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Jodan no Kamae?


By Ivica Zdravkovic, Serbian Budo Council

Ever since I was first introduced to five kendo kamae, I was amazed with certain level of "inapplicability" of some of them. Naturally, I was taught that chudan no kamae is the most important and the most frequent kamae, and I was also taught about potential use of other kamae. For example, it was told to me that waki no kamae can "hide" the length of your sword (actually, it can hide the whole sword), and it is an excellent position if you are waiting for someone behind a corner. Gedan no kamae was always "the initial guard", and it meant that after you raise it up to chudan no kamae, you have very few reasons to get back to gedan no kamae. It is useful if you want to perform sukui kiri (ashi uchi, gedan uchi), but even then you mostly start with lower cut from central position. And so, more and more I was asking myself what is jodan no kamae doing there... It was pure misunderstanding of one beginner, but it served the purpose: I was forced to investigate all the aspects of the knowledge that was passed to me.

One of the initial drills in kendo practice is uchi-kaeshi (kiri-kaeshi). This is a way of practicing men uchi (yokomen uchi) and to practice parrying those cuts. In our clubs we usually did it with three steps forward and three steps backward: first you do three yokomen uchi, while moving forward with okuri ashi; your partner does soft kaeshi, which means blocking (parrying) your cuts. After your third cut, you and your partner switch the roles, and now he attacks, approaching with okuri ashi, and you retreat, doing high blocks. This drill is designed for several reasons: to teach you how to simultaneously approach and strike, to teach you how to simultaneously retreat and parry, to teach you how to link several cuts in an offensive series... But, it is definitely not designed to teach you how to use jodan no kamae to hit your opponent's men! Why? Because it almost never happens in any type of kendo / kenjutsu sparring or shiai.

After one becomes an instructor, all the things he knows start being reconsidered again. So, while I was just a practitioner, uchi-kaeshi was a synonym for "jodan no kamae - men uchi" to me. It was almost a dogma: if you want to perform shomen uchi or yokomen uchi, you have to assume jodan no kamae! But, very soon, my advanced instructors and associates taught me that it was not so simple at all. First of all, almost none of us has ever managed to perform proper jodan no kamae without being  stabbed with tsuki right to the sternum! (Note, I am writing here about soft kenjutsu sparring, without any special protective gear, and only with straight bokken). Another "disappointment" for most of us was that it has been almost impossible to deliver proper men uchi at all!. It is possible with kendo bogu, of course - but in our dojo, where every contact with opponent's blade meant "hard wound" (wazari) or even "death" (ippon), there was no time nor space for suriage, tsuka fighting and victorious men uchi. The most frequent techniques were small and short dazzling right kote uchi and right ashi uchi (sukui kiri).

So, questions started to arrive from all sides: "Why are we practicing jodan no kamae when nobody uses it?"; "How can we perform men uchi when jodan no kamae leaves us so unprotected?". As always, my explanation started with the theory of three motions involved in each striking/cutting technique. What is that theory? Lets take a look at this picture:


   

We will imagine that the sword marked with letter "A" is in position of jodan no kamae. In order to strike/cut the yellow target, it has to be relocated to position "B". This requires special trajectory, presented with red line. This trajectory is, in a certain way, "result" of three motions:

All these motions can be presented with one single cumulative vector, but we will focus on the trajectory presented with red line. It is obvious that in proper strike/cut performed from upper level we must include several vectors (several forces!) to produce the satisfactory speed, angle and pressure on the target. Rising hands to jodan no kamae will enable longer trajectory, with resulting bigger acceleration, and eventually bigger energy (E=mv²/2). This is the universal model, and represents the most "demanding" cut, shomen uchi (kiri oroshi), which has the biggest amplitude and, practically is the strongest technique.

However, in other common strikes/cuts some of the three mentioned motions are less obvious, or are not present at all. For example, in kote uchi, performed after short harai waza from chudan no kamae, there is a very small linear translation, and very small rotation of the sword - kisaki is not elevated, so all we need to do is step forward and push our hands, applying aerial translation as the main motion. In tsuki waza, linear translation is practically the only movement. In ashi uchi rotation is the only visible motion - it is all done with the wrists...

It is all right - now we can understand the importance of  high guard and good back swing. After all, in Happo Giri kata as performed in Toyama Ryu, the final cut, shin choku kiri (kiri oroshi, shomen uchi) is performed with such a strong back swing that it practically disturbs the balance of kenshi. Explanation is: imagine ashigaru (foot soldier) who marched 25 or 30 miles before he entered the duel - he will need all the power he can generate from his body, not only the short cutting movements of his arms. Especially if he has to cut through enemy's armor (and even more: especially if we assume that not all medieval swords from Japan were so razor sharp!).

