Shotokan Karate Kata Tutorials White To Brown Belt

Taikyoku Shodan (太極初段)

Meaning 1st Cause 1st level

The first shotokan karate kata practiced is Taikyoku Shodan also known as Kihon Kata. This first Shotokan Kata consists of 20 moves, with only two techniques and one stance used throughout the twenty moves.

The two techniques used throughout the kata are Oi Tsuki (stepping punch) and Gedan Barai (downward block) and the only stance used is zenkutsu dachi (front stance).

Yoshitaka “Gigō” Funakoshi Sensei developed three kata and his father, Master Gichin Funakoshi named them Taikyoku (First Cause).

Many Shotokan karate Dojo start with Taikyoku shodan, then move on to the Heian Kata series, but there are also some Dojo that practice several Taikyoku Kata.

Here at the EIKA we use Taikyoku Shodan (kihon kata) for our 9th Kyu Orange belt examination, then move on to the Heian Kata from 8th kyu onwards.

The twenty moves consist of eight downward blocks and twelve stepping punches, all in front stance.

Throughout this kata two body positions are used and they are Shomen (square facing) and Hanmi (side facing). These two body positions are an extremely important part of Shotokan karate practice.

For each gedan barai move, the body should be in the hanmi (side facing) position.

For each oi tsuki move, the body should be in the shomen (square facing) position.

Keep your head facing the way you are moving, sometimes the head turns slightly to the side as you block gedan bari, so you end up looking out of the corners of the eyes. Keep the head straight and eyes forward.

Try not to change height as you move from one technique to the next. Once you execute the first move (gedan barai), your height should remain the same, right up to the last move.

Each zenkutsu dachi (front stance) should be the same width, length, height and body weight distribution.

Breathing should be silent and hidden, try not to expand the chest when you breathe in, breathe from your stomache.

On each step, keep your back straight, chin tucked in and push the crown of your head up as you push your stomache down.

Taikyoku Shodan is an excellent kata to practice non telegraph techniques as the moves are extremely basic and give the karateka a chance to focus heavily on the basic fundamentals contained within this kata.

When stepping make sure as you step, the front foot keeps still until at least the half way point throughout the step. Common errors can be turning the front foots toes outwards and pulling the front foot back as you start each step.

When turning through 180 degrees, try not to shuffle the back foot before you turn, try and keep the back foot flat, soften/bend the back knee, then turn and pivot on the heel.

When blocking and punching, try not to leave the arms behind, be sure and start to move the arms the same time as the legs start to move.

At the end of each technique try and stop dead still (kime) for a split second, then immediately relax and hold form, before starting the next move.

Every karate kata has its own rhythm and timing and later on in your karate journey, every karateka has their own rhythm.

Timing

Here is an example of the basic timing for Taikyoku Shodan ~

After the 1st move a short pause, then after the 2nd move longer pause.

After the 3rd move a short pause, then after the 4th move longer pause.

After the 5th move a longer pause, then after the 6th move longer pause, then after the 7th move shorter pause, then after the 8th move (1st kiai) longer pause.

After the 9th move a short pause, then after the 10th move longer pause.

After the 11th move a short pause, then after the 12th move longer pause.

After the 13th move a longer pause, then after the 14th move longer pause, then after the 15th move shorter pause, then after the 16th move (2nd kiai) longer pause.

After the 17th move a short pause, then after the 18th move longer pause.

After the 19th move a short pause, then after the 20th move longer pause. The Yamae and finish.

​Heian ​Shodan (平安初段)

​​Meaning peaceful mind 1st level

Heian Shodan is the first kata of 5 in the 5 Heian Kata series.

The first Heian kata focuses on stances zenkutsu dachi (front stance) and kokutsudachi (back stance).

Strikes oi zuki (stepping punch), Tettsui uchi (hammer fist strike) and blocks age uke (upper block), shuto uke (knife hand block).

Heian shodan is an excellent kata for shomen (square facing) and hanmi (side facing) practice.

The body and hips should be square (shomen) for the stepping punches and (side facing) hanmi for the blocks.

This is the first time a karateka practices shuto uke (knife hand block), kokutsudachi (back stance) in a shotokan kata and there are four knife hand blocks in this kata.

Heian Shodan is the required kata for 8th Kyu red belt here at the EIKA.

Some Shotokan Dojo practice this kata with a few differences.

When executing age uke, some dojo stretch their marking arm out straight, whereas we simply open the hand in the age uke position as can be seen in the tutorial below.

Another slight difference can come with tetsui uchi, some Dojo do a much smaller movement on the strike and some Shotokan Dojo leave the front foot still.

Heian Nidan (平安二段)

​​Meaning peaceful mind 2nd level

Heian Nidan is the second kata of 5 in the 5 Heian Kata series.heian nidan

The second Heian kata has several simultaneous block and strike techniques, it has side snap kick and front kick.

