Ashihara Karate
芦原空手Japanese full-contact karate by Ashihara Hideyuki, dating from 1980. It builds on sabaki, deflecting an attack and counterattacking from the side or from behind.
Quick Facts
JapanCharacter & Origin
Training
Who It Suits
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
Editorial rating on a 0–3 scale, based on how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
Catalogs & Databases for Ashihara Karate
About Ashihara Karate
Ashihara karate is Japanese full-contact karate founded by Ashihara Hideyuki (1944 to 1995), a former Kyokushin instructor. According to the Daily Shincho website of Shinchosha, the decision to expel him from Kyokushin kaikan was made on 9 March 1980, while Japanese Wikipedia gives September 1980. According to English Wikipedia, the organization New International Karate Organization (NIKO) Ashihara kaikan was formed in September 1980 in his dojo in Matsuyama. The core of the style is sabaki. Japanese Wikipedia describes it as a technique in which the fighter deflects the opponent's attack, gets into his blind spot and strikes, sometimes with the help of a throw, and states that Ashihara systematized sabaki and promoted karate that anyone can master. English Wikipedia adds that the principle of tai sabaki was already common in other arts, for example in judo. After Ashihara's death the organization is, according to the official website, led by his eldest son Hidenori Ashihara. According to English Wikipedia, a number of branches emerged from NIKO, among them Enshin karate of Joko Ninomiya.
History
Japanese Wikipedia states that Ashihara was born on 4 December 1944 in Hiroshima Prefecture, English Wikipedia gives 5 December. In 1961 he joined Oyama's dojo, from which Kyokushin kaikan emerged, and stayed there for 19 years. English Wikipedia says that he received 1st dan in 1964 and became an instructor of the central dojo in 1966. According to Japanese Wikipedia, he went as a visiting instructor to Nomura in Ehime Prefecture and became head of the Kyokushin branch for Shikoku, in 1970 he opened a dojo in Yawatahama and in 1979 a headquarters near the station in Matsuyama. As the cause of his expulsion, Japanese Wikipedia gives a dispute with Masutatsu Oyama over the expansion of Ashihara's dojo into the Kansai area. The official Ashihara kaikan website speaks of becoming independent.
How it differs
According to English Wikipedia, Ashihara taught sabaki techniques such as deflections, trips and circular movements even though the rules of Kyokushin knockdown tournaments prohibited them. Kotobank states that Kyokushin kaikan too, with its full-contact rules, prohibits a direct hand strike to the head. According to English Wikipedia, Ashihara karate tournaments are similar in rules to Enshin karate tournaments, with weight categories, victory by knockout or on points, and with one-handed grabs and throws.
Technique
English Wikipedia lists three main principles of Ashihara karate, preparation and work with four positions represented by a circular symbol, timing and judgment of distance called maai, and a stance that still allows the greatest possible mobility. The official website describes sabaki as a way of moving in which the fighter strikes more safely without being hit and defeats the opponent without being defeated himself. According to Japanese Wikipedia, Shorinji kempo influenced Ashihara's teaching system.
Training
Japanese Wikipedia states that sabaki is practiced in pairs in the form of pre-arranged sparring. According to it, in the 1960s Ashihara emphasized the speed of the strike and strengthened the wrist by striking soft objects such as a bag. English Wikipedia lists his books Fighting Karate (Kodansha America, 1985) and More Fighting Karate (1989) and three Japanese volumes from 1983 to 1987.
Ranks and progression
English Wikipedia states a belt system the same as in Kyokushin, kyu with white, blue, yellow, green and brown belts and dan with a black belt. The official Ashihara kaikan website mentions examinations for both kyu and dan.
Competition
Japanese Wikipedia states that the organization initially held no official tournaments of its own and later recognized the Sabaki Challenge run by Enshin kaikan. According to it, the world tournament Ashihara Karate World Championship has been held since 2011 and an all-Japan tournament since 2022. English Wikipedia says that in 1993 Ashihara consented to the Danish branch holding the Sabaki Challenge Spirit tournament, whose first edition was in 1994. Ehime Shimbun reports the 8th edition of the world tournament in November 2023 at the Ehime Budokan in Matsuyama.
Today
The official website states that the second kancho is Ashihara's eldest son Hidenori Ashihara, who took over the post at the age of 18. According to Japanese Wikipedia, the organization is based under the official name New International Karate Organization in Matsuyama in Ehime Prefecture. English Wikipedia names schools derived from NIKO, Enshin in the USA, Shintaiikudo and Josui in Japan, AIKO in the Netherlands, IAKA and Ashihara BudoKai in Russia, AKI in South Africa and TSG in Sweden.
Did you know
Japanese Wikipedia states that Ashihara mastered throwing shuriken and knives and developed the defensive tool A baton by modifying the tonfa. The same article cites the influence of his karate on arrest techniques of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Daily Shincho writes that he died on 24 April 1995, about a year after Oyama.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Ashihara karate?
Ashihara Hideyuki (1944 to 1995), a former Kyokushin instructor. He founded the NIKO Ashihara kaikan organization in September 1980 in Matsuyama.
What is sabaki?
According to Japanese Wikipedia, a technique in which the fighter deflects the opponent's attack, gets into his blind spot and strikes, sometimes with the help of a throw.
Why did Ashihara split from Kyokushin?
He was expelled. Daily Shincho gives a decision of 9 March 1980, Japanese Wikipedia September 1980 and as the cause a dispute with Masutatsu Oyama.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.