# Mas Oyama.



## Littledragon (Jun 25, 2004)

Im my opinion he is one of Karate's finest martial artists also in my opinion I feel that he was one of the greatest martial artists to ever step face on this earth.
Here is a bio on Master Oyama:
Oyama, was born Yong-I Choi, on July 27, 1923, in the tiny village of Wa-Ryongri Yong-chi Myonchul Na Do, in Southern Korea. His family, considered aristocrats, belonged to the Yangban-clan. His father, Sun Hyang, was the mayor of Kinje, a town near the village where Yong-I Choi was born. As a young child, nine years of age, Oyama began studying Southern Chinese Kempo under the instruction of Mr. Yi, an employee on the estate owned by Oyama's father. Oyama was also an avid reader and was deeply affected and moved after reading the biography of Otto von Bismark (1815-1898) the Prussian Chancellor (1871-1890) of the German empire. Bismark, Oyama read, was instrumental in unifying Germany in a span of only two to three years, making it a nation powerful enough to control most of Europe. 




​The philosophy of Bismark made such a strong impression on Oyama that he decided he wanted to be the Bismark of the Orient. With great aspirations Oyama somehow felt his destiny was in Japan and he left Korea at the age of fifteen. It was at this time in Japan the young Choi changed his name. He adopted the name Oyama from the family that befriended him and took him in, while in Japan.  In 1938, at the young age of fifteen, Oyama wanted to serve the country he now called home and therefore joined Japan's Yamanashi Youth Air Force Academy with the intentions of becoming a pilot. In September of this same year, Oyama became a student of Gichin Funakoshi, Shotokan Karate founder, at the Takushoku University. Funakoshi, a school teacher from Okinawa, was credited with introducing karate to Japan. It is this man that Oyama later would refer to as his true karate teacher. Throughout the years Oyama always spoke highly of Funakoshi, remarking in later recollections of his gentle yet overwhelming presence. Oyama went on to say that of the many things he learned from Funakoshi, kata (formal exercises) was the most important. 

By the age of eighteen, Oyama had earned the rank of nidan in karate (second level black) rank. Oyama was still very much a patriot and was always volunteering for special military duty. On one assignment to an airfield near Tokyo, a confrontation provoked by an officer, resulted in Oyama striking the officer. Although found innocent, due to the provocation on the part of the officer, Oyama was ordered transferred to an area in the Pacific. However, the war was just ending and lucky for Oyama, the transfer was halted. But this luck had an ironic twist for Oyama because it also meant that his driving quest to serve his new country was now over. The announcement that Japan had surrendered WWII quickly ended Oyamas military career. The stress of losing his career and the dishonor he felt for his adopted country losing the war created great - almost unbearable - stress in Oyamas life. 

Oyama found someone Korean like himself by the name of Nei-Chu So. Not only was So Korean but he was also from the same province. Nei-Chi So was a practitioner of the Gojo-Ryu style of karate. Gogen Yamaguchi, nicknamed "The Cat", was carrying on goju-ryu, founded by Chojun Miyagi in 1930 in Japan. Yamaguchi commonly acknowledged that Nei-Chu So was one of his best students. Oyama quickly resumed his martial arts training under So and a strong bond was formed between the two. So, a great philosopher and strong in character, possessed even stronger spiritual convictions. Oyama would not only learn Goju-ryu from So, but would also be sanctified by him into the Buddhist faith of the Nichiren sect. It was So who inspired Oyama to make karate his life long dedication, propelling him to face his own challenges and develop his own achievements and victories. At the same time he began his training with So, Oyama earnestly took-up the practice of Judo as well. After four years of training, he received his yondan (fourth level black) ranking in Judo. 

