Kata Rohai – Kaisetsu (Application)
‘White heron’, ‘vision of a crane’, ‘crane sign’, ‘heron sign’. A Kata of the Tomari-te and practised in many schools of Karate in Okinawa and Japan. Developed by Karate master Matsumura-Soken. In the Matsumura-Shorin-ryu school of Okinawa the three versions taught are Rohai-ge, Rohai-chu, and Rohai-jo. Also known as Lo-hai or Gankaku.
Rohai translates as “heron sign” or “heron mark”. The name “Rohai”, with identical kanji, is the name of a traditional Okinawan Kata. ‘White heron’, ‘vision of a crane’, ‘crane sign’, ‘heron sign’. A Kata of the Tomari-te and practised in many schools of Karate in Okinawa and Japan. Developed by Karate master Matsumura-Soken. In the Matsumura-Shorin-ryu school of Okinawa the three versions taught are Rohai-ge, Rohai-chu, and Rohai-jo. Also known as Lo-hai or Gankaku. The traditional Okinawan Kata is not the same Kata as the Chito-ryu Rohai and includes the signature moves of standing on one leg to avoid leg attacks. The origins of Chito-ryu Rohai are unknown.
Excerpts taken from the ‘Wado Comprehensive’ and an ‘A to Z of Martial-arts’, written by Gary E Swift Hanshi.