Bunkai/Oyo for kata&techniques?

[Martin H]

How much bunkai have you been taught in kyokushin dojos or other knockdown dojos with have traditional katas? Are you sattisfied with what you learned, or did you think it was bull***?
The knockdown styles with "new" katas (ashihara, enshin etc) does not realy fit into this since their katas are more obvious, and easier understood than the traditional ones.

One of the sad things in kyokushin is the lack of propper training and understanding of Bunkai (study of applications) and Oyo (practical applications) for kata and even kihon techniques. And without that, kata loses its real meaning. Good exersize, and a meditative feel, but without any real connection to fighting skills.

Few who have never done a grappling arts like judo or jujutsu notice the similarities, and realize that the 270 degree turning jump in pinan go is actualy the throw called Ippon seoi nage in judo, or the "turn with a hiji ate" in pinan san is realy a formalized version of the judo "harai goshi" throw. Tensho is full of joint locks/throws like kote gaeshi and kote mawashi gaeshi.

I always liked Iain Abernethy in his bunkai thinking (although not always his bunkai´s) from http://www.iainabernethy.com/
His idea is basicaly, that if a bunkai does not seem realistic, effective, unpleasant and mean, you need to find a new bunkai for the technique in question. No wasted movements allowed. Like this one where Ive been taught the exact application in pinan ni, that Ian here shows as a bad example
http://www.iainabernethy.com/article...unkaiPart6.asp

[Setsuna162]

It takes a lot of time to figure out those bunkais. In the street, you just need a effective, easy to understand and simple way to defend your self so i think you sould learn the techniques directly, not under the bunkai or kata. Why need to do a lot of research to just find out that this kata has a judo throw in it? Just learn the throw directly. Nowaday, Kata has a new value, you practice kata to polish your techniques or find calm and balance in your mind etc...

[Bloke]

Hanshi Steve Arneil along with two Russian Shihans have produced a book on applications in Kyokushin Kata.

[ibuki]

I actually like the katas used in Enshin and Ashihara. I don't like the traditional Kyokushin ones because as explained in Iain Abernethy's site the traditional katas have deeper meaning used mainly while fighting against non-martial-rts practioners(civilian people).
I am a competitor. I train for competitions. I like the Kyokushin and Daido Juku Kudo rules. I don't fight on the street. I do Kyokushin katas only to take my exams. I know that they have deeper meaning but I don't have time to understand it and (thank God) I don't need it.
I have though about starting the Enshin katas. Just have to find the videos which show them because I have only parts of them

[BigAl]

I've learned only a little bunkai so far, but I mostly need to work more on getting my kata and kihon down than worrying about that, so my sempai only goes over it a little bit with me. I did like a lot of Iain Penberthy's stuff, "Shotokan's Secrets" is a great read on getting ideas about bunkai too in my opinion.