HOKUBEI SHURI-TE KARATE-DO ASSOCIATION

  

NAHA-DI KARATE-DO

  "Karate is my secret, I will not display it to the public.
  "I bear no weapons. "I pray forgiveness for having used karate in an unmannerly fashion and pray I never have to use it again." This is the salute that is always done    at the end of each kata in the Shorei-ryu system of karate.
Shorei-ryu was developed, or named, about 100 years ago around the mid-1800s by Kanryo Higashionna. Higashionna studied some of the Naha-te techniques of Okinawa and then moved to China. There in the Fuchou Province he studied for some 20 years under Liu Liu Kuo. But it was not until Higashionna came back to Okinawa that he began to develop the Shorei-ryu system.
The Shorei-ryu system can be traced (though with some difficulty due to the lack of records) to the Sho Dynasty in the 1400s. The main method of tracing it is through some of the Shorei kata, which are indeed very old.
Shorei-ryu was first brought to the United States in 1946 by Robert Trias, who opened the first karate school in this country then. While in the Orient, Trias studied the system under Choke Motobu's chief instructor, Tung Gee Hsing, and learned the Chinese Kenpo under Hoy Yuan Ping. He then passed this unique style on to many including Pete Rabino, who teaches in Laguna Beach, California.
The Shorei-ryu system is a blend of the Chinese arts of Kenpo and Pakua and the ancient Okinawan art of Naha-te. It is a style which is noted for its low stances, powerful moves and circular motions. The style itself is based on the Five Strengths and the Five Fists, which are obviously comparable to the Five Animals of kung fu. These are:
Dragon     Body
Tiger        Bone
Snake       Breathing
Crane       Hidden

Shorei-ryu is associated with the courage class of karate and is primarily an internal system. There is an old saying, "For something to be strong and lasting, it must have a good foundation." The Shorei-ryu system has its greatest emphasis on its foundation: the horse stance. Hours of practice are devoted to standing in the horse stance and the lunge position in the dojo. The horse stance must be low to the ground and the Shorei karate-ka must become accustomed to this low center of gravity. It is always much harder to knock someone down the lower he is to the ground. Further, a low stance is usually much stronger than a higher one. For the appropriate progress to be made in the Shorei style the foundation must be made stronger and more solid.

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Last modified: September 07, 2001