Oyama liked to attend the local dance competitions in the area in order to socialize and relax after his martial arts training. It was at one such dance event that Oyama came to the aid of a female who was being accosted by a local troublemaker. When Oyama intervened, the troublemaker, a tall Japanese suspected of several homicides, became enraged and produced a knife. Taunting Oyama, the troublemaker made continuous slashing movements through the air in front of Oyamas face with the knife then lunged towards Oyama. Oyama blocked the attack and delivered a forceful punch to the head of the assailant, killing him instantly. Because of eyewitness accounts of the incident, Oyama was ruled by the courts as justified in using self-defense. However, the impact of the tragedy devastated Oyama. To kill a man with a single blow was so overwhelming to Oyama that he decided to give up his martial arts training. Learning that the man he killed had a wife and children on a farm in the Kanto area near Tokyo, Oyama went to the farm and worked there for several months. He did not leave until the widow assured him that she was financially capable of maintaining the farm and that she did not hold Oyama responsible for the death of her husband. 

This became the turning point in Oyamas life. His Goju-ryu instructor, Nei-Chu So advised him to go away, to train his body and soul and to give karate a chance to control his life. Oyama, lacking direction and a goal wondered if karate was a realistic goal. Would karate training give him the much-needed control of his physical strength as well as mental discipline? If karate would provide these traits, then he would have to give himself completely to the training. He realized it would be a long, hard journey. He was determined to succeed on this quest. In 1948 Mas Oyama, taking with him only his books and the basic necessities for cooking, began an arduous training regimen atop Mt. Minobu in Chiba Prefecture. Mt. Minobu is the same place where the famous seventeenth century samurai, Miyamoto Musashi, received inspiration for Nito Ryu, his celebrated double sword system. To Oyama, this was the ideal place to train and be inspired in the same tradition as his idol, Musashi. Of the books Oyama took with him on this journey, none were more important than the collection on Musashi, by Yoshikawa. For eighteen months, isolated in the mountains, Oyama tested himself against natures elements with such scenarios as training and meditating under icy waterfalls, performing countless jumps over bushes and boulders and using trees and rocks as makiwaras (striking aide, see photo below) to condition his hands, feet and legs. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	






   He would begin training at five in the morning, running up the steep slopes. Using large rocks as weights, he would lift them hundreds of times to increase his strength. In addition, he performed kata a minimum of one hundred times each day as well as hundreds upon thousands of repetitions of kihons (basic techniques), continuously pushing himself to the limits of human endurance. At the conclusion of his daily training, he would read various Buddhist writings and sit in zazen and meditate. It was also at this time that Oyama began to contemplate the idea of the circle and point for his karate. He also began visualizing himself defeating a bull with his bare hands. If he could get strong enough and powerful enough that he was able to defeat a bull with his karate, he would become famous. But it wasnt fame he was after. The fame, he thought, would be a tool. If he could attract interest from others, he could enlighten them on the strengths and virtues of karate and he would succeed not only in his goal of mastering karate, but of instructing others in the way of karate as well. ​After eighteen months of solitude, Oyama returned from the mountains. Shortly after his return from the mountain training, the first karate tournament since the end of World War II, was held in Japan. Oyama competed in this All Japan Karate Tournament held at the Maruyama Kaikan in Kyoto and emerged victorious - the tournaments first champion. But Oyama was an intense young man and still was not satisfied with his achievement. He still felt that something was lacking in his martial arts and that he had not truly reached his full potential. Oyama returned to the mountains for another year of gruelling fourteen-hour training days. To this day, there is no other person who has undertaken such a training regimen within the martial arts. After this final isolation and training period, Oyama returned to civilization ready to apply all that he had learned. It was at this time Oyama decided to apply his karate expertise in a life and death battle - a conflict that would set man against beast. 
Mas Oyama, in order to show the strength of his karate, tested his strength by fighting raging bulls bare-handed. It was a mismatch from the get-go for the bulls, not for Oyama. In all, he fought 52 bulls, three of which were killed instantly, and 49 had their horns taken off with knife hand blows. That it is not to say that it was all that easy for him. Oyama was fond of remembering that his first attempt just resulted in an angry bull. In 1957, at the age of 34, he was nearly killed in Mexico when a bull got some of his own back and gored him. Oyama somehow managed to pull the bull off and break off his horn. He was bedridden for 6 months while he recovered from the usually fatal wound. Today of course, the animal rights groups would have something to say about these demonstrations, despite the fact that the animals were all destined for slaughter. In 1952, he travelled the United States for a year, demonstrating his karate live and on national television. During subsequent years, he took on all challengers, resulting in fights with 270 different people. The vast majority of these were defeated with one punch! A fight never lasted more than three minutes, and most rarely lasted more than a few seconds. His fighting principle was simple  if he got through to you, that was it.
If he hit you, you broke. If you blocked a rib punch, you arm was broken or dislocated. If you didn't block, your rib was broken. He became known as the Godhand, a living manifestation of the Japanese warriors' maxim Ichi geki, Hissatsu or "One strike, certain death". To him, this was the true aim of technique in karate. The fancy footwork and intricate techniques were secondary (though he was also known for the power of his head kicks). 







