ryoku=power
Kara= Empty, te= hand
do= the way ofTherefore we can arrive at the following translation.
The power of the spirit and way of the empty hand.精神力History of Okinawa Seishinryoku Karate do / kobudo
Okinawa Seishinryoku karate do is a genuine style from Okinawa. It emerged from the union of the two Okinawa schools, Shorin ryu and Shorei ryu, its roots originate from Chomo Hanashiro(1871-1945) who was one of the greatest teachers in Okinawa and the man who changed the name of tode to Karate do. after the death of Chomo Hanashiro , Sokon Hanashiro(1920-2004) took his place and left the island to travel to the surrounding regions (Mongolia – China – India- Thailand). in 1980 he returned to Okinawa where he began teaching (only in closed environment ) an integrated system that included, apart from hits with hands and feet, techniques such as standing fighting – fighting on the ground – low kicks – Aiki jutsu – Ju jitsu- Judo – Muay Thai – Kobudo – bo – iai do and Kendo, he united all styles of martial arts into one, aiming always at the mental and physical completeness of the athlete, maintaining the structure of Karate do. Hanashiro did not give a name to his system,but he always referd to it as Okinawa ryu. in 2004, due to health problems, he appointed Soke Nasiakos Spyros , black belt hachi 8 dan, as the successor of the system.
Soke Nasiakos Spyros renamed this new style Okinawa Seishinryoku karate do meaning ‘’the way of spirit and power of empty hands’’ and together with the students of Sokon Hanashiro established the organization of Seishinryoku karate (I.O.S.K.D.K.A.), based in Naha ,Okinawa.
Today, the Seishinryoku organization is present in 30 countries and keeps on growing.Instructor Brendan Donnelly holds the rank of 4th Dan in Seishinryoku karate along with a 6h Dan in Shotokan, which provides the traditional elements of our Freestyle Karate Classes.