Kata Empi

[cridario97]

i learned this when i was 9 years old

[theclash181]

im learning this for the first time today

[123yuffy]

What dvd do these katas come from - does anyone know?

[fakmenow]

Nice it was acutally really close to the one i was taugh but which 1 was the orginal one i wonder...

[TheUculina]

i like it. kata unsu

[mohamedazam13]

gh

[wannabehendrix]

Yahara Sensei.....Pure Badass!!!!! This dude did NOT play tag when sparring. He would hit people!

[SuperParsman]

Tremendous ! did anyone notice the timing of kia at the end ?..,when he is in the air and not as he lands

[jtwidmer]

is it normal for certain details to differ fromone instructor to the next? For example, my instructor has us beginning the kata in a deep horse stance.

[deek77]

@jtwidmer Yes, it can depend on the branch of karate and/or the instructor's training goals. Karate can become a very subjective and personal experience, which explains why there are so many different styles (by that I mean styles developed in Japan and Okinawa). Some think it should be done the same way by everyone, like judo...but then the question becomes, which style should be the standard, Goju? Shotokan? Shito? Kyokushin? I think it's good to have so many paths of karate to choose from.

[jtwidmer]

@deek77 thank you. Good information and great points!

[02sarale]

Alone in the street with Yahara you better run fast. After he left the JKA, he started his own association. Yahara prones the "one blow kill". He is a great karateka and could be a lethal weapon. I read somewhere he use to be a body guard for the business big shots in Japan many years ago.

[mallardgreen]

@02sarale That is correct; Yahara Sensei operated a security company that protected prominent Japanese business men from their enemies, who were often Yakuza. If you look around on Youtube a bit, you can find some Japanese news coverage of Yahara's business. He is what you might call a serious customer, a no-nonsense sort of fellow who could in fact great harm, should he choose to do so.

[inamulrasool]

Wounderful

[Shasire11]

His fluid hips and mobility amaze me!

[IEKUKATAKA]

THIS IS NOT KARATE! A warning from a JKA life member: I spent a long time training and teaching this activity. Because of many contradictions I saw and heard, I began a study of karate from it’s beginning; what it really is, why it was developed, how it was taught, what it’s general syllabus was. The JKA is a shell, they have eliminated much of original karate and have invalidated it as a martial art. Read comments my site, the truth is obvious through study if you are willing to see it.

[MegaGorea]

this kata is so low, no straight, no speed, but is very very corect, i am doing a better empi kata that he is doing

[Numberwang90]

@MegaGorea this guy blows. you should see his godan! its piss poor

[DangerousDan2]

@Numberwang90 Dude I would pay money to see you fight Yahara in a street fight with no rules no holds bar, I'd be amazed if he didn't Kill you or leave you Permanently crippled in under 40 seconds.

[Numberwang90]

@DangerousDan2 Id pay to fight him!

[DangerousDan2]

@Numberwang90 I would literally bet 3000 that you don't walk away from that fight

[karatefella]

@Numberwang90 I'll come and visit you in the Casualty department !

[Numberwang90]

@karatefella why do you think this guy is hard? seriously if his katas are anything to go by he's a huge fag.

[TheTatsanator]

I love the empi kata,and I know most of it and I am a double black tip in my karate

[karatefella]

@TheTatsanator "double black tip" ??

What does THAT mean ?

[chickenisgoodish]

This is the perfect kata for Yahara: it's about simultaneous swiftness and power, along with grace--all of which shine with yahara's kumite!

