master
Master or masters may refer to:
Ranks or titles
* Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans
*Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...
of
Shotokan
is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" throu ...
karate
(; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...
who founded the Japan Shotokan Karate Association in 1999 and is its Chief Instructor.Japan Shotokan Karate Association (c. 2009). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.Japan Shotokan Karate Association: ABE Keigo, 9th Dan, JSKA Chief Instructor (May 2009). Retrieved on March 27, 2010. He held the rank of 9th ''
dan
Dan or DAN may refer to:
People
* Dan (name), including a list of people with the name
** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark
* Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa
**Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoi ...
'' in karate, was a direct student of
Masatoshi Nakayama
was an internationally famous
Japanese master of Shotokan karate.DF_56_of_80">("S_...,_who_were_known_as_kenjutsu_instructors,_from_the_Nagano_Prefecture.html" ;"title="kenjutsu.html" ;"title="DF 56 of 80/nowiki>">DF 56 of 80">("S ..., who were k ...
(1913–1987),The Shotokan Way: Keigo Abe profile (c. 2007). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.Habersetzer, G., & Habersetzer, R. (2004): ''Encyclopédie technique, historique, biographique et culturelle des arts martiaux de l'Extrême-Orient'' (p. 23) . Paris: Amphora. () and was a senior instructor in the
Japan Karate Association
Japan Karate Association (日本 空手 協会; ''Nihon Karate Kyokai''; JKA; sometimes referred to simply as ''Kyokai'' 協会 in Japan) is one of the oldest global Shotokan karate organization in the world.
Origins
Gichin Funakoshi played a ma ...
.
Early life
Abe was born on October 28, 1938, in the town of Iyoshi,
Ehime Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Ehime Prefecture has a population of 1,342,011 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 5,676 km2 (2,191 sq mi). Ehime Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the northeast, Toku ...
(on the island of
Shikoku
is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...
), Japan. Abe's ancestors included
samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
;Casale, T. A. (2000) An interview with Keigo Abe Sensei Retrieved on March 27, 2010. he has told of an incident from the past where two thieves had entered his family home, saying, "My family killed them; the two graves are still standing near my house."Lowry, D. (1995): "The Demon of Karate." ''Black Belt'', 33(3):18. In 1953, aged 15 years, he began training in the martial arts of karate and
judo
is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...
. He initially began studying the Shito-ryu style of karate.
In 1956, Abe entered the
Nihon University
, abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice (Japan), Minister of Justice, in 1889. ...
in Tokyo, studying engineering, and graduated four years later. He began training at the ''
honbu
Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top ...
dojo
A is a hall or place for immersive learning or meditation. This is traditionally in the field of martial arts, but has been seen increasingly in other fields, such as meditation and software development. The term literally means "place of the ...
'' (headquarters training hall) of the
Japan Karate Association
Japan Karate Association (日本 空手 協会; ''Nihon Karate Kyokai''; JKA; sometimes referred to simply as ''Kyokai'' 協会 in Japan) is one of the oldest global Shotokan karate organization in the world.
Origins
Gichin Funakoshi played a ma ...
(JKA) in 1958 under
Masatoshi Nakayama
was an internationally famous
Japanese master of Shotokan karate.DF_56_of_80">("S_...,_who_were_known_as_kenjutsu_instructors,_from_the_Nagano_Prefecture.html" ;"title="kenjutsu.html" ;"title="DF 56 of 80/nowiki>">DF 56 of 80">("S ..., who were k ...
. In an interview in 2000, he said, "Nakayama Sensei was very serious. He trained us very hard and always encouraged us to not only train hard, but to intellectually study what we were training. He stressed understanding ourselves and being good human beings."
Karate career
In 1961, Abe fought a notable tournament match against
Keinosuke Enoeda
was a Japanese master of Shotokan karate. He graduated from the JKA instructors' training program in 1965,Cook, H. (2001): ''Shotokan Karate: A precise history''. Dragon Books. and was a long-serving member of the instructing team at JKA's ''honbu dojo''. Like other ''kenshusei'' (junior instructors) of the day, Abe would practice his techniques on the streets against local gangsters to improve his fighting skills. Through Nakayama, Abe worked on the
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
film '' You Only Live Twice'' (1967). Nakayama had been invited to appear in the movie, but was unable to do so due to prior commitments, and so recommended Abe instead.
Nakayama wrote that Abe's strengths were his backfist technique and his use of
distancing
Distancing is the appropriate selection of distance between oneself and a combatant throughout an encounter. Distancing is significant in an altercation as it determines both attack and defence options for all parties involved.Nakayama, M. (1978). ''Best Karate: Vol. 3 – Kumite 1''. Tokyo: Kodansha. () strengths also noted by others years later. He had an accomplished record as a karate tournament competitor, taking first place in the inaugural JKA National Championship, first place in the team competition at the 1973 JKA International Friendship Tournament, and first place in the second and third Japan Karatedo Federation National Championships (representing Tokyo).
Abe had a close working relationship with Nakayama, benefiting from his technical knowledge and assisting him with teaching.Robbins, E. (2007) New interview with Ruben Cernuda (January 6, 2007). Retrieved on March 27, 2010. He was one of several instructors who demonstrated techniques in Nakayama's books on karate.Nakayama, M. (1979): ''Best Karate: Vol. 4 – Kumite 2''. Tokyo: Kodansha. ()Nakayama, M. (1985): ''Best Karate: Vol. 9 – Bassai Sho, Kankū Sho, Chinte''. Tokyo: Kodansha. () In 1985, two years before Nakayama's death, Abe was appointed as Director of Qualifications in the JKA. After the division of the JKA in 1990, he became the Technical Director of the JKA (Matsuno faction). He was responsible for formulating the '' ippon shobu'' tournament rules, which are used by most Shotokan karate competitors today.
Later life
Abe resigned from the JKA (Matsuno faction) on January 31, 1999. On February 10, 1999, he formed his own organization, the Japan Shotokan Karate Association ( JSKA). When asked about his organization in 2000, he said, "Unlike most leaders of Karate organizations, I do not want my organization to grow very large. Very large organizations mean very large problems. I want a smaller organization where I can be an active part of everyone’s life and a high degree of quality can be maintained."
Regarding training in multiple martial arts, Abe has said, "In the old days the Bushi (warriors) would train in maybe 18 different arts out of battlefield necessity ... yes I would recommend cross-training." Apart from karate, he has also practiced iaido for more than 30 years, and also teaches this martial art. In his 60s, he was still training four or five mornings each week, involving karate practice and weight training, as well as teaching karate in Tokyo. Abe visited Australia in January 2008 and Cyprus in May 2009.Japan Shotokan Karate Association: Australia, January 2008 (2008). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.Japan Shotokan Karate Association: Cyprus, May 2009 (2009). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
In 2010, Abe is due to teach in several European countries, most notably at the 5th JSKA World Karate Championship in Portugal, as well as visiting Sweden, Estonia,India, Iran, Israel, Mexico, and the United States of America.Japan Shotokan Karate Association: Calendar (2010). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.5th JSKA World Karate Championship (2010). Retrieved on March 27, 2010.
See also
*
List of Shotokan organizations
This is a list of some of the larger Shotokan karate organizations and associations in order by year of establishment. International Japan Karate-Do Association lead by Shihan Sadasige Kato. Its headquarters is situated in Tokyo, Japan, though i ...