australian
Chitokai crest. A master of the art of shodo, or Japanese calligraphy, Sakamoto-Sensei
was kind enough to offer a variation of the kanji for Chitokai to reflect our
desire to distinguish ourselves from the previous Chito-Ryu organization. We
had discussed several possibilities, but we settled for characters that describe
our group as a river of learning (water is the giver of life to the earth, as
blood is to the body) that flows to the ocean, just as all who strive to master
the martial arts are but travellers on a greater river of learning that stems
from ancient times. Implied in this is the sentiment that we cannot claim to
own martial arts knowledge, nor can we claim uniqueness of technique over other
groups. We can merely strive as best we can to catch the technique of our teachers
and to pass it on to others. We added to the crest, to indicate our bond with
the Ryusei Todi movement led by Sakamoto-Sensei, the characters for Ryusei, meaning
Dragon Spirit, the after death name given to O-Sensei.
The membership of Chitokai in Australia
can look forward to a new future, where research into
the ancient Okinawan martial way, of Todi, can be
conducted with the guidance of an outstanding mentor in Sakamoto-Sensei.
With strong following in Canada, Japan and the United
States, the ACKA looks forward
to joining the international fraternity of those who seek to pursue the study
of Ryusei Todi.
—Brian Hayes, Renshi, Chief Instructor
Australian Chitokai Karate Association 
|
