Practice vs Performance.

Putting Kata Back at the Heart of Karate.

Column by Bill Burgar author of Five Years, One Kata.

Kata is one of the things that defines karate. In the pioneering days of karate in Okinawa, kata was karate, and the way in which karate was practised was quite different from today. Modern karate typically consists of the three k's (kihon [basics], kata and kumite [sparring]) practised in varying proportions depending upon the instructor's preference.

Often kata is poorly understood and is considered the poor cousin of kumite - free sparring being generally thought of more use because it more closely matches what people think of as fighting. Worse still, kata has been relegated to such a degree that it is now just something that you have to do for gradings or competition and its value, in practice, is just to improve balance and co-ordination.

The question is, "what happened to 'the jewel of karate' (as Funakoshi called it) to cast it so low?" One possible answer is that we stopped practising the contents of the kata and started practising the performance of kata.

Let's look at the contrast between practising content and practising performance by first understanding the possible objectives of them both.

Practising the content has several possible objectives. The most obvious is to train in a workable system of civilian self-defence by practising specific techniques to combat the common instinctive acts of violence. Another possible objective could be to practise the techniques of the art of karate.

In contrast, practising the performance of the kata is aimed at reaching goals of perfecting balance, coordination and technique. Rarely is an opponent visualised at any more than a superficial level so the combat effectiveness of the exercise is limited to gaining physical familiarity with the movements only. Over time, the objective has changed and has moved further away from the goal of movement and coordination and has been replaced with passing gradings and winning competitions. This further places the focus on the outward appearance of the kata rather than the functional use of the moves.

So, where does your focus lie when you practice your kata? Is your primary concern how it looks? Are you thinking about what the next move is? Are you thinking about how you move? In a typical dojo the answer to these questions is yes; which means that you are practising performance rather the practising the content.

Now, the problem is that very few people know how to practise the content of kata which requires quite a change in what a training session consists of.

First, you need to understand what the applications of the movements are. They need to all hang together properly as a well thought out system rather than being just a random set of techniques. Once you have your applications then you can start to practise them both with a partner and also alone by using visualisation (The subject for a future article). Finally, you should practise drills (again both with a partner and solo using visualisation) which aim to allow you to move spontaneously from one technique to any other in the kata.

The use of visualisation is most important and is the subject of next month's article.

About the author: Bill Burgar is a 6th Dan, member of Rick Clark's ADK organisation and author of the advanced karate text Five Years, One Kata which is available on-line and to order at all good book shops.

Rules.

Putting Kata Back at the Heart of Karate.

Column by Bill Burgar, author of Five Years, One Kata.

In the last article we covered setting objectives and took, as an example, training to use the leg sweep in competition. At the end of that article I suggested that you write an objective statement for each of your key areas of study. So by now you should have a number of objective statements that you are just about ready to use. But first we need to return to the idea of context (that we looked at two articles ago) and, in particular, we need to look at 'rules'.

Often we tend only to be aware of rules when they are explicitly stated, for example in a competition. What we are not so aware of are the unstated rules which form our environment every bit as much as the stated rules. For example, many people say that there are no rules in a self-defense situation but this is not true. In any self-defense situation there are several "fights". There are immediate physical demands, clearly, but your actions at the time must allow you to survive the next battle which may be with the legal system. Finally, you need to be in a position to win the psychological battle with yourself as you agonise about whether or not you did the right thing. All of these battles have their own rules and making sure you operate within them is important.

Let's look briefly at the hidden rules related to competition, then dojo training and, finally, self-defense.

First, each individual needs to look at their moral and ethical beliefs to determine exactly how far they are prepared to bend the rules. For some people obeying the spirit of the rules is every bit as important as obeying the letter of the rules. To others, gamesmanship is perfectly acceptable. For example, hitting your opponent hard near the start of the bout (in a touch contact competition) in order to intimidate them is allowed in the rules (really it is, because depending on how you do it you may only get a warning) but is against the spirit of fair play. This clearly illustrates the difference between, on the one hand, people who make an ethical stand on playing by the spirit of the rules and, on the other, those who are prepared to use gamesmanship in what might be considered by many as a less ethical way to win. When these two types of people are drawn against each other in a bout we can now see that they are fighting under different rules; one of them has more options than the other and has increased his chances. That is not to say that he will win but that he has a better chance, or at least that his opponent, who has the moral high-ground, will have to be more skillful in order to win.

