Library › 9. History › Meitoku Yagi – biography
Police officer, customs official, grandmaster. Meitoku Yagi (八木明徳, 1912–2003) led two lives – one in public service, one in the Dōjō. The second became the Meibukan. According to IMGKA tradition, his family descends from the Chinese families who settled in Kume (Naha) in the 14th century.
Life
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1912 | Born on 6 March in Kume, Naha (Okinawa). |
| 1926/1927 | Begins training under Chōjun Miyagi, founder of Gōjū-Ryū.* |
| 1932 | Graduates from the prefectural middle school Ni-Chū (today Naha High School). |
| 1934 | Military service in Miyazaki Prefecture; then positions with the Naha city administration and in a hospital pharmacy.** |
| 1936 | Works for a mining company on Taiwan; there, contact with Chinese Kempō. |
| 1938 | Joins the police service on Okinawa. |
| 1951 | Moves to the Okinawa customs authority, later office head and department head. |
| 1952 | Opens his own Dōjō. |
| 1956 | Founds the Okinawa Karate-Dō Gōjū-Kai, chairman until his death. |
| 1963 | The Miyagi family hands over Miyagi’s gi and belt and the Menkyo Kaiden. |
| 1972 | Retires from public service. |
| 1975–1982 | Adviser (from 1975), then chairman (1979–1982) of the All Okinawa Karate-Dō Association. |
| 1976–1991 | Develops the Meibuken kata and Kobudō kata with Sai and Bō. |
| 1986 | Japanese government decoration “Kun Yontō Zuihōshō” (probably the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 4th class) for services to karate culture.*** |
| 1992 | Kata demonstration at the opening of the rebuilt Shuri Castle. |
| 1993 | Special award of the newspaper Ryūkyū Shimpō. |
| 1997 | Recognised by Okinawa Prefecture as a holder of intangible cultural heritage. |
| 2000 | Honoured by the city of Naha. |
| 2003 | Dies on 7 February. |
Offices
- Adviser to the All Okinawa Karate-Dō Association
- Honorary chairman of the Okinawa Karate-Dō Gōjū-Kai
- Honorary chairman of the Gōjū-Ryū Meibu-Kai
- Senior member of the Karate-Dō association of the Okinawa Prefectural Government
- Private: chairman of the association of families of Chinese descent on Okinawa
Legacy
“Do not make mastering the techniques your main goal – study the way of life through karate.” This sentence of Yagi’s sums up what the Meibukan stands for. He left behind a school, five new kata, weapons training – and a family that carries the lineage on to this day (see Gōjū-Ryū after Miyagi Chōjun).
* Start of training: April 1927 according to the IMGKA biography, 1926 (aged 14) according to the IMGKA succession page.
** The order of the positions after 1934 is dated inconsistently in the source.
*** In the source “Kun Yontoh Zuihosho”; probably the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 4th class (勲四等瑞宝章).
Sources
- IMGKA: Meitoku Sensei Bio (summarised)
- IMGKA: Goju-Ryu after Miyagi Sensei
- IMGKA: History of Goju-Ryu Karate (quote from Meitoku Yagi)
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