Kata · Heian series
The Heian series — Shodan through Godan — are the foundation kata of Shotokan, learned from white belt up. Created by Ankō Itosu around 1900 (originally called Pinan) to introduce karate into schools, they teach the core stances, blocks and strikes in a graded sequence. Master these five and you hold the vocabulary the entire system is built on.
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