Sunday, April 23rd 2017,  Sosai Mas Oyama’s family spent the day at the old Honbu Dojo, built by Sosai (now – the headquarters of the International Kyokushin Organization – Oyama family), for the ceremony commemoration of the memory of the founder of Kyokushin.

The motto of this event were the words “Back to Basics – to Budo karate.” Relatives and friends gathered in the hall on the second floor, to honour teachers.

On April 26, 1994  Masutatsu Oyama, the founder of full contact karate and Kyokushin died from cancer at the age of 70.

This year, the relatives and friends of the master gathered to honour his memory with a special ceremony. Everyone present came to the altar and laid on it branches of an evergreen tree, Sakaki, which are ritual offerings to the gods and spirits of the Japanese national religion, Shinto.

At the end of the ceremony, on behalf of the deceased’s family, a word of thanksgiving was given to the gathering by well known Japanese actor Fujimaki Dzjun, who was accompanied by the younger brother of the late wife of Mas Oyama.

During the ceremonial Kenpai (lifting glasses for the souls of the dead) one of the invitees, Hatsuo Royama , who came as an apprentice to master Oyama from the original school “Oyama Dojo” – historical predecessor to Kyokushinkaikan – in 1963, and who is now president of the International Karate Organization – Kyokushin-kan, gave a speech.

He shared with the participants of the ceremony a number of interesting memories from the history of his time with Sosai, training under his leadership during the “Oyama dojo” and then he urged everyone to go back to the source of the teachings of Sosai Oyama, the correct balance between the disputed karate style, limited in their ability to strict rules, martial karate and karate as the spirit of education system.

“Sosai Oyama“, said Hatsuo Royama, “kept telling us that Karate Kyokushin – this is not a sport, it is Budo Karate.

Since the time Sosai Oyama passed away has been more than 20 years, and everything we see today, at our schools, has transformed Budo Karate into a kind of sport karate.

See how, under the influence of sports karate, our dojo – “the place where people come to improve and comprehend the Way” – have been converted into conventional gyms.

In this regard, I want to encourage all to go back to the origins of the teachings of Mas Oyama – to Budo karate, for karate as a martial art and system of education of the individual. I want to urge all to work for the sake of just such a karate, which commands us to our Teacher. ” 

OSU!