Kata-guruma

Tori breaks Uke’s balance directly forward, or to the right front corner. He loads Uke’s body up onto his right shoulder, across the back of his neck to his left shoulder, and then throws him down. This section covers similar techniques.

Tori and Uke grapple in right natural posture. Tori draws Uke out while moving backward and begins to break his balance forward. Tori takes a big step back with his left foot, so that Uke steps forward with his right foot, and while opening his body to the left, he lifts Uke by pulling upwards with the left hand, and lifting and pulling with the right hand, so that Uke’s body weight rests over his right foot as his balance breaks. Tori steps his right foot inside Uke’s feet, and enters inside Uke. He bends both knees, lowers his waist, assumes a right defensive posture, and draws Uke towards him. He puts his right shoulder on Uke’s right front hip and the back of his neck, on the front side of Uke’s right hip. He inserts his right hand inside Uke’s legs and places it on his right inside thigh, and holds the lower half of Uke’s body.

Tori changes the direction of his left pulling hand towards his own left hip, drawing it straight down, while moving the left foot closer to his own right foot. He raises his head, straightening the back of his neck, throws out his chest, and in one stroke, raises his waist and loads Uke’s body across his right and left shoulders. At this moment, Uke’s body responds by bending back and resisting.

Tori continues this action of loading Uke up, and pulls down with the left hand. Pushing up with the right hand and rotating Uke around the fulcrum of the back of his neck, he throws him over the left shoulder to the left front corner. Uke is thrown in a large circle diagonally left and forwards.

The principles of this technique are identical to those of the Nage no Kata, except for the action of tori’s left pulling hand. In the kata, tori’s left hand changes to grip uke’s right inside sleeve on the second step. Tori moves away from uke, pulls upwards with the left hand, lifts up with the right hand while moving back and drawing uke, lifting him to the right front corner, and breaking his balance. At the moment uke’s body is lifted, tori lowers his waist, steps his right foot between uke’s feet and pulls further upwards with his left hand. If tori pulls down too quickly, uke’s waist will bend, rendering the kuzushi (breaking the balance) ineffective, so that uke is able firmly to resist being loaded up.

It is vital that the back of tori’s neck, as the fulcrum for rotating uke’s body, is placed against the front side of his belt. It is not possible to load uke onto the back and throw him with the waist bent. This is also true if the back of tori’s neck is inserted in uke’s right armpit. Tori inserts the right hand between uke’s thighs and puts it onto his right inside thigh, and at the same time, pulls down with the left hand. Tori must channel energy from his waist to successfully load uke up. In order to do this, he should bend both knees, lower the waist, and straighten the back of his neck. However, if he leans forward he will not be able to load uke up.

When tori throws uke, he pulls straight down with the left hand and pushes uke’s right inside thigh up with his right hand while throwing him down in front of the left foot. The following techniques are used when tori loads uke up and throws him down: Tori steps his left foot diagonally left and forward, lowers his waist, and executes the throw. Tori steps back with the left foot, opens his body to the left, thereby changing the direction he faces. He grips uke’s right sleeve with his right hand and throws him by pulling straight down with both hands.

At the moment tori changes the direction he faces to execute the throw, he pushes uke’s body up with the right hand, and at the moment uke’s body falls, he grips uke’s right sleeve with the right hand and throws him using the ippon-seoi-nage form.