Photo By Cpl. Eric Arndt | Gunnery Sgt. Jaime Hamner watches over Charles Boyd, 9 years old, as he practices...... read more read more
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By Lance Cpl. David Rogers
3rd Marine Expeditionary Force Public Affairs
CAMP FOSTER, OKINAWA, Japan – Gunnery Sgt. Jaime Hamner had always been intrigued by martial artists; in particular, he was drawn to a strong quality most of them share – humility.
Proficiency in martial arts was never a point of bragging among practitioners Hamner encountered, and that attracted him.
After years of putting off martial arts training until tomorrow, he finally came to train under Fusei Kise, a grand master of the Okinawa Shorin Ryu Kenshinkan Karate Kobudo Federation, who teaches karate on base.
Hamner, who served on Okinawa from 1992 to 1995 as a clarinet player for the III Marine Expeditionary Force Band, had wanted to begin training with Kise then, but his schedule didn't afford him the time he wished to dedicate to the training. He was constantly deployed.
When Hamner returned to Okinawa as an instrument repair technician in October 2005, Kise was still teaching on base.
Hamner enrolled his 8-year-old daughter at Gunners Fitness Center, where Kise has a satellite branch to his off-base dojo, or training facility. As he watched her practicing at home after intense training sessions with Kise, she would occasionally look to Hamner, asking questions about the proper execution of her karate techniques. Often befuddled by her questions, he couldn't help her.
Finally, in September 2006, Hamner was ready to commit himself to karate. He attended multiple sessions a day with Kise, often coming in for both lunchtime and evening sessions and practicing seven days a week. Kise taught him a karate style known as Shorin-Ryu, which focuses on self-defense from a natural stance.
Shorin-Ryu is widely considered one of two major modern styles of Okinawan karate and is believed to have had the most influence on the development of all modern karate styles, according to http://www.kenshin-kan.com. Hamner has also learned much about the art of kobudo, the use of weapons based on tools used by ancient Okinawan farmers.
"(Okinawan karate senseis) don't just teach you self-defense and martial arts," Hamner said. "They're very adamant about making sure you understand their customs, their culture, their history, where this came from, and all the various grand masters before Grand Master Kise. That's very important in all martial arts."
Hamner obtained his black belt after only 15 months and discovered what exactly makes martial artists so humble.
"Inner peace is the most important aspect I've learned from karate," Hamner said. "It keeps me very focused. I don't lose my cool as much as I used to. Grand Master is always telling us to take it easy. I've heard 'relax' more in the last couple of years than I have in my whole life."
He's found that karate has not only affected his emotional state, it has changed his relationships and interactions with others as well.
"This makes me a better Marine," he said. "It helps me communicate better with people. People know I'm not going to fly off the handle. Anybody who practices a martial art is going to be a little bit better; they're going to have just that little extra edge, a little extra discipline, a little extra focus. You know you can count on them."
After studying in the fitness center, Hamner was invited to study at Kise's off-base dojo where he learned that much of his love of the art stems from the cultural attitude of the Okinawan people.
"They are such a peaceful people," Hamner said. "They'll give you the shirt off their back. They're very respectful. That's just how they've been over the years, and they pass it down."
Hamner plans to retire after his next assignment in South Carolina. There, he hopes to set up his own dojo and begin passing down Kise's teachings to local children.
"I will be their chief instructor, but they will all be students of Grand Master Kise," Hamner said. "They will all fall under that lineage because I'm a direct student of Grand Master Kise."
Before Hamner can set up his dojo, he needs permission from Kise.
"(Hamner) has been committed to training himself hard and also teaching the children," Kise said. "With his devotion and understanding of karate, he will do well if he opens up his own dojo."
Kise has had many service members open dojos in the states. A lot of them return to continue their training with Kise.
"I think it's great that they promote Okinawan karate in the United States," Kise said. "It represents the Okinawan culture and spirit well. And by doing that, they are helping to maintain the authenticity and integrity of the karate they learned here at its birthplace."
Hamner began teaching children at the fitness center when Kise determined he was mature enough to wear an assistant instructor belt. It was then Hamner realized how much he loved teaching karate, especially after seeing a change in his own daughters. He noticed how much his daughters' sense of respect and discipline spread to their attitudes outside the dojo, and he wants to pass the same qualities to other children.
"It might seem funny to have a child learn karate techniques at this young age," Hamner said. "But by the time they're 16 or 18 years old, they're doing things not because they remember to do it but because their body knows to do it. They'll be doing stances and katas they don't even remember learning, and they'll do it without thinking. It will be ingrained in their body and their way of life. Culture, I think, is the same way. They will make the right decisions and do the right thing always."
Hamner says his love for karate borders on obsession, but his dreams of teaching are rooted in his humble ideals – the same ideals passed to him through Okinawan karate, the same ideals that unlocked something inside him, the same ideals he will seek to share with others, ever so humbly.
| Date Taken: | 02.29.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 02.29.2008 01:20 |
| Story ID: | 16819 |
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| Web Views: | 399 |
| Downloads: | 271 |
This work, A Humble Artist: Gunny finds inner peace in Okinawa Karate, by LCpl Bradley Rogers, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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