Harmony in Motion

Takafumi 'Taka' Nakayama is a 7th Dan Shorin-Ryu Shidokan instructor from Fukuoka, Japan. Raised in a family deeply rooted in Okinawan Karate and Ryukyu Kobudo, he began his martial arts journey under the guidance of his father, Masanori Nakayama, before learning from some of the most respected masters of the Shidokan tradition, including Katsuya Miyahira, Seikichi Iha, Koichi Nakasone, and Abet Presincula.

Today, Taka is known for his natural movement, technical precision and open-minded approach to teaching. His seminars welcome practitioners of every style and experience level, reflecting his conviction that the martial arts should unite people rather than divide them.

More than technique, Taka teaches the values that Karate represents:

“I’ve been practicing Okinawa Shorin Ryu Karate and Yamani Ryu Ryukyu Kobu-Do in Fukuoka, Japan. My roots in Karate and Kobudo begin with my father, Masanori Nakayama, with whom I initially started to train. Sensei Katsuya Miyahira taught me Kata. When I became a teenager, my father would take me to Okinawa every month to train with the grandmaster of Shidokan Karate. Later, I learned from Seikichi Iha Sensei, the big warm-hearted father of Karate. I love his gentle character and his way of Karate: friendship, cooperation and learning. Sensei Koichi Nakasone was one of my greatest influences; he changed my perspective of Karate and is a God of Martial Arts. I owe a great deal of my understanding to him. Sensei Abet Presincula—my father when I travelled to Australia in my twenties—always took care of me like his own son. He is my crazy Australian father.

I always welcome practitioners of every style to train together. Karate is Karate, there is no border. We do not train Karate to argue or complain about others. We train Karate to build friendships and to develop ourselves. We don’t practice just Karate (空手). We are learning the Way (道). I hope we can train together one day.”