Bunkai

[miffersy]

Hiya,
I just wanted to put this to you, as in the saying, " Beauty is in the eye of the beholder " is " Bunkai also in the eye of the beholder" that is,

!, Do we all see the applications different

2, Should we do the Kata focusing on our own Bunkai

3, As we go higher in our respective grades do we see the Bunkai as more complex techniques.

Please Discuss

[AngelaG]

I suspect this is dependent on how one is taught. If people are spoon-fed applications then they will never look for anything deeper. If instead one is guided then eventually we will start to look for our own applications applicable to our own body types, and personal preferences. I, for example, know that there is little point in me using any kind of application that requires physical strength.

In the same way when performing the kata I will tend to visualise the applications that I favour. As such, as everyone proceeds up the grades and gains more understanding their kata will start to look different in terms of timing etc, and therefore we will make the kata our own. This is why, in a way, I think kata for competition are bad, as they rely on a preset formula and therefore do not lend themselves for individual visualisation. This means the kata does not ever become much more than a dance routine.

I would also suspect that as one gains real understanding of the kata and the principles driving the techniques the bunkai will actually become less complex. After all in a real fight the KISS principle is probably a good one to stick to. Why try something complicated when something simple will do the exact same thing? This is why I think kata needs to be principle led, rather than technique led, so that one can gain a greater understanding and develop and understanding towards self-defence that works for them.

[dickclark]

Yes, Yes, and then Yes again.

At the start we learn a Kata in a set pattern, and with a general description as to what it is for. So at the start we are all on the same page (different schools may have different play books, but each student at each school starts out on he same page)

As we continue we have favorites, and then we see something different, we tend to question, and we start to find answers that better fit our point of view.

Over time and practice and hopefully the introduction of different points of view, say from Goju, or judo, or boxing or kendo, we now see additional options. We see the original, our perception, and now new ways to use what is set before us.

If you cannot find useful things in kata, then kata is an empty shell and should be discarded.