大抵の閃きはキッチンで起きる。何故なら私のキッチンが狭く、床がよく滑るからだ。新しい菜箸も百円ショップで買ったしな。
Most of my Jodo questions suddenly appears when I’m cooking in my kitchen. Because it’s small and have very slippery floor (and I have a pair of long chopsticks).
逆手打での私の最大の問題は、「届かない」と「乗れない」である。よくある失敗例は、前傾して両手が下がっている打ち込みだ。これは私だけじゃない。かなり沢山の人が同じ失敗をしている。結果は知っている通り、とても弱いし、打ち終わってから顔面に杖先をつける動作に無駄があり過ぎる。
My biggest problem in Gyakute-Uchi is “can’t reach” and “can’t ride Tachi (like in Hikiotoshi)”. Often ended up leaning forward and both hands down when I finish. I’m sure a lot of people do the same. You know the result.
先生や高段者の打ち方を思い出してみると、あまり前傾せず、打太刀の気剣体を崩し、顔面に杖先をつける動作に無理がない。ということはつまり、技が安定していて、隙が無い。
Sensei and high grades are not leaning forward too much, they break Uchidachi’s balance and not unnecessary movements in Jo-saki to Ganmen action. It’s calm, smooth and steady strikes.
北杖会からは「引落打と同じ」であり、「乗ること」を意識するように教えてもらった。帰国中はあまりそれが出来たとは思えなかった。最後の最後まで上手くはいかなかった。それはきっと自分の中でしっかりと「同じ」という意味が理解出来ていなかったからだと思う。
Hokujokai taught me that the key is Kiri-Otoshi just like Hikiotoshi. I don’t think I managed to strike like that at all during my visit to their dojo. Probably because I didn’t truly understand the meaning of “the same as Hikiotoshi-Uchi”.
逆に考えれば、逆手打が出来れば引落打もさらに上達出来るはずだ。
So, if I could strike good Gyakute-Uchi, my Hikiotoshi-Uchi will be better, right? or maybe I can adopt the Hikiotoshi-Uchi tricks into Gyakute-Uchi and it should work…?
井上先生からは「拳を太刀の切先にぶつけるように」とアドバイスを頂いたが、届かない。後ろの手がそんなに前に出ない。何かが邪魔をしている。ただ何も考えずに前足を出せば良いのか?後ろ足を引きつければ良いのか?違うだろう。
Inoue Sensei gave me a tip “try hit your rear hand to Kissaki” but I couldn’t reach. There is something stopping me from stretching my arms. Do I just simply move my front foot forward? or pull rear foot? Probably not.
(注意:私の勝手な想像です)
Warning: There are no proof and this is just my thoughts.
理論的には「杖の刃筋を通すということは、つまり制定居合の受け流しや袈裟切りと同じように、柄頭は正中線からズレず、ヘソ前で止まるべきである。引落打で切り落とすためにも、太刀に乗って勝つためにも、杖先で描く円の支点は力強くなければならない。」と私は思う。
If you do Iaido, I think you would understand my idea. If I was to keep Hasuji in Jo, Tsuka-gashira (Jo-end) should finish in centre like in Kesagiri and Ukenagashi. And the centre of circle should be very strong. Cut with left hand in Iaido, right?
全剣連制定杖道dvdの荒井先生を参考にイラストを描いてみました。こうやって実際に描いてみると、先生は支点を強くするために、打ち終わりでは全てが一挙集中しているように見えます。手の内は私の完全な想像ですが、きっと杖先に力が加わるということは、このように手を使って入るんじゃないでしょうか?失敗例も描いてみましたが、手元に力を入れると、杖先に力が加わらず、そして支点がズレると力の源がブレるような気がします。
I draw illustrations from ZNKR Jodo dvd, Arai sensei’s Gyakute-Uchi. It seems to me that all the powers gather in a single point in order to have strong centre of the circle. The Tenouchi is my imagination but, there are not many other options to make Jo-saki stronger. I also made my Gyakute-Uchi version, how I often strike and why it doesn’t work.
先生の場合は綺麗に前の手が円を描いているようだと、私は写真をなぞりながら思いました。失敗した場合は、打ち終わりで左手が伸びきる必要があり、これではバランスも悪いし、力も入れづらいと思います。体が必要以上に突っ込んでしまい、打ち損じた場合も危険です。
I thought there is a clean circle in Sensei’s while drawing these. Bad version have stretched arm that loose balance. Often dive from head and very dangerous when you miss Tachi.
引落打と決定的に違うのは、切先との距離だ。この距離を自分のバランスを崩さずに、どう縮めるのか?というのが現在の私の悩める焦点になっている。
What really different from Hikiotoshi is the distance. How do I make it closer without loosing my balance? I’m thinking about it since last xmas.
