UKE NO GO GENSOKU

Extracted from http://www.shuriway.co.uk/blocking.html

Shito-Ryu´s Five Method´s of Defence

Master Kenwa Mabuni, the founder of Shito-Ryu, defined five principles of blocking. They are RAKKA (pulling or moving the attack downward); RYUSUI (moving the attack to the side); TEN'I (body shifting away from the attack); KUSSHIN (lowering the center of gravity); HANGEKI (meeting the attack with a counterattack)

RAKKA: (Blossoms fall from a shaking tree)

Analogous to a tremor of the earth that shakes a tree with such tremendous force as to knock the blossoms from its branches.

Primarily hard blocking techniques applying sudden maximum power with a twisting action of the arm to literally stop the opponent's attack and destroy his/her confidence. Examples include Age Uke, Yoko Uke, Yoko Uchi and Harai Uke.

RYUSUI: : (Two rivers join in harmony)

Analogous to the greeting of two rivers that ultimately create a force greater than each alone although doing so with little or no turbulence.

Primarily softer blocking techniques that absorb an attack and redirect it using circular or deflecting blocks or parries in a continuous and flowing movement. Examples include Ura Uke, Shuto Uke, Kakete and Sukui Dome.

TEN'I: (A Willow sways in the wind)

Analogous to the branches of a willow tree that sway to and fro in the wind allowing its tremendous force to pass seemingly effortlessly.

General concept of body shifting (taisabaki) or turning away from an attack to avoid the direct force of the attack, often utilized with Ryusui defense (i.e. evasive maneuvers with a soft deflecting block).

KUSSHIN: (The Lion crouches low in the grass)

Analogous to a Lion that crouches unnoticeably in the grass with its body coiled for an attack on its prey.

General concept of disguising one's stance with the ability to either shift quickly out of one stance and into another or reflexively darting away and then back (typically at an angle) momentarily disappearing from the attacker.

HANGEKI: (A Flower greets the morning sun)

Analogous to a flower that opens its petals early in the morning to accept the rays of the sun for nourishment.

Advanced concept of reading an opponent's body actions to determine his/her intent prior to the opponent taking action. Response can be to greet the attack with a counter-attack (Go-No-Sen) or to precede the attack with a neutralizing action to defeat the opponent's aggression (Sen-No-Sen).

These five elements should be combined for practical use. Whether you use a hard block (Rakka), a gentler deflecting block (Ryusui), or a counter-attack (Hangeki), always move yourself into a safer and more advantageous position without wasting movement or energy using Kusshin and Teni.

KARATE and KIHON

HOW TO PROGRESS IN KARATE THROUGH KIHON

Extracted from http://www.shuriway.co.uk/progress.html

There are three basic physical components of karate training. These are named kihon, kata and kumite. Students beginning karate training are usually introduced to kihon as the basics of that training. The kihon are considered the fundamental components from which all else is built. They are like the strokes in painting, the letters in writing and the pure-tonal notes of music. On their own they are of little value but when mastered and allowed to flow naturally in learned or natural sequences they become far more powerful than individual basic strokes, letters or tones. If kihon are not practiced, appreciated and 'felt' (kimochi), karate cannot exist beyond a very rudimentary level. The greater the depth of appreciation and the depth of feeling for the kihon the more the karate-ka can delve into the depths of their karate and the heart of traditional karate, kata. A beginner memorizes the kata sequence often while still struggling with what constitutes proper kihon. The student tries to remember the proper form for the kihon and, in addition, remember what the elaborate sequence of the kata is as well.

Manzo Iwata practicing kihon

Confusion usually reigns and the student must practice the kata over and over to memorize the sequence. In time the student triumphs. The kata is memorized. The student will require much more time to internalize and truly 'understand' the kata, however. At this level the student probably has only developed rudimentary kihon. The stances remain high, immobile, weak or wobbly. The blocks, punches and strikes are fairly ineffective lacking power, speed, and correct paths for maximum efficiency. Transitions from one to another are usually poorly balanced and slow.

