Unleashing the Power of Kiai
What is unleashing the power of kiai in martial arts? This is a common question that seems to pop up everywhere. But know that I think about it, we could ask the same question about tennis players. Screaming and vocalisation play a significant role in various sports. Including martial arts e.g. karate, taekwondo or kung fu just to name a few. Unleashing the power of kiai, during strikes is a common practice. And thought that we can enhance power as well as force into our technical skills. This is achieved by forcefully expelling air during strikes or kicks. Martial artists aim to optimise their movements, breathing therefore, generating more power. So let’s dive into this idea more closely.
WHAT IS KIAI?
Kiai (気合) is a shout, or battle cry that martial artists make when they perform a technique usually at the climactic moment of a kata or a strike.
Ki (気) means energy and ai (合) means to meet, join or unite, so the word kiai itself means the joining or unification of all energy sources in your body. When you kiai, the aim, is to bring out all the stored energy you have and transfer it to your opponent at the moment you deliver a technique.
The Kiai is the shout at the end of a technique and in conjunction with the expulsion of air (Kime) Will maximize the power of the movement. It also had the effect of surprising an opponent and may momentarily paralyze their response.
The concept of KI is at the root of all martial arts and shown also in Japanese philosophy. KI is the spirit and energy along with the breath meeting AI at the moment of impact.
DEVELOPING YOUR KIAI
This skill is very important. It is not just a shout or a scream from the throat. If you put your hand on the stomach and cough you will feel the muscles of your abdomen contract. This in fact is the start of your kiai
HOW TO KIAI
If you have ever trained in martial arts you will heard the kiai ring out across the dojo. Please remember that no two kiais sounds the same. Anybody can yell when they lose their temper. A good kiai is like an auditory cannon, fuelled by intent and purpose. The sound should be short but delivered quickly and powerfully . The emotional fuel is not anger or frustration. But instead, it’s just like a lion roaring sending out clear warning, if threatened.
There is no shortcut to martial arts or a great kiai. Here’s some helpful tips if you’re a beginner or just want to make your kiai standout.
TIPS FOR A STRONG KIAI
- Just imagine that somebody is about to punch you in the stomach. You then need to tense your stomach muscles in order to prevent yourself from getting winded.
- When ready, expel the air out of the bottom of the lungs vigorously. To do this, focus on contracting your abdominal muscles.
- Create a vocalisation using mostly the back of the throat. A proper kiai will inevitably come out as some sort of vowel sound, but you can use any sounds according to what feels natural. You don’t actually need to use the word “kiai” during the battle cry. Just any words that you comfortable.
- Give yourself permission to be loud. Having a barely audible kiai will not get the job done. So if you’ve been raised to keep quiet, then you’ll need to work through that mental block.
- I use to notice in gradings that the older guys were loud, but the majority of females were very quiet. After I learnt how to project my kiai as confident and loud. I remember doing a kata for one of my gradings and I took one of the blackbelts completely off guard and he fell off his chair.
- Sculpt your vocalisation into a pulse. The kiai is not a scream, but more of an impact tool in its own right. Direct the internal power of kiai towards the intended target.
PURPOSE OF KIAI
Kiai is believed to have the many benefits in your martial arts:
- Increasing the power of your techniques.
- Helping you have better breathing technique. Sometimes you may have too much tension in your body. Also when you begin sparring for the first time you can often hold your breathe. But if you have to kiai on the majority of your strikes, you will breathe out a lot more and help your body to relax.
- Protecting you from an attack. When you’re launching an attack is also the time you are most vulnerable to a counter-attack. However, if you kiai at the moment of your offensive technique, you will tighten up the abdominal area and harden your body, therefore protecting yourself somewhat from simultaneous counter-attacks
- Bringing out your fighting spirit. The simple kiai has the ability to instantly lift up the spirit of every karateka. If you doubt it, just compare a class where everyone is practicing quietly to a class where everyone kiai’s with every technique they perform. There will be a marked difference in the training spirit you witness on the dojo floor
- Startling or frightening an opponent. A loud piercing kiai can startle or threaten your opponent, giving you a brief advantage to deliver decisive attacks when the opponent is not yet ready.
