Sōke

Sōke ( Japanese 宗家 ) literally means head of the family or founder or rector . So or as Dōshu is the name given to the founder / keeper of an entire martial art (Japanese Budō ) or a style from the Far East .

Correct use

A sōke is the master of a style, usually it is the highest-ranking title for the head of a martial arts school or style .

Sōke have ultimate authority within their style and make final decisions about promotions, curriculum, doctrine, and warnings. You can issue a Menkyo Kaiden ("initiation into the secret of a teaching") certification that attests that one has mastered all aspects of a style.

In Aikidō , Sōke are referred to as Dōshu ( Japanese 道主 , literally master of the way ).

The widespread use of "sōke" is controversial. In Japan itself it is traditionally rarely used, usually only in very ancient martial arts. However, it has become a fairly common name for principals of schools founded in the last few decades who attempt to reconstruct an older martial art. (A western counterpart to this would be modern pankration .)

Some modern Sōke originating from the West use the title "Sōke-Dai" ( Japanese 宗家代 ) for their vice-principal , who acts as the head of the school; the Japanese “Dai” can be translated as “ representative ” in this context . A Shihan-Dai , Sōke-Dai , or Sōke-Dairi describes someone who teaches temporarily instead of the Rector, for example by preventing the Sōke from being injured or ill.

Sōke is sometimes confused with the founder of a style ( Shodai Sōke ). The successors of a Shodai Sōke are, however, also Sōke.

Misunderstanding and abuse

Many of today's sōke are rectors of the first generation of their style ( Shodai Sōke ), so at the same time sōke and founder.

While few modern Shodai Sōke have received this title from members of renowned Japanese martial arts associations, there are often self-proclaimed, mostly Western, Sōke as founders of their own, often less mature and commercially oriented martial art systems, which sometimes pejoratively refer to the Japanese children's series Pokémon as Sokemon become.