Shotokan Karate-do Symbol T-Shirt

*Customization available As the most widely practiced style, Shotokan is considered a traditional and influential form of karate do. When Funakoshi created the system, he chose the tiger as the animal symbol to represent Shotokan because it signified strength, power, and tenacity. The tiger in the traditional circular image is a traditional Chinese design that implies "the tiger never sleeps." It symbolizes, therefore, the keen alertness of the wakeful tiger and serenity of the peaceful mind. The Shotokan Tiger is drawn within a circle to show that the power of the tiger, like the power of Shotokan, is contained. It indicates that this power should never be used on a whim. The power is only unleashed, or broken from the circle, in order to defend ourselves or others who can’t defend themselves from a violent attack.