HOW OTHER ARTS RELATE TO KEMPO

Aikido
Aikido is a Japanese martial art built on the techniques of Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu of the Takeda Clan. It was created by Morihei Ueshiba (also referred to as O sensei or great teacher, shown at right) between 1920 and 1930. Aikido is rooted in several styles of jujitsu, in particular daito-ryu-(aiki)jujitsu, as well as sword and spear fighting arts. The lineage of jujitsu was derived from the Chinese art of Chin'na, which in turn can be traced back to the Shaolin temple. Aikido takes the joint locks and throws from jujitsu and combines them with the body movements of sword and spear fighting.

The unification of body, mind, and spirit is practiced through Aiki literally translated to "blending ki". The Japanese word "ki" has many translations. Fundamentally, ki is the energy of life and matter. Aikido proposes that in a martial setting you have a choice between harmony and discord. If you blend with you opponent while avoiding his attack you can bring his balance into yours and control him with very little force and minimize the physical damage. The system developed by Ueshiba uses this principle emphasizing extension of ki through body movement. The most important part of aiki is how bodies move in accord with one another. One who has attained the enlightenment of Aikido can foresee the arrival of discord and create harmony.

Goju ryu
Goju-Ryu was the first Okinawan style to ever be given an actual name, and was founded by Chojun Miyagi (at right), pronounced just like Mr. Miyagi of Karate Kid fame. Until Miyagi, the arts on Okinawa were named after the city the school was located in. Miyagi was taught by Kanryo Higashionna, master of naha-te (one of the three versions of Okinawa-te) who also studied kempo in China for 20 years. Goju actually translates to "hard and soft". The name Goju ryu was inspired by the "Eight precepts" of Kempo, written in the Chinese Bubishi. This is the style practiced by Hanshi Lou Angel, one of Professor Christopher N. Geary's previous advisors. Some say this art is closer to the traditional kempo originated in the Shaolin temple than the style of another previous advisor, Professor Nick Cerio.

Goshinjutsu
Goshinjutsu is a type of jujutsu founded by Tatsu Tanaka in the early 1950's. Tanaka took out the striking techniques of jujutsu as well as leg tripping. He placed more emphasis on vital point techniques, joint locking and throwing techniques. His goal was to promote good health through exercise and proper knowledge of self-defense.

Hapkido
Hapkido was founded by Young Sool Choi (at right) in 1952 and called Yu Sool. In 1958 the name was changed to Hapkido. Hapkido translates to close, power, and way, "Hap" is closeness, "Ki" denotes the essence of power, and "Do" means the way, path, or method. Hapkido is a modern blend of Korean kicking, striking and weapons systems of Tae Kyun, and the grappling and joint locking techniques of Daito Ryu Aiki Jui-jutsu (developed through Chin'na, which evolved from the ch'aun fa of Shaolin). Hapkido uses the efficient application of leverage, timing, circular movement, and pain instead of physical strength. Hapkido is used by police and elite military units around the world.

Jujitsu
Two schools of thought exist regarding the origin of this Japanese martial art. One school insists the art of Jujitsu is originally native to Japan, while the other claims Jujitsu was actually developed from an earlier form of Chinese grappling known as Chin-na. Both Jujitsu and Chin-na stress the grappling and joint manipulation aspects of fighting as opposed to the punching and kicking aspects.

Regardless of its origins by the 16th century Jujitsu was widely practiced throughout Japan. Jujitsu was utilized by the Samurai warriors in addition to their armed fighting methods. In addition many Buddhist and Shinto temples throughout Japan advanced the practice of Jujitsu and Shorinji Kempo. Shorinji is the Japanese word for Shaolin, and Kempo the word for Chuan Fa, which means "law of the fist," or "way of the fist." Essentially Shorinji Kempo was the form of Shaolin empty hand combat that had spread to Japan.

Professor Wally Jay, founder of Small Circle Juijitsu™ spread Jujitsu across North America through his Jujitsu America organization. He was taught by Professor Henry Seishiro Okazaki the founder of Kodekan Jujitsu. Professor Jay's small circle theory not only applies to jujitsu, but also blends beautifully with many styles of martial arts because it creates flow and emphasizes the interchangeability of techniques that can be used to defend and counterattack separately or simultaneously. Professor Jay wrote a couple of books one is Small-Circle Jujitsu and the other Dynamic Jujitsu.

Tae Kwon Do
Starting about 1300 years ago during the time era of Hwa Rang Do various fighters disciplined themselves for fighting by hand and foot (Soo Bak and Tae Kyon). The fighters toughened themselves unmercifully just to defend their homeland. Under oppression of Japan many people were forbidden to practice any martial arts. Modern Taekwondo started to emerge in the late 1940's with the liberation of Korea from Japanese occupation. Many martial arts Masters had exiled themselves from Korea or gone underground during the occupation. Many had gone to China or been in Japan and incorporated martial arts techniques from these countries into their systems. This gave the Korean martial arts a unique flavor and style. In 1955 General Choi Hong Hi (at right) from the Republic of Korea Armed Forces began teaching in the open, and called his style Tae (foot), Kwon (fist), Do (art). Taekwondo is best known for its prolific kicking style. Taekwondo kicks come from all angles, stationary, jumping, spinning and all speeds.

Tai Chi Chuan
There are many theories as to the origins of tai chi chuan. Many believe the founder was the Taoist monk, Chan San Feng (at right), who lived between 960-1279 A.D. The legend is that Chan San Feng, a master of the arts of Shaolin, witnessed battle between a snake and a white crane. As the bird lunged at its prey, the snake dodged and weaved. The snake struck out at the crane with relaxed lightning speed. After a time the hungry and tired crane flew off for easier prey. That is when the art of tai chi was born. The snake's actions exemplified the Taoist principles of softness, relaxation, flexibility and natural movement, combined with ancient breathing exercises to stimulate chi development. The major difference between Tai chi and the other arts of the time was its movements were soft and adapted to the movements of the opponent.

Initially, Tai Chi was practiced as a fighting form, emphasizing strength, balance, flexibility, and speed. Through time it has evolved into a soft, slow, and gentle form of exercise that can be practiced by people of all ages.

Wing Chun
Wing Chun - developed by shaolin monks in the 1700s during the Manchu dynasty. The Manchu soldiers were highly skilled in martial arts, well-versed in Shaolin technique and were consistently defeating rebel operations of the monks. Monks were unable to train rebels in full Shaolin skill since that would require 18 years of training. The elders of Shaolin met and shared their most secret techniques with each other. This was named Wing Chun or "Forever Springtime" to reflect the optimistic hope for a renaissance in martial arts and a quickly implementable weapon against the Manchus. In effect this was the "Readers Digest" version of Shaolin ch'uan fa.

CONCLUSION

As you can see in the description of the various arts, many can trace their origins to Okinawa or China. Any art that can be traced back to Japan or Okinawa (which would include any "ryu" style) can quite easily be extrapolated to Kempo origins in China. Martial artists on every continent owe a debt of gratitude to the monks of the Shaolin Temple. It was through their dedication, sacrifice and skill that kempo was born. If we look close enough at any martial art there are aspects, if not the very roots, that can be traced back to the Shaolin Temple and kempo. Is it any wonder that people all over the world credit the Shaolin Temple (ch'uan fa/kempo) with being the wellspring that spawned all other martial arts.