Kenkojuku student of Gichin Funakoshi. He was a member of Funakoshi's karate association the Dai Nihon Karate-do Shotokai. In 1942, Okano was given permission to start a karate research club named Kenkokai Karate-bu in his hometown of Hachiōji, Tokyo. The club was started with the help of Suzuki Shinjo, Kaneko Isamu and Takagi Yoshitomo. He renamed the dojo Kenkojuku Budokan in 1948. Okano's karate was influenced by both Gichin and Gigo Funakoshi, and eventually this branch of Shotokan became known as Kenkojuku Shotokan. He retained the Shotokai lineage as well as the name Shotokan. Okano was on the panel of Masters
Tachikawa-ryu in so called "black" magic, the school was frowned upon by Orthodox Shingon leaders (who performed non-sexual right hand Tantra rituals), and its monks were frequently sent into exile. The monk Yūkai (1345–1416) is generally credited with taking the lead on extirpating the Tachikawa-ryu school from Shingon. Since most Tachikawa-ryu texts were destroyed much of its history and teachings must be reconstructed. The institutes who do have Tachikawa-ryu texts and information pertaining to the school are generally unsympathetic and hostile towards Tachikawa-ryu ideologies and therefore refuse to lend any sort of help to the matter.(Sanford 1991) The school was founded