Kajukenbo is a hybrid martial art that combines western boxing, judo, jujutsu, kenpo karate, Tang Soo Do and kung fu. It was founded in 1947 in Oahu, Hawaii, at the Palama Settlement. The original purpose of the art was to deal with local crime, and to help the people defend themselves from U.S. Navy sailors who would drink and start fights. The founders were Sijo ("founder") Adriano Emperado, Peter Young Yil Choo, Joe Holck, Frank Ordonez, and George Chang (sometimes mistakenly referred to as Clarence Chang), who called themselves the Black Belt Society. The founders of Kajukenbo wanted to develop an art that would be readily useful on the street.
Kajukenbo uses hard, fast strikes to vital points throughout the body, take-downs involving high impact throws, and many joint and limb destruction techniques, usually as follow-ups to take-downs. There are also blocks from attacks such as punches and defenses and disarmament of offensive weapons. The name works in two ways: "ka" ("long life"), "ju" ("happiness"), "ken" ("fist"), "bo" ("style") or "ka" ("karate"), "ju" ("judo"/"jujutsu"), "ken" ("kenpo"), "bo" (Boxing and/or Chinese Boxing Kung Fu), leading to the art's philosophical meaning: "Through this fist style, one gains long life and happiness."
Kenpo emerged as the core around which this new art was built. Although uncredited by name, other influences included American Boxing (Choo was US Army Welterweight Champion) and Escrima (Emperado also studied Kali and Arnis Escrima). From its beginnings, Kajukenbo was an eclectic and adaptive art. As time has passed, Kajukenbo has continued to change and evolve. Currently, there are a few distinct, "recognized" branches of Kajukenbo: Kenpo ("Emperado Method" or "Traditional Hard Style"), Tum Pai, Chu'an Fa, Wun Hop Kuen Do, and Gaylord Method. In addition, there are numerous "unrecognized" branches, including CHA-3 and Kenkabo. While this may be confusing for an outsider, it is the essence of the art. Students are not required to mimic the teacher, but are encouraged to develop their own "expression" of the art.
History
In the late 1940s, Palama Settlement was a violent area and fist-fights or stabbings were commonplace. In 1947, Adriano D. Emperado and three other martial artists made a secret pact to create a street fighting combination of their arts. The foundation would consist of the following:
Adriano Directo Emperado - Kenpo (Kosho Ryu) and Escrima
Joseph Holck - Judo (Danzan Ryu Jujitsu)
Peter Young Yil Choo - Kaheka Lane Kenpo Karate (Tang Soo Do) and Boxing
Frank F. Ordonez - Kaheka Lane Danzan Ryu Jujitsu
George "Clarence" Chang - Chu'an-Fa Chinses boxing
When the Korean War broke out, Joe Holck, Peter Choo, Frank Ordonez, and Clarence Chang were drafted, leaving only Adriano Emperado to carry the system on. Sijo Emperado, along with his brother Joe, introduced Kajukenbo to the public by opening the Palama Settlement School in 1950. They called the school the Kajukenbo Self Defense Institute (K.S.D.I.). The training there was notoriously brutal. Their goal was to be invincible on the street, thus the students sparred with full contact. The number of students soon dwindled to only a few. Kajukenbo train strong to remain strong, Professor Emperado had a motto, "The workout isn't over until I see blood on the floor". His philosophy was that if someone was afraid of pain, they would be defeated the first time they were hit. Those who remained developed into tough fighters with a reputation for employing their art in street fights with little provocation. Several students who came out of the school would become very prominent martial artists themselves, such as Sid Asuncion, Aleju Reyes, Joe Halbuna, Charles Gaylord, and Tony Ramos.
In 1959, Sijo Emperado continued to add more Kung Fu into Kajukenbo, shifting the art to a more fluid combination of hard and soft techniques. Since then, Kajukenbo has proved to be an improvement-based, continuously evolving and open form, willing to accept whatever works. John Leoning, who taught Doug Bunda, the brother of Carlos Bunda, also helped bring out the "bo" of kajukenbo. John Leoning pointed out that there should be no wasted motion.
