[8.6.1] Naihanchin Section-8 Kaishaku: (Counter to a Round Kick)

[Source:] AOKK Isshin-ryu Black-belt

[Rating:] Basic

Part-1 Attacker Round Kicks to the Legs and Then Punches

Part-2 Defender: Knee Block, Parry Downward, and Uppercut

• Knee Block the kick.
• Parry the punch downward with the left-hand.
• Uppercut strike to the chin or throat.

Note: This is a basic interpretation of the moves, but it is worth our effort to investigate its’ legitimacy.

Rule: We block legs with legs and arms with arms.

Note: The knee or shin block has always been part of karate, yet it is not a commonly found technique in the modern version of karate. In the nineteen thirties throws, locks, chokes, elbow strikes, and this type of block was stripped from the indigenous Okinawan art. Oddly enough, in the nineteen-fifties, this technique was commonly used during kumite (sparring), yet it was not practiced during kyhon (basics).  Lifting the knee straight up was the version of the block most commonly found in karate. In the Naihanchin version, the knee is lifted on a slightly outwards angle. Lifting the knee, has many uses. It can slow an attacker’s charge, set up Tomoe-nage (Stomach Throw), set up a front kick, or obviously it can be used as a knee strike. Knee strikes and blocks, elbow strikes, and head butts are not promoted by what today we call traditional karate. These are all viable responses to an attack, yet they’re treated like one of karate’s dirty little secrets.

Information: This technique is also be found in Muay Thai kickboxing. It was refined by Muay Thai practitioners, and the karateka can gain greater insight, into this technique, by an examination of the way this block is performed by them.

[End Series]