, also known as ''jōdan-gamae'', and frequently shortened simply to ''jōdan'', is a basic ''
kenjutsu'' posture. Jōdan-no-kamae means upper-level posture (lit. 'high/upper degree posture').
Kendo
Jōdan-no-kamae is one of the five stances in
kendo
is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords ( shinai) as well as protective armor ( bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spr ...
: ''jōdan'', ''
chūdan'', ''
gedan
, meaning roughly "lower level", is one of the three heights commonly referred to in Japanese martial arts
Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (''budō'', ...
'', ''
hassō'' and ''
waki
WAKI (1230 AM) is a radio station licensed to McMinnville, Tennessee
McMinnville is the largest city in and the county seat of Warren County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 13,605 at the 2010 census. It was named for Governor Jos ...
''. In jōdan-no-kamae, the sword is raised above the head with the tip (''kissaki''; 切先) pointing back and the blade facing up, in readiness to strike.
It is the most aggressive stance of the five.
There are commonly two types of jōdan-no-kamae, left (''hidari''; 左) and right (''migi''; 右), referring to which foot is out in front. As a more rare case, only one hand is used to hold the sword. Even rarer, the positions of the hands on the hilt of the sword may be reversed.
In normal practice or competitions, left (''hidari'') jōdan-gamae is the most common. Its advantage is the reach of the strike, the intimidating posture and the speed of the strike. Its disadvantage is the weak defense, since the throat, wrists and body are open. In order to protect the vulnerable area, a jōdan user must have a very fiery spirit to "scare off" the opponent. It is also more difficult to judge the striking distance (''maai''; 間合い). Therefore, this stance is only used as the normal stance during practice or competition by experienced ''kendōka'' (剣道家).
Both jōdan-no-kamae positions are used in Nihon Kendo
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 practis ...
.
Kenjutsu
As one of the most basic postures, jōdan-no-kamae is common to virtually all schools of ''
kenjutsu''. The primary attribute of jōdan-no-kamae is always the weapon lifted above the head of the practitioner. One of the only significant variations is the relative position of the elbows. Some styles, such as
aiki-ken, prefer the elbows to be as far inward as possible. Many others insist on the elbows being open.
Jōdan-no-kamae is called the in
Yagyū Shinkage-ryū and the in
Shinkage-ryū.
[上野 靖之 (1966) ''剣道教典 (Educational Model Fencing)'' 尚武館刊. p315]
European schools of swordsmanship
Similar stances to ''Jōdan-no-kamae'' are also found in
German and
Italian schools of the
longsword. It is known as ''Dach'' ("roof") and ''bocca di falcone'' ("falcon's beak") respectively. One-handed variants also exist for the single sword (''Schwert'') and falchion (''Messer''). Another tradition that includes this posture is the English master
George Silver's teachings, where it is known as the "open fight."
In German traditions such as Liechtenauer this is called center vom Tag. It is often translated as "day" or "from the roof".
In Italian traditions such as Bolognese-Dardi this would be referred to as Guardia Alta or High Guard.
Notes and references
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jodan-No-Kamae
Kendo stances