Aikiwaza History

Rev. Karl Bensonstudied Shotokan Karate Do with Sensei Yamamotto -5th Dan in 1964, at the central YMCA in Philadelphia. was awarded Shodan rank after four years of study.Rev. Benson then studied Shotokan Karate-Jitsu under Sensei Lee while serving in the U.S. Air force in Taiwan in 1970 earning Nidan rank and Shodan in Katanna. While in Taiwan Rev. Benson also studied Kodokan Judo and Daito Ryu AikiJujutsu. Rev. Benson earned Shodan rank in Daito Ryu Aikijujutsu and Nidan rank in Kodokan Judo under the instruction of Sensei Cheing who was a 6th Dan in Judo and a 5th Dan in Aikijujutsu. After being discharged from the U.S. Air Force Rev. Benson attended a number of Christian schools and institutions. Later Rev. Benson became a Philadelphia Police Officer and taught Martial Arts at Third Christian church and at the Salvation Army. Rev. Benson is now serving as the Senior Minister of the Second Pilgram Baptist Church here in Philadelphia. Rev. Benson is currently teaching martial arts in a number of locations here in Philadelphia and has been doing so for more than twenty years.

Shotokan History

Shotokan is a traditional Japanese martial art. It is a system of offensive and defensive techniques utilizing the various parts of the body as weapons and shields. The arms and legs are used for this purpose. The training is broken up into 3 categories : - Kihon (training without a partner) - Kata (it is a set of offensive and defensive movements executed as a set) - Kumite (Kumite is sparring and there are several levels of difficulty associated with it) The Birth Place of Karate was the Island of Okinawa which is to be found in the Ryeukyu Islands Between the northern coast of Japan and the southern coast of China. Karate emerged after 1372 when relations between China And Okinawa were instituted. During the 15th & 16th century Karate was driven underground because of the Islands being run by war Lords who would not tolerate it's teachings and practice. At this time all weapons were confiscated which achieved two things. Firstly Karate became a deadly defensive system against an armed or unarmed adversary and secondly the Okinawan farmers learnt to use blunt farm implements as deadly weapons. The most common of these were the Bo, Jo, Nunchacku, Tonfa and Sai. The Founder of Shotokan was master Gichin Funakshi. He was a Teacher, Philosopher and Poet. He would sign his poetry Shoto and it is from this that the word Shotokan arose. The name made up using Shoto, meaning waving pines because his home was situated on the edge of a pine forest, and the word Kan meaning house or school. Thus Shotokan means the house or school of the waving pines, but today is interpreted as the school or method of Funakoshi. In 1936 the first Shotokan was established outside Okinawa in Tokyo which Eventually led to the Japanese Karate Association in 1955 with Funakoshi as Chief Instructor. He remained There until April of 1957 when he died at the age of 88.

Judo History

Judo literally translates as " the gentle way". It is a system of unarmed combat, now primarily a sport. Sporting judo rules are complex; the objective is to throw the opponent cleanly, or pin him, or master him by applying pressure to arm joints or to the neck. Techniques are generally intended to turn an opponent's force to one's own advantage rather than to oppose it directly. A ritual of courtesy in practice is intended to promote an attitude of calm readiness and confidence. The usual costume, known as judogi, is a loose jacket and trousers of strong white cloth. White belts are worn by novices and black by masters, with intermediate grades denoted by other colours. Judo was founded in 1882 by Dr. Jigoro Kano. Kano formulated Judo from styles of Jujutsu that he had studied. In Japan at this time many changes in society were occuring because of western influences. A major change was the overthrow of the Shogun and the reinstatement of the emperor in what is known as the Meiji restoration. One manifestation of this change was the decline of the warrior class known as the samurai or bugei. This led to a decline in Jujutsu styles whose main function was martial. In this atmosphere, Kano (and others of other martial arts), changed the emphasis from purely physical to spiritual endeavors. Kano meant Judo to be both physical training as well as a path towards building good moral character and spirituality. Part of Kano's vision for Judo was for it to be a guide in all aspects of life and lead to greater harmony. This is reflected in one saying from Judo, "maximum efficiency with minimum effort for the mutual welfare and benefit of all".

Aikijutsu History

The Daito-ryu scrolls issued by Takeda Sokaku (beginning just before the turn of the century) include a lineage that traces the art back to the Emperor Seiwa, who, legend has it, won his throne when his sumo champion defeated his elder brother's champion. The actual founder of the art is said to have been Seiwa's descendant Shinra Saburo Minamoto no Yoshimitsu [1045-1127], who lived in a mansion known as Daito, hence the name Daito-ryu. The art was then handed down through his descendants, the Takeda family of Kai Province (modern-day Yamanashi Prefecture), until that family's destruction five years after the fall of the its most famous member, general Takeda Shingen, in 1573. A distant relative of Shingen's, Kunitsugu, made his way to Aizu in 1644, where he was taken on as a karo (senior councilor) under the Aizu lord Hoshina Masayuki [1611-1673], son of the second Tokugawa shogun, Hidetada. Daito-ryu tradition asserts that Kunitsugu taught his family's secret techniques to his lord Masayuki, who combined them with the principles of court etiquette that he had learned as oshikiuchi, into a system of self-defense for use within the palace. This amalgamation, together with the Itto-ryu Hoshina later studied, became the basis for the martial arts training of the succeeding lords of the Aizu clan, as well as for its highest ranking members. The original Takeda family art continued to be passed down in secret within the family itself, eventually to Sokaku's grandfather, Soemon, where the earliest written lineages in Sokaku's mokuroku end. Presumably, however, Soemon then taught Sokichi, who in turn taught his own son, Sokaku.