2 comments about The Advanced Shotokan Kata Manual.

1. Osu,
   
   We hope you enjoy this manual! Frank has been training for many years and his wish was to produce a 'no nonesense' manual for karateka to follow!
   
   Lots of bunkai throughout the book! Great stories of Historical relevance! Most important about loyalty!
   Watch this space for follow up titles - covering the rest of the Shotokan Kata in the system!
   
   He is passionate about his message and teaches in excess of 25 classes per week and is amongst one of the few Karateka today who has a passion for the art!
   Yours in Karate-Do
   Actikarate Team



2. All Advanced kata covered from Brown Belt up to 4th Degree Black Belt. The author has then gone and produced another book 'Advanced Shotokan' to obviously cover the more senior Katas after these.
   
   The Bunkai (Applications) are great and so is the stories of loyalty - I sense the author is making political points based on his BBC interviews as to the lack of unity in martial arts!
   
   Highly recommended!

2 comments about Shotokan Karate: Free Fighting Techniques.

1. Shotokan is well known for using rigid(not having a flowingtechnique) fighting in order to overcome an agressor. However, thisbook gives some pretty good insight into Japanese self defence.



2. Enoeda sensei is one of the most famous experts on free fighting in the Shotokan world. This book is an excellent reference for an intermediate-to-advanced student. The early chapters teach basic techniques, and provide descriptions and photographs explaining each. As the book progresses, combinations for attack and defense (counterattack) are introduced, as well as a discussion of one of the more difficult points of free-fighting, continuation. The emphasis in this book is clearly on Shotokan as a sport and an art, and not so much on self-defense, but successfully applying one to the other is really just a matter of practice. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone studying Shotokan -- beginners will benefit tremendously from the early chapters, and more advanced students will derive great benefits from the free-fighting lessons. Particularly, this would be a good resource for anyone training alone -- the chapter layout can be translated almost directly into training sessions.

2 comments about Shotokan Karate: Its History and Evolution.

1. Randall G. Hassell is again shown here, to be in "top form"! This captivating work, is a compilation of tangibly "intense research". This book is living snapshot into the martial arts, and scrutiny of one particular "family" of Martial Artists. It's focus is the passionate discussion of the evolution and development of the proverbial "family" known as Shotokan Karate. Agree or disagree with its author, but the presentation is compelling, EXTREMELY articulate, a very balanced and interesting read!



2. I really enjoyed this book alot. I've studied Shotokan Karate since 1974, and ever since Mr. Hassell wrote his article for Kick Magazine in 1981, I have been looking for a more detailed account to be published in a book. I am planning on using this book as a study guide for my students. I highly recommend it!

5 comments about The Shotokan Karate Handbook: Beginner to Black Belt (New Edition).

1. I think this book is amazing. Being a karate student myself i can understand very easily what i am doing whilst refering to the book. The book it self is broken down very well and is very easy to understand. Using this book i now have the option of learning karate not just in the dojo but in the presence of my home. The author GURSHARAN SAHOTA has explained this book in great detail and has shown great character in what he does.

   Well done




2. This book is by far the easiest shotokan karate book that I have used. Each section is easy to follow with well illustrated diagrams and photographs. It is easy to train away from the dojo using this book as it has a simple step by step approach, especially the kata section, No excuses for not continuing your training..even on holiday. Great for beginners and advanced karateka alike, this book goes with me wherever I travel.



3. I am interested in martial arts only because my wife has taken up the art and I was looking for a karate book, and came across this one. It is very easy to follow, excellent photographs and descriptions, Mr. Sahota makes it look easy, which is always a good sign of someone who has taken time to learn his art. An excellent book to have from the novice to the student who has been training for several years infact a lot has been packed into this edition.
   Excellent value.



4. This is an excellent book that covers virtually all the basics and Kata you will need to go from beginner to black belt. Like previous reviewers have said though, don't buy this thinking you can teach yourself Karate. You need to go to classes as well.
   
   I bought this as a complete beginner (at the age of 45) in 2005. The Kata photographs are good but some sometimes difficult to follow (even with directional arrows) because when Sahota is facing you and steps forward to punch with his right-hand you tend to want to punch with your left hand.
   
