A Brief History 

 

The Yuishinkai Karate system was developed around four main influences:

 

 

• Seiko Fujita (1898-1966)
  Koga Ninjitsu

• Yasuhiro Konishi (1893- 1982)
  Ryobu Kai Karate Jutsu

• Shinken Taira (1898-1970)
  Ryukyu Kobujutsu

• Gozo Shioda (1915- 1994)
  Ueshiba Aikido

 

Yuishinkai Karate Jutsu was created by Hanshi Motokatsu Inoue in 1948. The name originated from Seiko Fujita (1898-1966) the last true Ninja and headmaster of the Koga Ninjitsu Ryu. He was the watchful guardian of Motokatsu Inoue from childhood.

 

Seiko Fujita gave Inoue Sensei permission in 1948 to open a dojo in Shimizu City and named the style, also creating the calligraphy, which forms the mon (emblem or badge) denoting the style.

 

Yuishinkai is interpreted as “in the pursuit of the understanding of Budo, only the heart, spirit and mind exist.”

 

In addition to the aforementioned, Inoue Sensei trained with Choki Motobu, a close friend of Yasuhiro Konishi, renowned for his Kumite and study of Naihanchi Kata. 

 

This Yuishin Kai open hand system forms part of the Ryukyu Kobujutsu approach and way of thinking in Bujutsu (weapon training)  This unique approach integrates the open hand training & weapon training into one holistic system.  Each one complimenting the other. 

 

The overlaps and affinities are many, and it was Sensei Inoue’s vision that both are necessary and are as one and should be studied in conjunction with each other to fully understand this and become the complete approach in fighting and authentic Bujutsu

The primary influence for Sensei Inoue in the creation of Yuishin Kai karate was Yasuhiro Konishi (1893-1982) the founder of Ryobu Kai and a close friend of both Seiko Fujita and Shinken Taira. Konishi was a energetic man and studied his Karate mainly from Gichin Funakoshi (Nihon Karate Kyokai) in Tokyo and Kenwa Mabuni (Shito Ryu) in Osaka.

 

As well as his passion for kata, he had a fondness for Kumite, which he displayed undiminished into his old age.

 

Konishi liked to combine blocking with punching and kicking simultaneously, and this can be found much in the Yuishin Kai syllabus. He felt Karate too linear and Aikido too circular and his training drills reflect much the principles of Nan Ban Sato Ryu.

 

YuishinKai also incorporates many elements of Sensei Shioda’s Aikido. Fujita felt his approach to be practical and relevant to actual applications and influenced the integration into the YuishinKai approach. The system follows the three principles of Japanese Bujutsu; Kihon, Kata, and Kumite. It systematically teaches the building blocks of Waza (technique), followed by the usage approach of Genri (principles). This builds the necessity of Heiho (strategy) and forms the character for Seishin (spirit) and Kokoro (heart)