Practical Kata Bunkai: Pinan Nidan / Heian Shodan Turning "Lower Block"

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This video was filmed at a seminar in Swansea, Wales in September 2014. It looks at the bunkai for what is the opening sequence in the Shotokan version of Heian Shodan. This bunkai also applies to the sequence following the hammer fist in the other versions of the kata (Pinan Nidan).

The commonly taught version involves using the forearm to block kicks. This is an ineffective way to avoid front kicks and, as is shown in the video, the distancing is all wrong. It’s also worth noting that the common interpretation involves looking at the angles of the kata as the direction the enemy is attacking from; and that approach was written off as “nonsense” by Kenwa Mabuni in the 1930s. If we follow Mabuni’s guidance and instead see the angle of the kata as the direction we shift to in relation to the enemy, kata start to make a lot of sense.

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All the best,

Iain