Western New York Karate Center
Shihan Bill
August 12, 2016

Advancement of the Yudansha

A black belt is the common way to denote a person who has demonstrated sufficient competence in a martial arts system’s basic techniques, forms, and principles.  Since the start of the 20th century, martial arts schools have used a system of colored belts or stripes and specific testing criteria to guide a student’s training and mark progress to earning a black belt. When a student moves through all the kyu ranks and earns his or her first black belt, that student joins the “yudansha” or those who hold a dan rank.  Having earned the rank of a “1st Degree Black Belt, or “shodan,” literally meaning to have taken the “first step,” the martial artist can continue in their training and advance in dan and be awarded higher ranks within the yudansha.

But, while martial arts systems will make it clear how one can advance through the student or kyu ranks, advancement in the Black Belt or dan ranks becomes increasingly subjective.  In Isshin-Ryu, first through third dan Black Belts are considered to be assistant instructors, referred to as “shidoin” (versus “sensei”). Shidoin advance in the yudansha by demonstrating competence in advanced techniques, such as weapons use and weapons forms, as well as demonstrating competence in principles from other martial arts systems. But, once a shidoin is promoted to 4th degree Black Belt and attains full instructor status, addressed as “sensei,” there are no specific testing criteria for further advancement.

In Isshin-Ryu, the following ranks and honorific titles are observed after 3rd degree:

4th degree – Sensei or “instructor”
5th degree – Shihan or “chief instructor”
6th degree – Renshi or “expert instructor”
7th degree – Kyoshi or “master instructor” or “master”
8th degree – Hanshi or “grand master instructor” or “grand master”

Without specific training criteria, it is the duty of an advanced Black Belt to determine if a karateka is eligible for advancement.  Generally, such a “nomination” for advancement can only be made by a martial artist who is two ranks higher than the grade to which the candidate is to be promoted.  For example, a karateka of 7th degree or higher is considered qualified to determine if a karateka is eligible for promotion to 5th degree. Most typically, it is the master of a dojo who is charged with making all such evaluations for a given school.

Up to this point in training, advancement was simply a matter of competency in skills.  But, to advance further, past 3rd degree, other aspects must be considered. A higher dan should have an ever increasing depth of understanding of the system and a corresponding improvement in the ability to teach others. Moveover, if a Black Belt is to advance in the yudansha, that person should be seen as contributing to the promotion and/or growth of the martial arts. Finally, the ability of the candidate to provide leadership and/or serve as a role model will also be a significant consideration for promotion. While some have suggested that there are certain ages or numbers of years associated with promotions to advanced ranks in the yudansha, I feel this is an over simplification and generally misguided.  Certainly greater depth of understanding and the opportunities to contribute are greater with the passage of time, but talent and dedication can accomplish in less than a decade what some never will in a lifetime.

Finally, what must a candidate do in order to earn a promotion to an advanced rank?  While some schools use written exams or have the candidate provide some sort of demonstration, ultimately this is a means only to mark the occasion of promotion. Once nominated, all the karateka need do is to accept the nomination.  For the purpose of this article what I have called a nomination is actually an acknowledgement; seeing a karateka for the rank they truly hold. What is often the challenge in promotion to an advance dan is not the ability of others to recognize the advance rank of a karateka, but for a karateka to be able to perceive it for oneself.

Western New York Karate Center

Shihan Bill

July 8, 2016

Kaisai no genri

One of the definite challenges to a student as he or she prepares for a Black Belt grading is the creation of oyo. Oyo are fighting techniques that are extracted from kata through the process of bunkai, the martial arts term for “analysis” or “disassembly.”  Due to the history of secrecy in martial arts training, the “true” oyo in kata have been lost to time. What the author of traditional kata intended the kata to represent in terms of actual fighting techniques is unknown. Further, rarely do martial arts systems provide a method for disassembling kata, likely for the same reasons of secrecy, and thus many students find themselves struggling to engage in kata bunkai.  Fortunately, Gojo-ryu has a system for performing kata bunkai, kaisai no genri (pron. k-eye sigh no ghen ree). This article will explore kaisai no genri and the implications it has for kata bunkai.

Kaisai no genri has three basic guidelines or shuyo san gensoko and nine “advanced” guidelines or hosoku joko.  The following is not only a review of those guidelines but also tips or comments will be provided as needed.

The three basic guidelines are:

• The pattern on the floor made by a kata has little bearing on the meaning of the techniques. 

