Dojo Kun 道場訓

“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 upward 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.”

The Kyokushin Dojo Kun 道場訓 (Training Hall Oath) was written by Mas Oyama with the assistance of his friend Eiji Yoshikawa. Oyama greatly admired Miyamoto Musashi, one of Japan’s most famous swordsmen. During his period of mountain training as a young man, Oyama studied Yoshikawa’s novel Musashi, a fictionalized account based on the life of Miyamoto Musashi.

The Dojo Kun is traditionally recited at the end of a training session, with students and instructors lined up by rank in seiza (formal kneeling position). The most senior student recites each line, and the entire class repeats it together. Not every dojo recites the Dojo Kun today, but the tradition remains in use in some Kyokushin schools. The version above is one of the most commonly used English translations.

In some dojos, particularly in the West, the fifth line is translated as, “We will follow our God…” In others, “We will follow our Gods and Buddha…” is used as a more literal rendering of shinbutsu 神仏. The Japanese term encompasses both Buddhist and Shinto religious concepts and does not translate neatly into English. The version used here — “We will follow our religious principles…” — conveys the broader meaning more naturally for non-Japanese readers while taking Japanese religious and cultural context into account.

In the Japanese version below, the word hitotsu (一), meaning “one,” begins each line. Rather than numbering the principles in order of importance, the repeated use of hitotsu emphasizes that each principle carries equal weight.

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 ayamatarazaru 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 shugyō o karate no michi ni tsūji, Kyokushin no michi o mattō suru koto.