  These life and death struggles brought notoriety to Oyama. Oyama used this notoriety to help establish his Kyokushin organization. Oyama's reputation grew with each bullfight and each challenge match, as he defeated wrestlers, boxers and judo stylists alike in no-holds-barred bouts. He was an equal-opportunity fighter, taking on any man from any combat system who wished to challenge him. For nearly fifty years, fifteen million plus members of Oyama's worldwide Kyokushin Karate organization witnessed this man's incredible feats. Whether from the power of his strikes, the strength of his handshake, his remarkable teachings or through the teachings of the instructors and branch chiefs that Oyama produced, everyone associated with him knew that this esoteric name was not inappropriate.  Oyama was a living legend until he passed away April 26, 1994, at the age of 71. He could fight and defeat a bull or another man with little problem; they were tangible opponents that appeared before him. But lung cancer was a hidden enemy, sneaking around inside Oyama's body and tearing it asunder day by day. He couldn't beat the disease with his fists or his feet. Nor could he devise a strategy to ward it off. For years, the cancer ate away at his insides without him even knowing it was there. 
His death was met with sadness in not only kyokushin circles, but the rest of the martial arts community as well.
​
*What do you think of Master Mas Oyama? *

*Legendary for fighting bulls.*


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## Littledragon (Jul 2, 2004)

How do the rest of you feel about him. He would kill bears and bulls with his bare hands.  A true martial art warrior.


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## RRouuselot (Jul 2, 2004)

Littledragon said:
			
		

> How do the rest of you feel about him. He would kill bears and bulls with his bare hands. A true martial art warrior.


Actually he never killed a bear and the "bulls" he killed are what we would call in the mid-west cattle country a calf. Much of the history that is out there about him was tweeked or made up or incorrectly passed on.......example; killing a bear....he never did it. His student Willy Williams fought a bear....didn't kill it though.
As I said on another thread I met him on several occasions and din't care for him.....I thought he was a jackass.


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## Littledragon (Jul 3, 2004)

He could kill ox with one blow and tear off its horns. I think he was a remarkable Martial Artist.


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## RRouuselot (Jul 3, 2004)

Littledragon said:
			
		

> He could kill ox with one blow and tear off its horns. I think he was a remarkable Martial Artist.


Uhhhhh ya need to get better information on the subject. First off they were not OX but bulls......very very small bulls at that. Since he was only about 5ft 7in and the bull only came up to his chest that will give you an idea of its size.
He NEVER killed any bull with one blow.....I have seen the old 8mm movies of him trying to kill a bull........it took him a hell of a long time and he was exhausted at the end. In fact he only killed a couple the rest he just beat on and threw on the ground.


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## Littledragon (Jul 3, 2004)

RRouuselot said:
			
		

> Uhhhhh ya need to get better information on the subject. First off they were not OX but bulls......very very small bulls at that. Since he was only about 5ft 7in and the bull only came up to his chest that will give you an idea of its size.
> He NEVER killed any bull with one blow.....I have seen the old 8mm movies of him trying to kill a bull........it took him a hell of a long time and he was exhausted at the end. In fact he only killed a couple the rest he just beat on and threw on the ground.


 
Sorry but I have the footage and it is one blow.


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## RRouuselot (Jul 4, 2004)

Littledragon said:
			
		

> Sorry but I have the footage and it is one blow.


Well I have spoken to the man who threw that "one blow"....have you?.....I have also seen the tapes, and it was more than "one blow".
Maybe your tape just has the last blow on it.


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## muaythaifreak (Jul 4, 2004)

"To this day, there is no other person who has undertaken such a training regimen within the martial arts."

