BT

I don't know exactly how you do the move at your dojo, but if you are one of the dojos that have a head turn on that move, do the head turn before you step (hop?) across. By steadying your head before you step, it's easier to hold your balance when you assume the crane stance.

Why would you practice one way in class, then change when you actually have to defend yourself? Is it because you don't think the way you practice in class is practical?

I went through that at my first karate club, but trying to make up your own bunkai, or use someone's else's bunkai, appears to have have no practical value. I own Bunkai-Jutsu by Iain Abernethy, but--apart from the fact that I don't train in Wado-Ryu--I don't see how the text can help a novice or advanced student. A novice student needs to learn from a sensei, who holds all the understanding and can pass it on to the student. That sensei should be using kata to help teach that understanding, by explaining the principles behind each move and how they are applied. The novice student just can't make up those principles for the kata, because they simply don't have the understanding to do so (I've tried!). An advanced student has already gained the understanding of their art, they know all the principles, and can apply them fully. Once again, their sensei should have used kata to teach them, but let's assume that the sensei has not. If so, then what incentive is there for the advanced student to learn to apply the kata? Cross has already pointed out the first one that comes to mind, but that reason has no practical value at all. The advanced student has already been taught the skills and understanding by their sensei, what more will they gain from analysing kata?

Cool thread. I've got a couple of points I'd like to raise, as a novice. How can you learn anything new by making up your own bunkai? If kata are mnemonic devices, aren't you working in the opposite direction? That is, in order to make your own effective bunkai, you would surely need to learn all of the principles behind your art first, and then make your bunkai. ^^Where is the worth in that? Why bother with kata at all if you didn't use it to help learn the karate in the first place?

Why is that surprising? Royce Gracie won UFC 1 and was dominant in the first few UFC events. So basically in UFC, BJJ beat all the other styles in the days when MMA wasn't seen in UFC.

swdw, That would have to be the most sensible post I've read on any forum about basic blocks in several years. I've not long switched over to Goju-Kai and you've just increased the things I can extract from jodan age uke by about five-fold . Not a bad video for "off the cuff." I can also see how that same approach can work with other basic blocks as well.

Just saying hi from Australia, I train in Karate and am always looking out for new concepts and good discussion on Karate.