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About Shorinji Kempo
History of Shorinji Kempo
An introduction to the history of Shorinji Kempo, Its
founder and its purpose
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History of Shorinji Kempo
The story of Shorinji Kempo ( 少林寺拳法 ) begins with Doshin So,
who was born in 1911 in Okayama prefecture as the eldest son
of a customs officer. After the death of his father at a
young age, Doshin So was sent to live with his grandfather
in Manchuria. During his time in China, Doshin So traveled
extensively throughout the country.
It was during his travels that he was brought into contact
with the scattered remnants of Chinese martial arts, which
at the time were mysterious arts practiced in secret. Among
the many disciplines he studied, the most pivotal was his
education under studied under Wen Laoshi, the 20th Master of
the Northern Shorinji Giwamonken School. At a ceremony held
at the Shaolin Temple in 1936 Doshin So became Wen-Laoshi's
direct successor, the 21st Master.
Unfortunately, his time in China was marked by turmoil. In
China, the early half of the century was marked by constant
social and political upheaval, which culminated in the
Russian incursion into Manchuria, Japan's defeat and more
personally, a year of suffering under the occupying Russian
army. It was during this time that Doshin So experienced the
misery and suffering of defeat in a foreign land, and the
devastating results which ensued when greed and power lust
subjugated justice, morality and humanity.
It was during this difficult period that Doshin So realized
that it was not ideology, political or religious beliefs or
national policies which were the determining factor on the
course of events, but rather the principles and character of
the people. It was this realization which lead him to make
his most famous remark:
"The person! The person! Everything depends on the quality
of the person!"
Doshin So's realization would profoundly affect the course
of his future life and many years later, directly influence
the philosophy and ideals behind Shorinji Kempo.
At the time of his realization however, Shorinji Kempo was
still a few years in the future. The defeat of Japan in the
war saw Doshin So returning to Japan in June 1946, choosing
to settle down in a little seaport called Tadotsu, on the
quiet island of Shikoku a few hours away from Osaka,
Unfortunately, his return to Japan was anything but
pleasant, for he found his homeland in just as much upheaval
as the one he had just left, with its people lost and
without hope. Society had fragmented and violence against
all and sundry was common.
Doshin So was determined to do his part to rebuild his
beloved Japan and believed that change could only come if he
could change the will and spirit of the people, Recognizing
that preaching and lecturing would have no effect on their
own, Doshin So decided to create a physical discipline which
would provide the helpless people with a way to protect
themselves from the violence around them. He systemized the
varied martial arts techniques he had learned while in
China, re-organizing the disparate techniques into a new
technical system that students would be able to grasp more
easily and enjoy learning. At the same time, he incorporated
his philosophical insights into the system, making them an
integral part of the whole. He termed the entire system
Shorinji Kempo, in homage to the original art on which it
was based.
In the beginning, Kaiso, or 'founder' as he came to be
called, taught students in a training hall in his home. Each
student would be taught the techniques individually and
along with the self defense lessons, he imparted his views
on life, the world and the importance of a person's
characters. Over time, more and more students came to the
little training hall to learn this new art. Recognizing that
the only way to expand and reach out to more people was
through offering a bigger space to train, in 1965 he
established the Shorinji Kempo Hombu (headquarters) dojo.
Over the years, even more students joined Shorinji Kempo and
eventually Shorinji Kempo even began spreading overseas. As
of 2007, Shorinji Kempo is practiced in 33 countries
worldwide. To maintain Kaiso's legacy and to administrate
the many new branches operating around the world, the
International Shorinji Kempo Federation was established in
1972, which eventually evolved into the World Shorinji Kempo
Organization of today,
Kaiso dedicated the rest of his life to nurturing and
expanding Shorinji Kempo, giving lectures and travelling
around the country to visit the dojos in person. On May 12
1980 Kaiso died of heart disease. Since then, his daughter
Yuuki So (also known as Doshin So II) has continued his work
as the head of the Shorinji Kempo movement. Today, there are
about 1.5 million members in 33 countries.
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Doshin So,
Kaiso:
Shorinji
Kempo's founder
Yuuki So:
President
of the
Shorinji
Kempo Group
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