“It was very interesting to visit the stable and meet the owner. It is always a pleasure to visit rural Okinawa that, in my mind, is the real Okinawa.”

At a time when leisurely pastimes were scarce, Okinawan bullfighting was extremely popular in the rural areas of Okinawa and people flocked to the tournaments held throughout the island. Local bullfighting ceased for a while in the chaos of war, but postwar the tournaments soon resumed, and a great number of “star” bulls were introduced to the scene, which further attracted local fans. During those times, Uruma City was home to six bullfighting arenas, but the advance of urbanization led to the downsizing of the arenas, and the changing times brought an array of new entertainment. The popularity of bullfighting dwindled.

Still, with the only all-weather bullfighting arena in Okinawa, Uruma City frequently holds all-island bullfighting tournaments to the delight of many locals and visitors. Bullfighting has gone beyond a simple form of entertainment for the locals and become a major part of the city’s culture, as its traditions are handed down to the younger generations.

What makes Okinawa’s bullfighting unique is that it isn’t a match pitting a man against a bull. Rather, it’s a match between two bulls that lock their horns and engage in a great test of strength.

The rules are quite simple. The bull that runs away or doesn’t engage in the match loses. As simple as the basic rule seems, Okinawa’s bullfighting is exciting because there’s more to it than that. A bull may seem initially unengaged, but suddenly and with great force, it will charge and force a win without much fight from its opponent. There are other bulls that will endure the attacks, waiting patiently for the opponent to tire, and at the right moment, win the match in a turnaround. Then, there are also those bulls that fight fiercely for a minute or two, and then to the surprise of the spectators, they simply give up and run away like a frightened rabbit. The bulls display their diverse characteristics in these matches and that’s what makes bullfighting so exciting to watch. Some bulls refuse to even enter the arena out of fear, and some simply run in circles around their opponent, while some will show signs of surrender from the get-go. As the victory and defeat in Okinawan bullfighting is determined once one bull shows it’s no longer willing to fight and, in such cases, the other bull wins the match by default.

Kevin began learning combat karate in England when he was only 12 years old and enjoyed it as a sport. After relocating to Japan, he learned that traditional karate originated in Okinawa. While living in mainland Japan, he learned about the World Oshukai Federation. Master karateka Kenyu Chinen who relocated to France in 1979 founded the federation to spread the teachings of Okinawan karate in Europe. Kevin became an instructor for the World Oshukai Federation, which led to his relocation to Okinawa in 2011.

Okinawan karate has been carefully handed down the generations as “the martial art of peace” and is not simply about strength and skill. The spirit and essence of Okinawan karate is described by the great masters as “to win without fighting.” It is this philosophy and spiritual strength of “be not harmed by others and do not harm others, as all is good without any harm done,” that has been cherished, protected and passed on to karateka around the world.

“As a Karate practitioner and instructor, I was keen to learn more about how the bulls ‘fight.’”

On a typically hot Okinawan day, just before a big tournament, we went to visit the Kochi family, who has raised bulls in Uruma City for generations. We also visited their old bull shed that was built in the ‘70s and still stands on the family property. The Kochis are passionate about bullfighting, and in the past, they’ve raised three bulls that became Okinawa champions. Before the ever-expanding urban development on the island, bulls and their owners lived side-by-side on the property, like a true family, but with the changing of times, building new sheds has become difficult, as environmental issues such as odors and others must be considered.

The Kochi family are determined to prevent bullfighting from becoming something of the past. Already, their seven-year-old son, Takuma, is determined to be the 3rd generation bullfighter of the family. The young boy takes the huge bull weighing about a ton on daily walks around the neighborhood and tends to the bull every day from early in the morning, cleaning the shed, gathering feed, bathing, feeding, and doing all the other tasks that require dedication and passion. It takes about 40,000 yen a month to feed a bull, and as with caring for all living things, there are no days off. It takes about five to six years of constant caring, 365 days a year, for a bull to debut as a fighting bull. To maintain stamina in the hot summer months, it’s important to bathe the bull and give him thorough care for it to become strong. The dedication to raising these bulls comes with long hours of hard work and commitment, but Kochi-san explains that the excitement and joy of a bull winning at a match, make it all worth it.

Kevin’s conclusion: bullfighting and karate, two seemingly irrelevant things actually have a common denominator; the spirit of Budo or martial arts. With this common ground, Kevin and Kochi-san enjoyed hours of conversation and exchange of thoughts.