LIVIO LIVERANI:IMPRESSION FROM HIS RECENT TRAINING-JOURNEY TO OKINAWA
OKINAWA MON AMOUR…
“where one’s is not never alone and where some shinden* is always close to you”
* Protecting God (metaphoric)
...It could seem rhetorical or the title it of a film, but I can guarantee that who betake oneself there with a right spirit, and that is with a great humility and availability, he will not be able to never forget the stimulatings perceived feelings of well-being entering deeply in tune with the atmosphere.
All that is without doubt more comprehensible if it takes at first into consideration the suffered history from this people (pitiless wars at the first place, then from the political-administrative neglect from part of the main island) that, with a great heart, in time it has known to re-establish right equilibriums, calmer rhytms of life regarding the rest of Japan, but above all to exalt one greater wealth of human relationships.
The reason wonders to us sometimes wherefore the Ryu Kyu Islands, in which hundreds of Japanese from the main island reach every day, apart from Taiwan, China and neighbouring regions, they live mostly on tourism.
In Okinawa I have breathed and loved an atmosphere to say the least familiar, in which one feels like brothers and tightened relatives to us, and where the time can resolve whichever problem, on condition that the spiritual attitude is that right one. Here the martial art means above all to share the own existence with the others, with harmony, as in the dojo as outside. And it is just this friendship understanding, generosity, sympathy and sharing that helps to overcome every limit.
With the same moral attitudes of inborn patience and great generosity they have been received to my arrival to the Naha airport during my recent stay in this wonderful island. It has indeed moving to meet again years later sensei Minoru with his sweet wife, sensei Noriko and their family, the likeable sensei Nakasone, than playfully it uses always towards me the phrase “you are the best”, and most generous the sensei Itokazu, than me it has always followed personally like a father.
After a magnificent supper offered in honor of my arrival and the customary christmas gift exchange, in the course of which they come offered me some bottles of awamori and local cakies, the transcription of my training programs is begun, than to me they will see engaged day by day from a part to the Hombu Dojo of Higa family, from the other between the far hills of Gushikawa, to the Hombu Dojo of the sensei Kotaro and Nakasone, for the intense and profitable training in Kobudo, than they will be revealed most precious.
After tiring hours of intercity bus, reached the gloomy station of Gushikawa I meet the sensei Kotaro, in karate-gi uniform and even on foot knots, than receive me nearly like a prodigal son, in order to accompany me to its old, humble house placed between grass-land and secular trees, with enclosured the dojo; the most numerous children, some belt brown, most likeable, all with always smiling that of it he exalts still more the splendid almonds-eyed, welcome to me with open arms, dedicating in chorus some phrases to me of welcome in okinawan language. All moving and indeed stupefied, much to ask to me if perhaps my authentic family were not just this!
Without doubt in a familiar atmosphere nobody else also the harder training becomes simple, above all effective. I think that not is place better than these far and peaceful hills in order to widen just the technical and spiritual barrel; here, with careful introspection one’s realize more than ever that it is always the way to growing and learn.
In the dojo of sensei Kotaro, beyond under consideration of several personal defence ‘s techinques, they are remarkable importance the kata of kobudo with the relative one, and said a lot detailed bunkai, as well as that one after the other the techniques are performed on desengaged kumite-kobudo.
In the dojo of the Higa family the training is begun with a series of makiwara, chisi and taketaba for approximately thirty minuteren, in order to pass subsequently to as many series of oi-zuki, ren-zuki and sambon-zuki; therefore, under the careful and scrupulous valuation of sensei Minoru, the students practice a succession of kihon and various katas. The training can be debilitating, sometimes coming to the end of one ’s endurance, but their hardness and their usefullness come however sweetened from the warmth, the good-will and above all from an attitude of great patience of the great masters-sensei, let alone from the sympathy and the generosity of all practicing.
Moreover it is the custom, to the end of the training, to assemble together in order to eat typical plates, drink of the good local beer and, why not, to have one’s self a drink of sake or awamori, finishing so well in good familiarity the day or in the dojo same or near the master-sensei ‘s family. All these social usages come carried out with simplicity and unpretentiousness, fostering friendship and a greater spiritual enrichment.
Nearby the most likeable family of sensei Nakasone (really six sons! All witty and always smiling) I have taste for the first time the “soba”, a kind of soup made up with vegetables and pork. Then, what a lot stuffed myself at sensei Minoru ‘s home with sushi, sashimi and, inevitablement, awamori and sake, the whole supplied from choral songs with the accompaniment of the mouth-organ.
It is pointed out that, above all for a great master, as in the dojo than in the public schools of all the classes, the unaffected relationsphips with the own students play a role a lot important in its experience of life, like between father and son. On the contrary to how much happens in the West, in fact, for the students the master, anyone it is, is like a father, the one who that he has the wisdom, than guide on the right way, than which is respected and in has full trust.
As a result of my experiences I can assert that, contrarily to the always new modern developments of many martial arts in the world, the Hombu Dojo of the Shorin-Ryu Kyudokan, and above all to the Hombu Dojo of the RyuKyu Kobudo RyuKonKai it is still breathed the ancient air and the rigorously confidential trainings of the discipline of these arts. In a transcendental atmosphere, where the lucky students can wear who the karate-gi, who the pedal-pushers, who simply in bare-back, one’s forget the own ranks and just the classe, more and more unrestrained use above all in the West, meant to the only purpose of live wisely in brotherhood, esteem and friendship.
Principally in Gushikawa, a hill-country where many peasants till the land with the own arms, the ancient dojo one constructed with a wood that persist and hold out in the times continues to give the ancient learning: in fact, it can not only be learned as the founders practiced the kata one with the pertinent bunkai, but above all what they thought about them. I undoubtedly think such important acquaintance for whichever practicing, for the knowledge on the way that it is covering, but above all in order not to not only lose an historical patrimony of great cultural value.
Just to the personages of the sensei Kotaro and Nakasone, with the mentalities many conservatives, one’s can be reached in order to obtain much matter to us of meditation. It can make to think, in fact, the phrase brought back at the beginning of the first one chapter of the official program of Kobudo, making part also of the Okinawan regular prospectus of a course of study: “Our Ryu Kon Kai ‘s purpose is to bring up youths’ health and capable people to contribute to the society as well as to spread orthodox Kobudo ‘s development with own traditional teaching methods to improve the human relationships”.
Still more, however, they have made me to reflect the words of a great master-sensei, with venerable age of ninety years, one of the first students of the late Chibana Sensei, that I had gone to meat in occasion of the Christmas festivity. He himself, of which for respect and his own will I’ll not report the name neither I’ll publish pictures, teaching to me in its old house some bunkai of the kata Gojushiho, said me that at the moment he was still studying some bases of such procedures.
Like already said, he lives in a simplest and ancient house, from the structures of wood, between first hills of the Naha province, and in its modest courtyard still he is trained also to the practical one of the makiwara made by two stakes of wood drived into the ground. Even though of a traditional mentality much and undwilling one, it has astonished its hospitality to me, for which as the wife than the daughter continually offered to me good plain cooking specialties, with local beer and awamori.
To sum up, after this magnificent experience, as learned from the ancient and jealous instructions I purpose to hand on this glorious inheritance, that it continues to exist unblemished as the ancient founders have left us, with respect, humility, unconditioned acceptance, under the guide of sensei Oscar Higa loved one, the World-Wide Technical Director, my first spiritual master.
