I understand, it is not the only bunkai, nothing rarely is.. .
I was hoping some of you would be familiar with this particular technique, and verify that it is in fact useful. I practiced it with some advanced belts last night, and it definitely works well! My concern was how effective could I expect it to become with practice.
We started extremely slowly, as it puts a great deal of stress on the knee, without the other person realizing it.
Thanks for the input Bill!
I am familiar with it. I do not practice it precisely that way, but in general, the subtle knee pressure is found in other katas as well, in the more advanced bunkai that I've been shown. I'm not master of it, so it's hard to comment on how effective it might be in a 'real' situation; I'm just not in a position to make that kind of statement. I *think* it would be useful, but that's just the opinion of a relative newbie.
I actually like a slightly different movement out of the same opening sequence; the step over conceals a killer of a kick to the shin with the ball of the foot. As one steps across, the angle of the foot being lifted is such that it fits into an aggressor's shin just beautifully. Try that sometime and see what you think.
Works like this. Opponent is in 'bully mode' meaning they are in your face/space. You do the little knee-bend shown here with the two hands down over the groin area, then sort of casually step across (to the left in the standard Isshin Ryu Naihanchi kata). That step over, your right foot is turned at a slight angle such that the pinky toe is closer to the floor than the big toe, if you can imagine that. The toes curl back (we practice this constantly in the dojo to be able to deliver kicks like this) and the ball of the foot right under the big toe is extended into the opponent's shin in a glancing blow maybe six inches up from the floor. The stepping foot continues on; the kick is a 'in the way, pardon me' kind of kick, meaning you don't camp on it or really try to shove it in there. It just smacks the shin as it goes by. If you do it with a smooth snapping motion, it's almost impossible to see to an outside observer, but boy oh boy does the bad guy feel it. I have seen it knock someone completely to the floor, just with that little kick.
I really enjoyed seeing what the karateka in the video was doing with his knees in this kata. I have not done that part in Naihanchi, but as I said, we do it in other kata, and I think it really works well, but it's so subtle. Hard to get it right and make it natural though.
As Karate Kid's Mister Miyagi said, "If do right, no defense."
