1. The First Karate Books
2. Karate Books in the Western World


The First Karate Books
by Graham Noble
[Reproduced with permission from Graham Noble]

Before this century almost nothing was written about karate. In 1905 Chomo Hanashiro put down some notes on “karate kumite”, and in 1908 Ankoh Itosu set out his ten precepts in a couple of pages, but neither of these short texts were intended for general publication. It was not until karate was introduced to Japan that the first karate books began to appear.

The first book was “Ryukyu Kempo Tode”, in 1922. [“Tode” was the pronunciation of the characters for “Chinese hand”, the old name for karate]. It was written by the Okinawan karate-ka and ex-school teacher Gichin Funakoshi, who had just settled in Japan a few months earlier. The 53 year old Funakoshi had made the decision to stay in Japan to teach “the noble art of karate”, and in that initial burst of enthusiasm, he worked hard to put together this little book of just over three hundred pages. As he later explained in “Karate-do, My Way of Life” [“Karate-do Ichiro”], the book was split into five main parts: What Karate Is; The Value of Karate; Karate Training and Teaching; The Organisation of Karate; and Fundamentals and Kata. The main part of the book [pages 63 to 272] was the description of the kata [forms], and apart from a couple of pages on makiwara [striking post] training and the illustration of eight simple throws, this formed the whole technical content of the book. Karate was still an over whelmingly kata based art.

There are some interesting aspects to this book. For example, the number and quality of the forewords are unusually impressive for an Okinawan school teacher who had been in Japan for only a few months. Marquis Hisamasa, the former governor of Okinawa, Admiral Yashiro, Vice Admiral Ogasawara, Count Shimpei Goto, Lieutenant General Oka, Admiral Kanna, Professor Higaonna, and Bakumonto Sueyoshi of the Okinawan Times, they all took the time to write a couple of pages for Funakoshi. Right from the start he had attracted the support of prominent people, much to the benefit of karate, counteracting, if only in a small way, the Japanese prejudice against the Okinawan people and their culture. The book also contained the first written history of karate, even then its origins were obscure and of course its technical content is now of historical importance itself. This, though, is better seen in Funakoshi's second book, “Rentan Goshin Tode-jutsu” [1925].

The reason is: photographs. “Ryukyu Kempo Tode”, was illustrated with drawings by a well known artist, Hoan Kosugi. But Kosugi, even if he was then a student of Funakoshi, could only have had a very limited experience of karate, and his simple drawings could not really express the physical qualities of the art. In the 1925 book, Funakoshi posed for all the photographs, and that gives us a very clear picture of his art at that time. As I have written before, in Fighting Arts International No. 60, that makes it my personal favourite of Funakoshi's books. It's noticeable that the founder of Shotokan Karate was not himself practising Shotokan at this point. His style was what we would now call a version of Okinawan Shorin-Ryu; and although he is nowhere near as polished as today's experts, his kata have quite a nice appearance and he seems comfortable with his technique.

“Rentan Goshin Tode-jutsu” was a revised version of “Ryukyu Kempo Tode”, and the technical content was exactly the same: a brief description of the makiwara and some miscellaneous throws, and then full descriptions of fifteen kata. Two of the pillars of modern karate, kihon [basics] and kumite [sparring drills], were absent, and in fact they were then only in their infancy in Japan. A training structure was not really evident in these books, and it's interesting that it was today's “Heian Nidan” [then “Pinan Shodan”] which was put first, and shown in full, in both books. It must have been some time after 1925 that Funakoshi decided that “Pinan Nidan” was, in fact, the more basic kata and began to teach it first. Thus “Pinan Nidan” became “Heian Shodan”, which later served as the model for the even more basic “Taikyoku”.
“Karate-do Kyohan”, which is generally considered Funakoshi's master work, came out in 1935, and here we can begin to see the Shotokan style then emerging, although not too much, because Gichin Funakoshi was again posing for the kata and at the age of sixty five, he hadn't absorbed too much of the new style himself. That would have best been demonstrated by the younger generation, such as his son Yoshitaka, or Shigeru Egami. Funakoshi, however, was a kind of mid-point between them and the old karate of Okinawa, and “Karate-do Kyohan” is quite an advance over his previous books. The main difference is the addition of 86 pages of kumite and self defence techniques, including defences against, knife, sword and staff, and from a seated position. This emphasis on the practical application of karate techniques, rather than just the simple repetition of kata, showed the influence of Japanese ideas of budo [martial way] over the period from Funakoshi's arrival.

