nku is an interesting kata in the Shorinjiryu Karatedo lineage of Kaiso Kori Hisataka.  This kata is undoubtedly of historical importance to our style, but we aren’t exactly sure as to who developed this kata.

Evidence  suggests that Chotoku Kyan, the leading teacher of Kaiso Kori Hisataka, introduced Ananku to Okinawan karate.  It also generally accepted that Kyan introduced it shortly after his return from the c. 1930 visit to Taiwan , on which Ryosei Kuwae and Kaiso Kori Hisataka accompanied him.

Although the exact origins of the kata are uncertain, there are four generally favoured theories among researchers:

  • Kyan, Kuwae and Kaiso Kori Hisataka collaboratively developed the kata based on their experiences in Taiwan (Hisataka, 1994)
  • Kyan developed the kata himself, probably based on the Taiwan experience (Smith, 2002);
  • Kyan learnt it from a Chinese style in Taiwan ; or,
  • He learnt it in Okinawa – possibly from a Taiwanese martial artist (Bishop, 1989), or his father (Sells, 2000).

Whilst the first theory has a lot of appeal to practitioners of our Shorinjiryu, the fact that Ananku has not been a part of our system until relatively recent times would make this questionable (although by no means out of the question).  In his earlier book, Hanshi Masayuki Hisataka (1976) made no reference to Ananku in his excellent discussion about the kata of Shorinjiryu.

The third theory is similarly questionable.  As the three Okinawan masters are believed to have traveled together for this journey, it would be likely that Kaiso Kori Hisataka would also have learnt the form, and that it would today be part of our system.  It is however possible that Kyan learnt the form separately.

The fourth theory is also possible but doubtful, as it does not explain why no one else of Kyan’s era or before is known to have taught this kata.  Similarly, it does not explain why Kyan began to teach the form immediately following his return.  Many leading researchers into Karatedo history believe that Kyan did bring the kata back from the Taiwan visit (McCarthy, 1987).

Therefore, I favour the theory Kyan himself developed Ananku based on his experiences in Taiwan, and possibly “recording” what he saw from local martial artists during those travels.  Accordingly, this kata is of special importance to our style, historically.

Ananku remained “lost” from the Shorinjiryu family for many years, until the mid-1980’s, when Shihan Laurie Vann of Australian Shorinjiryu researched this kata, and re-introduced it to as a contribution to the overall development of our style.  Its practice has been adopted by various Shorinjiryu schools around the world, notably by members of the Shorinjiryu Shinzen Kyokai.

As an historical artifact, Ananku is important to our style.  It not only records the experiences of our founder and his teacher, but it also gives us greater insight into the techniques of Chotoku Kyan.  It is a short, fast kata that emphasizes the angular movements and combinations that are characteristic of our style.

References

  • Bishop, M. (1989): Okinawan Karate: Teachers, Styles and Secret Techniques. London : A&C Black.
  • Hisataka, M. (1994). Essential Shorinjiryu Karatedo. Tokyo : Charles E. Tuttle
  • Hisataka, M. (1976). Scientific Karatedo. Tokyo , Japan Publications.
  • McCarthy, P. (1987): Classical Kata of Okinawan Karate. Burbank : Ohara Publications
  • Sells, J. (2000): Unante: The Secrets of Karate. Hollywood : Panchita S. Hawley.
  • Smith, Dan (2002): Kyan, Chotoku (1870-1945), FightingArts.com. http://www.fightingarts.com/learning/biographies/karate/kyan.shtml