The practice of Karate-Do has often been described as a metaphorical “walk in life”. The Google AI defines Do as follow, “In Japanese, “do” (道, pronounced “doh”) means “the way” or “the path,” a profound concept referring to a spiritual or philosophical path of discipline, self-improvement, and finding purpose…”.
Therefore, we may all be focused on practicing technique, strengthening our bodies, and learning something new about the art, but each of us is also walking an individual journey along a path towards becoming the person we are meant to be. Sounds kind of esoteric eh?…but this is why we are practicing what is termed Karate-Do versus Karate-Jutsu.
We’ve all heard of that saying, “Walk the walk vs talk the talk.” Very simply, it means that your actions reflect what you say you’re going to do. In your first or second training lesson, you were taught the basics of the zenkutsu-dachi (forward stance) and how to take your karate “walk”. As you practice it countless times over many years, you are always working towards improving this basic move. More accurately, I’d call it “lunging forward” which is very different from a pedestrian walk.
Recently, Sensei Peter’s and my very first instructor, Sensei Victor Young, was visiting Hawaii – he moved to and led dojos in California and Arizona since the 1980’s. While here, he graciously volunteered to visit HISKF as a guest instructor. He shared some interesting techniques with our group, however what stood out for me was the basic drill of the lunging step. Below is a great example of the outset of the lunge, captured by Kathy Tanita, Instagram: @ktanitaohama that shows the basic lunge step as it begins:
Below is a drawing of what normal upright walking looks like. You should be able to spot a difference between the two movements. Regular walking will get you from point A to point B, but not much more. By contrast, even a static photo reveals kinetic energy on the verge of release.
How To Walk Properly
Can you spot the difference between the two? The pedestrian way of walking has often been described as swinging one foot out and “falling forward’ until it touches the floor, then doing the same thing with the other foot, and so on. This normal way of walking is great for shopping or walking around the house but it would require very little effort (like my thumb and forefinger wrapped around the belt from behind) to immediately stop the walker in his/her tracks. This is NOT what we’re practicing when doing the lunge step in the dojo. Instead, every step consists of the front leg initially pulling the weight of our body with great force, throwing it forward, and finishing up with a thrust, the instant that the other leg hits the ground. Note the forward angle of the members. The photo catches our students leaning into the technique as their left legs pull their body weight forward with speed and power. See that the back right legs are being pulled forward like preparing to launch a ker-wazai or kick. The next instant, when the weight has been transferred to the right leg, the left leg completes the movement cycle with a thrust. Combined with a perfectly timed tsuki backed by weight, momentum, and thrust, it becomes the source of power behind the basic oi-zuki lunge punch. There are other sources of power using throw-weight and center-of-gravity on one leg, etc; but this drill is the essential foundation we build upon. Practiced with purpose, these and other movements become natural expressions of power.
Anyways, a great time was had by all. As I’ve always found with my senseis over the years, each was not just knowledgeable in the art, but gentlemen of great personal character who generously share their knowledge with us.