Always be mindful of performing a living kata (Ikita kata) and not a dead kata. Hironori Otsuka Ikita kata. A living kata. What does this mean? When Otsuka Sensei said these words he had something very specific in mind. But in order to understand this concept of 'ikita kata', we must first understand the concept of embusen and seichusen. |
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Embusen is literally ' the performance line'. The word 'enbu' means performance. Sen is line. This is simply the line that the person follows when he is 'performing' the kata. For example, in Pinan Shodan the embusen first goes to the left, then to the right. then forward. From that point it goes diagonally, and so on. This line that the performer traverses is the embusen. |