Instructions for Wado-Ryu Karate Kata - Kushanku

This page will help you to learn the Wado-Ryu kata - Kushanku. Videos and written step-by-step instructions for Kushanku are provided below. However, if you have any questions about a particular kata movement, please check with your instructor because kata instructions can vary by school and organization.

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Written Instructions for Wado-Ryu Kata - Kushanku

• From masuba dachi, rei, then open to hachiji dachi but leave the hands open. Keep­ing the arms and hands relaxed bring the hands to the cen­ter, with the left over­lap­ping the right, so that the fin­ger­tips are even (the end of each index fin­ger is even with the end of each lit­tle fin­ger), palms fac­ing inward.
• Slowly, keep­ing your arms and hands relaxed, raise the hands slowly until they are slightly above your eyes. This is done while main­tain­ing hachiji dachi.
• Slowly let the hands sep­a­rate, keep­ing the arms and hands relaxed, and move in a semi-circle out to your sides and down, keep­ing the palms fac­ing for­ward, until the hands meet back at the cen­ter, side-by-side with lit­tle fin­gers touch­ing each other and the ring fin­gers touch­ing each other (hands are still fac­ing for­ward) This is done while main­tain­ing hachiji dachi.
• Drop your body, set­ting your left foot to your left, into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi, 90 degrees to your left, while doing a haishu (back­hand) to your left with your left hand, and let your right hand come up so that the upper arm is hang­ing down, pulling for­ward from the shoul­der just enough to allow the lower arm to be par­al­lel across the front of your body. The lower arm is angled up slightly, cross­ing over the solar plexus, with the wrist remain­ing straight and the fin­ger tips extend­ing past the edge of the body.
• Stay­ing low, pull your left foot back to it’s orig­i­nal posi­tion then set your right foot to your right into a right mahamni neko ashi dachi, 90 degrees to your right, while doing a haishu (back­hand) to your right with your right hand, and let your left hand come up so that the upper arm is hang­ing down, pulling for­ward from the shoul­der just enough to allow the lower arm to be par­al­lel across the front of your body. The lower arm is angled up slightly, cross­ing over the solar plexus, with the wrist remain­ing straight and the fin­ger tips extend­ing past the edge of the body.
• Pull your right foot back to it’s orig­i­nal posi­tion in a hachiji dachi, and pull your arms to a right tae uke.
• Throw a left gedan uke. This is done while main­tain­ing hachiji dachi.
• Punch with your right hand, pulling the left hand into a hikite posi­tion. This is done while main­tain­ing hachiji dachi.
• Drop your body as you set your left foot to your left, to about two shoul­der widths dis­tance, and about a half of a foot length for­ward as you allow both feet to pivot to the left, end­ing par­al­lel and 45 degrees to your left (your left knee should be bent so the knee is over the ankle, and the right leg should be relaxed straight) as you turn your shoul­ders 90 degrees to your left, and throw a right mid­dle block to the front (orig­i­nal front line).
• Shift back to your right into a hachiji dachi as you turn your body to the right 90 degrees and throw a left punch to the front as you pull your right hand into hikite.
• Drop your body as you set your right foot to your right, to about two shoul­der widths dis­tance, and about a half of a foot length back­ward as you allow both feet to pivot to the right, end­ing par­al­lel and 45 degrees to your right (your right knee should be bent so the knee is over the ankle, and the left leg should be relaxed straight) as you turn your shoul­ders 90 degrees to your right, and throw a left mid­dle block to the front (orig­i­nal front line).
• Set your left foot below your body (1) and throw a right mid­dle block and a right front kick simul­ta­ne­ously (2), to your right (to the rear as related to your orig­i­nal front line), as the kick snaps back, set it down directly beside your left foot, and turned at a 115 degree angle to your orig­i­nal front line (3). Then drop your body, set­ting your left foot to your left, into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi toward your orig­i­nal front line and exe­cut­ing a left open hand block to the front (4).
• Step for­ward into a right mahamni neko ashi dachi and exe­cute a right shoto uke.
• Step for­ward into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi and exe­cute a left shoto uke.
• Step for­ward into a right jun­zuki dachi and throw a right yohon nukite to the solar plexus.
