Warriors of Budo Episode One: Karatedo

Warriors of Budo Episode One: Karatedo. Featuring the Okinawan dojo of Sensei Morio Higaonna who is acknowledged as a true Warrior of Budo. Such a warrior may train his entire life for a moment that never arrives. As a master of the fighting arts, achieving victory in a fight can mean death for the adversary. Yet at the highest level, a Warrior of Budo will choose peace instead of conflict. This is Warriors of Budo Episode One: Karatedo of Sensei Morio Higaonna.
We start our journey in India with the beginning of martial arts and the ancient style of Kalari, Karate's oldest ancestor. At the Shaolin Temple in China, we witness how the roots of martial arts started to grow and become two styles of internal (soft) and external (hard). Our main feature in Episode One takes place at the Okinawa Goju-Ryu Dojo of perhaps the greatest Karate master of all time.
Sensei Morio Higaonna is a Warrior of Budo. After seventy years of daily practice, his passion for Karate still burns bright, like a fire in his belly. Each morning Higaonna walks downstairs to his Okinawa dojo and begins his routine… warm ups and makiwara training followed by Sanchin kata and technique. Each evening he teaches class, leaving students panting for breath and with little strength left when class is over. It is past midnight when Higaonna leaves his dojo to walk back upstairs.
In this episode we take you inside Higaonna’s dojo for an intimate talk about his life and his Karate. In the evening class, we witness the toughest martial arts training we have seen in thirty years documenting Japanese Budo. In his twilight years Higaonna holds nothing back… sharing for the first time, technique and philosophy that display his profound knowledge of Karate. Yet Higaonna still practices with the intensity of a student, saying “I am still green. Waza are endless. The more you train, the more you must pay attention to this. I’m deeply grateful toward my own sensei. Even today I think, thank you sensei !!” We are proud to choose this documentary as our first episode of Warriors of Budo.

About the narrator: Dr. Alex Bennett holds doctorates from the University of Canterbury and Kyoto University. He has worked for the International Research Center for Japanese Studies and is currently Associate Professor at Kansai University's Department of International Affairs. He received his first PhD from Kyoto University where his PhD thesis’ subject was “Investigating a Definition of Bushido”. He lectures frequently on Japanese martial culture and is Vice President of the International Naginata Federation and a committee member of the All Japan Kendo Federation, as well as director of the Japanese Academy of Budo. He is the founder of Kendo World Magazine and the head coach of New Zealand Kendo. He holds Kendo Kyoshi 7th dan, Iaido 5th dan, Naginata 5th dan. His recent books and publications include: Hagakure (The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai). Naginata: the Definitive Guide. Budo Perspectives, The History and Spirit of Budo.