Significance of Kata

We've often heard about the importance of kata for Karate and how without kata there is no Karate. Various teachers over the years have presented their thoughts on this. Here, I wanted to add another perspective from someone less known. 

The article below was written by Kanbun Izumikawa, who was the oldest son of Kanki Izumikawa and the second head of the Senbukan dojo after his father passed away. I thought it might be interesting for people to see what he thought about kata.

Significance of Kata - Kanbun Izumikawa

Originally, karate training was centred on kata. “Kata” is the foundation of karate. Combining practical offensive and defensive techniques, this is the most effective training exercise. Karate kata are not only training for attack and defence, but also for kokyu no donto, chikara no ire nuki, eye contact, and body movement, as well as for mental training, self-defence, and physical education.

All kata performances begin with bowing, and when we analyze each technique in the performance itself, we find that most of them begin with "uke,'' or "preventive techniques".  It is a true testament to the teaching of  "Karate ni sente nashi".

When performing a kata, it is important to act seriously, with the intention of always facing the enemy. If you do this poorly, the "kata" will die and you will end up with only a form. Once you have truly mastered a kata, you will be able to attack and defend freely in response to your opponent's moves, and this is when the true value of the kata is revealed. It takes at least two to three years to fully master a kata.

Juhatsu Kyoda: Kanki Izumikawa's First Naha Te Teacher

Juhatsu Kyoda is someone who isn't spoken about much, despite being one of the most senior students of Kanryo Higaonna. He began his training with Kanryo in 1902, joining a few months before Chojun Miyagi. The two were considered brother disciples and can be seen in several early photographs training together. Kyoda is also said to have trained with Kanyu Higaonna and learned Seisan Kata from him too. 

Juhatsu Kyoda

There aren't too many stories of his training with Kanryo. The most famous one has to do with Sanseiru kata. Most people have heard this already, but it's said while Chojun Miyagi was away on military service, Kanryo Higaonna taught Sanseiru to Kyoda. Indeed, the Kyoda version of Sanseiru does have a number of key differences from Goju-Ryu.

Even after Kanryo Higaonna passed away, it seems Kyoda, Miyagi, Higa, Mabuni and others remained on friendly terms as they can be seen in several group pictures together from the 1920's time period. Around 1924, Kanki Izumikawa began learning Naha Te from Kyoda. At this time, neither Goju Ryu nor To'on Ryu were named yet.

Prior to this, Izumikawa mainly trained Shuri Te with his grandfather, who was a direct student of Sokon Matsumora. Izumikawa trained with Kyoda for about four years and appears to have learned Sanchin, Seisan and partially Sanseiru. I say partially because the Izumikawa Sanseiru kata has some traits of Kyoda's teachings, but it also has some techniques from the Goju-Ryu version.

This brings up another interesting question. It's often said that Kyoda never passed on the Kanryo version of Seisan. Indeed it seems his students on the mainland only learned the Kanyu version. However, if Kanki Izumikawa learned Seisan, then he may have learned the Kanryo version. The kata is close to Seiko Higa's but contains a few key differences. 

While Kanki Izumikawa later moved to the mainland in 1939,  there was still contact and communication with Kyoda, who also lived on the mainland. In 1958, Kanki Izumikawa sent Keisetsu Yoshimaru, one of his senior students to Beppu to train with Kyoda. Yoshimaru received additional corrections on Sanseiru and other kata which he then presented upon his return to the Senbukan. 

Ultimately, both Juhatsu Kyoda and Seiko Higa had a rather big influence on Kanki Izumikawa's teachings. This also explains why his kata aren't quite like the Shodokan as well, because Seiko Higa wasn't his only teacher. One of the techniques in the Senbukan Gekisai Nidan (which Kanki Izumikawa created as his own version Of Gekisai Ni), was taken from Kyoda's Kanyu Seisan. Since Kanki Izumikawa trained under two students of Kanryo Higaonna, it can be said he preserved the old ways of Naha Te, with techniques not seen in other Goju-Ryu schools.  

A comparison of the same technique in Izumikawa's 
Gekisai and Tou'on Ryu Seisan 

The deeper meaning of Goju-Ryu's Mawashi Uke

Mawashi Uke is one of the most recognized techniques in Goju-Ryu and is found in many of the kata. Sanchin, Saifa, Seisan, and Kururunfa all end with this technique. Generally, the application is taught as a circular block to a punch, followed up by a strike to the chin and groin. 

