Does anyone have any expereince with Shorinji Kempo? I've just started practicing it, and any advice/anecdotes/random thoughts would be interesting to hear!
I'm not just trying to be funny but my favorite Sushi man, from Japan, says that Shorenji Kenpo is a "very hard style, very tough". And I'm not just saying that because the name is so similar to the style I practice haha (Shaolin Kempo)
It is my understanding the "Shorinji" is the japanese pronuciation of "Shaolin" so that "shorinji kenpo" may refer to a japanese martial art style with a closer relationship to Shaolin Kung Fu rather than traditional karate. By the way, it is interesting that the Japanese have always used the swastika to symbolize shoriji kenpo (an ancient symbol unfortunately ruined in the 20th Century).
I would love to know more about shorinji kempo. I have a few video clips of techniques and it looks amazing. To me it looked a lot like jujitsu techniques. Unfortunately for me there isn't a dojo in my country that I can go have a look at.
Dude, you live everywhere so somehwere there must be one! j/k I know there are a number of schools for this art in Europe.
I currently live in South Africa, there is nothing here (that I know of) I did manage to find an excellent Kawaishi style jujitsu dojo though.
I've found that the New York Shorinji Kempo dojo has some good info and some cool videos and images: Shorinji Kempo New York Of course, there's also the World Shorinji Kempo Organization site for the official lowdown. I'm really enjoying studying this style...I think it was a good place for me to start. I have a similar understanding, though we have never actually talked about this in class to my knowledge. I do know that Doshin So studied Kung Fu in China for quite a long time before he returned to Japan to form Shorinji Kempo, so it has some influence on the art, for sure. This is true, but the manji symbol used in Shorinji Kempo is spinning in the opposite direction of the Nazi Swastika. I think Shorinji is still steadily expanding, so maybe one day there will be a branch that opens near you. I'm lucky that there is one just down the street from my house!
Omicron, There is a Japanese film from 1975 starring Sonny Chiba called 'The Killing Machine' but it's original title was 'shorinji kempo'. I don't remember the name of the lead character but it's about a Japanese soldier in WWII working as a spy in China and learning chinese martial arts. At the end of the war he goes back to Japan and forms a school. His students wear the manji on thier uniforms. If you haven't seen it I know it's available on DVD at most places that have a good selection of kung fu films. Salute.
I happen to be watching it right now, very good movie. Basically comes back from China to start a school and fights off the black marketeers in his old town. Sort of like that new movie, "Walking Tall"
From what you guys describe it sounds pretty much like it's a movie based on how Shorinji Kempo was actually founded.
Hi Guys’ There is also another Sonny Chiba movie called Sister Street Fighter. This movie features the battle of a Shorinji Kempo school against an evil drug organisation. There is some good footage of a class practising kihon asd well as some footage of embu performance. Doshin So founded Shorinji Kempo from his experiences in China where he studied with some Shoalin masters for many years. What he taught as Shorinji Kempo though reflected his total life experience in budo. The naming of Shorinji Kempo was chosen because of his desire to create a similar experience to the Shoalin Temple in Japan, he wanted to use the training to help re-enforce the Buddhist philosophy that he was teaching. The Manji (swastika) has been used by Buddhist temples in Asia for many years, and is of ancient origin. Shorinji Kempo uses both the omote and ura versions (one faces one way while the other faces the other). You can find out much more information on WSKO’s (World Shorinji Kempo Organisation) web site http://wsko.econ-net.or.jp/index.html . From my perspective Shorinji Kempo is a wonderful martial art, there is always more to learn. I have been training in this art since 1988 and still have much to learn. Many describe it as a cross between Karate and Aikido although this is not a very good description, as our Goho is quite different from Karate and the Juho is quite different from Aikido. We also study a form of massage and manipulation called Seiho and of course Doshin So’s philosophy. Cheers Colin Linz
Shorinji Kempo (please note that by convention, we romanise our art's name with an "m", not an "n") is the Japanese pronounciation of Chinese Shaolin Chu'an fa. Our symbol is NOT a swastika; it is a manji, and faces the opposite direction from a manji. (This is akin to the difference between the English "b" and "d".) The art itself is neither Kung Fu nor Karate, but a totally new art, created by a genius who had studied several styles of kung fu, karate, aikido, judo, kendo, and Western boxing in the past.
Mordred, I'm a Shorinji Kenshi with 20 years experience; I'll answer any questions you might have. Best,
Shoprinji Kempo is currently in the following European countries: Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Russia, the Ukraine,Filand, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. Contact info can be found here. Because of apartheid, however, there has never been a branch in South Africa. HTH.
This was a rather mediocre movie that fictionalises the life of Kaiso. It's entertaining, but I wouldN't call it great. Similarly, there's another movie from the same period called "Sister Streetfighter", which includes clearly Shorinji Kempo movements. Unfortunately, the English version dubs "Shorinji Kempo" as "Karate". For more fun, check out the Jet Li movie, "The Shaolin Temple", which also features Arai Sensei performing embu.
Sorry; I answered each post in turn, and it wasn't until I got down the lkist that I found Colin Linz Kenshi had already answered them, too. Apologies for the duplication.