In the typical dojo there are many hidden rules that we take so much for granted that they can be highly detrimental to our goal of self-defense. Take, for example, the hidden sparring rule in effect in most dojo, that of not kicking to the groin. Because you know you won't be kicked there you don't defend properly. I remember vividly about 20 years ago having always trained under the 'no groin kicking rule', going to visit a dojo where it was allowed. After a few painful encounters I quickly understood the power of false assumptions and how my more restricted rules meant that I was poorly prepared to face someone who had practised using wider rules.

A similar situation exists if one of your goals is training for self-defence. We all too easily assume that the same rules apply to both us and our potential attackers. This means that we will often be taken in by well practised cons that are highly devious and well outside our expectation of fair play. Sometimes these tricks can cause loss of material goods and in less fortunate circumstances, injury.

To avoid losing against someone who is using different rules (be it in competition, in the dojo or on the street) we need to come to some understanding as to what the differences might be and how we can deal with them. Naturally, in a short article like this it would be impossible to go into detail about the wide variety of rules that you may have and that all your potential opponents may have. However, it is something that you should consider. It is therefore worth spending some time writing down some of the, as yet, unwritten moral and ethical rules that you take for granted in the various theatres you practise for.

Finally, a question for you: I’ve broken a rule in the picture where I’m hitting the bag – which rule? It is not a technical rule (although I’m sure there are a fair few of those that I’m breaking too).

In the next article we will take a look at practice versus performance.

About the author: Bill Burgar is a 6th Dan, member of Rick Clark's ADK organisation and author of the advanced karate text Five Years, One Kata which is available from http://www.martialartspublishing.com/

A conversation with Takayoshi Nagamine sensei

Okinawan Conversations #2

By Mike Clarke

Matsubayashi-ryu is one of the main schools of Okinawan karate emerging from the Shuri-te tradition. It’s founder, the late master Shoshin Nagamine [1907 – 1997] lived a life only few could imagine. He had learnt his karate from some of the islands great karate sensei, Ankichi Arakaki, Chotoku Kyan and Choki Motobu, and today his karate system is taught and practised all over the world. Though no longer with us his ideas and methods live on. Today, Matsubayashi-ryu karate-do is lead by the late master’s son: Takayoshi Nagamine sensei.

A gifted and passionate karate-ka himself, “Soke” Nagamine has taken up the reins of leadership and yet continues to find time to train him self in the art of karate. He confessed to me to feeling a sense of gratitude for the life he has lived and for the many students, friends and advisors he has within the karate world.

I met Soke Nagamine for the first time in 1992, when I interviewed his father. On that same visit to Okinawa I watched him demonstrate kata at the re-opening of Shuri-jo, Okinawa’s royal palace and symbol of the Ryukyu kingdom’s former glory. The dynasty may have gone and the palace itself reduced to being little more than a tourist attraction, but Soke Takayoshi has lost none of his zeal for karate and in his own way is keeping alive an Okinawan tradition that has spread around the globe.

His life these days is divided equally between his home in Okinawa and his home in America. He first travelled there as a young man and spent many years teaching karate from his base in Columbus, Ohio. As he approached his sixtieth year of life and his fifty-third year of continuous training, I had the opportunity to visit him in the Kodokan dojo, Naha. Though showing signs of its age these days, the Kodokan dojo was built and opened in a time before karate had travelled to the rest of the world. A time when the virtues involved in the understanding of karate kept many from learning it’s secrets. The obligation placed upon those who trained in karate-do back then, to develop one’s self and to view life from a deeper and more profound point of view began in dojo like this one.

As more and more Westerners [American Military Personnel] took up the challenge of karate, ways had to be found to transmit the philosophy that underpins the physical training. So, on one of the walls a sign [in English] was hung. Written on October 1st, 1961, by the dojo’s founder Shoshin Nagamine, it offers the following advice:



Ethics Of The dojo
Courtesy, Cleanliness, and Diligence

First of all, purify your mind.
Cultivate the power of perseverance by strengthening your body and overcoming the difficulties that arise during training.
The dojo is a place where “guts” are fostered and superior human nature is bread through the ecstasy of sweating through hard work. The dojo is a sacred place where the human spirit is polished.
Your seniors and Black Belts are well aware of these facts and therefore you, the beginners, are requested to help make your dojo a sacred place, by keeping in your mind the above things and strictly observing the following:
1/ Always keep your karate-gi clean and take them home after use.
2/ Help clean the dojo.
3/ Be well versed in the precepts for mastering karate-do.
4/ After use, be sure to place the training equipment where it belongs.

