Origin Stories: Fact or Fiction?
When I first started training in martial arts in 1995, the stories tied to the founding of most martial arts were pretty fantastic with superhuman feats of physical prowess and fighting ability attributed to their founders. Whether Kung Fu, Karate or Judo, the founder took the skills learned in previous martial arts, modified it and defeated everyone. These claims are often a combination of fact and fiction.
When I started reading about Judo, one of the key moments in its formation, was the Judo practitioners domination of the Jujitsu school students in the 1886 Tournament hosted by the Tokyo Police. After the judoka won 10 matches and drew 1 match, Judo became the dominant art.
Dr. Jigoro Kano and his student Kyuzo Mifune practicing Judo from the Public Domain
Except that many Jujitsu schools continued to exist alongside Judo until at least 1920. Mataemon Tanabe, a Fusen-ryu Jujitsu practitioner, beat several members of the Kodokan in challenge matches after the Tokyo tournament. Although Tanabe did attend the 1906 Jujitsu Conference held by the Kodokan, he never joined Judo.
I’ve studied Taekwondo for almost 20 years now. Many of the original Taekwondo masters were black belts in Shotokan Karate. However, it is a controversial subject due to the Japanese occupation of Korea. If you brought this fact up, you would be risking getting kicked out of your school and sometimes assaulted by the instructor. To this day, Taekwondo masters from Korea will tell you their art is a modernization of Taekkyeon, an original Korean martial art.
Due to some differences between the second and third generations of the Gracie family, the origins of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu have been somewhat obscured also. In a recent episode of the Grappling Central podcast, Robert Drysdale tries to describe the true creation of the art through historical research. A number of the stories we often repeat may not have occurred they way we think.
After listening to the episode, I think all BJJ schools should have a picture of both Carlos and Helio Gracie hanging in their schools. They built their family legacy together and you cannot have the art without them both.
Most of these stories are created to convince students that the art is the best. If they are not studying it, they are missing out on something. However, if it is good, you don’t need to obscure the origins. The art will stand on its own.
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