Karate masters – Tatsuo Shimabuku

Tatsuo Shimabuku (島袋 龍夫) (1908–1975) was a highly influential Okinawan martial artist, best known as the founder of the Isshin-ryū (“One Heart Style” or “One Heart Way”) style of karate. His life was dedicated to synthesizing and evolving martial arts, leading to the creation of a unique and widely practiced style.

Shimabuku was born as Shinkichi Shimabuku on September 19, 1908, in Gushikawa village, Okinawa, as the first of ten children in a farming family. His martial arts journey began at the young age of thirteen, when he started studying karate under his uncle, Ganiku Shinko, who lived a few miles away in Agena Village. Initially, his uncle sent him home, but witnessing his nephew’s dedication, he took him on as a pupil. Recognizing that Tatsuo’s training was incomplete, his uncle later sent him to continue his studies with Chōtoku Kyan.

Tatsuo Shimabuku was notable for his eclectic studies under several prominent Okinawan masters, absorbing diverse influences to develop his unique style. His key teachers included:

• Chōtoku Kyan (喜屋武 朝徳): Around 1927, at age 19, Shimabuku began studying Shorin-ryū karate under Kyan at his home in Yomitan. Kyan also taught at the Okinawa Prefectural Agricultural School where Shimabuku was studying. He quickly became one of Kyan’s best students, learning numerous kata including Passai, Useishi (Gōjūshiho), Seisan, Naihanchi, Wansu, Chinto, and Kusanku. From Kyan, he also acquired proficiency in the weapons kata Tokumine nu Kun and basic Sai techniques. He remained with Kyan, whom he considered his principal teacher, until 1939. Kyan also taught him about “Ki” (or “Chinkuchi” in Okinawan dialect).
• Chōjun Miyagi (宮城 長順): In 1919, at age 13, Shimabuku enrolled at Miyagi’s dojo, continuing until Miyagi’s death in 1953. He studied Seiunchin and Sanchin kata under Miyagi. From Miyagi, he also learned Tensho kata. His studies with Miyagi were interrupted by World War II but resumed after the war.
• Motobu Chōki (本部 朝基): In 1942, Shimabuku sought out Motobu, a renowned Shorin-ryū instructor known for his practical fighting skills and street fights. Shimabuku trained with Motobu for approximately one year.
• Shinken Taira (平 信賢): In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Shimabuku furthered his kobudō studies with Taira, who was a top student of Moden Yabiku. This training took place in Shimabuku’s dojo in Agena. He learned several bo and sai kata from Taira, including Hama Higa nu Tuifa, Shishi nu Kun, Chatan Yara nu Sai, and Urashi Bo.

Shimabuku was not entirely satisfied that either Shorin-ryū or Gōjū-ryū offered the “completeness” he sought in a martial art. Driven by this belief, he decided to combine what he considered the best aspects of both his teachers’ styles. In 1956, he officially formed the Isshin-ryū Karate-dō Association. The name Isshin-ryū, meaning “One Heart Style,” was adopted in 1954.

The emblem for Isshin-ryū, the Mizugami deity, was chosen by Tatsuo Shimabuku after he reportedly saw her in a vision. This deity, depicted as a half-sea-snake, half-woman, symbolises the strength of a snake and the quiet character of a woman, thus expressing the essence of his style.

Shimabuku introduced several modifications and unique elements to his style. These included:

• Sunsu Kata: A kata exclusive to Isshin-ryū, which he created by incorporating techniques he found useful and important from other kata.
• Naihanchi Kata: He modified this kata by reversing the initial movement to the left first, rather than the customary right. It is noted that the Tomari Naihanchi already starts this way.
• Kicking Techniques: Isshin-ryū features the practice of fast snap-kicks.
• Punching Techniques: The style incorporates the standing-fist punch, which Shimabuku believed to be faster than the corkscrew punch. His son, Kichiro Shimabuku, reportedly alternated between the two punches after Tatsuo’s death, unable to permanently decide which to adopt.
• Weapons Kata: Beyond the Tokumine no Kun and basic Sai learned from Kyan, he became a master of bo and sai weapons. He also created Chōtoku Kyan nu Sai and Kusanku Sai from Kyan’s sai techniques, naming the former in honour of his teacher. However, Kyan nu Sai was replaced by Kusanku Sai by 1960. His syllabus also included Urashi Bo, Shishi nu Kun, Chatan Yara nu Sai, and Hama Higa no Tuifa (the only tonfa kata in Isshin-ryū, which appears related to Uechi-ryū’s Seisan kata).
• “Thirty Basic Exercises”: This is a distinctive peculiarity of Isshin-ryū.

Beyond his martial arts pursuits, Tatsuo Shimabuku came from a farming family. He later moved to Chatan village, where he started a bakery and subsequently a tatami-mat workshop. His personal name was Shinkichi, but he adopted the professional karate name “Tatsuo,” meaning “Dragon Man,” after the launch of Isshin-ryū. He also earned the nickname “Sun nu su” from the mayor of Kyan village, a name derived from a dance created by his grandfather.

Shimabuku’s influence spread significantly, particularly in the United States. He made two trips to the United States to visit his many military students.

• His first trip was to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from September to late November 1964.
• His second trip in 1966 involved visits to Tacoma (Washington), Knoxville (Tennessee), Jersey City (New Jersey), and Cleveland (Ohio). During this second trip, he promoted Steve Armstrong, Harold Long, and Donald Nagle to Hachi-Dan (8th Degree), individuals who became instrumental in promoting and spreading Isshin-ryū karate in the United States. Shimabuku himself did not enjoy traveling far from home, so further visits representing him were carried out by his student and son-in-law, Angi Uezu.

His son, Kichiro Shimabuku, who started training under his father in elementary school, taught karate near the Camp Hansen Marine Base at Kin. Kichiro later became the president of the Isshin-ryū World Karate Association.

Tatsuo Shimabuku died from a stroke at his home in Agena village on May 30, 1975, at the age of 66. His death prompted his son, Kichiro, to close the old dojo and open a new one, changing the organisation’s name.

Despite his passing, Shimabuku left a distinct and widespread mark on the martial arts. Isshin-ryū has grown considerably, with approximately 336 branches worldwide, predominantly concentrated in the USA. In 1980, he was posthumously recognised as the first person inducted into the International Isshin-ryū Karate Association’s Isshin-ryū Hall of Fame.

While recognised for his contributions, Shimabuku faced some criticism. He is noted as the “least highly regarded of the founders of recognised ‘styles'” and his school received a good deal of criticism. Many of his students reportedly disliked the innovations he introduced after World War II and left. He was also known to frequently change his mind about what should be included in the syllabus, and “does not seem to have had the personal presence that enabled other innovators to carry their students with them”. One anecdote describes his son, Kichiro, as “short, plump and bald with an effeminate, squeaky voice,” which did not fit the common image of a karate teacher. However, his creation of Isshin-ryū is seen as a “time capsule of soft kata from the pre-Shuri-te period” due to Kyan’s influence.