Martial Art or Self-Defence?

Is there a difference between learning a martial art and learning self-defence?

No! You all cry, by learning a martial art you are learning self-defence, they are (or should be) the same thing.

But are they, really?

I don’t think they are the same thing, not exactly; they are overlapping but serve slightly different purposes. Let me explain….

I think that the difference between learning a martial art and learning self-defence is a difference in purpose, focus and mindset.

Learning karate as a martial art is about preservation of the art for future generations. The purpose is one of ensuring all aspects of the system are conserved and passed on in their entirety to the student, warts and all. The focus is on the art, not the student. The mindset is to explore the secrets of the kata. Exploration of kata will reveal many techniques that have no place in the modern world of self-defence, techniques that are illegal and excessive and would have you in the dock if you were to use them to defend yourself, such as neck breaks.

One hundred and fifty years or so ago in Okinawa the death of an opponent during a confrontation did not necessarily result in imprisonment. The karate master Chotoku Kyan was said to have caused the death of a rival, Chokuho Agena, following a disagreement, by jumping onto him from a tree and breaking his neck.* Today this would be classed as murder but back then this just resulted in a feud between their families that lasted for years.

Social, legal and political systems have changed over the years but a martial art remains pretty much the same – a snapshot of an older time, preserved for historical reference. The kata are like historical documents, revealing the fighting techniques of a previous age. It takes many, many years to learn a martial art.

I am making it sound as if martial arts are irrelevant to a modern age of self-defence. Of course they are not. There is much in these ancient fighting systems that are still relevant to us – the skill is in picking out these techniques and strategies and re-packaging them for today’s students.

This brings me to self-defence. Where the purpose of learning a martial art is about preservation of the art, the purpose of learning self-defence is about preservation of the individual, i.e. teaching students how to defend themselves. The mindset is different. The instructor’s role is now about selecting appropriate techniques from the repository of ancient ones that are suitable for the type of students he/she is teaching. The focus is on the student, not the art.

This is the basis of good Reality Based Self-Defence systems (RBSD) and short self-defence courses aimed at particular groups of people such as women or University students. With RBSD the instructor will have developed his system by selecting a subset of techniques probably from a range of different martial arts and re-packaging them. He will have selected techniques based on what he thinks works best from his own experience or the experience of others and with a knowledge of how violence plays out in the real world and the risks his client group face. I doubt the students would be taught how to snap someone’s neck. The result should be that the students learn to defend themselves adequately in a relatively short period of time.

However, these RBSD systems have their limitations. They will contain instructor bias – the instructor will have chosen only those techniques which he feels are appropriate and will ignore those he doesn’t like. We all have different preferences and thus each RBSD system will be a slightly different microcosm of martial arts based self-defence centred on the instructor’s world view. Techniques that may suit some student’s better will have been lost or ignored and some student’s may find that they trail from one school to another trying to find something suitable.

Going back to martial arts systems, the problem for the student looking to learn self-defence is the opposite. They are being taught everything - relevant and irrelevant for a modern world, often spending lots of time analysing kata moves that reveal only past fighting glories and could not be used today. Amongst this are the highly useful and relevant techniques. Students are often left to pick their own way through this plethora of kata moves, identifying what is useful and legal and what should be consigned to history.

So, is it possible to become proficient at personal self-defence when you are in the environment of learning a martial art?

Well, yes but it relies on two things: a willingness of the student to study and learn about the nature of violence, the law as it relates to self-defence and to think intelligently about the aspects of the art that are relevant to them personally for their own self-protection. Secondly, an instructor who is clear in his/her own mind when he/she is teaching the ancient art (focus on art) and when he/she is teaching relevant self-defence (focus on student). This may prove a longer and more tortuous way of learning self-defence but the student may learn many other useful things along the way which relate to personal development of a more ethereal nature (mind/body unity, character development, a sense of spirituality and controlling one’s own mind and body better). These are things that won’t be learnt in the more pragmatic environment of a RBSD system.

I think it is important that we continue to have clubs that focus on teaching martial arts as art, to preserve the ancient fighting systems in their entirety and to further the historical research into the meaning of the kata. This is as much an intellectual pursuit as a practical one and suits many people.

However, some people have a real need to learn self-defence, either because of personal risky lifestyles or because they work in an environment where they may need to confront an aggressor such as in the police force, prison services or the military. These people may need more targeted training than a martial art can offer and are probably better off accessing a RBSD club or a targeted self-defence course.

