Mark Radunz on turning the head in kata

 

Romney,

My neck and back are fine. Thanks for asking.

Yes, this is how I was taught. And yes, I'm aware that many believe turning the headfirst is a must, quickly snapping your head around to look toward the next direction you will face.

Questions to consider: Does not the ear listen in all directions? (so is looking 1st truly necessary?) Does not the eye see all sides? (use all your senses) Do you see Shimabuku Sensei doing this (turning his headfirst?) in any of the film of him? Are you truly finished with the person with whom you are currently engaged every time before you turn around, and was he/she in front of you in the first place?

I was not taught kata as a choreographed fight, but rather a collection of movements. This should not be interpreted as not looking first, however. My everything is connected to my center (watch the obi, sensei used to say) Turning to look often incorporates moving out of the way at the same time, something that is not done when simply turning the head and looking first, an act that may cause one to turn their head around in time to take a strike directly in the face.

Thanks for the comments.  Mark Radunz

 

Radunz Sensei -

 

I agree with your statement about the use of ALL senses.  And I can see the point of focusing and training certain senses by inhibiting the use of the others, such as relying on the sense of hearing rather than turning the head to use sight. 

However, I will say it is natural human reflex to turn one's head to see in the direction of an unexpected noise.  Also hearing will only tell me of the direction of the noise.  It will not tell me whether or not the noise is an imminent attack or even what kind of an attack may be approaching (i.e. jodan, chudan, linear, circular, hand, foot, weapon, or number of attackers) nor the speed of approach or the remaining distance from the attacker. I can also understand that the movements of the kata can be translated many different ways and bunkai can be practiced from many different directions depending on the interpretation of the movement.  

This was one of Harrill Sensei's gifts - to see deeper than the obvious, superficial movements in kata. 

But, back to my point about the natural reflex of looking toward a noise, in Isshinryu, we are aught to take the most natural approach.  I believe this would apply to the use of our senses as well.  No matter which direction you are intending the movement of the kata to be applied, in reality your natural reflex would be to look in the direction of the application.  Therefore, wouldn't you apply this natural occurrence to your kata?  I was always taught to "see" your attacker while doing kata.  By burning the image in your head while training, muscle memory is developed faster.

I, too, was always taught (by both American and Okinawan Sensei alike) to look before you move...eyes, feet, then hands.  This doesn't mean that there is a pause between. In fact the series of steps flow into one another, but the order of each initiation is the same, unless the movement is being translated as strictly an evasive movement.

Also, while I understand that kata is not meant as one continuous battle but a collection of movements, we are taught transitions to different directions for the purpose of addressing unexpected attacks with stability, speed, strength, and accuracy. Otherwise, kata would just be a series of movements standing in place and simply shifting from one stance to the next without traveling. I know there are also some esoteric, deeper, perhaps spiritual meanings hidden in the embusen but for the purpose of physical application this makes most sense.

 

I must say, "Thank you, again" for sharing your videos.  I truly enjoyed the video of kata application.  They are very insightful and thought provoking.

 

Humbly and with best regards, Robin Haynes

 

Robin,

Thank you for your comments. I agree with you in regard to the natural reaction to a noise, but I also don't assume there was a noise. 

Sensei used to say that large circles (movements) were created through a collection of smaller circles(movements). 

My head does move, my body moves, but so do my eyes. The eyes are not fixed looking strictly forward. So it is the combination of body movement, slight head movement, body movement and eye movement that allows me to look (if I need to). 

But again, I do not assume there is someone behind me every time I turn around in kata.

Mark Radunz