Real Karate: What is It?

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I am hearing and reading this in a variety of places these last few months or so and wonder what it means to those in the karate communities. Define "Real Karate?" 

Before I answer this for myself, I do understand what most mean when they say practical karate because when I think of practical I consider it to be the karate used in self-protection for self-defense. I also understand, generally, what they mean when they say, "traditional karate," because when I think of traditional karate I think of the culture and concept of the Okinawan folks who created, somewhat, and passed down their karate to us. 

That brings us back to what it really means to say, "real karate," because defining real makes it all problematic and often leaves it up to the mind of the reader and how they define real and that doesn't peg down the answer all that well. 

I also consider it to be a bit of misdirection in the effort to sell, convince and promote some sort of agenda of the user often in the arena of economics, or commercialism, or just plain on ego and money. I am getting ahead, lets try to define, "Real Karate." 

I admit freely that on initial reading I assumed they were trying to tie some aspect of karate to being a direct unchanged original teachings of karate of old Okinawa. It goes to show that our minds/brains work in mysterious and strange ways as to biases and cognizant dissonances and it takes a bit of effort to resist that and seek out true, factual and valid answers to ensure proper validation of things karate. 

Even in the below notes, a real dojo is called a "Dentou karate dojo or Real Karate Dojo." Dentou [伝統] translated into English as, "tradition; convention; training hall." 

Dentou Karate:

1. members willing to train for decades to achieve standards equal to the past;
2. grading will be organized from the top down, not bottom up;
3. no bell curve concepts allowed; 
4. grades must be standardized and not awarded as gifts or sold for profit;
5. must not actively seek publication of achievements; 
6. must be distinctly segregated from other forms of karate such as sport.

This is the published version in the article referenced in the notes below as the machi-karate dojo or the Dentou karate dojo. 

Real: Adjective. real, actual, and true mean agreeing with known facts. real is used when a thing is what it appears to be. This is a real diamond. actually means that someone or something does or did occur or exist.

It appears that defining real is much easier than traditional or practical karate because - karate is real, it is practiced all over the world and it is directly and indirectly from the origins of Okinawan karate even if modified over the decades by the many different cultural belief influences such as American or European, etc.

This is a perfect example of how such terminologies can inadvertently misdirect, especially the uninitiated, one to think it is more than what it really is and that can apply to traditional as well as practical. 

NOTES

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Machi Dojo [町道場] translated to English to mean, "karate school situated in a town; immediate neighborhood training hall." In the traditional origins of Okinawan karate dojo involved a sensei who taught students in the garden of their home or indoors if weather was bad resulting in one or two students receiving the entire attention of sensei so that sensei could tailor training and practice toward  the students physical abilities, natural skills, and temperaments. Machi dojo are an extension of the backyard dojo where a roof is added and a certain degree of management was implemented to handle a greater number of students. 

Juku Dojo [塾道場] karate dojo closed to the general public where membership was by invitation only from sensei or the recommendation of an existing student - exclusive membership. 

Reference Fighting Arts article "Machi Dojo: The Past and Future of Authentic Okinawan Karate," by CFA contributors. 

For reference and sources and professionals go here: Bibliography (Click the link)