Honorary Founder of Mumon
In Memorium of Matsuo Shibuya
January 8th, 2021 age 96
Senior Matsuo Shibuya was the honorary founder of Mumon Karate. A strong supporter of Mr. Honda and advisor since 1957.
A direct student of Master Funakoshi, and contemporary Gigo Funkoshi, Senior Shibuya was a known for his consistency and diplomatic evenness during some of the great transitions in the history of Karate.
In 1945, all martial arts had been banned at the moment of occupation.
An advocate for Karate as a Martial Art, Senior Shibuya along with Waseda University Chancellor Nobumoto Ōhama went to the General MacArthur to lobby for the allowance of the practice of Karate as sophisticated gentleman's activity.
They were able to get Waseda Karate Club to be the first to return to practice making Waseda Karate Club an important home for Master Funakoshi to continue educating students.
Mr. Shibuya produced many Karateka as the Coach of Waseda University Karate Club, and was chosen to be the Waseda Karate Club Coach for his leadership, ability, and apolitical views and mending disagreements between Seniors Shigeru Egami and Kamata Watanabe.
Mr. Shibuya was the club leader that organized the first post war trip to Okinawa to meet with the Karate Masters. Included in that trip were his student whom had graduated and traveled to America, Mr. Tsutomu Ohshima and the only active student to be invited, Sadaharu Honda, who was in his junior year at the university.
A life long coach to Mr. Honda, from his pursuit of graduate school in the United States, to support for his rank of Godan, to his role as a CEO, to the founding of Mumon Karate, Mr. Honda is grateful to have had a friend, proponent, and advisor in Mr. Shibuya.
