Several weeks ago, Victor Michael, Marc and I attended a clinic with John Kerker in Chicopee Mass.
The five hours we spent were fascinating. He spent the entire time focusing on applications from Naihanchi Kata.
He broke the kata into about 40 technique studies each with several variations. I have no idea exactly how many techniques were studied. We were fortunate that Victor Michael was able to use his camera to make copies of about ½ of those study sections.
I spent more time that day trying to work out the underlying principles which John was using with his applications. As normal it will be along while before I can pull my thoughts together on this.
On the whole, I was satisfied that my own applications for Naihanchi were fine, but seeing the depth of John’s presentation reminds me of what depths there are everywhere.
His clinic started with larger motion but moved towards smaller execution, especially the layers of applications in a technique movement and the way the lower body destroys an attacker.
Watching John thump bodies or smash into arms and that alone drives the attacker to their knees, instantly. His training under Harrill Sensei, evidence how hard body impact and body training raises the application potential.
John Kerker is not Sherman Harrill, but Sherman’s presence is seen or felt with each of his applications. John presents his material in a very logical and informative manner.
A Naifanchi Application by John Kerker 2008 P9130001
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHWcqEhuRVI
Opponent right foot forward with a right punch (to your front)
LFF left open hand parry block across their inner elbow from the outside.
Left hand circles down and behind their upper arm, keeping the open palm up to rotate their shoulder overexposing their front shoulder point.
You strike to their shoulder point (pain) with a punch and then an elbow. The punching right hand rises above the arm (not across it for a cleaner elbow strike.
Right forearm strike behind their neck, then roll their neck in clockwise as you their neck/head in to stack both hands.
Conclude with right hammer fist to their chest.
Video P9130001
Another drill from the clinic
Naihanchi kicking drill (against a double shoulder grab
Right foot cuts into the inner side of their right ankle
Left foot cuts into the inner side of their left ankle
Right cross step to become a counterclockwise strike into their ankle balance points.
Left foot steps out to become a clockwise strike into their outer right ankle balance points.
Right counterclockwise strike into their ankle balance point to right outer strike to knee or lower side abdomen
Left foot steps across to become a clockwise strike into their outer right ankle as you begin the step across.
John’s detailed explanation about this drill was one of the important highlights of the day. I first saw this at the first clinic I attended with Sherman Harrill and John’s focus on how the kicks were delivered is an important step forward.
From The Code of Karate
John explained how Sherman met a Chinese Cook and asked him to translate the Kempo Gokui, the Code of Karate, and how that translation guided much of Sherman’s analysis efforts.
In particular he explained how ‘The time to strike is when the opportunity presents itself’, was translate as ‘Hands meet suddenly enters empty.’
Just words, but as the day progressed, I saw how John’s arm strikes were opening the body up for another counter. In a sense the kata application created a void, an emptiness in attacking the body to use for striking.
Translation is an art, and this example shows how difficult truth is to understand. In turn I made a request of Joe Swift in Tokyo, to likewise translate that section kanji by kanji. Here is his answer.
01 Hand/method/Way of doing something
02 Meet/come together
03 Empty/Void
04 Namely/That is today
05 Enger/Go In/Come In
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