Why Kata
Kata Series
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49m
This tape opens a discussion among the class on the meaning and purpose of kata, addressing how few practitioners, including some grandmasters, look in real depth at their own forms. Hanshi Juchnik defines kata broadly as any organized attempt to position and reposition the body against a would-be assailant, traces the term across cultures including the juru of Silat, and explains why every kata has a specific goal, why denial of kata is a sign of lack of focus and discipline, and why a proper strategist never takes the enemy for granted. The conversation also covers kata as a learning tool that reveals more about the practitioner over time, the spirit of the kata, recognizing what level to teach, and the creative eye needed to see what the form is really doing.
Up Next in Kata Series
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Kata Another Look
This tape steps back from any single form to address how kata should be approached as a practice. Hanshi Juchnik introduces the framework of mind, wind, direction, fluidity, triangulation, and the meeting of bone and flesh, drawing a parallel to the hierarchy of life: air, water, food. He discuss...
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Kusanku
The Kusanku form, also known as Kanku, originated in Okinawa with a Chinese military attaché and entered the Kai through Bobby Lowe and Thomas Young. This tape presents both the Sho and Dai (short and long) versions, with bunkai that draws on otoko no atemi and the escaping arts. Hanshi Juchnik d...
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Bunkai Another Look
In this second tape on bunkai, Hanshi Bruce Juchnik continues the discussion of why practitioners do form, addressing the tendency among martial artists to become nearsighted in their understanding of kata. He clarifies that bunkai cannot be fully explained on a single tape, or even three hundred...
