I very recently watched a Kempo class and couldn't resist thinking how much it reminded me of my Wado Ryu days, with Ju Jitsu thrown in. I was wondering what existing Kempo practitioners make of this comparison - is your art like Karate combined with Ju Jitsu? I asked the coach about competing and he said there are regularly-run tournaments. Please can anyone shed some light on the format of these events? Thanks.
Back in the old days in hawaii it was called Kenpo Jujitsu and had a lot of jujitsu in it then changed as William Chow added more Kungfu and Ed Parker made his further changes to American Kenpo. Some people started to put the jujitsu back in like David German and others. I dont know anything about the tournaments here in the UK but I would say they must have mix of light point sparring and continuous full contact
watch the "Flow" [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1OGBEwQtRA"]YouTube - FELICIANO "KIMO" FERREIRA'S KEMPO JUTSU KAI SEMINAR 2004[/ame] profesor kimo. fred villari "slowing it down"(yes, he is lethal fast!!!) [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDkWX9Y_MOI&feature=PlayList&p=FDF8E691D8FD1287&index=0&playnext=1"]YouTube - Fred Villari in Action[/ame] brassard: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiC-z-HR8OU"]YouTube - Kempo/Kenpo Karate Technique DM 44 -Jim Brassard[/ame] (very, very skilled!)
Thanks guys. Couldn't help but compare Kempo to some forms of Silat - anyone know of any historic links?
kinda/sorta! if you youtube the 2, and look at differences, kempo is "Beyond Overkill" (at least technique wise!LOL!!) Silat is devastating, but so is krav maga, haganah, etc... i believe any art will help anyone, just some offer more "foods for thought" than others. I myself chose kempo because: I wanted an art that is a classic, yet extremly streetwise practical, and, sooted for "Fast hands", and, shorter people. me personally, i like silat as well, though haven't trained too much in it. I would advise you to take a free 1 week course in both epak, and, shaolin kempo. You can see for yourself, it is your cup of tea.Most places offer 1 free week. Definently attend 1 group class, and not a "Beginners" course, so you can see what its like. I think you will like it.
for each, wikipedia silat wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silat kempo wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kempo have fun! Both are lethal!
I practiced Shorinji Kempo, which is a little different from other styles, but here's a brief lowdown: Shorinji Kempo contains both "hard" (striking) and "soft" (throwing/joint locking) techniques, so many people do compare it with karate and jiu jitsu. However, they are really only superficially similar; the movement and striking in SK are much more fluid than in karate, while the throws are more circular than jiu jitsu, and they focus mostly on wrist locks. For philosophical reasons, many other things such as armbars and chokes are not taught, and sparring/tournaments are either rare or non-existant. Shorinji Kempo has a history distinct from that of American styles, and the two are really related in name only. SK was started by a Japanese man named Doshin So who worked as a Japanese operative in China during the Second World War. He studied a great deal of Kung Fu and other Chinese styles, and also became exposed to Zen Buddhism. After his return to Japan after the war, he sought to help rebuild his shattered country by teaching Buddhist philosphy to youth. He found that young people were disinterested in learning only philosophy though, so he coupled it with his knowledge of Chinese martial arts into the style we now call Shorinji Kempo. Here's a video I found that illustrates some of the aspects of this style. I'm in the computer lab at school so this is about the best I can do right now, and am unable to listen to the sound in this video (if it has any). [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynkqZv7iQ2g&feature=related"]YouTube - Shorinji Kempo Paris Bercy 98[/ame] Anyway, that's Shorinji Kempo in a nutshell. I'm not sure if it's the style you watched, or if it even interests you. I practiced it for a few years but looking back I certainly have mixed feelings about it; this is actually one of the first posts I've made on the subject since I quit a few years back. Anyway, hope that helps!
Omicron, It was actually Shorinji Kempo that I watched! Decided to sign up for classes two weeks from Monday Everyone else, Thanks for the links/info.
shorinji is awesome!!! nice! Back to Silat: We are similiar, and do alot of " Stepping outside/inside 45 degree of the attack" and Alot of Pok sow/lok sow of the hands as well. Very fluid hand movements! Glad to hear you are in shorinji! Keep us posted,or, pm us privately! congradulations!!!
I'm glad to hear you're interested in checking it out! I hope your experience is better than mine was. I used to talk quite regularly with some of the SK senseis over in the UK...if you like you can send me a PM with info about where you'll be training and I'll see if I can put a good word in for you
he is in wlaes, UK! http://www.youtube.com/user/phillipkempo Phillip is a very , very talented and technical instructor! Shoot him an email!!!
Hello, As a wado I guy I find this interesting also. Of course, Wado is known for the fact it has a Koryu jujutsu background, but often its original name is forgotten. Today in Japan the group headed by Jiro Ohtsuka is called "Wado Ryu Karate do Jujutsu Kenpo". Maybe more than just a chance they are connected. Gary
I'm not an expert on Japanese, but as far as I know "kempo" simply means "fist method", so it's not a far stretch of the imagination to think that it may be independently used by several different organizations to describe their styles.
Maybe, but I am not to sure there are many Japanese Karate ryu-ha that have been registered with the word "Kempo" in their name. The thread starters op not only mentioned Kempo but also Jujutsu - so that struck a cord as well - given the SYR parentage of Wado and the resulting sweeps, throws, holds, Aiki and Atemi (vital point striking) that are encompassed. As I understand it "Kenpo" is often used in Japanese ma to reflect the "Chinese" origin of techniques (it’s the Japanese translation of Kung Fu), but granted, that doesn't mean to say they have to have anything more in common than the name – although all roads lead to Rome – or in this case come from it. Gary
Indeed. If I remember correctly, in fact, the term "Shorinji Kempo" is the Japanese reading of the characters for "Shaolin Kung Fu". Again, I'm no expert, but I think I remember that from my SK days. The style itself doesn't much resemble Kung Fu as we commonly perceive it, but it does point to the Chinese origins of the style.
This might sound like an echo of GaryWado, but just to add an additional voice to second the definitions he just gave; :hat: Japanese language uses Chinese characters (called Kanji)and an additional two "alphabets" called hiragana and katakana (which typically simpler and with less strokes than the Chinese characters). The phrase "Shorinji Kempo" is the Romaji (Roman letters) spelling of the Japanese phrase which is written as 少林寺拳法. The Romaji spelling shows us English-speakers how to pronounce the words. A lot of people get hung up on the difference between "Kempo" and "Kenpo" as it has become associated with different styles and is assumed to have some significance. Linguistically, there is no real difference between those two spellings and they are just a couple of alternative ways to romanize the Japanese language. In the USA, different schools have adopted either of the two spellings and this is sometimes used to distinguish which line they are from, but there is no deeper significance other than a choice made at some stage on how to effect the spelling. I mentioned that the Japanese use Chinese characters. The kanji are the same, in this case, as the Chinese would use, although some kanji in current use in Japan are not used in China and vice versa. It is wrong to assume that Japanese people can read Chinese or that Chinese can read Japanese, even though many of the characters are the same. In the case of this phrase, Mandarin and Cantonese would both read it (IIRC) as "Shaolin-ssu chu'an fa", Shaolin temple fist method. In Japanese, the suffix "-ji" after a word is often seen to denote a Buddhist temple. Have fun with the class.