This is purely speculation as you cannot possibly know that no other person in the history of martial arts has trained this hard. As to him killing bulls with his bare hands, I would feel a bit nieve if I believed everything I read or heard. Perhaps he did, perhaps not. I will remain forever the skeptic. After all, I saw David Copperfield make the statue of liberty disapear with my own eyes. And I KNOW that was fake. Anything can be made to appear real. Especially when fame and fortune are involved. I have no doubt he may have been an expetional martial artist, however I don't believe physics would allow someone to "chop" off a bulls horns with their bare hands unless said horns were tampered with prior to the demonstation. Beer bottles and bovine horns are two entirely different things.

BTW, you forgot to mention all the Thai boxers he purportedly beat "with little effort".  Apparently it is a widely held belief that at the age of 31 or so he went to Thailand and defeated the then reigning Lumpini champion "Black Cobra".  Unfortunately, there are no historical documents to prove this other than ones written by Oyama or his desciples.  Two problems with this theory:
One, Thai boxers in thailand are as a rule very young when at the peak of their careers, (most retiring well before their 25th birthday.).  And #2, anytime a foreigner beats a lumpinee champ, it is well documented.  Would he not have recieved a belt?  I recently heard this tale.  I am going back to Thailand in a few months and will ask my Arjarn about this.  He was fighting at lumpinee when this would all have been taking place. (mid to late seventies).  I'll post and let you know what his response was.


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## tshadowchaser (Jul 4, 2004)

Putting aside what may or not be correct history on his fights with bulls, and opponets, the man created a system and workout  procedure for that system that produced many strong fighters.
 Not many people want to pound their hands to produce the calluses that his early practictioners had.  the general martial arts student today (I don't think) wants to put the time and effort into training that the man required.
 The fact that his system is still considered "Hard core" by many speaks for what he created.


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## muaythaifreak (Jul 4, 2004)

No doubt. Kyokushin is one of the better arts in my opinion for self defense. I have a very healthy respect for it. And no doubt the man was a phenomenal martial artist. I did not mean to imply otherwise. There are stories and legends in MT that are equally hard for me to swallow, so it's not because he's a karateka that I doubt. I'm just a born skeptic.

If not for Muay Thai, I'd probably be studying Kyokushin.


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## yipman_sifu (May 7, 2006)

OH Sensei Oyama was a tough guy. Although it was like many said exaggerated about killing bears and bulls. He is still the toughest. No martial artist were ever tougher than Oyama. Except if you are talking about Lu Bu or Guan Yu. Oyama is a legend and will always be.


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## MardiGras Bandit (May 7, 2006)

Oyama seems like he was pretty cool and a good MA, but his life is so exagerated that it puts Rickson Gracie to shame...


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## yipman_sifu (May 8, 2006)

MardiGras Bandit said:
			
		

> Oyama seems like he was pretty cool and a good MA, but his life is so exagerated that it puts Rickson Gracie to shame...


 
How Rickson is involved?!. Mas is a Karate and Gracie is a BJJ. What this should do with that?.


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## MMAfighter (May 8, 2006)

Actually, i heard the bull he killed was drugged


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## MMAfighter (May 8, 2006)

i find it funny how the two people who were first arguing are now banned or have a closed account


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## yipman_sifu (May 8, 2006)

MMAfighter said:
			
		

> Actually, i heard the bull he killed was drugged


 
Oh, you just heard. Mas Oyama is great and that is something nobody can deny.


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## MardiGras Bandit (May 9, 2006)

yipman_sifu said:
			
		

> How Rickson is involved?!. Mas is a Karate and Gracie is a BJJ. What this should do with that?.


 
Rickson is mocked for having exagerated his claims of success to a wild degree. He claimed a 400-0 record in NHB fights, but can't substantiate it and was probably counting rolling with students. Oyama is the same way, the stuff that is said about him is exagerated to the max, so much so that it makes Rickson's claims look reasonable. 

Both of them are great martial artists, and all the stories about them don't take away from that fact.