   The other problem is that whilst the number of Kata covered is very comprehensive, at neither of the two clubs I've belonged to have the Katas been exactly the same as in this book. My advice would to any beginner would be to join a club first, and then get your Sensei to advise whether a book like this is worth purchasing.



5. I often recommend this book and it's companion, THE ADVANCED SHOTOKAN KARATE HANDBOOK, to my students. It is easy to follow, clearly written, and the position arrows under the pictures of kata moves really helps when you're learning a new kata. I tell my students that they should have several kata books as references because the more resources you have, the better you will learn kata and the better and more detailed your kata will be. Both books are important additions to the Shotokan karateka's library.

5 comments about Shotokan's Secret: The Hidden Truth Behind Karate's Fighting Origins.

1. What a great book! Imagine staring at a picture you had never seen before, into the eyes of someone you had never met, only to find out later that the person was your great great great great great grandfather? Shotokan's Secret gave me a very similar experience, although the person was not my relation by blood, but perhaps by something even stronger. Even though he lived a hundered and fifty years ago and half a world away, he was in a very real way my martial arts master, teacher of my teachers, and the creator of a discipline that I have dedicated much of my life to mastering.
   
   If I sound a little fanatical, I don't mind. I have always enjoyed researching the history of the martial arts, and to me Shotokan's Secret was like finding lost treasure. The book presents what I found to be a very plausable theory of the origins of modern hard style karate, including the who, what, when, where, and why. I have read many books on the martial arts, but none have provided such a complete and thorough history of Karate. As if this were not enough, the book included a technical analysis of the kata, including bunkai (applications) to well-known kata that I could immediately employ and share with my students.I must admit that I buy right into the Shuri Crucible Theory. Dr. Clayton seems to have done an outstanding job at piecing the story together, providing many pieces of historical evidence to back up his ideas. Of course we will never know for certain if everything he hypothesizes is correct, but I find it hard to believe that he is far off the mark. I found Shotokan's Secret to be a mesmerizing work, shedding light on kata and techniques that I had known but not completely understood before. In my opinion this book should be mandatory reading for any karate practitioner. It already has a position of favor in my martial arts library.



2. I have to admit that I found this book very interesting, even though I am not on agreement with every point the author makes concerning the historical aspects of Shotokan Karate. There is no doubt the author has done an enormous amount of research into the history of karate on Okinawa. Most Shotokan Karate students know little or nothing about the historical roots of their art. This book explores the possibility that ancient karate masters Sokon Matsumura and Yasutune Itosu developed a new martial art for their royal bodyguards. This new martial art turned out to be karate. In fact, many of the mysteries of karate kata are revealed in this book. There are 12 chapters, detailing the historical journey of karate development. There is so much information in this 312 page book, that reading it only once you may miss a lot of its valuable points. For those who are into the historical aspects of Shotokan Karate, this is a must book to read and own. Though I still question the author's conclusions on many of this theories; nevertheless, this is a book that will make you think more deeply on the art of Shotokan Karate. Rating: 4 stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Bushi Satori Ryu: Author: PR-24 Baton Advanced Techniques)



3. Anyone who does Shotokan or Okinawan styles of karate would find this interesting. Alot of the book is spent in Okinawa about protecting the king with his karate bodyguards then how it evolved into what we have now. Some interesting Bunkai ideas as well. I thought it was interesting and well worth the read.



4. A fascinating journey made up of a combination of history and supposition. It brought the art of shotokan alive in my perspective, and gave me a new perspective on training methods and principles in my school. It is a 'must read' for any serious student of karate-do. Highly recommended.



5. The first thing to strike you about this book is the amazing cover. It shows an elderly but regal looking eastern man of high standing flanked by two very stern looking younger men. The first thing I did was to search the book to find out who these enigmatic men were. Using the very few clues left to our generation, Bruce Layton, quite reasonably speculates that these men could possibly be the last King of Okinawa with his bodyguards and masterminds of modern Karate Do, Itosu and Sokon Matsumura. As you would expect from Bruce Layton the historical data is investigated thoroughly with some very interesting and viable conclusions being met. The biography's on the Master's of Shotokan's lineage are also a very enjoyable, interesting and informative read.
   
