Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-Ryu (TSKSR) is the oldest and most revered martial art in Japan. Founded in 1447, it was declared a Cultural Treasure of Japan in 1960. It is the first and only martial art to be given that honour by the Japanese Imperial Court.

In the days where the warrior class (samurai) government ruled Japan, TSKSR was highly valued for its technical excellence and cultural quality. It was a mandatory training course for warriors of those times.

Speed is one thing that many have observed from TSKSR practitioners. Another is that the forms or drills are very long as compared to other martial arts’. This is because practitioners of TSKSR were subject to many kinds of battle stress and this training helped them improve their stamina and strength on the battlefield.

Kuzushi, or killing with one blow, is another key element in TSKSR techniques. All these factors combined made the TSKSR warrior a formidable adversary.

TSKSR is a very strict and formal school of martial arts and traditionally, admission was only for the elite. Admission to this school is only for those serious in martial arts training.

In June 2003 Adam A. Wong was the first Malaysian to be admitted in TSKSR training under Tetsutaka Sugawara in Japan. He was also appointed Shibu Cho, or Head of Branch, for TSKSR training here in Malaysia.

Back