Naihanchi kata within Wado Ryu

Within the Wado Ryu style of Japanese karate the kata Naihanchi holds a special place, positioned as it is as a gateway to the complexities of Seishan and Chinto. But as a gateway it presents its own mysteries and contradictions. Through Naihanchi Wado stylists are directed to study the subtleties of body movements and develop particular ways of generating energy found primarily in this kata. They are taught that the essence of this ancient Form is to be found in the stance and that the inherent principles are applied directly to the Wado Ryu Kumite (the pairs exercises) and to achieve a stage where these principles become part of the practitioners body and natural movements involves countless repetitions of this particular form.

The following tantalizing quote from the founder of Wado Ryu Karate Hironori Ohtsuka, gives intriguing clues as to the value and influence that this particular kata holds.

"Every technique (in Naihanchi) has its own purpose. I personally favour Naihanchi. It is not interesting to the eye, but it is extremely difficult to use. Naihanchi increases in difficulty with more time spent practicing it, however, there is something "deep" about it. It is fundamental to any move that requires reaction. Some people may call me foolish for my belief. However, I prefer this kata over all else and hence incorporate it into my movement."¹

Many Wado karate-ka practice Naihanchi diligently, while remaining largely unaware of the background and long history of this unusual kata.

To begin to appreciate the complexities of Naihanchi it is necessary to remove it from the vacuum and insularities of a particular style or school. This can be done in three ways;
• by looking at the history of the kata.
• by exploring, where possible, the individual masters who studied this particular form.
• By examining the differences between the various versions of Naihanchi.

The Naihanchi kata is practised widely among traditional karate-ka of the Shorin Ryu lineage. But how many can actually say they have a full understanding of the kata and its usage?

Numerous researchers have tried to unravel this mystery. Many claim to have a complete knowledge of the rationale and application of Naihanchi, but amazingly, for such an outwardly simple kata, these translations seem to vary wildly, with very few common threads.


Authoritative information sources

The search for authoritative knowledge has also presented researchers with an immense task. Okinawan and Chinese sources present the serious researcher with a tangled web, a complex labyrinth of truth, half-truth and verbal tradition. The researcher and martial artist Mark Bishop commented that in his questioning of the old Okinawan karate masters many of them if they did not know the answer to a particular question would make it up, as if they did not want to offend the interviewer by giving a negative response!²

All of this is further complicated by the lack of documentary evidence. Social upheaval, war and a tendency to rely almost exclusively on verbal/physical transition from master to student has denied us the opportunity to make any serious attempt to pull the pieces of the puzzle together.

An example would be the document often referred to as “The Bubishi”. Once secret and coveted by the great karate masters, it is now generally available, but to most karateka it is too obscure and impenetrable to be of little more than a museum piece. Its origins are still a mystery, it contains no dates and provides very few historical facts and to many appears as a kind of “crib book”, a set of revision notes for a long dead Chinese/Okinawan master.³

The Bubishi is a rarity on the island of Okinawan, but books of empty handed fighting strategy are abundant in mainland China.⁴

Admittedly there is currently an attempt at serious research in China and Okinawa, but evidence, particularly living evidence, is rapidly disappearing.

With Naihanchi authors of the purported research, particularly into applications, have a reluctance to acknowledge the origins and authority of their findings (or disclosures).

Naihanchi as a trilogy

To begin looking at Naihanchi it is important to understand that there are actually three Naihanchi katas. These are normally understood as a series, Naihanchi Shodan, Naihanchi Nidan and Naihanchi Sandan. Not every style has adopted all three. Some have chosen to drop the Nidan and Sandan versions and only practice the Naihanchi Shodan. One reason given for this is that the main essence of the kata is contained in the first kata. Ohtsuka Sensei went as far as to say:

"There are three (Naihanchi) Katas, Shodan, Nidan and Sandan, but the last two are almost useless."⁵

Again this decision within the Wado Ryu is quite revealing. Ohtsuka Sensei set great store by Naihanchi and commented on the depth contained within this kata, yet limited his study to just the one version. If we were to follow the logic common to the Japanese martial traditions that the first technique, or the first of anything, is usually the most difficult and important aspect within martial arts training. Then also, given that Ohtsuka Sensei believed that it is better to study a few kata well than many kata superficially, doesn’t it make sense to concentrate solely on Naihanchi Shodan? Also, interestingly, it could be argued that Naihanchi Nidan and Sandan do not appear as repetitive when examined from the angle of their overt technical content, which perhaps gives us some clues as to the areas of focus that Ohtsuka Sensei attached particular interest to.

(Later in this feature we will examine some of the theories surrounding the trio of katas called Naihanchi.)

We have to accept that the Naihanchi that we know today has been toyed with. Various creditable masters have added their own ideas, some may say that they have improved the kata, others may argue that much of the original content has been lost and only a sniff of its original essence remains. I doubt that any version seen today could claim to be the real Naihanchi as formulated by its founder, or founders. I would hazard a guess and say the only aspect of Naihanchi that has any plausible claim to originality is probably the stance.

credits, footnotes and sources
next: Secrets

© WadoWorld/Tim Shaw