………


Beside this sign hangs the “Precepts for mastering karate-do” it reads:

1/ He is human and so am I.

2/ It is an imitation of self-limitation on my part, if, I cannot accomplish whereas others can.

3/ Discard this imitation: if he practises three times I must practise five times.

4/ If he practises five times then I will practise seven or ten times.

5/ Do not turn to others for help, Musashi Miyamoto once said: “Pay your respects to the gods and Buddha’s, but never rely on them.”

6/ Earnestly cultivate your mind as well as your body and believe in yourself.

7/ Karate may be referred to as the “conflict within your self ”, or a life long marathon that can be won only though your creative efforts.

………

What follows is something of the conversation I had with Soke Nagamine as we sat in the Kodokan dojo one afternoon in February 2005. I have not transcribed everything that was discussed, as some of what I learn during such meetings, I keep to myself. Should you wish to go deeper into the world of budo, find your own way to make it happen!

Sensei, can you please explain the fundamentals of Matsubayashi-ryu karate-do?

“Yes, there are three kinds of technique. One technique is “rhythm”. Then there is what we call, “rhythm-two”. Let me explain, basic rhythm is to develop timing so you can block then you are attacked, and then you can hit back from your block. With rhythm-two, you can black and attack at the same time. “Rhythm-three” is the ultimate technique and this is where we don’t block, instead, we attack the attack! Even against a kick we can use rhythm-three. I think it’s a little hard to explain in words this is why I demonstrated on you, I hope you don’t mind?”
[Note: Nagamine sensei demonstrated all three kinds of rhythm on me with great success, and with just enough discomfort for me to ‘feel’ his point, after I had been invited to attack him with both punches and kicks].

In karate, we must learn to take a hit as well as give one, how do you train people to develop a strong body?

We have tools like the chi-ishi and tan, and of course the makiwara. Training with these tools not only makes your muscles strong, but your bones and your tendons strong too. You can say that the main reason for us to train with these tools is to develop muscles and tendons that can deliver “snap!” We don’t want bulk or a big size, we are looking to tone our bodies so we can have fast reflexes and move quickly.”

Your dojo has quite a few makiwara, two by the front door, and more along the side, what is the aim for you when you train with this tool?

The makiwara allows you to practise making “impact” in a moment, over a short distance. We learn to use our hips with power as we train with “koshi”. This means we don’t wind-up our hips, or push with our body. Instead we use koshi. Like an explosion it comes from our hara, and this makes karate very hard to deal with. The older you get the more you have to make your karate have this kind of power, and not be a big drain for your body.

You see, if you want to have big power then most people will train to have big movement, big wind-up and twist and so on. But this kind of technique takes time [to execute] and is very powerful but a little slow. Also you need more distance between you and opponent so you have space to do the big wind-up. But, in our karate we have a saying: “Go from minimum distance, to maximum power.” Then, we include the three dimensions of the block, shifting, and attack at the same time. This is how we get power in our karate.
When did you start training in karate?

I began training with my father when I was seven years old, now I am fifty-nine years old, so I have trained in karate for almost all my life.

Was your training any different from the others students in the dojo?

No not really, in the dojo everyone was treated the same, me included. But afterwards, in our home life away from the public classes, I received a lot of discipline from my father.
For example, if students did one hundred punches, then I would have to do four or five hundred punches, the same with all the basic techniques.

Because of who your father was, were you expected to train in karate?

No. He never told me I had to do it. But watching him when I was a boy, really made me want to do it. In fact, he always demanded I did my homework and any jobs I had to do first before I was allowed to practice.

Did you find it easy to do karate or was it difficult?

I found it difficult, and in some ways I still do. I guess there are some genius people around who can do karate very easily, but my way was to just try harder and harder over a long period of time. Sometimes I have had a plan, but it didn’t always work out the way I wanted, so I just keep trying.

