books or videos/dvds for kata bunkai

[adamb]

i am looking for books or vids/dvds on the bunkai of shotokan karate kata.

could anyone recommend any?and where to get them from.

i have looked on the net but not sure which wud be the best buy

thanks
adam

[Aefibird]

Any books by Iain Abernethy are a great place to start for bunkai. I especially like Throws For Strikers and Karate's Grappling Methods.

As a basic introduction to bunkai then Karate Kata Applications by Aidan Trimble & Vince Morris is good. It has more pictures and less text than the Abernethy books, but is a good start, especially for beginners and lower grades. It deals with all the Heian kata, as well as kata for up to 2nd Dan.

[adamb]

hey,

thanks for the advise. i have just ordered a book from amazon.

i ordered Karate Kata Aplications both volumes 1 & 2.

anyone ever read any of these? ifso any ratings on it?

[bob]

what grade are you? 1 it makes a difference and 2 if you have enough experience you should be coming up with your own bunkai. what works fo me wont work for you and what works for you wont work for me. equally what works for the guy inthe book/video wont necessarily work for me or you. you need a certain level of basic knowledge for this, up untill you get it learn everyones bunkai. ask your instructor ask the higher grades at your club and go to the library for every book and video you can find. when someone recommends bunkai they mean it works for them. a version of bunkai that someone slates might not suit them but that doesnt mean it wont suit you. i am rather small, but i am quick and accurate. if i was to watch a bunkai video by sensei enoeda ( dnt know if he has any or not ) who is extremely strong and relies on brute force in his karate i wouldnt be able to pull off half the applications he demonstrates if that. on the other hand if you are very strong and large but you have a video of someone really fast and flexible again you would have difficulty doing the techniques. ive said it a couple of times now but it is vitally important for your karate to have any real world application. karate is not "one size fits all" it needs tailored to you. im not saying dont practice the things you cant do, its important to practice everything, but bunkai is what you want it to be. as long as you could pull it off in a real situation then its correct. no matter who has demonstrated certain bunkai, if you cant pull it off then its wrong.

[bob]

and that was going to be a shot post as well!

[adamb]

hey,

i am a 3rd kyu and bin training for just over a year. so i am at the beggining of my MA life. i am really just getting allsorts of books on the subject as it's good to get different points of view on the subject.

i am just interested in the different ways people interpret kata trying different ways and seing what works for me and what doent

[Aefibird]

Books can be really useful in helping people, not just with Bunkai but other areas of karate too.

Everyone can learn something new, no matter if you're a white belt or a 2nd kyu or a 4th Dan.

Books are one useful tool that help with learning. However, karate shouldn't just be learned from a book (but that's a subject for a different thread ).

I do agree with what you said about bunkai, though - students should try and come up with their own applications for kata.

Even beginners can study a kata and think about how the sequence of movements fit together.

Getting bunkai from books is a great place to start (as is asking instructor or a higher grade) but using your head and thinking is one area in which some martial artists seem to fall down. They seem to just want everything spoon-fed to them and are happy to see no imaginative growth or growth in thinking and reasoning skills.

Adam, please don't think I'm getting at you, though - I'm not. I'm just making a general point about how certain students are more than happy to let their instructor just tell them a bit of bunkai without thinking about it. I'm sure you're not in that category, so please don't think that my post is a "dig" at you, 'cos it's not.

[adamb]

thanks for the post

i know what you mean in regards to people not thinking for themselves and wanting to be spoon fed. i have met a few people like that.

i often to chat to my brother in law who is a 2nd dan in Shotokan in regards to bunkai in katas, as well my instructor but i think its best to get as many opinions as i can on the subject.

i know what u mean bout just reading books. i think its better to take a more practical approach to bunkai but i just want to a bit more knowledge before i start experimenting with it.

[rosiesdojo]

Hello
I have in my possesion the 5 books karate grappling methods and karate grappling methods dvds vol 1 and 2 by iain abernethy all are signed by iain and are brand new, i will be auctioning them in the new year on e bay as a set(book and dvd vol 1, and 2), to raise money for a disabled martial arts seminar, that my brother and i help out at.
If anyone is interested i can post a link when they are up.

[rosiesdojo]

sorry i should av asked if that was ok first, sorry angela

[AngelaG]

Yes, of course it's ok.

[RigsVille]

aefibird said:

Any books by Iain Abernethy are a great place to start for bunkai. I especially like Throws For Strikers and Karate's Grappling Methods.

My wife has just bought these for me for Christmas thanks to Aefibird's recommendation

As a side note, if you ever get the chance to attend one of Iain’s seminars, go for it!

I’ve attended a couple of his Yin and Yang seminars (and I bought the DVD’s) and found his ideas on Bunkai outstanding. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Shotokan, Wado-Ryu (Iain’s main style) or Shukokai – it’s the principles that count.

www.iainabernethy.com

[Aefibird]

Iain Abernethy's seminars are great! There's one in Barrow-in-Furness in late January that I'm hoping to go to.

[rosiesdojo]

As a side note, if you ever get the chance to attend one of Iain’s seminars, go for it!

I’ve attended a couple of his Yin and Yang seminars (and I bought the DVD’s) and found his ideas on Bunkai outstanding. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Shotokan, Wado-Ryu (Iain’s main style) or Shukokai – it’s the principles that count.

I couldnt agree more with the above quote, Iains no nonsense and down to earth approach is a breath of fresh air imo, fantastic stuff.
Rigsville did you attend the last ying and yang seminar?
Rosie

[RigsVille]

rosiesdojo said:

Rigsville did you attend the last ying and yang seminar?
Rosie

Yes

I attended Y&Y 1 and 2 (I couldn't get to 3 and 4)