“I don’t mean to suggest that I have a totally negative opinion about karate-do’s competitive element, it’s just that I feel that it is too shallow. Regardless of whether it is Okinawa, the Japanese mainland, or the world in general, jiu-kimite (free sparring) ignores the principles to which kata apply. Simply put, jiu-kumite should reflect the kata, because kata is the origin of karate-do. If there is no kata, it is not karate-do, just kicking and punching.” ??
.
Shōshin Nagamine (15 July 1907 – 2 November 1997) Matsubayashi-ryu
.
.
Many people believe that kata are outdated and useless and should no longer be practiced. But the key to the purpose of kata is the intent in its practice. Those who train in karate that don’t utilize kata so much, will tend to have a very limited understanding of them. If you see kata as a necessary evil only there to pass a grade, and not seeing the relevance to the karate you are practicing, then you will never really understand karate.
.
To say that kata is useless is like an illiterate looking at a book and saying it’s just a stack of paper.
.
It may be useless for those who cannot read, but the value within it, is surely greater than the person imagines. ??
.
.
With thanks to @purokarate