Hi, I'm new to these boards. I joined in the hope of getting some good info on several martial art styles (shorinji kempo being one of them) because when I do web research I frequently run into conflicting information. I've started to believe that getting info from people who actually practice a particular style is getting it from the horse's mouth, and getting information from the web is like getting it from the horse's butt. Hope that's not offensive to anyone--I'm just sick of being confused. Anyway, I had a few questions which I was hoping I could get answers to. 1) Does Shorinji Kempo have Chinese origins ? I have read a few articles that assert that it has a Chinese origin and is therefore more circular and softer than the other hard, linear, Japanese styles like Shotokan. However, I've also read the complete opposite. Is one side correct here, or is there truth to both?? 2) What kind of techniques are in this art? Well, that's terribly vague-- let me rephrase it: Does SK focus on striking as opposed to grappling/throwing, or is there a mix of both? With respect to kicks, are they primarily low, medium, or high or could I expect to find kicks of all kinds? I understand that all this can vary from school to school because of instructor preference, so I'm just asking in general. I realize that I've just asked for a heck of a lot of information, so I'll stop here. Thanks for all your help.
Answerng these questions could end up sounding like a bad Infomercial on Cable TV. You ask the feed question then I get to describe how wonderful it all is... I think that may bore some readers. Have a look at the WSKO website. It is the Hombu site, run for the benefit of the global practitioners of the art, but with a fairly good amount of information that is suitable for the interested strangerl Árticles2and t2adscrip$s of the Dounder'q spee!hes mak% dor a $að grea$e` expl-ration f the A t%s mot)ves and p`iloso ha than2ywu migút find }n the a¤eúage M mebsit7.¸ M¡ná of t¸e0localòbòanche! around t`e wornd have dher own2website!, and s-mõ of t(eae are very god indee$. They -aa be b%tder at describknm the rþ in t%res tha$ dall w)t`in yogr(own f aees of referen!e$ uack an!wers to s`ecifi! auesti-na; !. Chine!e origils¶ Kaiáo²(the Do÷nder,àwêose n!me is D-s`in Sok vived 1nt stud)ed in C(ida. He fermed $he Art -f "Shorén`i Kem o in 1)4% in T!detsu, a`an whun(he re$uxned túeâe pos¶-}ar. T8e:style¢hós allòtpe etiãumtte a.d atmosbh÷re ofða8Japanåsÿ Dojoþ hut thw uoves !re dist)natly non%karatw.2 2, Eix of techniq%ea. [i Geho[/i and [i Jeho[/i "hard and "s-fd") ar% an bal!nae. Th% Ai]Goh-[%i] te!hdiques od punc(ea, kic)s$ bloc)s are c-m`lemen$ed by a,d suppo t the [)]@uho[/)] technkqwes of0rulease!, locks add thr/wñ. The kacks a e at al¬ öhe noàmól heiçhös, buæ õith aàr÷asona°lõ comm-n°sense²aòplica6iõn (doì'ô get aiôly wi$h²unreaþiñtic p añtice ?f°jumpi,g´ flyiîg¶ spin®iög bal¬eö whenptðere ape²few praóticalðoòportu¬iöies tí ÷se thµs÷ techlióues owtóide H}löywoodòaôd Honµ Óong Mïvóe Seta)¶ Th÷re is0aöso the ÷ix ofðpòysica| öechnióu÷s and0[ó]HowaI/ó] ("l¥cöures""w÷uld bõ ó comm-n²trans¾aöion),âaó Shor+nòi Kem"o²was câeóted ac ó vehi!l÷ for &eóching K÷ngo Zõn²philoóoòhy. Tzió is a¢fóirly !tòaight¤oòward ±eô of p`iöciple± ôo livå ðy thad õould |oô be o5t°of plscõ in mosö of túe²world%s²relig9oôs (inòoôher wmrôs, th7rõ is n¯ óonfli³t°with ánñ prev;oõsly h'd°belie¶s´ and lo°need öoð "condeðsion" :° ). • Ask !wñy...
