Kata

[Sho-ju]

Is it important and what does it teach you? I was on another forum and almost everyone said it was usless. https://www.tungfu.com

[Darce]

It´s very important. They contain all the fighting techs, and it´s not just a "dance".

[Jussi Häkkinen]

Kata is very important, if you know how to break it into applications and how to apply the applications freely.

 

You can learn these things also without a kata, but kata is a great memory aid and helps you to train without having a pair with you.

 

If you don't learn the application while learning the kata, I'd say that then that particular kata is more or less worthless to you - you're only learning an ugly dance.

 

Learning a kata is all about learning an application.

[Darce]

I know some styles, as Han moo do and Tae kwon do (I think) that do not use kata. They seem to be fine without it, but they don ´t know what they are missing...

[Jussi Häkkinen]

Taekwondo does have forms, called poomsae (Kukkiwon-taekwondo) and tul (ITF-taekwondo).

 

Forms/kata are not necessary for studying self-defense or martial arts. They're just one tool for training and storaging the techniques. Kata does have its benefits - but if one doesn't study the application side, I pretty much say that kata is worthless.

 

Application, in my opinion, should be taught before or in the same time when the kata itself is taught. Kata should just put everything together and store the knowledge to be trained at home and to be remembered later.

[Darce]

Does judo have katas too?

[Jussi Häkkinen]

Yes, although judo follows the ideas of ju-jutsu and other Japanese martial arts. Its kata (please note: kata, such as karateka and sai, is a singular and plural. No "katas" but "kata") are usually done in paired fashion and are rather short, having only a few movements. Similar fashion can be seen in iaido, jujutsu and other similar arts.

 

Karate kata does come from Chinese tradition, connected with Okinawan ideas. Chinese forms generally are long and encapsulate the whole system in one kata. This was the way on Okinawa once - Choki Motobu talks kata as "systems of karate" - and, to the some extent, still is.

 

So, while in Japanese arts, kata concentrate into smaller things - single techniques or into single situations - in Chinese or Okinawan arts kata cover the whole system or reasonably wide part of the system.

 

Jujutsu may have (for example) 15 kata for different throws, each kata concentrating on one throw. Karate has more wide based kata - if you learn some kata such as Kusanku or Gojushi-ho well, you really do not need anything else for fighting.

 

So, the idea behind karate kata is different than the idea behind the kata of classical Japanese martial arts.

[Darce]

Ok.

[ninjanurse]

There is a good article posted in the articles section on kata. It may help.

 

[Shorinryu Sensei]

I also agree that kata is useful and good as long as the bunkai of the kata is explored and worked on.

 

Another point about kata is to constant practice of it teaches your muscles and mind to do movements that aren't natural, the same as a baseball player practicing catching or hitting the ball. Or a basketball player practicing dribbling, shooting baskets and various other basics drills.

 

Kata are a form of teaching your body movements that will become automatic to you when you need them, or just to improve balance and coordination.

 

My 2 cents worth.