Kata is a set or pattern of pre-determined movements which consists of defensive and offensive techniques, or attacking and blocking techniques, performed in a particular sequence. Each movement and technique in a kata is made up of selected elements suitable to circumstances of real world fighting. In Goju the sanchin kata plays a major role in conditioning and tradition.

History

The basic kata Sanchin has existed a long time, and has developed into many variations. Sanchin is the foundation for all other kata and is generally considered to be the most important kata to master.

The generally accepted history of Sanchin is that the form was brought over from China to Okinawa, where it was integrated into the  indigenous art known as Te. It appears to be of Southern Chinese origins (Fujianese) and is the core of several karate styles including Okinawan Goju Ryu. The Okinawans then made changes to the kata as it became part of their training repertoire.

Sanchin is believed to have been brought back from China by Kanryo Higaonna after which it was modified by Chojun Miyagi. It is written that Miyagi took the open hands of the form and closed them to fists. Miyagi then took out the turns in the form his instructor Kanryo Higashionna taught to create another version of the kata. Miyagi also changed the breathing taught to him making it more direct and less circulatory in nature.

New students came to Miyagi and he would often train them for three to five years before introducing them to Sanchin. He would make them train very hard, and many of them quit before learning sanchin. Miyagi’s sanchin training was very harsh, and students would often leave practice with bruises from him checking their stance.

Throughout his life Gogen Yamaguchi Hanshi spent long periods of time training on Mount Kurama. During these training sessions he would subject himself to the pounding waterfall, under which he practiced Sanchin kata, in order to develop his mind and body.

It has been understood historically that you master karate only if you master this kata. There is also a saying that karate begins with Sanchin and ends with Sanchin, and karate fighters should practice Sanchin every day, three times.

Three Battles – Mind, Body, Spirit

Sanchin translates as “Three Conflicts” or “Three Battles” and is usually interpreted as the battle to unify the mind, body, and spirit. There are many interpretations.

This kata is a sort of moving meditation, whose purpose is to unify the mind, body and spirit. The techniques are performed very slowly so that the student masters precise movements, breathing, stance/posture, internal strength, and stability of both mind and body.

To the classic practitioner of Sanchin kata, none of these perspectives—mind, body, or spirit—excludes the others. It is a challenge to develop all three at the same time. Many Senseis believe that Sanchin represents the true essence of Karate-do, both spiritually and physically and leads to ki (chi) development.

Although Sanchin is a superficially simple drill, performing it correctly requires understanding on many levels. Some say this understanding takes many years of practice if it is ever attained.

“Each conflict can be seen as a dull unpolished stone, that through the practise of Sanchin each stone abrades the rough surface of the other, until three jewels emerge.”

 

The Mind

Kata Sanchin aims to remove internal chatter to allow the mind to function more efficiently achieving mushin (no-mindedness). Sanchin acts as a strict Zen exercise of breathing and induces calm, awareness and egoless confidence.

It is the discipline of concentration that clears the the countless random thoughts
that constantly distract us. Therefore when studying Sanchin we refrain from internal verbalizing and concentrate on experiencing the feelings instead. This is the state of mushin.

Tino Ceberano Hanshi says that the state of mind has to be mastered before the body movements can be considered.

The Body

Your centre drives all motions. Your centre is a tucked pelvis locked in place by strong abs and hip muscles, supported by spring-like legs, on the balls of your feet keeping you perfectly balanced. The torque, or energy, or impulse you generate in your centre is the soul of any block, strike or joint lock.  The real power comes from the centre, with the arms serving mostly as conduits. To serve this function, the lats must lock the shoulders down, and the elbows must be locked down and in.  

Constant repetition combined with self awareness corrects poor body alignment and brings control to erratic body mechanics. It restores the bodies natural balance and posture. Natural strength is developed in favour of excessive tension or relaxation.

The body of armour is commonly referred to a ‘Iron Shirt’, and is the effect whereby the body is able to absorb and withstand blows. This is done by developing and utilizing the muscles, bones and tendon throughout the whole body to absorb and dissipate the force, much like a giant shock absorber.

 

The Spirit

Whether you call it the soul or spirit, it is an abstract concept that the average person may have difficulty relating to. It is often said that the conscious mind and physical body will eventually give up the fight once fatigued, out of breath and running out of puff when in a fight and confronted by fear and aggression.

Your very survival depends on reaching deep down and focusing on your strength of spirit to get your second wind or that last reserve that can make the very difference to your outcome. Until you face that stressful situation of fear, confrontation and battle, you may not know how quickly you can become fatigued from adrenaline, lactic acid build up and the need to exert a lot of energy quickly.

It is the staying power that you must find an depend on that the Sanchin kata is said to help develop by focusing on breathing, muscle contraction, energy flow and quietening the mind.

Stance & Posture

Sanchin uses the sanchin dachi  or the sanchin stance named for the kata. Practice of Sanchin seeks to develop the muscles and bones of the body to help the practitioner withstand blows from an opponent, while drilling the basic mechanics of a strike that depends on a stable base.

Karate posture is created by the Sanchin kata. It is important to have a stable posture when fighting. A practitioner has to be able to stand firm when attacked, and be ready to attack back.