While the fighting applications are interesting, there are other meanings to this technique that many people don't seem to talk about often. Let's consider the following quote given by Genkai Nakaima, who was a senior student of Chojun Miyagi:

"The hand position at the ending of Sanchin is the same as that of a Buddha statue." Miyagi Sensei often told us this story. I think the hand position at the ending of Sanchin is the most beautiful expression of praying. In fact, I saw the same hand position of Buddha statues in some temples."

If you look at the picture of the Buddha statue below, there should be an obvious resemblance to the end position of mawashi uke, but what does it mean exactly? 

Lingshan Grand Buddha Statue

In this case, the statue is expressing two different Mudra. The right hand is known as "Semui-in". The left hand is "Yogan-in". These are the names in Japanese but other cultures will also have their own way of referring to it. More commonly, you may find it as Abhaya Mudra and Varada Mudra.

The right hand is meant to symbolize fearlessness. At the same time, the five fingers point to heaven. The left hand or Yogan-in symbolizes charity and compassion.  

Another example of Semui-in

The same position in Goju-Ryu is no coincidence and has an intended meaning. In the Goju Kata we see many of them have numbers in the names, which also has ties to Buddhism (it's not merely the number of techniques or steps). I think if you truly want to understand Goju-Ryu, it's important to study all its aspects. Simply looking at the fighting applications is only one area of it.   

The mystery of Seiko Higa's Sanseiru

The Sanseiru kata practiced within Seiko Higa's organization has always been a bit of a puzzle to me in terms of its origins. First, this version differs in several ways from what's considered the "standard" Goju-Ryu Sanseiru. 

The official story I heard is that Seiko Higa learned this version directly from Kanryo Higaonna, which makes it the oldest known version of Sanseiru. It's also been said that it shares some similarities with the Tou'on Ryu version. However, besides the shared knee strike at the beginning, I honestly don't see a lot in common. You can see a clip of it below. 

While the idea that Higa learned this kata from Kanryo is possible, there's one main reason I doubt it. Outside of Higa's organization, it's not practiced by any of Higa's senior students. Kanki Izumikawa, Seiko Fukuchi and Seikichi Toguchi are three of the most senior and earliest students of Seiko Higa. Yet, none of them or their students practiced the "Higa" Sanseiru. 

If Higa knew this version from the beginning, shouldn't his earliest students know it too? Why do the three I mentioned above do a more standard Sanseiru kata? This issue is further complicated by the fact that some Shodokan people have a so called Sanseiru Ichi and Sanseiru Ni. Sanseiru Ichi is the Higa version, while Sanseiru Ni is the more common Goju one we all know. 

There is however one other group that has a Sanseiru kata that's nearly identical to the Shodokan, and that's Ryuei Ryu. If you comapre the video of Sakumoto, the enbusen and techniques are almost all the same. 

During the 60s Kenko Nakaima taught Ryuei Ryu Kobudo to some of Seiko Higa's students, notably Juei Tamaki. Is it possible he learned Sanseiru from Nakaima too? I have also heard the reverse and that Higa's students actually taught Sanseiru to Nakaima. 

In the end it's hard to say exactly what happened. Personally I think the two versions are too simialr to have been preserved that way since Ryu Ryu Ko's time. Stories also change depending on who you're talking to. We may never know where Seiko Higa's students got this version from but it's interesting to ponder. 

Uke Waza in Old Style Naha-Te

The Izumikawa lineage of Goju has numerous differences from the more well known Goju-Ryu schools. Even if you compare it to the Shodokan (Seiko Higa's dojo), things aren't exactly the same. So where did these differences come from?

It turns out some of it may be from Juhatsu Kyoda's influence, who was a senior student of Kanryo Higaonna. Before Kanki Izumikawa became a student of Seiko Higa, he trained with Koyda for roughly four years.

In particular, I wanted to talk about the uke waza and how they're done. In the Senbukan, and other schools from Izumikawa's line the uke are typically done in a snapping motion, as well as other techniques too. 

