The Kyokushin Dōjō Kun 道場訓 (Training Hall Oath) was written by Mas Oyama with the help of his friend, author Eiji Yoshikawa. Sosai Oyama was a great admirer of Japan’s most famous samurai, Miyamoto Musashi. During his early mountain training, the book he carried and studied was Musashi’s Go Rin No Sho (The Book of Five Rings). Yoshikawa’s novel Musashi, based on the life of that legendary swordsman, had a profound influence on Oyama’s philosophy and on the wording of the Dōjō Kun itself.
Students traditionally recite the Dōjō Kun at the end of training, with students and instructors lined up by rank in seiza (formal kneeling position). The most senior student recites each line, and the class repeats it together. Not every dojo continues this practice today, however many still do. The version below is among the most commonly used.
In some dojos, especially in the West, the fifth line is recited as “We will follow our God…”. In other dojos, more common in Japan and the East, “We will follow our Gods and Buddha…” is used, a more literal translation of shinbutsu 神仏. The term, however, carries a deeper meaning, reflecting the blend of Buddhist and Shinto ideas about moral and spiritual discipline. For that reason, the interpretation “We will follow our religious principles…” is often considered a more accurate translation, culturally, for non-Japanese practitioners.
In the West, the Dōjō Kun is sometimes numbered one through seven, but in Japanese, each line begins with hitotsu (一, “one”). This reflects that no single precept is greater than another, but all are equally important.
English Version of the Kyokushin Dōjō Kun
We will train our hearts and bodies for a firm, unshaking spirit.
We will pursue the true meaning of the Martial Way, so that in time our senses may be alert.
With true vigor, we will seek to cultivate a spirit of self-denial.
We will observe the rules of courtesy, respect our superiors, and refrain from violence.
We will follow our religious principles and never forget the true virtue of humility.
We will look upwards to wisdom and strength, not seeking other desires.
All our lives, through the discipline of Karate, we will seek to fulfill the true meaning of the Kyokushin Way.
Japanese Version
一、吾々は心身を錬磨し 確固不抜の心技を極めること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, shinshin o renmashi, kakko fubatsu no shingi o kiwameru koto.
一、吾々は武の真髄を極め 機に発し感に敏なること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, bu no shinzui o kiwame, ki ni hasshi, kan ni bin naru koto.
一、吾々は質実剛健を以て 克己の精神を涵養すること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, shitsujitsu gōken o motte, kokki no seishin o kanyō suru koto.
一、吾々は礼節を重んじ 長上を敬し粗暴の振る舞いを慎むこと
Hitotsu, wareware wa, reisetsu o omonji, chōjō o keishi, sobō no furumai o tsutsushimu koto.
一、吾々は神仏を尊び 謙譲の美徳を忘れざること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, shinbutsu o tōtobi, kenjō no bitoku o wasurezaru koto.
一、吾々は智性と体力とを向上させ 事に臨んで過たざること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, chisei to tairyoku to o kōjō sase, koto ni nozonde ayamatazaru koto.
一、吾々は生涯の修行を空手の道に通じ 極真の道を全うすること
Hitotsu, wareware wa, shōgai no shūgyō o karate no michi ni tsūji, Kyokushin no michi o mattō suru koto.
Romanized transliteration follows the standard Hepburn system. Each line begins with “Hitotsu,” meaning “One.”
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