The art slowly began to grow in popularity, and soon Emperado had 12 Kajukenbo schools in Hawaii, making it the second largest string of schools at the time. Joe Halbuna, Charles Gaylord, Tony Ramos and Aleju Reyes, who all earned a black belt from Emperado, brought Kajukenbo to the mainland in 1960. They each opened Kajukenbo schools in California. In 1969, Tony Ramos trained with and exchanged ideas and methods with Bruce Lee. Tony's version of Kajukenbo became known as the "Ramos Method" and is kept alive by numerous instructors. Aleju Reyes died in 1977 and Tony Ramos died in Hawaii in 1999. Grandmaster Emil Bautista is the highest ranking leader of the Ramos Method today and heads the Northern California Branch of the KDSI. Charles Gaylord continued on with the art and developed the "Gaylord Method". He was the President of the Kajukenbo Association of America and in teaching the art carried on the legacy of his Sijo. He died in August of 2009.
In a 1991 interview with Black Belt, Emperado was asked who some of the Kajukenbo tournament stars were and this is what he said, Emperado: Al and Malia Dacascos won many tournament championships. Al Gene Caraulia won the 1st Karate World Championship in Chicago in 1963 when he was still a brown belt. Purple belt Victor Raposa knocked out world rated Everett "monster man" Eddy at the 1975 "World Series of Martial Arts". Carlos Bunda was the first lightweight champion at the Long Beach International Karate Championship (IKC) in 1964. Bunda once defeated TV star Chuck Norris in competition where he broke Chuck's cup involving a kenpo groin kick.
Modern
Kajukenbo, as it stands today, has more grappling moves than regular kenpo, and incorporates joint-breaking, low blows, and combination attacks. While it does include some competitive elements, its primary focus is on realism and practicality. It is generally thought that "unfair" moves such as strikes to the eyes or groin are perfectly acceptable, as is whatever else the practitioner feels is necessary to get home that day.
Training workouts emphasize cardio conditioning and functional strength. While individual schools may show variation, it would not be unusual to train with sandbags or boxing gloves. There are core self-defense techniques at the heart of Kajukenbo, and most schools eschew impractical, flashy moves and acrobatics. Most kajukenbo curricula feature counter-attacks to punches, kicks, grabs, and using knives, sticks and guns. While this base of common knowledge will keep schools' styles similar, there is plenty of room for variation. Given how different the four foundational styles of Kajukenbo are, it is impossible to fully incorporate everything and some specialization is inevitable. This openness tends to encourage schools to incorporate other arts, such as escrima or aikido, into their practice.
Some schools of Kajukenbo feature 26 katas that are broken down into 13 "pinyans" (also called "Palama sets" in some schools) and 13 "concentrations". Each of the concentrations have their own name. For example, concentration number one is titled 'crane strike/tiger claw', as it features that particular strike. Katas are incorporated into Kajukenbo to help the student refine his/her skill. Every movement in the katas has a function. For example, the first movement in pinyan 1 is a right outward strike while moving to a left back stance. This movement would be used to block a punch. Some katas also focus on multiple enemy combat.
An important part of some kajukenbo classes is the Kajukenbo Prayer, written by Frank Ordonez, although a fair number of schools are completely secular. In some classes it is customary to end class with reference to the Kajukenbo trinity: spirit, mind, and body (each with their own hand sign). After the trinity, students and instructors alike open their hands to represent peace, then bow their heads in respect. A stylized Kajukenbo salute is also part of many school customs: students salute the American flag and their instructors to show respect. Students and instructors alike salute black belts when they enter the training floor.
In the late 80's, Sigung Patrick McDaniel and James Cox put together the Noble System with the blessing of Sijo Emperado. The Noble System instituted a new series of drills called "Noble Drills" designed to target vital points of the body in random order. The purpose was to train the student to immediately identify and target these vital points, thus adapting to whatever situation arises. The Noble system has also incorporated Brazilian Ju Jitsu techniques for the purpose of ground grappling. Cox has joined Sijo Emperado in the black belt hall of fame for his contribution to Kajukenbo, the Noble System of Kajukembo, and martial arts as a whole.
