KATA
"It should be known that the secret principles
of Goju-Ryu exist within the kata."
Master Chojun Miyagi - Founder of Okinawan Goju-Ryu Karate-Do
"Kata" are not simply an exhibition of form. They are a concrete manifestation of techniques which can be transformed at any time to any form. It is in the kata that the essence of karate has assumed a definite form. We should always remember that the kata are a crystallization of the essence of karate and that we should always begin afresh and train hard. It is only through the training of kata that you will reach "gokui", the essential teachings.
Kata is an Okinawan term used to describe set patterns of movement containing the self-protection techniques of a particular master or style. The Chinese also practice such forms, called quans , and are the birthplace of the original Kata of Okinawan Karate. 8 of the 12 Kata practiced in Okinawan Goju-Ryu are the unaltered forms as handed down to Master Kanryo Higaonna and Sensei Chojin Miyagi from their teachers in Okinawa and during extended study periods in China.
Sanchin Kata is the backbone of Goju-Ryu and can still be found in several Southern Chinese martial arts. Tensho Kata was formulated by Master Miyagi from the Chinese quan Rokkishu. The two GekiSai Kata were created in order to teach children and the general public as a means of physical exercise. It is suggested that Master Miyagi intended to create five GekiSai Kata (to mirror the Five Pinan Kata of Shorin-Ryu) but this was interrupted by World War II.
Classical or traditional Okinawan Karate was developed by ancient masters who understood the laws and sciences of Chinese medicine or Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as it is known today. Without this understanding, Kata is simply be a mass of lifeless and meaningless physical movements. Kata contain such principles as body manuvering, distancing, technique placement, evasion, leverage, pressure point manipulation, and energetic transference as well as teaching proper body mechanics and phsyiology. For these reasons, if Kata is simplified or altered to either accommodate an instructor's preference or to enhance a tournament competitor's chances, then we lose the true meaning and spirit of Karate. Unfortunately, this is exactly what has happened to a majority of martial arts styles and dojo around the world today.
The original Kata of Okinawan Karate contain the applications of these sciences within their movements. The true meaning and spirit of Karate are embedded in the Kata and only by the practice of Kata can we come to understand them. The "traditional" or classical Kata of Okinawan Karate are the physical vessels of the "secret fighting techniques" of the old masters. Though the performance of a Kata must remain the same, the bunkai , literal interpretation of technique, and the oyo , abstract combative application, are, according to the expertise of the practitioner, ever changing. This is why a practitioner could study only one Kata for a lifetime and have all the self-protection techniques necessary to defend oneself.
There are many reasons why such a large population of the martial arts world are unaware of the importance of Kata. Language barriers and cultural differences are contributing factors, but are insequential in comparison once the understanding of Okinawan culture and the inclusion of Okinawan Karate into Japanese society is understood.
The self-protection techniques of Okinawa were handed down from generation to generation from father to the first born son to ensure secrecy and security for the family or village. If for some reason one or the other died before passing on their " te " (indigenous fighting methods), it would die with them. Many times, a son (other than their oldest) of a family member would be adopted and all family traditions, including their "te" could therefore survive. It was a great duty and responsibility to receive such an honor and it was not taking lightly.
When Karate was introduced into the school systems of Okinawa and was taught openly for the first time in the late 1890's, it was forced to undergo certain changes to make it safe and acceptable for public practice. Until this time Karate had no defined terminology (high blocks, front stances, roundhouse kick, etc.) as it does today largely because these they didn't exist in execution.
Miyagi Sensei, as did many other Okinawan masters, taught Karate to children and adults in public schools and recreation centers. However, there were great differences in what he taught his private students at his home dojo. The students who were accepted at his home were exposed to the more rigorous and true nature of "toudi", not the "new Karate". This "new Karate" was intended to be a form of exercise designed to improve a person mentally, physically and morally. Unfortunately, over the decades, 1000's of black belts have opened their own dojos or "founded" their own systems, all without any of the true knowledge or understanding of what Karate truly is.
List of Okinwawa Goju Ryu Kata
