Everything you need to study Kodokan Goshin Jutsu with Master Alfredo Vismara, in one offer: 2 hours and 45 minutes of video across the 2022 technical lesson, the 1988 instructional video and two exclusive tutorials from the MyJudoIsYourJudo platform. The videos are in Italian.
“First you need to be precise with your movements, precise with your atemi, to give meaning to what you do.” – Alfredo Vismara
Kodokan Goshin Jutsu is the most recent of the Kodokan kata: the form of self-defence techniques. In its first draft it was called Shin Kime no Kata, “new Kime no Kata”, because it was created to give Judo a more modern form of self-defence than Kime no Kata, which was still tied to the ceremonial of old Japan, with its kneeling part and the use of the katana. Together with Kime no Kata it is one of the great references for studying Shobu Ho, the real-combat side of Judo.
The kata is divided into two parts: Toshu no bu, unarmed defences against holds, punches and kicks, and Buki no bu, defences against the dagger, the stick and the pistol.
What is included
- Kodokan Goshin Jutsu technical lesson (19 November 2022). The Master takes Tori and Uke through the whole kata, from laying out the weapons to the final bow: for each technique he shows the attack, the defence, the atemi and the control, and explains the details that give every movement its meaning.
- 1988 instructional video. Alfredo Vismara with his brother Beppe performs Kime no Kata and Kodokan Goshin Jutsu: the kata seen as a whole, in its complete performance.
- Exclusive Toshu no bu tutorial. The unarmed defences, from holds to punches and kicks, with the history of the kata and the focus on Zanshin, the alertness towards Uke that must be kept from the start of the attack to the final control.
- Exclusive Buki no bu tutorial. The defences against the dagger, the stick and the pistol, with practical advice on not trying to grab the weapon in mid-air but going with the attack and controlling it.
What the technical lesson covers
- The history of the kata: Jigoro Kano’s idea, never formalised before his death, Kenji Tomiki sent to study with Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido, the work of the Kodokan high grades from 1950 and the official presentation in January 1956.
- The revisions of 1985, 2001 and 2004, and the final choice of Shizentai, instead of the Jigotai of Kime no Kata, in Tori’s positions.
- The name: from Shin Kime no Kata to Kodokan Goshin Jutsu, and why it is in every respect one of the fundamental Kodokan kata.
- Weapons etiquette: how Uke carries the pistol, the dagger and the stick, the bow, and the order in which he lays them down and picks them up.
- Toshu no bu: the defences against holds, including Ryote dori, Hidari eri dori, Migi eri dori, Kata ude dori, Ushiro eri dori and Ushiro jime, and those against three punches and two kicks, Mae geri and Yoko geri.
- Buki no bu: the defences against the dagger, at close range and from a distance, against the stick and against the pistol pointed from the front, at the side and at the back.
- Atemi and controls: Metsubushi, Shotei ate, Kote hineri, Kote gaeshi, Waki gatame, Ude gatame, Osoto otoshi and Hadaka jime.
The details that make the difference
- How Uke holds the dagger: thumb on the pommel when attacking from above, little finger when attacking the stomach. And why in Morote tsuki the stick must be treated as a spear.
- The joseki: why Tori and Uke must never turn their backs when returning to their places, and how they exchange positions during the kata.
- Why in Goshin Jutsu Waki gatame is controlled from the back of the hand and not from the wrist as in randori.
- Why Tori’s and Uke’s steps must not be synchronised as in Kime no Kata.
- Why after a throw Tori moves away from Uke at once instead of staying close.
- Uke’s gaze, which must keep Tori under control at every moment.
Precision first, then speed
As in every kata, what matters is not speed but precision: you move slowly, take care of the grip, look at where to strike. Only when every step has been memorised can you raise the pace. Being fast with the wrong movements is no use.
Why choose the bundle
Four videos to study the same kata from different angles: the technical lesson explains, the 1988 video shows the performance of Kodokan Goshin Jutsu and Kime no Kata, and the tutorials guide your study part by part, Toshu no bu and Buki no bu. More tools to use in practice and in teaching.
Bought separately they would cost €347: with the bundle you get them for €197.
How to use it
Not just to watch the techniques, but to study them, understand them and then try them on the tatami with your Uke: slowly and precisely first, then at the right pace. A concrete idea for teachers: devote five or ten minutes of every class to the kata, choosing each time one technique, one atemi, one control or one detail of the relationship between Tori and Uke. In Judo, continuity is worth more than big occasional preparations.
Who it is for
For Judoka preparing Kodokan Goshin Jutsu for grading exams, for teachers who want to pass it on steadily throughout the year, with attention to the details of both Tori and Uke, and for anyone who wants to know Judo as a whole: kata, randori and Shobu Ho.
All content is available to watch online in the Online Dojo. Video helps you observe: it is practice on the tatami, together with your Uke, that lets you start to feel.
