Why train with Ichigokai?
A good club is somewhere you look forward to returning to. At Ichigokai, you’ll find clear teaching, thoughtful feedback and people who enjoy learning together. We want you to understand the practice, feel your progress and know you belong.
Much of what we learn comes from working with each other. A question, a demonstration or a small correction can make something click. That’s how a tradition stays alive in the dojo.
How we learn
The Ichigokai approach.
Understand what you are trying to do. Practise with care. Use feedback to improve. These simple principles shape the club’s teaching, from a beginner’s first stance to more demanding weapons study.
Respect shows up in small things: listening, looking after a partner and making room for someone else to learn. Bring your questions and a willingness to practise. We’ll help you work towards high standards without expecting you to arrive with all the answers.
Experience and credibility
Your instructor: Mehar Brar.
Mehar Brar is Ichigokai’s instructor. His career as an educator, adviser and inspector informs a teaching style built around explanation, observation and usable feedback. He continues to study Kobujutsu under Julian Mead Shihan.
For you, that experience means patient explanations, individual corrections and a clear next step to practise. Whether you are learning your first stance or refining an established technique, you can ask questions and understand why the movement matters.
Authenticity
A tradition with a clear line.
Ichigokai is a member of the Ryukyu Kobujutsu Association of Great Britain. Our weapons study follows the tradition through Taira Shinken, Motokatsu Inoue and Julian Mead Shihan to Mehar Brar.
Julian studied under Inoue in Japan and founded the RKAGB. Its structured syllabus gives weapons practice a source, a direction and room for continued technical development.
Before you join
Your questions, answered.
What style of Karate does Ichigokai teach?
Ichigokai teaches traditional Shotokan Karate. Its separate Ryukyu Kobujutsu programme follows the RKAGB weapons tradition.
What makes the Kobujutsu teaching authentic?
Ichigokai has a clear teaching lineage through Julian Mead Shihan and Motokatsu Inoue, rooted in the tradition preserved by Taira Shinken. RKAGB membership and a structured syllabus support that continued study.
Our Kobujutsu association
Ryukyu Kobujutsu Association of Great Britain
Ichigokai is a member of the RKAGB. Our weapons study follows a structured tradition through Taira Shinken, Motokatsu Inoue and Julian Mead Shihan.
Ichigokai is a member of the Amateur Martial Association (AMA).