Richard
Kim:
The Classical Man
By
Don Warrener
I
have been a student of Richard Kim since 1968 when I first received
my shodan from him through my teacher at the time, Benny Allen.
Since our first meeting, I knew he was not just another karate instructor
who could punch and kick. The reason I have remained as a student
with him is because I continue to learn from him. I went to the
now famous Nishiyama summer camp in San Diego, which has been going
on for over 35years, to both train and do an interview with Master
Richard Kim, 10th dan in Shorinji ryu karate.
Where
and when were you born?
I was born on November 17, 1919, in Hilo, Hawaii. My mother was
Japanese and my father was Korean. I began studying judo in 1925
when I was 6 years old under Tatsu Bata. My mother owned a hotel
upstairs and down stairs was a Japanese club where judo was taught
and she made me train.
When
did you start karate?
As a child, I went to watch a demonstration put on in 1927 by Yabu
Kentsu and his assistant Sensei Arakaki at the Nuanu YMCA in Honolulu.
Right after that, I began training with Yabu Kentsu who stayed in
Hawaii for about a year, as I recall.
When
did you get your shodan?
I received my black belt from the Dai Nippon Bu Toku Kai. Remember,
before World War II they were the only organization who issued official
dan rankings. There was no JKA or Kodokan in those days. These organizations
only arose after World War II, when General MacArthur closed it
down. He believed that the Bu Toku Kai was responsible for the war.
What
style of karate did you teach?
The style of karate I learned and taught was and is shorinji ryu
karate, Yabu Kentsu’s style of karate. This is why my kata
are named like Yabu Chinto. Of course, over the years, I have refined
the kata as karate in those early years was quite unsophisticated.
There wasn’t even any real names of styles in the early days
– it was just called te. It wasn’t until quite some time
later that the word karate was even invented.
| BACK TO TOP |
When
did you leave Hawaii and move to Japan?
I moved to Japan in 1939, and came back to the USA in 1959, after
the war was over.
How
did you become involved with the Bu Toku Kai?
When I was in Japan and part of the Japanese military I was trained
in the Busen as part of the Dai Nippon Bu Toku Kai, and it was there
that I met Ohno Komo Sensei, a 10th dan in kendo. When I returned
to the USA in 1959, he asked me to organize the Bu Toku Kai internationally,
and I did so by teaching at the Chinese YMCA in San Francisco’s
Chinatown for years. I continued to organize the Bu Toku Kai until
1992 when Hamada took over.
Why
did you never open a professional dojo?
I never wanted to teach in mass. I always preferred to teach more
on an individual or small group format. I preferred to encourage
my students to run commercial dojos. I wanted to mix religion with
martial arts because I really wanted to teach morality to the Western
world and not just physical fighting. Some students did not understand
this and they left because they wanted high dan ranks and I would
not grant them-The highest dan rank I ever granted was a 6th dan
which I gave to Brian Ricci in Boston and only within the last few
years.
Did
you have a problem going back to Japan when the war broke out?
Not really, I had dual citizenship because I was born before 1924
and the Exclusions Act allowed me to have duel citizenship.
I
understand that you are the inheritor of Menkyo Kaiden scrolls of
Daito Ryu? Is this true and what can you tell us about Yoshida Kotaro?
Yes, it is true. I was given the Menkyo Kaiden from Yoshida Sensei.
He was a great martial artist. He went with Ueshiba to Hokkaido
prior to World War II as part of a government program where individuals
from each prefecture went there to help populate Hokkaido. While
there, he trained with Sokaku Takeda and became the assistant instructor
to him. Actually, he became the main instructor.
What
were the main lessons you learned from him?
I
learned two main lessons from him. The first was that nothing is
impossible and the second was before you become a thief or any other
type of criminal you first become a liar; he stressed this lesson
over and over and taught the importance of always telling the truth,
no matter what.
| BACK TO TOP |
What
was the physical training like with him?
It was very harsh but a different harsh than karate training. It
was not kicking and punching but rather throwing and rolling around
on the ground. We also did a great deal of work with swords and
knives. The training was practical everyday and I became like an
apprentice under him.
Who
are some of the other great Masters you have met?
Well, first comes to mind Yoshida Kotaro. He was the epitome of
the word “master”, technically, mentally, and spiritually.
