The 8 Poems of Goju Ryu


The mind is one with heaven and earth.

The circulatory rhythm of the body is similar to the cycle of the sun and the moon.

The way of inhaling and exhaling is hardness and softness.

Act in accordance with time and change.

Techniques will occur in the absence of conscious thought.

The feet must advance and retreat, separate and meet.

The eyes do not miss even the slightest change.

The ears listen well in all directions.


What Do They Mean?


The mind is one with heaven and earth.

There is no easy way to explain this. You would have to ask the man himself. I have always thought he meant that one should remain grounded but still be spontanious. To be at one with heaven and earth is to be enlightened. A good fighter is one who realizes what he can do, and chooses not to.


The circulatory rhythm of the body is similar to the cycle of the sun and the moon.

Goju Ryu is about circles. Our blocks are performed in circular motions, as well as some attacks. The natural deflecting motion of the circle is put to our advantage. Certain early fencing methods relied on the same properties of flowing circular motions.


The way of inhaling and exhaling is hardness and softness

This sounds exactly like what it means. As one must inhale one must also exhale. As there is the Yin, there is also the Yang. As there is hardness, there must also be softness. In Goju Ryu, often our exhale is a sound you do not want to hear. The Kiai on the exhale marks an attack. A smooth block often marks a smooth inhalation. A hard block is often marked by a powerful Kiai.


Act in accordance with time and change

Evolve. Do not allow your opponent to see all of your techniques. Do not allow him to learn more from you than he should. Learn from him, watch his motions. See his eyes. Time his attacks. Allow him to be defeated.


Techniques will occur in the absence of conscious thought

Practice. Kata is like a programming. With the practice of your kata, soon your motions will be automatic. You can get lost in a kata and forget what you were doing. This can happen in a fight. The motions will become second nature, more like the blinking of an eye or the beating of our heart. An attack will be blocked and a counter attack will be applied. The twitch of someones arm will cause a reflex action to block.


The feet must advance and retreat, separate and meet

This is in reference to changing stance. When changing from Right Front Forward into Left Front Forward Stance the head remains at the same level and does not bob around, the rear leg comes up to meet the front leg and then advances to it's new position.


The eyes do not miss even the slightest change

This is telling you to watch your opponent. Study him. Watch his eyes, where is he looking? Watch his shoulders, is there any motion? Watch the hips, is there any twitching or shifting? One who has practiced can let off a punch without hardly even moving the shoulder and giving himself away. If you are observant you will see even the slightest change in your opponent.


The ears listen well in all directions

Often you are attacked by more than one opponent. Unlike the movies, they do not attack one at a time. Being aware of all of your opponents, even when you cannot see them, is important. If for some reason your eyes have become damaged in the fight, can you still escape? Be aware of your surroundings, use all of your senses.