Intangible Cultural Property

Our Teacher Masaaki Ikemiyagi has been awarded preserver of Okinawan karate and kobukutsu and prefecture designated intangible cultural property.
Intangible cultural property is the process used to recognizes several masters as official "holders" (hojisha) of this intangible cultural property, designating them as living keepers of the art by the Okinawa Prefectural Cultural Properties Protection Council.

Designation as an Okinawan Intangible Cultural Property means that traditional karate and kobujutsu (weaponry) are officially recognized by the Okinawa prefectural government as priceless ancestral treasures. It protects authentic, self-defence-based lineages from being lost or overly commercialized into modern sports, honouring elite grandmasters as living human cultural assets.

In Masaaki Ikemiyagi's own words "Thank you very much. It is a great honor, and I will work with renewed determination. Okinawa is attracting attention from all over the world, so I would like to work together with everyone to promote karate."

Link to the Okinawan Dento Karatedo Shinkokai can be found here

Link to the yahoo article can be found here (yahoo.co.jp)