Kata is NOT the Soul of Karate

Holy Crap! Did he just say that?

Yes I did. But don't get too bent out of shape. I don't really mean it.

But, for the purpose of presenting a little philosophy about kata, I have to exclaim this. This way, some of Karate's detractors and Karate's dedicated followers can put a few things in perspective.

In surveying several different martial disciplines: Brazillian Jujutsu, MMA, Defensive Tactics, Krav Maga, Firearms, and Knife Fighting; I propose to an instructor that the most basic techniques be explained so that a beginner can understand them.

The overwhelming response is a well thought out, organized, and systematic approach to introducing the concepts of the technique to the student.

However, when asked how this most basic of techniques might be used in real life, the answer is ALWAYS, "well, you have to put it together with other combinations, and more importantly, practice using it in real life in order to be proficient enough with it to make it work."

I have found that most modern martial arts teach in this progressive, building-block type methodology. However, traditional karate's implementation of the same methodology seems to be frowned upon. The idea of doing kata and practicing basic; seemingly practically ineffective techniques, is perceived as archaic and a waste of time. Yet, everyone else is doing it. It puzzled me for a while until I came to grips with the problem.

The problem is the karate practitioner. He/ she takes traditional maxims such as "Kata is the soul of karate" completely out of context. You see, the karate person inevitably believes that this means, "kata is the only thing you have to practice." Ahh, there is the issue.

What is Kata?
Kata is an exercise where one repeats a prearranged movement to establish muscle memory, strength, flexibility, and a source of solo practice when a partner is not available. While modern martial artists think they are not doing kata because they do bag work and work on fighting combinations with a real person, they would be wrong. The moment one practices the same technique twice or more in a row, he is doing kata.

In karate and other traditional Japanese martial arts, kata also serves as a historical record of the primary philosophies and techniques of a system. So, in karate, what is kata?

Kata is a way of boiling down everything one needs to live a long and healthy life into one simple set of exercises. Kata being the foundation of a healthy life is the reasoning behind kata being the "soul" of karate. But we have to understand that knowing a kata; or even being proficient with kata has nothing to do with fighting prowess. Fighting prowess is only ONE byproduct of practicing kata.

Fighting prowess comes from being able to transition from the learning of the basics, putting them into the combinations, applying them to a partner, to applying them in an unrehearsed application, and then to revisiting the basics to get an understanding of more advanced concepts such as timing and position, and then altering the basic techniques to reflect those new concepts.

This is the methodology for everything else! Of course it is the same with karate!

So, lets put it in perspective. These are the elements of practice listed above:
1. Learn Basics
2. Put Basics together to make combinations
3. Making them work with a partner
4. Practicing them unrehearsed
5. Advancing on the basics

Kata is item 2. I know there is more to kata than just putting basics together, but, in perspective, we have to go through all 5 steps and then come BACK to #1 and then revisit kata with the newfound principles and concepts. NOT try to use kata ALONE to discover these elements.

Sooo... with each of those 5 elements being a percentage of your training, each is 20%. That's right! Lets take a 100 minute class twice a week: That's 40 minutes a week or 20 minutes per class on kata... as an example.

Yet, how many of us spend an entire class on kata. How about half of EVERY class on kata. The bottom line is, doing this brings a deficit in the beginning student's comprehension of the SYSTEM! THIS is why the general public's perception of karate is centered on what kata is (to them as an untrained observer) and the basic application from the kata they see demonstrated by the beginners.

You MUST partition your training schedule differently if you are to properly transmit the principles of traditional karate correctly and for kata to truly be experienced as the soul of karate. Let me give you another anecdote that has similar implications but gets misconstrued all the time. "Victory lies with the sword remaining in the scabbard" referring to swordsmanship and the thought of giving life and taking it. This does not mean we practice swordsmanship without EVER taking the sword out in order to learn the art!!

From another perspective, saying Kata is the "soul" of karate is like saying the holster is the "soul" of gunfighting. Without context or true involvement in the art, it actually means nothing.

I have also found that most advanced teachers of traditional Karate know this. Through their experiences in the world and their learning of karate from leaders in the traditional karate community, they know what I am saying is true. However, there is this odd apprehension about doing something about it! Perhaps, there is too much stock placed in the mind of a beginner...they can only internalize so many things and it is probably better for them to spend most of their developmental time on only practicing the basics. Perhaps it is also too hard to take on the task of reworking a standard curriculum of teaching and learning to allow for the implementation of some of the above concepts. Well, my only advice is, if you do what you always did, you will be what you've always been.

Here's some help to ease what I can only assume is guilt over changing what one might think is the traditional method of learning. Its not. If you look at the context and history of the training of westerners in eastern arts, you will inevitably find that information is transmitted differently to us than it is in Japan and Asia. What made the masters of the classical era so good and maintain such legendary reputations? Well, let's just say its NOT by practicing kata all day.

So, back to the beginning. Kata IS the soul of karate... for me. But that's because I get it. It is for many of Karate's present day masters who have gone beyond typical western classroom karate and looked into the past a bit. But don't just use the "soul" statement as a cheap catch phrase. Get out there and mix things up. Trust the beginners, the black belts, your staff, and the tradition to be able to adjust and excel with a more classical view of training. Somebody 200 years ago said that kata is the soul of karate. We can't understand that with our modern mind. We have to literally go back in time. It takes time. It takes money. Its frustrating. Its degrading.

Its life-changing.

This is of course where I should shamelessly plug my seminar series on the subject... but I won't:)

Happy Training