"As the two argued, the Japanese put his hand behind his back to the belt and pulled out a knife, And he went on the air. When the Japanese were close enough to nail down his gun, fell on his opponent. an instant Korean attack and stopped with his left arm launched a backhand shot that crashed against the face. There was a horrible noise, like when you slice a ripe watermelon. The Japanese was dead before falling to the ground and killed a single stroke. The Korean was lucky because the Japanese was a mobster suspected of several murders, the court let him go with a stern warning. "



That incident was perhaps the turning point in the life of Hyung Yee, 24, who later took the name Japanese Masutatsu Oyama. His fists were strong, too powerful to hit the flesh and human bones. Oyama was devoted to fighting wild beasts, with only the help of his hands, destroying trees and stones, bottles and bricks and boards. In 1960, the New York Times called him "the hardest man in the world." But according to Oyama, "The most powerful man in Karate is also the weakest. He realizes that a man can kill with one blow and then has to learn to control. I began to have nightmares in which the woman Japanese man wept for the death of her husband, "Oyama said. I then decided to change my life completely. Instead of becoming a leader of a band, I chose another path in life and became a Karate instructor. "

A Samurai of our was ... Yong I-Choi was born on July 27, 1923, in a village not far from Gunsan in South Korea. For these years, Japan dominated much of the Asian countries, including Korea, from China, specifically Manchuria, which the Japanese called Manchuko. Belonging to an aristocratic family, a father who could call a lord and a mother highly humble and very high spiritual principles, decide to move to Manchuria to a farm belonging to the family. Be in that place, under the influence of Chinese fighting styles and the influence of his mother who by tradition was as fond of martial arts (his grandfather was a practitioner of Korean fighting styles). It's his mother who teaches the first lessons in martial arts since the age of nine years, began to formally study the shape of the South China style of Kempo called the "18 hands of Mr. called Yi" who by then was was working on the farm. When Oyama returned to Korea at the age of 12 years, he continued his training in Korean Kempo. In 1938, at the age of 15 years, travels to Japan to train as an aviator. Because it is a Korean Japanese soil this goal is difficult, so let aviator training aside. It is installed as head of Chiba continuing his studies of martial arts will realize that unless progress is recorded in a college recognized by Japan. A family named Oyama close friend of the father, meets him at his house, and shares the values and principles of the Japanese family, which form part of its essence. Realizing that being the Korean and Japan would be the cradle of education in life decides to adopt the name of Masutatsu Oyama.

For these times the martial arts, specifically karate, was forbidden to practice. Japan decides to legalize it and calls the Karate teachers. A school teacher is appointed by the great masters of karate that took up residence in the islands of Okinawa (place to be practiced freely due to its geographical location) to represent them, Oyama Masutatsu sees the opportunity to continue and complete the necessary requirements, visit the dojo of Funakoshi maesytro in Takushoku University.

Your progress in the entailment was such that at the age of 17 he was 2nd Dan, and the age when he entered the Imperial Japanese Navy at 20, he was 4th dan. At this point took a great interest in the Judo and progress was no less surprising. For the time I leave the Judo (four years since it started) had reached the rank of 4th dan in the field.

So Nei Chu

A teacher who was known as the Tiger, a Karate practitioner stronger but with requesitos Japan demanded the attention of Masutatsu Oyama, So Nei Chu.

Master So, another Korean (from the same province as Oyama) who lived in Japan, who was a great semester of Goju Ryu, was recognized by both spiritual and physical strength. It was he who encouraged Mas Oyama to dedicate his life to martial arts.

Teaching in Chiba province manages to admiration among his students according to their personal ideas.

The Alba Marcial

When he was 23 years met Eiji Yoshikawa, the author of the novel Musashi, which was based on the life and exploits of the famous Samurai. Both, both the novel and the author helped to teach Mas Oyama about the Samurai Bushido code and what it meant. That same year, Oyama went to Mt Minobu in Chiba Prefecture, where Musashi had developed his Nito-Ryu style of sword fights. Oyama thought that this might be an appropriate place to begin the rigorous imply that he had planned for himself. Among the things I knew it was a copy of the book deYoshikawa.Un student named Yashiro decided to follow the same path of his master.

