Gojūshiho Dai: origin and lineage

五十四歩大

Fourth Dan Kata Research By Terry Furuzawa

23/6/2023

Introduction

Gojushiho Dai, or 'Fifty-Four Steps Major', at around 65 counts is one of the two lengthiest Shotokan kata along with Gojushiho Sho.  The next longest is Kanku Dai with around 60 counts.  Of course, the exact count is subjective depending on how it is practised in any particular Shotokan school.

Why then is the kata named, 'Fifty-Four Steps'?

The original old Okinawan name, Useishi, which is still used in some styles, literally means 54 methods in Chinese.  But what 'methods' are referred to here?You need to bear in mind that Karate masters often modify their kata, even several times over time, for many reasons.  For example, to adapt them to the context in which they had to transmit them, or to modify them based on martial knowledge and bunkai (application). For this reason, each teacher may have handed down multiple versions.  So as is typical for kata, there are many concurrent iterations of Gojushiho through various styles and it is quite probable that versions far up the lineage line showed a more obvious correlation to 54 actual steps/methods.

The spiritual connection

Some theorise back to Chinese culture, where the number 54 holds spiritual significance also with it being half of the number 108 that is considered sacred and has many symbolic meanings.

For example, there are 108 sacred meridian points on the human body in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The number 108 represents the distance between the devotee and the God within.Mala beads that are used for meditation, mindfulness, prayer, or yoga usually have 108 beads plus one guru or meru bead. These originated in India and are rooted in Hinduism and Buddhism and help you focus your mind during meditation by counting or reciting mantras.  They also come in 54 bead forms.Interestingly, there is a kata called Hyakuhachiho, literally translating to '108 steps', which is the Shotokan version of Suparinpei (Fuzhou dialect in China, also meaning 108) practised in Okinawan Goju-Ryu.  This kata was abandoned by the JKA (Japan Karate Association) in the '60s and was removed from the syllabus.

A version performed by Katsu Sensei can be seen here https://youtu.be/LkWP6wdUrxw

The point is that there is a popular focus on the significance of the actual numbers used to name these 'number of steps' kata and a tendency to attribute a more spiritual meaning to them.  Martial arts will usually have ‘origin stories’ which typically involve religious figures.  However, in the case of karate, there is nothing to support it.  In the happenstance where we do see a connection to Buddhism, it can be deemed as pure coincidence.  Anko Itosu, the 'father of modern karate', wrote in 1908 that, “Karate did not develop from Buddhism or Confucianism”, which historians would concur with.

The lineage of Gojushiho

There is historical evidence that Gojushiho was probably brought to Okinawa from China during the early 1800s before its annexation to Japan. The legendary Okinawan master, Sokon Matsumura (1809-1899) looks to have studied this kata in Fuchou in China during one of his travels.  He presumably learned it from the Chinese military attaché Iwah with whom he also studied Chinese boxing as well as the kata Seisan and Sanchin.  Little else is known about Iwah.  There exist at least three written sources that confirm Matsumura as having personally taught it, including in newspaper articles between 1911-1918 with Kentsu Yabu, an instructor at Shihan teaching institute and former student of Matsumura and also with Anko Itosu, performing it as his speciality.

In 1922-25 Gichin Funakoshi (1868-1957), the founder of Shotokan, mentions the kata in two of his first books, 'Ryukyu Kempo Tode' and 'Rentan Goshin Tode Jutsu'.  In 1932 Choki Motobu, founder of Motobu-ryu (considered the 'toughest karate-ka' in Okinawa during the 1930-40s), also refers to the kata in his book, 'Watashi no Tode Jutsu'.  However, neither of these two masters included the kata in their official curriculum.  It was around 1943 that it is described as being practised at the Shotokan dojo in the book, 'Karate Nyumon', with the Japanese name Hotaku.

Many versions of Gojushiho were handed down. 

Prime examples, by the likes of Anko Itosu, Chotoku Kyan (1870-1945) a major influence on styles that became Shorin-ryu, Kentsu Yabu often considered Itosu's top student, Chomo Hanashiro (1869-1945) a master student of Matsumura, Choyu Motobu (1865-1928) Choki Motobu's

older brother bringing it to the Kyudokan Shorin-ryu school and Chozo Nakama (1899-1982) a master student of Kobayashi Shorin-ryu who also studied with some of the aforementioned masters.

