This manual is suitable for karateka who have mastered the kata and wish to continue to maintain their level. The manual shows clear diagrams and deliberately avoids too many details. It is intended as a reference for the karateka to look up forgotten kata sequences and techniques. Occasionally, one or the other question comes up during training: • When is the Kiai required? • Is the kick performed Jôdan or Chûdan? • Is the Sanbon principle applicable for the combination? • Fast or slow execution of moves? The manual answers all of those questions quickly by providing easy-to-understand diagrams for immediate application during training. Note the special feature concerning Ten no Kata: The kata developed by Funakoshi is illustrated with clear diagrams and is therefore easy to understand.

A Kata is fighting, self-defence, precision and dynamic force all in one. It represents a fascinating multitude of logical, sequential techniques, with which the Karateka can demonstrate what he can do regarding his body control, powers of persuasion, perfection and fighting spirit. The repertoire of Shotokan Karate contains 26 Kata in all. The Master Kata described in this work belong to the advanced part of the repertoire and carry on from the 17 basic and advanced Kata introduced in Volume 1. This then completes the list of all the Shotokan Karate Kata. There are 9 Kata with Bunkai in this book: Sochin, Meikyo, Chinte, KankuSho, Wankan, Ji'in, Jitte, Gankaku, Unsu. There are approximately 600 photographs and detailed descriptions, which allow a deeper understanding of the Kata and their application. Armed with this information, it should be easy now for the Karateka to be able to improve himself in his routine training, grading tests and competition.

Shotokan Karate-Do reference for Heian Shodan.

Pat McCarthy, a shorinji-ryu stylist and triple-crown winner of the North American Karate Championships in 1974, demonstrates 11 karate kata. A detailed history of Okinawan karate and biographies of 37 of its greatest patriarchs are also included.

Who has not been through this? You learn a kata, you practice it a few times, and then put it aside. And so it often happens that, in the middle of performing the kata, the karateka is not sure of the sequence and no longer knows how to continue the kata. ”If only I could find some place to look it up,” he thinks, ”I’d soon master the whole sequence.” This book is meant to be that desired reference book. - Illustrated presentations of all techniques from three different perspectives - Clear and detailed graphics - At-a-glance overview of all kata - Supplementary explanations of difficult sections of kata - Explanations of Japanese terms through graphics Content: Taikyoku shodan, Heian shodan, Heian nidan, Heian sandan, Heian yondan, Heian godan, Tekki shodan, Bassai dai, Jion, Kankû dai, Empi, Hangetsu.

Challenging timeworn conventions of karate training and revealing the original intent of classical kata—or forms—through detailed descriptions of self-defense applications known as bunkai, this is a crucial addition to any martial-arts library. Containing more than 265 photos, the book is divided into chapters that illuminate each of the ten classical kata of Goju-ryu. Drawing on more than forty years of experience in the martial arts, Giles Hopkins Sensei takes us on a journey into the Goju-ryu karate system, providing a principles-based method for analysis of kata practice. Arguing against the commonly held notion that kata techniques can have multiple interpretations, he insists that a kata cannot simply mean what the user wants it to mean, but contains specific martial principles that must be followed for it to work effectively. The step-by-step descriptions of the receiving, controlling or bridging, and finishing techniques contain in-depth analysis of commonly misunderstood aspects of kata. Each chapter concludes with an engaging anecdote from the author’s time in Okinawa, the birthplace of Goju-ryu, connecting it with the kata under discussion. Equally useful for the novice and for more advanced karate practitioners looking to deepen their understanding of kata and bunkai.