09/11/2017
Senaha Shigetoshi
Senaha Shigetoshi is a master of Okinawan Goju-ryu and founder of the Ryusyokai. He currently holds the rank of 9th dan. Senaha was born in 1941 on Okinawa. He would become a student of Meitoku Yagi in 1958 while still a high school student. Senaha spent over 40 years training in Goju-Ryu under Meitoku Yagi. He was also a dedicated student of Kobudo under Taira Shinken.
In 1967 he was already the director of the All Okinawan Karate-do Association. In 1987 he became president of the Okinawa Karate-do Goju-Kai. In the same year he received his Hanshi-9th dan certificate. In 1999 he would go on to found his organisation, the Ryusyokai.
Senaha Sensei has devoted a lot of time and effort to promoting Okinawan Goju-Ryu across the world. He has visited many countries on invitation to teach Goju-Ryu. He still continues to this day to teach and develop Goju-Ryu. One of his most senior students right now is Tamaki Hidenobu who is also currently 9th dan.
There is an interesting story regarding Senaha sensei's current rank. Some might wonder why he is not a 10th dan given the amount of time he has trained and his level of skill. The truth is his teacher, Meitoku Yagi had attempted to promote him to this rank but Senaha respectfully refused. He has also refused the rank from other organisations. He believes there is still much to learn and he does not wish to be the same rank as his master, Meitoku Yagi. To me this is a great sign of humility and humbleness.
References:
http://ryusyokai.org/bio_senaha.htm
http://www.okinawakarateuk.com/senaha1.html
