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Wado-Ryu is one of the world's main
karate styles. On the surface it looks very similar to other main
styles such as Shotokan. However, under the hood there are some important
differences.
In fact it may be argued that Wado-Ryu is a
Jujutsu style rather than
Okinawan Karate. When first registered with the Japanese Butokukai in
1939 the style was called 'Shinshu Wadoryu Karate-Jutsu', a name which
reflects the hybrid nature of Wado. Wado-ryu's founder Hironori Otsuka was
already a renowned grandmaster in Shindo Yoshin Ryu Jujutsu when he first
met the Okinawan karate master
Funakoshi. After having received tutelage of not only Funakoshi but
later also the Okinawan masters Mabuni and Motobu, he set off to merge
Shindo Yoshin Ryu with Okinawan Karate.
The result of Otsuka's efforts is Wado-Ryu. While its techniques may be
very much karate in looks, most of the underlying principles have been
derived from Shindo Yoshin Ryu. A block in Wado may look much like a block
in Shotokan, they are nevertheless performed from a completely different
perspective. A Shotokan practitioner is likely to force an incoming fist
out of the line of attack. A Wado expert, on the other hand, will rather
move himself out of the line of attack while taking up a position that
will gain him an advantage over the opponent. Both ways will look almost
similar to the untrained eye, but couldn't be further apart when
considering the tactics behind it. Key in Wado-Ryu is the principle of 'taisabaki',
often wrongly referred to as 'evasion'. The Japanese term 'taisabaki' can
be translated as 'body-management' and refers to body manipulation so as
to move the defender as well as the attacker out of harm's way. The way to
achieve this is to 'move along' rather than to 'move against'. Or harmony
rather than strength.
Perhaps the nature of Wado is better understood when considering its
Jujutsu origins. In
17th century
Japan a young physician departed on a journey to
China. His name was Yoshitoki Akiyama. During his stay in China he
learned Chinese healing methods as well as Chinese fighting techniques.
After a while Akiyama returned to Japan and retreated in a
monastery where he devoted himself to
meditation. During those days he also practiced and perfected his
technique. One snowy day during
winter, Akiyama sat gazing at a
willow tree. It suddenly occured to him that the willow tree, unlike
some other trees, didn't have any broken branches, despite the heavy snow.
The willow branches simply yield and allow the snow to fall off. Sturdier
trees with unyielding branches suffer much heavier from the elements of
nature. After this revelation he developed 303 techniques which became
known as 'Yoshin Ryu Jujutsu' or 'Willow Heart Style'. Yoshin Ryu later
evolved into Wado-Ryu but the fundamental yielding principles have still
been preserved.
The term Wado-Ryu can be broken into three parts: 'Wa', 'do' and 'Ryu'.
'Wa' can be read to mean 'harmony'. 'Do' is a Japanese term for 'way'. 'Ryu'
simply means 'style'. Wa or harmony shouldn't be interpreted as pacifism
in any way. It is merely the acknowledgement that yielding is sometimes
more effective than brute strength.
However, modern karate competition tends to transform Wado-Ryu away
from its roots towards a new generic karate that appeals more to the
demands of both spectators and competitors.
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