These are my personal views; I think that martial art and self-defence are not entirely interchangeable. What do you think and why? 

* ref: Okinawa No Bushi No Te by Ronald L. Lindsey. Page 79.

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Seipai - not just a Goju Ryu kata

One of my current kata is the Naha-te derived kata, Seipai. This kata is generally a staple of the Goju Ryu stylists and remains remarkably unaltered across all Gojo ryu schools. However, it is also a kata that was taught by Kenwa Mabuni in his Shito Ryu style and is still taught in many branch styles of Shito Ryu, including Shukokai. In our system of Shukokai karate this kata is first introduced once 1st dan is achieved.

There is little to found on the history and origins of this kata other than the kanji for Seipai apparently translates to the number 18 if you use the Okinawan dialect. However, the kanji for Sei can also mean 'controlling'. The kata is generally attributed to Kanryo Higaonna who is said to have brought the kata back from Fuzhou district in China. However there is no evidence to support this. It is also thought that seipai may have its origins in the Dragon style of Shaolin kung fu.

Wherever Seipai has it's origins it is typically a Naha-te style kata, with it's fairly slow tempo and rooted stances, particularly the use of sanchin dachi and shiko dachi. There are also lots of circular arm movements, again typical of the Naha-te style. This kata pairs well with Seienchin kata and anyone who has learnt both kata will notice that they have a similar 'feel' to them.

I love these Naha-te kata and wish we had more of them in our syllabus. They make a nice counter-balance to the faster, more explosive linear katas of the Shuri-te style. I actually found the embusen to Seipai difficult to learn  as there are lots of changes of direction and it can be easy to lose sight of where the 'front' is when you are first learning this kata. However, now that I've got the hang of it it is one of my favourite kata and there's some pretty interesting bunkai to learn too.

Here's a video of Seipai:

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Kata: Nipaipo (karate), Er Shi Ba (White Crane Kung Fu)

Nipaipo (Nepai) meaning 28 ‘beats’ or steps, is a shito-ryu kata developed by Kenwa Mabuni. It descends through the Naha-te lineage of shito-ryu. Mabuni’s influence for this kata came from Gokenki, a Chinese tea merchant who moved to Okinawa in 1912. An expert in the Southern Chinese style of Whooping Crane Kung Fu (Baihequan) he set up home in Kume village just a short distance away from Matsuyama Park and close to the Ryukyu Tode-jutsu Kenkyukai (a hidden and secret underground Karate research society).  

He started teaching his brand of white crane kung fu to karate masters at the Ryukyu Tode-jutsu Kenkyukai, including Kenwa Mabuni, Chojun Miyagi, Juhatsu Kyoda and Shinpo Matayoshi. He taught several white crane forms including Nipaipo. However this version of the kata is not the same as the karate version developed by Mabuni, though it did influence it; the original Chinese white crane version, called Er shi Ba (28 constellations), is longer and performed using the softer, more flowing moves of kung-fu.

Here’s the karate version of the kata: 

Here's the original White Crane version:

The World Karate Federation has adopted Nipaipo as a mandatory kata to be performed in the early stages of WKF kata competitions. 

Nipaipo is a 2nd dan kata on our syllabus and thus one of my current kata.

22nd June update: 

Since writing this post I have had some e-mail correspondence with Joe Harte, a Taiji instructor of over 20 years experience. He said:

“Traditionally in the white crane world the form was called ershiba lohan, meaning “28buddhas" or "28sages" but sometimes shortened to just  ershiba.

In the Taiji syllabus we refer to it as Quickfist as it’s the only fast form we use in master Huangs system of taiji.  More formally it’s called SanFeng Quickfist in reference to the legendary founder of Taiji, Chang San Feng, and also in recognition that master Huang changed the emphasis of this form over his lifetime so now it is externally the same as the white crane version but internally has a different flavour – towards the pure taiji principles.”

Thanks Joe, look forward to meeting you at Marfest!

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Does reading about martial arts enhance your practice?

