Words of Toyama

One who knows what he is practicing is always one step ahead of one who just practices techniques.  Karate-ka must know the theory, the reason, and application, as well as the proper method to get the most out of training.

Karatedo – The way of life

“Understanding the true meaning of karate is essential, because without it Karate appears fearful an destructive.  To those who do not fully understand karate, it appears to be no more than a means of fighting.  There are many who misunderstand what karate really is.  True karate leads to a way of life.  Karate shares with Judo, Kendo, Aikido, and even the tea ceremony or Japanese flower-arranging art, the common aim of cultivating the practitioner through physical and spiritual training.  This type of physical and spiritual training and the discipline which accompanies it, allows the seemingly impossible to be possible; it gives defence to the unarmed and even helps one in pursuing the goals in one’s life. A physical training so strict as karate naturally involves a demanding mental training as well.  Karate is a method of unifying the body and spirit and of making one’s life  richer and more meaningful.  Do not expect to turn karate into a self-defense method, a sport, or into anything useful in daily life in a short time.  Karate like any other art, requires much time.

What is karate?  Because it is one of the many forms of martial arts, some see it only as a way of fighting.  However, as we look at the definition of Karatedo as a way of life, we must ask ourselves what else karate teaches to help a student learn a “way of life”. Were the early masters in karate teaching their students only to fight, or were they trying to teach much more?  In today’s society much emphasis is placed on fitness, both physically and mentally. What then can an ancient art teach modern man?  Certainty karate teaches fighting, but in the context of self-defense.  It was not intended to be used for the self-serving emotions of anger, revenge, or intimidation.  Indeed, early masters taught their skills only to those who were free from these emotions; those who were humble and unboastful.  Respect for others, even in the heat of battle, was foremost in their teachings.

“Karate always begins and ends with respect”

 Train with both heart and soul without worring about theory.  True practice is done not with words but with the entire body.  What you have learned with your whole body, you will remember for the rest of your life.   

“Secret techniques begin with basic techniques; Basic techniques end as secret techniques.   There are no secrets at the beginning, but there are secrets at the end.  The key to success is hard training.

For every one time others practice, you should practice one hundred times, and if others practiced one thousand times……. The Essence of mastering an art boils down to matters of effort, training, and using your head.

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US Branch of Japan Keishinkan Karate