8. Funakoshi Gigo

Funakoshi Gigo
The Creator of Modern Japanese Karate Techniques

Funakoshi Gigo (or Funakoshi Yoshitaka) was the third son of Funakoshi Gichin and is widely credited with developing the modern karate style.

At the tender age of 7, he was diagnosed to be affected by Tuberculosis, a deadly illness before the advent of special antibiotics, and the doctors estimated he would not live beyond 20 years of age. Yoshitaka seems to have decided, due in part to this, to train with all his energy, to attain the highest level possible in the art of Karate, before losing the battle against death. Even though he died young, before becoming 40 (spring 1945) Gigo Funakoshi had a far-reaching effect on modern Karate.

Whereas his father was responsible for transforming karate from a mere fighting technique to a philosophical martial way (way of life), Gigo was in charge of developing, backed up by his father and helped by other important martial artists, a karate technique that definitively separated Japanese Karate-do from the local Okinawan art, giving it a completely different and at the same time notoriously Japanese flavor.


What did Gigo Change in Original Okinawan style?

-The high stances were replaced with low, forced stances; this included a perpendicular lower leg with respect to the ground, the knee over the big toe. The low stances make the techniques more powerful and strengthen the leg muscle.

-He created Fudo-Dachi (immovable stance).

-He discovered new leg techniques, Mawashi-Geri, Yoko-Geri kekomi, Yoko-Geri- Keage, Fumikomi, Ura-Mawashi-Geri and Ushiro-Geri. The leg techniques were performed with a much higher knee-lift than in Okinawan styles and the use of the hips emphasized and kick above the groin. The ancient art of Tode emphasized only the use and development of the upper extremities.

-He used the turning of the torso to a half-facing position (Hanmi) when blocking and thrusting the rear leg and twisting the hips when performing the counterattack, the idea being to deliver the attack with the whole of the body.

-Whereas Funakoshi placed most of the emphasis on kata, Gigo developed the fighting techniques and training (between 1930-1935). First of all he created the Gohon Kumite (five-step sparring), a system very much like Kendo, an art that Gigo also practiced and studied under the last Great Master, Hakudo Nakayama, from whom he obtained valuable inspiration for the future karate developments. In 1933 he established the Kihon Ippon Kumite (one-step sparring) followed by Jiyu Ippon Kumite (one-step free sparring), just like Kihon Ippon Kumite but in movement (Gigo was very fond of this form of kumite), they all inspired the kata “Ten no Kata”. This process ended with Jiyu Kumite (free sparring), in 1935.

The training sessions with Gigo were very exhausting, during these, he, expected his students to give twice as much the energy they would put in a real confrontation, thus they would be sure to be prepared for the actual situation if it were ever to arise.