The word Karate is an association of two Japanese words, where Kara means empty and té signifies hand, therefore describing a style of unarmed battle.

History:

Karate is a martial art with its own history, philosophy and series of techniques one as interesting as the others. Karate is also a way of life, which brings forth a sensation of well-being. A true karateka (disciple and partisan devoted to karate) finds a balance and a harmony in his life. He develops and unifies a solid body and a spirit of humility. Those who decide to follow the way of the karate (karate-do) will develop their courage and their force. These qualities have nothing to do with the strong actions or the development of strong techniques as such. The emphasis is put on the development of the spirit rather than on the techniques. The principles and values of karate such as respect, honesty, patience, concentration, self-confidence and courtesy are completely variable and most definitely affect our daily routine whether at work or at home.
                                 
Karate originates from the Island of Okinawa and is a Japanese martial art of self-defence using bare hands. It is important to know that until the last century, in certain domains Japan did not have any written documentations and so tradition continued through verbal expression.. Let us add that in Okinawa, the training sessions often took place in the greatest secrecy. That is why documents on the Japanese martial arts are extremely rare and of which historic accounts are often copies and therefore subject to caution. (or: of which historic accounts are often copies and  therefore unreliable sources).

Today:

Karate is more popular today than it was several years ago due largely to the media via television, magazines, newspapers, and films, etc. Karate also became a competitive status at the professional and amateur level through organizations and promoters. Karate allows the development of force, power, and excellent physical and mental condition. These are interesting targets to achieve but this is not the goal of karate. Karate is a way of living, of well-being. The essence of  karate is the ability to blend together body and spirit in order to realize the full human potential. Understanding the true principle of karate is what makes its practice significant to the child (or pupil). The way of karate must be experienced by every individual in his own unique way. Karate is not a sport. There is no competition with others, the only true competition in Karate, is with ourselves. The Karate-do means the life within ourselves, where we fight with our own weaknesses, our ego, our egoism and our limited intelligence and prejudices.  Karate offers ways to understand and develop respect between the participants. This is achieved through protocol and strict courtesy which every pupil practices in the dojo. The way that we wear the kimono (the uniform), that we move or speak to the senior pupils are prescripts and are followed according to the ranks of belts. This allows us to be more civilized, and to respect one another completely.

Origin of the Karate:

The first traces of a method using fist and foot battle appear in the 16th century AD in China. This proof of the existence of martial arts dates to 770 and 480 BC in the book of chants I-CHIN CHING, where-in the life of this period is described in abundance.  

It is to the Buddhist monk from India, BODHIDHARMA, also known under the name of DARUMA TAISHI, that we owe the clarification of the method called SHAOLIN-SZU-KEMPO. Its goal was to improve the physical health of the monks living in the temple of SHAOLIN, by teaching them a method of effective self-defence. This first scientific form of combat comes from India and displays a warrior method called VAJRAMUSHTI. In China, it amalgamated with the local technique of fists named CH'UAN-FA, thus resulting in a wide variety of techniques most especially emphasizing the use of fists such as PANGAI-NOON,  KUNG FU,  PAKUA,  TAI-CHI,  KEMPO, etc.

The aftermath which led to modern karate, was found in Okinawa, the main island of the chain of the RYU KYU situated in the South of Japan. This meeting ground of Chinese and Japanese cultures was the go-between (or intermediary between) two civilizations, therefore making Okinawa the place from where many diverse fighting techniques merged. It is there that developed an extremely hard and effective form of fight directly at the origin of the current Japanese karate. This, in answer to two periods of repression which began with the invasion of the Mongols in China leading to a deep reaction on behalf of the Lords of the dynasties Ming (1368-1644 ) and Ting ( 1644-1911 ).

GICHIN FUNAKOSHI, considered as the father of modern karate, and who in 1906, together with his colleagues, made his first public demonstration in Okinawa.  Furthermore, in 1922, he made known about the existence of the karate during a sports event (First National Athletic Exhibition) which took place in Tokyo, Japan and organized by the ministry of Education. During this era,  Japanese only knew of JU-JITSU. Ju-Jitsu is a method from which JUDO draws its techniques and other forms of self-defence. It came to Japan in the XIIth century with the Buddhism Zen, the SHORINJI KEMPO. Under the direction of Master Funakoshi, they became interested in studying this effective yet still unknown method of battle.

And so, it was Master Funakoshi who cut the ties between the original Chinese and Okinawan art and called his, the art of “Karate”.  However, some instructors continued to teach in Okinawa with the more traditional method, which was a closer form of Okinawa-te.  Yet others witnessing the success of Funakoshi, crossed over to Japan bringing with them their own techniques; even though their techniques varied slightly, seeing the benefits of Funakoshi’s success, they all referred to their style as Karate.

The nature of Karate:

The nature of the karate-do is characterized by a strong potential of power and force, but also often wrongly understood as being a very violent and aggressive art. This negative view is definitely not the case.  Karate is an exceptional martial art which is strictly governed by codes and principles of courtesy, good will and  spiritual understanding. Other sports depend on the concept of victory and  defeat, karate-do however, distinguishes itself as an art of self-defense.