Ranking hierarchies vary widely from school to school. One common belt order is as follows: white, yellow, orange, purple, blue, green, brown (3 levels), student black, followed by the various degrees of black belt. Some schools have "in-between" belts that feature a white or black stripe running down the center of the belt. Black belt rankings and titles can also vary, but student black belt through second degree students are usually given the title of Sibak or Sisuk. Third through fifth degree are given the title of Sifu. Sixth and seventh are Sigung. Eighth degree black belts are Professors, and ninth degree is a Grandmaster. The founder, Adriano Emperado, held the title of Sijo and is a 10th degree black belt. The titles given to the black belt ranks are Chinese names.
Sijo, being the highest rank, means founder.
Sigung means the teacher's teacher.
Sifu means teacher.
Sibak means teacher's assistant.
The literal translations are:
Sijo - Founder or grand master.
Sigung - Instructor's Uncle; Sifu - Instructor.
Simu - (female) Instructor, or wife of instructor.
Sibak - Instructor's brother.
Sisok - Junior (or assistant) instructor.
There are also other titles that, while used, are much less likely to be found in a training environment and used by students.
Sijo - Great Grandfather (A Sijo is the founder of a martial art).
Sigung - Grandfather (the Sifu's Sifu)
Sibak - Elder Uncle (the Sifu's Sihing)
Branches
Currently, there are four distinct, "recognized" branches of Kajukenbo.
Emperado
Kenpo "Emperado Method" or "Traditional Hard Style".
Tum Pai
The original style of Tum Pai was put together by Sijo Adriano D. Emperado, Al Dacascos and Al Dela Cruz in the early 60's to create an advanced style for the Kajukenbo system. In the mid-60's the developments that made up Tum Pai became incorporated into what was called Chu'an Fa. In 1971, Jon A. Loren started incorporating the concepts of Tai-Chi and Southern Sil-lum into his Kajukenbo classes. This was called Northern Kajukenbo until 1976. In 1976, while staying with Sijo Emperado in Hawaii, he demonstrated his concepts and techniques and asked if he could call it Tum Pai and bring the name back to life. Emperado granted permission with the acknowledgment that the original Tum Pai followed a different path than the revised Tum Pai soft style. The name Tum Pai which means "central way" fits the Tai-Chi concept blended into the Kajukenbo format.
Chu'an Fa
In the early 60's in Hawaii, Sijo Adriano Emperado along with students Al Dacascos and Al Dela Cruz, incorporated innovations of the style Tum Pai and other martial arts into their Kajukenbo training. Later it became obvious that they were no longer doing Tum Pai and in the future it would have to be named something else. In the mid '60s Al Dacascos moved to Northern California and continued training in the Northern and Southern styles of Sil-lum Kung Fu to enhance his Kajukenbo training. It was during this time, in 1965, that the name Ch'uan-Fa was introduced. The word Chu'an-Fa itself means "fist way" or "fist style".
Wun Hop Kuen Do
Wun Hop Kuen Do was founded by Al Dacascos and is one of the four branch styles of the Kajukenbo Martial Art System. In Cantonese Chinese, Wun Hop Kuen Do means "combination fist art style". In the Mandarin dialect the style would be "Quan Hur Chuen Dao". Wun Hop Kuen Do techniques identify with and are based on the Kajukenbo system. This martial arts style incorporates techniques from many different styles including Northern and Southern Kung Fu systems, Aikido, Judo, jujutsu, Escrima and many different styles of Karate. Since this style is always being developed, it is not a fixed system. This means that they are always striving to improve the style by incorporation and improvement of useful methods or techniques. In addition, the philosophy of remaining "unfixed" also applies to the defense techniques in that there is no defined response to a given situation, they attempt to fit the situation as it arises. This idea leads to self defense that is creative and allows one to think about what is the best response. There are have many drills to allow practice of this type of fluidity and creativity that lead to the ability to respond reflexively to any situation. This is one of the primary things that sets this style apart from most others, it is a martial art that asks you to think for yourself and use your own common sense to actually see what you should do next. This is in contrast to many other training methods where one is supposed to mimic techniques which many times are not practical except under very defined circumstances.
