| Accessories By Manufacturer | |
|
|
Email Newsletter
Get info on Sales, Events, New Products, and More!
|
|
|
|
|
| The Way of Sanchin Kata: The Application of Power | 
 enlarge | Author: Kris Wilder
Publisher: YMAA Publication Center
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $14.87
You Save: $10.08 (40%)
New (33) Used (9) from $14.57
Avg. Customer Rating:  17 reviews
Sales Rank: 266049
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 216
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 7.2 x 0.7
ISBN: 1594390843
Dewey Decimal Number: 796
EAN: 9781594390845
ASIN: 1594390843
Publication Date: April 25, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Ships immediately! Perfect and New! 2007 Paperback.
|
| Customer Reviews:
 This book is nothing short of fantastic for kata practioneers! July 17, 2007
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
I just recently finished reading Kris Wilder's, "The Way of Sanchin Kata," and boy let me tell you I was thoroughly impressed. It has been years since I first learned this kata, and embarrassingly almost as long since I last practiced it. Kris's breakdown and explanation of this kata and all its finer points is nothing short of remarkable and is without a doubt one of the finest examples of this kata that I have ever seen in literature.
I will even go so far as to say that the only way that you could find a better introduction to this kata is to actually have someone that has genuinely mastered it instruct you. The key statement here is, "genuinely mastered it" not someone that is merely familiar with it. I am familiar with Sanchin kata, but I sure am not competent enough performing it at this time to instruct it. I have yet to see anything else in print, or on video for that matter, that comes close to Kris's instructional ability with this kata.
Now I must admit that I fully intended to have this review completed and posted weeks before I actually accomplished that task. However, after reading through Kris's book the first time, I had to actually go through it several more times and I even practiced various portions of the kata while holding this book in one hand as I went through the movements. I could really tell that it has been awhile since I last practiced this kata, and I was really grateful to have Kris's book as a guide to get me through it. Not only did this book prove to be a great resource for refreshing my memory on this particular kata, but it taught me so much more that I hadn't even known before.
As with any kata, and I do mean any kata, the principles and underlying techniques which a kata is designed to teach are far more important and beneficial to the martial artist than the mere combinations of punches, blocks, and kicks. The benefits of learning and practicing Sanchin kata on a consistent basis are not something that you will miraculously see overnight. However, you will start seeing the benefits after a couple of months of consistent practice.
Kris starts off his book with a very informative section on the history of the Sanchin kata followed by some very profound information on the learning process and how it can impede or enhance your learning potential.
From here Kris spends the rest of the book breaking down each individual component of the kata in precise and exacting detail from the placement and "rooting" of your feet all the way up through various parts of your body to your fists. Each chapter is very well done and is consistent in its information and importance to each particular movement in the kata as well as the kata as a whole.
I personally found the sections and information detailing the correct body posture and breathing to be the most beneficial along with the proper parts of the body to tense and relax during the execution of the kata. That by no means is meant to place any other portions of the book as less important; it merely means that these particular portions stood out for me and my background as more beneficial. Although the book was loaded with lots of very informative illustrations, I really would have liked to have seen some of the body positions utilized with real people instead of drawings.
I highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to realize their true potential not only with Sanchin kata, but any kata that they happen to practice.
Essential reading -- thought provoking and intelligent June 26, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
With Sanchin Kata it is clear that there's far more going on than meets the eye. And far more than even practitioners who have been studying it for years likely know. What some people do know is that it holds the secrets to enormous power, endurance and speed. This book uncovers many of those secrets and I believe is essential reading for those that want to not only improve their execution of the kata but to understand how and why it works. It is extremely well organized and covers a broad range of topics, from body mechanics and architecture to movement to breathing and more. Complex subjects are discussed in a clear and concise manner and there is a great "test-it" element where you try out what you just read to see for yourself that it works. There's just the right amount of depth and detail; rather than coming across as dry and academic it's a very lively and intelligent read. It's a book I refer to now on a regular basis and enjoy trying the "test-it" exercises on fellow practitioners. I highly recommend this to all traditional karate practitioners as a thought provoking and thoroughly enjoyable book that will really improve your art.
