Kajukenbo History
In 1947, in the Palama Settlement of Hawaii five martial artists got together and formed a pact: They would take two years to create the ideal fighting art, one that would make them invincible in the toughest streets of Hawaii. These five men were Frank Ordonez, P.Y.Y. Choo, Joe Holck, Clarence Chang and Adriano Emperado. This organization became known as the notorious Black Belt Society.
In the beginning they trained only a few top artists in this art form. However, later they began to teach this style to the public and the name of the school was called the Kajukenbo Self-defense Institute or KSDI for short. In 1950, there were a total of 12 schools under Adriano Emperado, after the Black Belt Society split up. There are currently four branch styles within the Kajukenbo system including: Kajukenbo Kenpo, Tum Pai, Ch’uan-Fa and Wun Hop Kuen Do. The system has grown such that there are currently hundreds of Kajukenbo schools and it is taught in many countries throughout the world.
The word Kajukenbo is derived from the letter of the styles that contributed to the creation of the art. Together they make up the Kajukenbo motto: Through this fist art one gains long life and happiness.
Ka
KA (long life) – comes from the word Karate, an art form that places the emphasis on hard and powerful techniques. The karate influence was from Tang Soo Do brought by P.Y.Y. Choo.
Ju
JU (happiness) – comes from Judo and Jujitsu, art forms that emphasize throwing, locks and sweeps. The judo and jujitsu influence was from Kodenkan Danzan Ryu brought by Joe Holck and Se Keino Ryu brought by Frank Ordonez.
Ken
KEN (fist) – comes from China & Okinawa that not only stresses the hard and powerful movements, but emphasizes multiple and fluid hand techniques. The kenpo influence was from Kosho Shorei Kenpo brought by Adriano Emperado.
Bo
BO (style) – comes from Chinese and American boxing. Chinese boxing means Kung Fu, which puts emphasis on flexibility and agility, parrying and evasive movements that flow together. The Chinese boxing influence was from Northern and Southern Sil-lum styles brought by Clarence Chang.
The Kajukenbo Motto:
“To Train Strong Is To Remain Strong”
During the early years, Kajukenbo was developed and practiced with such intensity and realism that the Kajukenbo students were banned from competition in traditional Karate Tournaments. This was due to their intensive training in strictly life and death situations. When competing, Kajukenbo students found it very difficult to control their techniques and stop them short because they were not taught to hold back when practicing. To other martial artist who competed in traditional Karate tournaments, the Kajukenbo practitioner seemed to have no control of their techniques and often inflicted heavy injuries on their opponents.
Today’s Kajukenbo practitioners have now included tournament point-fighting, self-defense and forms competition into their training schedules.
What is Kajukenbo?
At our School, Kajukenbo is both a traditional and progressive martial arts system. Kajukenbo training provides a broad and strong foundation to build on. It is a mixed martial art combining elements of Karate (KA), Judo & Jujitsu (JU), Kenpo (Ken) , and Boxing (Bo for Chinese boxing) , kickboxing , Muay Thai , and Western boxing). Unlike the completely progressive approach of only keeping what works and throwing out what doesnt, Kajukenbo maintains strong roots in traditional methods. We favor taking the new and integrating it with the old to create a hybrid system which has both the benefits of adapting to the changing world, while honoring those methods that have been proven successful through the test of time. We believe that much of what does and doesnt work is not only dependent on the person, but also the environment and culture for which that person interacts. When teaching, we attempt to provide the experience and cultural background to put the lesson in a context. Kajukenbo is not just a mix of techniques, but it is an integration of techniques and cultures. Hopefully the lessons that you learn from us will transcend the culture of the dojo (training hall) and allow you to apply these lessons effectively to help better yourself in other cultures and environments, in other parts of your life.
Training
The training consist of warm-up, calisthenics, stretching and techniques; the exercise part of the class is part of the base structure of Kajukenbo. This is to insure that the Kajukenbo practitioner will be physically capable of defending themselves outside of the dojo, but the benefits of good health and exercise go beyond your abilities. Emphasis is placed on kicking, punching, elbows, knees, defense, block strikes combination as well as sparring and grappling. Everyone will train in a safe manner as they become more skilled and confident. aka Professor challenges you to perform with control intensity.
Kata (Forms Training)
Kata is performed to fine-tune the Kajukenbo practitioners movements. Kata is not fighting, it is a method to aid the practitioners mind and body of how one flows during a confrontational situation. We employ many different methods of kata from performance of kata to meditation, to focus, breaking movements into techniques, and breathing exercises. Within each kata are the elements of self defense techniques, the applications. The application of kata is conducted with partners and helps to unlock the moves represented by the kata. Depending on the comfort and skill levels of the students, we work applications against a compliant partner.
Self-Defense Training
We don’t teach you how to fight. That is a common misconception, for that you can go to a training hall and learn how to fight. We teach you tools that you can use to defend yourself, we provide you with experience in various forms of combat & self defense, we provide knowledge and expert opinion, and we work on building up your awareness and mental attitude to prepare you for worst case scenarios. The fight for self-defense must come from inside you, it must already be there. We teach effective and proven tools, but we also understand that if you panic, have never been in a fight or been attacked by someone, never been taken to the ground by someone, then the tools wont work the same in the classroom as on the streets. Understand that you have the ability to defend yourself already inside of you, but the tools we provide can take time to benefit you. Not only do we work on techniques that will help someone defend themselves, but we also must work the mental attitude of the student, to make sure they know how to accept hard training, to be mentally prepared for the worst.