Hangetsu (Japanese: "Half Moon") is an advanced kata

Kata

is a Japanese word describing detailed choreographed patterns of movements practised either solo or in pairs. The term form is used for the corresponding concept in non-Japanese martial arts in general....

 practiced in Shotokan

Shotokan

is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi and his son Gigo Funakoshi . Gichin was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing karate through a series of public demonstrations, and by promoting the development of university karate clubs, including...

 karate

Karate

is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...

. It originates from the Naha-te school. The first part is executed slowly with strong breathing, stressing the development of the hara

Dantian

Dantian, dan t'ian, dan tien or tan t'ien is loosely translated as "elixir field". It is described as an important focal point for internal meditative techniques.There are various points of dantian...

. This sequence shares a strong similarity with sanchin

Sanchin

is a kata of Southern Chinese origin that is considered to be the core of several styles, the most well-known being the Goju Ryu and Uechi Ryu styles of Karate as well as the Chinese martial arts of Fujian White Crane, Five Ancestors, Pangai-noon and the Tiger-Crane Combination style associated...

. The second part of the kata is more dynamic in its execution, with an explosion of punches as well as graceful mae geri (front kicks). Due to the shared principles of expansion and contraction, Gichin Funakoshi

Gichin Funakoshi

was the creator of Shotokan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is attributed as being the 'father of modern karate.' Following the teachings of Anko Itosu, he was one of the Okinawan karate masters who introduced karate to the Japanese mainland in 1921...

 substituted hangetsu for sanchin in the Shotokan curriculum. Mastery of this kata rests on mastery of hangetsu-dachi (half-moon stance)which is characterized by its semi-circular step movement of the back leg to the center, and then forward. The kata consists of 41 movements. The older Okinawan version of this kata is known as Seisan

Seisan

The karate kata Seisan literally means '13', however some people refer to the kata as '13 Hands', '13 Fists', '13 Techniques', '13 Steps' or even '13 killing positions'. However, all these names are made up and have no historical basis.Seisan is thought to be one of the oldest kata quite spread...

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