During the war years, Funakoshi wrote “Karate Nyumon”, and although this was translated into English in 1988 and published with new illustrations.
Funakoshi's final book was the second edition of “Karate-do Kyohan”. Its publication date is given as Showa 33, or 1958, so it must have come out shortly after his death in 1957. How much Funakoshi was involved in its preparation we can't be sure, as he would have been almost ninety years old, but he did write a foreword, and one thing that comes across is his despondency at the state of post-war karate. It is not easy to discern why, but his values had been developed in another age and he was now feeling out of tune with the modern world.
Had karate really deteriorated? From today's perspective it's hard to see how. Maybe in terms of “spirit” something had been lost, and karate took a few years to get back on its feet after the devastation of the war, but there does not seem to be a significant drop in technical level. Shigeru Egami was the model for the 1958 edition of “Kyohan” and his technique looks fine, pretty much the Shotokan we have today.

Some changes had been made from the first edition. The kata “Taikyoku” and “Ten-no-kata” were added and the sections on self defence techniques were removed. There were a few pages on ippon kumite [one point sparring], and here we can see a definite change in emphasis, with the use of the feet as major weapons, and some kicks delivered at jodan [upper level]. The transformation from Funakoshi's original Okinawan “tode” of 1922 to Shotokan Karate had been made.

Funakoshi's books are unique in allowing us to see this process of development. This is not so for a teacher like Choki Motobu, for example, whose karate never attained the popularity of Funakoshi's Shotokan. When Motobu died he never left an organised style behind him and so the karate shown in his books was probably at the end point of its development. At least, it had proved right for him, and in that sense didn't need taking any further.
Choki Motobu was said, not least by Gichin Funakoshi, to be illiterate. Nonetheless, he somehow put together two books, and even if he had to dictate the material to a student, the books' sentiment and techniques seem all his.

The two books were “Okinawan Kempo Tode-jutsu. Kumite-hen” (1926) and “Watashi-no Tode-jutsu” (1932), both quite small volumes running to 58 and 100 pages respectively.
At that time karate practice was concentrated on kata. In contrast the study of applying techniques against an opponent in a fight [kumite] had been neglected. As Kenwa Mabuni noted, "A young man taught himself to fight independently, he had no sensei for this". So Choki Motobu was unusual among karate teachers in concentrating on kumite methods. Most of these were his own kumite, and he had a lot of experience in brawls to give them a realistic underpinning. If you compare Motobu's books with, say, the second edition of “Karate-do Kyohan” where attacks are made from long range, Motobu seems to operate much closer-in. His techniques are simple and effective, using the fist, elbow, knee, and low kicks, against the opponent's weak points. “Okinawa Kempo Tode Kumite-hen” did not include any kata, but in “Watashi-no Tode-jutsu” Motobu did demonstrate “Naihanchi”, the only kata he really seemed to practice, though he may have known others.

Choki Motobu's books are not very well known, but they do clarify some questions about his karate. For example, it has been suggested that he taught various techniques of Tui-te, the system of joint manipulations and locks that has recently come into fashion. This speculation is not supported by the books; in fact Motobu does not show one locking technique. He always hits, and that seems right considering his background of brawling in the “red light” districts of Okinawa, where experience would have taught him the benefits of simplicity and directness.
The other pioneers of Japanese karate, Kenwa Mabuni [Shito-Ryu] and Chojun Miyagi [Goju-Ryu], also wrote something on the art. Mabuni was the more prolific and wrote “Kempo Karate-do. Sepai-no-Kenkyu” (1934) and “Goshin Kempo Karate-do Nyumon” [with Genwa Nakasone, 1938]. “Sepai-no-Kenkyu”, as its name implies, was a study of “Sepai” kata. Mabuni demonstrated the kata himself and then showed its applications with Yasuhiro Konishi. This was probably the first book to analyse kata in this way, and it also contained the first publication of the intriguing old manuscript “Bubishi”. Chojun Miyagi didn't put down too much on paper, but in 1934 he did write his well known essay “Karate-do Gaisetsu”.

