THE TORCH IS PASSED

The Legacy of Akamine Eisuke's Commitment to Ryukyu Kobudo

by Douglas Daulton

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Taira Shinken (1897-1970)

Taira Shinken left Okinawa for Tokyo in 1922. While there he would learn karate from Funakoshi and kobudo from Moden Yabiku (1882-1945). In 1942, he returned to the Ryukyu Islands and studied the various Ryukyuan weapons knowledge slowly being lost with the passing of each teacher. In 1945, Taira began teaching kobudo in various dojo across Okinawa. About this time, he also formed the Ryukyu Kobudo Kenkyukai, (The Society for the Research of the Ancient Martial Ways of the Ryukyu Islands) to carry on the teachings of Moden Yabiku and the other teachers who had since passed away. During these early days, he researched and developed forty kata and developed a solid, comprehensive curriculum that would become the foundation of the dojo he opened in 1959 in Naha Shi.

In 1964, he published Ryukyu Kobudo Taikan (The Encyclopedia of Ryukyu Kobudo); the first comprehensive book about Ryukyu Kobudo written in Japanese. (Bishop, 1996: 129) Currently, it remains unavailable to the public in any other language. In failing health in 1970, Taira did not want his life's work to disappear. So, he changed the name of the organization to Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai, awarded Akamine Eisuke his Shihan (full teacher's license) certificate and appointed him the second president of the organization. Later that year, fifty of his students were at his bedside when, at the age of seventy-three, Taira Shinken died of cancer.

Akamine Eisuke (1925 - 1999)

Akamine Eisuke was born May 1, 1925 in the last years of the Taisho Era. Until his death on January 13, 1999, he lived in the Nesabu section of Tomigusuku, the small village in southern Okinawa where he was born. In 1942, at the age of seventeen, he began the study of Yamani Ryu bojutsu (staff art) under Higa Seichiro, Higa Raisuke, Akamine Yohei (no relation) and Higa Jinsanburo. Higa Raisuke was known for his particularly strong waza (technique). Akamine Yohei was widely known for his mastery of the bo or kon (staff). From his early teachers, Akamine learned these kata: Soeshi no Kon, Sakugawa no Kon, Shirataru no Kon and Yuniga no Kon.

In 1944, Akamine married Higa Seichiro's daughter, Shizuko. Shortly thereafter, at age nineteen, Akamine was drafted into the Japanese army where he served one year in Taiwan. When he returned to Okinawa, he resumed vegetable and sugar cane farming and his study of Yamani Ryu bojutsu. During his early days as a farmer, Akamine became known for his unorthodox harvesting methods. Rather than using a kama (sickle) or machete to cut down sugar cane, Akamine used his bo.

Meeting and Learning from Taira Shinken

In 1959, Taira Shinken was teaching kobudo in a Goju Ryu dojo in Naha, Okinawa. While there, he heard of great bojutsu teachers who lived in the Kakazu section of Tomigusuku Village. To satisfy his curiosity, he left Naha for Tomigusuku and became a student of Yamani Ryu Bojutsu alongside Akamine Eisuke. One day, Taira was asked to demonstrate tekko (metal knuckles), nunchaku (rice flail) and sai (truncheon). Akamine had never seen these weapons before. He was so impressed with Taira's waza that he decided to become his deshi (student).

As Taira's senior student, Akamine was in the unique position of watching him organize the various waza he had learned into a system that would eventually become Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai. At the time, the study of more than one weapon was virtually unheard of. In addition to building a structured curriculum, Taira was adding a training element that would permeate all Ryukyu Kobudo waza and kata (form) and as a result become part of the signature of this weapons system.

Higa Yuchoku (1910–1995) was a student of Chibana Chosin and a noted teacher of ti, the origin of karate. (Radulovich, 1999) Higa and Taira Shinken were close friends. As he continued his relentless study, Taira recognized that kobudo as he knew it relied primarily on positioning and timing. While effective, kobudo lacked the explosive power found in ti. Specifically, it lacked gamanku (hip technique). Taira's ability to effectively demonstrate gamanku was limited by his rigid, muscular physique and a permanent ankle injury. However, he insisted on it from his students. So, he asked Higa Yuchoku to help infuse his system of kobudo with gamanku. After Taira's death, Akamine continued to seek Higa's counsel on the use of gamanku. As a result, Higa sat on most Ryukyu Kobudo examination panels until his death.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

In 1983, Doug Daulton began training in Matsubayashi Shorin-ryu karate under Bill George in Harrison, Ohio. In 1990, he attained the rank of shodan (first degree black belt). He continued his studies under Frank Grant and attained nidan in 1994. In 1990, he began his study of Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai under Devorah Yoshiko Dometrich and attained shodan in 1995. Currently, he co-owns The River Dojo of Cincinnati, Ohio with close friends, Bruce Helwig and John Daley. He also studies Shinto Muso Ryu Jojutsu.
Email: ddaulton@ryukyu-kobudo.org

For more information on Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai, please contact:

Devorah Yoshiko Dometrich
Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai
Beikoku So Hombu
690 Huff Road
Dry Ridge, Kentucky 41011
Phone/Fax: (606) 824-3792
Email: ydometrich@ryukyu-kobudo.org
Web: http://www.ryukyu-kobudo.org

Bibliography

Bishop, M. (1996). Zen Kobudo: Mysteries of Okinawan Kobudo and Ti.
Tokyo, Japan: Charles E. Tuttle Co.

Jansak, W. & Daulton, D. (1999). Muchimi: A Brief Biography of Devorah Yoshiko Dometrich
Bugeisha, #7 54-60

Radulovich, S (1999) Higa Yuchoku. http://www.kenkyujo.com/yuchokuhiga.htm.
Ottowa, Ontario: To-de Communications

Sansom, G. (1963) A History of Japan: 1615 - 1867.
Stanford, California: Stanford University Press.

Silvan, J. (1998) Oral Traditions of Okinawan karate.
Journal of Asian Martial Arts, 7 (3): 73 - 95

This article is reprinted with the kind permission of
Mr. Angel Lemus, Editor, Bugeisha.net