Ueshiba was another one of the great ones. In fact, I trained with
Ueshiba for about a year every day from 6-9 a.m. Then, there was
Sawai: he trained with Wang Xiang Zhay in China and became a master
of the internal systems and, in fact, wrote a book called Tai Ki
Kae. He was one of the most impressive people I ever met. Wang Xiang
Zhay, his teacher, could actually just touch you and you would go
flying. In fact, Sawai, who was a 5th dan from Kano himself and
a 5th dan in kendo, once tried to hit Wang but only ended up on
the short end of the stick and on his back. He even tried to hit
him with a stick and could not. The first lesson with Wang was that
we would just stand there for 3- 9 hours a day – of course,
not all at one time – 30 minutes here and 30 minutes there.
All he said to us was, “Just don’t think.”
Who
did you learn your tai chi from?
I trained with a man named Chen Chen Wan in China. The style of
tai chi is an offshoot of the Yang style tai chi. In fact, if you
saw them both side by side you would think them the same.
Was
there anyone else?
I met a man in Hong Kong whose name was Charlie Tu Tai. He could
do something no one else I have ever seen could do. He would let
mosquitoes land on him and then using his powers they would fall
off him dead. I never saw anything like this. I learned pa qua from
him and he is the one who told me that no pa qua fighter had ever
lost. Then there is Nishiyama Sensei who is alive today. He is the
most knowledgeable man alive when it comes to Shotokan karate. No
one is equal to him. Oh, yes, then Mas Oyama. He was excellent,
as well. I remember that he, Sawai, and I were walking along discussing
martial arts and Oyama hit this telephone pole and put his fist
in to it at least 1/2 inch. He believed that nothing beat a good
right hand. He and Kinjo used to come to my place in Yokohama at
least once a week to train. I met Yamaguchi Gogen through Oyama
– he, too, was very good.
You
mentioned that Oyama believed that a good right hand is the best
weapon. Do you believe that?
Let me put it this way: the defect of karate is that they don’t
know how to use a good right hand like a boxer does. The good boxer
will only use the right hand once he has feinted.
How
much boxing did you do?
I had 42 pro fights and became the champion of the Orient when I
lived in Shanghai. I lived there for 5 years. I studied tai chi
and pa qua as well when I lived in Shanghai.
In
the early 1970s, you wrote a column called “The Classical Man”,
and got dubbed “The Martial Arts Historian.” Why?
I guess because I was the only one who was writing about the philosophy,
psychology and the history of the martial arts at that time.
| BACK TO TOP |
Why
was the Dai Nippon Bu Toku Kai so influential?
The Bu Toku Kai was the only body allowed to award dan ranks in
martial arts. The Bu Toku Kai was mostly judo and the organization
prior to and during WWII was the only organization and all others
had to belong to it. After the war, it never regained its status
or its recognition by the government. You might say it just isn’t
the same organization nowadays, as it was back then.
Why
is it so difficult to get information from Chinese masters on the
internal systems?
Because of their culture. The master taught the student personally
and this is the way the information was handed down – teacher
to student – and in some ways, this is the best. The student
would never leave the sensei because the teacher would always hold
back one thing from the student and he wanted that one thing. Once
in a while a great Chinese master came along, like General Yei Fei.
He’s the one who created the Eight Brocades of Silk and also
the Superimpei kata. In fact, he created all the goju-ryu kata and
also The Eight Gods Crossing The River. I think I am the only one
who still teaches this form. But even Yei Fei fell victim to his
own friend who turned on him and killed him.
Did
you ever meet Gichin Funakoshi?
Yes. I met him in 1957 at his final public performance. In fact,
Bob Fazaro was there at the time and he performed in front of Funakoshi
Sensei. Funakoshi was good but it was because of his ability to
communicate with the Japanese that he was chosen to go to Japan
and spread the art of karate. In fact,there were many more skillful
masters like Miyagi, Yabu Kentsu and others – but Funakoshi
was educated and therefore he was chosen to go. Most of the other
masters only spoke Hogan, a dialect used in Okinawa.
If
you were to suggest five books that every martial artist should
have in their library, what would they be?
Nishiyama’s book would be number one for technical reference,
it is excellent. Then I would choose both of my books, The Weaponless
Warrior and The Classical Man. I think then I would suggest all
of Donn Draeger’s books and Jay Gluck's book.
Peter
Urban – how and where did you meet him?
I was teaching karate and judo at the Black Friars Gym in Yokohama
and this guy, Smith, was punching a kid around in the ring. I stopped
Smith and said, “what you wanna do that for?” He said
the kid told him not to pull back so he let him have it. That kid
was Peter Urban. Peter was one of the few men I have ever met in
my life that had absolutely no fear – I saw that in his eyes
that day. He became my student and then one day he asked if he could
go train with Mas Oyama. Then he later became a disciple of Gogen
Yamaguchi.
