Posture & Etiquette
姿勢と礼法
Yoshinkan Honke is a modern Otome-ryū ― a private and discreet Japanese budo program for adults who carry responsibility in business, family, or society. Through traditional martial arts practice, we cultivate discipline, composure, judgment, and the spirit of those entrusted with legacy.
Otome-ryū (御留流) refers to a martial tradition once transmitted only within a domain, to a select few. Yoshinkan Honke continues this tradition in the modern context ― not as a closed system, but as a highly selective practice rooted in the responsibility of the teacher.
The lineage we carry ― from Shotokan Okano-ha, through the Jigenkai (Sagami Gym) under the late Katsumi Nagatomo, to Nozaki Kaikan, and into Yoshinkan ― is one of weight. It is not something that can be equally given to anyone. The student's posture, intent, character, social responsibility, and the trust between teacher and student must all be considered before transmission begins.
Today, Yoshinkan Honke serves as an exceptionally rare modern Otome-ryū, primarily for family office principals, founder families, executives, legal and medical professionals, educators, and next-generation leaders ― those who, by their position, must carry responsibility into the future.
Yoshinkan Honke (Otome-ryū) is not the right place for the following motivations. This is not exclusion ― it is an honest acknowledgment that the practice and the motivation must be aligned.
The program is designed for adults in positions of responsibility ― those who, through their role in business, family, organization, or society, must cultivate their own foundation, judgment, and inner discipline.
Those responsible for the succession of assets, lineage, and legacy. A training environment built on privacy and confidentiality.
Adult successors of founding and owner families. Training that cultivates the spirit of those who inherit the family business, assets, and name.
Those who bear decision-making responsibility. Training to embody judgment under pressure, distance with adversaries, and self-discipline.
Those who will carry the next generation of family business, organisation, and society. Preparation for forming one's own axis and accepting responsibility.
Lawyers, physicians, educators, and others holding expertise and responsibility. Training that refines etiquette, judgment, and self-control.
Adults who wish to study Japanese budō, etiquette, and the spirit of bushi society in earnest. Including those residing abroad.
The training does not aim merely at technique acquisition. Body, distance, judgment, etiquette ― these are integrated and transmitted, step by step, as a unified discipline of budo.
Otome-ryū has no fixed menu. From three training formats chosen by position, experience, purpose, and family or organizational needs, the content is tailored through dialogue with the Grand Master (Sōke).
Whichever format you choose,
your training is tailored to you.
In addition to training at the Yoshinkan Honke (headquarters), on-site visiting training is available upon request. Family office locations, private residences, second homes, hotels, or international engagements ― the setting is arranged to your circumstances and needs.
Training at the Yoshinkan Honke dōjō. A space prepared as a place of budo ― where etiquette, fundamentals, and partner practice are conducted with full seriousness. This is the principal setting for continuing study.
Visiting training at a location of your choice. Designed for those with demanding schedules, requiring full privacy, training with family together, or based overseas ― the setting is arranged to meet your situation.
Otome-ryū cannot be transmitted to every applicant. Following your inquiry, we read it carefully, conduct an interview and trial session, and arrive together at a decision as to whether to begin.
To transmit technique is, at its heart, to transmit character. These are the five virtues that Yoshinkan Honke asks of every student, and seeks to cultivate together with them.
— Cultivated through the practice, beyond the practice. —
Yoshinkan Honke stands within a distinct lineage of Shotokan karate ― one that, instead of confining itself to traditional competition, entered the ring. From the Shotokan Okano-ha in 1942, through Jigenkai (Sagami Gym, founded 1972) under the late Katsumi Nagatomo, to Nozaki Kaikan and onward to Yoshinkan, this lineage tested the techniques of Shotokan in the realities of professional kickboxing, Muay Thai, and fullcontact competition.
This heritage is not displayed for its own sake. It is the foundation upon which the discipline, judgment, and bearing taught in Otome-ryū are built ― tested in the most honest of arenas, and refined into a contemporary practice for adults of responsibility.
Please share with us your background, position, and your reason for wishing to study. We will read your message carefully before responding. For international inquiries, both English and Japanese are welcome.
Otome-ryū is not a place that welcomes all.
We would not be a fitting match for those described below.
Those who treat technique and lineage as knowledge to be collected
are pursuing a different aim from ours.
Otome-ryū is not a place to "know" —
it is a place to carve into the body and bear responsibility.
Ranks and credentials are, by nature, byproducts that arise naturally
through the process of training — they are not the purpose itself.
For those who seek them as a "collection",
we regret that we cannot meet your expectations here.
For those seeking athlete development, competition participation, or tournament victory,
another venue would be more suitable.
Otome-ryū is not a place for contest ――
it is a place for life itself.
Those we welcome are ——
those in positions of responsibility who approach budō as a part of their lives,
and who seek that particular bond.