IOGKF International Magazine April | Page 31

but karate has never been about being a good fighter – kata helps you get stronger and gentler. TRANING METHODS Oshiro Sensei started karate over 40 years ago at the Shorin Ryu dojo in Makishi (just around the corner from Higaonna Sensei’s dojo) under Higa Sensei. She was the only woman and the training was very hard. She was not respected because she was a woman and was not very physical. She said she took a lot of beatings but thanked her partner for helping her get stronger and kept going and so over time she developed with training. Sensei trained diligently on the makiwara to develop her fists and ultimately she became respected. Through her hard training methods and the thousands of punches in a session, the weak mind never returned and her hand conditioning changed the attitude of the toughest of men. We also discussed that women’s understanding and performance of power and speed is not always appreciated by men who do not recognize it in the timing or as sensei described ”the taste and flavour in kata”! Her philosophy is that karate teaches you virtues and when you are in the dojo in a karategi, you should behave in accordance with karate and the dojo rules – good attitude, erect posture and impeccable politeness. Sensei’s traditional