Video & Book Sources of Bunkai

[stoneheart]

Can anyone direct me to a textbook or video that I can purchase? I've moved away from my Goju sensei, and I am now working out with another dojo that teaches a mish-mash of the shuri-te and naha-te kata. They perform the kata with spirit and precision, but the sensei is largely ignorant of the bunkai behind the kata.

I like the dojo. They're very nice people, but I just find the training a little lacking coming from a real-deal Okinawan Goju school. So I'd like to supplement my knowledge from other sources if they are legitimate. Any videos or books out there that can help? I'm working on Naihanchi and Seisan right now, but this school teaches virtually all the traditional Okinawan kata.

 

[bignick]

You could check out Darrell Craig's Shihan-Te: The Bunkai of Kata, although I've heard that he wasn't entirely happy with how it turned out. It's still an interesting book.

 

[RyuKyuBushi]

The Way of Kata: A Comprehensive Guide for Deciphering Martial Applications (Paperback)
by Lawrence A. Kane, Kris Wilder


Excellant book on kata application!

 

[Andrew Green]

I'd reccomend getting a copy of the Bubishi first of all, many of the old masters used it as a reference manual.

Another good "old" source would be Choki Motobu's book, it covered his sel-defence techniques and naihanchi (it was his favorite).

 

[arnisador]

These are excellent suggestions.

On the less wholly positive side, Goerge Dillman's books can be goo dif you're prepared to separate the wheat from the chaff. See also Rick Clarks' "75 Down Blocks" book for some ideas.

 

[stoneheart]

Thank you, All. I'm headed over to Amazon right now to buy a few of these books. If anyone has some video recommendations, I'd love to see those too.

 

[TaiChiTJ]

this is a good site for bunkai issues. i have one of their tapes and it is well produced. i don't know if they have tapes specific to the forms you mentioned but if you look around in the site you might find what you are looking for. good luck!

http://www.bushido-kai.net/budoya/video_karate_list.html

 

[eyebeams]

Get the McCarthy Bubishi, though only parts of it really apply. Otherwise, by skeptical of any source which: 1) Purports that there are ground-grappling techniques done standing in a kata as intentional bunkai. This is unlikely both from a practical view (the dynamics are totally different) and a historical view. Okinawa has an indigenous grappling system that's distinct from karate. It's often called a form of sumo, but it isn't sumo. Plus, the Bubishi shows things like the single leg as they are, not as wacky interpretations. 2) Says that absolutely everything has a martial application. Some of it is just kiko (qigong), or is done to hybridize martial and health benefits. Naihanchi's like this, since you would never actually apply the upper torso isolation the way it is in the set. Finally, get books on karate's cousins. Southern crane and monk fist are good. Xingyi isn't bad either, since it's related to the kojo school and probably had some ancillary influence.

 

[Martin h]

Iain Abernathy has released many good books and videos on bunkai and Oyo. Sadly (from my point of view)it is mostly shurite/tomarite style katas.Not mych Nahate. But it is still very good stuff.
http://www.iainabernethy.com/

 

[Andrew Green]

Get the McCarthy Bubishi,

I'd lean towards the George Alexander translation personally. McCarthy reordered things and added his own interpretations, hard to seperate what's Bubishi and what's McCarthy.

 

[JAMJTX]

"Shihan Te" by Darrell Craig and Paul Anderson is a good choice. The is not style oriented or biased. It discusses commonality in kata in order to help you disect the kata of your style.

Rick Clarks "75 Down Blocks" is also interesting, althought it is not a "bunkai" book.

 

[Flying Crane]

I just finished Kane and Wilder's The Way of Kata, and to be honest, I wasn't very impressed with it. It seems like it is more of a general discourse on karate, and less impressive as a guide to dissecting kata for applications. It claims to be a guide, but I wasn't finding much that was useful. Maybe it is just that I don't know any of the Japanese or Okinawan kata (mine are kenpo and Chinese forms) so I am unable to relate to their approach or their examples, but much of it seemed very rudimentary to me, the kind of stuff that most people should already know, or be able to figure out intuitively without special guidance. Just my own thoughts...

 

[twayman]

Naihanchi's like this, since you would never actually apply the upper torso isolation the way it is in the set.

What? Could you expound on this?

 

[eyebeams]

What? Could you expound on this?