But, things have changed. In modern kendo, cutting is more replaced with striking motions. Shinai is no longer treated solely as a replica of the sword. Kendoka press their weapons against each other, push each other in do, literary cut each other while fighting for better maai - and no points are scored at all, nothing is considered a "cut" or a "strike".  Some other qualities are required, very different from what we have in kenjutsu sparring with bokken, or in modern Chanbara.

So, in kendo, where points are seldom, jodan no kamae is considered "unorthodox". It is not safe to rise your hands in jodan no kamae, at least not until you are in strong advancement or after you have already performed men uchi from some other position.  It is noted that only rare kendoka use jodan no kamae on tournaments.  One of those is  Tetsuo Kawazo, who "has gone against the grain, and this despite criticism from his peers".

Here are the few lines referring to jodan kamae, extracted from "The Keiko Manual" by Shigeyoshi Takano Sensei:

Of course, my comments are a bit humorous, but reflect what is generally known among many practitioners of Japanese swordsmanship: jodan no kamae is unsafe, and we must seek other methods of delivering high strikes and cuts.

So, what is the solution? In my experience, it is delivering yokomen uchi from the right or left shoulder, right after your opponent has moved, or even as your first attack. In kendo theory, these two tactics are known as nuki uchi and katsugi waza. Lets see some definitions of these two terms:

Nuki uchi is  meaning: "pulling strike". one of numerous kendo dictionaries defines it as "a combination block, strike, and cut all in one action and done in one direction." Another resource says that "nuki waza is a type of waza where one evades the opponent's attack, causing the opponent to swing through air, then counterattacks when the opponent's waza or body has stopped. (e.g. Kote-Nuki-Men, Men-Nuki-Men & Men-Nuki-Do.)". Nuki uchi appears as the 5th kata (Gohonme) in Dai Nihon Toyama Ryu Iaido (Batto-jutsu) Remmei Seitei Kata. However, one of the best and the most descriptive explanations for this technique I found in Yomiuri Shimbun articles run in the June 6, June 7 and June 8, 1998 (available on the Internet). Here is what this explanation contains:

"Nuki is a conjugation of the transitive verb nuku, with meanings that include to draw out, pull out, remove, pick out, extract, omit, outstrip, cast behind and pierce. Uchi is a noun variation of the transitive verb utsu, which has such meanings as to strike, hit, beat, give a blow, slug, slap, thrash, impress, fire, shoot and attack.  The expression nukiuchi appeared in a literary work titled "Heiji Monogatari," which was written in the early Kamakura period (1192-1333). Nukiuchi means to draw a sword and strike at one's opponent in one movement. However, the word has over the years come to have the meaning of doing something without notice or abruptly - based on the image of the quick movement of the swordsman (...)"

This describes very well the action of removing sword back to the left or right shoulder and delivering strong men uchi or kote uchi without "losing" time on assuming jodan no kamae.

More precisely, this type of action is classified as katsugi waza. It is "shouldering-the-sword technique to make a swift dodge or sidestep movement to avoid being attacked". Another definition of katsugi waza is: "A waza where one swings the shinai onto one's left shoulder (my comment: or on right shoulder!) as if to carry it, and then strikes the opponent as he becomes confused and loses his te-moto (control of the hands & shinai). e.g. Katsugi-Men & Katsugi-Kote."

To perform these techniques we use another "unorthodox" kamae, which is somewhere called "in no kamae", and in some cases is identified as the synonym for "hasso no kamae". (But, I would say that hasso no kamae means higher position of elbows and generally differs from "shoulder position" applied in katsugi waza".)

So, how does this techniques look? I made series of four pictures, illustrating initial chudan no kamae, two "shoulder guards" (right and left) and final position after men uchi or kote uchi.

 

 

                    

  

It is clear that these positions and strikes enable kenshi to perform very fast and secure strikes, without risks involved in jodan no kamae. All aforementioned trajectories (translations and rotation) are still possible, although with smaller amplitudes.  Once again, in kendo there are many techniques that are not scored (e.g. tsuki to do), so it gives more freedom to kendoka to assume jodan no kamae and wait for approach of his opponent. Yet, kendoka avoid jodan no kamae, unless in special situations, like is the fast approaching to the opponent. Unlike in kendo, in kenjutsu sparring or in Chanbara matches it is much more dangerous to rise your hands. Because of that, katsugi waza is almost the only reasonable way of delivering upper level strikes/cuts.

Ever since I started using this techniques and explanations, most of the aforementioned questions disappeared. Now my students perform men uchi more frequently, and jodan no kamae is no longer a premise for that type of strike. However, jodan no kamae is still studied and practiced in my club, as well as uchi-kaeshi. It is part of kenjutsu heritage, it has its application, but it is limited to lesser importance. Just like are some "exotic" karate techniques, that are regularly practiced through kata or kihon, but are seldom, or never seen in karate kumite. 

(Please, visit the website of Zdravkovic sensei on  Serbian Budo Council )