The founder of the Shorin-ryu was Choshin Chibana (1885-1969), a direct student of Anko Itosu (1831-1915), the grand master of Shuri-te style.
Kanga Sakugawa (commonly known as Todi Sakugawa), Sokon Matsumura and others went to China and learned Kenpo. Back to Okinawa, they introduced into the Okinawan Kenpo Te and systematized the two styles into one. This was then forwarded to Choshin Chibana by Anko Itosu, and was named 'Shorin-ryu in 1933.
The main technical characteristic of Shorin-ryu is to concentrate power instantly. In that it looks a bit like kendo. Resistance is manifested by the kata from the inside to the outside, in a sort of passage volunteers. It causes no pressure on internal organs and little disturbance of breathing. Furthermore, it does not cause unnecessary muscle fatigue, and sharpens concentration. It is believed that crews may be encouraged in this direction and the full offensive power may be exercised.
Typical Kata include: katas naifanchi (1st to 3rd Dan), Pinan (1st to 5th Dan), Kusanku (DAI) and Kusanku (SHO), Passai (DAI) and Passai (SHO), Jion, Jitte, Sochin, Gojushiho, and Chinto.
Pinan was created by Anko Itosu as a training aid for its students. They say the kata naifanchi is well suited for strength training, Kusanku is good for promoting alertness and Passai is adapted to apply the training.
