Chatter Of The Squirrel

My First Randori

July 24, 2008 on 9:17 am | In Shorinji Kempo | No Comments

I created a category for Shorinji Kempo ages ago, and has thus far failed to write anything about it. My plan was to use it to make notes of each technique I absorb after every session. I’ve been going to most of the sessions twice a week since April. And the technique I learnt in my first class, is still relevant 4 months later. Every time I revisit that one technique, I discover something I missed earlier, some nuance, a different follow-up to the move, a slight shift in body weight that magnifies the efficacy of the technique two-folds etc…

After more than thirty classes, the whole mess of information is overloading me. Had better start making notes, even rough sketchy notes will be better than nothing. Just a few words might trigger the needed scrap of memory, and I might be able to clean-up the info at some other point in time.

To begin though, today I had my first Randori. A young man was leaving for the UK to study, so Hosoe sensei gave everyone a chance to spar with him. Just for fun.

The fellow took it very seriously though. His first bout against 2 girls and a small boy. Funny. He kept grabbing the boy and used him as a shield, or pinballing him at his other opponents. Funny to watch, but everyone took it in good fun.

I was up next, the only other white belt around that day. Spent most of my minute running and dodging. Took a rather solid kick in the ribs when I lunged forward just as he raised his leg to kick. Still, very exhilirating.

Lessons

Already forgetting much of what I’ve done today… But every little helps I guess.

Kote Nuki

- left foot forward, without shifting the torso (which would signal your intention), THEN meuchi. Pointless to meuchi when you can’t reach his eyes.

- after meuchi, the yoshiashi (?) ie the half step forward with right leg… this step forward is to be similar with the hip swing of the gyaku-zuki. This is part of the principle of 刚柔合一. From the gyaku-zuki, same hip-swing forward, the same motion to push the right elbow out, WITHOUT moving the elbow back / sideways or in a manner weakening one’s own defence.

- it’s alright to move in close. You WANT to move in close. The whole point of baiting the opponent with the pro-offered right wrist, IS to get in close and land a flurry of blows while standing in a position where it’s too close for him to hit back effectively. As demonstrated by Kito-san, a rather intense martial arts enthusiast. Took a lot of pain, and pointers, from him while learning the finer points of gyaku-gote.

Gyaku-gote & Okuri-gote

- _Rolling_ motions. Literally rolling. Rolling in a circle, like a wheel. Grip the opponent’s hand, lock it, and roll the hand in a circular movement to bring it down to navel level. Pulling the hand doesn’t work. It’s the circling motion on the locked hand that twists the locked shoulder and bring it to where you want it to go.