Do you have a favorite aspect of karate that you like to spend more time on than others?

If you think about your karate and analyse it as a martial art, you see that the kata were not designed for competing [as in sports] against another person. My father, and even people older and senior to him, told me that around one hundred years ago when you did karate you didn’t have a public class. Each sensei, would teach their students separately, not together. So it was possible that you could start training and meet somebody, say ten years later, who might have been training with your sensei for the same length of time, and you didn’t know. In those days people kept it secret and never told anyone they trained in karate. It was something they did for themselves and not for others to know about. It is very different in our days. Back then each student was taught at their own level and the sensei would give the student different things to work on accordingly. Of course back then money was not really a question either. It was all about culture, discipline, intelligence and character.

Are there people who were training when you were a boy, still training?
Also, if you had not ‘entered the dojo’ what do you think your life would be like today?

Ha! I don’t really know. Perhaps I would be a car salesman, or a schoolteacher or something like that maybe. And yes, there are still some people training from my early days.

You mentioned training in karate in olden times, do you think karate has changed since then, or perhaps the kind of people training has changed?

Well, inside [a person’s mind] I think it’s all the same, but, there might be some changes in the way some people interpret karate today, even from as recently as forty years ago. This has to do with people’s cultural background I think. Even on Okinawa now there are many who just see karate as a kind of a sport instead of a martial art.
Sometimes I am asked: what is the difference? It’s true some sports are tough like boxing or professional kickboxing they’re very tough. But no matter what, all sports share the same definition. They have tournaments and the participants are trying to improve their ‘record’ or previous result.
Karate is not like this, it is the study of death and being alive. Yes, death and being alive. If a person opens a karate dojo it is important they know and understand this philosophy. Martial arts cannot compete with sports because they have a different philosophy. In sport you compete against someone else, or perhaps your own record, but in martial arts you only compete against your ‘self’.

Do you think western people understand the difference between karate and karate-do?

Yes they do, some people anyway. Many western people have been training a long time and they understand things better than some people here [Okinawa]. It all depends on the person and if they are open to such ways of thinking. Even physically, western people can be better at karate due to their bigger bodies and greater strength. It all depends on the philosophy in their soul.

What does your personal training consist of these days?

Kata mostly, and also I meditate. Also I try to think about the philosophy of martial arts. Unfortunately some of this philosophy is lost in translation, for example, do you know the Kempo Hakku [The eight laws of the fist, as laid down in the bubishi]?”

Yes I do.

The translation of this into English, that most people are aware of, did not go very deeply and so many have a false understanding of what these words mean. Let me show you what I mean. Here:



Jinshin wa tenchi ni onaji
This means your “self” and the rest of the universe, are not separate entities.


Ketsumyaku wa nichigetsu ni nitari
The circulation within the human body is very much like the circulation of the sun and the moon, and the other planets found throughout the universe. However, the moon and the sun are like an extension of your self. This is a little bit of a departure from the Christian [Western] way of seeing things.

Ho wa goju wo tondo su
Tondo su means, the law of nature or law of the universe. Therefore when we inhale and exhale we can achieve both the strength of “go” and the softness of “ju”, the power and muscular strength of Naha-te or the “snap”, explosive force of Shuri-te. All shorin-ryu try to use this snapping action. It’s like touching the tail of a lobster, “Snap!”
When Master Miyagi Chojun was looking for a name for his karate, he took the name “goju” from this line.

Mi wa toki ni shita gai hen ni ozu
This says that we should keep our bodies ready so that we can change to any circumstances that might happen. For fighting this means we should be able to change our defence and counter-attack according to the other person’s attack on us. Straight on or coming around from the side, we should be able to change. Always ready to adapt, even to our circumstances in life too.

Te wa ku ni ai sunawa chi hairu
This means that once you are being threatened and a fight is imminent, as soon as you look at him, your guard is off and you can strike.

Shintai wa hakarite riho su
This is talking about our feet and how we should move. Sometimes our front leg moves first and sometimes our back leg, according to the movements of our opponent. But always we should keep them at the range and distance that suits us, not them.

Me wa shiho wo miru wo yosu
This addresses our ability to predict the opponents next move. The advice given is to remain conscious of things in all four directions. Use your peripheral vision and be aware of how people are positioned in front and around you.

