Traditional Karate, Really?

Westerners tend to “Think” they are training and practicing a “Traditional/Classical” martial art but are they? Lets narrow it down to the Okinawan system of karate, or Ti (pronounced Tee). Today’s Okinawan karate has many aspects that are not original to the Okinawan indigenous form of “Ti.” 

First, the Okinawan’s have embraced many of the aspects now in karate from the Japanese changes in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, i.e. the dan-i system, the karate uniform as adopted from the Judo uniforms, etc. The language is also a part of Okinawa now, i.e. Japanese over Uchinaguchi/Hogen dialects and the form and function of karate has been expanded using the “Educational Versions” instituted for the betterment of the Japanese efforts up to and into World War II. 

So, just how much of the Okinawan karate is actually Okinawan karate. It seems to me more of a blend of Japanese, Chinese and Okinawan influences than Okinawan in a traditional way regarding the actual cultural societal influences before the 1500’s or so. 

When you look to today’s Okinawan karate community you begin to see influences from the westerners who were stationed there in the fifties, sixties and all the way up to today. I would venture to say that many of those influences are actually indicative of today’s Okinawan karate and that the only thing that Okinawa can claim exclusively is the birth of karate, while actually given credit to Funakoshi Sensei while in Japan, provided the framework that led to modern karate whether it be Japanese, Okinawan, Western or European. 

I understand Okinawa wanting to get credit for and become the father of modern karate as they well should since karate, even seen in its many forms and functions today, is actually the grandchild of the Okinawan empty handed Ti. It kind of ends there when you begin to understand all the influences especially in the 1600’s and finally at the end of the 1800’s and on into the early 1900’s. 

True karate from its source of Ti disappeared, mostly, when it was implemented through the water down effort to the educational version meant for young children, due to the devastation of the World War. All attempts today to regain the true essence of “TI” are from the base of the educational karate since most, if not all, Ti masters died during the war or just before as they aged. 

In a nutshell, from my perceptions and perspective, true Okinawan Traditional karate does not exist. It is a combination of many influences starting with China, the Japan as well as other Asian influences including Korea. It seems that the empty handed martial arts of the area, Asia, are a collection of many systems to individual cultural systems of the receiving country or nation or society or culture, i.e. Japan, Okinawa, Korea, China, etc. It is a bit like the good ole USA, we are unique in our own way but are we not truly a mixture of many cultures and belief systems that make us what we are?