• Let your left hand open (thumb cocked) as you throw a left low block to your left and a right open hand agi uke to the front, as you turn your body to your left 270 degrees and set your left foot to your left 90 degrees to about two shoul­der widths dis­tance, and about a half of a foot length for­ward as you allow both feet to pivot to the left, end­ing par­al­lel and 45 degrees to the left of your orig­i­nal back line (your left knee should be bent so the knee is over the ankle, and the right leg should be relaxed straight). As you turn throw a left open hand agi uke to your left as you exe­cute a right hand sweep to the back line.
• Throw a right front kick to the back line and set it for­ward (to your orig­i­nal back line) with the foot at 45 degrees to the left of the back line, then look to the front (your orig­i­nal front line) as you set over the right foot, keep­ing your body upright, allow the right heel to remain off the floor and drop the body until the point just before you totally drop as the quadri­ceps relax. Allow the left foot to pivot to 45 degrees off of the front line, and remain flat with the leg relaxed straight. As you drop into this posi­tion throw a block to your left with your left hand end­ing out over your left leg, and what Mr. Everett refers to as a bump block (agi uke — the arm will come up in front of your head rolling over, at the end, palm out across the top of your head with a slight upward angle toward the hand) with your right hand.
• Pulling your left hand back across the front of your body (not touch­ing your body), with the hand in front of your right shoul­der (palm up), while your right hand does a low scoop block across your body.
• Use the right leg to stand as you draw your left foot back to a hachiji dachi, and throw a left gedan uke to your left (toward the front line) and pull your right hand into hikite.
• Let your left hand open (thumb cocked) as you throw a left low block to your left and a right open hand agi uke to your front, as you turn your body to your left 180 degrees and set your left foot to your left 90 degrees to about two shoul­der widths dis­tance, and about a half of a foot length for­ward as you allow both feet to pivot to the left, end­ing par­al­lel and 45 degrees to the left of your orig­i­nal front line (your left knee should be bent so the knee is over the ankle, and the right leg should be relaxed straight). As you turn throw a left open hand agi uke to your left as you exe­cute a right hand sweep to the front line.
• Throw a right mae geri to the front line and set it for­ward (to your orig­i­nal front line) with the foot at 45 degrees to the left of the front line, then look to the back (your orig­i­nal back line) as you set over the right foot, keep­ing your body upright, allow the right heel to remain off the floor and drop the body until the point just before you totally drop as the quadri­ceps relax. Allow the left foot to pivot to 45 degrees off of the back line, and remain flat with the leg relaxed straight. As you drop into this posi­tion throw a block to your left with your left hand end­ing out over your left leg, and what I call a bump block (agi uke — the arm will come up in front of your head rolling over, at the end, palm out across the top of your head with a slight upward angle toward the hand) with your right hand.
• Pulling your left hand back across the front of your body (not touch­ing your body), with the hand in front of your right shoul­der (palm up), while your right hand does a low scoop block across your body.
• Use the right leg to stand as you draw your left foot back to a hachiji dachi, and throw a left gedan uke to your left (toward the back line) and pull your right hand into hikite.
• Pull your left foot back to your right foot, as you pivot your right foot 90 degrees to the left, with your body fac­ing the back line in heisoku dachi. As you turn your hands come to a right tae uke posi­tion and you turn your head and look to the left.
• Keep­ing your body fac­ing your orig­i­nal back line, simul­ta­ne­ously throw a left gedan uke and a left mae geri to your left (the bot­tom knuck­les, at the face of the fist, should be touched by the kick­ing shin). After the kick snaps back, set it to your left, then turn your body to your left, into a left gyakazuki dachi as you throw a right empi, par­al­lel to the floor and across your lower chest, into the palm of your left hand (thumb cocked). The right hand should end palm fac­ing your body, with the left arm in line with the right, and the left fin­ger­tips even with the tip of your right elbow.
• Turn back 90 degrees to your right, as you draw your right foot to your left foot in heisoku dachi, your hands pull to a left tae uke, and you turn your head to the right (from your orig­i­nal back line).
