Naihanchi Shodan

Naihanchi Shodan

Naihanchi shodan is the first part of a three part series of katas. It is practised by many karate styles in slightly different forms. Some styles have modified it more than others, some have hung lots of add on bunkai to their versions and some have modified the movements to the point where common bunkai won't quite fit any more. The explanations found here should fit for most of the versions of Naihanchi. If yours doesn't fit, please check how the earliest practitioners of your style performed the kata, it may have been modified.

The descriptions below are unlikely to match your version of the kata exactly. They are just there as a general description.

#	Image	Description	Kata applications
1	Naihanchi Shodan 1	Bring your feet together into heisoku-dachi. Bring both your hands in front of you a hand span in front of your body. Place your left hand on top of your right.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 1-4
2	Naihanchi Shodan 2	Turn your head 90° to the right. Bend knees and step across your right leg into kosa-dachi. This is a transitional movement only.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 1-4
3	Naihanchi Shodan 3	Step out with your right leg into kiba-dachi / naihanchi-dachi / Heikō dachi. Some styles lift the moving foot to above knee height as part of this movement. Close your left hand into a fist and pull to your left hip. Sweep your right arm up in an arc from in front of you to out horizontal to the right. Note the hand doesn't travel in a straight line. Some styles rotate the hand until it is palm upwards.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 1-4
4	Naihanchi Shodan 4	Turn the whole upper torso to the right and strike mawashi-empi with the left elbow into the right hand.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 1-4
5	Naihanchi Shodan 5	Turn your head 180° to the left. Bring your left and right arms across your body to the right hip, into kosa-kamae, right fist facing palm up and left on top, held vertically with the palm of the fist facing towards the body.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 5-9
6	Naihanchi Shodan 6	Block to the left gedan-barai with the left arm.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 5-9
7	Naihanchi Shodan 7	Pull the left hand to your hip with hikite, palm up. Simultaneously punch with the right hand using kagi-tsuki. Note that while the final position looks somewhat like kosa-kamae, the punch should stop at the centre of your body just below your sternum, approximately a handspan from your body.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 5-9
8	Naihanchi Shodan 8	Step across with your right foot in front of your left into kosa-dachi. This is a transitional movement only.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 5-9
9	Naihanchi Shodan 9	Step out with the left leg into kiba-dachi / naihanchi-dachi / Heikō dachi. Some styles lift the moving foot to above knee height as part of this movement. Simultaneously rotate the right arm from horizontal to vertical; block to the front with the right hand and turn your head to the front.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 5-9
10	Naihanchi Shodan 10	Bring your right arm across to the left and simultaneously your left across to the right underneath your right arm.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
11	Naihanchi Shodan 11	Bring your left arm up to the rear on the outside of the right, blocking jodan to the rear. Bring your right arm down inside the left to block gedan to the front with the right arm.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
12	Naihanchi Shodan 12	Punch with your left arm to jodan level with Ura-tsuki. Simultaneously lift your right arm until your fist is beneath your left elbow. Turn your head to the left.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
13	Naihanchi Shodan 13	Execute a returning wave (nami-gaeshi) kick with your left leg. Note this should come up in front of your right leg and not touch the inside of your left.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
14	Naihanchi Shodan 14	Step back down into naihanchi-dachi / kiba-dachi / heikō-dachi. Simultaneously rotate your *entire upper body 90° to the left*, blocking to the left with your raised left arm. Note your lower body should not rotate.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
15	Naihanchi Shodan 15	Turn your head 180° to the right. Execute a returning wave (nami-gaeshi) kick with your right leg. Note this should come up in front of your left leg and not touch the inside of your right.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
16	Naihanchi Shodan 16	Step back down into naihanchi-dachi / kiba-dachi / heikō-dachi. Simultaneously rotate your *entire upper body 90° to the right*, blocking to the left with your raised left arm. Note your lower body should not rotate.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
17	Naihanchi Shodan 17	Turn your head 180° to the right and bring both left and right hands to the right hip in kosa-kamae, with the left hand on top of the right. The right fist should be palm facing upwards, the left fist on top held vertically, palm facing the body.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
18	Naihanchi Shodan 18	Punch with both left and right arms simultaneously directly out to the left with morote-tsuki. The left arm should be held horizontally at shoulder level. The right should be across the chest just below the sternum.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 10-18
19	Naihanchi Shodan 19	Close your right hand into a fist and pull to your right hip. Sweep your left arm up in an arc from in front of you to out horizontal to the left. Note the hand doesn't travel in a straight line. Some styles rotate the hand until it is palm upwards.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 19-20
20	Naihanchi Shodan 20	Turn the whole upper torso to the left and strike mawashi-empi with the right elbow into the left hand.	Naihanchi Shodan application one for movements 19-20