Masutatsu Oyama was born Yong-I Choi on July 27, 1923, in the tiny village of Wa-Ryongri Yong-chi Myonchul Na Do, in Southern Korea. His family, considered aristocrats, belonged to the Yangban-clan. His father, Sun Hyang, was the mayor of Kinje, a town near the village where Yong-I Choi was born. As a young child of nine, Oyama began studying Southern Chinese Kempo under the instruction of Mr. Yi, an employee on the estate owned by Oyama's father.
Oyama was also an avid reader and was deeply affected after reading the biography of Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898), the Prussian Chancellor of the German Empire. Bismarck, Oyama read, was instrumental in unifying Germany in a span of only two to three years, making it a nation powerful enough to control most of Europe.
The philosophy of Bismarck made such a strong impression on Oyama that he decided he wanted to be the "Bismarck of the Orient." With great aspirations, Oyama felt his destiny was in Japan and he left Korea at the age of 15. It was at this time in Japan the young Choi changed his name. He adopted the name Oyama from the family that befriended him and took him in while in Japan.
In 1938, Oyama joined Japan's Yamanashi Youth Air Force Academy with the intentions of becoming a pilot. In September of this same year, Oyama became a student of Gichin Funakoshi, Shotokan karate founder, at Takushoku University. Funakoshi, a school teacher from Okinawa, was credited with introducing karate to Japan. It is this man that Oyama later would refer to as his true karate teacher. Throughout the years, Oyama always spoke highly of Funakoshi, remarking in later recollections of his gentle yet overwhelming presence. Oyama went on to say that of the many things he learned from Funakoshi, kata (formal exercises) was the most important.
By the age of 18, Oyama had earned the rank of Nidan in karate. Oyama was still very much a patriot and was always volunteering for special military duty. On one assignment to an airfield near Tokyo, a confrontation provoked by an officer resulted in Oyama striking the officer. Although found innocent due to provocation, Oyama was ordered transferred to the Pacific. However, the war was just ending and the transfer was halted. The announcement that Japan had surrendered in WWII quickly ended Oyama's military career. The stress of losing his career and the dishonor he felt for his adopted country created almost unbearable stress in his life.
Oyama found a fellow Korean named Nei-Chu So, who was from the same province and a practitioner of Goju-ryu karate. Gogen Yamaguchi, nicknamed "The Cat," was carrying on Goju-ryu in Japan, and commonly acknowledged that Nei-Chu So was one of his best students. Oyama quickly resumed his martial arts training under So, and a strong bond was formed. So, a great philosopher, inspired Oyama to make karate his lifelong dedication. At the same time, Oyama earnestly took up the practice of Judo. After four years of training, he received his Yondan ranking in Judo.
It was at a social dance event that Oyama came to the aid of a woman being accosted by a local troublemaker. When Oyama intervened, the man produced a knife and lunged. Oyama blocked the attack and delivered a forceful punch to the head of the assailant, killing him instantly. Because of eyewitness accounts, Oyama was ruled as justified in using self-defense. However, the tragedy devastated him. To kill a man with a single blow was so overwhelming that he decided to give up his martial arts training. He went to the man's farm to work for several months, only leaving once the widow assured him she did not hold him responsible.
This became the turning point in Oyama's life. Nei-Chu So advised him to go away to train his body and soul. In 1948, Mas Oyama, taking with him only his books and basic necessities, began an arduous training regimen atop Mt. Minobu. This was the same place where the famous samurai Miyamoto Musashi received inspiration for his double sword system.
For 18 months, isolated in the mountains, Oyama tested himself against nature, training under icy waterfalls, performing countless jumps over bushes, and using trees and rocks as makiwara (striking aids) to condition his body. He would begin training at five in the morning, running up steep slopes and lifting large rocks to increase his strength. He performed kata a minimum of 100 times each day.
Shortly after his return, the first karate tournament since the end of WWII was held in Kyoto. Oyama emerged victorious as the tournament's first champion. Still not satisfied, he returned to the mountains for another year of grueling 14-hour training days. Upon his final return, he decided to show the strength of his karate by fighting raging bulls bare-handed. In all, he fought 52 bulls—three were killed instantly, and 49 had their horns taken off with knife-hand blows. In 1957, he was nearly killed in Mexico when a bull gored him; he was bedridden for six months while recovering.
In 1952, he traveled the United States for a year, demonstrating karate on national television. During subsequent years, he took on challengers from all combat systems, resulting in fights with 270 different people. The vast majority were defeated with one punch. He became known as the "Godhand," a living manifestation of the maxim Ichi geki, Hissatsu or "One strike, certain death."
These struggles brought notoriety, which Oyama used to help establish his Kyokushin organization. For nearly 50 years, millions of members witnessed his incredible feats and teachings. Oyama was a living legend until he passed away on April 26, 1994, at the age of 71. While he could defeat bulls and men, lung cancer was a hidden enemy he could not beat with his fists. His death was met with great sadness throughout the entire martial arts community.
Courtesy International Karate Organization Kyokushinkai
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