Teruyuki Okazaki

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Teruyuki Okazaki, described by some as one of the most technically gifted karatekas to come from the JKA, was a living textbook on the history and practice of Shotokan Karate. He was part of the third generation of students to train with Shotokan founder Gichin Funakoshi. Together with his mentor, Masatoshi Nakayama, he helped formulate the JKA Instructor Course, which has trained many of the top JKA masters. And if this was not enough, he was one of the first instructors sent by the JKA to the United States to teach Karate. He has had many exceptional students, including Maynard Miner and Robin Rielly.

Okazaki was born on 22 June 1931 in Nogata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. He was the second son of a family with samurai lineage on his grandmother’s side.

As a child, Okazaki was unruly, constantly getting into fights. To curb his unruliness, he was introduced to martial arts. He began practising Judo and Kendo as was normal for many boys of the time. His father was an accomplished kendoka.

In 1947, Okazaki enrolled at Takushoku University to study Political economics. He had not followed his older brother Teruyoshi to Waseda University. At Takushoku, he had the opportunity to choose from a variety of martial arts, including Aikido, Kendo, Judo and the fairly new art of Karate.

Okazaki loved to fight and was drawn to the dynamic style of Karate. However, his parents, especially his mother, saw Karate as a form of street fighting. He was persuaded to study Aikido. His teacher was Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba, who followed a traditional approach to his training. For the first three months of his training, Okazaki would sit in a seiza (kneeling) position and watch the class. Secretly, he had also begun Karate. When Ueshiba found out, he was not pleased. He didn’t think Okazaki had what it took to succeed in Aikido.

Okazaki continued to practice Karate secretly. He eventually asked his grandmother to speak to his parents on his behalf. Although they were still worried about the dangers of Karate, his parents gave him their blessing to continue learning the martial art. It is interesting that his older brother, Teruyoshi, had also begun Karate at Waseda University.

At Takushoku University, Okazaki’s main Karate instructor was Masatoshi Nakayama, who would become a father figure and mentor to him. Sometimes he would be taught by Gichin Funakoshi, whom he saw as a surrogate grandfather.

Every spare moment Okazaki had was spent on Karate practice. He had begun Karate lessons with two of his roommates, and they drove each other to success as they proceeded through the ranks.

It should be noted that Okazaki failed his Black Belt test twice. By his own admission, it had been due to his ego. Funakoshi and Nakayama realised he needed to learn that Karate was much more than performing techniques correctly. Okazaki was deeply disappointed and came very close to quitting the art he loved. However, his roommates persuaded him not to give up. He eventually passed his 1st Dan grading.

Even after receiving his 1st Dan, Okazaki’s temperament was still an issue. As punishment for being too harsh on a student, Funakoshi stripped him of his black belt. After a suitable period, he eventually received it back.

Alongside his brother, Teruyoshi, Okazaki would eventually be graded to 3rd Dan, while still at university.

In 1953, Okazaki graduated from Takushoku University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economics. Shortly afterwards, he was appointed team coach of the university’s Karate team. It was during this time that Nakayama formulated the idea for the JKA Instructors Course. Okazaki was to be the test subject. He and Nakayama determined what would be suitable for such a course.

In the early days of the fledgling JKA, Okazaki was the main assistant to both Funakoshi and Nakayama. He assisted in teaching and demonstrations of Shotokan Karate. He also taught at his old university, Takushoku. He further taught at Boei University, which has been likened to the military academies of West Point and Sandhurst. He also conducted classes at Tokyo’s Toritsu University, which has since been amalgamated into Tokyo Metropolitan University.

In 1955, the JKA moved to its first purpose-built dojo in the Yotsuya district of Tokyo. The following year, the first intake of students for the Kenshusie (Instructor Course) took place. The earlier work of Nakayama and Okazaki culminated in a program to develop top-calibre Karate instructors. The first intake of three students was Hirokazu Kanazawa (Takushoku University), Takayuki Mikami (Hosei University) and Eiji Takaura (Chiba University). All three men held the grade of 2nd Dan. The year-long course would result in successful students being awarded their 3rd Dan. Okazaki was an instructor on the course and would go on to teach many of today’s top instructors.

“Karate: The Art of Empty-Hand Fighting“, written by Hidetaka Nishiyama, was published in 1960. The book would go on to introduce Karate to many people around the world. Many noted practitioners attribute their start in Karate to this book. Okazaki appears in the book, performing various techniques and sparring drills.

Funakoshi and Nakayama were part of a delegation that introduced Japanese martial arts to the United States Strategic Air Command (SAC) in 1952. The other arts demonstrated were Judo and Aikido. This introduced many American servicemen to the art of Karate. When the servicemen returned to the U.S., they demonstrated what they had learned in Japan, which sparked interest in Karate and a request for Japanese instructors.