[laohung]

Enpi** in Japanese the N is always placed next to the consonant for instance 'Senpai' 'Sensei' 'Kenpo' etc. A word such as "SaMurai" or "SaMo" is an example of how M is placed in Japanese - it is only placed next to a vowel 'A' 'E' 'I' 'O' and 'U' - "KaMe" "MasaMoto" etc. NaMi AMuro - Mas OyaMa

[laohung]

@laohung instead of 'always' I should say in most cases for there are exceptions such as 'HiragaNa' 'KatakaNa' - the word 'Japanese' wouldn't really count so much for it's an English translation the real word for the language is 'HyojuNgo' and 'KyotsuNgo'

[THEpillows100]

okay you know what? for some of you people talking shit about sensei yahara's performance saying it wasnt done gracefully or pretty enough ....well when has a real fight looked pretty? so stfu yahara would kill you guys with a single blow and thats a fact.

[stefandetrez]

I'm not impressed by Yahara's rendition. He is too emotional and has a boyish attitude.

[DonLeone]

Yahara senseis katas have always so much fighting spirit!

[MamaGirlLove3]

i did not like it at all ! personally it looked terrible

[RancidLemons]

These uploads of katas really help! I'm training for my first dan and my fave one has to be ji'in. I really dislike basai dai though- The moves require such concentrated precision, whereas in katas like kanku dai, for example, the movements are pretty basic, but just really long overall!

[MamaGirlLove3]

@RancidLemons basai dai is one of the easiest to me...

[RancidLemons]

@MamaGirlLove3 why do you find that?

[MamaGirlLove3]

@RancidLemons y did i not like the way he did his kata or why is basai dai one of the easiest ?

[deek77]

@RancidLemons Interesting what you say about bassai dai, I am learning this kata in my school(we call it bassai sho). I have plantar fasciitis(nerves in the feet flare up easily), so the heavy use of kokutsu dachi in that kata makes it difficult for me. I've heard that many teachers use this to teach intermediate and advanced students proper hip rotation, especially American students. Have you heard anything like this?

[RancidLemons]

@deek77 Bassai dar and Bassai sho are two completely different katas. Bassai dai is a lower down one and sho is a black belt kata. (which i've never done before since im not black belt yet). and thats unlucky for you.. do you get treated differently because of it? I've never heard of that being done tbh, but i must add i'm not american. we're usually told to do reverse tate shuto before every lesson to ensure better hip rotation throughout.

[deek77]

@RancidLemons Yes I know the kata Bassai Dai and Bassai Sho are two different kata, though some branches of karate outside of shotokan switch the names(probably should've mentioned the style I study is not shoto)...Do you mean if I get treated differently because of my feet issues? Not at all, in fact my sensei has the same issues. But of course, he's learned how to adjust. Lets me know I can too. We Americans IMHO focus on muscle and strength more than body mechanics & core strength.

[RancidLemons]

@deek77 Whats the style you practice? and yes i did mean that. i'd never heard of that kind of condition before you mentioned it. I know this is kind of least expected, especially in the times we live in, but as a girl, i find my sensei treats me differently compared to the guys that train there. I find he's much more lenient when i make mistakes.. sometimes i wish he didn't, but i guess it has it's advantages at times.

[deek77]

@RancidLemons It's called Chishin Ryu, headed by Hiroyuki Hamada, Int'l Chairman of the Dai Nippon Butokukai(DNBK). The style itself is not well known but DNBK is. Plantar fasciitis can occur from too much weight on the feet, among other things. Just means I have to lose weight, haha...Gender relations have improved over the years, though some may have gone to the other extreme of being too soft on women. Dojos should prepare men & women equally for the stress of combat, IMHO.

[MamaGirlLove3]

@RancidLemons i mean yeah they help you learn some of the steps but, honestly if he went to a tournament in i dont know, maybe puerto rico, doing the kata just like that, do u honestly think he would get 1st or 2nd ?

[RancidLemons]

@MamaGirlLove3 No.. but there are many points to uploading these videos and one of the main ones is to guide those who need help with the kata. i never said he couldn't have done the kata any better than that, sure, he could.

[cbrxle]

Ty now i learn the kata empi shotokan move!!! Thank you very much!!

[TONGUE86]

...o qst....booooo...tanto ho 2 annetti di tempo per decidere...ahahahah

[allyn425262]

very bad kata... some of stances are wrong and some of the basics are wrong also.

