SENSEI
Those who made the road
before
 Kentsu Yabu
1866-1937
Kentsu Yabu was born in 1866 and became the senior
student of Yasatsune "Ankoh" Itosu.
Itosu was almost 80 years old when karate was
introduced to the curriculum of the Normal School, and much of the
teaching was carried out by his senior student Kentsu Yabu. Yabu is
probably best known today as Itosu's assistant, yet he was an
outstanding karate expert in his own right.
Kentsu Yabu was commonly knows as "Gunso", or
sergeant, a reference to his career in the Japanese Imperial Army.
Apparently he went past the rank of sergeant to become a 2nd
lieutenant, and the ability to make his way in the Japanese Army
suggests a certain strength of character and aptitude for military
life. The Okinawans had never been a military people and the older
generation opposed all forms of military service. The conscription
laws enforced throughout the rest of Japan in 1873 were not extended
to Okinawa till 1898. Even then the proportion of islanders rejected
for service because of illiteracy, shortness, and so on, was the
highest of any Japanese prefecture. Those few who had served under
the harsh discipline of Japanese army life were generally much
tougher than the average Okinawan.
It is said that Yabu saw action on the Chinese
battlefront during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894/5.
In Yabu's time the Okinawans serving in the Army
had been a lowly regarded minority. They would often be victimised
and beaten. Kentsu Yabu would not stand for this and fought back.
Incidents occurred which led to an official investigation. Yabu was
cleared of all blame and became a hero to his fellow Okinawans.
When Yabu was a sergeant he was challenged to fight
by another soldier. When the man attacked, Yabu struck him - killing
him instantly. There was an enquiry and the investigating officer,
who had heard of Okinawa's karate, asked Yabu if he had used that
technique. Yabu replied that he had struck with the open palm, not
the fist. If he had used his fist, he explained, the opponent's ribs
would have been smashed. He was ordered to strike a nearby tree
using his fist. The tree split where he had struck it, greatly
surprising the investigating officer. The outcome of all this was
that the cause of death was never made clear in the official report
and Yabu's career was unaffected.
The reference to Yabu's palm strike is interesting,
because he was supposed to be an expert in open handed techniques.
His favourite kata was 'Gojushiho' which contains a variety of
open-hand waza.
Yabu, big and broad shouldered, was regarded
throughout Okinawa as a powerful karateka and genuine expert.
History tells us that he once defeated Choki Motobu. This was not in
a karate contest but rather in a bout of tegumi - an Okinawan form
of wrestling. Yabu was able to pin Motobu after a contest lasting
twenty minutes.
When he retired from the Army, Yabu Sensei became a
teacher for the Cadet Force at the Okinawa School for Teachers. He
taught karate to students for many years and his army experience in
handling large bodies of men must have been useful in organising
classes. For generations before this karate had been taught in
secret and a master would have only a few students, sometimes only
one. With the introduction of karate into the educational system a
means had to be found of instructing larger classes, the
"militarisation" of karate teaching might be traced back to Gunso
Yabu. "Militarisation" is not meant in a negative sense but rather
refers to the training of large classes by repeating techniques to a
count. Yabu's teaching was disciplined and testing. He stressed
repetition and mastery of one kata before moving onto the next.
He retired from the teachers' school with
tuberculosis. Every morning he would get up and enjoy a walk.
Sometimes he would have to stop to cough up blood and phlegm, and on
such occasions he would shout "go to hell!" before turning back for
home.
Master Yabu died in 1937 at the age of 71.
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