Mimi wa yoku happo wo kiku
This says we should try to be aware, by listening, of even the slightest movement or sound, behind and to the side of us. We must be able to watch out for even a shapeless shape, and we must be able to listen for even the soundless sound.
The advice in kempo hakku is deep, and is not just a list of directions.

If you had some advice to give to karate-ka, what would it be?

Well you know we human beings are not perfect, not at all. I believe my father was a very fair and honest man, and he would often say to his students, me included: “Rectify your mind, and always look to your feet.” What he meant was that we should always be ready to do karate. He was talking about our mind, our attitude. Always remember what it was like to wear a white belt. “Sho-shin”, have a beginners mind. We must never think we have become something big in karate. No matter what, every day when we practice we realize there is something more to learn.

Thank you sensei: Domo arigato gozaimashita!

-------------------------------------------

About the author: Mike Clarke is the author of many articles published in many martial arts magazines around the world. He is also the author of a number of books including Roaring Silence available from http://www.martialartspublishing.com/.

Going to the ground

90% of all street fights go to the ground. This statement has been repeated (with only a few mild variations as to the percentage) often on martial arts forums, magazines and post MMA, BJJ or Vale Tudo competitions. It has been said so many times that its precise origins are uncertain, although the Gracies are a commonly cited source. It has been repeated so many times that it has become what an MA acquaintance of mine in Chicago calls a factoid – something that is not a fact but has become such in the public consciousness.

There is a small element of truth in this fact. Most serious street fights do end up with a person on the ground; the loser. Most of the street fights of the original person who voiced the above statement probably did go to the ground, because that was where he took them and was good at doing so. But ask any military person who has used unarmed combat for real, any police officers or bouncers how often in their fights they have found themselves on the ground and the answer is likely to be below 10%. Look at the CCTV footage of fights that grace our television screens from time to time or study the Home Office statistics on violence on our streets and again you will find no evidence to indicate that groundfighting is common on our streets or inside our clubs. (Up to date statistics and research papers based upon data from police, social services, victims of crime and A&E units can be found at http://www.crimestatistics.org.uk/.)

So, when do fights go to the ground? In my opinion this only happens in the following cases:

1. When both fighters are so unskilled and/or intoxicated that they simply cling to each other and wrestle rather than manage coherent strikes. The event of one of them falling pulls the other down.

2. When one of the combatants, following a number of strikes, instinctively drops to the ground and curls into a ball to protect themselves (foetal position).

3. When one of the combatants is a skilled groundfighter who deliberately takes the fight to the ground.

Why shouldn’t we go to the ground:
1. The surface. Even for a skilled person, the risk of landing badly on tarmac or a surface with broken glass, chairs, ashtrays etc is high. You cannot guarantee that you will be the one on top.

2. Company. If you are on the ground you have even less chance of defending yourself against any bystanders who may or may not take your side than you do if you are standing up. Many people will not commit assault unless they have mates nearby who can back them up (who may appear to be just part of the crowd) – going to the ground increases the danger of a multiple assault and makes it harder to run away.

3. Weapons. Some people carry knives but are ‘decent’ enough only to use them if they feel that you aren’t playing fair by just taking a regular beating (for example those who deliberately seek a fight every Saturday night). Deflecting any type of stab while on the ground is harder than when standing up.

4. The law. The police will naturally treat both people involved that they find as aggressors. You will look far worse trying to choke a person beneath you (or hitting them in the face) than you would trading blows while standing. Even a choke or joint lock from below looks worse than any standing attack and puts you at risk of all sorts of floor related injuries.

5. Intent. Do you want to control your opponent until help comes? Do you intend to choke them and then walk away? Do you want to knock them out? Do you hope to deter them with some strong strikes?

Should we practise submission groundfighting techniques then? I would not consider them essential. It is more important to practice methods of getting back up and striking on the ground in order to do so than to practice applying controls on the ground. That being said, it does not hurt to have some of the latter techniques in your repertoire and you should really seek out a groundfighting specialist for some cross training rather than practice a few isolated technique from your kata in a horizontal position. At the end of the day, given the odds of meeting a professional groundfighter who wants to take the risk of going to ground outside the ring or dojo, it is your striking skills that require more work if you wish to avoid making the oft quoted factoid a reality.