 Interesting bits here and there, but ultimately disappointing June 23, 2007
6 out of 10 found this review helpful
I've practiced Sanchin for over 20 years - not a lot by some standards, but certainly a bit more than many folks. My own practice of Sanchin has evolved over the years as I've internalized the form, and now bears only a passing external resemblance to the version I was taught those many years ago.
Based on my own experience, I can only marginally recommend this book and then only to folks who practice some form of Sanchin already and have somehow managed to come to the conclusion that they aren't quite getting the full benefit of the form.
A significant chunk of this book is completely unhelpful. On one hand, it's full of attempts at tying bits of science and mathematics to the execution of Sanchin that add no value whatsoever to the actual experience of Sanchin (e.g., references to the Fibonacci sequence were particularly annoying). On the other hand, there is almost nothing useful on Sanchin as a qigong practice and nothing at all useful on Sanchin's self-defense principles and techniques.
On the gripping hand ( nod to Larry Niven :-) ), however, the book is not entirely without value. There are a few useful bits that, interestingly enough, coincide with the evolution of my own understanding of Sanchin. These few bits will fly in the face of what many Sanchin practitioners have been taught and may help a few achieve a more positive, perhaps even enlightened approach to the form. In particular, these folks should check out the brief sections on spine alignment and breathing.
Bottom line - a few really good bits buried in a lot of pages of filler.
Low value for your buck *unless* you really need those few good bits to boost your personal Sanchin practice to the next level. Caution: this may alienate your instructor unless he/she happens to agree - in which case you should have been taught this way to begin with and don't really need this book.
Martial Arts and Alignment June 17, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
There are so few martial arts books worth mentioning, but this one should be on everyone's shelf regardless of what martial art practiced. Even if you don't practice Karate in particular, this book will inspire you to think about your aligments and how power and speed are generated. I've cruised many bookstores in Japan and did not find this information! This book is not leaving my shelf.
Invaluable information June 15, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is an exceptional book. It contains a wealth of information, and is well-written and to the point. The chapters relating to functional kata performance are no-nonsense and the information is clear and concise. Other chapters are more academic, but still very readable and definitely worthwhile; they provide great information and make this much more than a how-to book.
I have trained in Karate for many years, but Sanchin is not practiced in my system. As a result, I have looked to books/video and training with different dojos to learn and understand it. However, it was not until learning Kris Wilder's Sanchin method that I found value in this kata.
The Sanchin I had previously learned, which I believe to be the mainstream method, just doesn't merit any attention (IMHO). Isometric tension is fine for exercising the muscles, but why practice Sanchin when you can apply isometric tension to virtually any kata? The knock-kneed stance is weak and I think unhealthy over the course of years, and the harsh, labored breathing is overly theatrical and of little value.
Wilder's Sanchin is different. This kata is not about isometric tension, it is about good posture, alignment and body mechanics. The stance is completely functional, more akin to a short front stance than the knock-kneed, "inner tension" stance we've all been taught. This is a formal stance you can actually fight in. The breathing method discussed in the book was extremely useful, and also functional in a real situation. (I thought the breathing section was worth the price of the book all by itself).
As both a practitioner and an instructor I am always looking for more information and a deeper understanding of Karate. Most books on Karate will yield a couple worthwhile nuggets of wisdom, but you have to wade through pages and pages of empty words to find them. The Way of Sanchin Kata is exceptional in that it tells you what to do and how to do it, with zero filler. Wilder gives you tools to improve your training, providing performance details and tips but not burdening you with useless prose. As someone with limited free time, this is something I really appreciate.
I particularly recommend this book to those who do not (yet) practice Sanchin. This kata and the method demonstrated in this book will improve your Karate. The principles can be applied both to the kata you already know and to real-world confrontations. Read it, ponder it, and most important, practice it.
The author of this review is a Karate and Ki-Aikido instructor in Seattle, WA.
|
|
|
Site by: Troy Peterson | |
