Kaze Uta Budo Kai Forum Archive

This past weekend, I got to go lead a class in Denham Springs working on jo and the sword-taking and stick-taking stuff from sankata. here are my notes from the class if anyone is interested or can use this material...

i didn't actually get to use the middle stuff - the aikijo rokunokata stuff - but it's always good when teaching to bring more toys to play with than to get there and not have enough...


Jo kihon & Sankata Tachidori & Jodori

Why practice sword vs. stick? Why practice weapon disarms? I think the major reason is simply to place yourself at such an overwhelming, distinct disadvantage in training that it forces you to step up your game and get better.

Warmup – tachi/jo kihon
shomen from jodan, from hasso, and from waki
jo kihon tandoku (solo form) - honteuchi, gyakuteuchi, hikiotoshiuchi, kaeshizuki, gyakutezuki
seiteigata – tsukezue, suigetsu

Aikijo roku no kata
stab, rooftop, upside the head, pullback, backwhack, turnover (how do you like my redneck technique names)
the exercise contains lo/middle/hi and left/mid/right techniques. Each technique can be used offensively or defensively but the basic interpretation is alternating offensive – defensive. This exercise can be cycled endlessly because it ends at the starting point. I like to do this sequence as I go for a walk.
this is fun to (carefully, safely, slowly) do with a partner. One person starts with the thrust, and thereafter each partner takes turns making the next two moves. This improves your timing, distancing, and targeting, and gets you ready for further partner weapon exercises.

Tachidori and Jodori
The tachidori and jodori in Tomiki aikido appear in Koryu Dai San and Koryu Dai Roku. In both kata, these techniques are mostly just a foretaste, a hint that suggests an interesting field of exploration.

The sets overlap to some degree in application. In tachidori we work with swinging attacks and in jodori we work with stabbing, but in application if someone stabs a blade at you or swings a stick, the techniques from the other set can typically be applied. So, it is almost as if you have 9 pretty general-purpose techniques that can be used for swinging or stabbing attacks with long blades or with sticks.

The general rules of thumb - “Seek safety in the heart of danger – evade small and strike big.”

Sankata Tachidori
shomen countered by maeotoshi
shomen countered by shihonage
shomen countered by aigamaeate
do countered by oshitaoshi
shomen countered by hiji kujiki

Sankata Jodori
tsuke countered by gyakugamaeate
tsuke countered by shomenate
tsuke countered by maeotoshi
tsuke countered by renraku
jodan tsuke countered by iriminage (seoinage)