General Info

Isshin-ryu Karate Isshin-ryu Karate is the one heart method of empty hand fighting founded by Master Tatsuo Shimabuku. It is not a way to violence, but a way to avoid violence if possible and to handle it if not. The Isshin-ryu system combines the Shorin-ryu and Goju-ryu styles. Master Shimabuku (1906-1976) devoted approximately 57 years of his life to Karate. Upon the Master's death his son, Kichiro Shimabuku, became the 10th dan master of Isshin-ryu. He is the current head of the Isshin-ryu World Karate Association (IWKA). Japanese martial arts are more straight line fighting styles than the circular techniques of their Chinese cousins. Commonly called karate by those of us in the West, Japanese arts range from empty hand martial systems to joint locking and throwing systems to styles devoted entirely to weapons' practice. The art of karate (kara-te), which means empty hand, is commonly believed to have come to Japan from the island of Okinawa, where fightin g with weapons was banned for many years. Ancient Okinawan traders visited China's Fukien Province and brought back the martial techniques of China's southern Shaolin temple. The Okinawans developed such an effective self-defense system that many Japanese masters wanted it as their own. It was brought to the Japanese mainland in 1922 and eventually became the best known Japanese martial art.