uniformity

[-uRs-Hawkeye]

Umm, I guess I'll throw in a $.02 worth. I believe that within a particular system, all the katas should be taught, learned and practiced the same way. Now, with that being said, each student should develop his/her own understanding of each one. That may mean that the katas come out a little different in the end for each one, but everyone knows the same katas in the same way initially. (Did that make sense to anyone?)

Take Toyama for an example. Two systems sprang from his teaching. The students he trained were trained in the same way, but went on later to interpret the training differently. (You shudokan stylists should get my meaning best here.) But when you get down to it, people would say "You've been trained by Toyama? Well then prove it, show me _____ kata." Then you would be expected to perform it like he taught it. (ie, not your "interpretation")

[daizyblackbelt]

Brandon,

Ouch, that's no good. I haven't had the opportunity to learn any of the naihanchi katas, but i will be doing so this summer.

I'm not entirely familar with kusanku sho and dai, but i do know chatanyara kusanku, shihokoskun (sp?), and kosokun sho and dai, which are all pretty much the same kata, esp. the last two. (There are a heck of a lot of versions of kusunku, oddly appropriate considering the title of this thread). I assume that you mean the bit about the zenkutsu dachi comes in where the aerial jump is and is in place of the four-point landing? (If not, i'm lost).

If that's the case, I have made EXACTLY that change before, but in a kata called kyoku yondan (exclusive to our style) that has a simlar jump in it. The student was an older man who couldn't bend his leg very far because of a fairly recent surgury of some kind.

[daizyblackbelt]

Hawkeye,

Beautifully put!

And I appreciate the Toyama reference, so close to my heart

[Brandon Fisher]

I meant where the crane stance is and drop as if someone was striking at your head with a katana or bo.

I know where you are thinking though at least I think so at the end of the kata right?

[Brandon Fisher]

Never mind where the drop you where talking about in Chatan yara Kusanku is the same place I was thinking but we do not do the jump.

[italian_guy]

Uniformity in katas and kihon is a good thing. It make you feel part of a big family spread all over the world. I practice goju karate and I'm glad that the word Sanchin or Tensho means the same thing for me and for thousands of people everywhere.

Unfortunately there are some differences and non-uniformity within the same style. I think the a re-unification within styles would be a good thing.