Kajukenbo uses hard, fast strikes to vital points throughout the body, take-downs involving high impact throws, and many joint and limb destruction techniques, usually as follow-ups to take-downs. There are also blocks from attacks such as punches and defenses and disarmament of offensive weapons. The name works in two ways: "ka" ("long life"), "ju" ("happiness"), "ken" ("fist"), "bo" ("style") or "ka" ("karate"), "ju" ("judo"/"jujutsu"), "ken" ("kenpo"), "bo" (Boxing and/or Chinese Boxing Kung Fu), leading to the art's philosophical meaning: "Through this fist style, one gains long life and happiness."
Kenpo emerged as the core around which this new art was built. Although uncredited by name, other influences included American Boxing (Choo was US Army Welterweight Champion) and Escrima (Emperado also studied Kali and Arnis Escrima). From its beginnings, Kajukenbo was an eclectic and adaptive art. As time has passed, Kajukenbo has continued to change and evolve. Currently, there are a few distinct, "recognized" branches of Kajukenbo: Kenpo ("Emperado Method" or "Traditional Hard Style"), Tum Pai, Chu'an Fa, Wun Hop Kuen Do, and Gaylord Method. In addition, there are numerous "unrecognized" branches, including CHA-3 and Kenkabo. While this may be confusing for an outsider, it is the essence of the art. Students are not required to mimic the teacher, but are encouraged to develop their own "expression" of the art.
History
In the late 1940s, Palama Settlement was a violent area and fist-fights or stabbings were commonplace. In 1947, Adriano D. Emperado and three other martial artists made a secret pact to create a street fighting combination of their arts. The foundation would consist of the following:
Adriano Directo Emperado - Kenpo (Kosho Ryu) and Escrima
Joseph Holck - Judo (Danzan Ryu Jujitsu)
Peter Young Yil Choo - Kaheka Lane Kenpo Karate (Tang Soo Do) and Boxing
Frank F. Ordonez - Kaheka Lane Danzan Ryu Jujitsu
George "Clarence" Chang - Chu'an-Fa Chinses boxing
When the Korean War broke out, Joe Holck, Peter Choo, Frank Ordonez, and Clarence Chang were drafted, leaving only Adriano Emperado to carry the system on. Sijo Emperado, along with his brother Joe, introduced Kajukenbo to the public by opening the Palama Settlement School in 1950. They called the school the Kajukenbo Self Defense Institute (K.S.D.I.). The training there was notoriously brutal. Their goal was to be invincible on the street, thus the students sparred with full contact. The number of students soon dwindled to only a few. Kajukenbo train strong to remain strong, Professor Emperado had a motto, "The workout isn't over until I see blood on the floor". His philosophy was that if someone was afraid of pain, they would be defeated the first time they were hit. Those who remained developed into tough fighters with a reputation for employing their art in street fights with little provocation. Several students who came out of the school would become very prominent martial artists themselves, such as Sid Asuncion, Aleju Reyes, Joe Halbuna, Charles Gaylord, and Tony Ramos.
In 1959, Sijo Emperado continued to add more Kung Fu into Kajukenbo, shifting the art to a more fluid combination of hard and soft techniques. Since then, Kajukenbo has proved to be an improvement-based, continuously evolving and open form, willing to accept whatever works. John Leoning, who taught Doug Bunda, the brother of Carlos Bunda, also helped bring out the "bo" of kajukenbo. John Leoning pointed out that there should be no wasted motion.