There was an interview with Kanzaki Shigekazu (a senior student of Kyoda) published in the Journal of Asian Martial Arts in 2000 where he said something interesting about this subject. "Changing the topic a little, the blocks used nowadays....how should I put it? Looking at karate kata today, the blocks just simply throw the arm out and stop. The block should be a sweeping action. It should sweep out and snap back. The blocks nowadays are just thrown out there". 

Below is a video of Kiyoshi Yonemoto, a senior student of Sosui Ichikawa (one of Kanki Izumikawa's earliest and most senior students) performing Seienchin kata. This snapping motion in the gedan uke and other areas should be quite obvious. 

The Main Students of Seiko Higa

I spoke before about some of the notable students of Chojun Miyagi. Today I thought it would be interesting to go over Seiko Higa's notable and senior students. Interestingly, many of his students were about the same age as Miyagi's, if not a little older. 

One of the best sources for finding out who Higa's students were is the memorial book that was published for him and his son Seikichi Higa by the Goju-Ryu Kokusai Karate Kobudo Renmei (Higa's organization). Near the back, there's a lineage chart showing his key students: 

Right to left, the names are: Juei Tamaki 玉城 寿英 1905-1997, Kanki Izumikawa 泉川 寛喜 1908-1967, Choboku Takamine 高嶺 朝睦 1908-2006, Seiko Fukuchi 福地 清幸1919-1975, Seikichi Toguchi 渡口 政吉 1917-1998, Yohena Tomoshige 饒平名 知繁 1923, Seikichi Higa 比嘉 世吉 1927-1999, Choshin Ishimine 伊志嶺 朝信 1931-1996, Choyu Kiyuna 喜友名 朝有 1931, Eikichi Fukumoto 福元 英吉 1936-1995, Eiki Kurashita 蔵下 英喜 1941, Yuzuro Oshiro 大城 譲 1945, Seiki Gibo 宜保 成喜 1939.

The only ones from this list that are still living are Choyu Kiyuna, Eiki Kurashita, and Seiko Gibo. 

Seienchin Kata

Seienchin (Seiunchin) is one of the core Goju-Ryu kata and usually one of the early ones you'll learn. Typically this comes after Saifa, although the Meibukan seems to have it later in their curriculum. With most of the Goju-Ryu kata, there's not a whole lot of historical information that's been published and most of it boils down to "Kanryo brought in back from China". 

I thought today I'd share a translation I did on Seienchin from Akio Kinjo's book, Karate Denshin Roku. Kinjo trained with Seiko Higa and Chosin Ishimine before later going to China to study various kung fu styles and the origins of karate. I still think his book is probably one of the most detailed but sadly it's never received an English translation. 

セイインチン (青鷹戦) Seienchin (Blue Hawk Battle)

This kata is a kata of Goju Ryu that Kanryo Higaonna has transmitted, but after the transmission, it has been Okinawanized. The pronunciation has changed slightly depending on the kai-ha (school), such as `seiinchin'`sēenchin' `seiyunchin' and so on.  「セイインチン」「セーエンチン」 「セイユンチン」

In this kata as well as other kata before the war, they were expressed in katakana characters, but after the end of the war, various types of kanji are used.

Depending on the kai-ha the kanji: 「清栄戦」「征遠鎮」「制引戦」「制引鎮」can be used. 

Correctly it is "青鷹戦" and " Chieiinchin" 「チエイインチン」 in Fukkien-Go.

It is a kata created by incorporating the conflict and movements of the "hawk".

An analysis of the contents of the Goju Seienchin kata shows the first photograph is a posture in which the wings are spread and inflated to intimidate the opponent when confronted with a strong enemy. The second figure is a posture in which the opponent’s forearm is gripped by a claw. The third picture is the last technique of Goju Ryu Seienchin, This is exactly the appearance of a hawk after its activity, landing on a tree branch and resting with a cool breeze by opening the wings to lower the body temperature, which means the end of the kata.

Seienchin postures from Kinjo's book

So, for the most part, Akio Kinjo believes this was a hawk related kata. As a side note, this kata also seems to have the most variety in how it's written/spelled.  In my lineage of Goju (Higa Izumikawa) we say Seienchin, others sometimes say Seiunchin or Seiyunchin.