Some students of Nakama passed down the kata with the inclusion of the ‘straight leg kick’ called bo-geri in Motobu-ryu, others with a classic mae-geri or the intriguing "drunken man's step", present in many of the variants and is perhaps a vestige of the kata's supposed roots in Chinese drunken boxing?

Dai 大 and Sho 小

Focusing on the Gojushiho lineage to Shotokan, as already mentioned, Gichin Funakoshi did not include it in his curriculum.  However, Masatoshi Nakayama (1913-1987), one of the founders of the JKA and Hirokazu Kanazawa (1931-2019), both students at the Shotokan dojo, stated that the two Shotokan Gojushiho came respectively from Kanken Toyama (Gojushiho Dai) and Kenwa Mabuni (Gojushiho Sho).  We find this information in an interview with Nakayama, and in the book, "The complete kata" by Kanazawa. Funakoshi frequented Mabuni and his compatriots very often in Japan in the 1930s and also sent his students to learn new kata.

Kanken Toyama (1888-1966), the founder of Shūdōkan, emigrated to mainland Japan and studied at the Shihan school under the guidance of both Kentsu Yabu and Anko Itosu sensei from 1906 to 1911.

Kenwa Mabuni (1889-1952), the founder of Shito-ryu was mainly a pupil of Anko Itosu and Kanryo Higaonna (founder of Naha-te and foundation of Goju-ryu), but he also studied and attended training with Yabu, Hanashiro and many others, as well as collecting a large number of kata from disparate sources. His version of Gojushiho, the exact origin of which we do not know, is very similar to that of Kanken Toyama but with some peculiarities of other versions. It could therefore be a personal interpretation based on multiple versions.

The Ueki Masaaki Legend

There is a popular story that sometime in 1960-70, judges at a live televised All Japan Karate Championship were befuddled as to what to do about senior karateka Ueki Masaaki and his misnamed kata. "Gojushiho Dai" was announced and then he proceeded to perform an impressive display of Gojushiho Sho.  Their solution was to give Ueki first place and accept the switch of the names of the two kata.  Today the JKA and the majority of Shotokan schools are supposedly using the switched names with minority groups such as the SKIF of Hirokazu Kanazawa using the 'original' names.  This is a quirky and somewhat dubious story explaining the confusing switched use of the two kata names in different Shotokan associations.

What seems clear is that the original Shotokan dojo started off practising one version of the kata, i.e. Gojushiho.  This would be the one that Funakoshi tried to rename Hotaku and is the version that originally came from Kanken Toyama.

Hotaku meaning "woodpecker," is assumed to have come from the repeated use of the curious one-finger spear hand 'ippon-nukite' poking strikes found within the kata.  Some consider the true woodpecker's strike to be the 'ryo-kentsui-koho-hasami-uchi' technique, viewing it primarily as a head-butt attack. The name Hotaku was never really accepted. When Nakayama introduced the later version to the Shotokan dojo after learning it from Kenwa Mabuni, it was given the Sho extension.  The version already being practised was given the Dai extension. 

However, with the older kata (i.e. the ‘ippon nukite’ version) being smaller, more subtle and more complicated of the two, Kanazawa decided to reassign the Sho designation to it and Dai to the later version so that the Gojushiho pair would align better with the naming convention of the Bassai and Kanku kata pairs.  This would be in his own SKIF (Shotokan Karate International Federation) organisation established in 1978.  This explanation has been witnessed being recounted many times by Kanazawa at seminars and gatherings.

Lineage chart

The hierarchical diagram below shows the probable basic lineage of Shotokan’s two Gojushiho kata according to the information I was able to access as outlined above.  Introductory lines of some of the other kata variations have also been included to provide a picture of its propagation.