   Where the this book sadly fell short for me were the, in my opinion, often ludicrous assumptions made as to how the Karate kata and techniques would have been used by these great men in their daily role as aides to the King. Occasionaly Layton put's forward what appears to be reasonable argument for the use of a technique in a protection situation but when you see the photos to accompany the explanation, they immediately bring to mind a very poor Kung Fu Movie. Is Kiba Dachi as performed in Tekki, designed to keep your primary to your back whilst you defend him? Is the Crane posture from Gankaku designed to balance on top of a stairs whilst you despatch your enemy to their foot in a painful heap? Oh dear! The bunkai displayed in this otherwise interesting book are far to literal to the kata and unfortunately hold no water whatsoever.
   
   If you want a very good historical record about Shotokan's projanitors, I highly reccommend this book. If it's a practical and pragmatic look at the use of karate technique in combat situations; invest in messrs Vince Morris, Iain Abernethy, Gavin Mullholland and the like.

5 comments about The Secrets of Shotokan Karate.

1. The author gives excellent background and history of this martial art form. Excellent descriptions and understand of forms through photos and detail descriptions of movements. Easy to read and put to practical use. Recommend this text for anyone who has an interest in the martial art discipline.



2. I have always advocated subtantial reading together with normal training and R. Rielly has done a pretty good job. His explanations are clear and to the point, supported by numerous photos for visualisation. However, these "words" only come alive if the reader has performed the moves physically. I would have preferred clearer photos with some zoom-ins to stress vital points. On the whole an excellent book for the intermediate to advanced karate student.



3. The Secrets of Shotokan Karate by Robin L. Rielly Is a must have for those who want to get the most out Shotokan-ryu. Together with mister Rielly's Complete Shotokan Karate, ISBN 0-8048-2108-9, no more thorough grounding in Shotokan-ryu can be had. But if what you are looking for is a book for the beginner to learn the fundamentals I would suggest getting Hidetaka Nishiyama and Richard C. Brown's Karate: the Art of "Empty Hand" Fighting, ISBN 0-8048-1668-9.

   The Secrets of Shotokan Karate details the methods for generating balance, stability, force, and speed. Explained are the principles of distancing, timing, hip and stance shifting, and strategy. Of special interest is the section on hip shifting for it is one of the more subtle connections Karate has with the Chinese arts of Taijiquan and Kung Fu. Separate chapters are devoted to Kumite and Kata. The chapter on Kumite includes helpful drills for mastering this aspect of the art. The chapter on Kata is especially enlightening in explaining what is meant by the "hidden meaning of Kata". Included in the Kata chapter is a detailed step-by-step explanation of Kanku Dai and its applications.

   This book takes the Karate-ka from a mere practitioners of an exercise to the mastery of the techniques and principles required for the making of a martial artist.




4. Just to let people know, the last name is rIElly...
   watch the author's name...thanks.



5. The Secrets of Shotokan Karate is well-written. The photos, all in black and white are easy to understand, as are the explanations of the fighting techniques. This book is suitable for martial artists at all levels.

1 comments about Hidden Karate 2: Itosu's Ten Precepts and Bunkai for Shotokan Katas.

1. The book is put together very well and easy to read,weather the book is truely Itosu's Precepts I do not know. I like the diffrent ideas in this book though every situation in life is diffrent, putting both kata and kumite together along with kihone is done very well.The cost I think is a little high. This is a wonderful book full of waza that will inspire any karate-ka to Keep Training or get a much needed jump start. I have been training with the JKA and ISKF since 1976.

2 comments about The Shotokan Karate Bible: Beginner to Black Belt.

1. This book does a pretty good job as a basic overview of the techniques, ettiquete, history, and kata needed to advance from a novice to a more experienced karate practitioner, but it could have and really should have been so much better.
   
   I have said it before in several of my other reviews, and this book requires that I say it once again, "Any book that claims to be the Bible, Ultimate, or Complete, had better be able to live up to the title." This book doesn't even come close. Now if it had been titled, "The Shotokan Karate Basic Guide: Beginner to Black Belt," then this would have been a more appropriate title and would have conveyed exactly what was to be expected within the pages of this book.
   
