What is the meaning of the word “Karate”?
Kara means “empty”, and Te means “hand(s)”. So Karate-do can be translated as “the way of the empty hand”. This expression refers to the fact that this art of self-defense makes use of no weapons, only bare feet and empty hands. See also Funakoshi’s comments. The suffix do in the word Karate-do emphasizes that Karate is a path to self-knowledge, not just a study of the technical aspects of fighting. Master Funakoshi wrote “I often tell my young colleagues that no one can attain perfection in Karate-do until he finally comes to realize that it is, above all else, a faith, a way of life”.
