Wado Kai Karate
Wado Kai Karate is a Japanese Karate style founded in 1939 by Hironori Otsuka. It is an amalgamation of Funakoshi’s Shotokan Karate, jujutsu and kempo. Wado Kai, means the ‘Way of Peace & Harmony”. It is one of the four major styles of Karate in Japan and remains one of the purest form of Karate-do.
Similar to most other Karate styles, Wado Kai includes
- Basic techniques (waza), which include punching, kicking, blocking, open and closed hand strikes, and study of grappling and joint-twisting maneuvers.
- Kata (sequences of techniques done against imagined attackers).
- Kumite (prearranged and free-style sparring) are equally emphasized training foundations. Equally fundamental to Wado is taisabaki, bodyshifting to avoid the full brunt of an attack, this technique was derived from Japanese swordsmanship.
There are many other facets to Wado Kai Karate that make it a unique and valuable interpretation of Karate-do.
In Wado Kai Karate, as skill and knowledge are acquired through training and concentrated effort, the student is expected to develop inner strength and calmness of character, in addition to the virtues of self-control, respect for others, and humility.
“Violent action may be understood as the way of martial arts, but the true meaning of martial arts is to seek and attain the way of peace and harmony” – Sensei Otsuka