Cambridge Karate Club

English - Peaceful Mind; Fourth Step

The Heian series of katas were created by Sensei Itosu, for teaching karate in Okinawan middle schools. They were completed in 1905, and were originally called the Pinan katas - many styles of karate still use this name. Sensei Funakoshi changed the name to the more Japanese sounding Heian. According to Sensei Kanazawa, the kata were given a name signifying peace and tranquility as all five katas in the series begin and end with blocking movements.

Rhythm is very important in this kata. Make sure you snap back the leg after the side snap kicks (keage), and then use the hips to drive the elbow smash (mawashi-empi).

Video links

Videos from YouTube

Sensei Kanazawa

First quickly, and then slowly.

The "Blue Video"

There's no sound in this video.