Lebanon Shorinji Kempo homepage

shorinji kempo in lebanon

[Photo:several kenshi sat performing meditation, while another kenshi corrects their posture.] [Photo:black and white picture of the founder of Shorinji Kempo, Doshin So, stood outside one of his first dojo.] [Photo:two kenshi, dressed in hoi, perform gassho rei to each other.]
Calligraphy, which reads "half for your own happiness, half for the happiness of others"

About Shorinji Kempo

Shorinji Kempo is a traditional Japanese martial art, founded by Doshin So on the island of Shikoku in Japan, in 1947. It consists of 3 essential elements; philosophy, techniques and education system, and since its creation, has spread to approximately 30 countries from all over the world and is practiced by more than one and a half million people. The aim of Shorinji Kempo training is to develop its practitioners (known as kenshi), both physically and mentally, so that they play an active and valuable role in society.

[Photo: Shorinji Kempo practitioners, seated on a polished wooden floor, surround two others who are demonstrating. The man on the left is dodging a kick to the head from the man on the right.]

The physical techniques of Shorinji Kempo, which form the self defence aspect of the art, can be split into two families, Juho and Goho. Generally, Juho refers to techniques that are defined by prolonged contact with an opponent such as releases, throws and restraints, whilst Goho is used to refer to techniques such as punching and kicking, where contact is much briefer. In practice, the two systems are not used in isolation but create a unified system of self defence.

[Photo: A large room, full of Shorinji Kempo practitioners dressed in dogi and seated on the floor in rows with their eyes closed, performing meditation.]

In addition to these techniques, Shorinji Kempo training includes Zazen Meditation and the practice of Seiho. Zazen Meditation is utilised to cultivate proper breathing, increase mental awareness and concentration. Seiho, which can loosely be described as a type of therapeutic massage and can be translated as 'correction methods', is the name given to the healing techniques taught in Shorinji Kempo. They include massage routines to relax and relieve tension in tired muscles, as well as techniques for dealing with a range of complaints from headaches and bruises to sprained joints and resuscitation following unconsciousness.