Sokon "Bushi" Matsumura was born in 1792 to an upper-class (shizoku) family in the Yamagawa Village, Shuri. He was only partly Chinese. He began training with Tode "Karate" Sakugawa from around 14 years of age.
According to tradition, it was Bushis father who requested Sakugawa to train him.
Matsumura was also a good scholar and a noted calligrapher but was recruited into the Sho family and was give the title of Satunuki, later rising to Chikutoshi. Upon recruitment, the Sho Ko, (king of Okinawa desired him to change his last name as was the custom and suggested the name Muramatsu (village pine). Sokon requested the king allow him to be called Matsumura (pine village) which the king granted. He served as a close advisor and bodyguard to the three Ryukyuan kings - Sho-Ko, Sho Iku and Sho Tai which allowed him to travel widely to Fuchou, Satsuma and the Fukien Shaolin Temple where he studied several forms of Chinese boxing and Jigen-ryu sword fighting.
There are several stories as to how Matsumura obtained the name "Bushi" (which means warrior). One credits Sakugawa affectionately bestowing the name on him as because Matsumura, as a child, was very mischievous and liked to fight everyone. Another tale, as related in Richard Kim's "The Weapon-less Warrior," claims the name was bestowed by royal decree by King Sho Ko, in recognition of his unusual ability in martial arts, after Matsumura defeated a bull.
By the time Matsumura was 20 he was a skilled "Tode" martial artist. Since Sakugawa died in 1815 it is most likely that Matsumura also studied with some of Sakugawa's senior students
He believed that speed was the key to power. Matsumura was a pioneer in the use of a twisting motion of the hips to help generate power. During his teaching he modified a number of training drills or kata to pass on his teachings. Kata used by Matsumura were Passai (Bassai), Kushanku (Kwanku), Useishi (Gojushiho), Naifanchi (Tekki), Sesan (Hangetsu), Channan (possibly the forebear of pinan/heian), and Hakutsuru.
He was later in life to encounter a man named Chinto after whom named a kata based upon the moves taught to him.
Chinto was known to have been a pirate (or a tradesman). Bushi was sent to stop Chinto from looting and plundering (probably because of hunger). When he found him they entered into a fight to which they found themselves equally matched. When all attempts to apprehend him failed, Bushi strangely enough befriended him and exchanged martial arts knowledge.
Matsumura married a woman named Yonamine Chiru. Yonamine was herself a skilled martial artist and insisted that before she would marry Matsumura that he must defeat her in a fight. Matsumura won the fight but the story is that he had a tough time of it. Matsumura was so impressed by Yonamine's skills that after they were married he dispatched her on many occasions to deal with bandits in the northern sections of Okinawa. Not much is know of Yonamine, who she trained with, who her family was, what drove her to become the expert martial artist that she was are still an unknown story about Okinawa.
Among his most important students we can count Yasutsune Itosu and Yasutsune Azato. From time to time he would teach Gichin Funakoshi directly but his greatest influence was surely indirectly through Azato and Itosu.
The bull story
Sho Ko had retired to his palace and instituted an annual festival complete with martial arts exhibitions and a very popular bull fighting contest.
This was a period of heavy taxation of the Okinawan people and there was much corruption in Sho Ko's court.. Sho Ko devised a scheme to root out corruption, Sho Ko would write a poem to outline a subjects corruption and the subject would be commanded to finish the verse. The subjects of Sho Ko's court would not obey the kings command so he became angry and drew his sword and slew all of the members of his court except Matsumura. Matsumura was convinced that he must obey the King even if it meant death by the Kings hand. The King was so impressed with this that he devised another way of dealing with Matsumura, he order Matsumura to fight a particularly mean bull at the upcoming festival. (Okinawan bull fighting is a fight between two bulls, so a fight between a man and a bull was a very unusual event.)
Matsumura devised a plan to overcome the bull. For five nights prior to the bull fight Matsumura visited the bull in his pen and wore unwashed clothes and shielded his face. He poked the bull in the nose with his pen until the bull was in a state of frenzy. When the bull could take no more, Matsumura revealed his face and assumed a defiant position in front of the bull. When the time for the bull fight came, the bull was released into the ring. Matsumura entered the ring wearing the same unwashed clothes that he had worn each night. Matsumura uncovered his face, gave out a loud Kia, and assumed the same defiant position that he had taken in front of the bull each night. The bull, upon detecting the scent of Matsumura's clothes and seeing the same face and pose as he had seen the previous nights, turned and ran back to his pen. The King was so impressed by this display that he gave Matsumura the official title of "Bushi".