KUNIHIKO TOSA - THE SUCCESSOR OF
GENSEIRYU KARATE-DO

As Seiken Shukumine was groping for a new style, Kunihiko Tosa left him and thus succeeded the style of Genseiryu Karate-do as a part of the Japan Karate-do Federation.

The first encounter between Kunihiko Tosa and Seiken Shukumine was dramatic. (At the time, Seiken Shukumine was just 25 years old and Kunihiko Tosa was 19 years old).

It all happened at a sports gathering, which was held at the base of the Tachikawa Self Defense Forces. In the high jump competition, a person swiftly jumped over the bar by just taking two steps back before he performed the actual jump. After the jump, the person landed in the Neko Ashi-dachi (cat-stance). This person was none other than Seiken Shukumine.

Kunihiko Tosa asked Seiken Shukumine whether he was doing karate or not, but he did not get any answer. Seiken Shukumine took Kunihiko Tosa to a deserted warehouse, and then suddenly leaped over Tosa's head using the same leaping technique as in the high jump competition. As soon as Kunihiko Tosa turned around facing Shukumine, he was met with a Nukite strike straight to the tip of his nose.

After this incident, Kunihiko Tosa devoted himself to training karate-do under Seiken Shukumine, who at that time had not yet named his style Genseiryu Karate-do. Only a few selective students who thought of Seiken Shukumine's techniques as outstanding, were training in discretion, and the foundation on which the style of Genseiryu Karate-do is build, was formed during this period.

Kunihiko Tosa took part in organizing the system and the methods of practice as well as creating kata together with Seiken Shukumine.

In the year of 1962, Kunihiko Tosa established the Nippon Karate-do Genseiryu Butokukai, and then appointed Shihan Hiroyasu Tamae - a good friend of Seiken Shukumine - as the president of the federation.

The meaning of Gensei as depicted in the dictionary, GEN is another name for heaven, delicate and profound truth, SEI means system, regulation, rule or form. The meaning is aiming deep, as the final aim is the completion of the human character. This is also the reason for Kunihiko Tosa to choose the name of Butokukai as the name of the federation.

For nearly 40 years, Kunihiko Tosa has been promoting the style of Genseiryu Karate-do, as well as during this time bringing up a great number of athletes, who have achieved good results at both the All Japan Karate-do Championship as well as at the National Sports Festival.

As a personal feat, Kunihiko Tosa was appointed to many important posts inside the Tokyo Metropolitan Karate-do Federation and Japan Karate-do Federation. Kunihiko Tosa contributed personally not only to the development of the Genseiryu Karate-do community but also to the entire traditional Japanese world of Karate-do.

In 1984, Kunihiko Tosa published the first "Genseiryu Karate-do Kyohan", which was created under the supervision of Seiken Shukumine, who is the founder of the style of Genseiryu Karate-do. Kunihiko Tosa thus established the "general standard" not just for the Japanese practitioners of Genseiryu Karate-do, but also for the entire international community of practitioners the world over.