The solitude was strongly felt like the training, and after six months, Yashiro secretly left overnight. This made it harder for Oyama, who perhaps more than ever returning to civilization. So Nei Chu wrote to him telling him he had to shaving an eyebrow in order to remove a little desire to return. Of course I would not want people seeing him as well! This and other words, convinced Oyama to continue.

After 14 months down from the mountain. Upon reaching the city is with a karate practitioners who were conducting a tournament. He asked if I could participate, for his disheveled appearance, clothes in bad shape, long hair and a beard that covered his face, drew the attention of these teachers and thought it was a crazy require you to participate had to break a good batch of tiles or bricks. Asked how much he wanted to break, he responds rather well (bringing hand to waist level) presumably was talking about a 1 meter or more of tiles, it surprised the judges and even more so when the break does all with the edge of the hand.

A few months later, in 1947, Mas Oyama won the karate section of the first National Championship Martial Arts Japanese after World War II. However, she still felt empty for not having completed three years of solitude. He decided to dedicate his life completely to karate. So she began again, this time in the mountains Kiyozumi in Chiba Prefecture. He selected this site for its atmosphere of high spirituality.

This time his training was fanatical - 12 hours a day, seven days a week-by standing between frozen waterfalls, breaking river stones with his hands, using trees as makiwara, stopping hands with nudillos.etc. Each day included a period of study of the ancient classics of martial arts, Zen and philosophy.

After 18 months fell completely satisfied. Initiating a new technique in Karate, which the Japanese called "Oyama Karate."

Bulls, Challenges and the Hand of God

Coincidentally, at a party, like the Spanish shows that bulls let out into the street, Mas Oyama was found on a street where a bull was coming, he ran but when they reached a dead end and finding himself cornered took the position Senkutsu-dachi and closing his fist and before the bull enbestido dealt a blow to the skull with his knuckles letting the animal died instantly.

In 1950, Sosai (founder) Mas Oyama started to cater to demands of his fights with bulls. In total, he fought 52 bulls, three of whom were killed instantly, and 49 horns plucked them with a blow of his open hand. Not all were singles, Mexico achieved an animal corner in the back, Oyama could yet wrest the animal horns, but then had to be six months in recovery from the tragic accident.

In 1952, he traveled to the United States for one year, demonstrating his karate life for live and on television. During the following years, took all the challenges that arose, resulting in 270 fights with different people. The vast majority of these were defeated with just one hit! A fight did not last more than three minutes, and most no more than a few seconds. The principle of their struggle was very simple - if you could see, that was it.

If you hit, you fractured. If he could put a defense, your arm is fractured or dislocated. If you are not breaking the ribs. He became known as "Hand of God" a living manifestation of the greatest of warriors Japanese consumers Ichi geki, Hissatsu or "One strike, certain death." For was not the real focus or target of the technique in Karate. Nice foot work and intricate techniques were secondary (though it was also known by the power of his kicks to the head).

The challenge to boxers and wrestlers Oyama was always sources of inspiration and deep-seated human models. Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898) impressed the young Hyung Yee for their warrior, their powers to analyze and synthesize their spirit. Later, Oyama will take this into account when he proposed his own theory of unification of the schools of Karate. Another of his models was Miyamoto Musashi, the greatest sword master in Japan. Musashi won several battles to the death and created his own method of saber before becoming at once, calligrapher, painter and philosopher. Oyama was defined himself as the "modern Musashi." The master Sokon Okinawa Matsumura (1809-1899) inspired the idea Oyama face bulls. So he sent Neishu Zen techniques and specific methods of recruitment of the Nichiren sect. From Gogen Yamaguchi (1909-1989), Oyama learned the principles of training in the mountains and meditations under the waterfalls. There is another teacher which drew heavily Oyama, this was Choki Motobu (1870 to 1944). Originally from Okinawa, Motobu played an important role in the development of two arts, Karate, and Kempo. With an independent and controversial, he became known for his public challenges and successful, the experts of karate, boxing and wrestling. In the early '50s, Oyama joined his account, the principle of the challenges. In 1952, the United States, to Chicago, at the invitation of the U.S. Professional Wrestling Association (professional wrestling), accompanied by Kokichi Endo (6th Dan Judo and a Hawaiian fighter named: The Grat Togo (The Great Togo).

