Month: February 2018

Having now set foot back in England I am reflecting on my recent time and experiences on the island of Okinawa. Even though I already had plans to visit Okinawa again this coming November with some of my students over here in the U.K. Many may wonder then why I made a last minute decision to jump on an aeroplane and make the 12,000 mile round trip. Yes the flight prices and accommodation were cheaper than ever, plus I was owed a vacation. The answer though is a simple one; To spend time with my Sensei… The true Karate of Okinawa is based on a close teacher to student relationship; a mutual bond that is based on loyalty, honour and respect. This is a lesson that I learned many many years ago, in that to truly understand any art, be it Karate Judo or whatever, this closeness and personal guidance is paramount. My father always used to say to me that if it wasn’t possible to become close to a Teacher/Sensei, then seek out another teacher. Also, that one must […]

An area of Karate that has always raised debate is the effectiveness of Kata through studying possible applications, the naming is irrelevant regardless of if people call things Imi, Oyo or Bunkai. For most Karate Ka there are two schools of thought, whereby some Karate Ka will do their applications whilst firmly keeping the form that the kata dictates, others will totally deviate from the form or techniques of the Kata to make things work, sometimes to the point that the Kata teachings or moves are totally unrecognisable, at times resembling a scrappy mess. Generally speaking I don’t fully agree with or use either of these approaches when it comes to Kata effectiveness. In the work Budo Masters “Paths to a Far Mountain” by Michael Clarke.  Eichi Miyazato Sensei a direct student of Chojun Miyagi raises a few points that many Karate Ka seem to be unaware of or if they are aware then they certainly seem to disregard something of major importance to their study. “I want to warn people not to get the two things mixed up; kata […]