“The Map is not the Territory…”

Is there function in your form(s)? Kata is the map but often doesn’t describe the territory it charts and what you see is just the beginning of what you can get. Knowing where your kata comes from relates to what it can address and where it can go! Students of Okinawan, Japanese, Korean and U.S. systems share many kata, but:

• Does your system reflect your kata and vice versa?
• Does your training dive into the intention of your form(s) and its contextual history?
• It should #protip

In-depth analysis of kata/forms can help students perform and apply technique in an effective manner and spur on-going improvement. For instructors, it offers a rich pool of material to help keep students on track and interested in the system, as well as providing a conduit for personal martial growth and a deeper connection to the system you teach.

Bring this to your training in 2 ways!

1. Instructor Focused Workshop: Kata analysis session(s) working with standard kata/form sets or specific forms for your school. Aimed at instructors & senior students. We dive into that material and look for all the opportunities to tear it apart, tie it all together and extend it into your training and teaching.
2. Hosted open seminar: Hosted at your location using “cross-platform kata” we use that map to “understand the territory”, allowing the participants to discover( and rediscover ) the function in their forms. Participants will be encouraged to review their technical tool box and add new concepts and applications. System-specific forms can also be used to reinforce your system-specific concepts.

 

Email seminars@karate-dojo.org or call 512-537-5425 to schedule your sessions

CLICK HERE for seminar example

Seminars are led by Paul Wilson of White Rock Kenshinkan and co-host of the Karate Cafe Podcast. Wilson Sensei is Austin’s leading instructor in kata application, hosting annual open seminars attended by instructors and students from Okinawan, Japanese, Korean and U.S. based systems. The seminars are based on understanding the commonalities of our arts, the concepts that join our lineages and removing the politics that block learning.