There is some Ti in Karate, yet no Karate in Ti... This has been told to me several times and I do see what they mean.
Karate is like learning to write block letters in Grade School, Ti is like cursive or even Calligraphy on a deeper level.
I am no expert in Ti as I have only been training it for a couple years now, and I doubt I will ever reach the level of expertise as my seniors and our Teacher.
I do, however, feel as though one would need some grounding in Karate in order to train Ti to any degree.
It is not something that is meant to be stylized, compartmentalized, or organized into a cirriculum like Karate.
It is more akin to what Musashi meant when he referred to 'Heiho,' or so I have read, yet feel this to be true.
There is no 'technique' in Ti, there are no 'stances' or fixed 'postures,' no broken points. Nothing to classify as a block, a punch, a kick, or, put another way, no Bunkai or Oyo whatsoever.
There is functional form, there are lines, but these are continuous flows without breaking poi ts and one utilizes whatever is given from which to flow.
Karate will break things down on a first grade level, but really is only a pathway towards something beyond fixed forms and all that. This has been lost or repressed somewhere along the way and because of this there is no difference in seeing how a Kata is done between a low level senior and a high ranking so-called Black Belt.
At least in the majority of cases, although there are some exceptions who seem to have grasped at the root... I am not altogether convinced that they did not train Ti to some rudimentary level.
With exceptions to this rule there comes exceptions to every rule, not everyone will understand Ti, nor will they be able to utilize it properly, especially if they cannot let go of previous notions or seek to promote themselves as anything special... This tends to get in the way of learning anything.
Ti, like any Martial Practice, is prone to some seriously big headed people that do not truly seek to learn Ti as Ti, but seek the label of Ti to add to a brand they are attempting to market... Very much a Karate mindset... Seeking to be a founder of some system or other that incorporates Ti and i flate rank as well as ego.
Seeking titles over training, some higher place in the heirarchy where one can pretend to know, yet dole out bad information.
Then there are those who seek the knowledge only to pretend it is their own, shunning their Teacher in order to i flate themselves so as to procure greater book sales and seminar attendence... Again, doling out incorrect and/or incomete information.
Ti does not purport to be anything other than what it is.
It is not some moral path, it is a combative science, although Genten No Ti draws heavily from the Okinawan Philosopher Tei Junsoku, who does espouse some highly moral, almost Stoic, teachings.
There is no talk of Ki/Chi, nothing mystical, yet in its' down to earth, grounded, and practical approach to all things it is, indeed, very mystical without the added 'woo' one would normally find associated with an Asian Martial Art.
Okinawa was a spiritual society with a belief in animism and intrinsic spirit, but the head of spirituality was the realm of female shaman, this had nothibg to do with Martial Science... Although both were, and are, highly respected.
Much to the chagrin of another Goju Ryu Karateka I had interacted with, Ti, in its' purest form, has no Kata... If a Kata is used it is nothing more than a tool... It follows different pathways, different variations, one should be able to move in infinite lines along a tangient... As a sphere, within a sphere.
So, no technique, no stances, no Kata, no Karate... Ti exists within and beyond the point of really knowing for certain... Other than the attitude... A Tijigaya is always ready... Not that that applies to me, but certainly an ideal to shoot for.
Cling to the other stuff all we like, ultimately that which sits stagnant and u changing is dead.
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