The beginning of a correct technique is correct posture, which is to straighten the spine, pull in the chin, and tilt pelvis up. This posture will enable you to receive blows from any angle.

The width between the feet should be the width of your hips. Your toes should be gripping the floor by spreading the toes as far as possible and grip the floor like the roots of the tree.

The front foot should be turned inward, and the knees must be bent directly over the toes. The knees, as in all stances, must be pointing in the same direction as the toes.

The only stance used in Sanchin is Sanchin-dachi. When in Sanchin-dachi, the shoulders must not be lifted, the spine must be straight, your chest must be open and your stomach muscles must be tightened. Your chin must be drawn slightly towards your chest, this enables the wind pipe to be most effective when inhaling and exhaling.

The gluteus maximus (buttocks) muscles must also be tightened, but do not make too much of the often exaggerated lifting of the pelvis. This lifting in itself causes the shoulders to cave in, thus again affecting the breathing. There should be no unnecessary restriction placed on the body, e.g.: hips not on the same plane as the ground (horizontal).

Breathing

Kata Sanchin’s origin has been said to be related back to the stationary breathing exercises performed by Buddhist monks at the original Shaolin monastery.

Power is created in a combination of correct respiratory breathing and correct posture, which creates tension. The mind should be in a stable normal state, and actions should always
be taken in a stable mental state. It is not possible for a peak performance if the mind
is unstable when preparing for a fight. The respiratory technique of sanchin is how
you learn to stay stable.

The muscles of the body must be tense during the entire duration of the kata and the breathing must be coordinated with all foot movements. Proper breathing is important to both the mindset of sanchin (mushin) and the body mechanics of the strikes.

Sanchin breathing seems (and sounds) difficult at first, but it’s actually very simple. One wants to be “hard on the outside” and tighten the stomach, to help connect the upper and lower body and defend against attacks. But one should also be “soft on the inside” and able to breathe comfortably.
Doing both simultaneously gets to the heart of what “three conflicts” means, and Sanchin breathing will add to the meditation experience of the kata. Abdominal breathing replaces restrictive thoracic (chest) contraction and expansion that manifests as shallow chest breathing. This enables the tension in the upper body to be released from the chest and is pushed down into lower abdomen (hara).

Checking the kata

In some styles, when a student is tested on Sanchin, an upper rank delivers multiple blows to the student’s body whose muscles are tensed, this being to check strength, posture and limb concentration during the performance of the kata. This is called shime–te. 

This involves a range of techniques from hard strikes and slaps to check the tone of the student’s muscles and overall strength to very soft and slow pushes and pulls to test the student’s ability to react in order to maintain his position.

Fundamentals

  • Short stance: protects against kicks to legs and groin. Retain mobility. Allow both legs to be able to kick swiftly
  • Shoulders locked down: transfers power of body to strikes and blocks and  maintaining protection of the ribs
  • Elbows in: transfers power and guards the body. The 90 degree bend of the elbow is the strongest position for the arms
  • Sanchin back: hips tucked under and spine straight along with Sanchin stomach connecting upper and lower body transferring power of the legs to the arms
  • Sanchin breathing: a tight stomach and quick breaths guard against contact to the gut and provide connectivity between legs and arms 
  • Narrow stance: guards against kicks to groin
  • Chin tucked: so it doesn’t get knocked off 
  • Mushin: see your surroundings with awareness and take in your opponent from head to toe. Keep a clear mind for combat
  • Front leg turned in: for stability in striking or blocking
  • Hind leg slightly turned in: powerful quadriceps push in direction of strike; with foot turned out they point 90 degrees from direction of strike

Applications

The basic step can serve as a throw, the basic strikes can be aimed at a variety of targets, and the circular motions have many applications in grappling, joint locks, and breaking holds.

There are many variations of applications and bunkai for kata Sanchin evidenced by the many videos able to be found with each style focusing on different applications. Perhaps the most essential ingredient is that ‘every block can be a strike and each strike may be a block’. What appears simplistic watching kata Sanchin represents a basis for many techniques emanating from the simple block or strike you see – one needs imagination to understand how varying the technique slightly can turn a block into a grab, lock or a break when followed through.

Summary

A well executed kata Sanchin is said to display these qualities…

  • Gripping the ground. This is interpreted as using the ground to generate power in holding one’s position or striking power.
  • Skeletal architecture. The alignment of the bones to provide static strength.
  • Muscular tone. Using conditioned muscles to move the body swiftly and in a way beneficial to the technique being done.
  • Moving the Ki or Qi (universal energy). Using intent and bioelectric energy to assist in movement.

Regular practice of Sanchin Kata conditions the body, trains correct alignment, and teaches the essential body structure needed for generating power within all of your karate movements. Many karate practitioners believe that Sanchin Kata holds the key to mastering the traditional martial arts. Though it can be one of the simplest forms to learn, it is one of the most difficult to perfect.

Sanchin kata is given a place of honor and respect within our training. It is practiced from early on in one’s training and it is often considered that it takes many years to fully understand and acquire the skills to execute it well. Its potential applications are many and it seems the more you study it the more deeply it reveals its secrets.