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| Founder of Shorin-ryu: Choshin Chibana | | The founder of Shorin-ryu was Choshin Chibana (1885-1969), a top pupil of Anko Itosu (1831-1915), the great master of the Shuri-te style.
Kanga Sakugawa (commonly known as Todi Sakugawa), Sokon Matsumura and others went to China and learned Kenpo there. Returning to Okinawa, they brought Kenpo into the Okinawan Te and systematized the two styles into one. That was then passed on to Choshin Chibana through Anko Itosu, and was named 'Shorin-ryu' in 1933.
The main technical characteristic of Shorin-ryu is to concentrate power instantaneously. In that it somewhat resembles kendo. One's strength is expressed through the kata from the inside to the outside, in a voluntary kind of way. It causes no pressure on the internal organs and little disturbance of respiration. In addition, it causes no unnecessary muscle fatigue, and sharpens concentration. It is believed that alertness can be fostered in this way and full offensive power can be exerted.
Typical kata include: Naifanchi (1st-3rd Dan), Pinan (1st-5th Dan), Kusanku (dai) and Kusanku (sho), Passai (dai) and Passai (sho), Jion, Jitte, Sochin, Gojushiho, and Chinto.
Pinan was created by Anko Itosu as a training aid for his pupils. It is said that Naifanchi is well suited for muscle training, Kusanku is good for fostering alertness, and Passai is suited for putting training into practice. |
