TRADITIONAL OKINAWAN KARATE IN EDMONTON
International Okinawan Shōrin-ryū Seibukan Karate-dō Association
国際沖縄少林流聖武館空手道協会
人に優しく己に厳しくそういう精神が厳しい稽古の中で培うものである
This spirit of being kind to others and being strict with oneself is cultivated through rigorous training
Shimabukuro Zenpō Sensei, leader of Seibukan karate-dō worldwide
NEWS
We work hard together to make a community of fairness and welcome in the dojo. Our hope is to take that fairness into the world. It's not a lot, but it's our small attempt to fight the unfairness harming the vulnerable in 2025.
Kagami biraki 鏡開き, literally “opening the mirror,” is the first class of the year. In old Japan, the mirror symbolized the soul or conscience. For us, the real mirror is looking at ourselves to see what we truly are, as the first step to working to become better as human beings.
And at our first class of 2025, we were happy to introduce Holger to Seibukan karate. Welcome to the dojo, Holger!
Training in Okinawa
Zenpō Sensei is unequivocal that it is necessary for Seibukan karateka to go to Okinawa:
Karate is from Okinawa, so you must go back to Okinawa and see what we do; every karate technique you must correct in Okinawa. Make sure you visit your sensei and feel all Okinawan people.
Please visit Okinawa, to feel traditional Okinawan karate, and eat Okinawan food and breathe Okinawan air. Many things you have to experience in Okinawa.
In October three members of the dojo traveled to Okinawa to train. Craig stayed for two weeks; Lucy and Doug were there for a month. This was the seventh trip to Okinawa since 2014 for Lucy and Doug. Every time, it's been demanding, illuminating, and marvelous.
One of the advantages of our dojo is that its instructors regularly bring lessons from the finest teachers in the world back to Edmonton. The purpose of our dojo is to be a bridge between the karate and culture of Okinawa and good people in Canada seeking to move with more grace through life.
We took Zenpō Sensei to lunch for his birthday.
Our Edmonton Dojo
It is the practice that changes you. It is the trying that matters. You see, this is really an art. It takes a lot of practice but now people don’t like to practice so much. They will find easier ways to do it and when that happens, the art will be lost.
Mei Chen
Clayton introducing new students to karate. The mission that has been given to us is to bring good people to Seibukan, and we take that responsibility very seriously.