Heian Nidan is more complicated than Heian Shodan, so time needs to spent on the individual combinations within the kata, for example the first 3 moves, then the next 3 moves, focusing on sections of this kata, then putting the sections together is a great way to learn this kata.

Heian nidan is an excellent kata for understanding simultaneous block and strike methods. Try and relax and flow through these tricky combinations, a common mistake karateka make is they tighten up when practicing, then the kata becomes very robotic.

Heian Nidan is the required kata for 7th Kyu yellow belt here at the EIKA.

Heian Sandan (平安三段)

​​Meaning peaceful mind 3rd level

Heian Sandan is the third kata of 5 in the 5 Heian Kata series.

The third Heian kata has several simultaneous block and strike techniques.

This kata also has a fumikomi stamping kick and a spinning tetsui (bottom fist) strike.

Heian Sandan is the shortest Heian kata and is known as the yellow belt kata.

Heian sandan shotokan kata is required for the 6th Kyu green belt examination.

Like Heian Nidan, Heian sandan is an excellent kata for understanding simultaneous block and strike methods.

Try and relax and flow through these tricky combinations, a common mistake karateka make is they tighten up when practicing, then the kata becomes very robotic.

Heian Sandan shotokan kata is the required kata for 6th Kyu green belt here at the EIKA.

Some Shotokan Dojo practice this kata with a few differences, but across the Shotokan globe, Heian Sandan remains pretty much the same

Heian Yondan (平安四段)

​​Meaning peaceful mind 4th level

Heian Yondan is the fourth of the five Heian kata.

This kata has so many examples of simultaneous block and strike techniques, we have the first juji uke (x block), the first elbow attack (mawashi empi) and hisa geri (knee attack).

There are several open hand techniques and slow flowing techniques. A lot of the kata is in Kokutsu dachi (back stance), which makes it quite tricky to master.

As with all kata, try not to be robotic in your movement, your body should be soft and flowing with kime (focus) only for a split second at completion of the fast techniques.

My instructor would always place a lot of importance on keeping the back straight, to help with this, the feeling should be pushing up with the crown of the head and pushing down with the stomach, while at the same time pulling the chin in.

Heian Yondan shotokan kata is the required kata for 5th Kyu purple belt here at the EIKA.

Top Tips
1. Make sure the first two moves are smooth, 3 to 4 seconds each move.
2. Keep the body weight over the back leg in Kokutsu Dachi (back stance)
3. Moves 5, 6, 7 and 8, 9, 10 should be continuous (back fist, side snap kick, round elbow) on both sides.
4. Moves 13, 14 and 15 (1st kiai) should be like one continuous move, no pause after the front kick.
5. As there are several kicks and a knee strike, be sure and drive off the supporting leg as you step down after the kick/knee.

Heian Godan (平安五段) is the fifth and final Heian kata.

This kata has so many examples of simultaneous block and strike techniques, we have the first jump, which if you have injuries you can walk through.

Kage zuki (hook punch), juji uke (x block) and even an upper cut (ura zuki).

This is probably the trickiest of all five Heian kata due to the last four moves, which again revolve around simultaneous block and counter techniques.

There are many body weight shifts, from one stance to another and punches from back stance where you really have to understand how to push from the floor through the legs and hips.

As with all kata, try not to be robotic in your movement, your body should be soft and flowing with kime (focus) only for a split second at completion of the fast techniques.

My instructor would always place a lot of importance on keeping the back straight, to help with this, the feeling should be pushing up with the crown of the head and pushing down with the stomach, while at the same time pulling the chin in.

Top Tips

1. Make sure the timing is correct throughout the kata.

2. It’s fine to walk the jump through, but if you are jumping, be sure and lift both knees, start by having a strong knee lift with the right leg.

3. Moves 9, 10, 11 and 12 have a unique rythm, 1,2 then 3,4.

4. On the mikazuki geri keep the right hikite as long as possible, only releasing at the last possible moment.

5. Work heavily on the last six moves, once again these have a unique timing and make sure you transfer the body weight from zenkutsu dachi to kokutsu dachi.

Tekki Shodan (鉄騎初段)

Meaning iron horse 1st level

The Tekki Shodan kata tutorial below is a basic explanation of the kata, aimed at 4th Kyu (purple and white belt) karateka. Tekki shodan is the first of three Tekki kata.

The older name for Tekki is Naihanchi (inside divided conflict). Some karate historians believe master Anko Itosu developed three kata from Naihanchi which was derived from an older kata called Nifanchin.

The Tekki series of kata were renamed by Funakoshi from the Naihanchi kata, which were derived from an older, original kata from Fuzhou, China, which was called Nifanchin.

Tekki shodan is performed in a straight line and is all practiced in kiba dachi (horse riding stance).

Many karateka simply use the upper body when practicing this kata, but the real power and understanding of the Tekki kata comes from the legs and hips.