All of the aforementioned books were written by Okinawan teachers who had come to Japan. Japanese karate-ka were still learning the art and few had the background to put together a book. One exception was Nisaburo Miki who, along with Mizuho Takada, wrote “Kempo Gaisetsu” in 1930. Miki had joined the Tokyo University Karate Club in 1928, and a year or so later he had made the trip to Okinawa which resulted in “Kempo Gaisetsu”.

Miki was probably in Okinawa for only two to three months but he was able to visit some of the top karate experts, and did some good work, bringing back several kata which were then practised little [if at all] in Japan; kata such as “Passai-Sho”, “Chinte” and “Gojushiho”. These were included in his book, as well as other variations such as “Yabu-no-Gojushiho” [the Gojushiho of Master Kentsu Yabu], “Kyan-no-Passai” [the Passai of Master Chotoku Kyan], and Oshiro-no-Seisan [the Seisan of Master Oshiro]. This is quite important as Miki and Takada's book is the only contemporary documentation we have of these kata. Also included were three bo [staff] forms, the first treatment in print of Okinawan kobudo [weaponry] and a description of the various items of training equipment then in use.

The only criticism that could be levelled against “Kempo Gaisetsu”, as in Gichin Funakoshi's “Ryukyu Kempo Tode”, is that drawings are used rather than photographs, and sometimes there are only a few of those for each kata.

In my opinion, the best of all the pre-war books was Genwa Nakasone's “Karate-do Taikan”, published in 1938. This view is shared by two of today's leading karate historians: Shingo Ohgami describes it as "legendary", and for Pat McCarthy it's "the book of the era". It also has a rarity value as Ohgami Sensei believes the print run for the original edition was only 100 to 200 copies. This put the book beyond the reach of most enthusiasts, but fortunately a facsimile reprint was published in 1992 and this wonderful book became more generally available.
“Karate-do Taikan” was put together by Nakasone who, although not a karate expert himself, was eager to preserve Okinawan culture and influential enough to bring together several top karate-ka for the book. The sensei [teachers] and their contributions were:
· Chomo Hanashiro [1869-1945]: “Jion” kata.
· Shinpan Shiroma [1889-1954]: Karate attack and defence techniques.
· Kenwa Mabuni [1889-1952]: “Aragaki Sochin” kata.
· Chosin Chibana [1885-1969): “Matsumura Passai” kata.
· Hironori Ohtsuka [1892-1982): Knife defences.
· Shinken Taira [1897-1970]: The bo [staff].

In each case the detailed descriptions were illustrated by drawings, but there was also an extensive photographic section showing excerpts from the kata. Together with illustrations of the manuscripts for Itosu's “Ten Precepts”, and Hanashiro's “Karate Kumite”, these make “Karate-do Taikan” a work of great historical importance. This is a beautiful book.
Nothing of this quality was to be published for many years, and during the 1940s and early 1950s, few books came out. First there was a war, and after that the Japanese karate world needed a few years to pull itself together. From the mid 1950s, several books were published and although they were usually small, rather limited works, those written by veteran masters such as Kanken Toyama [1888-1966] and Yasuhiro Konishi [1893-1983] contained a lot of interesting material.

Since the 1960s the books have come in a flood, too many anyway to cover here. Some ones worth mentioning are:

“Ryukyu Kobudo Taikan” [1964] by Shinken Taira, the leading teacher of Okinawan weaponry;

“Karate-do” in two books [kata and kihon kumite] by Wado-Ryu founder Hironori Ohtsuka.

The two volume “Karate-do Shogi” [1977] by Hoshu Ikeda, which contains some nice historical material.

“Karate-do To Ryukyu Kobudo” by Katsumi Murakami [1973], a history book,

“Karate-do-no-Ayumi” (1984) by Tetsuhiro Hokama;

“Karate-no-Rekishi” [1987] by Tokumasu Miyagi, which includes an excellent karate bibliography.

Shosin Nagamine's book on past masters “Okinawa-no-Karate Sumo Meijin Den” [1986],
and numerous technical books, many of which are superbly produced. One nice work was Ryusho Sagakami's comprehensive book of kata “Karate-do Kata Taikan” [1978]. This shows thirty eight kata, all illustrated in great detail, and it is something of a mystery why it has never been published in English.

