Goju Ryu Karate

Goju-ryu was the style of Okinawan Karate taught and named by Chojun Miyagi. Miyagi was born in 1888. Like his brother student Juhatsu Kyoda, Miyagi had several instructors, but he too credited Kanryo Higaonna as his primary teacher. Miyagi named his school of Karate, Goju-ryu, litterally "hard and pliable school". Chojun Miyagi died in 1953 (Showa 28) at the age of 65.

While Miyagi had several senior students he never publicly declared any of them as successor of the Goju-ryu style. After Miyagi's death the senior students who remained tried to determine who the appropriate successor should be but no clear consensus was ever reached. As a result many of the senior students went on to form their own schools based upon the teachings of Miyagi.

One of Miyagi's first students was Seiko Higa (1900 - 1966). Seiko Higa began his training under Higaonna but after Higaonna passed away he began to train exclusively with Miyagi Chojun. Seiko Higa eventually opened his own dojo in Itoman and created the 'Shodokan' branch of Goju karate. Two of Higa's best students were Seiko Fukuchi (1919 - 1975) and his son Seikichi Higa (1933 - 1999).

Seiko Fukuchi eventually went on to open his own school and began to train students as well. One of his students was Iken Tokashiki(b.1940) who had also trained under Seiyu Nakasone, a Tomari-te expert, before studying Goju-ryu under Fukuchi. Eventually Tokashiki would go own to establish his own school as well and called it 'Gohakukai'.

Sensei Yoshitaka Kinjo (b.1952) was a student of Iken Tokashiki and is currently the Canadian representative for the Gohakukai honbu dojo in Okinawa. Sensei Kinjo is the chief instructor for Gohakukai Goju-ryu karate for the Kowakan dojo.

Gohakukai Goju-ryu Karate Lineage