How important do you think it is to read about martial arts as well as practise it? Does reading about it enhance your ability to actually do it? Personally, I think that it does. Here are my reasons why I think reading is important:

#1.  It provides an historical and cultural context for your art. To truly understand something you need to know where it has come from, who developed it, what kind of people were they, what motivated them to develop such an art, what events were happening at the time, what kind of weapons were used and an understanding of the legal framework at the time of development.  By understanding such historical, cultural and legal references it becomes easier to work out what fighting techniques are still relevant in today’s society and which would now be illegal or historically defunct – preserved only for posterity.  Understanding kata is helped by learning about the historical background of the kata and its developer – what was he trying to achieve with the kata? What was he trying to hide?

#2.  Reading about the principles of strategy, tactics and techniques can help you to really pull things together and make sense of what you are learning in the dojo. Instructors tend to vary a lot in the amount of talking and explanation they give to students about the techniques they are learning but there’s no excuse for not educating yourself if you feel your instructor is too quiet on the theory side of martial arts.

#3. Reading about the psychological and spiritual side of martial arts can enhance your appreciation of the importance of the mind in the practice of martial arts. Being able to focus the mind, empty the mind, control thoughts and emotions, or just think about what you are doing is the key to moving your physical skills to the next level. Learning techniques, such as meditation, that enable us to master control of our minds are every bit as important as learning physical techniques that enable us to master our bodies.  Reading alone will not help you gain these mental skills but at least it helps you to understand their importance and set you on the path to gaining them.

#4. Understanding how conflicts arise between people and how they can be avoided, defused or managed using non-violent methods is just as important as learning how to deal with physical conflict. The really skilled martial artist is one who never gets into a fight because they know how to read people and situations and how to handle aggression or conflict in non-violent ways. Some martial arts clubs may cover this kind of learning but many don’t. Again, that’s no excuse for not educating yourself on this important area of training. Reading about conflict and conflict resolution can help you identify the gaps in your training and motivate you to seek out relevant courses, seminars etc to plug these gaps.

#5.  Reading about fitness, stretching and general exercise techniques along with improving your understanding of the human body and how it reacts to injury etc. helps to inform you the best ways to get physically fit for your martial art and how to avoid injury. There are many books that teach the principles of exercise and stretching as well as giving many exercises to try. There are also many books providing more martial arts specific exercises to provide a more coherent and relevant framework for developing your body to do the things you want it to do. Again, reading has to translate into doing.

These are just a few of the reasons why I think reading is important and how it can enhance your understanding of martial arts so that you become a well rounded, skilled and knowledgeable martial artist and not merely a performer.

Do you read?  What are your reasons for reading about martial arts?

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Kenwa Mabuni books - now translated into English...

Just when I thought it was impossible to get hold of any books written by Kenwa Mabuni, founder of shito ryu, that were translated into English I came across Lulu.com - a self-publishing website. Here I discovered two books written by Mabuni and translated into English by karate sensei - Mario McKenna.

The first is Karate Kempo: The art of self-defense. Mabuni wrote this in 1934. Interestingly this book is about the art of 'goju-ryu kenpo'. It is one of Mabuni's early written works (he was a very prolific writer, writing several books and articles during the 1930s and 1940s, but none were ever translated into English). It is a work about the then fledgling art of karate-do and was intended as a general introduction to the art.

As McKenna says in the blurb: Karate Kenpo provides a rare glimpse of Mabuni's ideas about the history and development of karate-do on Okinawa. It also introduces the fundamentals of his art including warm-up, basic techniques, stances, training equipment and the fundamental kata san chin and the advanced kata seiunchin.

In the book Mabuni outlines the steps for sanchin kata and seiunchin using line drawings. He also covers bunkai for seiunchin. I'm always amazed at how well conserved many kata are. I could only identify one small difference between Mabuni's description of seiunchin and the way I have been taught it today - remarkable!

The second Mabuni book that was available was: The study of Seipai: the secrets of self-defence karate kenpo. In this book Mabuni chose to use photos (mainly of himself) to illustrate the steps of the kata seipai rather than line drawings. Again the bunkai is described and illustrated clearly.

The second half of this book reveals the (then) secret text and diagrams called the Bubishi. Kenwa Mabuni was the first person to publish this text which is now known as the 'karate bible'. In McKenna's translation of Mabuni's book he has left the Bubishi untranslated stating that there are now many English translations of this book available.