Here is a teacher's comment about this trip: "I would like to make clear that I really wanted to go to make this trip, as it bothered me to accept money for the exhibitions of Budo, but it is clear that I needed to live and I proposed 100 dollars a week and all expenses paid. After the war, in Japan, that was a fortune ... Ah, I was strong at this time. I would have been champion in athletics but everything that interested me was the Karate . (Oyama Masutatsu in "Mas Oyama, the Legend of Karate, Martial Arts Dojo-magazine No 29, February 1989).

"The Wrestling Hall of Chicago was a huge gym that could accommodate more than 15,000 people. That afternoon was full. Great Togo introduced me to the assistant. He spoke English and I did not understand a word of his speech ... I would to show my karate skills just before the wrestling match should be the main event of the evening ...
He planned to break before any single piece of wood one inch thick, then break up to five, stacked on each other ...
But when the plates showed me the surprise was: this was done with two planks of wood five inches thick each! I realized then that the language barrier was going to cost me dearly ... The first plank broke cleanly under the influence of my first hit and Endo asked me if I wanted to go ... He took the second plate with both hands and delayed a leg to secure their position. It was the first time I was going to try to break a plate as thick, held vertically ... after a small moment of concentration, I broke the second plate to the first tsuki ...
I had to perform the following about breaking bricks. But I know that the bricks Americans were much harder than the bricks Japanese. In addition, there was no rigid backing to support ring and the floor was covered with a thick flexible mat ...
I hit the first time in shuto, without success ... I made a new attempt, but the result was the same ... I decided then to take the time necessary to concentrate and a strange calm began to invade. Anger and impatience began to leave my spirit little by little, while a new force ... after I entered my achievement, I was cheered as he had never been ...
Back to the locker room, I was aware that a man attended ... I looked at my right hand the carefully: "Now I would like my children's hands were as strong as they! This man was Jack Dempsey, a of the greatest boxers of all time. "

During his American Tourné, Endo and Oyama took the nickname of "Ko-Togo" (Small Togo) and "Mas Togo." Between 1952 and 1954, Oyama performed over two hundred exhibits on American territory and was victorious in many battles with fighters and boxers. In this connection, Jerry Beasley wrote in his book "American Karate, The Master Text": "Oyama introduced the image of the superhero East. Was an image of Karate as long as a mystical art, which allowed its followers to defend themselves from many opponents and breaking inanimate objects ... "

In 1954, back to Tokyo, Oyama created its first training center to which he called "Oyama Dojo. In 1956 he went to Okinawa to study the ancient forms of Kenpo. Later he went to Southeast Asia, where they faced a boxing champion Thailand (Muay-Thai) nicknamed Black Cobra.

The teacher commented on his struggle: "one of the objectives of my trip to Southeast Asia was to test the effectiveness of Thai-Boxing as a method of self-defense ...
Black Cobra was perfectly confident in his ability to cope with a karate ... there was no doubt to me that he was a "barrel" while fast and powerful ... his legs were remarkable techniques and dangerously effective. Several times he tried to overtake the head with circular foot blows. Also had excellent reflexes and never hesitated to jump on me whenever he had occasion ...
He had an amazing sense of balance, although he failed in his attempts to strike with their feet, never lost its stability, and that is very rare in this type of technique ...
During the first minutes of battle, I gave the impression that their attacks get along ... he wanted me to find the opening and the right time ... finally, I managed to deal a decisive attack with the hand to the chin. Chained immediately by a standing body blow ... we fell just two ... but I got up ...
All battered, I was not completely satisfied with my victory ... so I would still improve my technical ability to chain the arms and legs. "


These demonstrations, presentations were fights and demands of the times.

In 1953, Mas Oyama opened his first "Dojo", a grass lot in Mejiro, Tokyo. In 1956, the first real Dojo was opened in a ballet studio behind Rikkyo University, 500 meters from the present location of the Hombu Dojo in Japan (headquarters). In 1957 had 700 members, excluding the high porcentanje of abandonment due to strong workouts.

The Oyama Dojo members took the kumite seriously, seeing it first as an art of fighting. Asked in an interview that as the name of your Karate and Oyama was known as that which was the style - and repond - My Karate is one who reached the apex or the apex of the truth or is the summit of truth , which is Japanese Kyokushin.

On April 24, 1994, in Tokyo, dies Masutatsu Sosai Oyama, leaving a great legacy to his students and followers.