Kudo - the martial art which combines Judo and Karate

Meaning of the name: Kudo is Japanese and means "The way of the open mind 

Date of origin: 1990s

Country of origin: Japan

Fighting elements: Many punches, kicks, grips, levers, strangleholds and throws

Weapons used: None

History of Kudo

Kudo was founded by the Japanese martial artist Takashi Azuma. Considering that Azuma is a 9th-degree black belt in Karate and a 3rd-degree black belt in Judo, it’s not a surprise that the emphasis of Kudo focuses on these two martial arts.

Azumo got involved in martial arts at the age of 16. Shortly after finishing his service at the Japanese Army in 1972, he began practicing Kyokushin Karate. For many, he was a temperamental person but also very innovative. That said, he opened his own martial arts school in 1981 with the mission to improve the effectiveness and safety of Kyokushin. Azumo was worried about the constant head injuries. Also, he believed that the technique favors bigger fighters and leaves the smaller ones fighting at a huge disadvantage.Shortly after, the Japanese innovator began developing his own martial arts style named Daido Juku Karate. This new style of fighting was developed on the Kyokushin base with the elements of Judo. The official debut of the technique was in Hokutki Karate Championship.  In the following years, Daido Juku Karate began evolving and incorporating many other styles like Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai and Sambo. With this blend of different styles and less and less connection with karate, Azumo decided to change the name of the technique to Kudo in 2001. Today, Kudo is present in almost 60 countries all over the world and enjoys the biggest popularity in Russia.

The name Kudo means “The Way of the Open Mind” and it perfectly describes the whole idea behind the technique and the constant strive towards the improvements.

Gear and protection

Kudo heavily focuses on safety and includes a lot of fighting great and protection. Thus, it is a very safe sport to compete in. Kudo practitioners are wearing white and blue gi uniforms. Like in sambo, this doesn’t represent any rank. It is used to different fighters during the competitions. Furthermore, all practitioners must wear a KIF helmet. This helmet is unique because it has a Plexiglas visor. The KIF gloves are similar to the MMA glove with the free fingers to allow the grappling.  

Philosophical concepts

Many martial arts are incorporating various philosophical concepts. As a true martial art, Kudo includes three important ones:

• Mujou kan – represents a view of life or a perspective of the world. In this approach, you can crush and change the form of everything in life that has a shape. As a result, we shouldn’t attach ourselves to objects and things in life.
• Sougo izon – in this concept, everything that exists in life, exists because it depends on each other. In other words, a human being shouldn’t be self-righteous or self-conceited.
• Huhen Huto – this concept has an open-minded view of the world and the way of living in general. This means you should always face difficulties in life with a positive attitude. Further, we shall never run from life issues but challenge and overcome them. 

Kontext

Kudo is a martial art in which a lot is kicked, punched and thrown. Of course Kudo has a lot in common with Karate and Judo. But from the disciplines it also has many similarities with MMA. Furthermore it has a lot in common with Sanda Boxing or Kickboxing.

Article by Bushu.ch

Kudo Video