One other book which must have a mention is the amazing “Okinawa Karate-do: Sono Rekishi to Gihon”, by Kanei Uechi and Shigeru Takamiyagi, put out by the Uechi-Ryu group in Okinawa in 1977. This "fantastic book" [Shingo Ohgami], which weighs almost eleven pounds and runs to a total of over 1,300 pages, is actually composed of three separate parts. The first, which is a technical explanation of Uechi-Ryu, includes Master Kanei Uechi demonstrating the three main kata of the style. This section goes up to page 388 and then, when page numbering starts again, from pages one to 663 there is Shigeru Takamiyagi's history of Uechi-Ryu. Though much new material has since become available [especially on the style's roots in Fukien Province in China], Takamiyagi did a great job here. It's a real pity that this material has not been translated and published in English. The third part of the book, and probably just as important as the two others, is a directory of Okinawan teachers and their styles and association. Incidentally, this section has been raided for material by several authors, usually without acknowledgment.

This article first appeared in Fighting Arts International, No. 90, 1995 [pages 19 – 23]
Copyright © Graham Noble. 1995

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Karate Books in the Western World

The West Learns About the “Empty Hand”
by Graham Noble
[Reproduced with permission from Graham Noble]

The Western world did not become aware of Karate until the 1950s and even then, for quite a few years, anybody with an interest in this mysterious Martial Art would find information scarce.
The first English language book with a Karate slant was probably “What Is Self Defense? Kenpo Jiu-Jitsu” by James M. Mitose, published in Hawaii in 1953. This was over a decade after Mitose had begun teaching his style of “Kenpo” [with an “n”], and for the most part it was fairly typical for the time. Its portrayal of self defense techniques was similar to Kawashima and Welch's “Judo. Forty One Lessons in the Modern Science of Jiu-Jitsu”. Where it differed, however, was in its inclusion of striking and kicking techniques, and its description of makiwara [striking post] training.

Mitose was one of the most unusual characters in modern Martial Arts history. He styled himself the Reverend James Mitose, a respected member of the community who preached world peace and love of his fellow man, yet his stranger than fiction career eventually ended in San Quentin State Prison, serving a life sentence for “first degree murder, attempted murder, extortion, grand theft, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation of murder”.

As a teacher of Martial Arts, he claimed to be the twenty first generation headmaster of Kosho-ryu Kenpo, which he had learned from the age of five at the family temple in Japan. But no one has been able to identify such a style of Japanese Martial Art or locate the temple, and this is just one of several problems with Mitose's lineage. There is, for example, the intriguing question of his relationship to the Okinawan Karateman Choki Motobu, a contemporary of the famed Gichin Funakoshi. There is a portrait of Motobu in “What Is Self Defense”, and some writers have said that Mitose was actually Choki Motobu's nephew. Mitose may well have encouraged these stories himself.

In fact, the photo of Choki Motobu came from his book “My Method of Karate” [“Watashi-no Tode-jutsu”]. The section of James Mitose's book dealing with makiwara [striking post] training was almost a direct copy from Motobu, and Mitose also used translations from “Watashi-no Tode-jutsu” as teaching material. He also taught “Nai-hanchi”, which happened to be Motobu's favourite kata [form].
So there was a link there, but I do not think it came from any family tree. It may have gone back to an occasion when Choki Motobu actually visited Hawaii. According to Bruce Haines book, “Karate's History and Traditions”, Motobu was brought to Hawaii in the early 1930s to take part in contests against boxers and judokas, but for some reason was refused entry by the immigration authorities. The story seems to end there, but in fact Motobu stayed for maybe a month at the immigration headquarters at Ala Moana Boulevard, and he was able to receive some visitors. We know this because Thomas Miyashiro, one of the early pioneers of Karate in Hawaii, visited Motobu for instruction over a period of a month or so.

It has been claimed that James Mitose also met Motobu at this time and learned the basics of Karate or “Kempo Karate” as it was often then called, from him. If that is true, then a lot of things become clearer. This would have been where Mitose picked up “Nai-hanchi” kata, and possibly a copy of Choki Motobu's book, interestingly it was published the same year, 1932, as Motobu's Hawaiian trip. Mitose could then have taken the basic techniques of Karate, added them to Ju-jutsu techniques already practiced in Hawaii, and begun teaching his hybrid art of “Kenpo”.

