Kūshankū (クーシャンク, 公相君) also called Kūsankū (クーサンクー), Kōsōkun or Kankū-dai (観空大), is an open hand

karate (; ; Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fuj ...

kata ''Kata'' is a Japanese word ( 型 or 形) meaning "form". It refers to a detailed choreographed pattern of martial arts movements made to be practised alone. It can also be reviewed within groups and in unison when training. It is practise ...

that is studied by many practitioners of

Okinawan Karate Okinawan may refer to: * Something of or relating to: ** Okinawa Island ** Okinawa Islands ** Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawan language, an endangered language spoken by the people of Okinawa Island * Okinawan people, a subgroup of the Ryukyuan people ...

, specifically styles related to Shuri-te. In many styles, such as

Shotokan is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" throug ...

, there are two versions of the kata: Kūsankū-shō and Kūsankū-dai. The name ''Kūsankū'' or ''Kōsōkun'' (公相君) is used in Okinawan systems of karate, and refers to

Kūsankū Kūsankū (クーサンクー、公相君) or Kūshankū (クーシャンクー), also known as Kwang Shang Fu, was a Chinese martial artist who lived during the 18th century. He is credited as having an influence on virtually all karate-derive ...

, a Chinese

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or interna ...

from Fukien who traveled to Okinawa in the 1700s. In Japanese systems of karate, the kata has been known as Kankū (translated as ''gazing heavenward'', ''viewing the sky'', or ''contemplating the sky'') ever since it was renamed in the 1930s by Funakoshi Gichin. This kata is also practiced in

Tang Soo Do Tang Soo Do ( Hangul: 당수도, Hanja: 唐手道 ) refers to a Korean martial art based on Karate and may include fighting principles from subak (as described in the Kwon Bup Chong Do), as well as northern Chinese martial arts. Before the ...

as ''Kong Sang Koon'' () in

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

according to the

hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The l ...

rendering of the hanja . Most schools of Tang Soo Do only practice the "Dai" version but a handful do practice both the latter and "Sho" versions.

Overview

Kūsankū is a cornerstone of many styles of karate. It is characterized by the use of flowing techniques that resemble those found in White Crane Kung Fu; it also has a wide variety of open-handed techniques. In Matsubayashi-ryu karate, the kata is known for its flying kick and its "cheating" stance, which robs the opponent of opportunities to attack by extending one leg along the ground and squatting as low as possible on the other (ura-gamae). One possible

bunkai , literally meaning "analysis" or "disassembly", "is a term used in Japanese martial arts referring to process of analysing kata and extracting fighting techniques from the movements of a 'form' (''kata''). The extracted fighting techniques are call ...

for this technique allows the practitioner to escape a bear-hug from behind by twisting and dropping out of their grasp. The hand techniques that accompany the stance block the head, while allowing for a strike to the groin, knee, or foot. Because of the complexity of its techniques, Kūsankū is the highest ranking and most complex kata in Matsubayashi-ryū, and is said to take more than ten years to master. Nagamine, Shoshin, ''The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do'' (Paperback edition) (1998), In

karate, Kankū-dai consists of 65 movements executed in about 90 seconds. It is a major form of the kata; its equivalent minor form is called Kankū-shō. Kankū-dai was one of

Gichin Funakoshi was a japanese martial artist who is regarded as the founder of Karate, Shotakan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is known as a "father of modern karate". Following the teachings of Anko Itosu and Anko Asato,Funakoshi, ...

's favorite kata and is a representative kata of the Shōtōkan system. The

embusen ] is a Japanese language, Japanese term used in martial arts like karate and judo to refer to the spot where a ''kata'' begins, as well as its line of movement. Though it is not stressed in Okinawa, nearly all Japanese-influenced ''kata'' start ...

(path of movement) of Kankū-shō is similar to that of Kankū-dai, but it begins differently. It is a compulsory Shōtōkan kata and of high technical merit. As a result of Anko Itosu's efforts, the

Heian The Japanese word Heian (平安, lit. "peace") may refer to: * Heian period, an era of Japanese history * Heian-kyō, the Heian-period capital of Japan that has become the present-day city of Kyoto * Heian series, a group of karate kata (forms) * ...

kata contain sequences taken from Kankū-dai.Gursharan Sahota, The Shotokan Karate Handbook — Beginner to Black Belt,

References

External links

Shotokan Kanku dai site

Overview

References

External links

See also