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Sensei, welcome once again to Australia. This is your third year in a row visiting Queensland, and every year has always proven to be very warm. How do you adapt to the changes in temperature from country to country, because I think after leaving Australia you go to Russia, where the average temperature is below freezing?
After I leave Australia I go to Glasgow, Scotland, for a seminar, then after this, seminars in Russia for three months. Now, after many years of travel, my body becomes a little used to changes in temperature.
In your seminars, you are known for a strong emphasis on fast, spinning techniques, moving to all points of the compass. Was this type of training and thinking part of the JKA Kenshusei (Instructors') course when you were studying [Kasuya Sensei graduated from the course in 1973] or was this something that you explored and developed over time?
The instructors' course was of very high standard: two hours [of training] a day, six days a week. No spinning - training in basics only: kihon [fundamental techniques], kata and kumite.
What was the training like?
Very hard. The most important point was to never lose concentration. Especially during kumite time, to lose concentration was very dangerous, and would maybe result in a knockout.
Sensei, I remember reading an interview that Blitz did with you back in the early 1990s and at the time the WSKF had affiliated schools in about 41 countries. How many countries now have schools under the WSKF banner?
Now we have 86 countries; New Zealand also just became a member as well.
Out of those 86 countries, how many would you visit and conduct training seminars in each year?
I visit about 40 countries each year (laughs) - I just received a new passport because I have no more room for stamps!
As you travel extensively throughout the year to many different countries, conducting many seminars and meeting karate-ka from all walks of life, is there much difference to the technical standard of karate-ka outside of Japan, compared to 20 years ago?
I think maybe not much difference now, because karate has been in some countries for many years. Australia has had karate for more than 30 years, so it's not so young - not a beginner anymore.
When you were competing at the height of your sport-karate career, how many days per week and hours were you training? Could you give us an insight into the type of training you were doing?
I trained seven days a week, eight hours each day - training in the morning and then in the afternoon, not eight hours straight. I would do lots of running, stretching and, of course, spend many hours on kata and kumite. For kata training I would focus on doing the kata first slowly, concentrating on correct movement, breathing and being relaxed, and not tensing the shoulders. I recommend this type of training: first, do the kata maybe two or three times slow, then two or three times with correct speed and timing, but always without being tense and with correct breathing. Please, when breathing do not close your mouth; keep it a little bit open.
Did you incorporate any other kind of cross training during this period, such as weightlifting, swimming, etc.?
Yes, I also did weight training, but with weight training, one side of the body is naturally stronger than the other - maybe your left is a little bit stronger than your right - so then it's important to make it an equal balance. So, maybe I'd do a weight movement 30 times with my right arm, but with my left arm I'd do it 45 times. I also did this with basic training as well: maybe I do 100 mae-geri [front-kicks] with one leg and 125 with the other leg.
Do you think that this type of training is necessary for karate-ka nowadays?
Yes, this is very important, but also very important to challenge yourself, not only physically but also mentally.
Can you give us an example, Sensei?
Yes, I would arrive at the dojo and have in my mind that today I would do 1000 gyaku-zuki [reverse-punches], 100, 200, 500. Maybe during this time my mind would start to wander... maybe it's very hot... then 900, 997, 998, 999, then the last one, 1000! This is a very good feeling of achievement - the mind is very powerful.
Sensei, I am fortunate enough to have a copy of your theory on all aspects of karate [this was a booklet published for the 1997 WSKF World Championships]. Would it be possible if you could share with the readers your ideas on mushin? From your experience, how does one achieve this state of ‘no mind'?
During a fight, if you find yourself concentrating too much on your strategy or thinking what technique your opponent will use, you are in danger of a stalemate. Mushin is the vitally important technique of mental detachment, which is to see the fight from an objective point of view. This can only come from hard, long and consistent training. The mental aspect of mushin can sometimes be thought of as unscientific, but we must consider every aspect in the effort to win in combat. Most important things are discovered through experiences; if not through experiences, then it is only a dream.
Many who do karate are not interested in the sport, but are focused more on self-defence and/or personal development. Is the training regimen (volume, perhaps, withstanding) of the sport-karateka relevant to these people too, or is training for these different goals require quite a different approach in Shotokan?
My personal thoughts are that to have balance, you most not focus on just one part - self-defence, sport-karate, etc. - as these are just one piece of a picture. But in terms of training, for this [one's karate technique] to become instinct or second nature, then training often is necessary. Many masters talk about the need to maintain tradition and stay true to the style of the founder, yet even within Shotokan there are recognised differences between the way top masters - for example, Kase and Nishiyama - express and teach the same system of karate.
What is the role of personal expression in karate, and can one ever really ‘stay true' to the karate of their teacher, or his teacher before him?
Many people talk about this, but my opinion on the meaning of ‘tradition' is to always put in something new, then this tradition will live on in the future. If we just keep things the same, the tradition will decline. Cultures with a long history show this same process [of change and development].
You have been studying karate for a long time - how significantly have the training methods and class structure, etc. changed since you did the JKA course, and in your opinion, has it been to the overall betterment or detriment of karate?
The training system should be changed because fighting techniques over the last 40 years have very much changed. Now we have some scientific knowledge that is very important to karate improvement. Keep training, and through new experiences and deep study then we understand more - those three words are important to me. There have been so many changes since my JKA course, it keeps evolving - this is better.
Sensei, how have you changed your training - if at all - to accommodate for growing older? When they are younger, should people try to train with a long future in the art in mind, or just go all-out while their body is still capable?
This is the same as our life (laughing). When you are young you have very much energy, therefore you need hard training. Later, if you recognise that you're losing power and speed, you should change your karate training and way of thinking. An important point is that, as a karate person, you should analyse yourself correctly then find some points [to adjust]. Yes, I am older - but I have found these points.
Sensei, I have one last question for you. This year will mark the 9th WSKF World Championships and also the 20-year anniversary of the founding of the WSKF. What do you think has contributed to the growing success of your organisation?
There are so many good WSKF instructors in each country. WSKF wants to improve always and have an open mind, share knowledge and gain knowledge. This is maybe why we find success.
About the interviewers: Michael Looke is a member of WSKF in Queensland. Ben Stone is the editor of Blitz.
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