Do you have a "tokui" (specialty) Kata?

[Chunmonchek]

Hey lowereastside,

Just curious, what Gung Fu and Karate system(s) do/did you train?

PM me if you don't feel like posting here.

All the best,

Chris

Many have a specialty kata - And there is nothing wrong with this. I look at Katas/Forms in terms of not only movements - but getting your body to respond in a certain way. In most kung fu systems - You must first get the stance - the whole body stance. Then ask yourself - what is this Form/Kata trying to cultivate. On the surface some will say - they are developing kicks - blocks - strikes - stance and so forth. And lets not forget applications - and for some systems this is enough - but not for others. I don't have a specialty Kata/Form - But that's me. One must look beyond - the physical moves. And sometimes you can't - it is what it is. When I studied karate - it was basically block- kick-punch -. But this is not true with all karate. Having a specialty kata kinda limits oneselve. In the kung fu style that I practice - the 1st Form teaches not only the applications but 1-The Body Structure (ex. Stance....)

2-The different energies 3-The Breath. The concept of Eat , Swallow , Sink , Rise , Spit from both External/Internal. The second Form and third Form and fourth Form teach different concepts - It's like building a house - 1st you have the foundation then you put up the walls - then the individual rooms then the details and so on.... For me all the Forms have equal value. I hope I'm making some sense of this.

[lowereastside]

Chunmonchek says - " Just curious, what Gung Fu and Karate system(s) do/did you train?"

I Trained in Goju Karate circa 1968 - @ present Southern Praying Mantis.since 1973. I started with Western Boxing circa 1963/4.