On Saturday, June 1st, 2024, I taught a webinar for the International Neoclassical Karate Kobudo Society (INKKS) on the first kata of the KishimotoDi system, Tachimura no Naihanchi. This style is at risk of dying out, with only a couple hundred practitioners, worldwide, and less than two dozen who know all four kata of the system, so it really fills me with pride to have the opportunity to teach it. We had ten live attendees, not counting my friend and fellow INKKS co-founder, Kyle Doan Sensei, who acted as my uke, and everyone was engaged and seemed to enjoy the content. My hope is that they will all choose to carry on practicing Tachimura no Naihanchi, and eventually learn the rest of the KishimotoDi curriculum
We began with a brief overview of the history and lineage of KishimotoDi, which is a Shuri-Te system handed down from “Todi” Sakugawa to “Bushi” Tachimura, then to Kishimoto Soko, and then Higa Seitoku, who founded the Bugeikan, where the art is still practiced, today, and where my KishimotoDi teacher, Ulf Karlsson, Shihan, trains. This makes it an outlier in the realm of Shuri-Te-based styles (Shorin-Ryu) on Okinawa, as the vast majority of these passed through Itosu Anko, who “modernized” the art and introduced it to the Okinawan school system. KishimotoDi is, essentially, an ancestor to modern Shorin-Ryu, and gives us a glimpse into the past that can help inform our study. As an older system, it features only four kata–prior to Itosu, it was typical for Okinawan martial artists to only know a handful of kata–and no belt ranking system. Instead, progress is measured by how many of the kata you know, and how many you are authorized to teach. As of the writing of this article, I know all four kata, and am authorized to teach three of them.
With the history of the art established, we got into the solo performance of Tachimura no Naihanchi. We went through the kata a few moves at a time, slowly working our way from the beginning to the end, and took time to hit on some key features. Notably, I emphasized the power generation methods used in the kata, as they are different than modern versions of Naihanchi. These would be sinking and rising in shiko-dachi (lit. “square thighs stance,” aka. Sumo/horse stance), shifting from kokutsu-dachi (lit. “back leaning stance”) into shiko-dachi, and twisting at the waist. There is no hip rotation used to generate power, and since the kata is performed in shiko-dachi, your knees would wobble if you tried to use it, potentially causing undue wear and tear on your joints.
“I learned it from Shotokan and it doesn’t have the rise and lower that this version has, but what Sensei Noah is showing makes so much more sense.” – Ron Gillespie Jr.
As we got into the oyo (lit. “practical applications”) of the kata, I touched on the four quadrants of entry against an attack, as well as the three main principles of KishimotoDi. The way the art deals with incoming attacks is very conceptual, so the attack, itself, isn’t all that important. What’s important is whether you enter on the inside or outside of the attack, and whether you are entering over or under the attack, effectively dividing the space around the attack into quarters. Once that is established, you can focus on the three main principles of the art, which are issun hasureru (lit. “avoid by a sun/inch”), taigi ichii (lit. “body and technique as one”), and kobo ittai (lit. “simultaneous attack and defense”). These should come into play with all of your kata applications.
We covered multiple applications for every sequence in the kata, and even explored wormholing (connecting various movements in kata that aren’t sequential). This included the scissors/wedge throws that are prevalent in Tachimura no Naihanchi. Unlike modern Naihanchi kata, which open with a haito-uke (lit. “ridge hand receiver”) and elbow strike, this version opens with a sinking gedan-barai (lit. “low sweep”) and rising mawashi-zuki (lit. “turning thrust”) that can be applied as a sinking scissors/wedge throw. The other versions of this throw that appear in the kata are a twisting throw, a rising throw, and a withdrawing throw.
“Now I have a completely different idea of how to use Naihanchi. It completely changes, practically, my understanding. Looking forward to the next seminar!” – Salvatore Plumari
Of course, Tachimura no Naihanchi isn’t entirely comprised of throwing techniques. The striking methods of the kata are sometimes unorthodox, due to the uncommon nature of the power generation methods used, but they are quite effective. I also presented a selection of tuidi-waza (lit. “seizing hand techniques”), including armbars and wrist locks. In my experience, KishimotoDi tends to be more opportunistic when it comes to tuidi, rather than actively seeking it out, but there are a few examples of the art doing so.
By the time the webinar was over, we had covered the entire solo kata, as well as multiple applications for every movement and posture. Despite that, there is still more to learn! One of the benefits of having such a small selection of kata to work with is that you can focus on really delving into the depths of the art. Ulf Karlsson, Shihan, likes to say that “three to five kata is training, and more is a hobby.” It certainly is easier to spend the time exploring your kata when you have fewer in your curriculum, and it reminds me of Funakoshi Gichin (founder of Shotokan) mentioning that Itosu Anko had him practice nothing but Naihanchi for three years. I highly doubt he was required to simply practice the solo kata during that time. It is much more likely that he was made to study its applications.
“These are concepts that I remember talking about in detail [in Matsumura Seito Shorin-Ryu], but without the application…it makes way more sense now.” – Kyle Doan
If you are interested in learning more about KishimotoDi, I highly encourage you to contact me and book a seminar! I am happy to travel and help preserve this wonderful martial art by passing it on to others. If you’re in Europe, I can put you in touch with my KishimotoDi teacher, Ulf Karlsson, Shihan, as he regularly teaches in Sweden and conducts seminars throughout the region. We look forward to training with you!