Mabuni writes this foreword to the Bubishi section of his book:

"On the recommendation of my friend, I made a copy of a Chinese book on kenpo called Bubishi that my venerated teacher, Anko Itosu, had duplocated himself. I have used the Bubishi in my research and have secretly treasured it, however in this current age of growth and popularity of karate kenpo, I am hesitant to keep this book to myself for even one more day. If this benefits even a little those researchers' passionate about karate, then I will be very pleased. Kenwa Mabuni"


What I particularly like about owning these books is that not only is it like hearing it straight from the horses mouth but I feel like I own a little bit of karate history myself. The book is obviously written in the present tense but it is about the practice of karate in the 1930's in Okinawa and Japan. Thus you get statements like:

"...The founder of our style, Goju-Ryu kenpo, Kanryo higaonna Sensei travelled to China to study Kenpo (mastering Chinese Fujian style Kenpo). Furthermore, my senior Chojun Miyagi travelled to China to conduct study into Kenpo and is presently still there."


and: "Presently on Okinawa young people freely practice in various systems such as Higaonna-ha, Itosu-ha, Maezato-ha, Shimabuku-ha, Ishimine-ha, Azato-ha etc."


Reading books like these very much makes karate history come alive to me, so thank you Sensei McKenna for bringing these translations to us.

I also have to praise the Lulu.com service: all their books are printed and bound after you order them and then shipped out. Both these books could only be shipped to the UK from the US but from initial order to receiving the books took less than a week, so well done Lulu!

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Kosokun Shio - 'To view the sky'

One of the kata that I am currently learning for nidan is Kosokun Shio. Whenever I learn a new kata I like to explore the origins and history of it. I think this is important because many kata, particularly older ones, have many cultural or historical references in them that may make them difficult to understand or interpret if you are not aware of the kata’s founder or the political/cultural situation at the time the kata was developed.

Kosokun shio is almost an exclusively Shito Ryu/Shukokai kata and is generally attributed to Mabuni Kenwa (the founder of Shito Ryu). This makes the kata comparatively modern (i.e. early 20^th Century) but since this kata is almost certainly an amalgam of the kata Kushanku Dai and Kushanku Sho, it‘s roots are much older. We therefore, need to look at the origins of the Kushanku kata to truly understand Kosokun shio.

The Kushanku kata are attributed to ‘Tode’ Sakugawa (b.1733) who developed them in recognition and remembrance of one of his teachers – Kushanku (Also known as Kong Su Kung, Kwang Shang Fu and Guan Kui) who was a Chinese envoy sent to Okinawa around 1756. It is said that Kushanku learned the art of ch’uan Fa in China from a Shaolin Monk. 

Apparently Kushanku was a specialist in ‘night fighting’ and grappling. In Okinawa during the mid 18^th century (during the Satsuma occupation and the banning of bladed weapons) military combat usually occurred during the daytime but ‘self-defence’ fighting between civilians usually occurred at night.  It would have been a fairly common experience to be attacked whilst walking home in the dark, perhaps beaten unconscious and robbed. Grappling techniques are ideal for dealing with an attacker in the dark when you cannot see to kick and punch.

Kushanku taught his night fighting techniques to Sakugawa, who was his student for 6 years. There is a story that Sakugawa, on route to China in a boat, was attacked by pirates at night as they approached Fuzhou harbour. The pirates' usual tactic would be to board the boat and throw everyone overboard to drown, thus escaping with the entire ship and any treasure. However, on this occasion, Sakugawa’s night fighting skills took the pirates by surprise. He was able to single-handedly defeat the pirate crew, grappling with them and throwing them all overboard!

It is not surprising then that the Kushanku katas that Sakugawa went on to develop were designed to be ‘night fighting’ kata. The opening move of the kata, where the arms draw a big circle in front of the body, is thought to represent the moon and is to remind you that this kata is teaching you how to fight in the dark.

According to Bruce Clayton in Shotokan’s secrets, the kata has three aims: (1) To avoid being caught by the enemy, (2) To locate and attack the enemy in the dark and (3) To remain in control of the enemy until he has been defeated.  In other words you need to touch the enemy before you can strike them and once you’ve got hold of them you need to finish them off.

It is said that the kata should also teach the enhancement of the senses, particularly hearing and touch both of which would be particularly important in the dark.

As I said earlier Kosokun shio is an amalgam of the two Kushanku kata or at least combines many techniques from both of them. Though Kosokun shio is practised only by shito ryu stylists, Kushanku kata are practised by Isshin ryu, shotokan (where it is called Kanku Dai) and possibly other styles of shuri-te karate.

