Fighting without an Opponent. An Analysis of Intentionality in Shotokan kata

The aim of this paper is exploring how the kata of Shotokan karate constitute an embodied intentionality. Kata, a traditional way of training in karate for more than a century, consists in fighting without the presence of a real opponent. The article enquires about the origin of its meaning and the way in which its intentionality is expressed. Kata can be considered a narrative text that tells the story of a fight while mimicking it in such a way that every pre-established technique bears a specific meaning. Kata involve time and space because they reflect a predetermined set of sequential techniques that realize the intentionality and meaningfulness of a karateka’s practice. During the practice of kata, the karateka’s bodily attitude, both sensible and sentient, is expressed through fine-tuning aimed at establishing a causal relationship with an external, imaginary being, so that intentionality takes on the reflexive knowledge of the body. Intentionality affects form and strength, gestures and postures, incarnating a combative logic behind each of these elements. It is a sort of order of consciousness regarding mind and body, entailing active participation and involvement. It is a reflexive and discursive consciousness that requires knowledge and interiorization of the techniques that are embodied by the karateka and memorized in his/her mind. When performing kata, the karateka masters the consequences of the techniques because he/she appears as the intentional agent of the action that makes the ideal fighting something that can be accepted and understood or acknowledged. The paper points out that the kata’s intentionality concerns both creation of meaning by the observer — who can reconstruct the fighting between two opponents — and the original purposes of the master that has designed the scheme of techniques; moreover, it implies the possibility of recognizing that surplus of sense which legitimizes belonging to a certain culture.