The embusen or shape of a kata is designed to allow the kata to be performed within a small space. It is not meant to act as an accurate stage plan from an actual combat scenario.

• Techniques performed while advancing in a kata are likely offensive moves. Techniques completed while retreating are most likely defensive.

• There is quite possibly only one opponent and that opponent is often in front of you.

Even though one turns in the course of a kata that does not mean one is turning to face a different opponent coming from a new direction; the angle instead can indicate the angle taken with respect to a single opponent attacking from the front.  For example, the turn can represent executing a joint lock or a throw.  It is also important to note that while one continues to face a single direction, one’s opponent could change their angle of approach or one could indeed be dealing with more than one opponent while facing the same direction.

The nine advanced guidelines are:

• All movements in the kata have meaning.

Every movement in a kata can be used as part of an oyo. There are no extraneous moves.  No movement is fully symbolic. Once you state the name of the kata, every movement from that point on is significant.  Even the salutation after stating the name of the kata and the salutation immediately at the end of a kata are part of the kata and therefore can be part of an oyo.

• A closed hand returning to chamber on the hip can usually be thought to hold some part of one’s opponent.

When a hand moves to the chamber position, particularly if the hand is closed, it could represent pulling some part of one’s opponent; that one has in one’s grip an arm, wrist, ankle, leg, neck or head.  This pulling action is likely a set-up for the technique which follows, acting as a joint lock and forcing the opponent into a specific physical posture.

• The closest tool is also likely the one being used.

It is reasonable to determine that in a kata the opponent will be attacked with the closest parts of the karateka’s upper and/or lower body. For example, if two fists are presented in one direction, it is likely that the closer fist is actually being used to attack; the farther one could be serving as a guard or completing some other defensive action. Note that if two tools are near the opponent, a fist and a knee for example, both could be intended to be utilized.

• If you control an opponent’s head you control the opponent.

Martial arts techniques in kata are believed to often target vital or weak points of the body (known as kyusho); many of the most important of these points are located on the head.  And, if one changes the direction the head faces by applying force, the body will often turn along with it.

• There are no blocks.

Uke are not blocks, they are defenses. Defenses could include deflecting attacks away from the body, but they could also involve other results such as checks, joint attacks, chokes, and throws.  Some defensive actions could be offensive in their outcome such that they can be considered as strikes.  Finally, what appears to be a defensive move in a kata may not even represent an immediate defensive action but instead represent a movement of a limb required to execute a more complex technique like a throw.

• The angle to which you turn represents the angle which you must take relative to the opponent for the technique to work.

As stated in the basic guidelines, one is likely only responding to a single attacker.  Thus, a turn does not necessarily represent turning to face a new opponent. The turn can instead be a component of a technique which could be intended to force a change in the physical posture of the opponent to set up the next technique. Or it could be part of a throw.  But, it could also represent an attack to the flank or side of the opponent.

• Touching one’s own body in kata can indicate that one is touching part of one’s opponent.

Where a kata indicates that one should touch a part of one’s own body, the recommend interpretation is that one would be touching or holding part of the opponent’s body. It is also possible that touching certain parts of one’s own body is part of a manipulation of the flow of qi in one’s own body and usually to concentrate it.

• Hard tools to soft targets. Soft tools to hard targets.

It is a general rule of thumb that a good target for a hard tool, like a fist, elbow, knee, or heel kick, is a soft part of the opponent’s body like a muscle or organ. While soft tools like one’s palm should be applied to a hard areas like the skull or a joint.  Thus, when considering the likely target of a tool, consider the tool itself.  For example, if one appears to be using one’s fist, it is less likely that it is being applied to an opponent’s face and more likely its target is the neck, a bicep, or possibly the ribs or abdomen.

• The rhythm of the kata is not keyed to any specific oyo.

The rhythm of the performance of kata is for the entire kata and not specific to any of the possible fighting techniques that are embedded within it.  As one attempts to discover an oyo within a kata, do not allow the timing used in any section of a kata to determine the timing that would occur in an oyo.

Using these 12 guidelines should help you develop oyo on your own from any kata. However, definitely consult with an instructor and get the help of a partner to truly determine if a potential oyo is realistic and effective. One additional guideline that can only be followed once one involves a partner is “if one’s partner does not move realistically in response to being struck in the course of the oyo, the entire oyo is not going to be realistic.”  An actual opponent will have natural and often reflexive responses to each technique used in a fighting technique.  If one’s training partner does not react realistically to each technique in the oyo, the likely best application of the next move in the kata will not be made apparent and the remainder of the oyo will be rendered unrealistic.

