A STUDY GUIDE FOR THE UECHI RYU / SHOHEI RYU PRACTITIONER.

By Dave Sargent

Every practitioner should be able to answer the listed questions when called upon to do so. Knowledge of the below subjects should be a minimum requirement. Students should do the research necessary to find the answers. The answers should be a detailed oral or written explanation on the subject of each question. 

1a. What is karate?

  b. What does Uechi mean?

  c. What does Ryu mean?

  d. What is OKIKUKAI?

  e. What is Shohei Ryu?

  f. What does the name Shohei mean.

2a. What is kata?

  b. How many kata are in Uechi Ryu?

  c. What are their names?

  d. Which are the original kata.

  e. Where did the other katas come from?

3a. Who was the founder of Uechi Ryu.

  b. When was he born and when did he die? 

  c. When did he start his study of the martial art?

  d. Where did he study, what did he study, and for how long?

  e. Who was his teacher?

  f. In which three countries did he teach?

  g. How long did he teach Uechi Ryu?

4 a. Who was Kani Uechi?

   b. When was he born?

   c. What was his role in Uechi Ryu karate?

   d. When did he die?

   e. Why do we clap our hands two times when formally ending a work out?

   f. Tell the Uechi Ryu story. (a narrative of Uechi history)

   g. What are the names of the senior members of OKIKUKAI? (Name as many as you can.)

   h. Who is the current president of OKIKUKAI?   

5a. Name the Uechi Ryu traditional exercises.

  b. Name the traditional hand techniques.

  c. Name the traditional foot techniques.

  d. Name the traditional blocking techniques.

  e. How many kicks are there in each kata? 

  f. Explain the usage of the above techniques.

This is by no means a complete list. Knowledge of the above is prerequisite for the Uechi Ryu or Shohei Ryu practitioner. It has been suggested that I include the answers to the questions. Doing that would create a book. The student should research existing books, student hand-out sheets, the internet, and ask sensei for the answers. Doing this will impart a deeper knowledge than just memorizing pat answers.