This article first appeared in Traditional Karate Magazine October 2006.

Coach John Titchen teaches Defence Attack & Resolution Tactics to students, education professionals and corporate clients and can be reached via his website http://www.d-a-r-t.org.uk/, e mail jwt.dart@gmail.com. He is a Personal Defence Readiness™ Coach with Blauer Tactical Systems and is available to teach both self protection and Karate Bunkai seminars. The author’s new book, Heian Flow System - Effective Karate Kata Bunkai, is available on Amazon and through all good bookshops.

Setting Objectives

Article by Bill Burgar author of Five Years, One Kata.

In the last article, I gave a brief overview of "karate context", touching on each area of relevance including: key areas, objectives, rules, instructors and peers. In this column, I'm going to go into more detail about setting objectives. This is a key area for each karateka to get right so that practice time is spent wisely and we get what we want out of our study of karate. When you've finished reading you will know how to write down your objectives, which will give you a clearer focus about how to approach your training.

Last time, I suggested that each karateka should write out a brief list of headings that covered their main priorities; their reasons for studying karate. There may be just one thing on the list or there may be many - it all depends on the individual. So, for example, one person may just have one heading: self-defence. That shows a clear intention to study karate for just one reason and no other. Other people may have several, for example: social, fitness, competition, and self-defence. This shows that there is no one special reason for practising karate. You can see that this person just enjoys the atmosphere at the dojo, likes to keep fit, has some fun with competition and likes to think that, if he needed to, he could look after himself.

Making a 'high-level' list is a very quick and easy way to get started on creating a written statement of your objectives. Once you have made your high-level list it is time to start to get into more specific details for each item. Your objectives should always be SMART, that is: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Rewarding and Time limited.

Specific: We must make clear and unambiguous statements about what it is we are going to achieve.
Measurable: There must be some way to determine when the objective has been met. We therefore make a statement that describes how we will measure success or failure of the objective.
Achievable: It must be possible to reach the objective. It is important to understand in advance whether or not the objective is achievable. It is important to remember, however, that many tasks when first approached seem insurmountable, so it is important to be optimistic and to take on a challenge.
Rewarding: The objective should bring sufficient reward that it is worth undertaking. There is always a cost / benefit ratio to consider. Every task has its cost or, as the old saying goes, "you don't get owt for nowt". It is always important to consider what the cost and benefit will be before initiating a task.
Time limited: There should be a clear time frame set out for when the objective will be met. Many things of worth are not achieved quickly and it is important to approach tasks consistently rather than sporadically. Breaking the task down into sub-tasks and estimating time frames is essential if we are to understand the cost of the task.

Now, take the first of your high level items that you listed last month and think about something specific that you need to improve in that area. For example, if you are into competition you might want to increase your repertoire to include another winning technique, say, a leg-sweep. Your specific statement would be "Learn and use a leg-sweep successfully in a competition".

Now make it measurable; "In the competition I'll use at least one leg-sweep in each bout".

Looking at the objective it ought to be achievable. Remember it's a statement about your intent.

Is it rewarding? Well it should be; dumping someone on their back with a well timed sweep is hugely satisfying as well as earning you points.

Finally, set a time limit. Maybe a particular competition that you know is due to take place in three months’ time.

So, your objective statement might be something like the following:
Train to use a leg sweep in competition in such a manner as to win points. Then use the technique in competition within 3 months (i.e. before ) at least once in each bout in the competition.

This type of objective setting can be used for all areas of your karate study. I suggest you start gradually by setting one or two objectives and build up from there. I also suggest you talk about your objectives with your instructor. If you are an instructor then encourage your students to write down their objectives and to discuss them with you.

Between now and next month make the following your objective:
Write down one objective statement for each of your key areas of study before next month's magazine arrives at the newsagent.

I strongly advise that you take the time to write down some objectives. Just as you can't hope to get a technique polished by watching someone else do it, so too, you cannot expect to get anything out of these articles if you don't do the work. Start today!

The next job is to make a statement about the rules you'll be operating under, which is the subject for next month's column.

About the author: Bill Burgar is a 6th Dan, a member of Rick Clark's ADK organisation and author of the advanced karate text Five Years, One Kata which is available on-line and to order at all good book shops.