This Saturday sees us continuing with our kata series, with an in depth look and practice of the popular kata Jion.
Again this is a sentei kata, studied from brown belt level upwards, and popularly used as a tokui (favorite) kata in Shodan examinations. The reason for this is that it is perceived as a simple kata, with no fancy moves or jumps to hide behind. Thus Jion is uniquely well suited to display one’s overall technique. This also makes Jion a favorite on the competition floor, when many participants prefer to start off their tournaments with a performance of Jion.
The kata has often been grouped with two others viz Jiin and Jitte, since all three start with similar hand over fist stance.
Jion in particular though is believed to have got its name from Jion-ji temples in China where martial arts were practiced.
While Jion may appear technically simple, it demands a high level of understanding and practice to perform correctly, with a strong emphasis on proper stance and movement. In addition, under its seeming simplicity Jion conceals a powerful fighting spirit, and the the karateka performing the kata would do well to strike a meaningful balance between executing the movements with strength and power, whilst maintaining mercy and grace, in honor of the meaning of Jion, being “Mercy of Love “ or “Mercy of the Temple”.
Interestingly, with 47 movements Jion is the second longest kata after Kankudai.
We look forward to Aneel Sensei taking us through this powerful but graceful kata.