Great response Tripitaka of AA. I've also asked fellow MAPer and Shorinji Kempo practitioner Colin Linz to participate, as he is very knowledgable about the history of the system. - Matt
I’ll attempt to answer your question. This will only be my interpretation of Shorinji Kempo and after studying it for a number of years I am biased, but I will try to remain objective. 1/ Shorinji Kempo certainly has Chinese origins, but it is very Japanese. Doshin So, the founder lived much of his early life in China as his parents died when he was young and he went off to live with his uncle in China. He learnt Jujutsu from his uncle when young, but later when he became older he began working as an Intelligence Operative for Japan, his job was to do topographical studies for maps. He also became interested in Buddhism at this time and became a monk. This gave him the opportunity to travel China and practice a number of systems of Kempo. One day his teacher suggested that they go and visit his teacher Wen Lanshi, the head of the North Shaolin Temple Ihermen-thuen style, it was then decided that Doshin So would study directly under this master, eventually succeeding him and becoming the head of this form of Kempo. On his return to Japan after WWII he wanted to do something to help the Japanese people recover following their defeat. He also believed that Japan needed to become more concerned with the development of individual people. He tried lecturing on the Buddhist principles that he believed would help them, but no one wanted to listen. It was at this stage he had a dream of Daruma and thought he could follow in his footsteps and use Kempo to educate people in these principles he though were so useful. Modern Shorinji Kempo is a re-examination and systemisation of Doshin So’s knowledge of a range of martial arts. It is not a hot potch of styles, but one cohesive system, where all the techniques work in harmony with each other. The naming of Shorinji Kempo is not meant to reflect that what you learn is the same Shaolin temple Chaun Fa that you would learn there, but rather to reflect the same philosophical use of Kempo to educate people about themselves and the world around them. Now it is true that this story has its critics. Why would the Chinese make a Japanese person the head of one of their systems? Where is his proof? These accusations cannot be adequately addressed; there is no direct proof. Kaiso was in China for many years and did have strong personal ties to a number of Chinese friends; it was these people that helped him escape when Russia came into Manchuria. The only supportive elements to his story are his knowledge and the good relationship of Shorinji Kempo and the Shaolin Temple. There are criticisms of Shorinji Kempo being just a mix of Wado Ryu Karate and Hakko Ryu Jujutsu. These don’t really stand up to examination though. Doshin So did study Hakko Ryu, but only for two years. This can’t account for the vastness of Shorinji Kempo’s Juho syllabus. Our Goho syllabus is also very different to Wado Ryu. Wado Ryu is a very relaxed form of Karate, but it still bears little resemblance to our Goho. You only need one Karate student to try our kihon and they will freely admit it is very alien to them. In short I tend to believe Doshin So’s claims. 2/ On the technical side. The technical side is diverse with a huge range of techniques. These are broken down into three areas of study. Goho, (strikes, kicks, blocks); Juho, (throws, locks, arrests, chokes); Seiho, (massage, skeletal manipulation, pressure points). Now these all have a separate syllabus, but they all tie together. The Seiho knowledge can help all the techniques to be more effective, while the Juho and Goho are designed to complement each other. This is encapsulated in the phrase Go Ju Ittai or Hard and Soft techniques work best when used together. Punching is generally done with a vertical fist, although it may be tilted depending on the target. For Mikazuki, the pressure point along the lower edge of the Jaw a fist angle of about 45 degrees works best. Punching to Suigetsu or the solar plexus is usually done with a vertical fist, using your legs to drop the height, and keeping you elbow lower than your fist. This will produce an up ward angle of force, the most suitable for this weak area. Punching and striking have linear movements and circular movements, and use a number of contact areas of the hands arms and elbows. Kicking is done from either the front foot or the rear foot. Generally to lower areas of the body, but we still do target the head when the right opportunity is presented. Kicks like axe kicks are rare, but we have one sensei, Aosaka sensei from France who seems to like them. Blocks are more designed to divert force than stop it. We use our arms and legs to block with. Body movement is also critical here, and seems to be the main trouble for new students that have experience in other arts, we do a lot of dodging while blocking, the block is merely a safety feature, although in some circumstances it can be used for trapping, or unbalancing the attacker. Generally speaking I believe Shorinji Kempo to be a very diverse and well rounded art, If there are any criticism it could be that we don’t do much in the way of ground fighting. We do however do a lot in the way of escapes, locks and throws from grappling attacks and a lot of work on getting to your feet quickly and landing on your feet from some throws. The techniques are all based on physics and human anatomy, there is no strange stuff like no touch KO’s. They are also designed for effectiveness, and the training methods used are designed around developing the application of techniques. My involvement with Shorinji Kempo has been very worthwhile on a number of levels. It has added value to my life, and helped me in a number of bad situations, not all to do with fighting. There is an immense feeling of esprit de corps within Shorinji Kempo, and a great opportunity to develop friendships on a global level. If this has raised more questions, or if I haven’t addressed what you are after please continue to ask. I don't think there is any satisfactory clear and easy definition of Shorinji Kempo.
Nice one Colin! Can you remind me, is "Ihermen-thuen" the chinese reading of the characters that we usually see written as "Giwamonken" (which is the Japanese reading)? Doing a search on either of these terms usually ends up on a Shorinji Kempo website. As we've discussed before, the Chinese government attempts to eradicate the traditional martial arts training has made any research in this area quite difficult (not just the Communist government, but many of the previous ones had good reason to suppress the teaching of martial ways to a disgruntled populace).
I must say that as I progress in Shorinji Kempo I notice and appreciate this aspect more and more. There is a great sense of community and camaraderie among Shorinji Kempo practitioners, both in a local and global sense, and it has contributed greatly to my desire to continue to apply myself as best I can to master as much of the art as I am able.
Thanks Hey, the discussion here has cleared up a lot of uncertainties for me. Thanks for everyone's input.
Remeber too that the best way to find info about any martial art is to attend a class. There is a list of all the Shorinji Kempo branches at the WSKO site here. I'm sure any club will be more than happy to give you more information and have you partcipate in a class.
