Bigg Elephant

Showa

Ware ware  Chito ryu karate-do o shugyo suru mono wa

Tsuneni bushido seishin o wasurezu

Wa to nin o motte nashi

Soshite tsutomereba kanarazu tassu

We who study Chito-ryu karate-do

Must never forget the spirit of the samurai

With peace, perseverance and hard work

We are sure to reach our goals

At the core of the Chito-Ryu philosophy is the ‘Showa’, a poem recited at the end of every classes by teacher and students. Originally written in Japanese, it is difficult to accurately translate to English as many  Japanese words do not have a direct translation.  To understand the concepts of the Showa is essential to the study of Chito-Ryu Karate.  As simple as the ‘Showa’ appears, it is a life long study, considered and applied to every aspect of life.

Wa Nin
The original meaning of “Wa” is to respond to the hearts of others by softening one’s own heart and bringing it in line with the feelings of others. Softening is this case means to become peaceful or in other words to become harmonious. Furthermore, the two energies of Yin and Yang are naturally
adjusted and one can develop friendly relationships with others which smoothly prepares the way for harmony.”Wa” is seeking a peaceful heart.

The Chinese character “Nin” is composed of the two Chinese characters, “sword” and “heart”, which means to grasp the meaning of perseverance with one’s heart. Nintai also contains the strict aspects of patient endurance, forgiveness and to admit or to allow.”Nin no ichiji ni tsukiru no mon”
The most important thing in order to carry out life’s many tasks is to engrave this one word, “Wa Nin”, in one’s heart. As Rohonchu stated, “

Wa Nin is a strong spirit with a heart of forgiveness and patient endurance that is necessary in order to find a heart of peace”.

Riki Hi Tatsu
“Riki” is stated to imply the functions of muscle power, movement, effort and ability. The original meaning of “Hi” was based on the practice of wrapping a thin rope around the wooden part of a weapon’s handle so that it didn’t break. In other words it strongly implied, “absolutely necessary”- now it is used to simply mean ‘surely’.“Tatsu” means to pass through this way.

It is the belief  that human beings can greatly develop themselves through the motivational power of Riki Hi Tatsu. One can obtain life’s goal of absolute power through Martial Arts training and the study of the strong spiritual energy of Wa Nin.

Reference:http://www.karate.org.au/resources/index.php?pg=public.showa