Akamine Eisuke

Akamine Eisuke was born May 1, 1925, and until his death on January 13, 1999, he lived in the Nesabu section of Tomigusuku, the small village in southern Okinawa where he was born.In 1942, at the age of seventeen, he began the study of Yamani-ryu bojutsu (staff art) under Higa Seichiro, Higa Raisuke, Higa Jisanburo and Akamine Yohei. From his early teachers, Akamine Sensei learned the kata Shushi no Kon, Sakugawa no Kon, Shirataru no Kon, and Yuniga no Kon.

In 1944, Akamine Sensei married Shizuko, the daughter of one of his Yamani-ryu bo instructors. Shortly thereafter, at age nineteen, he was drafted into the Japanese army where he served one year in Taiwan. When he returned to Okinawa, Akamine Sensei resumed vegetable and sugar cane farming and his study of Yamani-ryu bojutsu.

In 1959, Taira Shinken was teaching kobudo in a Goju-ryu karate dojo in Naha, Okinawa. While there, Taira heard of some great bojutsu teachers who lived in the Kakazu section of Tomigusuku village. These men were direct students of Chinen Sanda, the master who had taught Taira Shinken's instructor Yabiku Moden, and were at that time the instuctors of Akamine Eisuke. Master Taira could not miss this opportunity to train with some of the same men who trained with his old teacher, so he travelled to Tomigusuku to seek their instruction. One day, while studying there in Tomigusuku, Taira was asked to demonstrate tekko (metal knuckles), nunchaku (horse bridle) and sai ( iron club). Akamine Sensei had never seen these weapons before. He was so impressed with Taira’s techniques that he decided to become his student.

As Taira’s senior student, Akamine Sensei would be in the unique position of watching him organize the various waza into a system that would eventually become Ryukyu Kobudo Hozon Shinkokai. In addition to building a structured curriculum, Taira was adding a training element that would permeate all Ryukyu kobudo waza and kata and as a result become part of the signature of this weapons system. Higa Yuchoku was a student of Chibana Chosin and a noted teacher of ti, the origin of karate. Higa and Taira Shinken were close friends. As he continued his relentless study, Taira recognized that kobudo, while effective, lacked the explosive power found in ti. Specifically, it lacked gamanku (hip technique). So he asked Higa Yuchoku to help infuse his system of kobudo with gamanku. After Taira’s death, Akamine Sensei continued to seek Higa’s counsel on the use of gamanku.

In his later years, Taira primarily taught in the garden at Akamine Sensei’s home. In 1970, shortly before his death, Taira gathered his students at Akamine Sensei’s dojo and distributed certificates of rank. During this ceremony, he also awarded Akamine Sensei the title of shihan (full instructor). Akamine Sensei’s shihan license and the certificates of rank issued that day were the first and only kakemono (scrolls) ever issued by Taira Shinken.

Akamine kept the name, structure and goals of Taira’s organization intact. In addition, Akamine Sensei continued Taira’s tradition of research and with the help of his students, brought several kata back from extinction. His focus was on the development of good waza (technique) above all else.

With a small dojo and a focus on quality rather than quantity, Akamine Sensei intentionally kept his student roster small. He only had fourteen first generation students, including our sensei, Devorah Yoshiko Dometrich. He appointed her the head of the Beikoku So Hombu (American Sole Headquarters) in 1977.

(Adapted from Akamine Eisuke Hanshi, by Doug Dalton)