On the evening of Thursday, May 15, the karate students of Toshikan Martial Arts (located in the Tin Town area of Courtenay) performed 108 kata as a fundraiser for the Comox Valley Community Justice Centre.
It was intended that at least $108 would be donated to CV Community Justice, and $140 was raised. "The guiding principles of Community Justice are complementary with those of traditional karate," said Toshikan sense Mac Newton.
Kata are a series of karate techniques combined into a moving pattern that simulates self-defence and allows practitioners to practice karate both physically and mentally.
Newton said 108 is a special number in the practice of traditional goju-ryu karate, as it is in yoga and in Buddhism. In Japanese, the word for 108 is suparinpei.
On May 15 Newton led the beginner children's class in 36 kata, then the advanced children's class in 36 kata, and then the adult class in 36 kata. The 108 kata took about three hours to complete.
– Toshikan Martial Arts