If you are familiar with Kosokun shio or the Kushanku katas then you will have noticed that they have several combinations that appear in the pinan kata series, particularly pinans shodan, yondan and godan. It is thought that Itosu created the pinan katas partly from the Kushanku katas.

Here’s a video of Kosokun Shio:

References: 
Shotokan's Secret, the hidden truth behind karate's fighting origins. by Bruce D Clayton Ph.D
To view the sky: http://www.newsfinder.org/site/readings/kushanku_to_view_the_sky/
Kusanku, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C5%ABsank%C5%AB

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Gyaku Zuki - odd punch out?

I have been working on individual kihon techniques quite a lot recently as part of my shodan preparations and have come to the conclusion that gyaku zuki (reverse punch) is the odd man out. Gyaku zuki is often considered to be the definitive punch in karate with lots written about it's bio mechanics and its ability to deliver a hard, powerful punch.

If you think about it though the principle of the reverse punch is contra to just about every other technique in karate. Let me explain.....

A while back I wrote an article about nanba aruki which is a principle of moving in which the same arm and leg are moved together so that movement pivots around the centre line of the body. The Japanese people used to walk like this all the time prior to the Meiji Restoration in the 19th century after which they started to adopt all things Western, including walking with opposing arms and legs. However the principle of nanba aruki in inherent in most classical martial arts.

Lets think of a few techniques and examine whether they use nanba aruki principles:
oi zuki (lunge punch) - yes (punching over the leading leg)
sekyaku zuki (half step punch) - yes (punch with same leg that you step with)
maeken zuki (leading hand punch) - yes ( leading hand pulls back and then punches out over leading leg)
empi (elbow) strikes - yes (if you step back into cat stance to strike behind you its same side arm as leg. If you step forward to strike it's also the same side.)

Common combinations of stances and blocks:
Niko ashi dachi (cat stance) with shuto uchi uke (knife hand strike)- yes
Kokutsu dachi (back stance) with gedan barai (downward sweeping block) - yes

Sanchin dachi (hour glass stance) with tsukami uke (2 handed grasping block) - yes

All tai sabaki movements utilise nanba aruki as well - it's quicker and more efficient to move this way.

Then there's gyaku zuki! This punch is generally performed in zenkutsu dachi (forward stance) though it can be performed in cat stance. Whatever the stance, by definition the gyaku zuki contradicts the principle of nanba aruki and is therefore definitely the odd man out!

So where has it come from? I'm not doubting for one moment the effectiveness of this punch, merely the origin. If you examine the kata you find that the gyaku zuki does not appear very often. I could only examine the kata that I know but I have found that the older the kata the less likely you are to see gyaku zuki. In the kyu grade kata of our system the gyaku zuki appears in only 5 out of 13 kata: Pinan shodan, Pinan godan, Annanku, Neiseishi and Matsukazi (Wankan). The Pinans and Annanku are relatively modern kata (late 19th, early 20th Century), Neiseishi has many versions, some of them fairly modern i.e early 20th Century. However all these kata were developed post Meiji restoration and are all Shuri te or Tomari te kata. The exception to the rule is Matsukazi kata which is very ancient (its origin may be 400 years old), its roots are in the Hakkyoku ken system from Northern China.

I initially thought that the gyaku zuki was a modern addition to karate (20th century) but the fact that it is in Matsukazi kata suggests that it has been around a while. However I would suspect that it has been popularised by the rise in sports karate during the mid-late 20th century and by the fact that the Japanese adopted Western principles of movement in sport.

What do you think about gyaku zuki? Old or modern? Odd man out? Do you know any other karate techniques that are contra to the nanba aruki principle?

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The Black Belt Paradox

A couple of weeks ago I received a comment to one of my posts in which the commentator SCB said: "I hear "time in grade" references; I hear "syllabus" and other such things that cause me concern as to what black belt means so would like to see you post on that subject, "What black belt means to me?"".

I think that the subtext behind this comment is what do I think about the concept of a syllabus focused kyu grading system with the acquisition of coloured belts and the coveted black belt?

