Kata for your style @ your school

[Nidan Melbourne]

from a thread about Goju that is also in this karate portion of karate forums http://www.karateforums.com/goju-ryu-question-vt46953.html. What is your style and the kata that are core to your specific style and what are the kata that your school (where you train at) do?

Which kata does your school leave out?

If you train in a style that is relatively new what is the parent styles? And also which kata did you take from each style or did you create your own?

For instance at my dojo we are Goju-Ryu but have hijacked some kata from the Goju-Kai (Kai = organisation) to help our students learn maneouvering and the techniques.

Our kata for each rank is as follows

White - Taikyoku Jodan

Yellow - Taikyoku Chudan (similar to Jodan, except different block & chudan tsuki)

Orange - Taikyoku Gedan (shiko dachi Gedan Uke + gedan tsuki)

Red - Taikyoku Kake Uke

Green - Taikyoku Mawashi Ich

Purple - Gekesai Ich + Ni

Blue - Saifa

Brown - Seeiunchin

1st Brown - Seeiunchin

Shodan-Ho - Seeiunchin + Sanseru

Shodan - Sanseru + Seisan

Nidan - Seisan + Shisochin

Sandan - Shisochin + Seipai

Yondan - Seipai + Kururunfa

Godan - Kururunfa + Suparenpei

ALL Belts from Shodan-Ho up (for JUNIORS) MUST know Sanchin + Tensho

ALL Belts from Green Belt (ADULTS) MUST know Sanchin + Tensho

Now the first five kata (taikyoku kata) are from Goju-Kai which were developed by Yamaguchi Sensei.

Traditionally you learn (From Goju-Ryu) Gekesai Ich first and then build up from there. For us at our school we want our students to have an understanding of how to turn and use their body effectively for kata and parts of training.

The taikyoku kata in my eyes are a very good way of having students learn and make them think whilst doing kata. Especially when it comes to power and use of hips!

[Karate_John]

my organization is a offshoot of USA Goju. Per our history we had students train Goju-Kai as well in the past to bring it closer in line with Goju-Kai. and our Junior and Adult curriculum is the same.

If i'm correct our Taikyoku Ich's are based on USA Goju's versions, and Taikyoku Ni's are basically the same as the videos Nidan Melbourne posted. The curriculum is currently changing a bit as they add new Kata, but this is what I currently need to know at my dojo.

Kata for each rank:

White - Taikyoku's Jodan, Chudan, Gedan, and Kake Uke (all have Ich and Ni versions)

Green - Taikyoku Mawashi Ich & Ni, Sanchin Ich (Miyagi), Gekesai Ich & Ni

Purple - Sanchin ni (Higashionna), Tensho, and Saifa

Brown - Seiyunchin & Sanseru

Shodan-Ho - Seisan

Shodan - Shisochin

above Shodan:

Tenchi

Seipai

Kururunfa

Suparinpai

Genkaku

The new Katas are mostly organization specific, most are above Shodan.

[Harlan]

From my point of view, we don't leave out so much as we don't 'add in'.

Since it's informal, belts are not associated with kata; you learn a kata and when you know the outside well enough to keep up you start on another. One can know all the core kata in a few years, and have no rank.

Learning order is: Sanchin, Tensho, Saifa, Seuinchin, Sepai, Sanseru, Seisan, Kururunfa, Suparimpe.

from a thread about Goju that is also in this karate portion of karate forums http://www.karateforums.com/goju-ryu-question-vt46953.html. What is your style and the kata that are core to your specific style and what are the kata that your school (where you train at) do?

Which kata does your school leave out?

If you train in a style that is relatively new what is the parent styles? And also which kata did you take from each style or did you create your own?

For instance at my dojo we are Goju-Ryu but have hijacked some kata from the Goju-Kai (Kai = organisation) to help our students learn maneouvering and the techniques.

Our kata for each rank is as follows

White - Taikyoku Jodan

Yellow - Taikyoku Chudan (similar to Jodan, except different block & chudan tsuki)

Orange - Taikyoku Gedan (shiko dachi Gedan Uke + gedan tsuki)

Red - Taikyoku Kake Uke

Green - Taikyoku Mawashi Ich

Purple - Gekesai Ich + Ni

Blue - Saifa

Brown - Seeiunchin

1st Brown - Seeiunchin

Shodan-Ho - Seeiunchin + Sanseru

Shodan - Sanseru + Seisan

Nidan - Seisan + Shisochin

Sandan - Shisochin + Seipai

Yondan - Seipai + Kururunfa

Godan - Kururunfa + Suparenpei

ALL Belts from Shodan-Ho up (for JUNIORS) MUST know Sanchin + Tensho

ALL Belts from Green Belt (ADULTS) MUST know Sanchin + Tensho

Now the first five kata (taikyoku kata) are from Goju-Kai which were developed by Yamaguchi Sensei.

Traditionally you learn (From Goju-Ryu) Gekesai Ich first and then build up from there. For us at our school we want our students to have an understanding of how to turn and use their body effectively for kata and parts of training.

The taikyoku kata in my eyes are a very good way of having students learn and make them think whilst doing kata. Especially when it comes to power and use of hips!

[jaypo]

Our style is a mix of Shorin Ryu and Shotokan, but our Master Instructor trained in Okinawa in Goju Ryu for a while as well. He also trained a little Muay Thai and Tai Chi.