   This book covers, very briefly and very basically, some of the punches, blocks, strikes, and kicks in Shotokan Karate, as well as the katas needed in order to advance from one rank to another, and here is where I have another problem with this book.
   
   The photographs of each movement in each kata were actually quite well done and I really liked how the background had been removed from each photograph so that just the individual performing the move was visible against the white background of the page. For this, I give this book a 5 star rating on this particular point. However, there was a bare minimum of detailed explanation to go with each movement, and there were no foot patterns of direction of movement included with each step in each kata. Now they did include a fairly nice overview of each kata at the end of the book, but they really should have been placed at the end of each kata sequence and not placed in an entirely different section of the book.
   
   For a much better series of books on Shotokan Karate, I highly recommend the following series of books by Masatoshi Nakayama.
   
   Best Karate, Vol.1: Comprehensive (Best Karate)
   
   Best Karate 2: Fundamentals
   
   Best Karate, Vol.3: Kumite 1 (Best Karate)
   
   Best Karate, Vol.4: Kumite 2 (Best Karate)
   
   For an outstanding example of novice through intermediate Shotokan Karate katas, I highly recommend this series of books by Masatoshi Nakayama.
   
   Karate Kata Heian 1 Tekki 1: Official Manual of the Japan Karate Association
   
   Karate Kata: Heian 2; Heian 3
   
   Karate Kata: Heian 4.
   
   KATATE KATA HEIAN 5 'THE FORMAL EXERCISES OF KARATE'
   
   Shawn Kovacich
   Martial Artist/Author of the Achieving Kicking Excellence series.



2. This book is a fantastic guide!! It shows from start to finish the rank progression and curriculum of Shotokan! I am very impressed with the book and the author. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a classroom material guide, a teaching format for rank, or anyone just plain interested in Shotokan. Buy it!

5 comments about Shotokan's Secret: The Hidden Truth Behind Karate's Origins (With New Material) Expanded Edition.

1. I am a 5th Dan Traditional Taekwondo Instructor here in Australia. In 2003, I started doing research into my system, exploring several hard style systems and doing extensive bunkai analysis of traditional taekwondo patterns. I was simply looking for some clarity to improve my teaching syllabus.
   
   Along the way I have met a handful of instructors and authors who are on the same path as myself. Some are ahead of me, and some who have not as yet caught up to me. These people however all seem to have the perceptiveness of 'old school' training yet an inquisitiveness from just being stubborn about looking for the truth. I like these practitioners - they cut through fads and trends, and set the standard using their own personal benchmarks.
   
   In 2005, I counted myself lucky to have stumbled upon a gem of a book 'Shotokan's Secret' from author Dr Bruce Clayton. Dr Clayton Sensei's book clearly marked him as a person who was even more "stubborn" than me in "looking for the truth." The book apparently started off with an "innocent quest" to find a portrait for one Yasutsune Azato, Shotokan's Founder Gichin Funakoshi's first teacher. From my review of the first edition, I said that after picking up my copy of the book, I "have not been able to stop reading it."
   
   The easy narrative builds a compelling look into the life and times of the founders of modern karate - painting a picture of the risks they faced and the obstacles they had to surmount. No longer are we dealing with ancient mountain dwelling hermits, these were real men, and real lives were at stake. I could not stop turning pages because all of a sudden I had a story in my hands that gave me a very plausible reason for why we do what we do. My style is different from yours for a reason, and this book made it all the more clear.
   
   I count myself doubly lucky then to have initiated an email conversation with Dr Clayton which led to me visiting and training with him when I traveled to the United States in 2006.
   
   In the last few years, our email dialog has continued. I have also continued my practise of traditional taekwondo, which includes taekwondo patterns from the mid 1950s and some old style Okinawan patterns at black belt level. My continued research into making traditional systems applicable for modern day practise continues to give me insights as I practise and train. These are high-level personal thoughts I share with Dr Clayton. In many of his replies, Dr Clayton would cryptically remark "you're going to love the new book."
   
