Fudo Dachi
不動立ち
Literally: immovable stance
Also known as: Sochin dachi
Rooted Shotokan stance formed by turning shiko dachi; in the Sochin kata it is called sochin dachi.
Quick Facts
Katas containing this technique
About
Fudo dachi, literally rooted stance, forms from a low shiko dachi turned forty-five to ninety degrees to the side, head still facing forward. The front foot shifts forward about a foot's length. It thus combines shiko dachi's stability with a strong attack from the back leg. In Shotokan it is the dominant stance of the Sochin kata, hence also called sochin dachi; it also appears in Bassai Dai. Sochin itself, meaning quiet power, was taught in Naha-te by Seisho Arakaki and, by some accounts, may derive from a dragon style of kung fu. Yoshitaka Funakoshi, son of Gichin Funakoshi, brought it into Shotokan in modified form. The two present-day versions differ precisely in stance: Shotokan's stands almost entirely in fudo dachi, while Shito-ryu's alternates the cat stance nekoashi dachi with the front stance zenkutsu dachi.