The art slowly began to grow in popularity, and soon Emperado had 12 Kajukenbo schools in Hawaii, making it the second largest string of schools at the time. Joe Halbuna, Charles Gaylord, Tony Ramos and Aleju Reyes, who all earned a black belt from Emperado, brought Kajukenbo to the mainland in 1960. They each opened Kajukenbo schools in California. In 1969, Tony Ramos trained with and exchanged ideas and methods with Bruce Lee. Tony's version of Kajukenbo became known as the "Ramos Method" and is kept alive by numerous instructors. Aleju Reyes died in 1977 and Tony Ramos died in Hawaii in 1999. Grandmaster Emil Bautista is the highest ranking leader of the Ramos Method today and heads the Northern California Branch of the KDSI. Charles Gaylord continued on with the art and developed the "Gaylord Method". He was the President of the Kajukenbo Association of America and in teaching the art carried on the legacy of his Sijo. He died in August of 2009.
In a 1991 interview with Black Belt, Emperado was asked who some of the Kajukenbo tournament stars were and this is what he said, Emperado: Al and Malia Dacascos won many tournament championships. Al Gene Caraulia won the 1st Karate World Championship in Chicago in 1963 when he was still a brown belt. Purple belt Victor Raposa knocked out world rated Everett "monster man" Eddy at the 1975 "World Series of Martial Arts". Carlos Bunda was the first lightweight champion at the Long Beach International Karate Championship (IKC) in 1964. Bunda once defeated TV star Chuck Norris in competition where he broke Chuck's cup involving a kenpo groin kick.
Modern
Kajukenbo, as it stands today, has more grappling moves than regular kenpo, and incorporates joint-breaking, low blows, and combination attacks. While it does include some competitive elements, its primary focus is on realism and practicality. It is generally thought that "unfair" moves such as strikes to the eyes or groin are perfectly acceptable, as is whatever else the practitioner feels is necessary to get home that day.
Training workouts emphasize cardio conditioning and functional strength. While individual schools may show variation, it would not be unusual to train with sandbags or boxing gloves. There are core self-defense techniques at the heart of Kajukenbo, and most schools eschew impractical, flashy moves and acrobatics. Most kajukenbo curricula feature counter-attacks to punches, kicks, grabs, and using knives, sticks and guns. While this base of common knowledge will keep schools' styles similar, there is plenty of room for variation. Given how different the four foundational styles of Kajukenbo are, it is impossible to fully incorporate everything and some specialization is inevitable. This openness tends to encourage schools to incorporate other arts, such as escrima or aikido, into their practice.
Some schools of Kajukenbo feature 26 katas that are broken down into 13 "pinyans" (also called "Palama sets" in some schools) and 13 "concentrations". Each of the concentrations have their own name. For example, concentration number one is titled 'crane strike/tiger claw', as it features that particular strike. Katas are incorporated into Kajukenbo to help the student refine his/her skill. Every movement in the katas has a function. For example, the first movement in pinyan 1 is a right outward strike while moving to a left back stance. This movement would be used to block a punch. Some katas also focus on multiple enemy combat.
An important part of some kajukenbo classes is the Kajukenbo Prayer, written by Frank Ordonez, although a fair number of schools are completely secular. In some classes it is customary to end class with reference to the Kajukenbo trinity: spirit, mind, and body (each with their own hand sign). After the trinity, students and instructors alike open their hands to represent peace, then bow their heads in respect. A stylized Kajukenbo salute is also part of many school customs: students salute the American flag and their instructors to show respect. Students and instructors alike salute black belts when they enter the training floor.
In the late 80's, Sigung Patrick McDaniel and James Cox put together the Noble System with the blessing of Sijo Emperado. The Noble System instituted a new series of drills called "Noble Drills" designed to target vital points of the body in random order. The purpose was to train the student to immediately identify and target these vital points, thus adapting to whatever situation arises. The Noble system has also incorporated Brazilian Ju Jitsu techniques for the purpose of ground grappling. Cox has joined Sijo Emperado in the black belt hall of fame for his contribution to Kajukenbo, the Noble System of Kajukembo, and martial arts as a whole.