WHY ITS IMPORTANT IN KARATE
If you train in karate, you will have already seen kiai in practice. You will notice kiai comes out a lot in kihon, kata, sparring, and especially competitions.
In competition, kiai is taken into consideration in judging your kata performance. But also in kumite. By yelling kiai with every strike it helps bring attention to your techniques and improves the chances of scoring a point.
HISTORY OF KIAI
THE STORY OF KIAI
When I began researching where Kiai originally came from, I came across many different tales about its origin. But the following story is one that caught my attention . The story is centred around Matsumura Bushi during one of his famous exploits. It’s stated that Matsumura’s reputation often preceeded him, even amongst the lower classes on Okinawa. As such, a local craftsman was quite surprised and pleased when Matsumura entered his shop to have some minor work done. Unable to contain his enthusiasm, the craftsman revealed himself as a karateka and promptly asked Matsumura for a lesson. After refusing, Matsumura was challenged to a match by the bold and impatient karateka. Eventually Matsumura acquiesed and agreed to meet the man the next morning.
Just as the sun was rising both men faced each other. At first the craftsman was confident due to his strength, size, and skill. However, as he approached Matsumura to begin the match he noticed something unusual. Matsumura stood naturally with an unflinching gaze. His posture was statuesque, his mouth pursed as if saying something while saying nothing, and his eyes fierce as an eagle. The craftsman felt ill to his stomach and had to sit down. When ready, the karateka tried again to begin an assault but was once again accosted by Matsumura’s presence. Just as the craftsman steadied himself for a final attempt, Matsumura let loose a spirit shout akin to a lightning bolt strike and the man was brought to an utter standstill, forfeiting the match and asking for forgiveness.
MY REFLECTION ON THIS CONCEPT
I thought the concepts are of this quite interesting when it came to understanding the meaning of kiai. Though the story is unprovable it has a mystical twist. Matsumura utilized applied mental psychology to overwhelm his opponent. Just like when we listen to our intuition , we are able to detect potential threats and if someone gives off a bad vibe . Matsumura’s used this same tactic to instill in his opponent extreme sensations of fear. His kiai disrupted the challenger before he could attack.
SCIENCE BEHIND KIAI
As I started to dive deeper while researching unleashing the power of kiai I came across of few research articles:
In 2019, a study published in the journal “Perception” focused on the effects of shouting on visual perception. The researchers found that making the face associated with shouting increases alertness and broadens the field of vision. This was suggested that screaming or kiai may enhance performance in sports by improving focus and visual awareness.
Overall, yelling in sports, including martial arts, serves various purposes. It allows athletes to release energy and exertion, improve focus and concentration, express intense emotions, and boost motivation and confidence. Scientific evidence supports the notion that screaming can increase grip strength, jumping distance, pain endurance, and coordination. Furthermore, its evolutionary roots related to fight-or-flight responses suggest potential benefits for enhancing physical performance.
Despite the potential for criticism or startling spectators, the advantages of vocalization should not be overlooked. Athletes can leverage screaming as a tool to maximise their abilities and gain an edge in the competitive arena.
For a deeper look into another study called A Research Study Shows Grunting (KIAI) Improves Performance click the following link https://japaneseculturecenter.com/research-study-shows-grunting-kiai-improves-performance/
FINAL THOUGHTS ON UNLEASHING THE POWER OF KIAI
From all the research I’ve done to me it seems we all have our own idea of what kiai means. To me, when you are struggling with something or about to take on a new challenge I like to close my eyes and think about how I feel when I let out a kiai. Because it can feel very therapeutic . Suddenly I feel more confident and able to take on whatever is in front of me. I feel focused and determined just by using the spirit of kiai.
You should focus on what’s inside you and not outside. Develop your inner self and learn how to create power from within. To me kiai is a individual battle cry. You use kiai to combine physical skill, your spirit, and your mind for maximum impact. So next time you training think about unleashing the power of kiai when practicing your kata, kihon or sparring session. Use this time to develop the timing of your kiai and its amazing power.