The 12 guidelines of kaisai no genri and the tips presented here are certainly not the final word on kata bunkai and the creation of oyo; consult with instructors and explore the Internet for ideas.  But, this will provide a good foundation from which to start.

Western New York Karate Center
Shihan Bill
July 1, 2016

Bunkai

The term, bunkai, can be translated as “analysis” or “disassembly” and it is most often applied in martial arts to kata.  Through kata bunkai, a martial artist will disassemble a kata in order to extract fighting techniques from the movements.  The fighting techniques extracted from a kata in this manner are called, oyo.  Kaisai no genri is an excellent system from Goju-ryu for conducting kata bunkai and will be the subject of another article.  That article will be somewhat lengthy and technical. This article will instead focus on ippon bunkai and is rather brief.

The challenge in kata bunkai is that the “actual” threat that some aspect of a kata is responding to is a matter of conjecture.  The threat that was known at the time of the creation of the kata, hundreds sometimes thousands of years ago, is lost to time.  A defensive move, appearing as a “side block” could be a response to an attempted punch, but it could also be a response to an attempted kick or an attempted hold as part of an attempted throw or choke. With an ippon, the opposite is true.  The martial artist starts with the exact and actual threat being declared.  The challenge in ippon bunkai is determining the best fighting technique to manage that threat.

The analysis performed in ippon bunkai is going to be affected by a variety of factors beyond the exact offensive tool or technique being examined. First is the relative position between the martial artist and the attacker; the attack could be coming from in front, to the side, or from behind.  Another is range; the attack could be at long range, medium range, short range, or at close quarters (see the essay “The Sweet Spot”).  But, given that one will likely need to deliver multiple strikes to effectively neutralize the attacker, the third consideration regards follow-up strikes as well as kakuzi waza.  To best determine the most reasonable follow-up strikes will require that the martial artist has an excellent grasp of ukemi.  Failing that, ippon bunkai will benefit from a martial artist studying human anatomy and human physiology.  Regardless, it should be understood that the first action one takes in neutralizing a threat will lead to a reaction from the attacker.  That reaction will often be reflexive but could also be informed by training.  When designing ippons utilizing bunkai, it is therefore important to not only consider the various initial responses and the follow-up actions, but one should also consider, what to do if any one technique fails to work as intended due to error or being countered.

Ippon bunkai is thorough and thoughtful approach to developing self-defense techniques that should deepen and broaden one’s sense of both kihon and kata.  One should approach ippon bunkai to not only train, for example, that a side block isn’t the only response to a punch to the chest, but also that a side block can’t be thought of as sufficient enough to stop another attack from being launched by the same opponent.

Through ippon bunkai one should strive to develop a technique that makes the neutralization of the opponent, not simply the attack, its goal.

Western New York Karate Center
Shihan Bill
June 17, 2016

Kakushi waza

In the practice of kihon and kata, there is a tendency to focus on a single action one is taking be it a punch, a strike, a kick, or a block.  But, within the taking of any action, there are opportunities for additional actions to be taken at the same time. In modern martial arts, people refer to these additional actions as minor moves or bonus moves or “three-handed” techniques. Traditional Japanese martial arts refer to these moves as kakushi waza which means, “hidden techniques.”  In this article, we will examine the concept of hidden techniques and how training with these techniques in mind can significantly enhance one’s effectiveness as a martial artist.

Before we proceed, it is important to note that, with regard to kakushi waza, hidden does not mean “secret”.  Once one becomes aware of this aspect of engaging in kihon and kata, the presence of kakushi waza will be plain.  These techniques are not found only in some well-guarded tome or only passed from a master to a select apprentice. Kakushi waza are available to anyone once that person is aware that such techniques are possible.  It is the fact that one has to be made aware of kakushi waza that makes these techniques hidden; they are not obvious or easily perceived by the naive observer.  They are “incidental” to the primary method of the technique in that they occur in the conduct of the primary method and thus can go unnoticed.  One could say that kakushi waza is the martial arts equivalent of a magician’s “sleight of hand.”

