The IUKF is proud to announce that Leonardo Ferreira Dos Santos of Sensei Luis Otavio Montiero’s dojo, Kanshukai, has been promoted to Shodan on 11/7/2021!
Congratulations to both Leonardo and Sensei Luis! We wish you all the best in furthering your training; the journey has just begun!
From,
All of us at the IUKF
Hello Friends and Uechi-Ryu Family,
I wish everyone a wonderful thanksgiving day. I’ve often reflected on all the blessings I’ve encountered throughout my life and wish for everyone to enjoy the same.
That is not to say I don’t have sent backs or misfortune but on this day, every year, I always focus on my blessings.
One of my greatest blessings is the opportunity to train and study Pong Gai Noon now called Uechi Ryu.
Through this study, I’ve gained better health, a sharper mind, and a stronger body. Most appreciated is my commonality and association with so many wonderful people.
On this day, I thank the heavens for all my blessings. I wish everyone the same good fortune.
Darin Yee
“Sitka Uechi-Ryu karate club from Sitka, Alaska is proud and honored to have Darin Yee as our uplink. His style of teaching and philosophy strongly agree with our approaches and views. We value Darin’s input on evolving techniques. If certain techniques are not effective, why teach them? It is very important to teach responsibly, by analyzing and understanding moves and executing them to their fullest effectiveness. We are also proud and honored to be an IUKF dojo of good standing. The IUKF is an extremely supportive group with high standards.”
~Duane Swanson
“If we look at Uechi dojos across the globe, there are many organisations with some very talented instructors/coaches. If we stood all these side by side and watched their kata, they would all be recognisable as we would expect, but closer viewing shows us some minor nuances influenced by the individual’s journey of exploration of their martial art, whether it be from cross-training or from research. The IUKF embraces this and, through seminars, encourages the sharing of ideas. Uechi by rote is where they want to be; others will want to explore connections and objectivity none of these should stop an association or federation from growing.
Influences on our preferred art also come from outside the dojo; for example, many of us are business professionals, and we will be aware of the 5 whys, which is an iterative interrogative technique used to explore the cause-and-effect relationships underlying a particular problem. The primary goal of the technique is to determine the root cause of a defect or problem by repeating the question “Why?”. Each answer forms the basis of the next question. The “five” in the name derives from an anecdotal observation on the number of iterations needed to resolve the problem.
Not all problems have a single root cause. If one wishes to uncover multiple root causes, the method must be repeated asking a different sequence of questions each time.
The method provides no hard and fast rules about what lines of questions to explore or how long to continue the search for additional root causes. Thus, even when the method is closely followed, the outcome still depends upon the knowledge and persistence of the people involved.
An example of analysing a kata
Why? – do we do the kata this way. (First why)
Why? – does this move show a technique one way in kata but different in bunkai
Why? – do we do the same move in different directions
Why? – don’t we look at the relationship between kata and Bunkai
Why? – is my kata not effective
I would wager that we do this unconsciously, and many simply view this as ‘My take on it.’ In my opinion, this is the key to the enjoyment and usefulness of seminars, where we can explore our own training against an alternative view.
Regards,
Lee Adams – 8h Dan Kyoshi, IUKF GB
Hello to the IUKF,
I really appreciated your email to the rest of the Uechi Ryu community and me. Your comments represent what it takes to lead an organization such as IUKF.
Your words, comments, perspective, and thoughts represent for me what I have been thinking all through my martial arts training. First, my 50 years in Isshin ryu and my five years in Uechi ryu. For myself, I train both styles as pure to my original teachings as possible. I have, however, moved on to incorporate all things learned into my own personal style that is designed only for myself. My slight build is suitable to Ip Kai Man’s Wing Chung’s style. I have also undertaken to teach myself these forms to incorporate into my own personal style.
There are other thoughts. One major thought is that of: If I am a high-ranking individual, should this play any part in whether or not I could defeat a superior opponent? There will always be someone better than oneself. Our ranks and defeating an opponent, for myself, are of two different dimensions. I train for my higher rank, and I also train in my own personal style to fight a superior opponent. They, of course, both merge into what I call “Heaven and Earth.” This is my own personal style. A balance of the Tao and all things learned and given to us by heaven and earth.
There are other thoughts, but the above thought surmises what your thoughts brought out from my inner thoughts.
Please continue in your writings to us as all things lead us to our own personal balance between Heaven and Earth.
Kind Regards,
John Blacha
Okinawan Academy of Martial Arts
Waterford, Michigan
Krakow, Poland”
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