The ancient masters of karate passed on their fighting techniques in movements called kata.Kata consists of a series of techniques,performed in a set sequence.A given self defense movement might involve only two postures while the kata may have twenty or more.The small groups of movement are linked together to form the whole kata.
It is my opinion that students learned the kata and sometimes didn't stick around to learn the meanings to the movements. Character was a big issue then(I feel)that kept the hidden bunkai secret until the teacher thought the student to be worthy.
To many, kata possess aesthetically pleasing quality and the bunkai is not important.The outward quality of kata well suit their needs,but many feel the need to explore their kata further for real self defense value.
I assure you,kata possess genuine combative applications which can emerge with good instruction and lots of repetition.
Let's keep kata alive and continue to pass down the art and the self defense.Thoughts?