JionKataSeminar

On Sunday, January 8, 2023, we got to start the new year with our first indoor joint Karate training at MIT Vazrik Sensei taught a Jion kata seminar to students ranging from beginner all through black belt ranks The goal was to get students at all levels to be able to learn the full choreography of the kata, and to then appreciate the beauty that this powerful kata offers to its practitioner Using his well-adapted technique, Vazrik Sensei broke down the kata into distinct sections. In this case, the katawasbrokendowninto5parts, andeachpartwastaughtinsteps: first Vazrik Sensei demonstrated slowlysostudentscouldseeallthe stances and moves used in the section, and then students practiced the sequence until the moves of that single section were ingrained. Then, by stringing the sections together, Vazrik Sensei delivered the entire choreography ofthekatainunderhalfanhour.

Inaddition,topreparestudentsfor the kata’s exciting movements, Vazrik taught the differences between the various types of hip movement, particularly jun kaiten (forward hip rotation), gyaku kaiten (reverse hip rotation), and shindo kaiten (hip vibration). With various kihon drills focused on honing these skills and a unique drill to combine all three rotations, VazrikSenseihelpedstudentsbuild uptheirskillandincorporatethese mechanicsintothekataitself.