A COMPLETE TECHNICAL REPERTOIRE

The Shorinji Kempo technical repertoire is structured in three aspects: juho, goho and seiho.

Juho
 

It is an assembly of “soft” techniques, that is to say based on joint-locking ones, chokes, hold dawns, escapes, throws..., besides vital points pressure techniques. It is avoided to oppose resistance, seeking always to yield to the attacker's pushing or pulling, until, at the moment when he loses his initial strength or balance (what can be produced in fractions of second), we can articulate the answer.

Goho

It is an assembly of self-defence techniques that usually are called “hard” (hand blows, punches, kicks, nudging, knee blows, blocks, etc.) Also, although out of curriculum, some traditional weapons (long staff, short staff of root, fist staff) are included in this group. Click here to go to the article on shakujo (long staff)

Goho and Juho techniques are not independent, but they will function better combined, being able to pass fluently, for example, from using the fists to throw a person in a same sequence. Likewise it should be kept in mind that the ability does not suffice for a correct execution of the techniques, but it should be accompanied of the faculty of reasoning and control, indispensable to defeat determinant factors as fear, equally that we need the intelligence to find the aggressor's weak point.

Seiho
 

Besides the aspects juho and goho, and as we would must to expect from a system that has in the attainment and maintenance of the physical health one of its main objectives, are used in Shorinji Kempo diverse traditional therapies comprised under the denomination of Seiho (techniques of body arrangement), which includes vital point (kyusho) pressures for the maintenance of the health, diverse manipulations, therapeutic massages, relaxation, recovery after training, etc. Therefore the normal thing is that this type of techniques are carried out to the end of the class, and they require a maximum identification between both partners, between who executes the Seiho and who receives it; the biggest relaxation as possible, a same beat of both breaths and a scrupulous care in the execution of the manipulations.

Hokei

They form the main part of the Shorinji Kempo technical program, along with Kihon or bases. Hokei are patterns or structured combinations of fixed techniques following a predetermined plan of combat. They can be practiced both in single form (tanen hokei) and, specially, in pairs (sotai hokei), in whose case both practitioners take the roles of attacker and defender in turns.

Hokei

Embu, or prepared presentation of technical sets of attack and defence freely chosen by its performers, is apparently the most important form of exhibition that Shorinji Kempo owns. In fact it is one of the more advanced learning methods we count on, because of the mutual understanding that it requires with the partner and of the conscientious study of the techniques that are put in play. In the examinations a variation called Kumi Embu is included, consisting of the execution, with rhythm and attitude of combat, of a board formed by ten techniques set in the program of the corresponding rank, in which both partners execute each technique taking the roles of attacker and defender in turns.

The practice of combat

Combat is a main and assiduous exercise in Shorinji Kempo, always a practice of mutual learning and never a disorderly or competitive fight.

Randori is a form of sparring, or random and free application of the learned foundations and skills. It can be Juho or Goho Randori, or be a combination of both them. Besides we should specify something as for the liberty of execution degree, and it is that Randori can be either totally free, but avoiding the haste and the uncontrolled contact, or it is agreed to priorly set up certain limitations with a pedagogical purpose (assignment of the roles of attacker and defender, study of a single group of attacks or defences, employment only of the fists or only of the legs, employment of breastplates, etc.).
 

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