Gōjū-Ryū meets Kyokushin: Insights into Meibukan Karate with Hanshi Akihito Yagi
Karate has many faces. Anyone who truly wants to understand Karate should therefore not only know their own style, but also be prepared to learn from other lineages.
On 9 August 2026, exactly this opportunity arose in Berlin: at the international Meibukan Gōjū-Ryū seminar with Hanshi Akihito Yagi Karateka from different backgrounds were able to train together and gain direct insight into a traditional Okinawan Karate lineage.
The International Meibukan Gojyu-Ryu Karate-do Association recognizes Yagi as their Hanshi and held an international seminar in Berlin on 8 and 9 August 2026.
For the Shinzen Dojo Berlin war die Teilnahme eine besondere Möglichkeit, über die Grenzen des eigenen Kyokushin-Trainings hinauszuschauen.
Karate does not end at the borders of a style
Kyokushin Karate is the home of Shinzen Dojo Berlin. Kihon, Kata, and Kumite form the foundation of our training. Full contact, the physical challenge, and the ability to continue under pressure define our path.
At the same time, engaging with Kyokushin does not mean ignoring other forms of Karate.
On the contrary.
Anyone who seriously studies Karate will repeatedly discover similarities as well as differences between the various Ryūha and training methods. Precisely this exchange can help to better understand one's own Karate.
Not everything has to be adopted. But many things can provide food for thought.
For Sensei Son Le, Gründer und Leiter des Shinzen Dojo Berlin, war das Seminar deshalb vor allem eine Gelegenheit, als Karateka und Lehrer weiterzulernen und neue Perspektiven kennenzulernen.
Meibukan Gōjū-Ryū: Karate from Okinawa
Hanshi Akihito Yagi represents the Meibukan lineage of Gōjū-Ryū Karate-dō. The Meibukan tradition traces back to his grandfather Meitoku Yagi who trained directly under Gōjū-Ryū founder Chōjun Miyagi.
In the Meibukan system, besides Kihon and Kata, Yakusoku Kumite in particular, holds an important place. It is not exclusively about free sparring, but about fixed partner exercises in which distance, timing, reaction, defense, and counter-attack are systematically trained.
This perspective is particularly interesting for Karateka from Kyokushin.
Because although the training forms differ, one encounters many familiar principles:
- Distance and timing
- Body structure
- Stability
- Attack and defense
- Reaction under pressure
- Control of one's own movement
- Kata as a foundation for application
- Partner work as a connection between technique and practice
Kihon, conditioning, and body work
The 2. day of the seminar did not begin exclusively with quiet technical exercises.
Physically demanding elements were also part of the training. Explosive jump exercises, fast movements, and conditioning challenged the participants from the very beginning.
This made it clear: traditional Karate by no means implies that physical performance plays no role.
The body is the tool.
Technique must not only be understood but also be capable of being executed.
Precisely this connection between technique and physical preparation was an interesting aspect of the seminar.
Kata not just as a form, but as an application
A special emphasis was placed on the Kata.
Among others, the following were trained: Gekisai and Saifa as well as other Kata of the Gōjū-Ryū and Meibukan system. In addition to the classic Gōjū-Ryū Kata, the Meibukan Kata system also includes its own Meibukan Kata such as Tenchi, Seiryu, Byakko, Shujaku and Genbu.
It was not merely about reproducing the sequence of movements of a Kata.
Yagi showed, rather, how individual movements can be understood and interpreted as applications.
Thus, Kata becomes a tool for understanding Karate rather than just 'performing a form'.
It is precisely this approach that is exciting for Karateka from different styles. Many movements that at first glance appear to be purely block, strike, or stance exercises take on a completely different meaning through partner work.
Renzoku Kumite and Kakomi Kumite
Particularly interesting were the various forms of Yakusoku Kumite.
One exercise corresponded to what is known in Meibukan as Renzoku Kumite In this, attack and defense alternate in a fixed sequence and connect different attack areas such as Jōdan, Chūdan, and Gedan.
The Meibukan description speaks of a sequence with 26 steps.
Even more impressive was Kakomi Kumite.
In this, one Karateka stands in the middle while four other Karateka attack from the four directions. The exercise therefore requires not only technical precision but also spatial orientation, awareness, and quick reaction.
Gerade hier zeigt sich eine interessante Gemeinsamkeit verschiedener Karate Styles:
Karate trains not only the technique itself but also the ability to perceive a situation and react to it.
When Kyokushin meets Gōjū-Ryū
A special moment of the seminar arose during the partner exercises.
As a full-contact Karateka, Sensei Son Le brought his experience from Kyokushin into the joint work. Together with Yagi Sensei, various possibilities of defense and reaction to strikes were tested.
For the participants, it was simultaneously an interesting comparison of two perspectives:
- How does traditional Okinawan Karate react to an attack?
And:
- How does this reaction differ from what a Kyokushin fighter is accustomed to from full contact?
It was not about playing one style off against another.
On the contrary.
It is precisely the differences that make the exchange valuable.
A special moment: Seipai
At the end of the seminar, the higher-ranking Karateka came together.
Kata were shown one after the other.
When it became known that a Kyokushin Karateka was among them, the call went out:
“Kyokushin – Seipai.”
This selected a Kata known in different Gōjū-Ryū and Kyokushin traditions – though with different executions depending on the style and lineage.
Sensei Son Le then showed Seipai from his Kyokushin perspective.
A small moment that represented very beautifully what this seminar was all about overall:
Different paths can connect the same passion for Karate.
What Kyokushin can learn from other Karate styles
Looking beyond one's own style does not mean giving up one's own identity.
Kyokushin remains Kyokushin.
The full contact, the harshness of the training, the special importance of Kumite, and the characteristic physical and mental development are part of our own path.
But that is precisely why it can be valuable to get to know other perspectives.
A Gōjū-Ryū Karateka can draw a Kyokushin fighter's attention to other aspects of body structure, breathing, distance, or Kata application.
A Kyokushin Karateka, in turn, brings experiences from a very direct form of Kumite.
Karate grows larger when one is prepared to learn from each other.
Karate as a common path
For Shinzen Dojo Berlin, Karate does not mean that one may only learn within one's own style.
Kyokushin is our path.
But Karate is larger than a single association, a single dojo, or a single style.
The exchange with other Karateka can help to better understand movements, question one's own habits, and ask new questions.
And that is ultimately what training is all about:
not knowing everything at some point, but always continuing to learn.
“Karate is a valuable gift that I have received from my grandfather, my father, and the people before me.” — Hanshi Akihito Yagi
This attitude was also palpable at the seminar in Berlin: Karate is passed on from generation to generation – and every Karateka bears responsibility for what they make of it and pass on to the next generation.
Thank you for a special day of training
Shinzen Dojo Berlin would like to thank Hanshi Akihito Yagi Hanshi Akihito Yagi for the insights into Meibukan Gōjū-Ryū, the open explanations, and the personal exchange.
For the participants, it was an intensive training day with many new impressions – from Kihon and conditioning to Kata and their applications, to various forms of Yakusoku Kumite.
But above all, it was a reminder that Karate does not consist of just one style.
Anyone who truly loves karate must remain curious.
Osu.
