Friday, April 13, 2012 by C. Michial Jones
Recently, a student of my father asked me a pointed question: “Why don’t you call your dojo by the same name as your father’s?” It’s a fair question, and the answer reveals the long, sometimes winding road of finding one’s own identity in the martial arts.
The Komakai Legacy
My father began his journey in 1967 at the Jundokan of Indiana. By the 1970s, that dojo had evolved into the Komakai Academy of Karate under Glenn Keeney. When my father opened his own branch dojos, he naturally used the Komakai name. For decades, I was “Komakai.” I was the Chief Instructor for the Marion branch until its closure in 1994.
When I decided to reopen that dojo, I went to Glenn Keeney to ask for his blessing to continue using the name. He granted his permission and gave me a certificate allowing me to use the name but then he said something and his response changed the course of my life as a teacher. He said:
“Mike, of course you can use the name but why do you need to use my name? You could use your own name. Be your own man.”
At the time, I was stunned. I didn’t know how to be anything but Komakai. I eventually followed the advice of Mr. Phillip Koeppel and opened my doors as Mike Jones’ Karate-do Budokai.
The Search for the Root
Despite the new name, I remained obsessed with our Okinawan roots. My research led me to train with Morio Higaonna Sensei and Teruo Chinen Sensei, and eventually to senior Jundokan practitioners like Natambu Bomani and Lloyd Johnson.
My dedication to the source resulted in a significant milestone: I was granted Shibu-Cho (Branch Chief) status for the State of Indiana, with a certificate signed by the legendary Eiichi Miyazato Sensei. I could have easily called my dojo the “Jundokan,” but the words of Glenn Keeney—be your own man—remained in the back of my mind.
The naming of the Yushikan
A few years later I adopted the name Gokenkan (House of the Hard first) and after using the name for sixteen years, a trademark dispute in the modern “brand-heavy” world forced another change. I consulted with Lloyd Johnson Sensei and Roy Hobbs Sensei. It was Hobbs Sensei who suggested the name Yushikan (Hall of Brave/Superior Officers). He told me he felt the name exemplified my character and my professional life. After 35 years of training, I finally found the name that fit.
Brand vs. Budo
Why do people get so hung up on names? Why the obsession with saying “my style is this” or “I am from that dojo”?
The short answer is that people love a brand. They like the feeling of belonging to something larger than themselves. But after three and a half decades on the mat, I have come to a different realization.
My Karate is My Karate.
While I strive to maintain the principles and traditions taught to me by my seniors in the Jundokan lineage, I also have my own realizations. I have trained in several Goju-Ryu kai-ha and other systems entirely. From time to time, I will show an alteration or a technique from outside “Goju-Ryu proper” if it is effective.
Everything I have learned—from my father, from Keeney, from the Okinawan masters, and from my own life experiences—has led me to this point. The Yushikan is not just a brand; it is the physical manifestation of my personal journey. I still have a long way to go, but I am finally walking the path in my own shoes.
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