The History of Fighting

Sochin (Tranquil Force) may have its origins in martial arts history in Dragon Style Kung Fu and then later come through the Naha-te school in Okinawa, where it was taught by Seisho Arakaki. According to legend, Higaonna Kanryo learned it from him then passed it down to Kenzo Mabuni, the founder of Shito-Ryu.

Mabuni is said to have spent some time instructing Gichin Funakoshi’s son, Yoshitaka in the art of kata and as a result of these instructions, the Shotokan syllabus gained not only Sochin, but also Nijushiho and Unsu. In his book, ‘Karate Kata Zenshu’, Hirokazu Kanazawa claims it is a karate history fact that Sochin gets its name from the extensive use of the stance, Sochin Dachi. However this may not be the case as it has been suggested that the stance, originally called ‘Fudo,’ got renamed Sochin in reference to the kata.

The version of Sochin that is practised in Shotokan karate today, was developed by Yoshitaka in the late 1930s. It is likely that one of the changes he made to the older version of the kata includes the heavy usage of Sochin dachi, a stance he is known to have heavily favoured.

Interesting facts about Sochin;

• Sensei Gichin Funakoshi tried to rename it Hakko but the name did not take hold.
• It is said that this kata was designed to be particularly good for developing the internal energy known as Ki (Chi in Chinese).
• Other translations of the word Sochin that are used in different styles include; ‘Grand prize’, ‘Grand battle, ‘Strong calm’ and ‘Immovable’.