Recommended Reading:
Instruction
Black Belt Karate by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Karate Fighting Techniques: The Complete Kumite
by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kata: Volume 1 by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kata: Volume 2 by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kumite Kyohan by Hirokazu Kanazawa
and K. Nakaichi
The Shotokan Karate Handbook: Beginner to Black Belt (Third
Edition) by Gursharan Sahota
Shotokan Karate Handbook: Advanced (Advanced Edition)
by Gursharan Sahota
Shotokan Karate: 10th Kyu to 6th Kyu (Martial Arts)
by Keinosuke Enoeda
Shotokan Karate: 5th Kyu to Black Belt by Keinosuke Enoeda
Instruction
Black Belt Karate by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Karate Fighting Techniques: The Complete Kumite
by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kata: Volume 1 by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kata: Volume 2 by Hirokazu Kanazawa
Shotokan Karate International Kumite Kyohan by Hirokazu Kanazawa
and K. Nakaichi
The Shotokan Karate Handbook: Beginner to Black Belt (Third
Edition) by Gursharan Sahota
Shotokan Karate Handbook: Advanced (Advanced Edition)
by Gursharan Sahota
Shotokan Karate: 10th Kyu to 6th Kyu (Martial Arts)
by Keinosuke Enoeda
Shotokan Karate: 5th Kyu to Black Belt by Keinosuke Enoeda
Autobiographical
Moving Zen: One Man's Journey to the Heart of Karate (Bushido
--The Way of the Warrior) by Hirokazu Kanazawa and C. W. Nicol
Karate My Life by Hirokazu Kanazawa translated by Alex Bennett
Karate-do: My Way of Life by Gichin Funakoshi
Roaring Silence: A Journey Begins by Michael Clarke
Keinosuke Enoeda - Tiger of Shotokan Karate by Rod Butler
Kanazawa 10th Dan The early years (1931 - 1964) by
Doctor Clive Layton
Moving Zen: Karate as a way to gentleness by C Nicol
Angry White Pyjama's by Robert Twigger
History
A Short History of Karate
Karate is a fighting system which uses the hands and feet to deliver blows, kicks and strikes with great power. The art of Shotokan has been practiced for many years.
The name Karate means empty hand, a phrase which tries to express the idea that karate needs neither external weapons nor thoughts of violence. The name Karate-Do means the way of Karate and is a method of teaching which develops the mind as well as the body.
Modern Karate has its origins in Okinawa, an island in the East China Sea 500 miles south of Japan.
In 1477, following a period of political turbulence, the king of Okinawa, Sho Shin, banned the carrying of weapons by anyone on the island. As a result of this ban the islanders developed a secret system of unarmed combat known as Okinawan-Te, the word Te meaning hands.
Over the following years, Okinawan-Te developed into three distinct styles around three main towns of Shuri, Naha and Tomari. Although they are quite close together, the karate styles they produced were quite different. All modern
Karate is a fighting system which uses the hands and feet to deliver blows, kicks and strikes with great power. The art of Shotokan has been practiced for many years.
The name Karate means empty hand, a phrase which tries to express the idea that karate needs neither external weapons nor thoughts of violence. The name Karate-Do means the way of Karate and is a method of teaching which develops the mind as well as the body.
Modern Karate has its origins in Okinawa, an island in the East China Sea 500 miles south of Japan.
In 1477, following a period of political turbulence, the king of Okinawa, Sho Shin, banned the carrying of weapons by anyone on the island. As a result of this ban the islanders developed a secret system of unarmed combat known as Okinawan-Te, the word Te meaning hands.
Over the following years, Okinawan-Te developed into three distinct styles around three main towns of Shuri, Naha and Tomari. Although they are quite close together, the karate styles they produced were quite different. All modern
karate styles have as there origins, one or a combination of these three styles.
Although the practice of Karate was at first forbidden, it was later taught openly and was even introduced into schools. Okinawa's Japanese overlords were impressed by Karate and asked the Okinawans to arrange a number of demonstrations. They did this using a school teacher named Gichin Funakoshi. Master Funakoshi had studied under two different Karate Instructors (Master Azato and Master Itosu) and was a dedicated and talented Karateka.
Gichin Funakoshi successfully promoted karate on the Japanese mainland and eventually established a permanent training centre he named The Shotokan from which Shotokan Karate derives its name.
During the years following Master Funakoshi's demonstration in 1915, other Okinawan Masters traveled to Japan and in doing so, introduced to the world an effective system of unarmed hand to hand combat. Although karate, like many other things has had to change over the years, its fundamental principles have stood the test of time. Today, students of the art will practice many of the
techniques that would have been taught many
years ago.
Historical/Ethical
Karate-do Nyumon: The Master Introductory Text
by Gichin Funakoshi
Five Years One Kata: Putting Kata Back at the Heart of
Karate by Bill Burgar
The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate by Gichin
Funakoshi and John Teramoto
Karate-do Kyohan: The Master Text by Gichin
Funakoshi and T. Ohshima
Bushido: The Soul of Japan: A classic Essay on
Samurai Ethics by Inazo Nitobe
Misc
Bubishi The Bible of Karate by Patrick Mccarthy
Shotokans Secrets by D Clayton
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