By Sabumnim Colin Wee

During AKATO's 50th Anniversary weekend in Dallas, I had the privilege of presenting a seminar that explored some of the research behind my upcoming book, Anko: The Lost Scrolls of Ryukyu. It was an opportunity not only to teach techniques but also to share the historical and mechanical concepts that have guided years of study into the fighting traditions of the Ryukyu Kingdom.

A central theme of the seminar was the relationship between hard-style initiative and soft-style body mechanics. While many modern systems emphasize strength, speed, and direct application, my research suggests that Ryukyuan retainers relied just as heavily on subtle structural manipulation, timing, and whole-body coordination. Their methods were designed for efficiency rather than force, allowing smaller defenders to control larger opponents through precision instead of power.

The session began with an application drawn from Nam Seo Hyung. Participants explored how controlled footwork, measured pressure, and circular movement could close distance, provoke a predictable reaction, and create opportunities along the opponent's centerline. From there, the lesson evolved into two close-quarter applications inspired by Jion, each demonstrating a different method of disrupting an opponent's structure. One variation focused on controlling the attacking limb, while the other examined how subtle manipulation of posture and alignment around the neck could compromise balance and create safe opportunities for a takedown.

For many in attendance, these concepts represented a different way of thinking about martial arts. Rather than overpowering an opponent, the emphasis was placed on sensitivity, positioning, and understanding how small adjustments can produce significant results. A slight shift in body alignment or a carefully timed circular motion often generated enough imbalance to redirect momentum with remarkably little visible effort.

Throughout the seminar, I wanted to move beyond the idea of collecting techniques. 

My goal was to demonstrate how historical research, body mechanics, and cross-style comparison can deepen our understanding of traditional martial arts. Every movement becomes more meaningful when viewed through the lens of the people who originally depended upon these methods for survival.

The Ryukyuan retainers were rarely the largest or strongest warriors on the battlefield. 

Their effectiveness came from adaptability, teamwork, and an ability to blend multiple fighting principles into a cohesive system. 

That fusion of hard and soft methods continues to shape my research today and remains at the heart of Anko: The Lost Scrolls of Ryukyu.

Teaching in Dallas provided an opportunity to share not only techniques but also the journey behind discovering them. It reinforced my belief that the future of traditional martial arts lies not in preserving movements alone, but in understanding the principles that gave those movements life.

 This video captures a live application session I taught at the Richardson YMCA in Dallas, demonstrating how 19th‑century Ryukyu bodyguards blended hard‑style blitz tactics with soft‑style internal mechanics. The session explores practical bunkai drawn from Nam Seo Hyung and Jion, showing how historical Ryukyuan methods combined initiative, circular blocks, centreline striking, neck control, limb capture, and close‑quarter takedowns.  The opening sequence uses a Nam Seo Hyung‑inspired gap close, bait, and circular open‑palm block to prompt reaction before chaining centreline strikes and finishing with a joint attack. From there, the application branches into two Jion variations: one controlling the secondary limb with a vertical roll, and the other capturing the neck using soft‑style energy pulses, dantian manipulation, and fajin‑style power issuance.  For many practitioners in the room, this was unfamiliar territory. Hard‑style Korean and Japanese systems rarely train internal mechanics or explore applications that assume failure and include counter‑responses. Yet here we worked with concepts like ground force transmission, kinetic chain efficiency, vertical cycling, and whole‑body vibration to disrupt an opponent’s centre of gravity.  The results were dramatic. With minimal visible movement, my training partner was unbalanced and sent hurtling across the floor, surprising even those who stepped in to stop his momentum. In the second variation, a circular pulse around the neck broke equilibrium, enabling a controlled takedown and simulated weapons search — reflecting the kind of efficiency Ryukyuan retainers relied upon in real conflict.  This demonstration offers behind‑the‑scenes insight into the research behind Anko: The Lost Scrolls of Ryukyu, and shows how soft‑style concepts can integrate seamlessly into hard‑style frameworks. If you’re interested in kata bunkai, historical martial arts, fajin, internal power, or Ryukyu fighting systems, this session provides a practical look at how these ideas come together.  📷 Jeremy Montague ‪@ameaguru‬   Acknowledgements: GM Keith Yates, GM Mike Proctor, GM Kelly Cox, Hanshi Bruce Clayton, Sifu Dave Thew, Master Will Just, and Joshua Lay.  📖 Cover Artwork Duncan Yong