Training at Satojuku: A Personal Perspective
 

One of the first recommendations I received when I was creating this site was to add a personal perspective to it -- to share my motivation and experiences as a karateka at Satojuku. It was also one of the first recommendations I received about this site from readers after creating this site and putting it on the web. I agreed with these recommendations in principle, but found these feelings and impressions very difficult to convey in words. Nonetheless, I felt I should at least make a best effort at explaining how I came to train at Satojuku and the significance of the experience.

Perhaps the best starting point for this story is with a telephone call from my wife asking me to pick up my daughter from her friend's apartment on my way home from work. It was the home of Dr. Yamada, a medical doctor conducting research at UNC. By chance, Dr. Yamada happened to mention that he had taken Kyokushin Karate in high school, though he thought I might not have heard of that style of karate.

To the contrary, my previous taekwondo instructor was the nephew of the late Masutatsu Oyama, so I was already very familiar with Kyokushin Karate, and had always admired the power, skill and strength of their competitors. Ultimately, Dr. Yamada and I began to meet on Sundays to train together, usually at the UNC track.

This continued until Dr. Yamada and his family returned to Japan. In April of 1996, I went to Japan with my family, and met Dr. Yamada again. As it happened, Dr. Koyama, a friend of Dr. Yamada's, was a Satojuku black belt and trained at the honbu dojo. Dr. Koyama and Dr. Yamada had arranged for me to be able to train at Satojuku and meet its founder, Katsuaki Sato.

Of course, I was excited to be given such an opportunity, but as it happened, a family emergency prevented Sato-jukucho from attending ("jukucho" is a title, refering to the head of a private school). He nonetheless sent one of his best students to train with Dr. Yamada, Dr. Koyama, and myself -- the now three-time All-Japan Point & K.O champion, Masakazu Kawakita -- and he hosted a delicious lunch at a Korean steakhouse afterward.

Although disappointed at not being able to meet Katsuaki Sato, I was extremely impressed with his karate style and his followers. I returned to the US feeling that, despite the fact that I was living in the US and that training at Satojuku meant training in Japan, somehow I wanted to be a part of this special group of karateka.

The following summer I went to Japan with my family again, but this time, training at Satojuku was one of the primary purposes of the trip. And this time I also had the privilege of both meeting and training with its founder, Katsuaki Sato.

Katsuaki Sato has a very powerful presence, but what is at least as striking is that it is a powerful presence without the haughtiness that is often seen in such accomplished martial artists. I guess it is the rarity of that combination of power and modesty that created such a strong first impression for me.

I have tried to visit Japan every year since then, training at the honbu dojo and, for the last two years, participating in the summer training camp. Other practicioners sometimes express admiration at my dedication and commitment in spending my yearly vacations in daily training, but being dedicated is fairly easy when you truly enjoy something. And frankly, the often grueling training regimen is not the toughest part about training at Satojuku. The hardest part about training at Satojuku is leaving to return to the US. I motivate myself to train hard while I am there by remembering that not being able to train with such a special group of karateka for another year will be harder than anything I will endure in my training.

But while leaving each year is difficult, I try to never forget my good fortune in having met Dr. Yamada, who introduced me to Dr. Koyama, which led to my being able to meet Katsuaki Sato, and through training in Odo Karate, being able to meet so many of the special karateka who train there. I also finally understand the significance of something Dr. Yamada had told me about Satojuku several years ago -- that members of Satojuku are all gentlemen. And after meeting Sato-jukucho it is obvious to me why this is so. It is not simply the style of karate that is being imparted to the students, but also the nature of the instructor. Our potential for being good-natured is nurtured by being around those of good nature, particularly instructors, friends, and others we turn to for guidance. In that sense, all Satojuku dojos are a reflection not only of the instructors, but also of those instructors' instructors, and ultimately of Katsuaki Sato, himself.

Each year I have visited Japan, I have trained at the honbu dojo. But I also sometimes train at Dr. Koyama's home, and this past summer I was also invited to train at Bunkyo Dojo one day. It is possible to see slight differences in training emphasis at different dojos, but the fundamental nature of the instructors seems to be the same, even when their personalities differ. I hope to visit other Satojuku dojos during future visits, but at the summer training camps I have already met several students and instructors from other dojos. Based on those meetings, I would expect differences in the other dojos to again be subtle, and that in nature and spirit, training with those students will be like training at honbu dojo.

I occasionally ponder the series of events in my life that led to my training and finding a spiritual home in Odo Karate and with its members. And whenever I do, I remember the first book I received from Dr. Koyama, who was also the book's author. He signed it with a single Kanji character message - 縁 ("en"), which roughly means "connection." His meaning in signing his book that way is something I also strongly believe in -- that the important events in our lives are not random, but are instead a series of designed connections. And these connections are the guidance from a higher power that leads us toward our destinies.