Nathan J. Johnson - Biography

Raised in Hampshire, where he still resides, Nathan’s passion for martial arts ignited in his teens around 1972. His immersion in Buddhism during a seven-year monastery stay profoundly influenced his approach, infusing his practice and writings with a unique spiritual depth.

Nathan’s career spans multiple disciplines, earning him a 5th-degree black belt in Karate and a 4th-degree black sash in Wing Chun. He taught professionally from 1986 to 2011 and now mentors select private students, integrating Chinese empty-hand arts with meditation techniques. His seminars have reached audiences across Great Britain, the United States, and Europe.

Nathan’s karate roots were influenced in-person by Mitsusuke Harada, a direct student of Shotokan founder Gichin Funakoshi. In 1973, at age 15, Harada corrected his Tekki/Naihanchi Shodan, sparking a lifelong passion. Though Harada didn’t award his initial black belt, their connection lasted until Harada’s death in 2021. Nathan earned his 2nd through 5th Dans from the English Karate Governing Body, European Karate Federation, and World Karate Federation, with his 6th Dan conferred within Ko-do Ryu. Disenchanted by Egami Shigeru’s Shotokai changes, which he deemed unsafe for joints, he shifted to Wing Chun in the late 1970s, trading takeaway shop work for lessons. His path crossed with F.C. "Rick" Woodhams (7th Dan, Bugei-Kan) in 1978, Steve Rowe (Wado Ryu) around 1989, and Mark Bishop (Goju Ryu), who offered a 5th Dan in 1992, which Nathan declined. Leading Ko-do Ryu, he synthesizes Shuri-te and Naha-te kata like Sanchin and Naihanchin, drawing from Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu and Uechi Ryu.

Nathan’s research redefines kata, categorized into three phases:

• Chan Tao Wing Chun Period (Pre-1994): Influenced by Wing Chun, he explored forms as Buddhist extensions.

• Zen Shorin Do Karate Period (1994–2000): He focused on kata like Sanchin and Naihanchin, proposing grappling and control roots in Buddhist philosophy, detailed in Zen Shaolin Karate (1994) and Barefoot Zen (2000).

• Ko-do Ryu Karate Period (2006–Present): He asserts kata like Uechi Ryu’s Sanchin served as civil arrest methods, possibly tied to weapons like the sai, sparking debate in The Great Karate Myth (2006) and The Enigma of Karate Kata (2018).

Nathan co-hosts Great Karate Myths: Debunking the Legends on Spotify, produced by Ko-do Ryu Classical Karate Association, challenging karate folklore with insight.