   I had a niggling feeling that the sequel could not be better than the first book. How could it? And how could this guy come up with such high level stuff - which I have slogged to gain after 25+ years, and how would he be able to put it down on paper?
   
   My doubts however have been laid to rest. The expanded edition is literally a treasure trove of information and a martial art masterpiece. Dr Clayton has taken karate, dissected it, organised it, and literally hammered the living s*** out of it. All the unanswered questions you've got for your Japanese or Korean based systems are there. The book in it's current form presents a lens to look at the architect of modern day shotokan karate. If you've heard quibbles that Karate is this, and Karate is that - they're right. Shotokan Karate is a system designed for a specific purpose, and this purpose might not fully be congruent with the yardstick of challenges you use to measure it with. But why don't you pick up the book and find out why. The expanded version contains 130 over pages of pictures which match really amazing applications to the Heian katas. Say goodbye to what you thought you know of your system.
   
   I have made it compulsory for every one of my traditional taekwondo students to purchase a copy of Dr Clayton's book. Can you imagine that? A Taekwondo instructor telling his students to get a Shotokan Karate book! Wait till they read the book and find out the architect of Taekwondo was a Shotokan practitioner himself!
   
   I highly recommend the book if you are serious at all in your martial arts training, or have lost your way, or have too many questions left unanswered.
   
   I have promoted the book at my blog [...] - and am happy to discuss your views there.
   
   Colin Wee
   5th Dan Traditional Taekwondo



2. If you've read and enjoyed the original Shotokan's Secret, you'll find this expanded edition to be even better. If you are a martial artist and are interested not only in the history of Karate but the pragmatic applications that are possible from such study, this book is an absolute must. In this new second half of the book, Dr. Clayton takes the Heian katas he introduced in the original version and opens the door to understanding and creative discovery. Of course, his "bunkai" or applications are of his own making, but he has made them succeed by preparing his reader through historical research, analysis and treatise. He first helps us understand what the masters lives were like, why they developed the katas in the first place, and why his bunkai would have made sense for them. I find his analysis totally credible and thought provoking. He doesn't take away our own analysis or understanding (as we do not have all the facts about the origins and need to make many decisions without complete truths) but compliments them and persuades us to think things out logically. Do not simply listen to your sensei and take his word for it. He/she may know even less than you do about how the masters created Karate. The book also debunks some of the myths surrounding the masters and justifies our own creative liberties regarding kata. In essence, what works for me might not work for you, therefore, you need to explore your own possibilities. Chapter 6, for me, is a must read for all sensei or serious practitioners. That chapter turns on the light in a dark tunnel, and gives us the tools from which to draw credible conclusions, not just of martial arts, but of life. That chapter works because of all the research and assimilation/extraction Clayton did previous to it, and then the demonstration of how he thinks, whether or not people agree with his particular bunkai, isn't the point. It's how he got there. That alone is worth the cost of the book.



3. Fantastic book! The layout is easy to follow and understand. The methodology that is given for researching kata is very helpful. Dr.Clayton has made the material fun to read as well as educational.



4. Shotokan's Secret is a very important book for the karate literature. Actually, I'd rather say for the martial arts literature as a whole. Every martial-arts practitioner, instructor or student, should own himself a copy of this book. To make this argument, I'll divide the book in two main parts and the appendix, and describe what they bring and the importance of what's within each part.
   
   The first part deals with historical background description, analysis and strategy speculation. It consists of the first five chapters of the book. Throughout these chapters, Bruce Clayton provides us with a good deal of information on the historical events that took place mainly in Okinawa, as well as its geopolitical context, and how all this influenced the development of karate. We start in the beginning of the Second Sho Dinasty, passing through Tokugawa's takeover of Okinawa and the Satstuma clan invasion of the island, Matthew Perry's expedition to Japan, the Meiji Restoration and the first half of the 20th century. As we leaf through the pages, a colorful description regarding aspects of the Japanese culture (and partly the Chinese too) and karate itself, and the lives of the karate masters who developed the art of karate is shown, as well as we are introduced to important information regarding the styles that later developed into the karate we know today. The author also makes an interesting analysis of a defense plan for protecting the king of the Ryukyu Kingdom in case his life was at stake, that is, how the bodyguards of the king, that were actually the masters who developed karate, would set a strategy to protect him.
   
