Three Taikyoku katas:

• Taikyoku shodan
• Taykyoku nidan
• Taikyoku sandan

“Heian”: the katas of peace

• Heian Shodan
• Heian Nidan
• Heian Sandan
• Heian Yodan
• Heian Godan

“Tekki”: the Iron Rider

• Tekki Shodan
• Tekki Nidan
• Tekki Sandan

The upper katas

• Bassai: crossing the fortress
• Kwanku: Looking at the sky
• Jion (name of a Chinese temple)
• Jutte (or Jitte): The Ten Hands
• Hangetsu: the half moon
• Gankaku: the crane on the rock
• Empi: the flight of the swallow

Ten No Kata

Ten-no-kata translates as “kata of the universe” in French.

In the book Karatedo Kyohan, Gichin Funakoshi says he set it up in the 1940s. Presumably, the ten-no-kata was created to facilitate the transition to kumite.

The ten-no-kata has two complementary parts:

Ten-no-kata-omote: Movements exercised alone that alternate techniques from uke (defense) to tori (attack) and which aim to seek power and precision in each movement.

Ten-no-kata-ura: The same movements are performed with the help of a partner, one being tori and the other uke. The distance between the two opponents (ma-ai) as well as the control of the blows (sun-dome) add to the level of difficulty.

Ma-ai: (Jap.) Budo. Space-time separating (Ma) two fighters during a break in the confrontation with virtual contact maintenance and search for harmony (AI) between them. The concept far exceeds that of the only distance, ideal (sufficient to remain both safe from a rapid attack and nearby to take a decisive initiative. (Encyclopedia of Martial Arts).

Sun-dome: (Jap.) Karate. Control of a blow, vigorously stopped, with the sensation of kime at a short distance (sun – short distance / dome – stop) of the target point of impact. (Encyclopedia of Martial Arts)

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