• Keep­ing your body fac­ing your orig­i­nal back line, simul­ta­ne­ously throw a right gedan uke and a right mae geri to your right (the bot­tom knuck­les, at the face of the fist, should be touched by the kick­ing shin). After the kick snaps back, set it to your right, then turn your body to your right, into a right gyakazuki dachi as you throw a left empi, par­al­lel to the floor and across your lower chest, into the palm of your right hand (thumb cocked). The left hand should end palm fac­ing your body, with the right arm in line with the left, and the right fin­ger­tips even with the tip of your right elbow.
• Allow your left (back) foot to move toward the orig­i­nal front line as you turn your body to the left 90 degrees into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi, end­ing with a left shoto uke (to your orig­i­nal right line).
• Step for­ward and to your right 45 degrees into a mahamni neko ashi dachi exe­cut­ing a right shoto uke (45 degrees off of your orig­i­nal back line).
• Turn 135 degrees to the right into a right mahamni neko ashi dachi and exe­cute a right shoto uke (to your orig­i­nal left line).
• Step for­ward and to your left 45 degrees into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi exe­cut­ing a left shoto uke (45 degrees off of your orig­i­nal back line).
• Let your left hand open (thumb cocked) as you throw a left low block to your left and a right open hand agi uke to your front, as you turn your head to your left 45 degrees.Then set your left foot back and to your left, to about two shoul­der widths dis­tance, and about a half of a foot length for­ward as you allow both feet to pivot to the left, end­ing par­al­lel and 45 degrees to the left of your orig­i­nal back line (your left knee should be bent so the knee is over the ankle and the right leg should be relaxed straight), as you turn your shoul­ders 202 1/2 degrees to your left, and throw a left open hand agi uke to your left (90 degrees left of your orig­i­nal back line) as you sweep with your right hand to the back line.
• Throw a right mae gari to the back line and set it for­ward a slightly extended dis­tance then draw your left foot to your right foot. The left foot remains back half a foots’ length, with the toes at the instep of the right foot, and the heel raised slightly, the right foot is flat. Both feet are straight, and the knees are pressed together and bent with the left knee just slightly more for­ward than the right. The weight is car­ried evenly by both feet, and the body is straight for­ward. As you move into the gyaka shomen neko ashi dachi, both hands close into fists, and the left hand reaches for­ward over the top of the right as the right hand comes back to your body. They con­tinue a for­ward rolling motion with the fore­arms par­al­lel to the for­ward (back line) fac­ing body, and as the right hand moves over the top, it will reach out to throw a down­ward back­fist to the bridge of the nose, while the left hand pulls back into a hikite position.
• Reach back with your left foot to an extended dis­tance then draw your right foot back into a right jun­zuki dachi as you throw a right soto uke.
• Throw a left gyakazuki to the solar plexus fol­lowed by a right jun­zuki to the solar plexus.
• Pivot on the balls of both feet to your left 180 degrees. As you pivot let your arms extend out to your sides and par­al­lel to the floor. Your arms are relaxed, left hand open (thumb cocked) and palm fac­ing for­ward, and the right hand closed palm fac­ing upward. As you fin­ish your pivot draw your right knee up and to the cen­ter just below your solar plexus, at the same time you are mov­ing to the front (as a result of the draw­ing of the knee) and bring­ing your arms around to the cen­ter so the hands meet (right tet­sui to left palm) and barely graz­ing the right leg just above the knee. Then as you fall for­ward (hold­ing the leg and arms in posi­tion), catch your­self on the ball of your right foot (the body is over the right foot, lean­ing for­ward and almost par­al­lel to the right thigh, the left leg is stretched out behind you and also on the ball of the foot, the hips are low and the head is up), and as the hands go to the floor, they are both relaxed open, fin­ger­tips turned inward toward each other (the hands are barely touch­ing the floor).
• Use the right leg to stand as you set your left foot over into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi and exe­cute a left shoto uke to your orig­i­nal back line.
• Step for­ward into a right mahamni neko ashi dachi and exe­cute a right shoto uke.
• Shift your body over your right foot as you pivot on the right foot 270 degrees (body is turn­ing 180 degrees) to your left, into a left shomen neko ashi dachi to your orig­i­nal left line as you throw a left soto uke fol­lowed by a right gyakazuki.
• Turn and reach with your right foot 180 degrees to the right and pull onto the ball of the right foot, allow­ing the left foot to slip under­neath you in a right shomen neko ashi dachi to your orig­i­nal right line as you throw a right soto uke fol­lowed by a left gyakazuki and then a right junzuki.