I'm not saying that's what happened but it seems more plausible than the story of a young James Mitose training at a Japanese temple that no one has been able to identify in a style no-one has ever heard of. And it shouldn't affect anyone's view of modern Kenpo styles which can now stand on their own feet. The question of James Mitose's Martial Arts lineage is interesting though because he was the spiritual father of all the “Kenpo” now practised in America. “Kenpo Karate”, in fact, was one of the first versions of the art to be introduced to the States. It was already established in several forms in Hawaii in the early 1950s when Ed. Parker moved to mainland America and began teaching the style he had learned from William Chow, a one time Mitose student.

Ed Parker was a big name in American Martial Arts for over thirty years, until his death a few years ago. Over the years he wrote several books, the first of which was “Kenpo Karate. The Law of the Fist and the Empty Hand” in 1960. This was published by Iron Man Industries, which dealt primarily with weightlifting and bodybuilding material, so it wasn't actually too well known in Karate circles. It was an interesting book though, and whilst not as well organized as later instructional works, it did have a lot of technical content.

Parker's techniques generally utilised a series, or combination of strikes, rather than the “one punch knock out” style of traditional Karate, and that is still a characteristic of Kenpo styles. “Kenpo Karate” was mainly a book of self defense techniques, but this is also where Ed. Parker set out his creed: "I come to you with only Karate, empty hands. I have no weapons; but should I be forced to defend myself, my principals or my honor; should it be a matter of life or death, of right or wrong; then here are my weapons, Karate, my empty hands".

And he gave the usual “historical” story of Daruma teaching his student monks self defense techniques. According to Parker, Daruma told his monks that:
"War and killing are wrong, but so is it wrong not to be prepared to defend one's self. They have taken our weapons, but we have our bodies. We have no knives, so make every fist unto a mace. Without spears every arm must be unto a spear and every open hand a sword".
Strange words indeed for a man of religion, but many readers would have lapped it up.

For a few more years the Western world had to be content with fragments of information in the form of occasional articles in general interest magazines. Still, a few rare works were published and today their mixture of enthusiasm and [sometimes] naiveté give them a kind of rough charm.

James Y. Lee, for example, published works on Martial Arts from his home in Oakland, California. Besides putting out Bruce Lee's “Chinese Kung-fu, The Philosophical Art of Self Defense” and Wong Ark-Yuey's “Modern Kung-fu Karate”, he also published a couple of his own works: “Secret Fighting Arts of the Orient” and then “Kung Fu Karate: Iron Hand / Poison Hand Training” [in two volumes, Part A and Part B]. These books are products of their time and now look dated, but for some reason I have always liked them. It has something to do with their tone, which is modest, straight forward and realistic.
Karate was added to the titles because, at that time, no-one had even heard of Kung-fu. James Lee's two-volume set gave some background on the art, showed striking methods, simple self defense techniques and exercises for physical conditioning, but the main attraction of the books was their instruction in how to break a brick. As Lee wrote: "For some unknown reason the American public seems mesmerised by brick breaking feats. Actually this won't improve one's fighting ability one iota".

Actually, no one wanted to hear that; they just wanted to break a brick. That was a big deal in those simple days, and in fact to many people it seemed the very essence of Karate. Lee's books contained copies of letters from satisfied readers, ordinary guys who had trained hard in their homes and gained great satisfaction from their new found ability to break a brick. Their letters to James Lee were full of enthusiasm and gratitude.

Some small scale works may have preceded it, but the first real mainstream Karate book in English was [I think] Masutatsu Oyama's “What Is Karate?”, the first edition of which was published in 1958. In the late 1950s Oyama was struggling to get his style established, and he may have seen in this book an opportunity to promote his name outside Japan. That was part of a pattern, as around that time he was also featured in magazines such as Look, True, Strength and Health, and Muscular Development, getting much more foreign exposure than any other Karate expert in Japan.

“What Is Karate?” was also the first Karate book to be published in large format. It showed the fundamental striking and blocking techniques of the art, some basic kata [“'Pinan” 1-3, and “Saifa”], some examples of breaking, and kumite [sparring] and self defense techniques, including a section for women. Oyama showed many of the techniques himself and also included an autobiography which covered his early training, the time he spent in special training in the mountains, and how he fought a bull at Tateyama.
That first edition of “What Is Karate?” must have been quite popular because, a year later [1959], a revised edition was released and the number of pages was increased from 98 to 144. Extra material was added on kata [“Pinan” 3-5 and “Seiunchin”], kumite and self defense. Several other revisions took place over the next few years, until a completely new edition came out in 1966.