Manzo Iwata training in kihon with master Mabuni

One great pitfall, and a common one, is the lack of refinement of kihon. After a few weeks or months students believe they have 'mastered' the kihon. They are bored by kihon practice. This is evidenced in two ways. The first is that they begin to dread repetitive kihon practice and avoid it or put very little effort into the kihon sessions in class, and rarely, if at all, practice outside of class. The second way is that they just don't eagerly seek improvement in the manner that kihon are refined. Some believe, if not most, at least at this stage of learning, that they already know the kihon so further refinement is inconsequential or just not necessary. This can lead to years where the student makes little progress in karate proficiency. The kihon hold the key. The kihon develop and refine not only the way that karate is practiced but also the way that body dynamics develop.

If the kihon are distorted in any way through lack of practice or attention to detail, refinement of form is not possible. In addition, proper body dynamics cannot be grasped. Any sustained errors or modification, even through simple ignorance of proper form, will hinder the martial art students progress and proficiency. Advice on how to progress The simple answer is to practice your kihon. A great karate master (Mas Oyama of Kyokushinkai), was once asked what the secret to his karate was. The master lifted his eyes as if to reveal a great secret and he said; "sweat, sweat and more sweat". In other words practice. But you must also keep in mind good form. Look at yourself, study what you are doing at that moment, feel (kimochi) the technique and try to understand what you are doing. Remember that practice alone does not make perfect. Practice makes permanent. Perfect practice makes perfect. It is the kihon that holds the foundation of all that is to come! Courtesy Sensei A Tanzadeh

A full detail extracted from the above link ..

ZANSHIN

ZANSHIN

Extracted from http://www.shuriway.co.uk/zanshin.html

There is an old Japanese samurai saying, "When the battle is over, tighten your chin strap." This refers to constant awareness, preparedness for danger and readiness for action.

The Japanese saying itself focuses on the end of a combat engagement when it is natural to relax awareness, thinking the danger is over, when in reality it often is not. "This concept carries over into the dojo which is not just a training hall but a place where a certain awareness of the possibility of serious combat must constantly be maintained," said John Donohue in his article Kendo: The Way of the Sword found in the Learning section. But, for the serious martial artist this heightened state of awareness becomes a natural part of the psyche, something that is automatically turned on while awake as well as during sleep.

"On one level, zanshin refers to neutral, non-threatening stances or kneeling in such a way as to be always ready for action.

....

Zanshin is also the flip side of single-minded devotion to technique. You must learn not to focus exclusively on your actions but rather to be attentive and receptive to all activities surrounding you," says Donohue. It may seem contradictory, he continues, "but both the ideas of focusing entirely on technique and of maintaining zanshin have to do with the transcending of subjectobject distinctions through martial training. Unity with the Void, to use Musashi's (the famious Japanese swordsman) idiom, results in the execution of technique without any selfconscious awareness of doing so.

By the same token, proper zanshin is indicative of the fact that the swordsman experiences no discontinuity between his surroundings and himself."

Various martial arts have different ways of training to develop heightened zanshin.

... For more detail information, please refer to the above link

Hara & Koshi

Extracted from the below web

http://www.shuriway.co.uk/hara.html

abdomen & hip

'Te de tsukuna, hara de tsuke; Ashi de keruna, koshi de kere'.

(Do not punch with your arm, punch with your 'HARA';
do not kick with your leg, kick with your 'KOSHI').

'HARA' generally means 'abdomen', but in martial arts it means more specifically the lower abdomen. This is where your center of gravity should be. Without a stable center of gravity you cannot keep good balance and perform techniques with weight behind them. To be able to keep one's center of gravity at the lower abdomen, one has to learn abdominal breathing, which involves up and down movement of the diaphragm.

Refer to the above link for more information .. a good resource web