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## yipman_sifu (May 11, 2006)

MardiGras Bandit said:
			
		

> Rickson is mocked for having exagerated his claims of success to a wild degree. He claimed a 400-0 record in NHB fights, but can't substantiate it and was probably counting rolling with students. Oyama is the same way, the stuff that is said about him is exagerated to the max, so much so that it makes Rickson's claims look reasonable.
> 
> Both of them are great martial artists, and all the stories about them don't take away from that fact.


 
That's definitely true.


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## Andrew Green (May 11, 2006)

It's a martial arts "tradition" to wildly exagerate claims.  Look at the things all the old masters are said to have done, they all grow over time.  That's one of the beauties and the flaws of oral history.


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## Grenadier (May 12, 2006)

A story that is told from one person to another, and then to another, and so forth, tends to get bent a wee bit each time.  It's almost like people playing the old children's game of "telephone," where everyone sits in a circle, and one person whispers a message to the adjacent one, and then that person repeats the process, until the circle is complete.  

By the time the circle is complete, the message is rather...  shall we say... warped?  

Of course, Rickson Gracie and Masutatsu Oyama are (were) superb fighters.  If anything, those two would be at the top of my list of people that I would certainly not want to get into a brouhaha with.  

Everyone just needs to take these stories with several grains of salt, though.  At least Gracie and Oyama are / were the real thing, and really could kick just about anyone else's butts out there.  They didn't have to hide behind false pretenses like certain neo-ninjas do (Radford D, for example).


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## Cirdan (May 12, 2006)

Grenadier said:
			
		

> Everyone just needs to take these stories with several grains of salt, though. At least Gracie and Oyama are / were the real thing, and really could kick just about anyone else's butts out there. They didn't have to hide behind false pretenses like certain neo-ninjas do (Radford D, for example).


 
Exactly.

Radford D vs Mas Oyama is a fight I`d like to see


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## mrhnau (May 12, 2006)

Cirdan said:
			
		

> Exactly.
> 
> Radford D vs Mas Oyama is a fight I`d like to see



the universe might explode!

I seem to recall a story on SNL about when Da Bears go up against Da Bulls :ultracool


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## searcher (May 13, 2006)

Andrew Green said:
			
		

> It's a martial arts "tradition" to wildly exagerate claims. Look at the things all the old masters are said to have done, they all grow over time. That's one of the beauties and the flaws of oral history.


 
You are on the money.   It is that whole "monkey in a suitcase" thing that we all did in 1st grade.   One person hears a story and passes it on slightly different and the next does the same.   After a few times you are killing aliens with your bear hands.


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## Grenadier (May 13, 2006)

Cirdan said:
			
		

> Exactly.
> 
> Radford D vs Mas Oyama is a fight I`d like to see


 
With or without the 10,000 dollar challenge?  :rofl:


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## Cirdan (May 13, 2006)

Grenadier said:
			
		

> With or without the 10,000 dollar challenge? :rofl:


 
I`d pay 10 grand myself just to see that happen. opcorn:


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## James Clifton (May 14, 2006)

I heard that Oyama's hands were so bad from all that pounding,he couldn't even hold a cup of coffee in his later yrs.
Jim Clifton


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## yipman_sifu (May 14, 2006)

James Clifton said:
			
		

> I heard that Oyama's hands were so bad from all that pounding,he couldn't even hold a cup of coffee in his later yrs.
> Jim Clifton


 
It's possible to happen after all the pounding, sure it is possible.


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## James Clifton (May 15, 2006)

When I first started in MA,I GOT AHOLD OF oYAMA'S BOOK !I was really impressed,started pounding my hans & knuckles.One of the Instructors,pulled me aside & suggested I stop.Told me,you don't need to do this,do  NOT do this & told me why he was against it.Man am I glad I listened.The WAY the old masters trained is NOT always the BEST.I have a friend that plays baseball in Korea,he takes time off after the season & rests.THE TEAM trains with NO REST.When he returns he ALWAYS is ready,while the TEAM has many injuries.
Jim


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## Grenadier (May 15, 2006)

yipman_sifu said:
			
		

> It's possible to happen after all the pounding, sure it is possible.


 
Repeated pounding to one's hands will eventually result in the destruction of the nerves in the hands.  While this isn't really a problem for the vast majority of those who practice martial arts, Oyama wasn't exactly part of that vast majority.  

