GICHIN FUNAKOSHI

"There is no first strike in karate—this is what I deem to be the essence of karate-dō."

—The Essence of Karate by Gichin Funakoshi

"There is no first strike in karate."

—The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate by Gichin Funakoshi

This principle is fundamental enough to the philosophical underpinnings of Shotokan karate that its founder, Gichin Funakoshi, includes it in both of these books of brief glimpses into the fibers and fabric of this martial art. The principles and essence of karate, as far as Funakoshi is concerned, rest upon a martial arts lineage that includes the bushido (Way of the Warrior) code of the samurai, the tenets of Zen Buddhism, and the teachings and training of Bodhidharma as part of its genealogy.

Out of everything I've read about karate so far, these two books, in their brevity, contain most of what I probably need to know. Everything else seems to interpretation and extrapolation of what resides in the pages of these two volumes.

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And the quote to keep me striving and training and practicing...

"A martial artist's strengths or weaknesses are not determined by whether or not he has a weapon; what is essential is his skill."

—The Essence of Karate by Gichin Funakoshi