Pegging Your Stance Is A Secret of the Classical Karate Kata

By Al Case

In these days of punch a bunch MMA fighting, many people lose out on the secret of Classical Karate Forms. And, not to be discriminatory, on the secrets of Gung Fu patterns, and taekwondo and...so on. Mind you, I find nothing wrong with effective self defense, as offered by a regimen in MMA training, but I think Martial knowledge is of more value in the long run.

Let's consider the principle of how to peg the stance. You won't find much information on this practice, but it gives one a coordinated body, a harder punch (or block or whatever), and a rather interesting and useful waveform of energy through the body. There are several places in the traditional Kata which teach this trick.

Basic Pegging of the Stance is one of the hallmarks in Pinan Three, which is also called Heian Three. This is found in the first move, where one places his feet together, leans forward at the waist, and executes simultaneous low and middle blocks. There is a balance to be found in this movement, and an introduction to running chi energy down the legs and into the earth.

The discipline of this concept evolves slowly through the kata of classical Karate, and in other arts. In the form called Pinan Five (Heian Five), one jumps and lands in a cross legged stance (Kosa Dachi). In this move one is deliberately dropping weight deep into the ground, and getting a sizable return of energy from the earth.

This movement occurs again, but with a quick step instead of a jump, in Bot sai (Passai). This simple step is forward motion brought to a sudden halt by sending roots down the leg and into the ground. The forward motion, when stopped in such abrupt manner, actually sends a wave of energy (chi or ki) up the body and into the braced block.

The last example of this technique of pegging is found in um be (Empi...the flying swallow). This movement consists of stepping forward and sinking the weight through the cross legged stance. In this form the movement is extremely combat useful.

There are other examples of this pegging concept throughout the martial disciplines, but the ones I have given here provide a distinct and useful sequence for learning. And, the truth of the matter is that one should learn to sink the weight in all kinds of stances. This is quite important if one wishes to master the True Martial Art.

To conclude, let me again say that I have no bone to pick with the MMA fighting methods. However, most people are into the art for more than just being able to beat somebody to a pulp. Indeed, discovering and manipulating the intrinsic energies of the body, and learning other such secrets through classical Karate Kata, gives a peace of mind that is experienced through no other martial way in the world.

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