Given the westernization of the martial arts, a lot of people think of fighting, kicking and punching as soon as they hear the word “karate.” This is unfortunately a very narrow and uninformed view, as any style of martial arts involves so very much more. The martial arts is a lifelong puzzle of a million pieces, with the student’s goal being to obtain a new piece with every session, adding to overall tableau of their martial arts journey. But it wouldn’t be the only thing that the western world gets wrong.
For example, let’s look at the word “karate.” The actual martial art is called “karate do.” A practitioner does not “do karate.” They practice/study/train in karate do and the student is actually referred to as a karateka. These may seem like somewhat menial details that don’t change a great deal but to someone who still adheres to the traditions and old ways of studying the art, they can mean quite a bit. And that doesn’t always mesh well with the modern world and people’s need for immediate gratification. A great example of this phenomenon, is kata…
For those who don’t study martial arts, kata is a Japanese word for “form,” and usually involves a formal, pre-arranged sequences of techniques and blocks. Kata serves multiple purposes, including creating muscle memory to help the practitioner perfect the skills they’re trying to memorize. In Uechi Ryu, kata also helps to strengthen and build muscle as the dynamic tension used in the body during kata is constant (or should be). Kata can be performed slowly or quickly, depending on the stage of training the student is in, and can be used to hone one’s skills as easily as sparring or using a bag.
In most cases, you learn your techniques in a more proper manner during kata, since you aren’t striking a surface and can develop your bone alignment and proper posture BEFORE you start actually hitting something. Granted, it should be one or the other; kata and active striking should be used in tandem, depending on the student’s level of skill and experience. The issue with the modern practitioner is that a kata can be slow work and requires a degree of time and patience that most people nowadays seem to lack.
Although kata doesn’t seem as glamorous or exciting as learning spin kicks and fancy techniques (which my style doesn’t incorporate anyway), form is every bit as important as learning to punch and kick properly. It’s important to remember that everything taught in the martial arts serves a purpose. No thing is for nothing. So even if doing kata may seem boring now, sticking with it will help you get stronger, faster and polish up you or techniques to increase your overall martial arts toolbox. If you’ve ever seen the original Karate kid movies, one of the things they got right was when they said that in karate, not everything is always as it seems. Cue the pan flute soundtrack… ☯️
The Blogging Buddhist 