I believe it is no longer much of a secret that I am currently working on an article about Tō’on-ryū. I would like to share a bit of my ongoing research with you. I believe this step is both right and important.
It should also come as no surprise that I strongly prefer to work almost exclusively with Japanese sources – though I do occasionally draw on English-language materials as well. This was, of course, also the case with Tō’on-ryū.
It should be noted, however, that even in Japan, very little has been written about Tō’on-ryū – and when it has, the books are usually only available through secondhand bookshops.
Two of the most important students of Kyoda Jūhatsu wrote down their recollections, in which they sometimes provided detailed accounts of Kyoda – most notably Iraha Chōkō (1968, 1981a, 1981b) and Kanzaki Shigekazu (1999, 2003a, 2003b).
However, Murakami Katsumi and Ōnishi Eizō also wrote extensively about Kyoda in their books – Murakami was even the first to gain deeper insight through several conversations with Kyoda. But Ōnishi should not be overlooked either – he must be considered a pioneer, as he traveled to Beppu with a letter of recommendation from Tōyama Kanken, opening the door for several karateka.
Iraha Chōkō is widely regarded as Kyoda’s most important student from Okinawa. After Kyoda’s death, he was interviewed several times – among others by Koyama Masashi, who recorded the entire conversation, and by Hokama Tetsuhiro, who interviewed Iraha in 1984 and published his insights both in a book and in an article. Murakami Katsumi also had the good fortune to meet Iraha and compare his own techniques learned under Kyoda with Iraha’s.
Tokashiki Iken also made an important contribution. Although he never met Kyoda personally, he spoke with several individuals who had been close to him – including Kanzaki Shigekazu (3rd sōke of Tō’on-ryū), Kyoda Jūchoku (second son of Kyoda Jūhatsu), Shimabukuro Katsuyuki (Kyoda’s grandnephew), and Kojō Kafu (a student at the school where Kyoda taught).
These are among the most important works written in Japanese about Tō’on-ryū and Kyoda, and they have naturally all been incorporated into my article.
During an earlier conversation, a German karate researcher advised me to also include English-language sources, as they sometimes address important questions that Japanese authors often neglect.
I took this advice to heart and analyzed many English-language sources, comparing them with the Japanese ones. I came to the conclusion that many of the early English-language writings on Tō’on-ryū and Kyoda sensei are largely copies of texts by Hokama Tetsuhiro and Murakami Katsumi.
The first major Western research was carried out by Mario McKenna, who became the first Westerner to study Tō’on-ryū under Kanzaki sensei – and indeed the first to conduct an interview with a karateka from the Tō’on-ryū tradition. Naturally, McKenna also drew on the Western sources I mentioned earlier, comparing them with the Japanese materials and asking Kanzaki sensei in-depth questions based on this comparative research to advance his work further.
In addition to the two interviews McKenna published at the time, he also spoke with many other significant individuals who made important contributions to his Tō’on-ryū research. I would be very happy to read his full body of work once it is published.
All of these written sources were carefully reviewed and compared by my wife and me, and were supplemented by interviews with experts as well as with previously unpublished materials. I look forward to being able to publish my research findings soon.
Karate Kenkyū Shitsu 