Welcome to the KenpoPedia > Forms > Form 5 > Frequently Asked Questions > Why is the salutation illustrated as part of the form in this book?

If one were to look through the lower form books in this series, they would observer that, up to now, the salutation is illustrated in a separate, prior section from the illustration of the form. This was purposely done to highlight the fact that the salutation is considered a separate entity from the form, and is, for the most part, not considered part of a form; but rather an adjunct added to the beginning and end of a form for denoting the style, the form, and respect. The salutation does this in a physical and purposely non-verbal manner (see "Salutation" sections of this and prior books in this series for more information on this subject).

With the execution of Form Five (and Form Four), this physical delineation of the salutation from the form starts to become blurred. This beckons the question as to why?

One of the major themes that is commonly conveyed and reinforced throughout the American Kenpo system is the principal of Economy of Motion. One would be correct in saying that this is one of its founding principles. But this overall concept is a very broad subject; and the problem with a broad concept such as this is that varying specific details about it can easily be overlooked, missed, and/or misunderstood. For example, if one were to take a closer look at the subject of Economy of Motion they would find saying like: "remove wasted motion" and "there should be no meaningless motion" are encompassed by this larger topic. But these are only two of many examples replete within all the divisions of the system.

But, what does this have to do with the answer to this question? Simply put, SGM Parker was also aware of this issue and decided to highlight it within the execution of the forms. But how? By taking what is commonly considered not part of the form, but performed along with the form, and integrating it further and further into the execution of the form; throughout the upper forms. This started with ending of Form Four, where parts of the physical execution of the salutation were given practical meaning, thus, highlighting and eliminating the "meaningless motion" of the salutation. Motion that had no practical value within the form itself, but now does.

In Form Five, this same subject is exposed differently by ways of using the opening salutation (e.g. the opposite end of the form). This was done by not completing the full salutation, but rather the beginning maneuver of the form (e.g. Protecting Fans) is executed instead. In other words, this is accomplished by eliminating the close to attention maneuver of the salutation, and instead short-cutting the salutation with the opening of the form, at an inopportune position (but transitional - e.g. intersection position) within the salutation. This highlights not only the use of the Formulation Equation, but is done in tandem with the idea of further highlighting one major theme of the form; "out of position"; and thus, also the "economy of motion" principle.

And in typical SGM Parker fashion, what is typically passed down to the student is the "out of position" portion of the lesson. But, the broader concept of "economy of motion" is purposely omitted and left up to the student to deduce on their own.

This practice, in and of itself, is useful and excels in encouraging practitioners to think on their own, but also leads to many questions. And, this may be a good or a bad thing. In other words, unless there is a guide such as this one (either a person or in writing), which fully answers such probing questions, important information like the subject just discussed may be lost with successive generations of disciples of American Kenpo. Therefore, it is imperative that questions such as these are answered in a definitive and complete manner, and be accessible to all.

And finally, to answer the specific question posed: a purposeful decision was made to highlight the topic discussed by merging the salutation illustration into the illustration of the form; just like it is done in the form.

For more information on this subject, see "The Salutation" portion of this or prior books in this series.