It's just like boxers, who have had their heads hit so many times, that they are desensitized to the pain, simply because their nerves are dead in that area.  Those are the same features that allow them to take a punch to the face, and not well up in tears (as almost all of us here would end up doing).  However, it's not surprising that in their later years, they lose some of the fine control of their facial muscles.  

All in all, a decent amount of conditioning of one's hands isn't going to cause a loss of motor control, as long as you don't overdo it.  Toughness is certainly to be admired, but not at the cost of losing one's finer abilities.


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## Shaolin Bushido (May 15, 2006)

The record of Rickson Gracie and Mas Oyama is exagerrated by the masses and they contributed to it unwillingly or willingly.  The fact that we know that and still harp on it reeks of jealous envy.  They are both examples of OUTSTANDING martial artists and few that have gone before or will come after will after will be able to match them.


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## Martin h (May 17, 2006)

James Clifton said:
			
		

> I heard that Oyama's hands were so bad from all that pounding,he couldn't even hold a cup of coffee in his later yrs.
> Jim Clifton



Oyama had seriously enlarged knuckles, but it did not noticeably affect his use of the hand. I am pretty sure he had some pain, but not enough to affect him.
I am afraid that you have heard a myth.

The kind of training he went trough and which caused the enlarged knuckles was insane, and not to be copied. But he got lucky and didnt get crippled because of it, as some claim.


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## monkey (May 17, 2006)

There are other greats that tought him like Yamaguchi who also was a referance James Mitose sent his student Anton Krucky to.I will not say whos better but,I will say I have a nice video archives showing founders like Kono-Yamaguchi-Funakoshi-Chen Man Ching-Lee Ang-Bruce Lee-High Dang Fashu-Willie Wetzel-Antonio Illistrisimo-E  Ellistrisimo-Subing Subing-Pedoy & many more greats.The films I have are good history & show for that moment what was.Gives some  persccetive to as to per say a book.You dont see or know how they got from 1 to another move,other then guess.The videos show me if the have power-skills-timing-teaching abilities-history-and who they are.1 film I have is ninja by Ashida Kim Auther of many books.Seeing him act out a green hornet sceen-then dodge sound effect bullets & strugle trying to dis arm a gun.Show me a con & he made some money till he claimed KOGA NINJA which came orig from Korea & I had a rank in.I will say this -ninja is good for in & out or spy type.Ninja is good if you know some type of hand to hand-multi wepons ect.I personly like the philippino arts as arnis a lone deploys over 100 wepons & empty hand.


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## Rook (May 18, 2006)

monkey said:
			
		

> There are other greats that tought him like Yamaguchi who also was a referance James Mitose sent his student Anton Krucky to.I will not say whos better but,I will say I have a nice video archives showing founders like Kono-Yamaguchi-Funakoshi-Chen Man Ching-Lee Ang-Bruce Lee-High Dang Fashu-Willie Wetzel-Antonio Illistrisimo-E Ellistrisimo-Subing Subing-Pedoy & many more greats.The films I have are good history & show for that moment what was.Gives some persccetive to as to per say a book.You dont see or know how they got from 1 to another move,other then guess.The videos show me if the have power-skills-timing-teaching abilities-history-and who they are.1 film I have is ninja by Ashida Kim Auther of many books.Seeing him act out a green hornet sceen-then dodge sound effect bullets & strugle trying to dis arm a gun.Show me a con & he made some money till he claimed KOGA NINJA which came orig from Korea & I had a rank in.I will say this -ninja is good for in & out or spy type.Ninja is good if you know some type of hand to hand-multi wepons ect.I personly like the philippino arts as arnis a lone deploys over 100 wepons & empty hand.


 
I can't make sense of your post.  Was the point that there were other masters of Oyama's caliber around?  I don't think anyone will debate that.


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## pstarr (May 31, 2006)

I studied Kyokushin many, many years ago - at that time, kata was stressed very heavily and muay-thai style kicks weren't used at all.  The training was very rigorous, typical of Oyama's personality.

     He was a legend and an inspiration to many young karateka...including me.


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