   So, this first part basically broaden our sight in the sense that we are able to see karate, as well as many other martial arts, not as a set of movements that came out of nothing, but as the very expression of a people's own cultural context. It makes us see that martial arts are connected intimately to history, and are generally organized in order to be efficient in a given cultural and/or geopolitical context. This is the bottom line of the theory of the Shuri Crucible which was created by the own author and is described in the book.
   
   The second part of the book deals mainly with the search for the original bunkai for the heian kata. It starts on chapter 6 and ends on chapter 12. First, Clayton introduces an analysis methodology for recognizing historical applications for the techniques embedded in each kata. Afterwards, he dissects each kata movement provided with such methodology, and concludes what are the true historical applications for these movements. We might find ourselves impressed upon discovering the relation karate has with other martial arts. Besides finding the historical applications, other outcomes regarding the heian bunkai kata are reached. We find out why Itosu developed exactly five heian kata, why he didn't pass the bunkai foward after the Meiji Restoration and why karate instructors say that bunkai interpretation is free under certain rules.
   
   This part is important not only for providing us with very plausible bunkai, but also for the philosophical and educational value that it brings. This is specially seen in chapters 6 and 12. Chapter 6 is the methodology chapter, and chapter 12 brings the conclusion of the study. The ideas expressed in these two chapters apply not only to in-dojo training, but also to our lives as martial artists and as citizens too. Upon reading these chapters, we are impelled to seek knowledge and to not take it for granted, but rather to question it, and also to search for the way of being righteous in our thoughts and attitudes. It makes us meditate over the philosophy of karate, and how we must live it. Even if you're not a karateka, or even if you're not a martial artist, you'll probably learn very much from mainly these two chapters in this second part.
   
   There's still an appendix that brings a lineage chart of karate, nice training video references, a very useful glossary, a least for beginners, and the bibliography with a colorful list of references. It's part of the policy of pushing the reader to seek for further knowledge.
   
   So, either if you're a martial artist or not, karateka or not, you should read this book. If you're a martial artist, you should also own this book, to keep it as prime reference. It has great deal fun, and a lot of knowledge. It's a must.



5. Bruce's book is a credit to his talents - for me it brought the era to life - like Kurozawa's movies -the book is vivid with imagery and is a fascinating read - although I am friend of Bruce's -I offer this comment without bias to encourage everyone who is a serious student of the martial arts to add this valuable,well written, work to their collection - you do not need to be a Shotokan follower to enjoy and learn from the book - this quote comes to mind:
   
   "I hope martial artists are more interested in the root of martial arts and not the different decorative branches, flowers, or leaves. It is futile to argue as to which leaf, which design of branches, or which attractive flower you like , when you understand the root, you understand all its blossoming."
   From - Tao of Jeet Kune Do ( 1975 p.23 ) by Bruce Lee

5 comments about 25 Shoto-Kan Kata.

1. Any beginner in Shotokan Karate will find this book extremely helpful, with it's easy to follow diagrams. An intermediate to expert karateka will find this a handy reference. All in all, worth every penny.



2. Excellent reference for beginners as well as advanced students interested in the correct performance and execution of the 25 Shoto-Kan Katas. Very easy to understand and follow.



3. This book is a great addition to any Shotokan practitioners library. The material is written well and the drawings provide a concise and flowing demonstration of each move.



4. Katas are an essential part of shotokan karate. This book is the best kata book available.
   
   Other kata books describe karate moves with photos and text, but this book, with its 3-dimensional graphical illustrations, does a much better job of illustrating and clarifying the karate movements.
   
   If you're seriously studying shotokan karate, whether you're a white belt or a black belt or any color in between, then you'll want this book. It's a good reference guide if you want to learn a kata (under the supervision of your sensei, of course). It's also a great reference guide if you've forgotten an aspect of a kata.



5. I highly recommend this book if you want to learn the Shotokan Katas. Even if your style of Karate teaches you the moves in a little different way, you can still get the basic understanding in these diagrams. Very good book to own!