In our advanced Tekki Shodan tutorial we will go into detail and explain how and when the hips and legs are used. My sensei could generate tremendous power from short distances and he accredited his ability to do this entirely to much study and practice of the Tekki kata.

Many of the techniques within the kata have to be executed from an extremely short distance, so if the legs and hips are not used, the these techniques will be ineffective.

Top Tips

1. Make sure to keep the kiba dachi strong throughout the kata, try not to let the knees cave inwards, or push them out.

2. Try not to telegraph your techniques, which is very difficult in Tekki shodan as the distance from start to finish is so small.

3. On the first move try and drop suddenly, like someone has suddenly swept your legs

4. When stepping accross slowly, use the leg muscles and try not to drag the leg, or push off from the floor.

5. When performing the nami-gaeshi (returning wave) techniques, keep the body the same height and keep the remaining leg in the kiba dachi position. (moves 11,12, 24 and 25).

A very good question is, How Many Kata Should I Practice Between belt Tests?

It does vary from karateka to karateka, some people take longer to pick up a kata, others find learning a kata a lot easier.

Obviously, the first thing to do is learn the kata.Unfortunately, this is where some people believe they are ready to test, they believe that once than can get through the kata, that’s it, they are ready to test! But this is not correct.

Once you have a kyu grade kata like Heian Yondan, meaning, you know the sequence and what each karate move is and can get through the kata without hesitating and stopping to think whats next. Then it’s time to practice the kata at full speed and power.

Over the years I have seen many karateka test not fully understanding the kata and it shows in thier every move.

When someone doesn’t fully understand a kata and they haven’t drilled the kata fast, you can see them thinking about the next move in the kata, they hesitate and have pauses where there shouldn’t be pauses.

The difference between someone who doesn’t fully understand a kata and hasn’t drilled the kata fast and someone who understands the kata and has practiced the kata a lot, at full speed and power, is immense!

How Many Kata Should I Practice Between Tests

So as a guide and this is only a guide, as every karateka is different.First, fully understand the kata in terms of the pattern, what each technique is and how to do them, basic timing and you can get through the kata without continuously thinking what move is next.Second, practice the kata at full speed and power at least one hundred times before even considering to test.

One hundred kata is a not a lot, I know. But this one hundred kata comes after you know and understand the kata on a basic level.

Just to add to this, one hundred at full speed for Taikyoku Shodan and the five Heian Kata.

For Tekki Shodan and the five Brown belt kata, Kanku Dai, Jion, Bassai Dai, Hangetsu and Enpi, I would increase that to 200.

I hope this helps as a rough guide to the question, How Many Kata Should I Practice Between Kyu Tests?

The more you study and practice the early kata, the better a black belt you will be!

The Heian Kata and brown belt shotokan kata are the foundation for the Shotokan black belt kata, so there is no rush, your black belt test will come around soon enough and you need to be ready.

Lets imagine we have a competition for two karateka, a competition to see who can roll the biggest snowball over the line at the bottom of a very large snowy mountain:)

Now the competition lasts one day, so they have one day to create the largest snowball ever! There are lots of chearing supporters at the finish line.

Both karateka talk to eachother about the best way to attack this challenge.

The first karateka desperately wants to win, he loves all the chearing crowds, but is a bit lazy, the second karateka tries to figure out the best way to complete the challenge.

The second karateka says to the first karateka, ‘i think, if i climb to the top of the mountain and start a small perfectly round snowball from there, make sure there is a clear route down, then as it rolls down the mountain, the snowball will get bigger and bigger.’

The first karateka said ‘NO WAY! It would take half the day to get to the top of the mountain and it would be so tiring, i am not doing that, but i am going to give you a head start, so i will start building my snowball half way through the day, just as you get to the top of the mountain’

The first karateka was true to his word, he waited and lapped up the cheers from all the people, then half way through the day he started to make his snowball, a few hours later the first karateka had a massive snowball which was at least six feet in diameter, he looked up the mountain, but could see nothing. He said to himself ‘there is only a short time left, I have won easily‘

Suddenly! There was a rumble form up the mountain, the first karateka, who was lapping up the cheers, looked up the mountain, only to see a huge snowball charging down.

He quickly got one side of his snowball and frantically started to push the snowball over the finish line, but the snowball was to large and he just wasn’t strong enough to move it one inch.

Just as he looked over his shoulder, he jumped out of the way and a snowball as big as house smashed through his snowball and over the finish line.

Your karate should be like the snowball coming down the mountain, get the preparation correct and there will be no stopping your karate.

The preparation in this little story was the hard climb up the mountain and the creation of a perfectly round snowball with a clear run down the mountain, something the first karateka did not want to do.

This is the same with karate, people want fast results, they want their black belt yesterday! But they fail to realize, without correct foundations, their karate will crumble!