When I started this blog nearly two years ago I was a purple belt (4th kyu). At that point in my training the idea of ‘journeying to black belt’ seemed like a reasonable target to pursue in a martial art. Isn’t that what every martial artist wants? I then became aware through listening to other more experienced martial artists and through my own personal development that ‘it isn’t about getting a black belt – it’s about the training’.

I have also become aware that many people don't agree with the coloured belt ranking system and prefer a system that observes the more traditional training method whereby students wear a white belt until their sensei deems them proficient enough in the mental and physical aspects of their art to be awarded the black belt. Do I agree with these view points? Err..yes and err..no!

Yes I agree that it’s not just about getting the black belt. I don’t want to follow some watered down syllabus that fast tracks me to shodan. I want to immerse myself more fully in the physical, mental and cultural aspects of martial arts and I need time to do that properly. BUT… I like my brown belt and I liked all the coloured belts I had before – they are markers of my progress, they help me put my new found skills and knowledge into context, they motivate me. They are like mini rewards for the effort I have made. And yes, I want that black belt.

Lets look at the origins of the kyu/dan grading system and what its inventor, Professor Jigoro Kano the 'Father of judo', was trying to achieve with his system. The kyu/dan grading system was introduced into judo in 1883. Initially it was just a white belt for ungraded students and a black belt for graded students.

Prior to this a student would train under a master for many years learning only the few techniques and kata that he wanted to teach. After several years a few trusted students may be taught some more dangerous 'hidden techniques'. Many students would train for years with a master, learning only a limited range of techniques and if they left they would have nothing to show for all their efforts. Occasionally the master may issue them with a scroll which listed the techniques they had learnt. It was very difficult for most students to learn a complete system of fighting - only the trusted and dedicated few would achieve this honour. Martial arts had a 'closed shop' mentality.

All this changed with Kano's introduction of the belt ranking system. He extended the white/black belt approach to include a range of coloured belts and introduced the concept of a systematised syllabus that gradually built up from elementary moves to increasingly more difficult concepts as the students skill and knowledge developed. Each stage of the process was marked with awarding the student the next coloured belt. Once all the techniques of the entire syllabus had been learnt the student was awarded the black belt to signify they now knew all the basics of their art.

The advantage of the belt ranking system was that all students now had the opportunity to learn an entire fighting method in a logical and systematised way. Judo had now become an 'open shop' allowing many more students to train. Gichin Funakoshi soon saw the potential of the belt ranking system for karate as he introduced karate to Japan. Adopting the belt system made karate more acceptable to the Japanese government and allowed Funakoshi to propagate it within the Japanese university network. From there it spread to the world.

If you are a critic of the coloured belt ranking system remember that without it Eastern martial arts may never have spread around the world and may still be the preserve of small secretive dojos training only handfuls of students. Instead hundreds of thousands of people around the world are able to participate and enjoy the benefits of learning Eastern martial arts.

However, I accept that the belt ranking system has its drawbacks. It has been abused by many clubs or organisations who have developed a very narrow syllabus that does not teach a complete fighting method. This goes against Kano's original aim of enabling all students to access a complete fighting system. A martial arts system is only going to be as good as its syllabus so if the syllabus is incomplete then so will the resulting martial art be. This does not mean that the principle of the belt grading system is flawed, only the martial arts system that is using it incorrectly.

The other problem of the belt ranking system is that it can focus the student's attention to much on the next grading rather than on the process of training. Again, if this is happening it is the fault of the instructor rather than the belt ranking system. In our club we are not syllabus focused all the time. Many students do not even access their syllabus from the website trusting that through their training they will be taught the things they need to know.

Karate often avoids the pitfalls of being over focused on syllabus by engaging in whole class teaching. In our club, the only time we split into grade groups is to practice kata but even then we often do kata practice as a class - revising more junior kata and trying to copy more senior kata from more senior students. Learning is circular in karate and this is reflected in our syllabus. We are tested on some of the same material every grade - obviously we are expected to perform it at a more proficient level as we progress.

I think the belt ranking system is a positive introduction to martial arts, allowing it to be accessible to a much wider number of students. Any faults that one can level at it are generally faults of its application rather than its principle. It is up to the student to find a club that applies the principle well so that they learn a complete and comprehensive martial art system. The belt ranking system does not mean that the belt is more important than the training - the training will always be the most important thing but students in the junior ranks need external motivators, need structure and order and this is provided by the ranking system. As you become more experienced then motivation internalises more and you become less dependent on rank. This takes experience and wisdom to understand.

