Traditional Gojy Ryu Karate was developed for realistic street defense. There were no sport karate competitions, no trophies and no commercial karate schools. The people of Okinawa studied, practiced and developed their martial arts in order to keep themselves and their families safe from those attackers that yielded weapons or attacked in groups.
The tradition of realistic street defense has been kept in the art so that students of Okinawa Goju-Ryu are able to develop their mind, their spirit, their bodies and their techniques to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.
Realistic street defense is not just about punching, kicking, throwing and grappling. Beyond the techniques the mind and spirit must be trained to remain calm and use the knowledge and techniques that have been developed in the most efficient and effective manner.
The Okinawa Goju-Ryu Shobukan is holistic in nature. The teachers here in the USA are focused on developing students with confidence, respect, honor, high moral values and a physical prowess to be to handle themselves in any physical confrontation.