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| Shureimon, Okinawa's enduring symbol of correct conduct, c1890 |
Dressing up in a keikogi and wrapping a belt around your hips, you might be forgiven for thinking you are following a long tradition, that of 'the way of karate'; but that wouldn't be exactly true. You see long before the images we associate with karate these days were put in place, karate had very little symbolism attached to it; no belts, no uniform, no ranks, and definitely no 'champions'. Importance was placed on absorbing information, turning that knowledge into usable skill, and then, conducting yourself in such a way that you never had to use what you knew.
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| Shureimon before the war and its destruction in April 1945. |
Look a little closer at this image of the Shureimon and you'll notice something...it's in a state of neglect. Propped up by support beams, the top layer looks like it's close to collapse. Considering the fuss made of the present day replica that stands where this one once stood, it seems there was little enthusiasm to preserve the original while it was standing. This got me thinking, what is it about we humans that will quite happily watch something wither and die, only to invest so much of ourselves later on in preserving the memory of the very thing we let disappear?
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(Photo courtesy of Andreas Quast)
Captured beneath the modern day replica back in 2008 |
More than once I've come across karateka posing for photographs in front of the gate wearing their keikogi. They always seemed oblivious to the crowd around them, as well as their own childish behaviour. I'm never sure why people feel the need to behave this way, to conduct themselves like children on a school outing, but it seems to be a part of "doing karate in Okinawa" these days. With so many karate instructors today only too happy to tell you how to perform a kata properly, it's a pity so few take the time to pass on how to behave correctly.
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(Photo courtesy of Andreas Quast)
The sign may proclaim Ryukyu to be the "Land of Propriety"....but how many are listening? |
I think a number of contemporary Okinawan karate/kobudo teachers have lost sight of their cultural heritage, blinded as they are by the lure of fame and the possibility of a fortune. Magazine deals in the U.S.and a willingness to prostitute themselves, has left them with a great deal to answer for in my opinion. If, after a thousand years of evolution, the best karate can do is hunger for Olympic glory and prostrate its self before the god of commerce, then perhaps it would have been better if it had died out long ago...at least we could have remembered it kindly.
In truth, I think karate based on 'correct conduct' is now all but extinct!