[TheFightingpug]

i am currently in training for  my black belt (first dan) and these later kata's are hard work remembering. Thanks for these vidio's they are realy helping (also the basia dai one that kata is annoying)

[fredkarat]

enpi .jka shotokan.classic oss.

[jumpalitann]

wow so fast

[takahashi279]

It took me a while to get used to Empi and I was unsure about it at first, but after doing it for many years I must say it has grown on me and its a beautiful Kata !

[Ionut22y]

i think it`s OK !

[flyspy100]

tis type of art won't hurt any won make it more powerful

[vampyredarke]

Oh really? If you're going to jump to the MMA argument, and how traditional styles are bullshit then I'll counter that with Lyoto Machida who is a Karateka and VERY successful in MMA. Kata has its place in creating muscle memory, agility and technique which is then translated in real life situations or bouts.

[Warkid1992]

i did it for 6 years broke some ones arm /...... it does

[jwnorman5]

In the video, isn't Yahara(the guy in the video) supposed to be looking to "his" right while in his first kiba-dachi doing his first chudan-zuki?(Or whatever that punch is, might be something like mawashi-zuki.)

[zakardo]

you can use both of them... but i prefer empi...

[21dimitra]

the kata is called empi

with a M

[paynkeeper]

it is enpi

[ahmadezzeir]

is it Empi or Enpi :-$

still i do not know

[d1gpkid]

it's empi

[Jaamine]

@ahmadezzeir Since it's Japanese it would be written and pronounced with an 'n', since Japanese doesn't have a lone 'm', but does have a lone 'n' syllable.

[sciencism]

This one is particular required for the kata of my shodan exam! Geez, I remember how hard it was at first the get the jump right!

[karatefella]

Panicus my friend - Every Shotokan Karateka knows who Sensei Mikio Yahara is !

[karatefella]

yes, panicus. i know it's Yahara Sensei, the great Shotokan Master.

I was making the observation about Shotokan and Shotokai Kata

[PanicusVulgaris]

No, he didn't retire, he quit JKA and created his own association.Kinda sad that Shotokan split into so many associations, but good thing is that all those associations still preserve a pure Shotokan at a very respectable level. The only exception being (in my humble opinion) Shotokai. But one might argue that Shotokai is actualy a brand new "style" and not just another association within Shotokan.

[karatefella]

Shotokai kata look very weak and flimsy when compared to Shotokan I think.

[PanicusVulgaris]

I agree with you karatefella, but this is Shotokan. This is Yahara Sensei, I don't think he has anything to do with Shotokai.

[oomafasosagiger]

i just got my 1st que and i did this kata... one guy said it was f***ing awsome... lol

[singingxtree]

@oomafasosagiger

That's great.

But i believe it's a 'kyu' not 'que'.

[PanicusVulgaris]

A master is not concerned with "perfect textbook form", but with efficiency of techniques, and he does it by adjusting them for his own physique, as we are all built differently. If you watch great masters at kata competitions, you'll notice all those "mistakes", but the judges are not deducting the points for that. Rather, they are judging the level at wich one expresses the spirit of the kata he performs.

[mikkolee]

Booya !!

>:3

NICE - great kata  >:3

[PeverseIrony]

I thought "Empi" Meant "Elbow"?

[thankful2one]

You're right, but in our alphabet it is sound that has been translated. In the japanese language you must read the charachters which are ideograms. You will see this pattern in a lot of martial arts terms, the same english language translation meaning more than one thing to the japanese.

[PanicusVulgaris]

You're right. Correct name of this kata is Enpi, and empi does mean " elbow". In Japanese language, yhey use same hiragana symbol for "m" and "n" , thus many westerners confuse "Enpi" and "empi". Writen in kanji though, these two words look quiet different :)

[karatefella]

The very first time l was taught this kata, (many years ago !), because its' name is EMPI, I was expecting elbow strikes !

Which never materialised !