前足を出そうとすると、足を真っ直ぐにして出すことが多いし、後ろ足を引っぱろうとすると、前足に重心が乗るので片足で打つことになる。
If I move my front foot forward, I often don’t change the angle of my foot. If I pull my rear foot, I often put too much weight on front foot that ended up striking with one foot.
だからやはり腰で打つしかない。引落打と同様に、腕じゃなくて腰で打てば、骨盤を水平に保ちながら、後ろ足を引きつけつつ、前足をやや半身の角度まで踏み込んで、膝を柔らかくして上半身にゆとりを持たせながら、杖を太刀に乗せて、手の内でグワッと打てるんじゃないか?
So using the Hikiotoshi tricks, turn with hip to add speed but also pull rear foot. Moving front foot but in Yaya-Hanmi angle (30~45 degree), knees soft and make my upper body relaxed. Then maybe I can ride Tachi and strike like Sensei?
まだ実際に稽古で打太刀と向かい合っていないので、なんとも言えないんだが、ここでもう一つ気になることがある。それは安丸先生が言っていた「引き切り」についてだ。私は引落打ではどうもそれが再現出来ていないのだけれど、もし逆手打と引落打が同じだとすれば、逆手打では太刀との距離が広いので、「引き切り」しなければならないだろう。技を大きく使って、打つには、この逆手打の「引き切り」を引落打で応用すれば、なにか得るものがあるかもしれない。週末の稽古で試行錯誤してきます。
I haven’t had chance to try it yet so I can’t say if this work but, I hope it works. And there is actually one more thing to think about while Gyakute-Uchi. It’s what Yasumaru Sensei said about Hikigiri. I haven’t managed to use it in Hikiotoshi-Uchi yet but, Gyakute-Uchi must use Hikigiri. And if Gyakute-Uchi and Hikiotoshi-Uchi are the same then I should be able to use the feeling of this Hikigiri to Hikiotoshi in order to make this technique large and powerful? Maybe I can find something new this weekend practice if anyone wanted to practice Jodo with me…
台所で逆手打
19/02/2016 投稿者: yukishima
Very interesting thoughts. You have a nice blog. Gyaku Te Uchi is indeed very difficult. Many ways it can go wrong. I don’t understand much of what you say and don’t understand the pictures very much. I am only a low level student and my Kiri Otoshi is very bad. But here are some ignorant thoughts of mine.
In the moment of contact one should be in an almost orthodox gyaku te ni kamae, like in kihon. Jo has to have an inclination, as in hanmi.
It is important to go sideways to take the centre for the kiri otoshi to work: rotate the left foot on the heel to go left and then join the feet while striking. Or just step left. Some people rotate the left foot in the “ball of the foot”, not the heel. That is very bad because it moves you go right, not left. You end up in front of uchidachi and he cuts your right hand while you try your kiri otoshi. This is specially important in gyaku te uchi.
Honte uchi and hiki otoshi are like cuts, kiri. Gyaku te uchi is more of a strike, uchi. In gyaku te uchi none of your hands is in honte(kiri te), both are in gyaku te(uchi te). So I don’t see well how you can do hiki giri in gyaku te uchi. To me it is more like a punch.
Anyway, practice and more practice will give the answer I’m sure.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! You mean, starting from your left foot forward Kamae, right? Does the strike come from 45degree or from side and smack Tachi in the centre?
I’ve seen some YouTube video like that. I couldn’t tell if they turn with heel or ball of their foot.
Mine turns with ball of foot like in Hikiotoshi. Front knee bend, and the Jo comes from almost vertical.
Hope we can meet up one day at seminars and try! 🙂
What I meant with the footwork is more or less what is described in this picture (not mine)
There are several types of kiri otoshi in SMR. In some you step forward. In some the feet don’t make any steps, like in the second kiri otoshi of yokogiridome. The steps diagram describes what we do in the suburi and uchikomi, and I think it fits the description of several kiri otoshi, like the one in midare dome. Except for the last part. The moving to the left of where you were is what makes this gyakuteuchi kiriotoshi work, I think.
In those gyaku te uchi I believe the strike is roughly 45 degrees to yoko men uchi, above the left temple. You don’t try to hit the tachi, it just happens, the kiriotoshi works regardless. The tachi could be struck or not, depending on what uchidachi does. With practice the 45 degrees ends up being quite vertical.
Hopefully we can meet some day in a seminar!
It is so fascinating some teachers have completely different approaches to techniques, isn’t it? Nishioka sensei’s photos are 45 degree when he turns. I think I used to be 35 degree but now it’s as closed to my body, maybe 15. I’ve been advised to have a feeling of cutting the line from Uchidachi’s left eye to right knee in Hikiotoshiuchi and Gyakute is the same. I will research more. My advantages compared with other foreigners is that I can read a lot of Japanese articles and books about Jodo. I will try translate what I found interesting and video etc… as well.
I’ll practice more and hopefully I can re-create this before we meet! Thanks for your comments. I really wanted to hear what other people are thinking about these basic techniques.