This Dojo practices Traditional Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate-Do using traditional methods.
For Fitness self-defense and personal development. This is not a sport
KARATE begins and ends with the KATA
The Kata is the essence and foundation of karate and represents the accumulation of more than 1000 years of knowledge and expertise put together by many masters from many places and of every age as part of their devotion to the search and training. The Kata is like a map that guides us and, as such, should not be changed or modified.
We must always consider the KATA as the foundation of our training, from which all the other aspects of KARATE are developed. We must make sure that the knowledge and experience of the great masters is kept intact.
DEFINITION OF THE WORD "KATA" = "FORM"
A KATA can be defined as a number of defence and attack techniques using the fist and leg in a preset order against imaginary opponents.
Kata training can be used to develop the fundamental elements of karate, since they include the basic principles, techniques and tradition of the art.
The important points when performing a kata are as follows:
Speed, direction in which the eyes look and see, rhythm, Zanshin (final sensation), embusen (line along which a kata is performed, used to develop the kata with the appropriate speed and rhythm), Kime, Kiai, balance, liveliness and ki.
The practical application of the kata technique is called BUNKAI KUMITE.
The official katas at our school are as follows:
SANCHIN
TENSHO
GEKISAI DAI ICHI
GEKISAI DAI NI
SAIFA
SEIYUNCHIN
SHISOCHIN
SANSERU
SEPAI
KURURUNFA
SESAN
SUPARINPEI
Every kata begins with a defence technique to remind us of the fact that martial arts are for defending ourselves and the most important values of society.
Almost every Goju-Ryu kata was developed from its foundation by Sensei Higaonna Kanryo, who studied and trained for a long time under the guidance of the master Ryu-Ryuko, who came from the Chinese province of FUKIEN.
