Are Kata Bilateral?
By Rick Clark
Lately I have been involved in some discussions about why kata (forms)
do not appear to be bilateral. If you stop and think for a moment, you
will notice that kata contains techniques performed only on one side
of the body, or in sets of three.
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In most kata there are more right
sided techniques than left. Why is this?
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There are any number of techniques
that are found in threes or singular movements. Look at Pinan 1 (Heian,
Pyung-ahn). In the way I perform this kata there is a sequence of movements
where you execute a down block, and while remaining in position, perform
(it should be noted that not all styles of karate perform this technique
this way) a high section knife hand block. This technique is done in
only one place in this kata.
Looking at this same kata you will also notice there are turns that
we do only in one direction. At the end of the “cross bar” in
the “H” pattern, you pivot on your right foot in a counter
clockwise direction so that your body turns 270 degrees. Then as you
return back along the “cross bar,” you once again turn in
a counter clockwise direction with a pivot on the right foot. Notice
that you are performing this type of turn in only one direction in this
kata, and that you do not make this type of a turn in any of the other
Pinan/Heian/Pyung-Ahn kata.
This kata like many others is based on a basic “H” pattern.
Even those forms that do not follow the “H” pattern include
a series of three movements. When you will find single movements in a
form, many times this movement is performed only on the right side.
The apparent right side bias has always been a source of interest to
me. Over the years I have heard a number of explanations for this bias.
Some say “most people are right handed, therefore we practice more
with our right side”. This never rang true to me; I am of the opinion
if we have a weak side we should practice that side a bit more in an
attempt to make both sides equal.
 Then there is the argument that there are more vital points
on the left side of the body of your attacker. Therefore, by using your
right side attacks, you have the potential of attacking more vital points.
While this may have some merit, a look at any acupuncture chart will
show the points on the body are bilateral. Yes, there may be a couple
of extra points on the left side of the body which are deadly, but in
the overall picture this logic seems flawed.
Yin and Yang are a basic part of the mind set of martial artists. We
look to have both sides of our body equally trained. We expect attacks
from either the right or left side or even front and back. We look at
training against empty hand as well as with a weapon. Yet, in our kata
there does seem to be a right side bias. How is it that we can resolve
this question?
Like most things that nag at the back of your mind, in a moment when
you least expect it an answer pops into your mind. For me, I was re-reading “The
Tao of Tai Chi Chuan: Way to Rejuvenation” by Jou, Tsung Hwa (1981).
In it he quotes a book by Chen Yen Lin from the 1920’s. He states, “Next,
practice the whole set of forms from the left side using the opposite
hands and feet for every one of the original postures. For example, the
left hand and left leg would be used for the right hand and right leg.” (p.
218) Now I am sure I have read this section several times in the past
but never given it much thought. Yet, when I read this it was like a
lighting bolt hit me. I said to myself “if you start on the right
side then the series of three punches will be left, right, left”.
The turn that was a counter clockwise to the right now becomes clockwise
to the left. The single techniques with the right side become single
techniques to the left side.
“…practice
the whole set of forms from the left side using the opposite
hands and feet for every one of the original postures.”
Chen Yen Lin from the “The
Tao of Tai Chi Chuan”
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If you practice the kata starting to the right, you will have an equal
number of techniques to left side of the body. Any single technique will
become two and any series of three techniques will become six. As you
can, any uneven number of techniques will become an even number if you
reverse the order of performance. This will give us a balanced performance
of techniques in the kata and allow us to develop both sides of our body
equally.
Now there may be some that say “well, that was a Tai Chi Chuan
book and they were talking about Tai Chi Chuan, not Karate”. Fair
enough comment. But, let me point out this must have been a common method
of practice in this Chinese form of martial art back in the early 1900’s.
Many of the Okinawan martial arts trace their roots to Chinese martial
art forms. At least for this one teacher he had a clear explanation of
how to make his form bilateral.
From my personal point of view I don’t believe this method of
Chen Yen Lin was particular to his system. My feeling is this must have
been a common practice in that time period -- if for no other reason
than that it just makes sense to practice movements equally on both sides
of the body. In fact to practice kata starting from the opposite side
could provide you with a way to equal out your own natural inclination
to favor a right or left side bias.
If for example we have a right hand bias we could practice the kata
as we normally do one time, then run the kata two times in the opposite
direction to give more practice to our left side. In a class situation
you would still want all of the students to perform the kata in the same
direction, just for order sake. But you could allow the students time
in the dojo to run their kata on their weak side several times for their
own practice. Individual practice is one of the strong points of Karate;
we have the ability to practice our martial arts any time or any place.
If we see we have a right or left side bias, we can train to overcome
it. Practicing kata starting on the left and then the right side allows
us to develop both sides of our body equally. For me this concept answers
some questions that have been at the back of my mind for a number of
years.
About The Author:
Rick Clark specializes in the study of vital point applications
within traditional martial art techniques and teaches vital points seminars
throughout the world. He has published numerous articles and books on
the subject and has just published "Pressure Point Fighting: A guide
To The Secret Heart Of Asian Martial Arts," published by Tuttle.
He can be contacted at 3099 E. Dallas Rd., Terre Haute IN, 47802, or
via e-mail at rick.aodenkou@verizon.net and
his website is www.ao-denkou-kai.org.
Rick has been a frequent contributor to FightingArts.com.
Rick Clark's book "Pressure Point Fighting"
is available in the Estore
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