The story of how this legend master created this blend of ancient Japanese jujitsu and Funakoshi style Shuri-te goes back to 1892. He was born the second of four children to a traditional Samurai class family. His father, Tokujiro Ohtsuka, was a practicing medical doctor, and his uncle Chojiro Ebashi was a samurai warrior.

The young Ohtsuka was raised according to tradition. Naturally, martial arts were a very important part of this tradition and so he began to practice the ancient art of Shinto-Yoshin-Ryu with his father from the early age of only six, and later at the age of 13 joined the dojo of the respected master of the Yoshin school: Tatsusaburo Nakayama. Unlike the other schools of jujitsu at the time, the Yoshinryu specialized in kicking and punching techniques in addition to the usual throwing, twisting, and locking techniques.

Ohtsuka was deeply in love with the martial arts, and from an early age, spellbound by the exciting stories of samurai heroes told to him by his uncle and father, he dreamed of becoming a martial arts master. He soon excelled at jujitsu and was so advanced that by the age of only 30 years old, was appointed the new master of the Yoshinryu by Nakayama Sensei who then retired from full time teaching.

There were many stories about the mysterious fighting arts of the Rykyu islands, and Ohtsuka had heard them just as any other serious marital artist in Japan at the time did. So when he read an article in the newspaper about an upcoming demonstration of Okinawan Tode by a man named Funakoshi, he was determined to go and see this martial art for himself. At that time, the 30 year old Ohtsuka had been working in Tokyo as a bank clerk, and had to take time off to travel to the Meishojuko Hall where Funakoshi gave an impressive display of Shuri-te style Tode (not yet known as Karate).

Ohtsuka was spellbound by this first exposure to Karate, and his mind began whirling with ideas about how elements of this unknown martial art could improve and modernize the Yoshinryu he had practiced all of his life. Ohtsuka, determined to meet Funakoshi that day, introduced himself after the demonstration and requested that he attend classes with the Okinawan master who gladly accepted such an esteemed new student.

Within four years, Ohtsuka was Funakoshi's assistant instructor, organizing classes and demonstrations as well as traveling with Funakoshi throughout Japan to spread Karate. The 1923 earthquake brought with it devastation to Japan, and in its wake, many changes. The old schools of jujitsu began to fade in popularity and modern marital arts such as Judo, Aikido, and Karate began to attract the interest of the public. From this time on, Ohtsuka all but gave up teaching Yoshinryu, concentrating on Karate and on supporting Funakoshi's efforts to spread Karate.

Around 1927, Ohtsuka left his job at the bank in Tokyo to practice traditional medicine like his father, specializing in the treatment of martial arts injuries. This left his time more flexible for Karate and also kept him in touch with many martial artists and schools throughout Japan. At this time he started the very first university Karate club, Tokyo University Karate club, and continued to open dojos around the country.

However, the relationship between Ohtsuka and Funakoshi was growing strained because of the young man's bright new approach to teaching. He stressed Kumite over Kata, in sharp contrast to Funakoshi, and developed many pre-arranged kumite techniques much to the dismay of Funakoshi who believed that basics and kata were enough. Influenced by the direction taken by Kendo and also by his new and influential friend, Choki Motubu the legendary Okinawan Karate master, he began full contact free sparring with students wearing the new Kendo protective armor. This was the beginning of the modern style of Karate championship and pretty much the end of Ohtsuka's relationship with Funakoshi.

Faced with the reality that many of the blocks and techniques taught in traditional Okinawan kata did not seem to work in sparring, Ohtsuka began to blend the practical fighting methods of jujitsu with karate. He experimented with masters such as Kenwa Mabuni, Choki Motobu, and in other martial arts with Kano Sensei of Judo and Uyeshiba Sensei of Aikido, blending the practical and useful elements of Okinawan karate with traditional Japanese martial arts techniques from jujitsu and kendo. He worked tirelessly and sometimes practiced on himself and with others for six hours a day. By 1940, at the invitation of Butokukai, Ohtsuka registered some 36 official kumite techniques as well as 16 kata including Passai, Niseishi, Wanshu, Jion, Ronai, Suparinpei most of which are no longer practiced in Wado-Ryu, and became the founder of the first and possibly the only truly Japanese Karate style.

Up to the time of Ohtsuka Sensei's death at over 90 years old, he lived in a suburb of Tokyo, and practiced from more than 40 years a daily training schedule of early morning training followed by his own style of Zen meditation which he called "Lazy meditation." This type of meditation involved lying down on one's back and placing the two hands on the tanden, concentrating on the breath and on emptying the mind. Ohtsuka Sensei said that if he missed his daily meditation, he just did not seem to have as much energy and would not be able to teach or train properly. Meditation was followed by breakfast and then office administration until lunch. After the midday meal he would travel by train into the city center, all the while standing so that he could practice balance, and then go for a long walk amongst the crowded Tokyo streets so that he could practice tai-sabaki (body shifting) by avoiding oncoming pedestrians by dodging, shifting, and changing stances. Later, he would travel to one of his dojos to teach class for a couple of hours. Ohtsuka Sensei's secret of longevity, he said is "I never fret about the past, I concentrate on the present and live for the future."

Today, his teachings live on through his son, Jiro, who still practices his father's 'city training' amongst the crowded streets of Tokyo, and travels around the world spreading his father's teachings, and bringing this modern martial art towards the 21st century.

http://www.wadoryu.org.uk/ohtsuka.html