A year before that, Oyama's 368 page “This Is Karate” had been published. I think I was a green belt or something when I first came across this book, quite unexpectedly, and my eyes nearly popped out. I thought it was terrific, and even though money was short, it was a book I just had to have. The photography was superb and the large section on breaking technique would have impressed anyone. Whatever anyone thought of Mas. Oyama, there was a kind of grandeur about this book, and I still have a fondness for it.

“This Is Karate” was really a big advance over the early editions of “What Is Karate?”, but those books are important too. As I said, in those early editions, Mas. Oyama posed for many of the kumite and self defense techniques, whereas in the later versions these movements were re-photographed, using Kyokushinkai students. That makes the early editions more valuable in a way, but all the versions of “What Is Karate?” are interesting for their portrait of early Kyokushinkai. Pioneer instructors are there, such as Eiji Yasuda [who posed for many of the kata], and you can also spot the young Steve Arneil, Peter Urban, and Shigeru Oyama in some shots.

“What Is Karate?” is also important because of the extensive autobiographical sections, which included Oyama's account of his 1952 American tour. Some critics felt that this made the book little more than a personal scrapbook. Perhaps there's some truth in this, but these sections also gave the book its particular flavour and are a prime historical record of Oyama's early career. They also give a picture of a 1950s Karate expert that is interesting and attractive.

A similar, but more extensive exercise in Karate autobiography came in 1968 with Gogen Yamaguchi's “Karate: Goju-Ryu by the Cat”. Back in 1966 Yamaguchi had published “Goju-no-Ibuki”, a little 248 page soft back, and it was this which was translated and expanded. It was a collector's item from the day it was published.

This was not a technical work, but there were many pages of Karate technique, usually shown by Yamaguchi [“The Cat”] himself, and the book was well illustrated throughout with photographs of Goju-kai clubs and instructors. The main body of the text was Yamaguchi's life-story and he wrote of his early training in Karate, his adventures as an official in the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo [Manchuria], how he was forced to use his Karate many times, and how he fought a life-or-death match with the Chinese Master Ryu Kaku-rei - of his harsh imprisonment as a prisoner of war in Mongolia, and of his return to Japan, when an attempt at seppuku [hara-kiri] [ritual suicide] led to a divine revelation and a decision to dedicate his life to Karate teaching. It all seemed to confirm the glamorous image he then had.
It's a little surprising, but over the years few Karate autobiographies have been published. There is a small kind of sub-genre among ex-Kyokushinkai men which is worth a mention. Tadashi Nakamura's “The Human Face of Karate” is fascinating, and Joki Ninomiya's “My Journey in Karate” is a nice book too. Both men come over as honest and likeable. Hideyuki Ashihara, Ninomiya's sensei and the founder of Ashihara Karate, has also written his autobiography, but unfortunately this has not been translated into English.

Yamaguchi and Oyama were already legendary figures to Western Karate-ka in the early 1960s. Both masters featured in Jay Gluck's “Zen Combat” [1962], a minor classic which, because of its romantic overview of Japanese Martial Arts, is still good to read. Gluck knew Mas. Oyama quite well, and so he is well represented him in the first part of the book. In fact, the Oyama part of the book was simply a recycling of an article Gluck had written for True magazine back in 1957. At that time, Mas. Oyama had been associated with Gogen Yamaguchi, and as a matter of interest that is how Jay Gluck made his visit to the Yamaguchi dojo described in “Zen Combat”.

The Karate part of the book was interesting enough, but Gluck also covered a lot of other Martial Arts, including the exploits of the Ninja [one of the first, if not the first, reference in English], and the [supposedly] supernatural feats of Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba. There was a lot of exaggeration, but in those days the Eastern Martial Arts must really have seemed wonderful to “Zen Combat” readers. Even today the book retains much of its charm.

