My name is Dominik Lübben. I am a 4th Dan in Tamashii-Ryu Goshinryu Kempo System and I am the founder of the club and the main instructor at Shihonkin Dojo.
In 2022, I will be celebrating my 25th martial arts anniversary, having started with the Goshinryu Kempo Karate system at the age of 11 under Soke Heinz Köhnen and staying with it until now. I was fortunate to end up directly with a true old school grandmaster who still teaches karate for what it really is. Self defense and a way of life. Many martial arts schools and clubs teach karate just as a mass sport nowadays. I want to use what I have learned to be part of the counter movement that brings karate back into people’s minds for what it really is. A way of life that comes with courage, assertiveness, honesty, straightforwardness, inner strength as well as physical strength. Especially the current turbulent times, require us more than ever to be strong and focussed on our path.
Besides Soke Heinz Köhnen, I have another grandmaster, Shihan Seikichi Iha. A true Grandmaster from Okinawa, who has been living in Michigan (USA) for decades and teaches Okinawa Shidokan Shorin-Ryu Karate there. In 2010, I spent a year abroad in the United States as part of my Bachelor’s degree in American Studies. I studied at Michigan State University and had the privilege of being accepted and taught by Seikichi Iha at Iha Dojo downtown Lansing. Within a few months, due to my already existing first Dan in Goshinryu Kempo Karate, I got promoted first Dan in the Shidokan Karate system, which makes me very proud. I still hold this first Dan in honor, eventhough I do not intend to achieve another Dan degree in Shidokan Karate, because my main system is Tamashii-Ryu Goshinryu Kempo Karate. However, Shidokan Karate and Shihan Seikichi Iha still influence the style of karate I teach and I participate in online seminars that he fortunately teaches several times a year. The internet offers me the opportunity to participate without having to book a flight and hotel to Michigan, which makes me very happy.
Further masters and grandmasters, under whom I have trained and who have had a lasting influence on my life and my karate style are the following:
Sensei Falko Seppelt, Shorai-Do Kempo Ryu, Leipzig
Grandmaster Cynthia Rothrock, Tang Soo Do, Los Angeles (USA)
Shihan Wladimir W.O. Dexbach, Founder of Shorai-Do Kempo Ryu, Halle (Saale)
Sifu Samuel Kwok, Ip Man Wing Chun, Los Angeles (USA)
Moreover I’ve been inducted into two Halls of Fames and awarded several times.
