Participants at the 2017 IKKU Winter Camp
The International Karate Kobudo Union held the 2017 IKKU Winter Camp from Jan 13-15, 2017. The event was held in Carrollton, GA and hosted by Shihan Dai Billie Robinson, Chief Instructor of Robinson’s Karate Dojo and Yoga Center. There was a great turnout with approximately 35 attendees for the event. Participants gathered from across the Eastern U.S., including attendees from Georgia, North Carolina, and Maine. The IKKU – International Karate Kobudo Union was represented with participants from 8 affiliated Dojos.
Odori (踊) Kata
Defensive Dance
Soke Ruiz spent time teaching Odori Shodan and Nidan during the winter camp. Odori literally translates to the word Dance. At one point in Okinawa and Japan’s past, Martial Arts were banned. So to maintain the martial knowledge, Martial Artist began to disguise their arts into Odori as folk dances. This allowed the Martial Artist to continue their training without interference from opposing forces at the time.
The Odori Series of Kata were originally created and taught to Soke Ruiz by his Sensei, “Kiyoshi” Aihara. There were 5 Odori Kata developed in total as a Defense to the 5 Pinan Kata created by Anko Itosu (1830 -1915). Since the Japanese to English translation of Odori is “Dance” and the Kata were developed as Defense to the Pinan Kata, then the Kata Name translates as Defensive Dance.
To date Soke Ruiz has taught 4 of the 5 kata at some point in his 60+ years career. He keeps the 5th Odori Kata to himself, still holding on to this knowledge like the prized possession it is. Maybe at some point in the future he will pass along the 5th Odori Kata to a special student, still yet unidentified.
Tanchi (残缺) Kata
Incomplete Kata
During the 2016 Christmas Clinic, Soke Ruiz taught an advanced group Tanchi Kata. For the 2017 IIKU Winter Camp, Soke Ruiz expanded exposure to the kata and allowed access for the entire participant list.
This Kata is named after General “Chung-Jang”, pseudonym given to General Kim Duk Ryang who lived during the Yi Dynasty, 14th century. Tanchi translates to Incomplete because the Kata Stops before the end of the kata is formally reached. At the abrupt end of the Kata, the practitioner bends down to scoop water into their hands and then slowly brings the hands up to the mouth as to drink. The kata simply ends at this point to symbolize the person being struck and killed from behind, while in such a vulnerable position.
Hanshi Ron Downton teaches the group how to execute a perfect dropping Ushiro Geri during Tanchi Kata
Additional IKKU Information
Don’t forget our next upcoming event which is the 2017 IKKU Iaido and Bokken Clinic. The event is scheduled on April 22, 2017 and hosted by Shihan Dai Amy Howell at the Legion of AllStars in Griffin, GA.
For information about joining the IKKU – International Karate Kobudo Union then please visit our IKKU Registration Page. We welcome new members to our organization and have 6-8 scheduled events each year. This will allow you direct access to Soke Joseph Ruiz, founder of the IKKU and other High Dan Instructors from the IKKU.
For a full listing of upcoming scheduled sessions please visit our Events Page. Here we showcase our upcoming Clinics, Camps and other opportunities for engagement with the IKKU.