14.3 About Sanchin No Kata
Sanchin kata
is traditionally practised in a number of schools
such as Goju Ryu and Uechi Ryu. The kata was taken
to Okinawa from Fukien province in South China. Sanchin
No Kata is one of the cornerstones of Kyokushin karate.
Roots of Sanchin
It is widely held that this Sanchin No Kata embodies the
essence of Karate and that without a profound understanding of this, the higher
levels will not be perceived. Sanchin has a legendary
tradition. It's roots can be traced to it's
introduction into China, from India, by the Buddhist monk Bohdidarma
in 520AD.
Bohdidarma's teachings have evolved and
changed over generations to the point where the martial teaching have become
emphasized. As the influence of the temple grew politically and financially,
they found themselves threatened at different points thoughout
the centuries by both bandit forces and the armies of the Emperors.
Over time the Buddhist temple
arts filtered out to the general populace and were taught and propagated as
civil martial arts. Thus legend suggests that a composite "yoga, unarmed,
self protection and mediation method" was developed at the temple and
later became an integral part of Chinese martial arts. These arts were taken
from the Fukien province of South China to Okinawa and became incorporated by
teachers into the indigenous fighting methods.
Background
One of the many forms to
surface in Okinawa was the Sanchin form. In the
Fukien dialect is pronounced San-Chien and in
Mandarin "San Chan". It's translation can be understood as follows:
San: Three
Chin: Conflict, Battle, War
Sanchin No Kata
is commonly referred to as "three conflicts" although others prefer
"three battles". Sanchin is very popular as
a dynamic tension method to produce the "Iron Body" effect. Ki is concentrated on the exterior of the body to produce a
"hardening effect" which is able to withstand enormous impact to the
body. Those Okinawan teachers who had a penchant for
body conditioning continued to develop this form as it was very much in line
with their needs.
Benefit
Chojun Miyagi, the founder of Goju Ryu, simplified the kata by removing many turns and changing from open hand to
closed fist. It was his
intention that through the closing of the fist, Ki
would be redirected back into the body, energizing the body thus aiding the
development of the external muscles.
Now that the art of Karate
has come to the West - and with it Sanchin - it's practise has become very much a method of physical
development and a demonstration of tension, strength and breath control.
Unfortunately, its practise in order to develop external
physical strength is often over emphasized. A counter balance with the internal
aspects of the kata are neccessary
in order to develop pliability and sensitivity.
In the the
initial stages, the balance can most easily be found through strong exterior
muscle contraction in conjunction with yielding abdominal breathing. Through
focus upon these 'conflicting' dynamics, firm and yielding, the two can be combimed. As a result integration - rather than conflict -
can be experienced. This experience of 'flux in balance' gives us an insight
into the natural energies that we all possess. Next, these energies can be
developed as part of the practise known as Kiko or energy cultivation.
Three conflicts and three
jewels
Sanchin Kata
contains the essence Karate. Its primary function is to develop the cutting
mind, the body of armour and explosive power. In
order to develop Sanchin the three conflicts must
first be recognised, harmonised
and fully refined. The three conflicts
are:
- Mind
- Body
- Breath
The Mind: 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 verbalising
and concentrate on experiencing the feelings instead. This is the state of mushin.
The Body: 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 Breath: abdominal
breathing replaces restrictive thoracic (chest) contraction and expansion that
manifests as shallow chest breathing. This enables tension in the upper body to
be released from the chest and is pushed down into lower abdomen (hara).
Each conflict can be seen as
a dull unpolished stone. Through the practise of Sanchin, each stone abrades the rough surface of the other,
until three jewels emerge. Concentrate without distraction on natural movement
and posture, combined with coordinated abdominal breathing. This may take many
years but with patience and perseverance will come the rewards.
The Cutting Mind: is the calm
clear mind that perceives and acts without the incessant chatter of internal
dialogue. The starting point of Zen; the uncluttered mind that allows direct
experience and reaction at an instinctive level. To empathize with the enemy
enables their movements to be intuited so as to cut the enemy down without
hesitation at precisely the right moment.
The Body of Armour: is commonly referred to as "Iron Shirt"
and is the effect whereby the body is able to absorb and witstand
substantial blows. This is done by developing and utilising
the muscles, bones and tendons throughout the whole body, absorbing and dissipating
the force of the strike much like a giant shock absorber.
The Explosive Power: is
generated by harnessing the combined energy of the whole body and then channelling and directing it into the opponent. In the
initial stages a single shock wave is produced, hence the intent of "the
single killing blow". In the higher levels the shock wave manifests itself
as a series of continuous waves or vibrations. The source of this power is the hara or lower abdomen combined with contractions of the
diaphragm (breathing control). Crane boxing refers to this as
"shaking" or "trembling", in the Chinese internal arts this
explosive energy is called "Fa Jing".
Sanchin is an isometric kata where each move is performed in a state of complete
tension, accompanied by powerful, deep breathing (Ibuki)
that originates in the lower abdomen (tan den). The practice of Sanchin not only leads to the strengthening of the body,
but to the development of inner power (ki) and the
coordination of mind and body. Sanchin means
"three battles" or "three conflicts", in reference to the
fact that it seeks to develop three elements at a time:
The mind, body and the
techniques,
The internal organs,
circulation and the nervous system, and The three ki,
located in:
a) Tento - the top of the head
b) Hara - the diaphragm
c) Tanden - the lower abdomen