The first type of kakushi waza will be referred to here as “off-hand” techniques.  These are the hidden techniques performed by the hand or foot not currently engaged as the primary focus of the technique. Off-hand techniques can take the form of an additional strike. They could be a grab to increase the likelihood of the primary technique’s effectiveness.  For example, consider the end of Chinto kata.  One has just executed a hammer strike with the right hand into the open-handed mid-level block of the left hand; one will soon perform a right front snap kick before kneeling and punching with the left hand.  At this point, most people focus on the left hand as the primary focus. Certainly the delivery of the right front snap kick is still an issue, but it is not a hidden technique.  But, what about that right hand?

Many karateka will simply move the right hand from its hammer strike to chamber it on the right hip. It is within that movement from the hammer strike to the chamber that we can find at least two hidden moves.  First, consider the possible outcome of that right front snap kick.  The opponent could end up doubling forward and presenting the neck and or head as a target.  The right hand could be used to execute a knife hand strike to the side of the neck or, if at greater range, a tiger hand rake to the face or fingers glancing across the eyes.  Second, a hand chambering on the hip is usually a clue to the opportunity to capture some part of the opponent and holding on to it in order to maximize the impact of a follow-up strike. Thus, the right hand, after executing that open-handed attack, could grab on to the opponent’s neck, shoulder, sleeve or a lapel and then pull the person into that final left hand punch.

A large portion of off-hand technique opportunities exist when one is stepping.  Each time one advances, consider how that movement of the foot could be more than simply taking a step forward.  One could use the knee, as it rises to take that step, as a knee strike.  One could turn that step into a low crescent kick.  As one plants one’s foot, the placing of the foot could be a rake down the shin or a strike on the instep of the opponent’s foot.  And, one’s foot could be imagined as fixing the opponent’s foot in place so they cannot retreat or fall away from the primary technique that is about to arrive.  Another application, as one plants one’s foot, could be to it set it down between an opponent’s feet, close to one of the opponent’s legs, so as to cause pressure to the inside of the opponent’s leg and destabilize the opponent’s stance or execute something of a joint attack on the opponent’s knee.

Whether using hands or feet, off-hand techniques are hidden moves that are built into the movement associated with a specific move.  But an off-hand technique is performed by a hand or foot that is not executing what is considered to be the primary technique.

The second type of kakushi waza will be referred to here as “obscured” techniques.  Obscured techniques are performed by the same hand or foot that is to perform the primary technique.  As they are performed by the same hand or foot, they are often not easily observed unless one is looking for them.  For example, let’s consider the sequence after the third kusanku block in Kusanku kata when one has executed a left hand upper cut while moving into a crane-on-the-rock stance; one will soon perform a descending back fist strike with the right hand.  When last focused upon, the right hand had performed a low block.  The right hand then moves through an arc to move from the low block to the back fist.  Whenever a hand moves through an arc, be aware that the hand could have the opportunity to strike at least one other target in the course of that arc.  As one possibility, close to the apex of the arc in Kusanku kata, the right hand could perform a hammer strike or be part of an inner forearm strike to the head or neck of the opponent.

Another version of obscured techniques does not use the same hand or foot but instead uses the elbow or knee on that same limb.  A favorite combo of mine that illustrates this involves a basic self-defense when attacked with a bear hug from behind. The primary element is a hammer fist to the groin.  One then turns around and executes a descending back fist with the same hand.  In between these two moves is an obscured technique of a rising elbow.  Picture it.  A person attempts a bear hug from behind and you apply a hammer fist to their groin with your right hand.  This not only should negate the bear hug but also cause the attacker to double forward somewhat.  As one turns, one can bring the right arm up, elbow bent, so as to execute an obscured rising elbow into the opponent’s face that is now facing somewhat downward.  This should cause their head and upper body to rise back up again away from that blow as one turns around.  Now, facing one’s opponent, either the attacker’s face or their upper chest will be in a more vulnerable position when you execute the back fist than if you had not used an obscured elbow strike.  Another obscured technique that one could use after that same initial hammer fist to the groin is to then use that same hand to pinch whatever is available. And then perhaps still put in the obscured elbow before turning around to back fist the attacker.

We train to strike an attacker multiple times.  We do so knowing that some techniques will fail.  Some will only be partially effective.  The more strikes we execute, the more likely we will neutralize the attack if not the attacker entirely.  Applying kakushi waza, whether off-hand or obscured techniques, will at least double the potential strikes one can deliver in a single technique.  Thus, not only doubling one’s chances of success but likely also bringing an end to a threat that much faster.