The Kata and Bunkai of Goju-Ryu Karate: The Essence of the Heishu and Kaishu Kata Paperback – February 6, 2018

I have read Giles Hopkins’ blog (goju-ryu.blogspot) for several years now and have always found it thoughtful and challenging. So when he posted that he was working on a book, I pre-ordered it immediately.Now Hopkins is an English teacher and the book benefits from it. It is structured basically as a 200+ page argument for what the kata of Goju-ryu mean. How they all follow the same principles, sometimes showing remarkable similarity, and are self-referential. Just as you would expect from the people that put this style together. Each chapter on each kata can be seen as evidence for this argument, culminated in Appendix A and Appendix B where Hopkins lays out the tools/ideas used to construct this argument.In between discussing the bunkai, Hopkins includes short vignettes of his own training experiences, a nice touch which was enjoyable to read and (I think) made his argument stronger. It is clear that this view of bunkai – radically different than what most karate-ka practice- wasn’t something he came up with overnight, but instead was a slow realization over time.Fair warning, the book is dense. It is something I had to read slowly to understand and I took my time visualizing the kata and bunkai being discussed. This is definitely a book that is worth bringing TO the dojo to work through some of the ideas with a partner. You’ve heard of active listening? Well this is active reading. Be prepared to stand up and go through the kata in between paragraphs.If you have been studying Goju-ryu for a while or if you know most of the classical kata, I cannot recommend this text strongly enough. It will probably challenge you – I know Hopkins’ view of bunkai was not the one I grew up training with. But his argument has convinced me that Goju-ryu is a system that works together in a way that is consistent and does not treat any random bunkai equally. If you would like to see a different view of bunkai, then order this book.

So, said Miyagi Chojun, the founder of Okinawan Goju Ryu. The "secrets" are not some hidden teaching imparted to worthy students late at night in the dark corners of the dojo. . Instead, they are discovered through diligent and mindful practice.Giles Hopkins has done a service for all serious practitioners of karate with his thoughtful analyses of the movement patterns in the classic katas of Goju Ryu. The clues to uncovering the bunkai (analysis) that Sensei Giles offers, provide a template for further, productive study.Each chapter provides a study of a major classical kata,providing step by step movements and some photographs. Probably the greatest weakness of any such book,inherent in the nature of simply describing movement that must be learned by doing, is the difficulty of understanding and applying (without which there is no true understanding) the described movements from a written text, even with accompanying photos. This book is best for someone with some practice performing the katas, who can bring greater knowledge and understanding into his or her practice of it.Each chapter concludes with a brief personal episode from Okinawa, an invitation to the warmth and humanity of the people who have invested their lives in training and teaching karate, and, at the same time, brings home a point about training and being trained by the katas. I have had the privilege of training under Kimo Wall, the same man who introduced Giles to Goju Ryu and taught him for many years. Many warm memories returned to me as I read those stories. True and joyful training of a serious art connects us not just to our own bodies, but to many generations of friends and forerunners, all who live on in our practice and fellowship.

An engaging read on the various katas of Goju Ryu, detailing their applications and the author’s personal experiences. It’s definitely worth having

Very informative book and prospect of Gikes’ interpretation on how kata speaks to him and how he believes kata and it’s bunkai should be applied. I like the pictures they help connect and describe his bunkai that sometimes is different to describe in WORDS!This book is very frank and Giles Hopkins throws some “pot shots “ at others and their prospective of bunkai.. I find it to be humorous.😊 nothing wrong with a little controversy!!Some of the applications probably would be best described via video because it’s too difficult to describe in words. Overall I thought it’s a excellent informative read for all GOJU PRACTITIONERS!!!!

Sent it back. It was ok but not exactly what I was hoping for. I need more visuals because I can't picture things in my head so if it's just written out I am not sure what is happening. I'm sure it's very good and informational for people who can visualize.

Written really well and kept me coming back for more. I enjoyed the "opinions" and not having a book full of dogma and rhetoric. It also wasn't filled with egocentric stories made to make the writer more credible, but instead, it had good stories any karateka would enjoy.

This really is an excellent book for any Nahate practitioner. I have been reading through carefully and working through the applications of the kata I had been given. As a Shito-Ryu practitioner with past experiences with a Goju-Ryu instructor, I found the book to have many useful ways in which to look at kata and bunkai. The book is professional in presentation and well written compared to other martial arts texts out there.

Excelent and well writen book, about diferent aplications of kata. In other words Bunkai. This book not only explains the 12 traditional katas of the Goju Ryu system, but also talks about tradition and history. Also contains some wonderfull pictures of the author with Matayoshi Sensei and Kimo Wall Sensei. I just love it!!!!!