Ranking hierarchies vary widely from school to school. One common belt order is as follows: white, yellow, orange, purple, blue, green, brown (3 levels), student black, followed by the various degrees of black belt. Some schools have "in-between" belts that feature a white or black stripe running down the center of the belt. Black belt rankings and titles can also vary, but student black belt through second degree students are usually given the title of Sibak or Sisuk. Third through fifth degree are given the title of Sifu. Sixth and seventh are Sigung. Eighth degree black belts are Professors, and ninth degree is a Grandmaster. The founder, Adriano Emperado, held the title of Sijo and is a 10th degree black belt. The titles given to the black belt ranks are Chinese names.
Sijo, being the highest rank, means founder.
Sigung means the teacher's teacher.
Sifu means teacher.
Sibak means teacher's assistant.
The literal translations are:
Sijo - Founder or grand master.
Sigung - Instructor's Uncle; Sifu - Instructor.
Simu - (female) Instructor, or wife of instructor.
Sibak - Instructor's brother.
Sisok - Junior (or assistant) instructor.
There are also other titles that, while used, are much less likely to be found in a training environment and used by students.
Sijo - Great Grandfather (A Sijo is the founder of a martial art).
Sigung - Grandfather (the Sifu's Sifu)
Sibak - Elder Uncle (the Sifu's Sihing)
Branches
Currently, there are four distinct, "recognized" branches of Kajukenbo.
Emperado
Kenpo "Emperado Method" or "Traditional Hard Style".
Tum Pai
The original style of Tum Pai was put together by Sijo Adriano D. Emperado, Al Dacascos and Al Dela Cruz in the early 60's to create an advanced style for the Kajukenbo system. In the mid-60's the developments that made up Tum Pai became incorporated into what was called Chu'an Fa. In 1971, Jon A. Loren started incorporating the concepts of Tai-Chi and Southern Sil-lum into his Kajukenbo classes. This was called Northern Kajukenbo until 1976. In 1976, while staying with Sijo Emperado in Hawaii, he demonstrated his concepts and techniques and asked if he could call it Tum Pai and bring the name back to life. Emperado granted permission with the acknowledgment that the original Tum Pai followed a different path than the revised Tum Pai soft style. The name Tum Pai which means "central way" fits the Tai-Chi concept blended into the Kajukenbo format.
Chu'an Fa
In the early 60's in Hawaii, Sijo Adriano Emperado along with students Al Dacascos and Al Dela Cruz, incorporated innovations of the style Tum Pai and other martial arts into their Kajukenbo training. Later it became obvious that they were no longer doing Tum Pai and in the future it would have to be named something else. In the mid '60s Al Dacascos moved to Northern California and continued training in the Northern and Southern styles of Sil-lum Kung Fu to enhance his Kajukenbo training. It was during this time, in 1965, that the name Ch'uan-Fa was introduced. The word Chu'an-Fa itself means "fist way" or "fist style".
Wun Hop Kuen Do
Wun Hop Kuen Do was founded by Al Dacascos and is one of the four branch styles of the Kajukenbo Martial Art System. In Cantonese Chinese, Wun Hop Kuen Do means "combination fist art style". In the Mandarin dialect the style would be "Quan Hur Chuen Dao". Wun Hop Kuen Do techniques identify with and are based on the Kajukenbo system. This martial arts style incorporates techniques from many different styles including Northern and Southern Kung Fu systems, Aikido, Judo, jujutsu, Escrima and many different styles of Karate. Since this style is always being developed, it is not a fixed system. This means that they are always striving to improve the style by incorporation and improvement of useful methods or techniques. In addition, the philosophy of remaining "unfixed" also applies to the defense techniques in that there is no defined response to a given situation, they attempt to fit the situation as it arises. This idea leads to self defense that is creative and allows one to think about what is the best response. There are have many drills to allow practice of this type of fluidity and creativity that lead to the ability to respond reflexively to any situation. This is one of the primary things that sets this style apart from most others, it is a martial art that asks you to think for yourself and use your own common sense to actually see what you should do next. This is in contrast to many other training methods where one is supposed to mimic techniques which many times are not practical except under very defined circumstances.
