| Martial Arts for Adults! |  |
American Isshinryu Karate Schools and Colorado Budo Center
Two names for two major training curricula. At our dojo (martial arts training hall) we have 2 major programs of study - Okinawan Martial Arts and Japanese Weaponry.
Okinawan Martial Arts
Okinawan Karate is not about sport, feeling good, or "self esteem". It is about effective, combat proven technique designed to allow you to protect yourself in real life situations.
The Okinawan martial arts of which karate is the most commonly known today were developed over many centuries. While heavily influenced by Chinese and Japanese martial arts, these Okinawan arts developed along their own path, incorporating the commonly thought of defensive, striking and kicking techniques but also encompassing grappling, throws and the use of weapons to create a very well rounded defensive tradition.
In the 1920s these Okinawan martial arts were first exported from Okinawa to the rest of the world. Today you see karate in every country around the globe. However, with such popularity, many today practice and teach a very remote and limited copy of the original Okinawan arts.
At our dojo, we teach a curriculum known as Isshinryu (the One or Whole Hearted Way) Karate. Isshinryu was systematized on Okinawa in the late 1950s. Intended for training the US Marines who were stationed on the Island, it preserves the original empty hand combative intent of Okinawan Karate and also includes training in Okinawan Kobudo (weapons training). It is a no-nonsense form of Karate formulated to be compatible with the American psyche. We also include extensive training in Koryu Uchinadi Kenpo Jutsu (literally Old-Style Okinawan Martial Arts), as researched and re-formulated by Patrick McCarthy, a world renowned martial arts researcher and historian. This unique combination of the old and new gives our students a thorough understanding of the lessons this ancient art was intended to convey and provides them with the skills to protect themselves.
Japanese Weaponry
For centuries the Japanese culture was dominated by the Samurai. These were well trained and fierce warriors who believed that serving their lord(s) and to fight and die in battle was the greatest goal in life.
To share and pass on the methods which were effective in battle, eventually training schools began to appear. These schools would recruit, as instructors, those warriors who had survived many battles. Over time the techniques these Samurai passed on about how to survive and be successful in battle were systematized and structured learning programs developed. Some of these schools still exist today with histories which go back several hundred years.
This culture continued until the 1800s, when after Admiral Perry suddenly awakened Japan from its isolation, the emperor and his advisors recognized the need for change and modernization. Thus began the rise of imperial Japan which eventually led to World War II. During this time the Samurai class was abolished and the need for koryu (old style) schools of martial arts was eliminated. After all, who needed to spend years learning to use a sword when anyone could use a gun.
Fortunately, for us today, the government of imperial Japan recognized the value of the martial arts as a method for building the fighting spirit and for developing physical fitness and therefore encouraged the continued practice of these arts. Thus developed the 'Do' arts as opposed to the 'Jutsu' arts. The 'Do' was all about the practice or the sport, where the 'Jutsu' had been all about self preservation.
Nippon Kobujutsu is a classical sword curriculum. While our lineage connects to one of the oldest schools of swordsmanship in Japan, ours is a somewhat more modern and moderated interpretation of these old style fighting arts. While today we can assume none of us need to be concerned with needing to use the sword in real life, our program still focuses on the 'Jutsu', the combat effectiveness of the sword. This is a study many choose to pursue for the aesthetics and the discipline of this form of martial arts rather than for use in 'real life'.
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Martial Arts for Adults!
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All classes at our dojo are based upon classical old-style training, the way things have been done for centuries, with an injection of modern safe training practices.
It is important to note, with proper training most students can develop an effective level of skill in a relatively short period of time. Most people beginning martial arts training are not looking for a life long vocation. However, for those who choose to pursue an advanced understanding of these arts it can literally take a lifetime.