An Introduction To The Basics - Ichi Gan, Ni Soku, San Tan, Shi Riki Karate 4 Life

We're very excited to be introducing an incredibly deep topic in this episode, but to be honest we feel like we're only just scratching the surface.



It's a bit of a technical topic, but it's also a great metaphor for life.



In the dojo, we always ask the question, "What is it that I need to focus on the most that will have the biggest impact on what I'm trying to do?" In going as deep as you can on these concepts in this podcast you'll always find a good answer to this question.



Hopefully it is more than enough to get you curious and keen to learn more. This episode is just a start, in upcoming episodes we will go deeper and explore each of the elements of this concept in greater detail.





---- Transcript ----



Sandra: Hey everyone, this is Martin & Sandra Phillips and welcome back to the Karate 4 Life Podcast.



Sandra: Today we want give you an introduction to the basics of karate and life.



Martin: Otherwise know as ichi gan, ni soku, san tan, shi riki.



We've noticed that everyone faces challenges in life, some big some small. But not everyone has a way to navigate these problems.



Sandra: It’s not always easy, but we’ve found that we always keep coming back to what we’ve learned from our years in the dojo.



Martin: And that’s what this podcast is about...



Sandra: Helping us all find the solutions to life’s problems...



Martin: Or even better yet, to remove the problems before they arise.



Sandra: This is Martin & Sandra Phillips and welcome to the Karate 4 Life Podcast.





Sandra: Wow, Martin I can't believe we're actually doing this one today. To be honest with you, when you first mentioned this, I thought, "You can't be serious." This is just--



Martin: It's a bit of a deep topic this one, isn't it?



Sandra: It's so deep. It's insanely deep. I don't know how to explain it. It's going to be a tough few episodes for us coming up, I think, because we're only going to be scratching on the surface, if that.



Martin: Yes, this is a bit like that. This really is the foundation for everything that we do in the dojo. We look at this concept, ichi gan, ni soku, san tan, shi riki, and it is the basis of all basics. It's the basis of everything that we do, not just in the dojo, but it's a fantastic metaphor for life as well, as we take these lessons outside of the dojo as well.



Sandra: Yes. Even, I guess, right now, you could say, "A long story made short," just really appreciate these concepts and really apply them and go deep as you possibly can.



Martin: We probably should explain what they are, shouldn't we?



Sandra: We really should do that, yes. Okay. In the intro, we mentioned ichi gan, ni soku, san tan, and shi riki. I'm going to hand it over to you, because you're our Japanese kanji expert. If you could please do a little bit of a quick meaning of these four.



Martin: Yes. Ichi gan, this first, is the eyes.



Sandra: Ichi means number one, right?



Martin: Number one. Ichi gan, yes. First, the eyes. Ni soku, the second, is legs or the stance.



Sandra: Ni is number two and Soku is legs.



Martin: San tan-- I'm going to pause here for a moment, because this one's often mistranslated and, to be honest, there's not really a great English version of this. San tan is often translated as tanden-- not really a translation, but just a Japanese word used. Tanden refers to the energy center in your body located in your lower abdomen. San tan is literally liver.



Sandra: Yes?



Martin: The liver. It kind of sounds a bit strange, but we'll get to that later.



Sandra: We'll get to that.



Martin: Shi riki, this fourth, is power. When you add these first three together, ichi gan, ni soku, san tan, shi riki-- because shi equals riki, that's the power.



Sandra: Like a birthday cake. There's your ingredients; 1 + 2 + 3 = your cake that you just baked in the oven.



Martin: That's the one. Yes. Good way to describe it.



Sandra: If you think of it like that, we're g