Kata, hundreds of years of martial wisdom or cultural dances

[CheekyMusician]

 

Plus, it helps with Muscle memory and technique.

 

Got to agree with the muscular memory part. A few weeks ago this boy at my church grabbed my wrist and wouldn't let go. I performed a little twist of the wrist and pulled my hand in towards me and upwards, and then found myself following on with a hammerfist strike like in Heian Shodan. Luckilly I managed to realise that I'd gone insane right before I clunked the poor laddie on the head.

[Sasori_Te]

I think the best way to look at it, at least for me is, kata offers different things at different levels of skill and understanding. In the beginning kata offers balance, basic blocks and strikes, concentration and begins the visualization process. Later kata offers advanced movement as you flow throw stances, advanced techniques as your visualization of the opponent becomes clearer. This is a never ending process. as long as you understand the basics of the kata and have good visualization skills there is always something to be learned from kata. IMHO of course.

[Goju1]

Pay close attention to those who have good form in their katas, they are usually the best fighters also.

 

Yes in most cases, also the most power in their katas.

[AndrewGreen]

I wrote 3 or 4 posts on another thread about this but it was deleted for no reason I can think of.

 

Do you think kata are useful pieces of information or just simple dances? Please list reasons why you feel kata has or will affect you martial arts ability. (If you can please define words that are not in English)

 

I believe kata are nothing more then cardio dancing for tough guys/girls in white pajamas.

 

Pay attention to the name of the forum when you look at the results.

 

If your not doing kata your not doing karate, its that simple.

 

Kata is bad = karate is bad

 

This is a karate forum.

 

That said, I voted cultural dance, I see no fighting viable fighting application to the training method, and to 99% of the movements contained. The posture & structure is simply "wrong" for that goal.

[Sasori_Te]

Pay attention to the name of the forum when you look at the results.

 

If your not doing kata your not doing karate, its that simple.

 

Kata is bad = karate is bad

 

This is a karate forum.

 

That said, I voted cultural dance, I see no fighting viable fighting application to the training method, and to 99% of the movements contained. The posture & structure is simply "wrong" for that goal.

 

Honestly, after I got my first shodan I felt the same way you do about kata. After I changed styles and did a LOT of research into various apects of martial arts I learned that kata was key to everything. It's easy to have the viewpoint you have if you look at kata as a blueprint for a fight. It is not that. Each kata contains techniques unique to the master who introduced it. Kata is not a fixed and immutable thing. The form is fixed but the variations are as limitless as the skill, knowledge and imagination of the practitioner performing it. I also believe that not only do you not have karate without kata but you don't have martial systems without kata. The Chinese use kata, the Japanese and Okinawans use kata, the Koreans use kata. Kata has been in use for more than 2,000 years and has passed Asian martial arts along to us. Think on this. Where would martial arts be today without kata?

[Cybren]

They'd be more martial, less artfull

[Goju1]

They'd be more martial, less artfull

 

I guess we all need to realize that - depending on your particular style, its lineage of Senseis, the tradition (or lack thereof), history, type of katas, etc.. - We are never going to agree on the importance of the kata! So it might be easier to drop the idea and just go do our kata (or not)

[Sasori_Te]

Good call Goju1. Holding a conversation about kata ranks right up there with trying to discuss politics or religion.

[Tote]

Kata is a necessary training tool that promotes good stances, technique, memory, concentration, form, etc.....

 

"Kata is a necessary" Why?

[Sasori_Te]

Kata is necessary to have karate, Kata is necessary if you practice a traditional or classical style. Other than that, to each their own.