[PanicusVulgaris]

@karatefella , I am sorry if I'm dissapointing you,but "enpi" and "empi" are have different meaning in japa nese language.Nevertheless, you. as well as I and countless other non-japanese Shotokan practitioners have been striving to achieve perfection in Enpi Kata. I've been doing it for about thirty years now, and will keep trying as long as I live. I wish you the best, keep trying, keep giving your best. Respect, my Shotokan friend and brother!

[deosullivan3]

lol

yeah, empi...enpi...they're real close

[NysosXKhali]

@karatefella i agree when i first heard empi i thought there would be a big emphasis on elbow strikes as well

[kyuubifox66]

@karatefella thats what i thought when i heard the name XD but i never learned the kata cause its not from my style :)

[jason41760]

@karatefella lol

Empi Or Enpi:

The kata was named Enpi after the swift, and its erratic flight.

The kata itself is somewhat erratic in manouvres..

[jason41760]

@karatefella

Sorry it was named after the swallow...I was thinking of the fast swift movements.So ended up stating Swift.lol

Sorry my bad.

[Learntoadjust]

Ohhh i love Empi. Deffo my fave kata of all time, it is strong but also flows well, a perfect balance if you ask me. I am hoping to do it in the nationals this year! Wish me luck!! x

[MrKodokan]

nationals are in like november, right? my sensei really wants me to compete and be the only one to represent him and our school

[mallardgreen]

I was speaking of emotion as a viewer. Watch dispassionately and see the performance for what it is, flaws and all. Technique is just efficiency; it is NOT primarily aesthetic. How one's feet are placed on the floor affects how one can apply pressure through stance to create stability and strength. Raising shoulders in punches severs body connection; lowering one's head and pushing it forward creates slowing tension in one's upper back, etc, etc.

[TheRandomness111]

he has lots of tecnical mistakes

[hasanabrkica3]

Yahara Sensei has a lot of technical mistakes???? And you, the great Moron Sensei are seing them, of course? Why don't you, oh great Retard Sensei post your Empi, and show us mere mortals how it's done? Shut up, look and learn from a master! I've been practicing Empi since 1978, and I'll never come even close to this perfection that Yahara Sensei is showing :(

[mallardgreen]

Actually, his performance is wonderful, but not technically perfect. This is not to disrespect Yahara Sensei at all. He is rightly a living shotokan legend. Perfection, I believe, is simply not possible for anyone. Take emotion out of it, and you can see minor flaws; feet not parallel in kiba dachi, a bit of a slide in the rear foot on his rising punches, back heal raised in kokutsu dachi, etc. That having been said, if I train 20 more years, I'll never do Empi as well as it's done here.

[emdog2564]

sry im just looking around and not sure what im watching but i practice aikido and the 'emotion' of the moment is not something to be ignored. what are the virtues of pure technique?

[PanicusVulgaris]

mallardgreen, one has to keep in mind that all those "rules" you mentioned about feet parallel in kiba dachi, back foot flat on the ground in zenkutsu dachi and kokutsu dachi etc are for novices and students, designed to teach them PRINCIPLES of developing power through hip rotation and stability through feet firmly rooted on the ground. By the time one becomes master, his own body adjusts all those parameters by itself, to suit his own physique and fighting style (see next post, please)

[MrKodokan]

actually he's kinda right, he did make quite a few mistakes. but he did it very fluent and strong. they are very small and commonly missed mistakes tho, it doesnt really matter but in a compo, he might get away with it

[kaorumaki]

thank you for this video  ^^

[jfz78]

i agree with njtr shotokon make a very great fighter i myself am a blue belt almost brown and i love it

[111meikle]

i was only saying

i didnt mean to be big mouthed

[111meikle]

im a black belt 1st dan and im only 12!!!!

[veggieshredder]

keep practicing, it's a lifetime journey :)

[musicalkaratekid]

and....?

