Kenwa Mabuni
| Kenwa Mabuni | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
November 14, 1889 Shuri, Okinawa |
| Died | May 23, 1952 (aged 62) Tokyo, Japan |
| Style | Shitō-ryū |
| Teacher(s) | Ankō Itosu, Higaonna Kanryō |
| Rank | Founder of Shitō-ryū |
| Notable students | Kenei Mabuni, Iwata Manzo, Chōjirō Tani |
Kenwa Mabuni (摩文仁 賢和 Mabuni Kenwa?, 14 November 1889 - 23 May 1952) was one of the first karateka to teach karate on mainland Japan and is credited as developing the style known as Shitō-ryū Immovable heart, immovable mind. (糸東流).
Born in Shuri on Okinawa in 1889, Mabuni was a 17th generation descendant of the famous warrior Uni Ufugusuku Kenyu. Perhaps because of his weak constitution, he began his instruction in his home town in the art of Shuri-Te (首里手) at the age of 13, under the tutelage of the legendary Ankō Yasutsune Itosu (糸州安恒) (1831-1915). He trained diligently for several years, learning many kata from this great master. It was Itosu who first developed the Pinan kata, which were most probably derived from the 'Kusanku' form.
One of his close friends, Chōjun Miyagi (宮城長順) (founder of Gōjū-ryū) introduced Mabuni to another great of that period, Higaonna Kanryō (東恩納寛量), and began to learn Naha-Te (那覇手) under him as well. While both Itosu and Higashionna taught a 'hard-soft' style of Okinawan 'Te', their methods and emphases were quite distinct: the Itosu syllabus included straight and powerful techniques as exemplified in the Naifanchi and Bassai kata; the Higashionna syllabus, on the other hand, stressed circular motion and shorter fighting methods as seen in the popular Seipai and Kururunfa forms. Shitō-ryū focuses on both hard and soft techniques to this day.
Although he remained true to the teachings of these two great masters, Mabuni sought instruction from a number of other teachers; including Seishō Aragaki, Tawada Shimboku, Sueyoshi Jino and Wu Xianhui (a Chinese master known as Go-Kenki). In fact, Mabuni was legendary for his encyclopaedic knowledge of kata and their bunkai applications. By the 1920s, he was regarded as the foremost authority on Okinawan kata and their history and was much sought after as a teacher by his contemporaries. There is even some evidence that his expertise was sought out in China, as well as Okinawa and mainland Japan. As a police officer, he taught local law enforcement officers and at the behest of his teacher Itosu, began instruction in the various grammar schools in Shuri and Naha.
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