The most common versions of naihanchi set your facing forward in horse. For a stable low horse the upper body has to be able to move in isolation from the pelvis, which is mostly set. In practice, this is to develop leg strength and the ability to deliver a sharp "impulse" of power with a very small hip movement (up through the trunk) that does not compromise your posture. However, you would never arbitrarily restrict yourself to horse to actually execute an application. For instance, when you move from crossing your hands to an outer, open handed block, this is a way to carry over an attacking limb to the rear hand while using the "blocking" hand to seize balance. The "eldow smash" then plucks the limb upward, so that when you drop and rechamber, the downward force supplements the uprooting and twisting of your upper body. The fact of the matter though is that the elbow is more effective when you shift your weight on to the blocking side leg because it opens your hips toward the opponent. On of the interesting aspects of this is that some versions have the toes pointed in and some have them parallel, but these are actually (as I've been taught) different "freeze frames" of the same movement that are done symetrically for training purposes. In fact, you can shift the weight while bringing the rear toe in to involve the hips and rear hand better. Other applications involve opening your stance a bit, moving the hips and using other bits that do not fit the kata, but make the technique practical. To include them in the kata itself would be a mistake, however, because you would lose the embryonic movement that leads to several applications, while the kata form's commitment to an ideal movement provides a basis for many different movements. So bunkai really require the application of the skills built in kihon and kumite to bring them to fruition, because they provide the supplemental movement that distills the ideal form into a given application.

 

[twayman]

Interesting perspective. If I may add my two cents.

The most common versions of naihanchi set your facing forward in horse. For a stable low horse the upper body has to be able to move in isolation from the pelvis, which is mostly set. In practice, this is to develop leg strength and the ability to deliver a sharp "impulse" of power with a very small hip movement (up through the trunk) that does not compromise your posture.

Ok. I’ll buy that. Could be used to strengthen legs and develop posture (strengthen technique).

However, you would never arbitrarily restrict yourself to horse to actually execute an application.

Not necessarily. Naihanchi has strong uses in pulling opponents into technique or pulling off balance. The horse stance (especially with toes in) is a strong “ground gripping” stance that aids in keeping balance during these types of techniques. Pulling an unwilling opponent takes a good rooted stance.

For instance, when you move from crossing your hands to an outer, open handed block, this is a way to carry over an attacking limb to the rear hand while using the "blocking" hand to seize balance. The "elbow smash" then plucks the limb upward, so that when you drop and rechamber, the downward force supplements the uprooting and twisting of your upper body.

Not sure I follow this.

The fact of the matter though is that the elbow is more effective when you shift your weight on to the blocking side leg because it opens your hips toward the opponent. One of the interesting aspects of this is that some versions have the toes pointed in and some have them parallel, but these are actually (as I've been taught) different "freeze frames" of the same movement that are done symmetrically for training purposes.

Think of sanchin stance. Same type of theory involved only gripping in the horse stance. Also, punching or grabing across the body becomes easier and more effective with the toes pointing in. IMHO the parallel footing I see as “lazy technique” and looses what the footing tries to teach.

In fact, you can shift the weight while bringing the rear toe in to involve the hips and rear hand better. Other applications involve opening your stance a bit, moving the hips and using other bits that do not fit the kata, but make the technique practical. To include them in the kata itself would be a mistake, however, because you would lose the embryonic movement that leads to several applications, while the kata form's commitment to an ideal movement provides a basis for many different movements.

I can agree to a point. But, the kata can be used verbatim in may instances you just need to set up the opponent correctly.

So bunkai really require the application of the skills built in kihon and kumite to bring them to fruition, because they provide the supplemental movement that distills the ideal form into a given application.

Again agree to a point. To me the bunkai within are fairly straight forward if you look at the kata correctly.

 

[jujutsu_indonesia]

Can anyone direct me to a textbook or video that I can purchase? I've moved away from my Goju sensei, and I am now working out with another dojo that teaches a mish-mash of the shuri-te and naha-te kata. They perform the kata with spirit and precision, but the sensei is largely ignorant of the bunkai behind the kata.

I like the dojo. They're very nice people, but I just find the training a little lacking coming from a real-deal Okinawan Goju school. So I'd like to supplement my knowledge from other sources if they are legitimate. Any videos or books out there that can help? I'm working on Naihanchi and Seisan right now, but this school teaches virtually all the traditional Okinawan kata.

Buy Higaonna Morio sensei's videos, available from Panther Productions. He shows all Goju Kata with bunkai in the video series, all in great details. His book is also good, but the video is even better.