What does the Way of Harmony mean to our practice of kata? For kata, I like to think of internal harmony.
Written by: AJ
“Don’t rush!”, my sensei, Mr. Kurobane, reminded me over and over again. When you rush, you are not moving over your center, perhaps shortening your technique or tensing up. You are focused on an external standard of speed, rather than being in harmony with your body. Does this mean never speeding up? No! As your body warms up, speeding up will not be rushing. As you become more familiar with a kata and its nuances (this never ends!), speeding up will not be rushing. You move the kata; the kata doesn’t drag you along at some arbitrary pace. This is bringing harmony to kata.
Kata can also bring harmony to you. Mr. Renfrow, a Shotokan sensei with a lot of insight, once said to me, “Kata is good for everything. If you need strength, practice very slowly with tension throughout. If you need endurance, practice kata with lots of repetitions and no breaks. If you need speed and footwork, practice kata fast.” In this way, kata brings insight into how your body wants to move and enables you to improve, expanding harmony with your body.
Kata is more than a dance performance or a simulated fight (afterall, how many times do you need to break someone’s arm — thinking about you, Pinan Yondan!)
Kata is another way in which we can cultivate harmony.