In May 1961, Nakayama sent Okazaki to the United States, initially for six months. Okazaki arrived in Philadelphia. At first, things did not go smoothly for him. His first major problem was the language barrier. At the time, he didn’t speak any English. He recalled that he could not even read the menu at a restaurant he visited and had to point to the food he wanted. He managed to find a translator to help him. However, over time, thanks to his American wife, his English improved.

Okazaki’s next major hurdle was his teaching style. In Japan, instructors would tell their students what to do, and students would just do it without asking any questions. American students were different. They asked many questions and wanted to know why a technique was performed in a certain way. Coupled with the language barrier and the complex principles found in Karate, he found it difficult to answer the questions. Someone had advised him to tell the students to just do as he said. So when they asked questions, he would answer with “Shut up! Just do it!” Also, the hard training style practised in many Japanese dojos did not translate well to the United States. Some students, like George Cofield, had issues with his teaching style, leading some to quit. However, like all great teachers, he adapted his teaching style, becoming one of the best and most sought-after Karate instructors.

Okazaki ended up staying well beyond the allotted six months and eventually became an American citizen. A prime reason for his staying on in the United States was to establish the art of Karate as taught by his mentors, Funakoshi and Nakayama.

In 1963, two years after arriving in America, Okazaki formed the East Coast Shotokan Karate Association, which was affiliated with the JKA.

Politics began to fragment JKA Karate in America, as it would eventually do in Japan. Hidetaka Nishiyama had been the head of the JKA in the United States. However, there was some disgruntlement within his All-American Karate Federation (AAKF), of which he was the Chief Instructor. Wanting more of a “federation” structure rather than the traditional “top-down” approach, the former, which was more “American”, a group of instructors led by Okazaki split from the AAKF, forming the International Shotokan Karate Federation (ISKF) in September of 1977. The other instructors who left with Okazaki were Yutaka Yaguchi, Takayuki Mikami, Shojiro Koyama, and Shigeru Takashina.

An affiliate of the JKA, the ISKF aimed to promote the teaching of traditional Karate by following the guidelines set out by Funakoshi in the Dojo Kun and Niju Kun. The headquarters of the ISKF was found at Okazaki’s Philadelphia dojo. With him as chairman and the regional directors (Shojiro Koyama, Yutaka Yaguchi, Ray Dalke, Takayuki Mikami and Shigeru Takashina), the ISKF was built into a truly international organisation, with members in over sixty countries.

In 1981, Okazaki established the Instructor Training Institute. The instructor qualification was based on the JKA Instructors Course and required participants to complete it in three years. The aim of the course was to produce high-calibre instructors, thus building a quality organisation.

Due to his tireless work in promoting Karate, Okazaki was recognised by Black Belt Magazine as “Man of the Year“ in 1982. In the same year, he was also inducted into Black Belt Magazine’s Hall of Fame.

The world of Shotokan Karate was rocked in 1987 by the death of Masatoshi Nakayama. He had been instrumental in spreading Shotokan Karate internationally. Perhaps, more importantly, he had been a unifying presence in the JKA, as the following years would show.

In 2007, Okazaki became one of the highest-ranked Shotokan masters in the world. He was awarded his 10th Dan.

In 2007, the ISKF terminated its thirty-year relationship with the JKA. Karate was no longer just a Japanese art. It had grown to include masters from different countries affiliated with the JKA. These affiliates wanted their voices heard and to be part of the JKA’s decision-making process. The JKA did not appear to make any changes to accommodate this. Out of loyalty to the ISKF members, Okazaki felt he had to leave the JKA. Unfortunately, longtime ISKF members Takayuki Mikami and Shojiro Koyama decided to remain with the JKA out of loyalty and resigned from the ISKF.

The ISKF was not immune to its own internal political problems. Some American instructors, such as Ray Dalke, were unhappy with the ISKF’s direction. They eventually left the organisation.

Every summer, Okazaki hosted a week-long Master Camp. The first event took place in 1964 and has now been running for over fifty years. It has become an international event with many of the top Shotokan masters from around the world in attendance.

In the last few years of his life, Okazaki took a back seat in the day-to-day running of the ISKF. His nephew Hiroyoshi, an accomplished martial artist, took over as chairman and Chief Instructor of the ISKF. However, Okazaki still travelled the world conducting seminars and spreading the true essence of Karate.

On 21 April 2020, Teruyuki Okazaki died from complications due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic in Philadelphia, United States.

Teruyuki Okazaki provided a direct link back to his mentors, Gichin Funakoshi and Masatoshi Nakayama. He worked hard to keep the legacy and teachings of both the masters alive. It is safe to say they would be proud of his accomplishments.

Okazaki’s book ‘Perfection of Character: Guiding Principles for the Martial Arts & Everyday Life‘ was published in 2006. The book delves into the details of the Dojo Kun and the Niji Kun, two sets of principles coming from Gichin Funakoshi.