The same applies to Peter Urban's “Karate Dojo”, which came out in 1967. This was a small book about Karate's philosophy and history, and although most of that history was wrong, Choki Motobu, for example, was described as "A giant of seven foot four inches", whereas actually he wasn't much over five feet, and most of the stories far fetched, Urban wrote with an enthusiasm and love of the art which was infectious. He was a romantic who could write lines such as "There are limits to how far a fighter can go, but there are no limits to how far a good Karate man can go!". This made for a really nice read, and so despite the inaccuracies, “Karate Dojo” is one of the few Karate books I have kept in my collection.
Getting back to technical works, these were really thin on the ground for some years. An early attempt to cater for the demand was “The Manual of Karate” by E. J. Harrison [1959]. Actually, this was a translation of the Japanese book “Karate-do Nyumon” [“Introduction to Karate”] by Reikichi Oya. Harrison was one of the real veterans of Judo, with many books on that art to his credit, but he had no experience of Karate and that was the problem. His translation was unclear and his old fashioned style of writing did not help either. In addition, the book was illustrated by only a limited number of drawings, which failed to transmit the nature of Karate technique. “The Manual of Karate” was an honest attempt to satisfy a demand, but I do not think it worked.

What was still needed was a good instructional work on the art. It came in 1961 with “Karate. The Art of Empty Hand Fighting”, and it was just about all you could have asked for.
The authors were Hidetaka Nishiyama and Richard C. Brown. Nishiyama was one of the top instructors in the Japan Karate Association, but who was Brown? After years of reading Martial Arts books and magazines, I am none-the-wiser. In fact, I have never come across a single reference to Richard C. Brown, yet he must have made a significant contribution to the book to be given co-author status. The technical knowledge would have been Nishiyama's, but Brown could have had input with the book's organization, presentation and, of course, English text.

At any rate, the two authors hit the right formula at their first attempt. The book was comprehensive [particularly for 1961] but easy to follow. Instruction was split into explanations of Karate techniques, kata and kumite, and it was helped greatly by the extensive use of sequence photographs. The photography was excellent and the top instructors of the Japan Karate Association demonstrated all the techniques: Teruyuki Okazaki, Hirokazu Kanazawa and Nishiyama himself.

“Karate. The Art of Empty Hand Fighting” was a breakthrough book which immediately set a new standard for Karate instructional texts. And whereas other books from that era have dated badly, it is still in print and still being used over thirty years after its original publication.

In 1962 came Henri Plee's “Karate by Pictures”, and here you could begin to get an idea of the art. Plee, the pioneer of French and European Karate, did his best to give an introduction to its methods, and he wrote well. Although technically the book now looks rudimentary, it is still quite nice to read. Rather than just repeat the orthodoxies of Karate in a dry, textbook manner, Plee tried to interpret the idea of Karate for a Western readership, and he wrote with a feeling for the art. His second book in English, “ Karate. Beginner to Black Belt” [1967] was a much improved work, which extended the ideas of “Karate by Pictures” and was well illustrated by both old and new photographs. It was here that I first saw photographs of Yoshitaka Funakoshi, the “forgotten genius” of Shotokan, and my interest in him was kindled. “Beginner to Black Belt” is still one of my favourite Karate books.

Over that thirty year period, book has followed book, hundreds of them! And with the proliferation of magazines and journals it has become almost impossible to keep on top of Martial Arts literature. From the 1980s there has also been the increasing use of video, and although Karate books will always find a readership, some instructors are now by passing the written word altogether to concentrate on video tape as their teaching medium.

Acknowledgments and Notes
The early Karate books are very difficult to obtain, and without the help of other enthusiasts, I could never have obtained copies or photocopies. So thanks to: Pat McCarthy, Harry Cook, Mitsusuke Harada, Shingo Ohgami, Henri Plee and John Sparkes.

Some of the early Japanese books have been reprinted. Funakoshi's “Ryukyu Kempo Karate [Tode]” came out last year, and modern reprints have also been made of his 1935 “Karate-do Kyohan” as well as Motobu's two books, and Nakasone's “Karate-do Taikan”.

Motobu's “Okinawan Karate Kumite-hen” was printed in an English language edition some years back [1977] by Ryukyu Imports of Olathe, Kansas, U.S.A. This was in the form of a booklet and unfortunately it was taken from a poor photocopy of the original, which made the illustrations difficult to follow. However, the translation was pretty complete and this little book is worth having.

A translation of Funakoshi's 1925 “Rentan Goshin Karate [Tode]-Jutsu” was published in Canada, and in the last few years there have been reprints of Mitose's “What Is Self Defense?” and one book of James Y. Lee's, “Kung Fu Karate”. Yamaguchi's “Karate: Goju-Ryu by The Cat” has also been republished by the Goju-Kai.

This article first appeared in Fighting Arts International, No. 93, 1997 [pages 42 – 48]
Copyright © Graham Noble. 1995

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