[crazybee360]

I am a third que brown belt in shotokan>

[JaGp94]

i used to practice shotokan...

but...i didn't like it...

i get yellow i think...

but i left it...

and i enter KARATE-DO...

and i just need 2 more belts...to be black belt!!! yeahhh!! xD

[skimarcus]

Shotokan is a form of karate-do.

[JaGp94]

o yes..xD

i mean...i enter: another form of karate-do..xD

[njtr]

Good luck in your training, but you left Shotokan in the VERY beginning. I would say that you should have given it more time, but if you found a style that works better for you, I guess I can't speak for you. I'm prejudiced. I love Shotokan. But it is not the style that makes a great fighter. Instead, it is character, heart and perfection of technique through rigorous training and repetition. Osu.

[crazybee360]

These are some good details the narator is saying

[crazybee360]

I still need help on the jump at long island shotokan

[rcadag]

by the way, does anybody know where I could find a video Aihara sempai? That is if anybody here still remember him.

[Chewiemewy]

ugh. that jump is soo hard. cant get it down yet

[RooneyEnterprises]

I hear ya, man.

[zedosix]

lots of practise, I've been doing it for a year or more and just getting used to it now.

[hermione1135]

oh i know it's difficult! a good tip is to spot and pick up your knees! :) (first degree black belt :D)

[I3ellChu]

one word: excellent.

[martingsilva]

very, very good.

Oss

[AlphMarco]

he is good, his style is pure,his attacks are focused, his legs are at good position and straight as maximum, good done.

[commswarrior]

11/10

[ipponkarate]

YA BUTE is this great or what !

[pilloray]

voy por ti cojitoox fragatamann

[Libradramaqueen1]

Im learning this kata at the moment! :)

[heahzhihong]

this kata at budokan is for brown 2 haha =D

[heahzhihong]

i aslo know laaaaaaa~~~

[KatarinaKorreia]

nice thats shotokan, I know this kata!!

[karatefella]

Where can I get a DVD of Sensei Yahara performing this - and other - Kata ?

[karatefella]

One word - BRILLIANT

[jippzmcghee]

he definitely doesnt have the prettiest kata, but man does he look powerful..good job

[gustavommeirelles]

I love it!! ;D

[LambLunch]

I've seen it done with better kime from Ohta Sensei.

[kwfkarateka]

Yahara Sensei too us though it last week. You have to be there to get the power and the brilliance of his Enpi even at age 60...BAMM!

.....BAMM...WHACK...that's the only way to describe the man and his movement. Totally devastating. And he is 60 years old.

[Shodan234]

This may be the best Enpi performance i have seen!

[MehmedSait]

How many kata there are in the karate I have to learn them

[karatefella]

There are 26 Kata in Shotokan Karate

[MehmedSait]

I have to learn all them it will take a lot of times....

[MehmedSait]

I have to learn all them it will take a lot of times....

[nameless190893]

no we are taught to spell it as eMpi

[apocalypse222]

this kata is well done tecnicaly but needs more speed doing each movements...

[egh454]

amazing but this kata il called ENPI and not EMPY

[apocalypse222]

its absolutely true

[titiresse]

it`s EMPI:P:P

[Shabutie20]

I wish that my instructor was that good.

[EASEDIGEST]

Allahu Akbar, great shihan.

[EASEDIGEST]

shihan yahara does his kata as he is really fighting. Great to watch.

[ObsidianEliot]

nothing beter then traditional karate... I love this Art

[Karatedo94]

Very good and strong!

[majinlotfi]

empi"or bird fly" kata is my favorite with"bassaidai(mean entering fortress in jp)

[elhalfling]

This one is awesome! I like watching all the brown belt katas and I'm really excited to be able to eventually learn some of them.

[puricefr]

very very good

[andykarate]

I used to have this video years ago, but I lent it to someone, and then forgot who I lent it to !

Does anyone know the title of this tape and where can I get it from ( hopefully now on DVD ) ?

[andykarate]

Brilliant