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tubbydrawers
tubbydrawers's picture
Kata Bunkai Flow

Hi,

A student raised a question the other day in the Dojo:

A student was asked to perform some Heian Bunkai and as they went through the Kata, it was clear you could see every move according to the Kata. So as the Kata had a move, the student did that move in the same sequence.

The question arose was if a student when showing the Kata Bunkai in question, could actually flow between each bits of the Kata.

So for eg.

When performing said Kata Bunkai - Heian Nidan - They could flow between each part of the Kata. so for eg, would it be correct in saying that they could move between the Knife hand strikes and go straight into the upper blocks at the end if needed.

What I am trying to say is although we can do the Bunkai and mirror it to the Kata, would it be fair to say that depending on what is happening at the time, we would just flow between each part to get the desired result and it should not matter too much if the steps in the kata were not completely followed through from start to finish.

When people on here perform gradings, do you perform the Kata Bunkai as it mirrors the Kata or do you join sections up and try to flow it better as if in a fight / escape to safety scenario?

Hopefully I have explained this well enough :)

AllyWhytock
AllyWhytock's picture

Hi,

I've considered this and now look on a Kata as a reference from which I pick tactics & mechanisms to solve particular problems.  So my bunkai oyo will flow from one technique to another in small groupings as per the Kata, but one group doesn't necessarily flow into the next. Hence, for one of my Pinan Nidan (Heian Shodan) drills I start with Shuto-Uke, for a hook punch receive but will flow into a Age Uke, against the lower jaw whilst pulling on the punching arm with Hikite. So these techniques don't flow within the Kata but are presented in an overal tactic of receiving, clearing and unbalancing.  So in summary I mirror the Kata for small (groupings of 1,2,3 seconds) and mix the Kata when I do flows (3+ seconds) or alternates.

Kindest Rrgards,

Ally  

PASmith
PASmith's picture

Iain mentioned in his latest podcast with Wim Demeere that the kata are, in essence, two man drills joined together with the second person removed. It can sometimes not be clear where one drill ends and another begins. In fact we have certain techniques that are in pairs, showing left to right transition and right to left, but they are joined together by sharing a common technique in the middle (three age uke's one after the other for example) so it becomes a triplet of techniques that doesn't look like two pairs! Sometimes one overlaps the next and sometimes they are stand alone couplets that address different things. Sometimes the start is then informed by the next techniques as a failsafe or answering "what if" questions.

As such I don't think the kata are meant to show a complete flow of techniques per se, in part or in whole (although sometimes they do!).

Iain Abernethy
Iain Abernethy's picture

Hi Craig,

Paul and Ally's posts are bang on and mirror my own take on things.

tubbydrawers wrote:
would it be fair to say that depending on what is happening at the time, we would just flow between each part to get the desired result and it should not matter too much if the steps in the kata were not completely followed through from start to finish.

The past maters were very clear on this:

“Always perform the kata exactly, combat is another mater” – Gichin Funakoshi

“Never be shackled by the rituals of kata, but move freely according to your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses” – Genwa Nakasone

“It is obvious that these kata must be trained and practised sufficiently, but one must not be 'stuck' in them. One must withdraw from the kata to produce forms with no limits or else it becomes useless. It is important to alter the form of the trained kata without hesitation to produce countless other forms of training. Essentially, it is a habit - created over long periods of training. Because it is a habit, it comes to life with no hesitation - by the subconscious mind." – Hironori Otsuka

And so on.

The kata is a map. We decide the best route across the terrain based on the actual conditions at the time. So, yes. It is not just a case of “not mattering”, but it’s actually desirable that people learn to do that.

tubbydrawers wrote:
When people on here perform gradings, do you perform the Kata Bunkai as it mirrors the Kata or do you join sections up and try to flow it better as if in a fight / escape to safety scenario?

Both. The grading syllabus reflects all “four stages of kata” so for testing they demonstrate solo kata (1), set bunkai (2), free flowing variations (3) and live application (4).

I know you know this, but for others reading this video recaps this idea:

 

Here’s a kata specific video showing a basic example of how we move past the set example of the kata (stage 2) to the variations being discussed in their thread (3).

 

I hope that helps.

All the best,

Iain

dhogsette
dhogsette's picture

This is an excellent thread and so very important. What I'm discovering through teaching and practice is that Iain's four stages of kata, or some similar approach, is exactly right. Exactly right. Just as we can become "trapped by the kata," we can also become "trapped by the drills." That's not to say kata and drills are unimportant or can be discarded. Of course, they cannot be, if, in my view, we want to be training in "karate" (kata is the heart of karate and all that). But, it can be very easy to start thinking sequentially as we train the kata and application drills. Flow drills can be helpful, but even they have limits and can get us thinking in terms of routines and sequences of moves that must be performed in certain orders.

It's live practice that makes it all click. Live practice. Just this week I had my PE students (complete beginners) just "play" a bit with live practice. It was a struggle, at first. They wanted the structure and order of drills. Nope! That's the point. To start experiencing non-sequential combative movement and practice. But, as they continued, they loosened up and really enjoyed themselves. They experienced freezing, confusion, and a bit of frustration--all to be expected as one transitions from set drills with clear parameters and outcomes to live practice with no sense of what could happen, guided only by trying to fight to escape. It was great!

And, I'd roam around and gently surprise attack one of them, so they had to deal with multiple attackers a bit. Oddly, they always let me attack before they would fight back, even as they saw me approaching. No one proactively tried to attack me as I approached. That showed me that they may be internalizing a reaction mindset instead of an action mindset. I need to address that.

But, all that to say--live practice is key. And, I firmly believe that the live practice should not happen until after engaging in sufficient kata practice and drilling. So, I'm a firm believer in the stages of kata approach.

Best,

David