• Throw a right soto uke and a right mae geri simul­ta­ne­ously (2), to your right (to the rear as related to your orig­i­nal front line), as the kick snaps back, set it down directly beside your left foot (3), and turned at a 115 degree angle to your orig­i­nal front line. Then set your left foot to your left, into a left mahamni neko ashi dachi toward your orig­i­nal front line and exe­cut­ing a left shoto uke to the front (4).
• Pivot your body to the front as you drop your left arm down across your body (par­al­lel to your orig­i­nal front line) and under­neath your right hand, which has remained fac­ing the front­line and changed to a yohon nukite posi­tion (thumb tucked). Step for­ward into a right jun­zuki dachi (leav­ing the left arm unmoved) and throw a right yohon nukite.
• Lean your upper body for­ward as you pull your right hand (lower arm from the elbow) back beside your right ear. As you lean, shift your body over your right foot, and pivot 270 degrees to your left on your right foot into a shiko dachi, end­ing with a left gedan uke to your left (your body is fac­ing your orig­i­nal right line and the block is to your orig­i­nal front line).
• Reach to your left (toward your orig­i­nal front line) with your left foot then draw your right foot into shiko dachii as you throw a uriken to your orig­i­nal front line at the height of the bridge of the nose (dur­ing your move for­ward, you allow the right foot to come around a lit­tle let­ting the body turn about 45 degrees to your left).
• Reach to the front line with your left foot then draw your right foot into a left gyakazuki dachi, fac­ing the front line, as you throw a right empi, par­al­lel to the floor and across your lower chest, into the palm of your left hand (thumb cocked). The right hand should end palm fac­ing your body, with the left arm in line with the right, and the left fin­ger­tips even with the tip of your right elbow.
• Pull your right hip back (the right foot will move so that you end in hachiji dachi), turn­ing the body 90 degrees to your right and look­ing straight ahead. As you turn, throw a left soto uke to your left side, and a right gedan to your right side.
• Shift to your right, allow­ing your left foot to step in front of your right foot and turn your body 180 degrees to your right into a shiko dachi. As you fin­ish your turn throw a left low sukui uke across your body, and a right soto uke to your right side.
• Throw a right low sukui uke across your body, going under­neath your left block (the arms are crossed at the mid forearm).
• Remain­ing low in your shiko dachi, throw a jodan juji uke (your arms will be reversed from their usual posi­tion, right arm will be in front).
• Step your left foot to your right 180 degrees into a right jun­zuki dachi fac­ing the back line. After a short pause drop your hands straight down (close them as they come down) as a dou­ble crossed tet­sui uke (don’t pull the hands back to the body as they drop).
• Raise the left knee as if to kick as you do a small jump off of the right foot, and kick to chin height with your right foot, land­ing the left foot then the right foot in a right jun­zuki dachi. Then throw a right down­ward uriken to the bridge of the nose, while the left hand pulls back into a hikite position.
• Shift to your right, allow­ing your left foot to step in front of your right foot and turn your body 180 degrees to your right into a shiko dachi. As you turn, let the right arm to relax, allow­ing the body to turn into the arm (it will drop some, end­ing up across the body with the hand below the belt level, and turned palm up). As you fin­ish the turn, shoot the left hand under­neath the arm end­ing up across the body with the hand below the belt level, and turned palm up (the arms are crossed at the mid fore­arm). Then extend your legs (keep a small relaxed bend in the knees) rais­ing your body (which should have remained upright through the entire move), and as you rise, sep­a­rate your arms across your body until they are at your sides (about 45 degrees off the front line), then bring your arms up (sim­i­lar to upper­cuts) as you con­tinue mov­ing them straight out to your sides.
• Open your hands as you drop your arms, bring­ing your hands to the cen­ter, with the left over­lap­ping the right, so that the fin­ger­tips are even (the end of each index fin­ger is even with the end of each lit­tle fin­ger), as you draw the right foot to the left into hachiji dachi.
• Close to masuba dachi, then rei.

References

1. The written kata instructions were kindly provided by Dojo Update, Kushanku Kata, http://www.dojoupdate.com/wado-ryu-katas/kushanku/, Added - 10/21/14