Some amendments to the syllabus

I'm working on some amendments to our syllabus. I'm stretching things out a little bit so the middle grades only need to study the one kata each. This will put more focus onto each kata instead of trying to learn two at once. I believe the pinans are often bypassed in favour of flashier kata. I think this is a mistake.

Previously some of our mid grades had two new pinan kata to learn. I thought it was a bit of a squeeze and didn't allow a more in-depth study of the kata.

Some of the basics have been jiggled around a bit too. Now they are more closely tied to their associated kata. No techniques have been removed, they've just been swapped about a little. I'll post a copy when it's finalised.

Passai is off the shodan requirement list, and is added to the "additional kata" section. Shodan now requires Seishan and Chinto.

Wado Ryu Techniques

Yes, I've been watching some very good wado videos. This one here contains a number of techniques in response to a single handed push or shove. What got me thinking about this was how easy it is that we can become obsessed with application this, application that, bunkai here and everywhere.... as if the art in itself has nothing to offer.

Of course in wado we have kaisetsu, but that's for another post!

I think the point I'm making is that often we don't see the wood for the trees. If we focus on the fundamentals of our arts, and the principles which power them, there is no need to dress things up with exotica.

Wado Ryu Demonstration

This is a nice video. A demonstration of a variety of wado ryu karate techniques. Brings a tear to your eye!