Addendum: 'Ippon-Nukite’ and 'Gyakute Mochi'

As mentioned, how a kata evolves in its variations can very much depend on the particular bunkai (applications) envisioned.  Delving into the Gojushiho Dai bunkai, an interesting focus of attention for me was finding a convincing explanation for the aforementioned 'ippon-nukite' (one-finger spear hand) and to a lesser extent the keito-uke (wrist block) that is repeatedly used throughout this kata with the 'Chicken-head' hand form.

The simple explanation touted by most practitioners is that you are stabbing pressure points with the tip of the index finger which is kept firmly pressed against the forefinger to reinforce it.  My personal preference is to try and seek alternative applications for those involving pressure point attacks/defences as I find them somewhat impractical, especially so with the manner of using this particular hand form where the target is also unclear.  A workable explanation is perhaps the neatly fitting eye-gouging technique outlined by Iain Abernethy, 7th Dan BCA, in his typically pragmatic approach to bunkai.  The palm is placed on (or strikes) the side of the face, the thumb is the active digit pressing into the eye and the other fingers anchor the hand in place.  The picture below shows the thumb slightly displaced above the eye for safety when training the technique.

I have also considered this hand form from a completely different perspective.  During my kobudo (traditional Okinawan weapon martial art) practice, I was intrigued by the correlation of the 'chicken head' hand actually being a standard grip, 'gyakute mochi' (reverse grip), for the sai weapon and the equivalent one finger-tip tsuki (strike) being a common technique.

This is quite evident when practising sai kata 'empty-handed', for example when you might not have the weapons to hand or if wielding such weapons is inappropriate where you happen to be practising.

Taking this concept further, as part of my study into Gojushiho Dai, I attempted compiling a 'sai kata' rendition which I will call, Gojushiho No Sai Dai, to examine how the weapon might fit the form.  This is similar to how Jitte is often interpreted, at least in part, as a 'bo' kata.  I also tested the bunkai involving its use against katana attacks, practising with a partner wielding a bokken (wooden katana).  This extended study is experimental and has been conducted according to my level and ability with the sai and only very limited kenjutsu experience.  The result is a sai kata that is perhaps visually acceptable with a bunkai interpretation that is a starting point for further work and improvement.

More knowledge of skilled kenjutsu attacks and counters will of course help with its development, though not necessarily to any advanced level.  Following the words of Anko Itosu, kata or indeed karate itself, is not intended for duelling against other experienced martial artists or use on the battlefield, but rather for learning principles and methods for self-protection against non-consensual violence by criminals.

This forms a part of my exploration into the origins of the kata and is not meant to be a modern world uptake on its bunkai, though there are principles in the movements that would apply just as well for modern techniques.

Bibliography

Andreas Quast, Ryukyu Bugei 琉球武芸 Ryukyu Bugei 琉球武芸 | Research Workshop 研究工房 (ryukyu-bugei.com)

Andy Roosen, Ko Ken Ryu Karate Jutsu Gojushiho-Dai (globalnet.co.uk)

Emanuel Giordano and Manuel Vignola, article "GOJUSHIHO IN THE VARIOUS SCHOOLS", 4/6/2021 https://karate-shorin-ryu-piemonte.webnode.it/news/study-on-the-diffusion-of-gojushiho-in-the-various-schools/

Iain Abernethy, https://iainabernethy.co.uk/

IKKF newsletter, Falle 2011, http://www.kojosho.com/FALL11News.pdf

Itosu no buyuden (publication), Ryukyu Shimpo, March 19, 1915

Olaf Steinbrecher, March 12, 2020 The lineage of Gojushiho | Thekaratepage.com

Michael Poole, 3rd Dan Shorin Ryu, SKKAA, Earthandcup.com, ‘Variations on Gojushiho’ https://iainabernethy.co.uk/content/gojushihoThis is the only other source I could find where a sai weapon has been used in a version of this kata.

Theshotokantimes, Sep 10, 2019: Gojushiho Dai and Sho: The Solution of the Confusion, by Peter Crawford

ULTIMATE KARATE YouTube channel by Jason Pierce Leung, Gojushiho Dai Full Tutorial

‘Yabiku Motoku – Disciple of Kentsu Yabu’ - https://amba.to/36NzBxq