Goju Ryu Karate Kata

Goju ryu karate traces its roots back to pre-twentieth century Okinawa and before that to Fuzhou in Fujian Province, Southern China. According to the accepted history, Kanryo Higaonna left Okinawa for Fuzhou sometime in the second half of the nineteenth century (precise dates vary, from 1867 to 1877). In Fuzhou Higaonna is reported to have become the live-in disciple of a Chinese Whooping Crane master named Ryu Ryu Ko. Upon Higaonna's return to Okinawa he passed on his teaching to Chojun Miyagi, the man who coined the term Goju to describe the style that was formerly identified simply as Naha te owing to the location in Okinawa that it was taught and practiced.

The kata of Goju ryu karate are very different from the Shuri te branch that provided the base kata for Shotokan. Unlike the Shotokan kata of which many were altered first by Master Itosu and then later again by Master Funakoshi on mainland Japan, the Goju ryu karate kata are not known to have been changed, except for the practice of Sanchin being altered from using an open 'spear' hand to a closed fist punch.

However, there is an emerging debate as to whether nor not the bulk of Goju ryu karate kata are in fact originally from China in the first place. Exactly who Ryu Ryu Ko was is currently unknown and Morio Higaonna admits in his book The History of Karate that the style of Chinese kung fu that Goju ryu is supposedly derived from cannot be determined. Sanchin kata is the only kata on the list with clear roots in Southern China and it is a staple of numerous kung fu styles. The Gekisai Dai Ichi and Gekisai Dai Ni kata are definitely later additions created and introduced in 1940 by Master Miyagi and Tensho seems to be derived from Rokusho. Author Nathan Johnson concludes in his book The Great Karate Myth that the rest of the Goju ryu karate kata were in fact created by Master Miyagi on Okinawa in the first half of the twentieth century.

Whether of Chinese origin or not, the kata found in Goju ryu are powerful and combine linear and circular movement to fight at close-quarters using punches, kicks, elbow and knee strikes as well as locks, takedowns and throws. Central to the study of the kata and Goju ryu in general is Sanchin and this 'hard' kata is tempered by the softer approach taken in Tensho - the hard (go) and soft (ju) of Goju ryu.

The following kata are demonstrated by Master Morio Higaonna, arguably the most famous Goju ryu karateka alive today. While no relation to Kanryo Higaonna, Master Higaonna trained with Chojun Miyagi and then Eiichi Miyazato and Anichi Miyagi, two of Master Miyagi's top students. At the time of writing (2010) he currently teaches in Okinawa.