When I look at who it is that tells me it’s not about the black belt or that we don’t need coloured belts, I realise that they are all (no dis-respect is meant here) – black belts! It seems to me one needs to acquire the wisdom and experience of a black belt to realise that getting the black belt is not important and only really represents the beginning. I can ‘know’ this but it remains precisely that – knowledge, not wisdom. I have to go through the process myself of converting this knowledge into wisdom through practice, learning and experience and to help me do this I need my belts, all of them! I call this the Black Belt Paradox – you need to acquire a black belt in order to truly understand that ‘it’s not about the black belt’.

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Seienchin kata - calm in the storm

In preparation for my black belt grading next year I have begun to learn the kata, Seienchin. Anyone who knows this kata will immediately remember the lingering pain in the thighs as much of this kata is spent in a deep shiko dachi (horse stance)!

Seienchin is the only kata in our kyu grade syllabus that comes from the Naha-te style of karate in Okinawa. The name of this kata is most commonly believed to mean "Calm in the storm". It seems likely that the kata originates from China and was brought back to Okinawa by Higashionna (Higaonna) Kanryo around 1883. Higashionna spent many years in  Fuzhou, a town in the Fujian province of China and learnt several styles of gongfu or 'monk fist boxing'.  On his return to Okinawa he developed the style of karate known as Naha-te, the forerunner of Goju Ryu karate.

Higashionna had many notable students, including Chojun Miyagi (founder of Goju-Ryu) and Kenwa Mabuni (founder of Shito-Ryu). Both of these masters would have learnt the kata from him and Seienchin kata is preserved in both these systems as well as in Isshin-ryu (Isshin-ryu's founder, Tatsuo Shimabuku, had been a student of Miyagi in his earlier years). Mabuni is generally credited with being the person who took Seienchin kata to Japan when he moved there with his family in 1920. Seienchin is believed to be one of the most conserved kata practiced by different styles.

Seienchin kata is described as having 'Yin and Yang' in its performance due to the contrast between hard and soft or slow and explosive. It is as if the 'storm erupts from the calm phases of the kata'. It utilises very low shiko dachi stances, and the dynamic breathing and block/striking techniques are typical of the Naha-te style.

Here's a video of the Shito-Ryu version of the kata:

 Sources: Seienchin (2nd edition) karate and the kata. Dr Jason Armstrong. http://www.downloadkarate.com/

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Nanba Aruki

For the able-bodied, walking seems like the most natural thing in the world. We learn to walk at such an early stage in our lives that I assumed the process of walking, with opposite arm swinging to leg, was due to some kind of biological programming. In other words, I assumed that our walking style was nature rather than nurture.

Then I read about nanba aruki. Now I realise that the way in which we walk is nurture rather than nature. It only feels natural because we have been doing it for so long!

Nanba aruki is a style of walking in which the same arm and leg are moved at the same time. The centre of gravity is lowered and the legs remain slightly bent with the torso relaxed. The left arm moves with the left leg and the right arm with the right leg. The centre line of the body acts as a pivot as the person takes small steps forward in this manner, landing on the ball of the foot first.

Here's some Nanba walking:

Nanba aruki was a style of walking that would have seemed very natural to the Japanese during the Edo period (1603-1868).  It is thought that the word nanba means 'difficult place' and aurki means 'to walk'. So one interpretation of nanba aurki is to walk away from a difficult place. In other words nanba walking was designed to get you out of a trouble or do difficult jobs more easily.

The bushi walked in this style and farmers tending the fields used a variation of it. It is difficult to walk in a sodden paddy field in the usual way so the farmers adopted a stance with the right leg and arm forward and shuffled forwards in this semi-sidewards position, pushing the hoe in front of them. This variant of nanba walking (where the same leg and arm remain in the front) is called hitoemi and essentially means to move the body along a single line as one mass. Hitoemi is used extensively in many sword arts as well as in bojutsu and other weapon arts.

The principles of nanba aruki are inherent in the classical Japanese martial arts including karate, aikido, jujitsu and kobujutsu. This style of movement is more energy efficient, less fatiguing and quicker than the more Western (sport/athletic) way of moving and suits martial arts in particular. The centre of gravity is kept low and centred; and the upper and lower parts of the body remain unified all the time. In the Edo period, samurai messengers and couriers (hikyaku) would travel between Edo and Kyoto (310 miles) in as little as 6 days running in nanba aruki :- that's 50 - 60 miles per day, carrying a load!