Our core katas are the Heians and Pinans. But we also have 10 katas that were created by him for his system. The ones specific to his system utillize the Shotokan techniques as well as Shorin techniques within the same kata. The advanced belts learn the Naihanchi series, Bassai Dai, Jion, Chinte, and Kanku Dai. Nobody in our club has advanced past these as of yet. (We're still fairly new in this area)

Edited June 27, 2014 by jaypo

[Harkon72]

Our Shukokai is a Shito Ryu derivative.

My reletavley new style Aikido is a first generation Japanese school, derived from authentic O Sensei's Aikido and Akijitsu.

As for Kata, the Karate has Pinan, and Shito Ryu based forms as taught by Sensei Demura's Genbukan.

I am yet to grade with the Aikido Dojo; so I have no idea how they will test me.

[RAM18]

As a Wado Ryu school we use the Pinan (Hinan) series for our belts then a mixture of the general ones at advanced. Beginners only start learning some of the first one.

White - none

Red - none

Yellow - Pinan Nidan (which is actual Hinan Shodan in other styles)

Orange - Pinan Shodan

Green - Pinan Sandan

Blue - Pinan Yodan

Purple - Pinan Godan

Brown - Kushanku (Kukandai) mixture of techniques from previous Pinans

Brown/white - Nifanchi

brown/black - Chinto

Black 1st - Seishan.

Then blackbelts learn Bassai, Rohai, Niseishi from there...

The Pinan / Heinan series are the core of Wado Ryu and Shotokan i believe.

[Spartacus Maximus]

The kata representing my style are the most common in all styles originating with Shuri-te. In other words all shorin ryu schools. In order the kata are like this:

1:kihon kata 1-5

2:naihanchin 1-3

3: pinan 1-5

4: kusanku sho, dai

5: chinto, gojushiho

A 3rd dan is expected to be able to perform all of these and have a functional understanding of basic applications for all kata up to pinan 5.

[vantheman]

My parent style is Shaolin Kempo Karate. SKK gets confusing because it takes its forms from a variety of sources, with inconsistencies in origin even within the same series of forms. This gets farther complicated because the grandmaster of my style made some fairly significant changes of his own.

Generally speaking, most of the forms come from a Kenpo Karate master somewhere between my grandmaster and William Chow, except for the Pinans, which (except for the first two), come from the Okinawan/Shotokan Pinans.

White Belt: No katas

Yellow Belt: One Pinan (NOT the same as Pinan Shodan; it's more or less an exact copy of Taikyoku Shodan)

Orange Belt: Two Pinan (Not Pinan Nidan; Footwork is the same as Taikyoku Shodan/One Pinan; the strikes are different; Creation of Nick Cerio, I believe Cerio is responsible for bringing the Pinans into Kenpo Karate)

Purple Belt: One Kata (Created by Sonny Gascon around the time of his split from Kajukenbo)

Blue Belt: Two Kata (" " " ")

Blue/Green: Three Pinan (similar to Pinan Sandan)

Green: Four Pinan (similar to Pinan Yondan)

Green/Brown: Five Pinan (similar to Pinan Godan)

Brown III: Three Kata (Created by Sonny Gascon)

Brown II: Four Kata (" " " "; based off Pinan Nindan?)

Brown I: Five Kata (Created by George Pesare)

1st Black: Six Kata (George Pesare), Statue of the Crane (George Pesare, based off Kata Rohai), Two Man Fist Set (Ed Parker Creation); Honsuki (Not really sure where this one comes from); Swift Tigers (adaptation of Pesare, Cerio, and Fred Villari)

Everything 2nd Dan and higher is theoretical "Kung Fu," but in reality was creations of Fred Villari. That being said, the grandmaster of my system went outside of Kenpo Karate and brought a lot of outside Kung Fu back into the forms, to the point where they are distinctly different than other SKK school's versions. I haven't had the chance to talk to my GM and record the history of what he has done, so my knowledge the origins and adaptations to everything beyond 1st degree black belt is minimal.

[Wado Heretic]

Wado-Ryu has nine central Kata. To paraphrase how Shingo Ohgami identified them;

Pinan Series > Kushanka (Kusanku/Kanku Dai)

Naifanchi (Naihanchi/Tekki Shodan) > Seishan (Seisan/Hangetsu)

With all coming to culminate in the lessons of Chinto kata, though I have heard in some circles that Seisan is taught after Chinto. Another interesting point I have heard is that nearer the end of his life Ohtsuka Meijin began to stop teaching beyond Seisan kata at all. Anecdotal evidence so I would not trust it, but I believe it illustrates how important he held these nine kata to be.

Within Shorin-Ryu; the central Kata are undeniably Naihanchi and the Pinan kata. Naihanchi deals with power generation and many central premises and principles, where as the Pinan generally introduce many of the Waza encountered in advanced kata.

[Hecklerboy]

White Belt: None

Yellow Belt: FukuGataIchi/FukuGataNi

Blue Belt: All the above + Pinan Shodan

Green Belt: All the above +Pinan Nidan

Purple Belt: All the above +Pinan Sandan/Pinan Yondan/Weapon Kata

Brown Belt (San Kyu): All the above +Pinan Godan/Advanced Kata

Brown Belt(Ni Kyu and Ichi Kyu): All the above + Additonal Weapon kata