Is
there anyone in America that you can think of that is on the right
track of Budo?
I am sure there are many, but two names quickly come to mind –
Chuck Merriman and Chuck Norris.
| BACK TO TOP |
Kobudo
– How much value does weapons have in modern society?
Weapons training is very important because it brings into focus
the frailty of life. Without weapons, karate loses the concept of
art and degenerates into a sport.
What
is the difference between the Japanese students of karate and North
American students of karate?
Physically, North Americans are just as good as the Japanese, but
the Western student lacks the morality and ethics that a Japanese
student has. You know what I mean, Don; remember when Yamaguchi
asked you to join his group and you deferred him back to me, your
sensei? That is ethics and morality.
Why
did you decide to move to San Francisco?
That
one is easy. The weather, it is perpetual spring and besides it
is very cosmopolitan and there is a big Chinatown and a big Japan
town.
Which
martial art is superior?
The Chinese martial arts are rich in tradition and the Japanese
martial arts are deep in discipline. The Korean martial arts, although
they do not like to admit it, are based on Japanese karate. In fact,
in the beginning, their forms were Japanese kata but with Korean
names. They do have very beautiful kicks, similar to the French,
but all they did was incorporate their own kicking techniques with
Japanese karate. What I am saying is that they do not have any history
like the sword or spear, although they were exceptional in archery.
But to give you a final answer, no one art is better than another.
Mastery comes from the individual, not the style.
Is
Japanese or Okinawan karate superior?
Well first off, Okinawan karate is true karate – the Okinawans
are much more traditional then the Japanese. But the Japanese, especially
those like Nishiyama Sensei, have refined the Okinawan karate to
what it is today.
What
is your opinion of the belt ranking system?
The Chinese started the belt system with the use of sashes and different
colors, then judo and then karate followed. To be very honest, belts
are just another means of bringing dollars into the dojo –
it is another form of commercialism in the dojo. Unfortunately,
it has been greatly abused here in the USA – nobody needs to
be told this. Over the last 40 years the overall quality of a black
belt degraded to the point where some instructors are selling their
dan grades. In the Bu Toku Kai there was no belt system, there was
only trainee, assistant instructor, instructor, and master.
| BACK TO TOP |
In your opinion, what is a black belt?
Shodan, in most traditional dojo, is three years minimum training.
First to 4th dan is usually judged on a person’s physical abilities,
but 5th dan and above is judged on a man’s character and whether
he is a gentleman.
Why
is karate not in the Olympics and tae kwon do is?
It is political, as one of the heads of the Olympic committee is
Korean and he had a great deal to do with it getting into the Olympics
before karate. Also the karate groups are fractionalized and they
are constantly fighting among each other.
How
has martial arts changed before the boxer rebellion and after the
boxer rebellion?
The boxer rebellion of 1900 saw the loss of many great martial arts
masters because they thought their chi could stop bullets. Obviously,
they were wrong... bullets are a different type of weapon. The Okinawans
in 1905-1906 lost the etiquette that was there prior to this –
there was absolutely no commercialism before this point.
In
martial arts we talk about the karate being physical, mental, and
spiritual. What do we mean when we say it is spiritual?
The roots of all Japanese martial arts is Buddhism, and in Buddhism
we do not kill anything. Let me share a short story about this with
you. There was a young boy and he was about to kill a cricket and
the priest stopped him and said to him, “How important to you
is your life?” The boy replied, “It is the most important
thing to me.” The priest then said to the boy, “It is
just as important to the cricket.”
If
you could snap your fingers and change one thing in the martial
arts, what would it be?
Etiquette - simply etiquette.
It
is now almost the year 2000, where would you like to see karate
in the year 3000?
First I would like to see it in the Olympics. Secondly, I would
like to see it taught in every public school in the world.
Why
the public schools?
If karate were taught in public schools, crime would be cut drastically,
as the students would learn respect.
At
the beginning of the class, you often explain the purposes of the
rei. Could you explain it?
The first lesson in martial arts is respect, compassion, and gratitude.
Every time you bow your head you are internalizing each of these
words. You are showing respect to your seniors, and compassion for
your juniors, as you know what they have gone through over the years
because you, too, have gone through the same. Finally, you are showing
gratitude for your country which you reap the benefits of every
day, your parents who gave you life, and the friends who support
you every day in your successes and in your failures. Finally, you
revere God, as it is he who will decide what will happen to you.
| BACK TO TOP |