In martial arts the principles of hitoemi and nanba aruki are used in tai sabaki, most of the stances and kamae positions (same arm and leg forward) and oi zuki (step through punch). In the skillful practitioner this principle of movement allows concealment of the transfer of body weight because the torso remains relaxed and movement starts with the hips, projecting energy in a horizontal plane. The rotational movement around a central axis means the body can move as a whole and allows increased speed with little muscular effort.

Here's a video of some karate nanba:




 In Japan, nanba aruki fell out of favour during the Meiji restoration when Japan wished to adopt all things Western. People were taught and encouraged to walk with opposing arms swinging. Many martial arts became sports focused and adopted Western patterns of movement. Karate adopted the gyaku zuki (reverse punch) which actually aligns more with the boxing or kick-boxing techniques and is counter to the principles of classical karate and nanba aruki. Many people lament the introduction of western style sports principles into classical martial arts as they consider it to be a distortion and erosion of the essence of the art.

What do you think? Does your art utilise the principles of nanba aruki or have you adopted the western 'sports' way of moving?

Further reading:

http://www.nanbanote.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/The-Way-You-Walk.pdf
http://www.budomontreal.com/Document/History_of_movements.pdf

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Karate and the Sword....

I am currently reading a very interesting book by Mabuni Kenei (son of Mabuni Kenwa - founder of shito-ryu karate) called Empty Hand. I came across a very interesting section on the influence of the sword on the development of karate.

Now, I don't know about you but I don't tend to associate the use of the sword with karate. I associate it more with Japan, Samurai and jujitsu. It is not an Okinawan weapon. However, according to Mabuni Kenei, the philosophy and strategy underpinning Shuri-te style karate comes directly from the Jigen style sword techniques.

Shuri-te karate was developed and perfected by the 'Master of the fist', Matsumura Soken (1800-1896).  Shuri-te is widely believed to be an amalgam of native Okinawan te and Chinese kempo and both Matsumura and, before him, his teacher Sakugawa 'Tode' Shungo (1733-1815)  travelled to China to study Chinese kempo. However, Matsumura, who worked as a bodyguard and administrator at Shuri castle, was also sent to the Satsuma province on mainland Japan where he learned the Jigen sword technique.

The Jigen sword technique is different to other sword styles in that it only has one kamae position - hasso no kamae. In this position the sword is held pointing up to the sky with the elbows positioned at shoulder level and standing sideways on to your opponent. The swordsman then steps through with the back leg towards the opponent, swinging the sword down with great speed to cut the opponent diagonally from the neck through the chest and exiting the body underneath the opposite arm, accompanied by a loud kiai.

The aim of the Jigen technique is to kill with the first strike. Sound familiar? Training is aimed at performing this cut at increasingly faster and faster speeds until it is lightening quick. The highest level of perfection was called flame cloud. The speed of a flame cloud cut was one rin. In modern methods of measuring speed one rin equates to performing the cut in 0.00075 seconds! Masters of the Jigen technique were said to be able to, '... cut raindrops falling from the roof three times before they hit the ground.'  Training to achieve these speeds, which required a lot of mental concentration, was done using a wooden sword to hit a wooden block diagonally from left to right with a loud kiai. This training technique was called 'hitting a standing tree'.

Matsumura achieved flame cloud and became a Master of the Jigen sword technique.

Matsumura was highly influenced by his Jigen sword training and it was he who introduced the basic principle of 'kill with the first strike' into karate. It was also Matsumura who invented the makiwara striking post, based on the 'hitting a standing tree' technique, in order for the karateka to practice improving speed and mental tenacity with punching.

In karate the arms are often said to be our weapons. Master of the sword, Nakayama Hiromichi (1869-1958) said, '....the karate fist is definitely a sword.'

In my kobudo classes one of the weapons that I study is the bokken and I can attest that the principle of movement needed to perform a quick sword cut is the same as that needed to perform a rapid punch in karate - a combination of 'hard and soft' to achieve the whipping motion needed to generate speed. But then I shouldn't be surprised by that if karate striking techniques have been influenced by the sword...


Empty Hand - the essence of budo karate by Kenei Mabuni. Ed. by Carlos Molina.

 

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